Score 2 - Etsy!

I discovered Etsy a while ago and soon tried their “custom item” feature. Lots of sellers are willing to tweak their product or make a different color/size by request. And many of them are stay-at-home moms, so it’s a double bonus.

One of my very favorites was a custom order of refrigerator scrapbooks from Jaime. They are made from altered tins.

“Altered tins” you say???

Oh yes!

You know those purse-size mint tins? This cool mom orders them directly and turns her creativity loose on them. She adds her scrapbooking skills and creates mini photo-albums.

“Gotta see it” you say?

No prob…

Here’s the one for my sweet niece with her affectionate nickname:

It was personalized free with an adorable font that fits her personality. The colors are perfect for a little girl and I had fun filling the “pages” with pictures of her favorite people. The backside is also free for pictures, although I left it blank to let her include some school friends. I ordered some matching magnets so she can display the whole set when she’s not carrying it around in her backpack.

I also got one for our little guy. He goes by “Bugsy” around here, so that was perfect for his personalization. Sorry for the bad pics – the actual item is far more vivid and sharp. There’s even a tiny “rope” on the inside!

The real test came when I asked Jaime if she had any black/red combinations that would go with my mom’s Mary Engelbreit kitchen. A cherry pattern would be perfect. I had no idea the lengths this woman would go to have a satisfied customer.

She searched her local stores and offered to order cherry paper. She found the perfect combination – then I threw a wrench in it. I asked for matching magnets. She found a little cherry stamp and did them all by hand. Can you say ADORABLE?

Here are her pictures of an additional one currently listed:

I was dumb… I didn’t get pictures of another one I ordered for my mom. It was a Christian one with classic crosses and swirls in rich tones. Jaime put a custom verse on it. I’d try to get a shot of it, but it currently resides in my mom’s purse!

Anyway, it was a great experience meeting someone (who I still keep in touch with!) who was creative and willing to go the extra mile. Stay tuned for more Etsy finds!