Closing the Etsy Shop,

 This will be a quick post, just an announcement really. No, I am not going to stop selling and it might not be closed forever, it is just not doing anything but hurting me at this very moment so I am going to try some alternatives instead. I will still be selling and if you are interested in any of my items or custom orders you can go through the Knitches' Instagram or Facebook and I 'd be happy to get you set of with what ever your heart desires. 

Ready to Set Sail (and get to selling), 

                                   Ms. Sinking Ship

I'm on Patreon?!

That is right guys, as of this week I am on Patreon! 

This is super exciting because it can open up a whole new world of opportunities for me and for the blog, with the pledges I get I can pay for more sewing projects. That comes with another surprise, I plan on posting more real-time(ish) updates and other fun posts about the projects I am doing. 

Plus, I can use the money to help support other parts of the blog as well, I plan on getting CherishNotes back on track and the blog has been in need of renovations I haven't been able to do myself. I would also like to do a lot more things with the blog (and the youtube that goes a long with it) that I haven't been able to, but now can with the funding I'll get.

 I am so excited to get this ball rolling, I can not wait to see all of the awesome things that will come out of this!

Now for the other important part, if you are unsure what exactly Patreon is, 

It is a fairly new site for people who are artists, freelancers, bloggers, etc. to get an income or money for their projects. The website is set up so fans can pledge a certain amount of money that goes towards the person every month so they can continue on there endeavors, and keep creating content for people to see. It is a really neat idea that I am very happy to now be a part of. There are so many great artists and other people that are doing such incredible things because of the money they receive on Patreon and I think that is so awesome!

If you're interested in my Patreon, there are plenty of different options for pledges or if you don't have any spare change/ you just aren't super interested in what I'm selling but you like my spunk you can just follow my page for other neat updates that will get put up there. You can do both of those through this link-

https://www.patreon.com/cherishhornbeck

With that, I am off, There is plenty of other awesome things coming up soon that I have got to get on top of because fro a short time I was falling behind,

Ready to Set Sail ( and be back oh so soon),

                                                            Ms. Sinking Ship

Blogger Tips From Someone who Blogs: Best Blogging Sites!

From someone who not only reads blogs but keeps one up as well, I am constantly on the look out for the best websites to keep my blog up on (other then maybe having your own domain) because the worst thing in the world is having to try to make the best out of something you can't stand using because you can't find anything else. 

I have tried a decent amount of them, and I've come to conclusions about which ones are the most fun and efficient to use, for me any ways.  I'm making this today to help any one else that also seems to have the worst of luck finding something that fits well with them and their blog starting from the 

best-ish to the worst-ish. 

                                                                                                                

1. Blogspot

 I have had problems with Blogspot, it is not always the greatest thing ever but it is reliable and very customizable, along with that there aren't any hidden fees or anything and there are ways to make money off of your blog as well. The  only downsides I've seen are complications with coding when it comes to customization, it takes some time to get used to and figure out how to do those things but it is nothing a little problem-solving can't fix. 

2. Tumblr

The only reason this isn't number one is because it's more of a social media site than a blogging site, but I made one early today because it was the only think I hadn't tried but I constantly hear awesome things so I decided to try it out before I made this post and I love it. It's a little bit difficult to navigate right at first but once you get this gist of it, it is really easy and pretty fun. Above is mine and you can follow me on there as well as mssinkingship of course, I'll probably do a decent amount of blogging on there as well. It is pretty customizable and there is tons of things to work with, if you're looking for something not quite so serious for a blog this is definitely the first place you should try.

3. Wix

So I tried this site the other day and it is pretty interesting, there are quite a few downsides though and it ends up getting complicated. For one, there isn't a trash can so you are unable to get rid of anything that was on the original template you might not have wanted. Also, it does have an apps section where you can add all kinds of cool things to your blog, but a decent amount of them you have to pay for and if you are on a budget you can't always afford all of that. 

The only other downside is that for your domain name it gives you it lists their site before yours and that can seem less professional the other way around. Wix has some cool things to use like some of the templates they have and animation effects, things like that etc, but it the long run there is more hassle than anything else when it comes to this site.

