Happy New Year's!

Happy New Year's! What are your resolutions for the new year? Let me know in the comments!

Blog Anniversary and Giveaway!

This week is My Thread of Thought's anniversary. To celebrate, I'm having a giveaway. The prize is a greeting card of your choice from my shop. To enter, you just have to leave a comment in this entry. If you post about the giveaway somewhere else (your blog, etsy forums, twitter, etc.), just let me know and you'll get an extra entry. The giveaway will be up until July 18th.

I can't believe it's been two years since I've had this blog. I posted my first entry on the Fourth of July of 2008. This blog has been a good way to talk about my Etsy shop and things going on in my life. I find it helps organize my thoughts and relieve stress when I write things down. I've gained 269 followers which is great. I thought I'd post some of my favorite entries over the years:

Fourth of July (July 4, 2008)
Getting Etsy on Other Sites (July 14, 2008)
First Sale! (July 21, 2008)
Craftster Challenge: Playing Cards (July 22, 2008)
Halloween Cards Tutorial (September 20, 2008)
Election Day Giveaway (October 28, 2008)
Valentine's Day Items (February 14, 2009)
World Autism day (April 1, 2009)
Record Store Day (April 18, 2009)
Etsy Day (April 23, 2009)
First Craft Show (July 13, 2009)
Luna's Famous! (July 21, 2009)
Vote for my Journal to be in the Gift Guide (July 28, 2009)
Giveaway and Hippo Treasury (August 11, 2009)
Vatican city Photo (August 24, 2009)
Worldwide Moment (September 8, 2009)
My Cousin's Wedding (October 24, 2009)
10 Things I'm Liking and New Card (November 17, 2009)
Gift Guide Part I (December 11, 2009)
Christmas & Snowflake Journal (December 24, 2009)
YouTube & Tumblr (February 6, 2010)
World Nutella Day (February 5, 2010)

Good luck on the giveaway!

Tie Greeting Cards

Every year for Father's Day, I make my Dad a mini greeting card shaped as a tie. I think it's fun to play with the shapes of cards. Here are some of the tie greeting cards I've made: 

I've never listed one in my shop, but let me know if you like them so I know if I should make some to sell. Did you do anything special for Father's Day?

Photography & Updates

I'm working on two new journals now. One has red flowers and is red on the inside. It started off good, but I made a few mistakes so hopefully I can fix it up and sell it. I really like how it looks though.

I also started one with the same pig fabric here and it's going to use glittery pink paper on the inside. I love how it looks, but I messed up the pages on the inside and might have to resew the whole paper part. Maybe I can find something to do with the pages I messed up. I might wait until I get my own paper cutter (which is coming in the mail) to try to do it again.

It's been hard to really work on items with school. I'm okay with that because you can't always do both. I've been doing a lot of photography in my Photography class. In our next assignment, we're supposed to make photos out of the words isolation, naked, contained, encompassing, and open. I have a few ideas for some of them, but let me know if you have any ideas. :)

Here's some photos I took sofar. These weren't for an assignment, they were just random photos I took:

This is a tree outside of the building I live in. I was just walking out and took a photo. I liked how it looked with the snow everywhere, my campus looks so pretty when it snows.


This is a photo of some fake flowers I have in my room. Once I lightened up the picture, I really like how it turned out.

I've also been doing a lot in my art journal lately. I got a moleskine sketchbook instead of using one of the journals I made. I felt weird about not using a journal I made at first (since I sell journals and everything), but I was curious about the moleskine. I really like it and it seems like the pages can hold a lot, which is nice.I might do some blog posts of scans of entries I've been making in my journal (I haven't been able to get my scanner to work lately though). There's some journal pages you can look at from my previous journals in my flickr.

When I sell journals, I also put a little note with journaling ideas and tell buyers they can always scan in journal pages (if it's something they want to share) and I can post it on my blog. I've only sold a few actual journals, so nobody's done that yet, but I hope someday people do so I can share what other people do with their journals on here.

So I noticed nobody did my game when I tagged them from the last entry. If you want, you can do the game from the post below. I didn't think I'd find a post that could relate to my shop and blog, but it happened that I found a good photo to talk about and maybe you will too. :)

What’s On My Christmas Wishlist 2023

These are some items on my wishlist for the holiday season this year. 

Canon EOS Rebel T7: I want a new DSLR camera. I would use it to take photos, but also on my Etsy shop and blog. I heard this camera was good. Another camera I was looking at is the Canon EOS Rebel T100. If you have any camera recommendations, let me know. I prefer the Canon brand. I had the Canon EOS Rebel XS before and liked it, but unfortunately lost the camera. 

Canon TS9521c Crafting Photo Printer: I heard this printer was good for crafting and printing out items to use with crafts. Let me know if you have a recommendation for printing photos. 

Scrapbooks and Photo Boxes: I am trying to scrapbook more and I am looking for photo boxes or ways to organize my photos. I found some I liked at Michael's, but let me know if you have any recommendations. 

Kindle Unlimited: I have a Kindle Paperwhite, but I need a Kindle Unlimited subscription to go with it. Let me know if you have any book recommendations.  

Life is Messy Planner: I need a new planner for 2024. There are some products by Mayi Carles want to purchase. I like the Life is Messy Planners here which have a blog, meal, fitness and other printable planners. 

Makeup and Beauty: I am looking for some products from Lush. I also have some items on Etsy I want. I want the GHD or Babyliss Pro Hair Straightener. I want an eyeshadow palette like the Too Faced Better Than Chocolate Eyeshadow Palette. 

Digital Products: There are some digital products I want on Creative Market and Etsy. I am looking for Lightroom Presets I can use on my photos for editing them. There are also some digital paper and graphics I want. 

What’s on your wishlist this year? 

5 Winter Skincare Tips

Does your skin get dry in the winter months? With the cold weather, you may need to switch up your skincare routine. Here are five winter skincare tips to keep your skin hydrated and protected during the colder months:

1. Moisturize Regularly

Cold air and indoor heating can dry out your skin, so it’s crucial to use a rich, hydrating moisturizer. Look for ingredients like hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and ceramides to lock in moisture. Apply your moisturizer right after showering when your skin is still damp to seal in hydration.

2. Switch to a Gentler Cleanser

Winter weather can make your skin more sensitive, so it’s a good idea to switch to a cream-based or hydrating cleanser. Avoid products with harsh ingredients like alcohol, which can strip your skin of its natural oils. Opt for a gentle, non-foaming cleanser to maintain your skin’s moisture barrier.

3. Use a Humidifier

Indoor heating can cause the air to dry out, which leads to dehydrated skin. Adding a humidifier to your living space can help keep moisture in the air and prevent your skin from becoming too dry. This is especially helpful while you sleep.

4. Exfoliate Gently

Exfoliating helps remove dead skin cells that can make your skin look dull. However, in winter, it’s important to be gentle. Opt for a mild exfoliator with fine grains or use a chemical exfoliant with AHAs or BHAs to avoid irritation. Exfoliate once a week to keep your skin smooth and fresh.

5. Protect Your Skin from the Cold

When you go outside, don’t forget to protect your skin from harsh winter winds and cold temperatures. Use a nourishing lip balm to prevent chapped lips and wear a scarf or gloves to shield your face and hands from the elements. Always apply sunscreen, even on overcast days, as the sun’s UV rays can still cause damage during the winter.

These tips can help maintain a healthy, glowing complexion throughout the colder months.