DIY Wood Photo Backdrop

I've been slowly changing over my Etsy shop photos to a white background but first had to build one in order to do so. I needed something a little larger since I photograph banners and a small sheet of 12X12 will only stretch so far, so off to the hardware store...

I purchased two sheets of TriPLY Underlayment 4X8' - I needed something that was going to be light enough for me to move around but sturdy enough so it wouldn't break in half. No special cuts, I just started cutting different lengths of the boards with a table saw, one board was cut horizontally and the other vertically, so I ended up with short and long boards.

Once all the pieces were cut, I lined up all the horizontally cut ones and then laid the vertically cut ones on top in a random pattern. I had to pause to call my Dad and ask how to change out the liquid nails tube, happens to the best of us! and then I started gluing each board in place and put down scrap wood on top to help set it in place.

Once everything had set, I waited till the next day, I pulled out the sander and sanded both sides and rounded the corners a bit. The plans were to make one side white and make the other side more vintage but I just kept them both white. Two coats of paint on each side and I have a background perfect for photographing my Etsy shop items!

Have you created your own photography backdrop? 

I'd love to see. Link your backdrop blog post in the comments!

Airplane Party Decor

If you are looking for some fun airplane items for

your next Pinterest-worthy party, I've recently 

listed these items in the shop! 

The banner can be personalized with any name or

phrase and all items can be made in a variety of colors

to coordinate with your soaring event!

Click on each photo to take you directly to the listings

in my LeroyLime Etsy shop...and if there's anything 

you don't see, let me know and we can drum up

a one of a kind specialty party items just for you!

Giveaway with LeroyLime

As promised...it's giveaway time again! 

I'm overwhelmed by all the likes, follows, comments & all around 

cyber love from my LeroyLime peeps, Thank You!

Just in time for your holiday shopping and parties, I'm giving one

lucky winner a $25 LeroyLime Etsy Shop Credit, woohoo!!

Please enter the rafflecopter below and come back daily to gain more entries.
Good Luck!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

TERMS & CONDITIONS: Giveaway is open to US residents ages 18 and over and ends at 12:00 AM on November 17, 2013. By entering you give the right to use your name and likeness. Number of entries received determines the odds of winning. Approximate retail value is $25.00. One winner will be selected. This is a giveaway sponsored by LeroyLime. All liabilities and responsibilities with product are responsible by LeroyLime. Winner will drawn by random.org from all verified entries, contacted by email provided, and announced on this page at the end of the contest. Winner has 48 hours to respond or prize will be redrawn. Entrant is responsible for the email address they provide, whether through typing it directly or through the Facebook entry method. LeroyLime is not responsible for lost or misdirected emails. All prizes will be awarded. No prize substitutions allowed. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with Facebook and we hereby release Facebook of any liability. Information is provided to LeroyLime, not to Facebook and your information is never sold or shared. Facebook, Twitter, Blogger, Instagram, Bloglovin' & Pinterest are not sponsors of this giveaway. Prize will be a direct credit to your LeroyLime Etsy purchase by Dawn Braun of LeroyLime, prize may not be used towards other Etsy shops. Protected tweets do not count as an entry method for tweeting. Tweets must come from a public account. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited by law.

Shop ReOpened

Happy September 1st!!

LeroyLime is back open on Etsy...can I get a woot woot! I've been working on new product, photos and listings, so swing by when you have a chance. I'd love to hear your thoughts on the new as well as the old or what you'd like to see in the future. 

The new norm is settling in here at home, school is back in session (yea!). So two of my chickens are in school while the other two run circles around me. Well one of them anyway... the other just lays there and smiles.

Summer is coming to an end and the sweet crisp air of fall will be here before we know it. I have to admit, I'm in no rush to rid the warm away this year. Even though I love fall, I know what is soon to follow...the cold, BRRR.

I'll be hosting a giveaway this month on the blog, thank you for being patient with me as I've taken maternity leave. Our little girl couldn't be more perfect!

IG LeroyLime Recap

Here's just a little Instagram recap of what I've been up to lately, I keep forgetting to take pics of the finished products with my IPhone, oops!

and yes, still snowing up here...Spring has NOT sprung in the least, so I of course included a photo of snow!

Vintage Cowgirl Party

If you've got a little cowgirl on your hands, head on over to Kangaroo Mama's blog and have a galloping good time checking out all of her fun party decorations and ideas. I enjoyed creating coordinating party decorations for her and they will soon be listed in the shop!

photos courtesy of Kangaroo Mama

Decorations (Treat Bag Toppers, Cupcake Toppers, Mini and Large Rosettes, Birthday Banner): Leroy Lime

Featured

Truth- Who can't stop smiling when they see something they've made snag a hot spot on someone else's blog?? 

ME

L :: Plush Camera Pillow
R :: Bling Camera Cupcake Toppers

Thank you Jenny for the fabulous shout out!!

click on my featured tab above to see where else LeroyLime has made a mark!

Etsy Giftcards

ETSY giftcards are HERE!!!

Give a gift card to a friend, and win one for yourself! Purchase an Etsy Gift Card before November 14 and you'll be entered to win a $250 gift card.* 

I don't know about the rest of you but I am über excited about this, can you tell?! Perfect for the hard to buy friend, relative, co-worker, teacher, newly wed, graduate and neighbor. The Etsy-obsessed, craft-hoarder, vintage-guru, baby-maker and anyone who enjoys a one-of-a-kind handmade or vintage treasure!