4. Weebly

For those of you that have been reading my blog for it's pretty close to entirety, you will most likely know that it originally started out on Weebly. This site is perfect for a blog just starting out, if you just want to dip your toes into the whole thing, or if you're unsure you really want to commit to any type of thing that's this nature. It is fairly easy but really isn't all to customizable. Weekly isn't the worst but it really isn't something you would hold a blog at for a long period of time.

5. WordPress

I had always heard that if you want your blog to be successful use Wordpress, so eventually a few months ago I had been irritated with bloodspot and I thought it might be a good time to give it a try. I was so frustrated with all of it after the first 10 minutes I have never gone to the site again. I'm sure it's a lot easier and customizable if you buy the packages for your websites from them BUT not everyone (me included) has the money to drop $50 on a website so I can change the layout. That is ridiculous for one and two I've done decently well on Blogspot and never had to shell out large amounts of money to do so. I know people who use it and love it so this one is purely biased as most of these are but for someone who can't spend a bunch of money and want something to be even the slightest bit personal, I wouldn't use Wordpress. 

These are the blogs I've used and the major pros and cons I've had with them.  A lot of the factors in this has to do with customization because that is a big part of blogging and creating a brand for your self, I hope this gives any one who is thinking of starting a blog or wanting to switch from the site they use now.

Ready to Set Sail (and keep playing with my Tumblr),

                                               Ms. Sinking Ship

The Final Grab Bag of the Sale!

                                   

Okay guys the last bag of the sale is here! This months sale went by so fast, I really hop you guys check out this last grab bag because it was definitely my favorite back to make and it's pretty cool in my opinion as well.  It includes:

One Crochet drawstring bag that can be customize with any two colors just list which ones you'd like when you buy them. 

One long circle scarf that will match the bag, perfect for keeping you warm when it starts getting chilly on fall nights.

One Elegant bow, the one shown is an example but you might not end up with they are personalized to fit with the colors of the bag as well and were created to add the perfect accents to you hair on those special days.

and lastly,

One Crochet Teddy Bear, also created to match the bag and the other contents inside.

I hope you guys enjoyed the sale, I have some new stuff coming up as well that I hope you guys like and check us out again tomorrow for some awesome stuff I have inshore for you guys!

Ready to Set Sail (and add this to etsy),

                          Ms. Sinking Ship

Only Two Weeks Left and This Weeks Bag Is,

                                                                                                                

   

This weeks Grab Bag is here and it is super awesome, it comes with

• 4 of our yet to be released purple line bows, all perfect for adding something to your hair to make it a little bit more magical than it already will be, even on those hot days where you'd rather be in the air condition but you're not.

• 1 Cable-knitted waist belt accented with a vintage stones, to add pizzazz to outfits made for those classier moments.

• 1 Pencil Pouch with a vintage brass button, to keep all of your items nice and neat even when everything else during your school year anything but.

and all items will be made to match the specifications of your pencil pouch, you can specify the color you want used in the letter to me at the end of your purchase rather than in the variations to keep all of your options and varied as possible.

If you aren't familiar with where to get this bag and your interested it check out:

etsy.com/shop/theknitche

To find this and all of our other sweet items.

Along with that I do have some fun new items that will soon be in store for The Knitche and some cool stuff I'll 'be doing here as well so keep an eye on that. I'll be back tomorrow for Tutorial Tuesday where we are going to be doing an awesome natural look.

Ready to set sail (and see you all tomorrow),

                                                       Ms. Sinking Ship 

Tutorial Tuesday and This Weeks Grab Bag,

Hey guys! This weeks' grab bag is finally out! Along with the tutorial for this week as well! I apologize for the lateness of both I've been having some electronic complications yesterday and early today but hopefully it is all worked out now. This weeks grab bag doesn't have a lot to it but it has plenty of personality to make up for it! This weeks tote is completely customizable from all of the colors used to the embroidered initial in the front, and long with that tote comes to crocheted collars, one scalloped and one original to compliment any shirt, to match, this tote comes with one more thing to add to those and that is it's soft ball style bow, this bow will keep you accessorized while your hair is up and out of the way on hotter days, you can get this grab bag on my Etsy of course and the link for that if you do not know it already is
etsy.com/shop/theknitche

