Nutmeg Collective Fundraiser: Love Local Connecticut Tote and Tank

Our second EXCLUSIVE COLLECTION is now live! 

With art by Ann Marie of Sprinkles of Color, we are offering a Nutmeg green OR pink tote bag and a ladies' tank in dark gray or pink. 

We hope you'll consider supporting our Love Local cause!  Check out the campaign here.

Nutmeg Collective Fundraiser - #CTMADE Onesie, T-Shirt and Tote

The Nutmeg Collective is presenting a series of exclusive, limited-run items over the summer that you will not be able to purchase anywhere else and each will only be available for a 2-week window.

We have asked all of our designer members to come up with a CT-based themed graphic. We proudly present the first: our own ‪#‎ctmade‬ logo from designer, Cyn Thomas of RiverDog Prints. 

Items available include onesies for the most adorable CT-made babies, and T-shirts in toddler, youth, and adult sizes. We also have market totes for when you are out buying all those fabulous ‪#‎ctmade‬ products!

Purchase now :: Only available until June 15!

https://www.booster.com/supportctmade

Love Local Presents: Shamrock Shop Market at Get Baked

artwork by Woodward Paper Co.

Another great market is coming this weekend!  The Love Local Market is back at Get Baked in Windsor, CT, with thirty vendors on both Saturday and Sunday starting at 10:00 am.

Connecticut-made goods will include teas, jewelry, pottery, handcrafted bath and body goods, knit and crochet goods, leather goods, photography, glassware, reclaimed wood pieces, and more.

Remember to stock up on Get Baked treats, breads, and coffee.  And grab a special, local ingredient Shamrock Shake! 

For more information, visit the Market Facebook Event here. We hope to see you there!

More Let It Snow!

Winter is here and what is winter in Connecticut without snow?  Here are more Nutmeg Collective members' goods to Let it Snow!

Doug Hockman Photography 11x14 Mat

Cottage Wicks Soy Candle

RiverDog Prints Greeting Card

Jenny Fields Fiber - Snowcrash

Sleigh Ride Tea and GingerBread Tea
Winter Warmer Tea can be found at Whole Harmony Apothecary 1572 Saybrook Rd Haddam CT 06438

Let it Snow!

The serious lack of snow just doesn't feel right at this time of year.  I know some people dread the winter weather, but we are sharing some Nutmeg Collective members' goods today and Monday to Let it Snow!

InDee Designs - Silver Snowflake Necklace

The Toy Box by Vinny Snowman Kit

Made by Jane Design Handmade Glass Bead Necklace

fallenpeach Sammy on a Snowman Bookmark

MSD Design Snowflake Garland

Lily Pad Prints Pillow Cover

Seasonal Spotlight: Host and Hostess Gifts with Spirit

 For your next holiday party, dress up your host or hostess gifts with some Connecticut-made style!

Laura's Paper Creations
Holiday Gift Tag Set

&Morgan
Wine Tote Bag

 

The Burnt Shop

Hand-etched Glassware

Hickster Tees

Chicken Wire Tote

 

Mystic Knotwork
Nautical Monkey Fist Knot Bottle Stopper

Painted by the Shore
Hand-painted Wine Charms

Cyn Thomas is the illustrator, designer and pattern maker of RiverDog Prints. Her paper goods and gifts are guided by earth, animals, function, food and cocktails. You can also find Cyn canning in her kitchen, walking her dog, being outnumbered by her boys and husband or reading herself to sleep.
Website | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | woof@riverdogprints.com

One Thing: Gift Sets

Designer Dwellings

Having ready-to-gift options is one thing you can create in your shop to attract new customers and keep your loyal fans coming back.

Poor & Pretty

Take a look at your current offerings and imagine yourself as a customer looking for gifts for different occasions.  If you have items that could be paired together to give as a gift, create a new listing for them using keywords that will help that gift-giver find your items.

Painted by the Shore

 You can also offer a gift set or a singular gift that includes gift wrap.  Customers want you to solve their gift-giving problem, so ensure that is as easy and complete as possible.  You can offer gift wrap as an add-on to your items or include it in the price of your items.  Make sure to take a photo of the gift-wrap option.

