what are you working on? = custom Christmas stockings

it's almost impossible to believe that we're at that point in the year when i set my cut-off ordering dates for custom stockings! how can it be mid-november?!

wow.
i'm here sewing sewing sewing up lots of superfun custom stocking orders. i LOVE seeing the fabulous colour-combos folks come up with for their fabulous Holidaying decor!

and just in case you're interested in a custom colour-palette designed set of stockings made just for you for your lovely home,or perhaps you'd like your stocking personalized with a name or date? ---> super! i'm just taking custom orders for a few more days: just until monday, november 19th! {after that i'll be selling only the rest of my in-stock stockings)

so please contact me if you're interested ... i'm sorry to have to turn custom requests away after that point!

and it's super easy! just

1. take a look at my style charts and choose the stocking style(s) you'd like. (or i'm happy to create CUSTOM designs, too!)

2. choose your custom colour palette

3. contact me on etsy and i'll do you up a custom listing!

4. sit back and relax and i'll handcraft just them for you!

 check out some of the fun custom stockings i've been crafting for folks this season!

 all images handmade by me, kristal davis / rikrak

and how about you... 

what are you working on these days, cuties?

happy making!

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great greenie: trashN2tees

greening.... i find it exciting and hopeful that while there sure are lots of terrible things going on to pollute & harm our planet, there are so many wonderful folks doing fabulous things to help make the world a greener, healthier place! so, the rikrak studio is happy to feature great green-ies : snapshots of amazing, inspiring. eco-forward-thinking folks & groups from all sorts of fields and paths in the greening movement. some inspire by greening at home, or in their business; in their art or the larger world, or on many levels at once! i've asked each green-ie to suggest an easy eco-idea or tip we might all be able to add to our daily lives. today i'm honoured to present the next in this series!  

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i love the pairing of eco friendly style & bright, bold, beautiful colour!

and trashN2tees does this perfectly!

creating custom upcycled clothing, bags, jewelry, accessories & more from 100% reclaimed materials, superstar jenelle masterfully mixes sustainable, eco forward design with classic & modern stylings to create a gorgeous *must-have* collection: trashN2tees!

this fact pretty much sums up the awesome: "TrashN2Tees + Action = To date TrashN2Tees has diverted nearly 2.5 tons of clothing from the landfill."

wow!

that's so inspiring, jenelle! 

you're fabulous! (ps: AND she won a bronze in the 2012 handmade olympics! snazzy!)

AND now, trashN2tees is offering clothing recycling within Central Kentucky. Clothing will be collected & processed in collaboration with Wearable Collections (NYC.) COOL!

so visit this great greenie around the web (you'll LOVE her resourceful & inspiring blog AND check out her FABULOUS upcycled tshirt DIY tutorial list on pinterest, too!) . & read on for jenelle's fabulous ECO TIPS: 

trashN2tees

shop | blog | twitter | facebook

JENELLE'S ECO TIP: Strut your stuff. Eco is in, ladies & gents. I love new clothes and staying stylish but guess what- You don't have to shop at the mall, boutiques, or big name department stores to do it!

There are several of ways that can build a fantabulous eco chic wardrobe that will 1) give you a guilt free shopping experience and 2.) reduce your carbon footprint. Now for the fun stuff!

Raid your parents & grandparents closet. Seriously- you never know what you might find in there. Jumpers, shoulder pads, color blocking, bright florals & neon are all in right now, and are all old school. I'm only confessing to owning some floral and neons though- none of the others!

Thrift stores. No nose crinkling- thrift stores are AWESOME! By reusing existing items, you’re decreasing the demand – and therefore production. Fewer resources are burned creating new goods and you saved the awesome t-shirt you just bought from becoming garbage.

Just add wine! Okay well thats not all- but its a good place to start! Get your friends together and host a clothing swap party. It's an easy way to pass on some of the items your no longer digging & possibly acquire a whole new look. Don't stop at just clothing either- you can include jewelry, shoes, and handbags!

