Gift Guide for Creative Business Owners
Editor’s Note: We’re so happy to welcome a new writer Helen Berger to the Dear Handmade Life team! We love her first post about our gift guide for creative business owners. You can read more about Helen at the end of this post. -Nicole S.
There I was, age seven, swimming in my father’s way too big dark blue business suit. I was wildly waving a manila folder with the words “Snuggle Fabric Softener” written in messy crayon. “Get Samson on the line!” I shouted to my secretary and childhood best friend, six year-old Johnny Butler. He didn’t mind the shouting. He was paid handsomely in tootsie rolls and turns on my Nintendo.
But why Snuggle? Who was Samson and why did I always need to get him on the line? And what was with my obsession with playing office?
Maybe it was that over-sized silk-lined blazer that smelled of my father’s cologne. Or the feeling of being industrious. Maybe I liked being the boss. The years have erased the whys of it all, but what remains is that child-like joy when I walk into my space, my office.
I’m a script coordinator now, working on a popular prime-time TV show. I get paid in real money (not Tootsie Rolls). I have a busy schedule and dozens of people count on my work being on time and without error. My seven year-old self would be in awe of the files I keep, the complex scheduling I maintain and all the glorious people I have to get “on the line” on a daily basis.
It can get overwhelming, so as a creative person I need to maintain playfulness even while doing the very serious work of bringing home the turkey bacon. Alongside my desktop computer sit the same crayons that once festooned my childhood bureau. Unique and eye catching trinkets pepper the surfaces in my office: markers, stickers, highlighters, and sketch books at the ready, in case an idea hits me in the middle of a lengthy conference call.
These days my blazers are fitted, I rely on my ergonomic chair to keep my back properly aligned, and I rarely shout orders. I love my desk and all the gadgets, gizmos and accoutrements that keep my office space alive and open to creativity. Through my style and sensibility, I like to think I’m honoring the tootsie-roll fueled Helen of my youth.
I love the items that the Dear Handmade Life team has put together, in our amazing gift guide for the creative business owners in your life. Especially the classic sea green telephone, the classic retro clock and the label maker. Take a look at all the items we’ve curated for great ideas to honor anyone’s creative inner child.
But try to yell at Johnny a little less, you’ll get more turns on the Nintendo.
-Helen
1. The Brilliant Ideas Launch Pad Workbook by Kari Chapin
2. Photo Styling 101 Online Workshop by Dear Handmade Life
3. Classic Retro Clock by Kikkerland
4. Creative Inc Book by Meg Mateo Ilasco and Joy Deangdeelert Cho
5. Right-Brain Business Plan Kit by Jennifer Lee
6. Classic Eraser Set by Sideshow Press
7. Craft Show Success Online Workshop by Dear Handmade Life
8. Get to Work Book Planner by Elise Blaha Cripe
9. Gold Paper Clips by Sideshow Press
10. Motex Label Maker by Motex
11. I Just Like to Make Things Book by Lilla Rogers
12. Little Otsu Weekly Planner by Little Otsu
13. Classic Sea Green Telephone on Modcloth
14. Cactus Battery Pack on Modcloth
15. Gold Dot Hemp and Leather Tote Bag by Natalie V Mason
16. Oak Wood Valet Charging Stand by Play All Day
ABOUT HELEN:
Helen Berger is a writer, script coordinator and producer who has worked on several television shows and movies including 30 Rock, Royal Pains and The Blacklist. She’s half Brazillian and half Swiss which means she tans well and makes an excellent fondue. She loves photography – check out her pictures here: https://hlb323.tumblr.com/ and follow her on twitter: @hlb323