Now on to the tutorial! (Didn't you love those salesmen skills) This week I did a modified classic look, it still has your basic light eyeshadow and winged eyeliner but instead of red lipstick I went for a bright pink just for fun. I want to apologize for the lips portion of the video, like I said I've been having technology problems and that was part of it but I hope you enjoy it anyways, next weeks will be a natural type look and will hopefully turn out better than this one if you guys have any ideas or comments for that let me know. The products I used for this tutorial were:

Base Eyeshadow: NYX Avant Pop Palette, surreal my heart, white
Crease Eyeshadow: NYX Avant Pop Palette, surreal my heart, silver
Eye Liner: SmashBox Gel Liner in Deep Black
Lip Liner: NYX Lip Liner Crayon in 835 (Pinky)
Lip Color: NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in 18 (Prague)

So just so you are all aware I didn't actually mean to use all of the same brand it just kind of happened, so just enjoy that there. I'll be back later this week with a back to school shopping clothing haul which should be fun, and if you really miss me until then you can check out my snapchat: cherishhornbeck
for every day stuff and possibly some fun promo codes for those who add me!
Ready to Set Sail (and get everything working,)
                                                             Ms. Sinking Ship

Back to school grab bags!

Ahoy fellows! For the next few weeks we are going to be doing a lot of hopefully, fun back-to-school stuff for you guys, we're going to have make up tutorials, fashion tips, etc. and to make all of that even better The KNITche is going to grab bags each week instead of a back-to-school sale, all of them slightly similar but different to the ones before it. All of the bags will be of the same price range and for that week only so if you want the bag, you have to grab it before it's to late! How ever, you will not know what each weeks grab bag looks like until that week, this weeks is shown above. I will be nice though and tell you the basic contents of each bag each week so you have a basic idea of the ones you might want to check out.

Week One: Pencil / Make up Bag (w/ vintage crystal buttons)

3 Yet-to-be Released Purple Line Bows

1 of our more elegant Bows

1 Scalloped Long Finger Knitted Scarf

Week Two: Knitted tote bag

1 Softball Style Bow

1 Crochet Orginal Styled Collar

1 Scalloped Collar

Week Three: Long Pencil Pouch

1 Cable-Knitted Waist Belt w/ Vintage Stones

4 Yet-to-be Released Purple Line Bows

Week Four: Drawstring Bag

1 Crochet and Felt Bear 

1 Elegant Bow

1 Basic Circle Scarf

This week you can customize the bag by picking the color of the pencil/ make up bag all of the other items are based around, so which ever color you pick from our variations, all of the items with coordinate with the bag in some way or another. 

You can get more detailed pictures and order here: 

https://www.etsy.com/shop/theknitche

Along with These grab bags how ever, there will be fun little promo codes on here, my instagram, the KNITches instagram and many other places for fun little sales and things so keep your eye out for those. I can't wait to see how these next few weeks go with this and with the other little experiments we are going to try here on the blog! 

Ready to set sail (and send off the rest of this weeks posts),

                                                                            Ms. Sinking Ship

My crazy (and exciting) Month,

Hey sailors! (see what I did there? because I'm Ms. Sinking Ship. It sounded like a good idea in my head, I don't know if it actually played out well.) January has been a very busy month and a lot has changed and happened leaving me with little time to finish the blog posts I had been working on, so I apologize for that; But I do have big and exciting news! My Etsy is finally set up and ready to go! If you want to check it out here's the link: 

etsy.com/shop/theknitche

          I'm still in the process of adding all the listing and finishing up all the maintenance that needs to be done but it is now accessible, and along with that there are many posts to soon come out about new products, DIYs, and more. I'm so excited to finally get everything on a consistent, up and running basis. The first of many posts will be coming out later this week, but while you're waiting for that  you can always check out my Etsy page, the Facebook page, tweet at me, email me, or even comment on my Instagram. I can't wait to see how the rest of the year plays out based on this exciting month and I can't wait to share all of that with you all as well,

 Ready to set sail (and get going),

                                      Ms. Sinking Ship

5 reads for the first Friday: January 2015

The year is starting and that means a fresh slate for any adventure you want to take on, for those adventures I have picked my 5 reads that I am currently reading or have read hat will help you in any incredible journey you want to take on for this new year. They are not in any specific order, other than alphabetical of course.   

