It's Pajamuary! Time For Personal Projects!

Pajamuary - the month post holiday craziness. A time to relax a little in some pajamas.

I vaguely recall the fellow maker you said that to me almost 20 years ago. However, I do my best in sharing/spreading the word though!

So this is the time of the year where we get to personal projects. They’re always custom of course and that takes some design time. This year we started off easy but it’s a functional necessity of mine - my 2020 planner.

I’ve long wanted to try some engraving on leather notebooks and to potentially offer some up with our own designs. Seizing the opportunity to do so, I decide upon adding a personal graphic as the trial image. (I’m a little maxed out on star stuff right now and I wanted something distinctly me.) Full disclaimer: this is NOT my favorite tattoo of mine. However, like all of my tattoos (I only have four) it’s meaningful to me. I chose this one, because as you’ll see in the video below, it’s on the back of my neck and I forget that it’s there until someone points it out.

Check out the quickie video below and let us know if you would be interested in an engraved leather journal/notebook/planner.

Lasers and love -Thea

Monday, Monday, Monday!

I’m sure you’ve been blasted with Cyber Monday sales and we’re here to join the party.

20% off orders $20 and up. PLUS our regular FREE domestic shipping.

Good only for today!

Lasers and love - Thea

WTF - Thanksgiving is next week?

I saw a meme circling around my social media friend group that basically said that. Time always seems to be flying by in this season of life for us.

Sway Me With Snacks - Wood Stand Up Sign

So, before the big Cyber Monday happening, I’m uploading some new products in the shop. Some, I’ve been meaning to do for some time. Some are brand spanking new. Like the above pictured “Sway Me With Snacks” standup sign.

Poke around the shop to see what’s new and be sure to subscribe to our newsletter for upcoming holiday deals.

Lasers and love - Thea

Halloween 2019 - Spiderwebs and Laser Engraved Pumpkins

It appears that I haven’t blogged in about a year. We’ve decided to make some changes in our business. I feel like in the maker community, we’re not alone on changing stuff up this year. More on that in a future post. But there’s been a lot of action behind the scenes. If you’ve been following us a long our ride, you know we love Halloween and laser engrave pumpkins every year.

Laser cut spiderweb wreath - 6 by 6 Arts

This year we did a couple extra projects like this laser cut spiderweb wreath. It is on the delicate side so, it wasn't available as a seasonal product. Just something fun to do for ourselves.

The decorated wreath. Hand painted vintage silk flowers and toy snakes.

I also had a couple other small Halloween themed projects that I will share over on my other site. So now on to the pumpkins. It’s incredibly easy to find something you’d want to engrave. The tricky part is transforming an image into something that not only the laser understands but also translates well visually. Knowing how the negative spots will look on a pumpkin. Thankfully, John is super good at that so I toss images his way and he makes things work. This year, I chose two characters that I love and actually look and act like John and I - Gomez & Morticia Addams.

Morticia & Gomez Addams - 6 by 6 Arts 2019

Time to get my costume (Morticia) on and turn on the fog machine for the trick or treaters! Happy Halloween!

Lasers & love - Thea

Adobe MAX Marketplace

A few months ago, we were contacted by Adobe to see if we would be interested in vending at their MAX Marketplace that takes place during their big MAX Conference.

This was a no brainer for us. Not only have we previously attended other creative seminars at the Adobe campus in Seattle, but we wouldn’t be much of a business without the many Adobe products we use daily.

We will be at the MAX Conference on Monday. The MAX Marketplace is on Wednesday only. If you happen to be attending, please stop by and say hello. Our booth in the MAX Marketplace is #25. We will have MAX exclusives and will be showing off our most intricate works. You can also follow us along via Instagram. I’ll try to post to our stories a bunch while we are there.

All orders received after Sunday 10/14/18 will ship Friday 10/19/18.

Lasers & Love -Thea

Spooky Spirit Cutting Boards - Limited Run

Last year we posted a photo of a personal cutting board that we designed and created for our personal use. It wasn’t perfect - we forgot a couple details and the font needed to be cleaned up. But there was a big demand for them. Sadly, we had to turn quite a few away (including shops), because we didn’t have time to obtain a good source for the cutting boards.

This year we are remedying that - sort of. We are doing a small run of our spooky spirit cutting boards. It will only be a limited run of 12.

We intend on shipping everything out before we head to California next week for the Adobe MAX Conference. So they can be on their way before your Halloween parties!

A small batch of good spooky fun. Grab one while you can!

