Sunday, February 5, 2017

The Tea Party...

A sweet friend of mine [Nick Friedman] is the owner/potter of this gorgeous little pottery shop that sits right on the bank of the French Broad River in Brevard, NC.  Charmingly named "Duckpond Pottery".  Just about all of the clay he uses is local to Transylvania County, which makes is super awesome!
Lately, he's been busy making these gorgeous little tea cups and will soon be serving tea on the deck of the pottery shop.  I went down yesterday, not only to pick up a cup I just had to have, but to visit and catch up.  Nick showed me some adorable low tables he made [I don't know why I didn't get pictures of those, but I will go back and grab a few and update this post with them here].  Seating cushions will soon be available to sit on, have hot teas, listen to music [or not], and enjoy the beautiful sounds of the water gently flowing down the river
Nick invited me to have a seat on the "invisible" cushion and he served us "pretend" tea from a beautiful handmade teapot and cups.  I have to say, it was a most pleasant afternoon:
[the view from my "cushion"]
And I came home with a smile on my face, warmth in my heart and the most beautiful little tea cup I have ever seen!  It fits my hand like a glove and is the perfect size for my afternoon Kombucha!  Thank you Nick!  You made my day!

love and peace always ~ Kathy

"Love what you do and do what you love.  Passion is the key that opens the door to Joy and Abundance" ~ David Cuschieri

Wednesday, February 1, 2017

EcoEnclose Contest!

When I got the email from EcoEnclose, announcing a contest for their customers and three winners would be picked to win $1,000 worth of EcoEnclose products!  I knew I had to enter!!  Not only do I pride myself on my packaging, I also try to use recycled items whenever possible!  All of my customers LOVE their packages from Dornick Designs!  I try to make them forget they spent money!  I will continue to always upcycle and recycle whenever possible! 
Anybody that knows me, knows what a huge fan of Mary Engelbreit I am!  Every year [for at least the past 15 or 20 years], I purchase one of her desk calendars that has an adorable drawing and, usually a quote, on every page!  I've never been able to part with the pages once I tear them off...they are just too cute and always make me smile.  So, I ended up with a gianormous stack of calendar pages and had nothing to do with them!  Well, I solved that problem by using them to write my "thank you" notes to ALL of my customers:  
I just snip off the date part and then write on the back!  A lot of times [most of the time, actually], I try to pick something out that I think "goes with" the item I am mailing.  It's a great way to recycle and make my customers day at the same time:
The notes are then tucked under the hemp cord that I use to tie the boxes
Speaking of boxes...I always purchase boxes made from recycled materials.  I make my own labels and print them on my little printer at home and cut them out individually with my fancy little scissors.  The stamp is my favorite of all quotes, ever!!  I stamp the outside of every box with that quote "Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life" --- Pablo Picasso.  
I also have a stamp that says "Earth laughs in flowers" by Ralph Waldo Emerson that I stamp on the inside of the box [I forgot to take a picture of that].  I only use acid free archival ink for my stamps.  The flowers I tie on the boxes are created with some flower punches I bought years ago...I don't even know how long I've been using those!  The local library has a huge book sale every year and I go and purchase a couple of books that would otherwise be thrown out, or recycled. 
 I also recycle some of my wall calendars and magazines that are colorful.  
Sometimes I uses dictionaries...whatever I grab that day:
As for the sticks...we live on 3.5 acres in the forest, so there are sticks everywhere!!  I gather them up and keep them in a shoe-box in my closet and that's what I use on my little packages to keep everything in place.  And now, being able to stick my little package inside one of the shipping envelopes from EcoEnclose makes it that much better!!
I also include one of my business cards that are made using my journal drawings...it's like getting a free little art print with your purchase!  

Well, that's about it!  I hope I win the contest!!  I need some new shipping envelopes soon!  Thank you, EcoEnclose!

love and peace always ~ Kathy

"People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel" ~ Maya Angelou