1. Handmade to Sell by Hello Craft's Kelly Rand, Christine Ernest, Sara Dick and Kimberly Dorn
    ( hellocraft.com)

At the moment I am a quarter of the way through this book officially, I few months ago I found this book on a shelf  in a Barnes and Noble and fell in love the second I began reading, I quickly found a spot on the floor in-between two shelves to read to my hearts contempt, sadly at the time,  I had only gotten half way through and had to leave without the book being to broke to afford the book; but the book found its way back to me in a package clothing box Christmas Eve. and I have been reading it since. This book is written for people looking to start their own businesses in the craft industry, it is fully of hardy and helpful advice on how to get started and set up a proper foundation to built your business on along with tools for working at craft shows, and presenting your self online. If you are looking to go further with you craft this year I would suggest reading this book before and during the process of growing your craft into a business.

2. Hello Giggles (hellogiggles.com)

Hello Giggles popped up on my newsfeed about a year ago and it seems like the articles were better and better with every post I read, the stories are impacting and hilarious. They are all very pro-women and know exactly what to say when it needs to be said. They report on everything from news to your daily life and all of the articles written leave some kind of mark on you or will enlighten you on something that is going on in the world. On top of that, you as the reader can submit stories that they'll post to the public from the public. To them your opinion matters, so not only will they inform you they'll listen to you too. This year if you need empowerment for your journey or you want to be heard look to Hello Giggles before anywhere else because they always have something to say.

3. Mollie Makes Mag. (Molliemakes.com)

I first found Mollie Makes US Edition in a Walmart around 2 in the morning back in August. I read it all through the store, then bought it, took it home, and read it again when I woke up the next day, after that I looked into the magazine and found the original Mollie Makes along with a few others. Sadly, the US edition is no longer in print, but Mollie Makes is still going strong leaving me excited every month to see what they talk about next. This magazine will inspire any crafter (or anyone honestly) to make, create, travel and explore to their hearts desire. They write articles on everything a crafter might need to know for business, on keeping up with fashion, or on just another crafter it would be fun to look into. Mollie Makes has created the base for an incredible community all over the world, if you ever get the chance this year, just reading one issue will take you on an interesting journey with plenty of patterns and pictures along the way.

4. Nylon Mag. (Nylon.com)

I don't exactly know when or how I found Nylon but I have been reading them consistently for about two years now. They are on here for any adventure you have in fashion, beauty, scrapbooking or art wise. 'Scraping-booking you say? That doesn't fit in with the rest' is most likely what you were thinking and  I know.  The lay out of Nylon is something that makes them so great all in itself, it is put together almost as if it's an artists inspiration book or something, giving it a very edgy but also home-like feel to it every time you look through an issue. It is also a go-to guide for every trend or idea that comes with fashion there is, and on top of that it has awesome articles about a variety of artists and up-and-coming music to give your creative side a different outlook on things. This year if you're looking for ideas on a new direction or maybe just a little change to spice your life up, reading, if only, one issue of Nylon will do the trick.

4. Rookie Mag. or Yearbook 1 and 2  (http://www.rookiemag.com)

I found Rookies second yearbook in a very similar way to how I found 'Handmade to Sell'. The only difference in the story is that this time I finished the book, I sat out in the isle, and when I left I bought the second yearbook along with the first one as soon as I got home. Rookie is laid out similarly to Nylon in a very cute scrapbook type way but, it is also a little different from the rest of the books on this list, Rookie is created as a teenage and young women magazine. Unlike most other magazines for that specific age group though, rookies stories aren't based on how to make a guy love you in a month or filled with 'how to look skinnier with these special tricks' articles. Rookie is created to empower with pro-women articles, interviews with real people, and some awesome snacks recipes for when you get the munchies. Rookie also uses all kinds of girls of all kinds of ages for all of their photo articles. They are a good read for almost any situation and unlike most magazines they are primarily online and post articles daily like a blog, at the end of their year (which is in may) they put together all of the articles and issues and publish them as yearbook, so you can find them in stores as well if you perfer the paper feel of book and they just released their third yearbook if you looking for a book to last you year round. 

