“Not Dishwasher Safe” Doesn’t Mean Cheap

One of the inconvenient truths of life is that often beautiful things are delicate. Think of fine china. If we’re lucky, we can have something beautiful that we can use; like china. The balance is that even though we use the beautiful thing, we know we need to treat it delicately. We wouldn’t call fine china cheap because it can’t go in the dishwasher.

This is why I refer to most, if not all of the items I sell as “functional art.” The items are usable and many can be used daily for years; if you treat them delicately.

Some of my games are more expensive than a mass produced plastic game but less expensive than high end acrylic games that can cost hundreds.

My games are more expensive than store bought games because they take hours to make. One, specifically, I have to personally import the mold because it isn’t available in the US AND the mold is difficult to use.

The price of the games are an indicator that they should be taken care of. I’ve seen unreasonable people suggest that the price should mean they’re more durable. I don’t sell trash bags or paper towels. Think a plate versus china.

You wouldn’t pay hundreds or thousands for china then give it to a toddler to eat off of, would you? I’d hope not.

Buy plastic games if you want to be rough.

I’ve also noticed comments online of people complaining about the quality of coffee cups and stainless steel tumblers that have vinyl decals on them. I tend not to use this method for this reason. I do use rhinestones which can come off as well. When I do, I note the care necessary in the description.

Cup and tumbler makers use different processes and different media to create different looks. They all have advantages and disadvantages. Here are some materials that may be more durable than others but they tend to not give the same range of colors and design options. Also consider that some methods used to preserve work to make it more durable can alter the aesthetic.

In the case of the vinyl decals, people make comments like, “These are so cheap.” “These are glorified stickers and they peel off.” “I washed it one time…”

I assure you that the cups and tumblers with vinyl decals don’t peel because they “cheap” or due to some fault of the maker.

These are shots of my husband’s very expensive, professionally made tumbler made by one of our favorite companies.

As you can see, the decals have almost peeled off completely.

When we buy expensive clothing or cars, we’re careful with them. We don’t paint in a wedding dress then call the dress cheap when we can’t wash the paint out or if the fabric gets damaged from washing the paint out. We’re extremely careful with things that cost a lot or things we value even if it was a dollar.

Take care to follow the care instructions for items you buy.

If you want to buys something from a small business owner, don’t be turned off by the care instructions. Appreciate their honesty and generosity as they help guide you through extending the life of your beautiful piece.

Consider your care instructions as a badge of honor. You’re buying a work of art.

Artisans and makers spend exponentially more time making products by hand. Think about that before you disrespect a small business owner by calling their work cheap, overpriced, poorly made or not worth it.

Why Diamonds on Mondays

Mondays are the least popular day and rightly. It’s the first work day of the week. We have to get motivated to seize the week. 

Sure! We could stick with some dull one liners about Mondays. But I choose to go for brilliant ones.

I chose diamonds as my Monday Motivation theme for the same reason I use diamonds in my branding. Not because they’re expensive but because 

Diamonds are rare. Our uniqueness is what makes us shine!

Diamonds are old, dull rocks that form into something beautiful. We shouldn’t toss out the old.

Diamonds are durable. Diamonds can withstand almost anything!

I know I’ve had my share of difficulties. I need to be edified to start my week. I decided to share my gems of Monday Motivation with you!

Naturally Beautiful

I made these prior to the slap heard around the world. Those of you know know me know that I *struggle* with alopecia.

Because of it, I cut my hair very short every couple of years.

Hair loss is very emotional for women because her beauty is often tied to her hair. I don’t attribute any length or texture of hair to beauty but some days I feel beautiful with my short, curly hair and some days my short hair is just a reminder that I have an illness that a isn’t being properly treated.

My appearance is not a reflection of my personal beliefs in beauty standards; my appearance is just that- “a look.”

I create art with women of many different looks. I created these pieces not for any political reason or any moral belief about how a woman styles her hair. I created these pieces because we should be able to feel beautiful as we are. We should not have be subjected to scrutiny because of our hair.

