The positive response I received to my pledge to have a hand made Christmas encouraged me to find a way to make it easier for others to join in. To trade in the aisles of major shopping centers, in favor of the aisles of craft markets or online marketplaces. To invest their shopping money into the community of makers around us, rather than off shore corporations. To buy beautiful, hand crafted and meaningful gifts, as opposed to mass produced plastic with a short life expectancy. It can be difficult to change our habits. It is faster to wander through a major store that has 'everything' than it is to browse though the many independent little stores, looking for the right thing. So, I have been hatching a plan to celebrate and advertise Australian makers here on the blog and make our job as consumers easier too.
I have sought out twelve of my favourite makers, each of whom are offering one or two of their beautiful handmade items in a giveaway. One giveaway a day for the first twelve days of December! Each giveaway will be drawn the following day, giving everyone one day to enter. Twelve winners in total. (If you miss out on winning a giveaway but fall in love with an item, you will have time to purchase and receive it before Christmas.)
My aim is to encourage those wanting to add a little or a lot of handmade to their Christmas, while supporting some of my favourite crafters at the same time, by introducing you to them. So join me by celebrating the first twelve days of Christmas with a giveaway a day, beginning with Red Tree Designs on the first of December. Please feel free to share the 12 Days of Giveaways on your blog, facebook, twitter etc.
(I want to be completely transparent and let you know that there is no financial gain in this for me. I am not being paid in products either. I was so encouraged by the sense of community I felt with the ornament swap, that I thought this was another way to extend the networks in our community. The cost to the makers is the giveaway item/s and postage to the winner only.)
A huge thank you to the twelve wonderful makers who have offered their wares for this 12 days of Christmas celebration, and a huge thank you to everyone reading.
Wishing you the best of luck!
