Wise Craft

Location

My name is Blair Stocker. I live in Seattle, Washington with my husband Peter and Ian, 9 and Emma, 11. (And we can't forget the most loved, spoiled cat in the world, Gracie.)

My husband and I have owned our own brand consulting agency called Story Trading since 2007. Peter is the real brains behinds what makes our business tick, but then again, I have always said he's pretty smart and creative. In September of 2009, we also partnered up with friends in Orange County California to start Komforte Chockolates, a line of chocolate bars that began as an idea to unite the favorite tastes of comfort of our youth with premium chocolate. Plus, Peter was very interested in actually going through the process of creating a brand from idea to shelf, after doing this for so many of our clients. Its been a ton of work, but rewarding.

We have our offices at home, in the midst of sometimes crazy, frenetic, yet always fun kid energy and family life, and try to remember to laugh and embrace the chaos blending everything under one roof. One day we will probably have to move our offices "off campus", but until them, as the person of the house that "creates the home", I really enjoy having us all here together this way.

I learned about creating things spending summer days with my maternal grandmother as a kid. In her little house, she taught me how to knit (at age 4!), tie my shoelaces, sew, bake cakes, tend the flowers in the garden, and all the things that made her house feel like a home. I've never lost my desire to make things. I wish my grandmother were alive today, I think she and I would have a lot of fun together.

I have a background in apparel and fabric design but left the industry when my daughter was born. I started this blog in September of 2005 as a way to record the many projects I found myself doing.  I find enjoyment and sanity in sewing, knitting, all kinds of crafting.

I taught myself how to make quilts when I was pregnant with my second child. We were cleaning out my daughter's baby things and I made a quilt of her baby clothes in order to preserve them in a keepsake. Since then, I have grown to love quiltmaking in all its forms, and I love seeing them used and enjoyed. Art that hugs you. That's what a quilt it to me.

I also get much satisfaction out of creating a home filled with handmade things. Our whole family is creative, and the walls are filled with beautiful art from family and friends, projects made by our kids pepper every available surface. In the early stages of this blog, I shared a lot of things that I did and made with our kids (you can find many of these projects in the blog archives, particularly the "crafting with kids" section). Over the years my posts has evolved a little as our family has. I have more time to create and explore my creative ideas, and my kids are finding their own creative outlets. Its been a gift to be able to record it all here.

In 2009, I began working as a photo stylist on many DIY project shoots for Value Village. I can't tell you how much I enjoy this work! I buy items from their stores, and use them to create innovative DIY projects, then have these projects shot by professional photographers. This content appears regularly on the Value Village website. This type of work continues to grow for me and I feel so lucky that I get to do something I love.