Lastly, break out the scissors & get craftastic. Restyle your exsisting wardrobe- need some inspiration? Check out TrashN2Tees Ultimate Upcycled Tshirt Tutorial List.  

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vote: event 3

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thanks so very much for all of your fantastic nominations in the 2012 Handmade Olympics. what a wonderful celebration of handmade!

without further ado, i'm thrilled to present our judges' shortlist for event #3! 

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thanks so much to our fabulous judge for this event, kathreen ricketson of whipup fame. former eco craft and lifestyle columnist for Treehugger,  she's also the author of Whip Up Mini Quilts (Chronicle 2010) and Little Bits Quilting Bee (Chronicle 2011). most recently she has been writing, editing, designing and publishing a kids e-magazine: Action Pack.

find out more about this nicey here!  

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what our judge had to say about the nominations:

"I loved seeing all the beautifully eco friendly designs - reusing, recycling, repurposing is our history and our future and seeing so much invention, beauty, practicality and creativity gladdens my heart!"

................

congratulations to the following & please cast your vote for  
your favourite handmade eco-friendly goodie!

vintage pencil & ruler chimes by vanessaboer

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guerilla gardening seed bombs by visualingual

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nunofelting tunic by Baymut

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wooden stacking bowls by BrightLifeToys

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DIY bird box project by 52 crafts in 52 weeks

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reusable sandwich bags by junienone

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recycled wine bottle chandelier by Metamorphosi

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reusable produce bags by TrashN2Tees

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wow! what a list!
let's vote for our favourite!

voting rules:
1. you can vote once in each event.
2. voting closes on APRIL 27th
3. the top 3-vote getters in each event will be announced on APRIL 30th

okay... please VOTE! 

please be sure to head over to cast your vote in EACH of the 7 events:

vote in event 1

 vote in event 2

vote in event 3

vote in event 4

vote in event 5

vote in event 6

vote in event 7

 

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the amazing PRIZES

the handmade olympics prize packs are just gosh-darn fantastical!

this EVENT will award the following prizes!

including $150 worth of handmade goodness:
a $50 gift certificate to jake + cleo

a $50 gift certificate to remaker

a $50 gift certificate to rikrak

+ an *i WON GOLD*  handmade olympics badge to use on your site/blog/shop 

+ an artist/crafter feature on the rikrak studio blog!

with $60 worth of handmade goodness:
2 months of advertising {may & june} on the rikrak studio blog : value $60

+ an *i WON SILVER*  handmade olympics badge to use on your site/blog/shop 


 

one FREE month of may 2012 advertising on the rikrak studio blog! yay!

+ an *i WON bronze*  handmade olympics badge to use on your site/blog/shop 

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best of luck, nicies! yay handmade!

 

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earth hour 2012

 { the handmade earth hour }

 white taper candle photograph by pretty petal studio

be the change you wish to see in the world by colorbee

eccentric wall clock by basta collection

earth hour 2012 by the wwf

globe photograph by bird and bloke

juncea air plant by airyobsessions

paper lanterns photograph by sixthandmain

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it's earth hour tomorrow night {march 31st}, sweeties.

a world-wide pledge to turn off our lights for just 60 minutes. over 131 countries will join in on the darkness.

 

how will you be celebrating in the dark?

i'd love to hear. {i look for creative lovelies to include in my earth hour followup post every year!} 

 

our family's looking forward to participating in the fabulous toronto earth hour celebration (with the funfun choir choir choir in the distillery district! see you there?!) 

have a wonderful, energy-restoring weekend lovelies.

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the handmade community Holiday gift guide : week 4

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yay it's holiday time!
and no better time for *sharing!*

welcome to the 4th of 6 handmade community co-operative gift guides: where YOU show the world your gorgeous creations + handmade works of others that you LOVE!

each tuesday leading up to the HOLIDAYS, i'll be inviting folks to be part of the fun!

today there are 3 different categories you can add your goodies in!

let's see what we can make!

show us your best!
+ the works of others you admire.

