Want to Create A Thought?

Woots for another fabulous Featured Etsyblogger...Create A Thought.

I just love this part of her shop announcement "I love writing. I love the swirl and swing of words as they tangle with human emotions."

You can find journals, cards, purses, magnet, frames, prints, and many more items in her shop! You can even request personalized items .

Here are some of my faves:







More places to find her:

• The blog

• Flickr
  

• Myspace

• Facebook page

The Blue Cat

The Blue Cat is the blog of a great artist and fellow Creative Blogger. Her blog is full of great artisan features and lots of her wonderful works. If you are a lover of cats, you will love her paintings. You can find her all over the place...just check out all the links below. Below some of my fave Blue Cat works of art...

links:

• artfire
• ebay
• etsy
• gallery at Zazzle
• flickr
  

My Favorite Salad

So this is not exactly a traditional recipe. But I just love this simple salad & have been eating it so much lately that I thought I'd share. And to be honest, the biggest reason for eating it so much lately is, well, laziness. I just have not felt like cooking this past week or so. The youngest is done with preschool and already bored. The constant rain has not helped. Time to sew has not been easy to find...I guess even cooking is getting the short straw to make time for me...me me me. Yup - that whole 2 hours spread through out the day of just me...ahhh, kids - gotta love 'em.

Anyway - the salad:

• Lettuce - anything but Iceburg
• Dried cranberries (or apples - green/Granny Smith)
• Crumbled blue cheese
• Walnuts - no sugary or salty crud added
  
• Dressing - just a teeny bit - I found a great Blue Cheese by Walden Farms...calorie free, sugar free, carb free, gluten free, cholesterol free & no preservatives - and yes, it actually tastes great!
  ...note: I have used a mild vinagrette sometimes too.

What is your fave salad? I am always on the lookout for more combos :)

Chainmaille Goodness

Goodness in art & as a supporter of artisans. Chainmaille by MBOI has a great blog ...make that 2 blogs...the first even has it's own forum where artisans can show off their work, support each other & socialize. Buyers are also welcome there...always a plus :) Want to join in? Just click here.
And remember I said artisan? This is one of my faves:

Do you have a blog? Do you like to feature other great bloggers?
Then come join us over at Creative Bloggers.

Wordless Wednesday

Etsybloggers Carnival: May 25 Edition

Welcome to the Etsybloggers Carnival! This is my first time hosting and I am so happy to have you all here. So sit back, relax and start clicking some links! Enjoy!

Welcome to the May 25, 2009 edition of etsybloggers.

Linda Wheelock presents Spotted Cow Soaps: Top Secret Mission posted at Spotted Cow Soaps.

Rose Works Jewelry presents Birthday Memories :) posted at A Jedi's Musings.

Jimena presents Summer line and the living is easy... posted at Panoptica.

UberArt presents Thoughts on new products for the summer posted at UberArt Shop.

Mary Ann presents My Favorite Birthday Present posted at Morning Sky Jewelry and Creations.

Elayne Teitelbaum presents ChezChani: You Say It's Your Birthday posted at ChezChani.

Heather presents EtsyBloggers Blog Carnival: Summer Shop Show & Tell posted at Winemakerssister.

Kraken presents Gearing up for an art filled summer posted at Kraken Mosaics - Where Art & Inspiration Collide.

cupcakedalink presents 30 Days of Birthday Wishes! posted at Cupcakedalink's Etsy Blog!.

Terronda Clarke presents Etsyblogger Blog Carnival - Birthday Memory posted at ~Unique Commodities~.

Melissa Sinisgalli presents Show & Tell: Summer line posted at Made By Melissa.

CREATEaTHOUGHT presents Summer posted at CREATEaTHOUGHT.

Vanessa presents Birthday Proposal posted at Designs by Vanessa.

Lauren presents Blog Carnival: Favorite Birthday Memory posted at Lost Mitten.

Heather presents Show & Tell! posted at Heather's Custom Sewing.

Stacey presents An Elle Belle Birthday! posted at Elle Belle.

kuartzo presents kuartzo | shop: | Etsy Bloggers Team | 22 May Blog Carnival posted at kuartzo | shop.

Elise presents Vintage Inspiration posted at Inside Betani's Bureau.

Sumiko Shop presents Blog Carnival: Summer Shop Show & Tell posted at Sumiko*Handmade Creations*.

storybeader presents Etsybloggers Carnival - May 22, 2009 posted at Stroll Through Storyland.

julie marriott presents New Shop Ideas posted at Welcome To My World.

agoodwitchtoo presents The Copper Cauldron Soaps: Summer Time Show and Tell posted at The Copper Cauldron.

Erika presents A Forgotten Birthday posted at NICO* Designs.

Jen presents Mama's Magic Studio -- Sneak Peek for Summer posted at Mama's Magic.

