Our first year...an incredible journey!

Okay, here goes...I'm taking the plunge into formal blogging! 

It has been an amazing year of making handmade, RECYCLED paper! When I started 16 months ago I was as skeptical of myself as anyone else might have been. I've been a crafter for most of my life but I dabble in much and focus on little! As I contemplated applying for my first market I kept asking myself...will I stick with this? Is paper making an art form I will keep doing over time? - The verdict - YES! It is such an amazingly vast and diverse subject that I believe I will never truly tire of it!

Making paper started as an art project with my 4yr old daughter. She asked me how paper was made and I tried explaining with words but soon realized this was something I would have to SHOW her!  The choice was either A) Put her in front of a youtube video or B) Watch the youtube video and then get our hands wet and do it together!
  I faintly remembered a grade school project on making recycled paper so I  decided on option B - and found that we both LOVED it! So much so that within weeks I had a 2 foot tall stack of pages that we had made! Friends started asking for note cards and business cards and I began to dream of making a business out of working from home with my daughter...  


 In July of 2011 I set up for the first time at my local farmers' market. It was a simple setup: One table and a variety of colors of handmade, recycled paper for $1 a sheet and envelopes for $1.50 - simple, no frills, feeling completely overwhelmed that I had for the first time in my life attempted to sell something I had made... 
 
That first market was AMAZING! People actually liked and bought my paper...  
During the year since that first market I have researched and learned more about paper making and discovered that I can continue to learn about this art for many years to come!


  October 2011,  I began adding Fabric bound journals. Soon after came chalkboards, paper gift bags and trinket boxes - all of which make use of recycled newsprint.

 The summer of 2012 brought a bloom of FLOWERS! First used to embellish a birthday gift for my sister and then I began to receive special order requests so continued to explore ways to use my recycled paper for larger and more elaborate bouquets.


I have LOVED my experiences as a vendor at my local Farmers' market and will continue to be a vendor there for the foreseeable future! Much of the inspiration for my items has come through special orders and feedback from my "storefront" at the market and has been an invaluable experience on my journey. However as time passes and interest in my work has grown I cannot continue to ignore the benefits of branching into online sales...

Will I focus on selling through Etsy, Facebook, or an independent website...? As yet, I just don't know...but I can see that dream of working from home with my daughter coming closer and closer into view...and I'm reaching out to grab it!

Thank you to everyone who has been part of my journey so far and to all of those who will be part of it along the way!
                                         - Sarah @ WriteAgain - Recycled paper HANDMADE with CARE!!!