While I do feel scrutinized, at times, when I wear my hair straight, wearing our hair straight is socially acceptable. Wearing our hair natural is not.

From Dingy Basement To Studio

I LOVE renovating and repurposing! So when I decided to make my art studio in my basement, it was a forgone conclusion that I would use what I had unhand.

As you can see from the photos, this is the most basement of basement rooms ever. I have exposed plumbing and radiator pipes overhead. The flooring is a very undesirable tile. I put floor covering paper on the floor and used it on the 2 doorways and spray painted the ceiling white and then painted the walls a very light gray.

The blue tape on the wall was the beginning of me visualizing my furniture layout. It’s much easier to tape off the layout than it is to move heavy furniture.

Next, I laid my floor. I used a water resistant laminate because the floor is not completely level. I got water resistant flooring because though the basement does not flood but basements generally have moisture issues and there’s always a possibility of a spill.

Laying laminate is relatively easy with the correct tools.

Laminate floors are more forgiving of lumps and bumps in the floor.

After I laid the floor, I taped my vision for the furniture layout onto the floor.

The first piece I added to the room was the was actually 3 pieces of furniture put together. I have these 2 paper shelves that I bought for one of my classrooms about 10 years ago. In another post, I’ll share how I’ve recovered these a couple times. I put them on top of this filing drawer then added legs to each side to balance them out. It made sense to add this piece first because if I work from the corner out I’m not squeezing around large pieces. In another post, I’ll show you how I’ve resurfaced it over the years.

You Keep Saying This Word…

What does it mean?!

Sublimation is a form of heat transfer where dye transitions from solid and gas without going through a liquid stage. Modern sublimation has been used for over 70 years.

Sublimation has greater durability than other methods of imprinting words or images not a product; a shirt, cup, hat… Customers are familiar with screen printing, heat-transfer vinyl, and ink on products. Each of these methods have pros and cons. 

Think of it in terms of a tattoo- we used to think of tattoos as permanent until we were introduced to removal technology. We learned that tattooing only lays the image on a few layers of skin; a doctor can remove those layers and reveal skin that is not tattooed. With conventional methods of placing images on product, the image is laid on the item. Eventually the image can begin to fade, crack, and or peel. (Those items will vary in durability from “temporary tattoo that can wash off with soap” to “‘permanent’ tattoo that can be removed with a few doctor’s visits”)

Sublimation is superior to these other methods because it actually fuses the image into the item. It is what we thought tattooing was. The same way that most people will have a tattooed image for a lifetime, sublimation can last the lifetime of the product IF it is properly done on an item that is appropriate for the process.

As you can imagine, sublimation is more expensive. The machines used to generate the images, the ink, and often the items the images are transferred to (a shirt, cup, etc) are more limited in availability and more expensive.

Therein lies the limitations of sublimation. We can’t sublimate a rhinestone onto a mug or shirt. Neither can we sublimate a great, holographic vinyl. Sublimation is 2D and works best on 100% polyester fibers (as it pertains to textiles) and certain surfaces (only certain ceramics, plastics, etc for instance are receptive). Even though a sublimated image can transfer onto improper surfaces, the image is not permanent. The image will fade as if the image were made with a water-soluble ink. There are methods and products to improve the life of sublimated images on surfaces that are not proper for sublimation but those items will always have care instructions that an item that is meant for sublimation would not have. (Those items will also vary in durability from “temporary tattoo that can wash off with soap” to “‘permanent’ tattoo that can be removed with a few doctor’s visits”)

As a consumer, an item being sublimated should spark excitement! It should be able to stand up to abuse that similar items could not withstand. But beware of creators advertising an item as sublimated on cotton or a dollar store coffee mug, for instance. Those do not have the maximum durability.

Since I’m an exhausted mom of four, rest assured that whatever method I use to make your products, I make them to maximize the durability of the product to maximize product life AND ensure easy care. Whenever possible, I sublimate. I will only sublimate on the appropriate surfaces because sublimating on incorrect surfaces are a waste of your and my time and money.

See the ExhuastedMomM item care page.