Stacy presents Summer Is Coming posted at CANDYCRACK.creations.

Edi presents Birthday Memories posted at Memories for Life Scrapbooks.

Rainy presents Show and Tell- May 22 Blog Carnival posted at RainyDayArt.

crazyladybeads presents Blog Carnival: Summer Shop Show & Tell posted at Crazy Lady Beads.

Margaret Freije presents a birthday memory posted at Splendid Little Stars.

Carapace presents Blog Carnival: Summer Line posted at Cara Makes

shellmitchell presents Birthday Memories posted at Shell Mitchell Accessories and Design.

Kelly Drill presents Memorial Day Deals and Biz Plans for the Summer posted at Macaroni and Glue.

PatchFirstShop presents Blog Carnival of May 2009 posted at Patch First Shop.

Jenny Mackintosh presents Show and tell: My summer plans posted at Creature of Craft

Syrena Edmonds presents Etsy Bloggers, Blogging Carnival-Summer Show & Tell posted at Scrapbooking by Syrena

tina lenz presents this and that by k and t posted at this and that by k and t.

Stormy Designs presents It's summertime at Stormy Designs-Time for a SALE posted at Stormy Designs.

Now let's go visit our teammates blogs and read this edition of the EtsyBloggers Blog Carnival!

Technorati tags: etsybloggers, blog carnival.

Etsybloggers: Summer Line

This carnival is one where I got to pick the theme choices - yippee! It's my first time as host, some come back by next week to take a peek at all the awesome blogs that participated.
The choices I gave were to show your summer line or talk about a birthday memory. If you are a regular reader here, you can probably guess why I picked these. My boys had their birthdays recently - April 25 & May 15. And I am changing around my shop a little - thus the summer line.

I am going with the summer line since, well, it's only my kids birthdays I like...could care less about my own. That tends to be the way with kids though huh?

Summer line: Calling it a new "line" may be a bit of a stretch since most of the bags I will be making have been made by me before. What makes it new to me is the organization aspect. When I first opened shop it was full of a mish mash of different bags. Having every bag made from different fabric was, and is, one of the things I like most. And the new stuff will keep that one-of-a-kind aspect. But I am narrowing down the style choices.

I have set aside fabric to make 5 bags of each style - to start. I am hoping to introduce them all at once...well, over a period of a week or two. So in the meantime, I am having a clearance sale of all items not following the new line. These pics show the fabrics I have set aside. Whether or not this changes as I sew is yet to be determined :)



I have also started embroidering panels for messenger bags. My Serenity bag was going to be the first in my shop - but it sold. Which is a good thing, but when I went to sketch out a replacement...I made about 10 more. Opps. This is what I have completed so far:



And the styles? Here's the list: Messenger bag, Pleated tote & duffle (yoga mat length) with handpainting & embroidery, Venus, Ribbon & Ann handbags with handles, Mollie clutch, wristlet with bracelets and the Taffy purse (only smaller)....plus zip pouches. I will do custom ones for those who want the bags in a different size or fabric...or "bulk" orders like the bridal party ones I have done recently. Here's a mosaic of examples:

BlogFire: Dad's Day

Father's day is coming up and I never know what to get. It is much easier to get something for my hubby than my Dad since our kids pick it out. But my Dad just goes out and gets whatever he wants. We try telling him not to get stuff close to gift holidays, and he usually listens. So I went searching on Art Fire for amusing gifts he would never think of...and ok, some he wouldn't want, I just get a kick out of them.

...because...well, it's a cool tie & aren't dads supposed to get ties?

JesSwitaj...Sea Nettle Jellyfish Necktie

...because he has gargoyles protecting his garden...

Welcome to My Whimsy...The Gargoyle Gunther

...because he likes beer...

chicalookate...The Beer Depot Coasters

...because he loved George Carlin...

Geek Details...7 Words You Can't Say on TV

..because he should paint again...

gingerbirdgirl...Complete Oil Paint Intro Set

Are you an Art Fire seller who blogs? Then come join our Blogfire Guild.

Wordless Wednesday

To EC or Not to EC?

I have found lots of fun blogs that I now follow since I started using Entrecard. Then they switched to adding paid adverts. I accepted some at first. I kept it to those that I would have on normally...or so I thought. One day I went on my blog & saw an ad I know I never approved. So I stopped accepting paid adverts all together.

And since that day... even my credit adverts dried up. There were ZERO new ones. So is that related to being bumped down to the bottom of the category after not accepting adverts? Probably. I have still been dropping because I want to visit my faves. And now I think I will be hopping on the Drop-EC-bandwagon. But not before I use up my credits to advertise.

So to anyone that follows me through EC & wants to keep track - I've got my Follower box over on my sidebar. Hope to keep seeing you here :)

Holy Cow! He's 14!!!!

