How I make my hand stitched notebooks

Best Selling Romance hand stitched notebookA fellow Etsian asked me if my notebooks came ready made and I just added something to it. So, I think I should explain my process.

Before I go on, in my notebooks, you will usually find that the first/last inside page is different than the rest. I did that because I use them to as the place for the table of contents and notes. But if the design/purpose doesn’t call for it, then it will be the same as the rest of the inside pages.

If I have a cover design in mind:

  1. I select a cover weight paper that fits with the design
  2. Print the design using my laser printer (so the design won’t fade by water droplets) but a few designs do require ink jet output.
  3. Select the first/last and inside pages to go with the cover

More Examples: “Your Way, Yes Way“, “Idea Reservoir

Roses Set hand stitched notebookIf I find paper with interesting pattern or texture, I’ll pick something different for the first/last page to go with the pattern or texture.

For the inside pages, I usually use quality white paper that is much more opaque than copier paper. If the design calls for it, I’ll use the color paper. In is case, the notebook might have less pages because color paper is thicker than the white paper.

Winter Trees hand stitched notebookOnce the paper for the cover, first/last and inside page are collected, I use a color cotton thread that goes with the notebook, then hand stitched them together.

The last step is to cut the notebook into the final size. And depending on the design, I decide to round the corners or not. Most of the time I do because straight cut corners tend to get bent.

I try my best to find materials that are made of recycled materials and/or can be recycled and often decides against designs that will make my products hard to recycle.

Shocked! Must Delete Online Profiles

Last week, I found a phone in front of my building. After a while a message with a number came up for me to call. No one answered. So I went online to see if it’s near by and that I can walk around to see if anyone is looking for a phone.

When I saw the image of this person’s house, I was shocked. It sent me into a frenzy, looking for my own info. And yes, I found the image of my building. Then I tried someone I know who refuse to use Facebook because of this very reason, didn’t make a difference, still a pretty detail profile.

So far I found 3 sites with my info and tried to delete them:

  1. Spokeo.com
    1. Try searching for your name, phone number, and email. When your profile pulls up, don’t faint when you see a photo of your house.
    2. Copy the URL on the top of your profile page.
    3. Go to the bottom of their Privacy page, fill in the blanks. (I used an email made for junk mail.)
    4. Click on “Remove This Listing”
    5. Wait for an email to confirm the deletion.
  2. PeopleSmart.com
    1. Go to their opt-out page then use their link find your listing.
    2. Once found, click on “This is the one” button. It will fill in the personal info blanks for you. For email, I used one that was made for junk mail only.
    3. Under “Define your privacy settings”, select “Hide everything”.
      Finish up with step 3.
  3. MyLife.com
    Do not sign up for an account just to delete your profile, that didn’t work for me. I’m waiting for a tv station to see if they’d find a way to do it.

A Lucky Charm from Japan

geku omamoriToday, an Omamori (お守り) came to me in the mail.

When I was in Japan, I developed an addiction to omamaori. I got at least one of those at every temple I’ve ever visited. My friend was very considerate as to support my habit and now I get my lucky charm when ever she visits a temple in Japan.

This one is from the Isejingu‘s (伊勢神宮) Geku (外宮).

Omamori usually comes in more of a rectangular shape, a comma shape one is unusual. Some say it symbolizes the Magatama Pond in Geku. It comes in different colors but some how my friend picked orange, a color that has been a favorite lately. How did she know??

This omamori is for “opening fortunes” and I’ve attached it to my bag and ready to enjoy the good luck everywhere I go.

Thoughts Flow Handmade Notebook

Thoughts Flow Suminagashi Handmade NotebookMary Hayward, the host of Kenji’s Light of Hope event, left me a comment to see if I’d be interested in donating my notebook for their fundraising event to aid the The Igari Music Therapy Research Center which was damaged in March Japan earthquake.

I knew the participating artists have amazing pieces, so I had to do something new. And to go with the theme of Japan, I used the Suminagashi (Japanese paper marbling) technique to create an organic background. This forces me to break out of my usual geometric self.