To celebrate this exciting launch, Etsy is holding an Etsy Gift Card Giveaway! Everyone who buys an Etsy gift card between now and November 14 will be entered to win a $250 gift card! Etsy will be drawing four winners a week at random and will email the lucky winners by November 20. Buy a gift card now for a chance to treat yourself or use it to get a head-start on your holiday shopping. What are you waiting for?? 

 *No purchase necessary to enter. Sweepstakes is open to legal residents of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia, age 18 or older. Entries must be received between 12:01 AM ET on 10/14/12 and 11:59:59 PM ET on 11/13/12. Weekly drawings from entries received Tues – Mon. Go to etsy.me/sweepsrules for Official Rules. Sponsor: Etsy, Inc.

photo credit Etsy 

Whatza Happenin' @LeroyLime

My studio/craft room has been pumping...tunes blaring, paper cutting, embossing flying (literally - one of my friends accidentally dumped an entire container on the floor, gah!) glue gluing, twine tying...you get the picture. Picture me a mad Tasmanian devil, minus the devil part unless I haven't had my coffee yet! If you don't follow me on Instagram, well, you SHOULD! :) Here are some pics to wet your crafty noodles!

 picking up fun jars to hold my twine, I think I've found my favorite!

 baby elephant stampede, watch out

a girl needs to have some ROCKIN' supplies

 Preggo card for my BFF, who's expecting her 1st, so excited!

 Mint and Tangerine personalized baby banner for a client

and a matching congrats banner for the Mom 2 Be

and if you'd like to see the real deal, head on over to Etsy and check out the shop @LeroyLime

LeroyLime Giveaway

Morning All! Since it's a rainy day today (one that I've actually been hoping for after reading this post), it seems only fitting to have a giveaway! Ang over at Juggling Act Mama has put together this fab collage of a few of the items I sell in my shop. Swing by her blog, leave a little love and enter to win a $15 shop credit, good luck!

To see more fun items, click the link below

LeroyLime Etsy Shop

Etsy Gift Cards, say WHAT?!

Announcing Etsy Gift Cards!!!

Story by natalieschwartz Published on Aug 30, 2012 in Product Announcements

If you are an Etsy seller based in the US, you may have seen a notice in your account about Etsy Gift Cards coming this fall. Site-wide gift cards have been a long-requested feature for buyers and sellers alike, and we could not be more excited about introducing them for the holidays!

Gift cards will be the perfect present for the Etsy-obsessed shopper in your life, but even more importantly they’ll be a way for us to introduce new buyers to Etsy. Our community of buyers has grown incredibly in the past year, which can be attributed largely to people like you spreading the word and marketing your shops. Gift cards will allow us to be more aggressive in our own marketing efforts by distributing gift cards to partners and creating promotional offers.

So how will Etsy Gift Cards work?

Starting this fall, any member will be able to purchase a gift card with a US credit card. You can email the gift card directly to a friend or print one out to give in person. The gift card credit will be in the form of a code, which buyers will use towards purchases at any shop accepting direct checkout.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am SERIOUSLY so excited about this, I can't stop bouncing up and down in my seat!! Or maybe that's my afternoon coffee kicking in, either way, get excited people because the holidays are approaching quickly and we all need a bit of handmade love to spread around!

Anatomy of a Paper Rosette

I love how a simple sheet of paper can go from flat...

to FAB!! 

(sorry for the upside down photo, my IPhone thought I was standing on my head!)

My LeroyLime Rosette Banners are a real hit and although there are several steps to making them, I always LOVE how pretty they look.

The Space

Moving every couple of years into newer and older homes, you learn to make good use of your space. Especially if you're like me and you like to st r  e  t ch out a bit! Here's a little peek into my newest 'space'. 

 My desk top is a heavy piece of large MDF that I painted a few coats of white paint on for a nice smooth finish. I had to flip it over this move since our movers put a huge gouge in the other side. My table legs used to be two tall stool (which are now serving their rightful place at the counter in our kitchen) but have been upgraded to these snazzy two drawer file cabinets, which house all of my 8-1/2X11" cardstock.

I use the tabbed folders to hold all the scraps of paper and place the full sheets 

behind their coordinating colors.

Another piece of MDF, slathered with some more white paint. My Dad screwed in the old bars I've had from IKEA, while he was here and then screwed this bag boy into the studs...cause man, is it HEAVY with all of those punches!

Old IKEA cd shelves work great for holding all of my stamp sets and those snazzy ink pad holders I purchased from non other than ETSY 4 years ago, they work great for holding ribbon too.

Another wall unit but this time from Michael's...with a 50% off coupon, I might add. All the jars are from Hobby Lobby, they were cheaper there and had more selections. 

 A dear friend from TX gave this to me 

before we left and I laugh every time I read it!

We're OPEN

I dreaded packing away all of my paper, products and tools this summer but was hopeful that I'd have the perfect space to create in our new home once again and let my mind fly with artsy ideas. The truck was unloaded and the boxes started getting thrown out of the house with each cut of tape and unwrap of paper. The craft boxes are usually last on the list to unpack but this year, they took center stage after the bedrooms and kitchen were manageable. 

The shop is open once again and I'll be listing new items throughout the week. I love special requests and working with clients to create that one of a kind invitation, card or party theme that's perfect for you. Thanks for being so very patient with me...happy summer!

Welcome

Welcome to my new blog...a fresh start where I will be photo journaling my way through paper cuts, sticky fingers and glue while making beautiful one of a kind handmade paper goods and gifts for you via my Etsy shop, LeroyLime.