:: check out the first 9 gift guides here ::

gift guide { one } :: holiday decor

gift guide { two } :: for baby

gift guide { three } :: jewelry lovers

gift guide { four } :: a beautiful home

gift guide { five } :: well-dressed : men

gift guide { six } ::  well-dressed : women

gift guide { seven } :: calendars

gift guide { eight } :: gifts under $20

gift guide { nine } :: custom gifts

HOW TO PLAY

1. please add one item of your own, and one of another's, in as many of the categories as you'd like!

2. invite your friends! 

3. please share the 2011 handmade community Holiday gift guide button on your sites.

<center><a href="http://rikrakstudio.blogspot.com/search?q=2011gg" target="_blank"><img alt="the rikrak studio" src="http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/rikrakstudio/holidaygg160x160.jpg" /></a></center>

4. COME BACK every tuesday for more communal Holiday fun!

yay to handmaking and co-operative community building!
{& hope it's great publicity for you too, nicies! } 

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 holiday gift guide10

{ fun }

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holiday gift guide 11

{ eco forward }

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holiday gift guide 12

{ warm }

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a gorgeous giveaway with phul effect

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hip & fabulous, i just love the modern-eclectic vibe at the statement jewelry wonderland PHUL EFFECT. designer crysten glawe reworks gorgeous vintage elements & creates trendsetting eco-concious art-to-wear that any fashionista will just adore!

so if you love vintage, geometric, hipster, edgy , *be your own star* uniqueness, be sure to visit everything PHUL EFFECT! 

PHUL EFFECT

jewelry shop | twitter | facebook | blog

and now.. you can WIN your very own PHUL EFFECT prize pack filled 

with gorgeous jewelry! (& there's a discount code, too!)

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> lucky us... <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

one rikrak studio reader will WIN this amazing PHUL EFFECT prize pack, valued at $40! 

it includes: a dear to my heart necklace

a pair of white elephant earrings

&

a straight & arrow ring

gorgeous!

and....

use the coupon code 

"RIKRAK" 

for 20% off 

your phul effect etsy shop

purchase. expires december 31!

:: PLEASE NOTE ::  

each entry must be its own comment.

thanks!

1. visit the beautiful PHUL EFFECT shop on etsy.

tell us what your favourite item is.

=   1 entry

2. heart/fave the PHUL EFFECT shop on etsy.

...  & tell us.
=   1 entry

3. become a friend/ like PHUL EFFECT on facebook.

...  & tell us.

=   1 entry

4. follow BOTH crysten {she's @phuleffect } AND the rikrak shop (that's me! @therikrakshop )  on twitter

... & tell us.

= 1 entry

5. tweet on twitter

... about this giveaway and come back here and tell us! be sure to include @therikrakshop so i can find you! 

= 1 entry

6.follow the PHUL EFFECT blog

= 1 entry

7.  follow or burn the rss feed  to the rikrak studio blog

... & tell us.

you can become a google friend connect *follower* by clicking "follow" on the top left of the blog home page OR subscribe via email or *reader* on the left hand column.

= 1 entry

8. blog about this giveaway

... come back and tell us.

= 1 entry

9. grab one of my rikrak studio buttons,
like this one from the left hand sidebar, for YOUR BLOG!

<center><a href="http://rikrakstudio.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img alt="the rikrak studio" src="http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/rikrakstudio/therikrakstudiorectangle.jpg" /></a></center>

<center><a href="http://rikrakstudio.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img alt="the rikrak studio" src="http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/rikrakstudio/therikrakstudiosquare.jpg" /></a></center>

and add it to your blog!

{ ... just copy & paste the text in the box above  onto your blog sidebar! thanks! }

10. :: PLEASE NOTE ::

each entry must be its own comment.

thanks! ::

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:: RULES ::

a) it is possible to have a maximum of 9 entries total per person.
b) please make sure to leave each entry as its own comment. thanks!
c) using random.org, 1 winner of the phul effect giveaway will be chosen on friday, november 4th @ 11pm EST.
d) open to contestants worldwide.
e) please be sure to leave me an email where i can reach you if your account doesn't link to one. thanks.

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