For the love of Washi!

So I'm not usually on the up and up of what is trendy but when I come across something I like or think is neat I'll go with it.  A few months back I was shopping at the local 3M Store {the hubby works for 3M so I have my own pass to shop defective and discount product!} and I ran across this fun tape that I had to grab.  Since then it has been sitting in a box and nothing has been done with it, and I kind of forgot all about it until....NOW

Not sure what Washi Tape is?  Neither did I so I had to look it up.... it is kind of like masking tape and the stuff I picked up is just that.  Now I need to track down the true product.

As I've been par-oozing the blogger world I've come across it a couple times and finally realized what it was.  I'm so excited to brows through Pinterest and add all sorts of projects to my 'to do list' {that I'll never get to} but I have a sudden urge to label EVERYTHING, watch out organization bins and gift wrap!

I realize it is not the real stuff made in Japan nor is it the exact same thing but I can't resist the patterns {or the deal}!  I'm hoping to maybe get some personal projects done, some labeling in my new office and at the store.

See it in action!
I wish I had fancier writing but this is it.

Plans for the Future

We'd like to really ramp up our blogging and bring you a little more of what you're looking for.  So, we have a few NEW plans we are hoping encourage you to interact with us and follow.

First of all; we'd like to introduce ourselves...did you know that there are 2 business partners that make up MeshedDesigns?  Well, if you didn't our names are Amber Haugen and Shayna Nix.  We each live closer to one of our retail store locations than the other and we've been friend's our whole lives.

There, now that you know us we can say the next part of our plan.  We are going to be blogging more personally from now on with hopefully individual posts from each of us along with some store promotions too.

Ah and we have so many new updates to share with you now that we have TWO retail stores!  Can't even believe it!!!!!

Second; I {Amber} have thought to myself, what do I look for in blogs?  And, the answer is How To's and Inspiration of course!  I'm going to start blogging about projects, ideas, before and afters and some other fun things along the way.  In just a short week my family and I are moving into a nice old 1920's farmhouse that we've bought and I am soooo excited to put our touches on it.  The hubby and I have determined our style is 

Industrial Farmhouse Chic

Now, are you wondering what that all means?  Check out my Pinterest board of what has been inspiring me!

Source

You'll probably end up seeing the good, the bad, and the ugly of our home updates but I'm excited to share.

Third; we've been told that our store looks like Pinterest in real life so to go along with our blog changes, we are going to write about real life Pinterest projects.  So, if you have anything you've been wanting to try but aren't quite ready, shoot us a message and we'll add it to the list!

We realize our plan, ideas, and style is kind of 'all over the board' but hey we are MeshedDesigns.  We'll talk more about where our name came from in another post.

Don't forget to follow us on all of the fun social networking platforms...we're on all of them @MeshedDesigns.

It has been awhile!

Wow it has been quite awhile since we've posted!  We've had so many things going on but we are excited to be back and we have a few events to tell you about.

1.  Monday, June 17th @ 6:30 pm Extreme Couponing 101 is back by popular demand!!  We are limiting the session to 20 people this time because we were bursting at the seams with guests at our last one {fantastic problem to have}!

More information is located at this link along with the opportunity to register.  Join on Facebook too.


2.  Tuesday, June 25th @ 6:30 pm Essential Oils 101.  Come learn about the basics of living the life style.  We have been using these for a few months now and it has changed our family's lives!  Mark your calendar and join the event on Facebook.

{April Theme}

Continuing on with our themes, April is

Spring and Whimsical Woodland

The themes have been working really well for us!  Here's what our front window looks like from the back side.

Also, although it is still chilly in Minnesota, we have flowers planted and we are really excited to have Zanna's Designz joining us to plant and maintain the flowers and offer outdoor floral planters for sale to YOU!

The side of the building {Hwy 25} is started to get full of all sorts of goodies.  We are determined to utilized the height of the side wall and pack it full.

Whimsical Woodland
Here's a feel of what the fabrics look like in the theme room.  Check out our Facbook album to see the rest of it!

Pillowcase Dresses by Delva B. Tree out of this fabric!

Coordinating Bibs & Burp Cloths by Delva B. Tree. 

Jump-Start Downtown

It has been a few weeks since our last blog post but we have been busy working on something exciting!

We have an announcement to make, some of you are aware of this and we THANK YOU for supporting us on our journey, but for the rest of you, here it goes….

In Hutchinson, Minnesota {Amber’s hometown} the Economic Development Association (EDA), along with several community supporters, have developed a contest called Jump-Start Downtown to give one qualified business cash and prizes totaling $25,000 towards moving or expanding their business to downtown Hutchinson!  We have recognized this to be a fantastic opportunity to grow.

