Heartmade

Welcome! To the re-designed site and new junebugs logo! We kinda snuck it up on you! Since I'm not very tech-savvy, Dale has been working round the clock to learn about blogger and all it has to offer. And I think he's done a terrific job if I do say so myself!  There is still tonnes to learn, but this is a great start! 

We are a bit of a diy family.  It would be great to have a professional graphic artist work on the logo, but for now this is perfect, and Dale put so much thought and love into it...which makes it even more special.  I can't forget to give a little shout out to John for turning our original image into a vector file...I have no idea what that means...but I like that it makes me sound like I do.

The craft of making things yourself seems to be coming back lately.  We are a diy generation, and with resources like pinterest and blogs coupled with a lot of determination, there isn't much that one can't succeed at.  With that being said, the "quality" of the item may be questionable, but that's what it's all about... taking a chance and trying something new.  It's okay for the finished product to be imperfect, rustic, a little rough around the edges per say.  There is a whole "joie de vivre" aspect about it.  You made it yourself, celebrate that project and enjoy it, even if it doesn't look perfect, or perhaps even the way you imagined it would.

There is also a great lesson in having the courage to take it apart when you make a mistake, start again from scratch or call a friend with a little more expertise.  A lesson that I have had to learn over and over. I can so easily get upset with myself for messing up, reminds me of Levi. Ah, so that's where he gets it from.  I've mentioned this before, how his frustrations can mount so quickly from a tiny setback. I'm happy to report that he has progressed remarkably well in this area.  Instead of screams of frustration we're hearing more words like: oops, it's okay and aww no ( in a positive tone of voice). Guess it's time for me to learn yet another lesson through my son and step up my game. Recently, I've been working on this in the sewing realm. When I'm doing the final pressing of a crayon wallet and iron over the velcro subsequently melting it, resulting in my needing to take apart mostly the whole project.  While in times past I may have whipped it on the floor and called myself something like stupid...told mysef what a "great" job I did, this time I just calmly set it to the side and left it there.  Good news is that's progress, bad news is, its still sitting there.

Some of us have been do-it-yourselfers for quite some time now, but then we might just call that our craft or hobby.  It could be scrapbooking, carving, knitting, sculpting, painting, crocheting, sewing, gardening, baking, woodworking, assembling models or skinning an animal for all I know.  The fact is that there is a deep sense of accomplishment that comes from starting and completing a project on one's own.  We live in a world, where one can go to work and do, do, do for eight hours without having really even completed anything in some cases.  For some, the day is only spent working on a portion of a project without even seeing the full thing come to completion.  You do your part and then it gets sent away, off into the digital world, or to someone else's desk or hands and you start on a new project. Don't get me wrong, team work is an important aspect of life, but there is also something to be said about completing a project start to finish.

Homemade breakfast in bed

Homemade pizza night

For those of us who have received anything made with the sweat and tears of someone else, it is certain that these gifts are held in a close part of our hearts.  It might be something as detailed as a quilt or simple as a nice plate of freshly baked cookies. So whether you whittle, stitch, sand, paint, bake or dig, whether you call it homemade or hand made, it is most definitely heart made.

Quilts from grandma

Simple date and almond butter balls

 So what's your thing or what do you like to receive? Let me know and be entered to win a free crayon wallet in the colour of your choice! View styles here.

To enter the crayon wallet giveaway:

1. Leave a comment below telling me what your favourite handmade thing is to make or receive.
2. Receive a bonus entry by sharing this link on your facebook page and leaving me a comment saying that you've done so.
3. Receive a second bonus entry for becoming a follower of junebugs blog.