For the cover I place two kanji characters:
Thoughts (思): prayers to send to Japan, inspirations to flow on to the paper from the owner’s hand.
Flow (流): unending streams of the word and of the ink on the paper

I hope the fundraising event goes well and my notebook will go with my best wishes to someone with a big heart.

NeedToNote Hand Stitched Notebook Review

Yes, I finally crossed over, from static images (graphic design) to moving images (YouTube).

My client (for design) and customer (for hand stitched notebook), Marielle, was kind enough to share her review about the “Best Selling Romance” notebook she bought from my Etsy shop.

I know it might be hard for potential customers to believe what Marielle said in the video review since I did the taping. However, we did not prepare for it at all, no script, no run through.

A side note: sorry you can’t see the stitching from the video, so be sure to find it in the “Best Selling Romance” listing page.

No matter what may come of it, I want to thank Marielle, The Money Whisperer, for being a friend and a supporter!

Made in USA Measuring Spoon Set

It’s hard to find everyday things that are made in USA. For this reason, I’ve been searching for measuring spoons for over a year.

Pourfect 12-Piece Measuring Spoon SetLast week, I found them – Pourfect 12-Piece Measuring Spoon Set. They came in 8 different colors. Each set comes with a leveler and hard to find sizes like 2 tablespoon and 3/4 teaspoon. I like the wide handle, big text, and they are not at all flimsy like the old set I have.

Besides the fact that I appreciate the quality, I’m happy to support Pourfect, who manufacture all their products in the States. And I will continue to search for US made products and hope you will, too.

Best Green Kitchen Grime Cleaner

Naturally It's Clean Kitchen cleanerAfter getting an amazing result from Naturally It’s Clean Carpet Spot Treatment, I tried their Kitchen enzymes based cleaner.

I sprayed it on a corner of my stovetop, waited a few minutes, wiped the surface with a microfiber cloth, then out came it’s smooth surface. A few areas that had thicker grease, I sprayed again, then wipe it clean. No Elbow Grease Necessary!

Make sure to click on the before and after photo to see the performance up close.

If you think a spot might be really hard to clean, I recommend waiting for 10 minutes before wiping it off, much easier that way.

Who knew enzymes can do more than helping people digest our food!

Slow may be a good thing

A friend mistook something I said and thought I didn’t care.

It was a good thing that I was a bit slow. I didn’t react to her state and went on to explain my statement. It wasn’t until I’ve left, I figured out what had happened.

If my sense was sharp and alert, I wouldn’t have been able to reiterate my true feeling without adding more emotion into the mix.

Slow food is a comfort.
Slow reaction is a blessing.

Best Green Carpet Spot Cleaner

UPDATE: Folex has replace this as my #1 carpet spot cleaner (12/16/2015)

Reuse is a good idea. Using something until they can no longer function is even a better idea. That’s why we have the need to spot clean our carpet.

After trying all kinds of big name carpet spot cleaner and not getting the results I wanted, I decided I should at least go green.

Naturally It's Clean Carpet Spot CleanerAs a test, I bought a bottle of Naturally It’s Clean Carpet Cleaner, expecting it to only work as well as the other cleaners I’ve tried. I soaked a pretty dirty spot waited 5 minutes, dried it with an old t-shirt. Wow, that spot is now clean!

I was so impressed, I went to Naturally It’s Clean web site and found out that they have products for floor, kitchen, laundry, toilet, and more. They are all non-toxic, safe, and made in USA. If you want to find it locally, use their “Where to Buy” tool.

I’m trying their Kitchen cleaner next.

Think downstream

Simple Glass Wall“Reuse!” People say that a lot and it’s a great idea but I suggest that you take it a bit further downstream.

Seen those art projects people make out of the liter soda bottles by glueing more items on them? How would you recycle those after that? We don’t know if the items attached to the bottles are recyclable or not. Or if they will break or jam up the machines/process at the recycling plants.

To me, reuse only make sense when you can’t find a place to recycle the item or when the item is reused in a purposeful, long term way, such as glass bottle wall.