Valentine’s Heart Wine Glasses

Years ago I was comissioned by a coworker to make a set of wine glasses for her S.O.

She wanted them to have Valentine’s heart candies on them with various sayings, and to have their names on the base (of the glasses with stems). At the time I did not yet own a Cricut, so while my immediate go-to nowadays would be to make the hearts and lettering out of vinyl, that wasn’t an option for me then. I am still proud of how the final glasses turned out, and will now take this opportunity to brag about them to strangers on the internet, like you do.

So how did I paint these glasses if I didn’t have a Cricut and have the drawing ability of a banana slug? I cheated, of course! I printed out pictures of hearts on plain paper, cut them out, taped them to the inside of the glasses, and painted the outside of the glass accordingly. Think of it less as cheating and more as adapting your methods to match your skill level in order to achieve your desired goal. My brain and my nearly-useless hands met in the middle. It was, admittedly, a longer trip for my brain…

Here I am getting the basic shape of the heart and applying a first coat of paint.

I used 2-3 coats of paint per heart because, as you can see, a single coat was VERY rough looking and generally just a hot mess. I painted one or two large hearts per glass with the intent to give them sayings, and then several small hearts all around to fill the empty space. For the sayings, I knew I couldn’t trust myself to hand write them on. I mean, I couldn’t even paint decent hearts without a stencil – lettering was out of the question. So I got myself some alphabet stamps and a red ink pad!

Looking back, I’m not sure how I held the stamp, the wine glass, and the camera to take this picture

The stamps worked pretty well, though some of the ink ended up a little patchy. I did not trust myself to be able to reapply the stamps in exactly the same position in order to make it better, so I touched it up with red paint and a thin paintbrush. Some of the letters got a little messy, and that couldn’t be fixed without adding more paint, so I did what I could to fix what I could and left the rest as that “handmade” charm. There’s no question that these glasses were hand painted, but with love, so it’s endearing.

I followed the instructions on the paint bottles to cure the paint onto the glasses. This involved placing them in the cool oven, turning it on, letting it get to temp, then turning it off and leaving them in there until it was completely cool again. It helps keep the paint on the glasses even after washing (though I think still hand wash only). Now that I look at them again, I feel like I want to make myself a travel cup with candy hearts on it – but out of vinyl and letting the Cricut handle the lettering.

Birthday Sale!

It’s my birthday this week, so everything in the shop is on sale!

Starting today, Sept. 12, 2022 and ending 11:59pm Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022 everything in the shop is 10% off! This sale will also be applied to any custom orders that are submitted and paid for before the sale’s end.

And as always, orders over $35 ship for free!

Ornaments are Back in the Store

Last year the Holiday sale season ended early because I could not find a supplier for my disc-shaped ornaments, but I found a new one, I have the supplies, and the listings are back, Baby!

If you are familiar with the store’s old designs and notice some popular items are missing, it may be because my business partner used to make them. I have decided not to take on her old designs and to continue with my previous designs as well as trying to add some new ones as inspiration hits.

Along with these listed designs, I love making custom ornaments for a truly one-of-a-kind gift, so if you have an idea for the perfect ornament and don’t see it already listed, send a custom order request!

Product Spotlight: Square Leather Dice Rolling Trays

Tabletop gaming is a super fun pastime, and if you’ve never done it I highly recommend you give it a try! Dungeons & Dragons is one of the most well-known, but there are a lot of options out there. Once you start playing, you quickly find that there are a lot of options for gear and accessories to maximize your fun and cater your experience. One of the ones I proudly stock in my shop are custom dice rolling trays!

Here is a blue tray with one of the designs offered in my shop

The purpose of a dice rolling tray is both to protect your table surface and to keep your dice from rolling off the table. The purpose of a dice rolling tray with a custom design on it is to do both of these things as well as show everyone else at the table how cool you are, obviously. Metal and other heavy kinds of dice can be damaging for a lot of play surfaces, so a dice rolling tray allows you to use whatever awesome dice you’ve got without worry. Plus, you don’t have to hunt down or worry about any more “play it as it lies” rules for dice that stray off the table and go wandering. The trays I sell also snap at the edges so they can go flat for easy transport to and from the game. Just slip it in your backpack or bag, and you’re good!

Pairing a tray color with the perfect design material is like an art and further personalizes each piece!

In the store I offer several colors of trays as well as several different options for design color and finish so you can really get the perfect piece just for you. Most of my designs are based off the base classes in D&D 5e, though there are several options that are geared toward more generalized gaming.

But anyone who has gamed can tell you that each group has approximately 94 bajillion inside jokes, and this is why I offer custom designs. People have based them off their group motto, their favorite school of magic, classic art from a favorite campaign, and even a DM who bought custom trays for all of the players in his/her current game. The choice is yours!

All of these are custom trays that I have made for customers. Yes you can use naughty words. Swearing and gaming go together like bread and butter.

The best part of the custom trays? They don’t cost any different than regular trays! You still pick your tray and material color, then just type “custom” in the personalization box and send me a message about what you want! I will send you a mock-up before actually creating your tray to make sure it’s what you really want.

The only caution I want to mention about these dice trays is that heavy dice (such as metal) will leave small dents in the leather and the design over time. They should not be deep enough to statistically alter your dice rolls, but they will be visible so I like to make sure people know that before ordering. Consider them your dice tray’s battle scars from all the adventures you go on together!

So, what is the best BEST part about these dice rolling trays? THEY’RE ON CLEARANCE SALE! Way to bury the lead, huh? I have found a new style of dice rolling tray that I personally like better and plan to stock soon, so I am clearing out my inventory of this style and you get the benefit! These trays that usually cost $20.50 are on clearance for only $8.99. Yes, that still includes custom designs! Some colors are already sold out or low in stock, so order now before they’re all gone!

Image courtesy of The TTRPG Factory

And if you’re interested in Tapletop RPG’s, my husband runs a blog where he reviews games, books, systems, and even publishes some of his own content. Check him out at The TTRPG Factory!

Always Crafting!

I have made many, many crafts and projects over the years. Some have been for myself, some for friends, some for holidays, some for parties or events – I’ve made a lot! This page is where I will feature projects I’ve made as a way to showcase some of my skills and designs that aren’t featured in my Etsy shop. If you see anything here that you like and want to discuss having something like it made just for you, be sure to get in touch through email, Etsy, or social media!