Lasers and love - Thea

A dog named Toki

As mentioned in the last post, recently our old lady “puppy” Toki Momoko passed away. While she was quite young and spry in her old age as my daughter Jina always said, time did get the best of her. In her last days, she lost the use of her back legs and I carried her around so she could be with me. She was determined to follow me everywhere despite those darn legs not cooperating.

Toki Momoko - always by my side in the garden.

We adopted her from the Seattle Animal Shelter in 2006. She was just about 3 months old and a super mutt, a German Shepard, Lab, Rottweiler mix. She was the runt of her litter and the only girl. I fell in love immediately. She basically became my fifth kid from the moment I brought her home. In many ways she helped me raise my kids and tolerated a lot from them as family pets do.

Toki was a great comfort in difficult times for my family and myself. Every morning was like Christmas for her as she greeted me at the top of the stairs (I managed to avoid breaking a leg as she would whip around my feet in excitement going down the stairs). Every snowfall we had in the winter, she would pace by the door begging to go out and run like a mad woman in it. She audibly grunted whenever she laid down and would be hard to move when she was comfy. She barked at everything and was very particular about her daily schedule. The girl had quite the personality.

Thea & Toki in the snow in Woodinville, WA.

Every day has been surreal in her absence. I am constantly apologizing for having emotional moments when I miss her. My heart is broken and full all at once even a month and a half after. During the day, while sitting here at my desk, on the couch near me Baberham looks so sad and leaves Toki’s spot open. I loved her so and I’m so thankful for everything she gave me. I feel proud for giving her the best life. She was so loved. I’ve really appreciated all the stories of other’s beloved pets and kind words that everyone has shared with me.

Toki Momoko Starr - 7/11/06 - 8/16/18

Forever guarding me wherever I went. Thank you for that and everything you gave us sweet girl.

Local Roots @Molbak's In Woodinville This Saturday

I’ve been quiet here for a bit. If you’ve been following us on Instagram, you might have seen my posts about our elderly dog Toki being sick and then passing away on August 16th. I’ve tried to write a couple posts about it, but end up in a hot mess of tears. I’ll keep trying because she was great and was a huge part of my life as my sidekick. We received so many kind words and sympathy messages from many of you on IG. It was truly wonderful and a very kind human thing to do. A wholehearted thank you from me to you.

While it has been rough on my heart, we are chugging along with holiday preparation. We’ve got a couple new stockists that we’re excited to share about very soon. We’re also diving right into holiday shows starting this weekend, right here in our home town at Molbak’s.

We’re vending at their Local Roots event. There’s all sorts of additional fun things going on at Molbak’s at the same time. A glass pumpkin patch, a donut vendor, a crepe vendor and live music. Molbak’s is fun to walk through to get inspiration for home or garden decor anyways, but Saturday they’re turning it up a notch. Not gonna lie, I’m probably going to go home with a new plant and a belly full of donuts. I am working on my winter bod.

If you’re out and about near the Eastside of Seattle this weekend come say Hi and tell me some pet stories.

Lasers and love - Thea

This weekend - The Taste of Edmonds

We'll be at The Taste of Edmonds festival this weekend. Friday - Sunday.

We rarely participate in outdoor shows, but Urban Craft Uprising presented this opportunity and we decided to try it out. As the name states, it is in Edmonds, WA. Edmonds is awesome. I've spent a lot of time there and have friends who live there and it's not too far from where we live. 

We're really looking forward to the festival. Whenever there is a festival about food, we get excited. We'll have our chalkboards (including our menu boards!), plant stands, magnets and our food related signs. 

If you're local and have been wanting something from us and like food, this will be the perfect opportunity to do so. Plus Edmonds is by the water which will be perfect to be around this weekend. Save on shipping, eat some food and have some drinks.

Hope to see you there!

Lasers and love - Thea 

We love what we do, we love who we are.

We're DOBIS PR! Just kidding, we're 6 by 6 Arts! Seems odd to do an introduction in the first week of August after 4 years of being in business. However, with the new stuff that we're getting our hands into, I thought it would be a good idea to give you guys a fresh introduction.

He: John - from Hillsboro, OR. Homeschooled, previously worked in the memorial industry with lasers on headstones. Likes, all thing Nintendo, NIN, enjoying craft beers and Pokemon Go.

Me: Thea - I'm from Oak Harbor, WA. Navy brat/automotive shop rat in my youth. I previously worked in the finance industry, founded a roller derby league and I've been a maker since 2003. I like hoarding fabrics, organic gardening and cooking. 

Today, we're residents of Woodinville, WA.

What's up the name 6 by 6 Arts? 

