Shopping Handmade: Illustrated Ink!!

It's been a while since I've done a Shopping Handmade feature, and this time is dedicated to just one seller & artist, Leila from Illustrated Ink, that created two great custom pieces for me to give as housewarming gifts to two of my bffs!





I had been following Leila's blog (Tattoo Tales) for quite a while, when she showed off this lovely napkin holder she had painted with a winged cupcake and her usual colourful old tattoo style! So I got this idea of getting some custom made, not for myself since I have no place of my own, but for two of my best friends who have recently got their own homes!


Leila was super helpful and willing to work with me, so once she got the holders, we started discussing colours and how to better paint each one of them to fit the kitchens where they were gonna end up in! My friend Gema has her kitchen in lilac & green, so we went for a nice purple for the main colour, and Pilu's kitchen is more white & metallic, so we went with silver for the main colour.


Once both napkin holders were done I was blown away as what a great job Leila had made painting them in different colours, and even having the same design, how different each looked in their custom colours! Definitely something only handmade stuff can achieve!


When I got the package, both holders came lovely wrapped, all ready for gift giving, and Leila included two gorgeous postcards that I greedily decided to keep for myself!










Both my friends absolutely loved their napkin holders, and really oooooh'd and aaaaah'd at the fact that they matched their kitchen and loved the super cute cupcake painted there! Both love using it, for decorative purposes, and also during dinners and lunches with friends, when they both get many questions about where they got such an unique piece! They always say it's a special handmade piece that their friend bought directly from the artist, and I think that impresses people even more!

Gema's purple napkin holder

Pilu's silver napkin holder

I have to confess I can't wait till I can ask Leila to make me a pair of custom napkin holders for my own place! In the meantime I'm planning on getting a pair of her prints, and maybe one of her locket necklaces!

More Skull And sCrossBuns!!

I've already told you all about this amazing shop called Skull And CrossBuns run by an amazing artist and mum of two from the UK called Emily, right?


Well, I'm just here to show off the amazing new goodies I got myself from her shop! After getting my two awesome custom stamps made, I fell in love with some her stamps in stock, and so I went and got me some!


It was just after I had come back from Maiden's concert, so of course, I had to get her Keep Calm and Rock On! stamp, and thinking of adding a more personal touch to both b-day and Holidays cards & envelopes, I got myself a super cute Cupcake stamp and a Skull & Cross Canes stamp that is perfect both for Hallowe'en and Yule/Christmas/Winter Solstice!


Aside from how awesome her stamps are, one of the best things about Emily is how cute she makes her packaging, you almost feel bad for ripping into it!








Not only I got my stamps, but she also sent me an extra one, quite the perfect companion for the Keep Calm and Rock On! stamp, a Devil Horns stamp! (I'd like to remember here the great Ronnie James Dio, who was the one to bring them to rock'n'roll!)! These two really are the perfect pair! I can't wait to start using them, though I'm still plotting how!








The Cupcake and Skull & Cross Canes I already have a very clear idea of what I'll be using them for!





Cupcake stamp I've already used for adding some cute cupcakes all over a friend's b-day card and envelope! No more sending boring envelopes in the mail, I'm all for making people smile before they even open the envelope! ;) And this cupcake is perfect for it! So cute and even has a heart!





Skull & Cross Canes will be my stamp for adding a personal touch to all my holiday cards and again, envelopes! I always think envelopes look too boring all blank with just the address on them, and drawing something by hand on all of them can be a bit daunting, perfect solution? A stamp!




These are for sure not the last stamps I will be getting from Emily's shop, and we're already plotting together a super special stamp, but I won't be saying any more, waaay too soon for that!