Happy birthday big guy!!! I am foregoing my usual Friday Food for my son's B-day...maybe I'll get the food up later this weekend.
Well, here he is over the years...

Liv'nGood Goodies

Ok - another awesome blog for you...Living Good at Liv'nGood Jewelry. I just read a fab blog post on, well, blog posting. She has some great tips on the the best way to use your blog - especially for those of us who use them for marketing & business support. You should really give it a read (here).

I know "business support" sounds all stuffy...but she's an artisan, so you know it'll be on the creative side. Just take a peek at what she makes:




You can find here goodies here:

• Etsy
• 1000 Markets
• Artfire

for some bloggy goodness...hop on over to Creative Bloggers & join in the fun :)

Wordless Wednesday

p.s. no zoom was used....run!

Mademoiselle M - International Blog of Jewelry Beauties

This is the first bilingual blog I have run across...and what a beautiful blog. The beauty is due to her fabulous jewelry. There are so many places you can go to see her artistry...start off here at her blog, which has such a great tagline: "Chronicles of a mission: to embellish women"

Here are a few of her works to tease you :) Pop over to her Flickr for more.





and now you can go here to get some for yourself...

• * Mademoiselle M *
• Art Garage Sale
• Artfire
• Etsy
• iCraft
• Mademoiselle M Gems
• Shop Handmade

If you are a jewelry artisan...be sure to stop by her Gems shop for some wonderful supplies.

Time to Reorganize

Okay - I got the kinks worked out of my "change the shop around" plan. I am going into more detail on my Too blog since that is the one with more of a "my craft" focus. But here's the short of it...

I will be sticking to a handful of styles and sizes. They will still be done in a wide variety of fabrics & no one will be exactly like the other...unless custom ordered otherwise. There will be a casual and more "dressed up" line, each with a small, medium & large size...but not one style in different sizes. There will be lots of embroidery, some button fun and some hand painting. It will take some time to load up the shop.

Soooo....

In the meantime - BIG SALE! I am taking everything that does not fit with the new redo and pricing them to go go go! Yes, I just want them cleared out to make room ...not so much for in the shop as for my storage area :) I will be repricing everything over the next couple days...it takes a long time with a 4 year old around. I'll let you know when the clearance sections are up & ready to be shopped!

Which reminds me...this is an area that the shops could use some changes in. It would be so helpful to be able to change listings while in vacation mode so when you can come back, everything is changed at once. Poof! Magic. Ok, so you can put all items as "inactive" with a vacation mode sounding shop welcome...but it'd be easier my way :)

Angel's Hair

I just love finding new blogs and artisans...and I've got another one for you.
She is french-malian artist Living in Brooklyn. She had a company,"Le monde de namate", which was a gallery, and an artist management company. Plus, she worked as a freelance personal coach in Paris. Her blog reflects on her life's journey - philosphical, artistic, spiritual, cultural & scientific. You can read her blog, Angel's Hair, here.

And don't forget about her artistic side. You can find her profile on Trunkt and her works for sale on Dawanda and Etsy. Here are just a couple of my faves:

visit Creative Bloggers and join in the bloggy fun!

Wordless Wednesday

Promote a Sister Sunday: Love Bug Studios

This week I chose to feature Love Bug Studios. My picks are random, but with some kind of direction. This time I was led to this great shop after browsing around our team's ning site where I ran across a few threads where her replies were a huge help.

I fell in love with her shop...she has a great mix of crafts - all of which I love (or plan to love) myself. These are just a few of my faves:

Pork Medallions in Peppery Mushroom Gravy

Serves: 3

Ingredients:
2 cups egg noodles, yolk-free, medium-wide, dry
1 pound pork tenderloin
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
2 cups fresh mushrooms, sliced
1/2 teaspoon garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups beef broth
2 tablespoons sun-dried tomatoes, sprinkles
1 1/2 tablespoons dijon mustard
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 1/2 teaspoons brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper, coarsely ground

Directions:
1. Cook noodles according to package directions, omitting salt & oil. Drain.

2. Trim fat from pork & cut cross-wise into 8 pieces. Place each piece between 2 sheets of heavy duty plastic wrap & flatten to 1/4-inch thick using rolling pin or meat mallet.

3. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over med-hi heat. Add pork & saute 2-3 minutes per side. Remove from pan & keep warm.

4. Add mushrooms & garlic - saute 1 minute.

5. Add broth & remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently.

6. Return pork to skillet, reduce heat & simmer 2 minutes.

7. Serve over noodles.

Nutrition:
Per Serving : 377 Calories; 8g Fat (19.1% calories from fat); 44g Protein; 32g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 98mg Cholesterol; 908mg Sodium.
Exchanges: 1 1/2 Grain(Starch); 5 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 1/2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.
Weight Watchers Points: 8

Very tasty...I do not have my own photos, this one is from the source: Health magazine,April 1999