March 💌
How lovely and special that you’re joining this edition of the Happy Mail Club (again)! ✨ For the February edition, I added a real letter to the happy mail for a change. There’s something wonderful about seeing the words on paper and actually holding the letter in your hands. But this time, I’ve created an online blog again. You can add photos to it, which is also such a fun addition!
The great thing about the happy mail is that I can get creative with it every time and vary what I include based on what I feel suits the theme at that moment.
For this edition, I was inspired by the peaceful, rural life on a farm, where spring is slowly coming back to life. The first rays of sunshine falling across the fields, fresh mornings with dew on the grass, and little signs everywhere that nature is waking up. Everything is starting to grow, bloom, and fill with color again.
A major change...
A lot has been happening behind the scenes over the past few weeks. About a year and a half ago, Finest Treasure started in our apartment, in a small section of my wardrobe. It quickly outgrew that space, so I moved to the attic at my parents’ house (my old bedroom), but after a few months that became too small as well. It wasn’t a large space, and everything had to be carried up to the attic each time, which wasn’t ideal with all those (heavy) boxes.
Then a new location came our way, where we were eventually even able to get some extra space to continue growing. But now we have to leave at short notice, so suddenly it became quite stressful to quickly find a new, suitable place. A space where we can not only fit now, but where we can also continue to grow with the future in mind. Because moving… it really is no small undertaking.
Secretly, I’m also a little apprehensive about it, but at the same time I’m so excited. To start over again, set everything up, and turn it into something really beautiful. And how lovely: this new location is in Soesterberg, so I’ll even be able to cycle there! Of course, I’ll take you along throughout this entire process via my social media. 📦✨
Boyd turned 30!
I also want to put someone in the spotlight, because Boyd (my boyfriend) has turned 30! 🥳
Without him, Finest Treasure wouldn’t look the way it does today. He does so much behind the scenes. He maintains contact with our suppliers, makes sure everything runs more efficiently logistically, and of course also helps pack the orders (so there’s a good chance he may have packed your parcel at some point 😉). He’s always ready to help wherever he’s needed. And sometimes he can give me just the push—or kick up the backside—I need. I’m incredibly perfectionistic, which means I can sometimes spend hours working on something, while he’s really good at stepping on the gas and getting huge amounts of work done. Together, that makes the perfect combination, and we complement each other exactly where needed.
And that’s so wonderful, because by now I really can’t do all of this on my own anymore.
Not a big celebration, but...
Something we almost always do is plan our vacations, day trips, and outings around the Happy Mail Club. We make sure that during the weeks when we launch and ship everything, we have all the time, attention, and focus needed to make everything run as smoothly as possible. Those are always the busiest, but also the most enjoyable weeks.
For a long time, Boyd had wanted to celebrate his 30th birthday not with a big party, but instead together with friends on the slopes in Austria. Only… it fell exactly during Happy Mail week. 😅 So over the past few weeks, we’ve worked incredibly hard to pack everything in advance and prepare as many packages as possible, so that it would still be possible to do this.
Grateful for the help ❤️
I also want to give my mother a special mention, because she does an incredible amount of work behind the scenes. Among other things, she helps pack all the individual Happy Mail Club bags, process orders, brainstorms new creative ideas, and is always there to offer support whenever it’s needed.
This week, she’s working incredibly hard again to make sure the webshop can stay open and that all the Happy Mail packages can be shipped properly.
I feel truly lucky to have such wonderful people around me who help me and make all of this possible together with me! 💛
Paper Treasure ✨
For a fun project with Be Creative Shop, I made a booklet with images for creating a vision board. I also placed these booklets on the table during workshops, and there was so much demand for them that I’ve now made a new booklet filled with fun images and scraps to cut out and use in your journal. It’s ideal if you want to create a page quickly without having to search for images and print them out first. There will probably be more versions in the future, but you have this one in your hands first!
KreaDoe Spring Festival 🩷
Yay, this year we’ll be at the KreaDoe Spring Festival again. The previous editions were such a party, and we’re already busy preparing everything.
This time, we have an even bigger stand, which we’re going to turn into a really fun little shop. During the previous KreaDoe, our stand was actually too small, and there was a constant line at the checkout running through the entire shop. Hopefully, we can set things up a little more spaciously this time, so there’s more room to walk around.
Over the past few months, I’ve been working on lots of new products. From coming up with the idea and designing them to finding suppliers, going through sample rounds, and making sure everything was ready on time. But I can now proudly say that we succeeded, and we’re launching some really awesome new products at KreaDoe!!
I’ll also be giving an interview and journal workshop every day from 14:00 to 14:30 on the main stage at KreaDoe. I’d absolutely love it if you came to watch! 💖
I also have something fun for you: via the button below, you can buy your tickets for the KreaDoe Spring Festival at a discount:
Inspiration page ⭐️
For this inspiration page, I started with two A5 background papers from the Country Spring paper pad. I cut both of them in half and then switched them around so I could stick them onto the page diagonally opposite one another. This immediately creates a playful effect and makes your base much more interesting.
Then I started working with layers and built up various elements on top of one another. I also finished the edges with washi tape for that little bit of extra detail.
I wrote a little note on the journal card. I recently saw some really fun punch cards on Pinterest, but of course, those aren’t very practical for your journal. So I made my own version with stars, which the star stickers fit into perfectly. Such a fun way to add a kind of tracker to your page.
KreaDoe asked me to create a page for the KreaDoe Book, and I designed these tracker cards for it. It’s a lovely way to give yourself that extra little push to get creative.
I really think it’s so special that I was allowed to contribute to this 🥹 The book also includes an interview with me and even a sticker sheet featuring my illustrations. (I have no idea if I was already allowed to share this, but this really feels a bit like my online group of girlfriends, so I’m just sharing it with you already hehe ♡)
I’m so curious to hear what you think of this edition, and I’d love it if you shared something! Don’t forget to tag us so we can repost it (@finesttreasure.nl) 💕 Thank you again for your support, and see you in the next happy mail 🥰💌
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