Treefort Naturals

 If you can offer different price points for your gift sets, you can fulfill the needs for different gift-givers.  Commonly, gifts are between $20 and $50, depending on the recipient.  There is also the token gift that can be between $10 and $15. Try to have a variety of options for both of these price point ranges.

Nutmeg Naturals

If you keep in mind who your gift set might be for, how much they want to spend and make it easy for the gift searcher to find your item, you can open up a whole new area for your shop and your customers.  Happy gift-giving!

Cyn Thomas is the illustrator, designer and pattern maker of RiverDog Prints. Her paper goods and gifts are guided by earth, animals, function, food and cocktails. You can also find Cyn canning in her kitchen, walking her dog, being outnumbered by her boys and husband or reading herself to sleep.
Website | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | woof@riverdogprints.com

Rhymes With Smile 2015 Finalist Martha Stewart American Made

We are so excited for Katherine Lile!
Rhymes With Smile is a 2015 Design Finalist in the Martha Stewart American Made competition. Voting is now open and you can vote up to six times a day through most of October.  Show Katherine your support as often as you can!

And be sure to check out the American Made Market where you'll find Mystic Knotwork's goods. Matt and Jill Beaudoin were featured at the inaugural Martha Stewart American Made Event in October of 2012, and again, in 2013.

It's great to see our talented, local artists celebrated on a grand scale.  Good luck, Rhymes With Smile!

#ctmade

At The Nutmeg Collective, we love Instagram and connecting with local Connecticut makers through their posts.  We use our feed not only to highlight our our members and their products; we also like to show off the beautiful quality work that is produced in the state.

If you are a maker, we invite you to use the hashtag #ctmade on your photos.  This gives us a way to find you and your work and helps us share.  If you aren't a maker, but know one, feel free to throw the hashtag in your comments.  We love to connect with new makers.

Back to School Gift Guide

It's that time again- back to school! (Side-note: Is it me or are summers just going by faster and faster every year?) Whether you're stocking to fulfill those ever-growing back to school supplies lists for your kiddos, purchasing some "happy new school year" gifts for your teacher friends, gifting a student as they start off the academic year or simply just in the mood to treat yourself to some new supplies, The Nutmeg Collective offers a wide array of unique items! Big box stores can be overwhelming and impersonal, please take a look through a sampling of the goods your local Connecticut shops have to offer as back to school season rolls through!


Spruce up a backpack with these dino pins from Our Secret Treehouse! Their shop features items made from whimsical hand drawn cartoons- browse through their collection to fun find stickers, notebooks, prints and more!

Our Secret Treehouse

You can never have too many notebooks! Don't let thoughts, ideas and important reminders get lost through the day to day shuffle... write them down in an eco-friendly jotter notebook from RiverDog Prints.

RiverDog Prints

Keep your page with an oversized paperclip bookmark from Milo and Molly. With many different fabric prints available, adults and kids alike would benefit from never losing their space in their book again. (And let's face it, this kitty face is just too cute to pass up!)

  

Milo and Molly 

Your little on-the-go-artist will appreciate this crayon tote from Little Fingers Gifts. Originally created with a budding school bus artist in mind, this tote is handy to store paper and crayons in without them getting lost in the bottom of a backpack... or as Little Fingers Gifts hoped: to stop a full box of crayons from falling and rolling around on the bus floor!!!!! Other fabric styles are also available in the shop.

Little Fingers Gifts

Dress them in style! Cinder & Salt offers girls tees screen-printed with the environment in mind. Did I mention they are adorable?!?

 

Cinder & Salt

Let them have fun! The Toy Box by Vinny creates handcrafted wooden toys like this tic-tac-toe game. Shop to see more styles!

The Toy Box by Vinny 

Jessica Labowski of Start Talking Vintage: Jessica is a recent college graduate and full-time preschool teacher who has developed a passion for all things vintage and the rich history they carry. She enjoys treasure hunting for historic beauties at estate sales, crafting, sewing and DIY projects (especially those that upcycle vintage items and give then new, modern appeal!) Stop by to take a look at her curated vintage treasures and handmade, vintage-inspired goods.
StartTalkingVintage.etsy@gmail.com