I hope you find something intriguing in at least one of these books this year, 

Ready to set sail (and get back to reading), 

                                               Ms. Sinking Ship

A Thanksgiving Giving,

I am thank for all of the readers I have and all the customers I have at the KNITche and because of that we will be having sales all weekend and you know all of them a day early! Thank you all for supporting me so diligently and hope to continue to enthrall you all. I will be posting a Women Crush Wednesday this week but it will be more different than any other we have had so far it will be up soon so keep checking the blog for updates.  

         Ready to set sail (and get some sweet deals),

                                               Ms. Sinking Ship

Socks On Sunday,

Yesterday night I spent a few hours playing around with my yarn and what came out of it was great a cute pair of purple fuzzy crocheted socks. I've always found the best things happen when you're not stressing over creating anything, and it's true. I have been stressed for weeks about getting more products out on the market for the KNITche and when I finally stopped stressing out about it and just starting working, things worked out. I hope to get out a step by step Picture crochet pattern soon (because I'm really bad at explaining them, or just reading them for that matter) for you all to use and for those that don't crochet and want a pair they are already up for sale on the Facebook page. Facebook.com/theknithchebycherish

Ready to set sail (and keep my feet warm),

                                                   Ms. Sinking Ship

Finding Inspiration Every Where You Go,

  This weekend I took a trip to Tulsa and while I  was in the city I went on a few mansion tours and to the aquarium, photographing anything I thought might provide even the slightest of inspiration, and some of it did. The usage of the space provided even in mansions was incredible, and the color palettes I found in the aquariums were very influential in a few ideas I have for items I hope to be posting soon.
                             Inspiration is every where, you just have to look for it.
                                               Ready to set sail (and put this inspiration to work),
                                                                                  Ms. Sinking Ship

New Products from the KNITche,

New products were recently released on to the KNITches page ( link below ) Three chalk board jars were recently added (and one none decorated on was released but not depicted). While Shooting pictures of these jars I had a little fun and used them to my entertain meant, I thought you guys would find it slightly entertaining as well.

On top of our recent release I am working on some very large chalk jars as well and a few jewlery pieces that will  be up soon. I will be posting pictures once they are done and you can find all of these things with much more at Facebook.com/theknitchebycherish

Ready to set sail and get back to work,

     Ms. Sinking Ship

Artist's Block : A deadly disease

Lately, I have had a horrid case of artist's block for the blog and the company. Along with that, I have had a constant movement of things that needed to get done, so, nothing has gotten done. I apologize for the lack of words the past week or two but I'm going to attempt to beat this block and get it all in track. I think I'm going to try and have certain blogs on certain days those will  hopefully home about within the next week. I'd love to hear feed back from you guys on things you want to read about and things you've already read.
              Ready to set sail and get back on track,
                                            Ms. Sinking Ship

The best way to find things,

As a creative person, I often go looking for things : inspirations, marketing tips, learning how to do things and so on. People will always tell you to go to youtube that's the one place you'll always find things, I disagree. Youtube is great for many things but, finding exactly what you need in a timely manner not always so much. I've found that the best place to find things for a creative mind is Pinterest, it identifies key words, almost always has multiple options for what you are looking and 95 percent of it is more reliable that gritty video you've spent 10 minutes trying to watch because you couldn't find the better version (because it has give you the best youtube version there). Youtube is definitely a great source and a last resource go to for everything but always try Pinterest first, it saves time and frustration, which if you are like me could use a lot less of.
                     Ready to set sail (and help you save those 10 minutes),
                                                                      Ms. Sinking Ship

A cute weekend work (from 8.17.14)

Saturday morning I had an idea, you know one of those off the wall random in the middle of doing something ideas? Well, it was one of those so I  finished what I was doing and I pulled out all of my yarn, ribbons, and craft-y  knickknacks and I got to work, making a medium sized crochet and felt teddy bear all the way down to the hand-embroidered nose. After I'm finished it will have a bow beside it's ear and a big one for another person to match it as well but i'm over half way there and ready finish this project up. (:  if you want to get a better look or even buy one you can go here :
Facebook.com/theknitchebycherish/
          ready to set sail - Ms. Sinking Ship