2022 somehow felt like the longest and shortest year. In person shows slowly gained speed, but ongoing (and very valid) concerns about the prevalence of COVID-19 and other illnesses within our community had an impact. Online shows continued and we tried to settle into a new hybrid normal. There seemed to be little political will […]
So…. Some well-meaning folks have contacted me asking me to make buttons that have a Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) theme or, more recently, buttons pertaining to confirmation of the remains of 215 children who were students of the Kamloops Indian Residential School. (This blog post was written after the first recovery in Kamloops, […]
Hi. My name is K-Rae and I take an anti-depressant. There’s a lot of stigma about talking about mental illness. And while that’s something we’re seeing change gradually, it still persists. I still had doubts about posting this, but I feel that it’s important as a step in breaking down that stigma.I took multiple medications […]
(Link to where you can get these for yourself is at the bottom of the post!) Awhile back I posted about examining my supply chain. With COVID-19 turning most of my business online, it made sense that the first place I would look to make significant changes would be my packaging for shipping orders.Previously, I […]
2020 was quite a ride. The cancellation of in-person shows as well as the uncertainty with retailers who pivoted online made for an interesting rollercoaster sales wise. All things considered, we are happy with the following results for this year. Cause Yearly Total Ottawa Food Bank $193.50 Ten Oaks Project $354.50 LGBT Youthline $91.75 Sit […]
Yes. The dead horse that is this topic. Shipping. The holidays. The pandemic. The gridlock. The worry. The panic. The frustration. The fact that it’s 2020, and we’re all feeling the distance between our families and us. I know it feels dismissive when we (yes, I’m using the royal we for makers now) ask for […]
Warning, bit of a rant ahead. Facebook has been expanding a lot of the options for pages since they merged with Instagram. In doing so, they are, at least in theory providing more options for businesses to link and sell their products across the platforms. This isn’t necessarily altruistic – it opens an easy avenue […]
Last week I attended a Small Business Townhall put on by helloseven.co It featured 6 speakers and discussed how small business owners can move forward after the #amplifymelanatedvoices campaign. It was a question on a lot of people’s minds. How do you balance promoting your own business while committing to continuing to work against racism and towards […]
Today’s homework: examining my supply chain. This exercise was spurred by this Chatelaine article that asks “Are you Inadvertently Supporting Trump’s Re-Election?”. I have used ULINE for my packaging products (bubble mailers, glue dots, plastic bags, paper bags) since I started. I’ve known for the last year or so they were not ideal because they […]
Dear fellow white people: If you’re going to buy “Black Lives Matter” related things (shirts, buttons, whatever)… The absolute bare minimum level of allyship you should be expressing is buying those things from a black maker/business. Otherwise, you are literally part of the problem. Your “allyship” is merely creating yet another way for white folks […]