We did consider the play on 6 x 6 in reference to lumber but we decided to go with more of a personal reference. John is the eldest of 6 kids and I'm the youngest of 6 kids AND together we have a blended family of 6 children. I have two boys and two girls and John has two girls. They are all grown. The youngest is 15 and NO we are not having any more human children. Furry babies - definitely.  We currently have two dogs; our senior puppy Toki (mutt) and our young lass President Baberham Lincoln (borador). 

That's just the basic info about us personally. I'll have more posts about out work and process coming up.

I hope everyone has an awesome weekend. In our area it's Seafair weekend, a long standing Seattle tradition. We're personally loving the cooler weather right now.

Lasers and love - Thea 

Holiday Prep Starts In The Summer

Every job I've had has been tied to a season. Working in accounting firms, we had tax season. "Working" for a roller derby league, we had a season. (Although there's no real breaks in derby.) The maker life; while things happen year round, holiday season is the big deal. I shop, you shop, we shop, in the timeframe leading up to the holidays. 

Summertime vibes with holiday thoughts on the mind.

In turn, we start planning for the holidays quite early. I actually started in January this year. Mostly due to be overwhelmed with our workload last holiday season. We survived and thrived, but in hindsight, I can see what we could have done better.

This year I wanted to be ahead of the game. Even if that includes not applying to shows that we love and previously did well at. We need to focus on a few key things. Its important to us that we're not flying by the seat of our pants this year because we have some great opportunities that have been bestowed upon us. They deserve our focus. 

So what does that mean? Well, first it means I'm anticipating not chewing John out for empty inventory bins because I'm predicting how much inventory to have in stock for popular items. Of course we've always done that, but the holidays can be overwhelming with production and it is just the two of us. We're married and its easy to get loose with being flustered at each other with work stuff. However, we actually like each other so that's something that is always first to get nurtured. Second, sending goods off to Amazon. Since its inception, we have been apart of Handmade at Amazon. We did have a weird hiccup with our shop that was resolved via a conference call -  it was a totally weird one off thing that no one knows how it glitched. Love it or hate it, people love using Amazon. We had a glorious return to Amazon and sold quite a bit there. We're sending a handful of products to be available for Prime delivery. Lastly, this is the tough one for me (I'm an ENTP), is focusing in on a choice selection of work. Which means, less custom work availability. We will have a cutoff for custom orders much sooner this year. I LOVE custom work. I like making new things All. The. Time. However, it can be a time suck. Part of our issue last holiday season was saying yes too much. Hindsight is 20/20. 

With all that said, we're currently focusing on some exciting things that we're super stoked to share soon. Hence the quietness from us. Stay tuned friends!

Lasers and love - Thea 

Taking The Scenic Route

Pretty much every day since last week, any time I hop onto social media I see someone I know taking the scenic route on a summer adventure! Including my eldest daughter who traveling through Europe right now. School is out for the summer in many places. We still have a few weeks left to go here. While a short day trip to Portland last week was a small scenic adventure, we're still wanting to go and explore more! We have a few plans lined up to do just that this summer/fall.

While we have some more time to kill before then, we are working on summer show inventory. I'm super excited to jump back into show season. It's so great to connect with our customers and chat in person.

First show on deck for us is Urban Craft Uprising's Summer Show. It's a personal long time favorite of mine. I've vended at it since it's inception, only skipping a couple shows. The organizers, volunteers, fellow vendors, sponsors and attendees are always the best. THE BEST!

We're excited for that weekend! Mark your calendars and come see us okay? It's a booth share with my other company. 

Okay dear friends and family keep posting those amazing travel pictures for me to eye guzzle until it's our turn!

Lasers and love - Thea 

A Little Quiet Time

Behind the scenes, I've set reminders for myself to remember to post here at least once a week. Recently, I noticed we had a decent amount of subscribers that follow along here. (Hi!!!! And thank you!!!) So, I'm making it a point to try to post at least once a week. We post on our Instagram daily for little quick updates and peeks into what we're currently working on. But I know it is nice to read at a leisurely pace. Our work process is multistep and I am happy to talk about those in depth here. I know it is interesting, I even find it interesting and I'm the one doing it. 

I got a little behind on posting. A little sad news came my way, someone who I treasured passed away. I needed a moment to reflect and also embrace a few people close to me. Those of you who know a little bit about me know that I founded a roller derby league over a decade ago and built a great little community from the ground up. I hold those who braved the wild of hitting the ground running and making things turn into reality in the beginning of that journey close to my heart. I'm just a fan of the sport these days but I still keep up with many from the early days and dabble with trying to keep up with the fresh faces that keep the league going now.