The contest consists of 3 rounds:

·         Round 1—Application {Due March 29^th}
Judges will notify the winners who go on to Round 2 on April 5^th  

·         Round 2—Business Plan {Due May 10^th}
Judges will notify the winners who go on to Round 3 on May 17^th

·         Round 3—Oral Presentation {May 24^th}
Judges will announce the winner after the presentations have been completed

Our application was submitted on Tuesday and if we win we will be opening a second store in Hutchinson at the beginning of June.

We are so excited and the anticipation is hard to handle but our dream can be achieved!  We will keep you posted on each step of the way and we hope this excites you too.

Wish us luck!

{March Theme}

Our themes for March are

St. Patricks and Nautical Pirate

Here are some pictures for you to get excited about.

 

Nautical fabric for products from Delva B. Tree

Pirate fabric for products from Delva B. Tree



Nautical Picture by Dear Alice Boutique



{February Theme}

You may have already seen that our
themes for February are

Valentine's and Rustic Cowboy

Here are a few pictures of what we have been working on.

Valentine's Patchwork Towel by Delva B. Tree

Valentines

 Cowboy Bibs, Burp Cloths, and Lovey Blankets by Delva B. Tree

 Rustic Cowboy

{Frame It}

Our Weekly Wednesday Feature is

FRAMES 

Anything in a frame is 10% off this week Thursday - Sunday!

- blank frames - pictures - mirrors -

- original art - digital prints -

- chalk boards -

Building Building Building

Last week we blogged about our
{Upcoming Excitement}

and of course, we have more to add this week!

BUILDING Inventory
Sarah from SB Designs moved in last Sunday and we L O V E her scrabble tile penants! 

We also have 2 more new Contributors moving in before February and they both are contributing large furniture pieces!

BUILDING Remodel

Next Tuesday we will be revamping what we call our "Cupboard Room", which is a room in {the store} that has always felt like dead space.  There is a wall of cupboards, with a counter that we seem to just stack product on and it doesn't have any direction!  Sooooo...we are ripping them out.  Check back for before and after pictures!

BUILDING Business
Oh and before we forget...we always like to give our customers a good deal on our quality handcrafted products so we announced on Facebook the other day that we will be starting

{Weekly Feature Wednesday}

So, it is Wednesday and our feature of the week is

JEWELRY

All jewelry will be 10% off {Thursday, January 24th - Sunday, January 27th}.  We will post an album on Facebook of the included items.

Upcoming Excitement

Good things come to those who wait.

{the store} has been open for almost a year now and although we have had some tough times, things just keep getting better and better each month!  We can't wait to see how great 2013 will be especially if 2012 was predicted to be a slow year.  We had no idea where we'd be in a year and we are definately pleased.

Eventhough everybody seems to be on a budget these days, along with oursleves, consumers are still budgeting to go shopping which is great for small businesses like ours. Thank you!

We've been in search of a new furniture Contributor for a few months and now all of a sudden we have 3 potential ones we are working with.  How great is that?  We'd LOVE for {the store} to be jam packed with furnitre from floor to ceiling!

Our vision of {the store} is to to handcrafted where every item is 'touched' in some way.  We strive to be different than other shops in this aspect and we have become a really close knit co-op.  We absolutely love how each and every one of our Contributors works well with us, provides feedback, and shares all of their wonderful ideas. 

If you or anybody you know is interested in joining our team don't hesitate to contact us.  You can also find additional information at this link: 
https://www.facebook.com/#!/notes/mesheddesigns/mesheddesigns-in-buffalo/265812286810729

Upcoming Excitement

January 31st : Sheiber Shop joining us with upcycled purses 
http://www.etsy.com/shop/Scheibershop

February Themes : Valentine's / Rustic Cowboy
http://pinterest.com/mesheddesigns/rustic-cowboy/

February 7th - 10th : Occasional Sales in Buffalo

February 9th : 1 Year Anniversary Celebration

March Themes : St. Patricks / Nautical and Pirates
http://pinterest.com/mesheddesigns/nautical-pirates/

Back to the Grind

2013 is full steam ahead and we

are not stopping! 

Now that the holidays are over, we are back to blogging and keeping all of you up-to-date on everything that is exciting.

Did you know, we are coming up on our 1 Year Anniversary in our very own brick and mortar store?! 

Well, I didn't realize it until this morning and I reminisced on how about this time last year we signed our contract to rent our location and started transforming the place.

I can't believe how much work we did and the long nights we spent there!  Shayna was 8 months pregnant with her second child and I had a 3 year old and 9 month old who were stuck down there with us working the whole time.  What were we thinking...?  Oh, and we drug along our husbands too to do the grunt work, bless their hearts for putting up with us!

We have an album on our Facebook page of some of the changes we've made through the year but I know I have more pictures somewhere, so I'll track them down and post those too.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.337471486311475.78719.223479394377352&type=3