Whatever age you are, it is hard to hear of people you know passing or of loved ones scary illnesses. Those moments are reminders that life is fleeting and you need to tell the people you love that you love them. Prioritize your time to spend with them. At minimum reach out to them. I know it can be hard - I am the queen of the overflowing schedule personally. I'm exploring ways that might work for me to make sure I am doing just that.

Apologies for the bit of silence but it was needed. How's that for a mushy Monday? I appreciate you reading this and follow John and I along this journey. We do have some exciting things coming up and I have a bunch of content on our process and products that I want to share with you.

Lasers and love - Thea 

Leeloo The Laser

We named our laser Leeloo and that sweetie has been working her buns off these past few days. 

We recently replaced her tube and she’s been working like a brand new machine. Not that we’ve had any problems with her at all. But we noticed her cutting wasn’t what we were used to. To this day, I am absolutely fascinated by the incredible detail that Leeloo can produce.

We share time-lapse videos on our Instagram if you’re interested in seeing her in action. One of these days I'll upload them to YouTube, I promise!

Hi. 

A maker's life can be a little quiet sometimes. John and I have each other to keep each other company as we work through out the days. Not that it is quiet by any means. Leeloo does make some noise. 

Leeloo is an Epilog Laser made in Colorado.

We've been busy cutting and assembling our newest plant stands for a new stockist in Wisconsin. Tons of laser time and by hand assembling goes into each one. The picture above is of John oiling the wood before we assemble them.

Leeloo has the easy job here at headquarters. Lucky girl.

Lasers and love - Thea

We Hate Acrylic.

How's that to start off a Monday. Yesterday was Earth Day. While it is a special day to John and I, because we were engaged on Earth Day, it is a perfect opportunity to talk about acrylic while the thought of Earth love is on everyone's mind.

Admittedly, when we first opened shop we had a couple products that were made from acrylic. Acrylic products is a standard material for laser cutters. They look really nice and are often well received by customers. 

When we had a large custom project that was made from acrylic in our first year of business. I was excited about it because things were starting to get going with jobs for us. About a quarter way into the job, it really stank. Cutting acrylic with the laser smelled so bad it grossed us out. We have proper ventilation and everything, acrylic simply stinks. Why is that? 

Acrylic plastics manufacturing involves highly toxic substances which require careful storage, handling, and disposal. It also causes toxic fumes and it isn't easily recyclable. Acrylic is a group 7 plastic. Which means it basically ends up in a landfill if thrown away.

Custom Art Deco Wood Cake-Pie Toppers

After reflecting on the process of our work and what we are about as people, we choose to not take jobs that ask for acrylic components. While they might look really nice for a short time, they are really here forever and not in a good way. We do not want to be contributing to harming the Earth for a quick buck. I should also mention that the cost of acrylic often exceeds the price of wood. By A LOT. When we started backing away from acrylic jobs we often quoted the same jobs with wood as an alternative. The prices were less and our clients were just as mindful as we are about the materials. 

Cedar Leaf Indoor Wood Plant Stands 

We've become very familiar and comfortable with some selected wood types that we often use for our work. We have the skills to create colorful palettes with paints. Wood is a renewable material. When it cuts on the laser, it smells like a campfire. Many of our products have that sweet smell. Many people actually pick up our pieces at shows to smell. It's not weird and we encourage it. 

Painted Wood - 8 bit Hearts

Something to think about and consider what it means long term. We are actively looking into Earth friendly packaging. I am truly a plastic hater and I am doing what I can to avoid it.

Lasers and love - Thea 

Road Signs

A lot of our work comes from the inspiration of the landscape that surrounds us. As cheesy as that sounds, if you've been here, you know what I mean. 

We live east of Seattle out in the burbs. There is an unassuming hill that we have to drive up and down to go to into town. At the very top of that hill you can see the Cascade Mountain Range in all its splendor. I love that shit. It warrants the swear. There are so many spots like this all over Western Washington. A spot on the sports field in Lakewood, WA where you can see Mount Rainier appear larger than life. A perfect framing of Mount Baker between two smaller mountains from the freeway in Mount Vernon, WA. The ability to see Mount Baker and Mount Rainier with a turn of the head from various points on the west side of Whidbey Island. And that's only the west side of our state, the east side also has great viewpoint spots.

Mountains - I love that shit

We travel a lot by car/truck and we've accumulated many memories from the road. I love the road signs that alert you to scenic vistas and historic spots. I wanted to create some wall art to represent those.

Mountains, Oceans, Road Trips and the Scenic Route. All to serve as reminders or inspiration for your next adventure. 

Oceans - I love that shit

Each sign is hand painted. (We're really adding a lot of color to our work this year!) Engraved walnut wood and strung with vegan leather cording. A little retro aesthetic, because I feel like many of the road signs we've encountered have that going on.

It's hard to choose a favorite, but being a native Whidbey Islander, I might lean towards the Oceans sign. How about you? Let me know in the comments below and thanks for following us along!

Lasers and love - Thea

Food Mood

Food is such an important topic our lives. For me personally, I have some dietary restrictions and allergies. Dairy is my big dietary battle. I am lactose intolerant, perhaps even allergic (I never bothered to get tested after my doctor had me quit dairy). I get sad faces and condolences when I tell people about it. I do miss cheesecake, but I also enjoy avoiding feeling like crap after eating something. Today there are SOOOO many dairy alternative options, I'm confident that I'm really not missing anything. Including cheesecake, there are non dairy options for that too!

Being dairy free has put me into a pickle every once in a while when we eat out. There's only a few pizza places that offer dairy free options. Many have vegan options, which I always opt for. I'm not vegan, but I truly enjoy eating vegan foods. It is a safe go to, I admire the creativity and I do love vegetables. Feel my side eye to those who are just going to troll me about that.

I'm not here to lecture anyone about food but, I do highly recommend David Chang's Ugly Delicious series on Netflix for some cultural insight on food. (Bonus for an Eric Wareheim appearance! #fangirl.) The series is so good, it was worth a rewatch for me. It got me thinking about how my family's life revolves around food. We sit down as a family every night to a meal and talk about our day. It's centering and it makes me feel good to be thoughtful about what I make for us to eat. You should see our fanfare around Thanksgiving. Also, the series made me appreciate my "hapa" heritage and that I survived the "strange lunch" phase of my life. That food is now cool? Life has come full circle for me. 

On a whim I felt that some food related magnets were in order. Something with a bit of a retro vibe as a nod to my childhood. Let me know what you think about them and tell me about your food life. Are you like us and consider what type of food will be in the area when traveling? Do you want to break the cycle of microwavable meals? Are you like me and don't own a microwave. Or are you and adventurous eater out to try new things? I'm interested! 

Lasers and love - Thea 

Hello Spring!

I’m actually sneezing up a storm 🌸🤧, but no bother, I really enjoy the changing of the seasons. We wanted to share our newest plant stands on this day, the first day of spring. We call this plant stand collection - Nature and Structure. Touches of branches, leaves and a bit of industrial aesthetic too. 

Industrial Bridge Plant Stand | 6 by 6 Arts

The industrial bridge was insprired by a bridge I’ve travelled over many times in my life, the Deception Pass Bridge. It’s a symbol of home and a place to admire in person. 

If you’ve visited the listing, you’ll notice that the swordfern design isn’t pictured. We had a couple rush jobs that needed our attention before that design is complete. We’ll add some fresh photos for that style very soon! 

Medium Cedar Leaves plant stand design.

Medium Industrial Bridge plant stand design.

This collection of plant stands come in three sizes. Small, medium and large. More details are available in the listing.  

We’re pretty excited about these! What do you guys think? 

Lasers and love - Thea

Inspired by nature.🌲

We’ve posting on our Instagram about our new plant stand designs. If you happened to catch the sneak peek pictures, you can see that we took inspiration directly right out of our backyard.  

John fine tuning the cedar leaf design. 

We were trimming up the backyard and got an idea to create a new styles of our plant stands. We brought in some leaves and branches to create some original artwork.

Small Cedar Leaf plant stand. 

Up close. 

We’ve designed three different sizes for this design. They’re not quite ready for sale just yet. The largest one has taken a bit more design work. They are all square in shape and made from walnut wood. 

We’re pretty excited about them. So much so, that we’ve been talking about them nonstop for days.😂 I guess with the cold weather and growing cuttings from my "mom" plants, I've been motivated to handle plant care. I am embarrassed how many indoor plants I've murdered. My eldest daughter teases me about how I do that but everything thrives outside in my garden. Stay warm PNW! Keep your plants happy!

Thea 

Welcome February!

I've always loved conversation heart candies. I think they are silly and especially funny when they're misprinted. Since I've decided to really get back into decorating for holidays and celebrations, I thought it would be fun to add a bit of sweetness to my kitchen. February brings the Valentine's Day love! 

We made a limited edition readymade silly loving sentiment set. Or you can customize a magnet with whatever sentiment you'd like. 

John & Thea

I love these so much! They won't be around for too long, so be sure to grab some.

Lasers and love -Thea