And craft fair season begins!!!

I love craft fair season! It's nice to actually get out there and meet the people who intend to buy my stuff. I love talking to them and seeing there faces and watch them look through everything. I know there are a lot of people who don't like it when customers touch their products, but I love it. I like to watch them hold things up and see the expressions on their faces while they try to decide where they will put the stuff they are going to buy or how it's going to look in a certain book or room. It's so much fun!

I had my first one last weekend. One of my sorority sisters went with me and we had a really good time. It's live and learn though, that's for sure! This was my first outdoor show. I didn't take wind into account so my dispays kept falling over and we finally had to tie AND tape them to the table. We had a good laugh out of it though trying to figure out how to keep them up and anticipating when then breeze would be strong enough to knock things over. My grandfather is helping me fix them so that stuff like that won't keep happening.

I made some new little signs to place in front of the items so people will know what everything is since I constantly have people confusing me with a jeweler, which I am not. I also had to bring my own tables a tent and those were interesting to put up. My arms were hurting the next day from carrying them around and trying to push the tent up.

I also WAY overpacked. I thought that I would want to make some new things while I was there, but I couldn't decide which beads to bring, so I brought ALL of them. That was totally stupid. The weather was nice and there were lots of people and good music, so I had a great time just sitting and socializing. I have a scrabble tile project that I'm working on now that doesn't take up a lot of space so I'm going to just bring that from now.

My car was also a worry. I have an awesome 1975 dodge dart, but I didn't anticipate how heavy all my stuff was. I loaded it all in and after about 5 minutes it started to make funny squealing noises from all the weight. So, now that I've learned not to over pack, hopefully that won't happen again. Or I'll just have to borrow my mother in law's truck.

I have quite a few more dates coming up and I'm so thrilled!

So, if you are going to be in massachusetts area, you can find me in the following places on the following dates!

August 15-16 - Templetom Arts and Crafts Fair, Templeton, Ma

August 22 - Ashby Town Fair - Ashby Ma

Sept 12 - Spencer craft Fair (I think) Spencer, Ma

Sept 26-27 - Lunenburg Town Fair, Lunenburg, Ma


I would love to you all!

Time Machine Top 5

Yes - that is pretty creepy.... But at least the button itself is funny!


2.25 creepy santa button by suzanneartist




I like soft comfy clothes! And the look of this one is especially cute. I love the wrap shirt and the belt that finishes the look.


Yoga pants and wrap set by econica


What a beautiful bead! I love it! And the best part is that it's really really big.


Amethyst carved flower/butterfly pendant by LABeads




It's huge, gaudy, gold, and flowered.... what's not to like?! I have to admit, I'm not crazy about pink, but I love this necklace.



In the Pink by rebecca3030






Walk in the rainbow forest anyone? This would totally match my sister's idea of what the woods should really look like!


Linden Tree ACEO by jerise

I'd like to welcome myself to Collaborators in Cahoots!

A couple of weeks ago I was invited to join a really cool group of etsy peeps and I'm so excited about it! I'm now a proud member of Collaborators in Cahoots. So far, I'm still learning about the rules and meeting everyone and deciding how I want to do promos. But I'm enjoying meeting new people, finding cool new talent, and having my stuff posted all over the internet thanks to the lovely people there!

Don't worry guys! I'll be posting yours everywhere soon too!

I would especially like to thank my friend PromoPixie for getting me into it. I stumbled across her treasure hunt game in the etsy promo forums and she invited me to join. And, I won some awesome earrings from that game courtesy of kawiibuddies.

I'm so excited to be a part of the group! To see some of the awesome peeps in the group, click on the etsy mini's to the left!

Thanks everyone!

Featured Seller: dizzeelizzee (and she's giving something away!)

If you are looking for something totally out of the ordinary and crazy unique, welcome to:

dizzeelizzee

I came across dizzee's shop a few weeks ago while looking for items for my Time Machine Top 5 feature (which I have really been slacking on and I'm sorry about that). I featured a quilled gift bag of hers, and once I started the featured seller back up, I knew instantly that I wanted to feature her, and more items from dizzee's fabulous shop. And, without further ado, meet the wonderful woman behind dizzeelizzee.

Tell us about yourself. Who is the creator behind such awesome designs?
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All about me! I'm an average person....who fell in love with crafting and creating. Even when I was a youngster, I be drawing or doodling, instead of doing my math homework.

How did you come to be in the paper craft business, and what inspires your wonderful designs?
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I'm a late bloomer to the paper biz. I painted all thru my 20's and sewed thru my 30's, so now in my 40's....I finally into paper! Inspiration comes from all areas....I love flowers and nature, I'm lucky enough to live in a place that has wonderful access to nature and unique places.

How do you keep things new and fresh, and keep yourself motivated to make new designs?
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Keeping things new and fresh is difficult for any artist. You want to go with what works before. Personally I keep reading books, blogs, instructional materials, any thing I can get my hands on! I find I experiment a bunch, sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. To me, that is the joy of creating!

How did you come to be on Etsy, and what do you think are the best things about owning an online business?
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I found ETSY by accident. I was looking around for places to buy materials...and there it was. After years of nagging from my family to try and sell some of the things I've made, it seemed like and easy and relatively inexpensive way to get my feet wet. It's been a wonderful experience. I still feel the joy of a convo...and I've made a couple of cyber friends too!


When you aren't creating and spending time on etsy, what do you do for fun?
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....I love baseball, so I'm always watching my Mariners! I try to grow flowers, and vegis, and my family keeps my running around.

(I have to say lizzee, I'm got sucked into the Red Sox Nation myself)


Anything else you would like to share?
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The only thing I'd like to tell your readers is that you MUST try! What ever your passion, desire, or wish...go for it. You get only one shot at this life...don't let fear of failure hold you back.

I have to say, that dizzeelizzee's designs amaze me every time I look at them. Everything in her shop screams loveliness and I can't wait till the holidays come around, because I know exactly where I'm going ot be getting my christmas cards and gift bags!

And because she's fantastic, dizzeelizzee has graced us with an awesome giveaway!!!


This is her Floral Fantasy Magnet. From the picture you can see how dainty it is and how much detail went into this lovely little piece! Thanks so much lizzee and good luck to everyone!

Here are the rules:

1) go to dizzeelizzee's shop, pick out your favorite item, come back here and post the link to it. There must be a link or you entry is void!
2) Blog, twitter, or post something about this giveaway anywhere on the internet and it will earn you extra entries, just make sure that you come back here and post the links to your post about this giveaway.


The giveaway ends Wednesday July 8th at midnight!

My friend really needs your good thoughts and prayers

Today, a really good friend of mine is going to court to here the verdict regarding the custody of her children. As of right now, she currently has full custody of them.

In January of 2008, the father of her children left her and her two boys for another woman. He doesn't admit that, but two months later he was bringing this woman around her children. I don't know if he was telling the truth or not, but I don't believe that he wasn't with her when he left. He allowed my friend and the kids to stay in his house till then end of the school year until she could find another place to live.

She has told me stories about how he has beaten her children, pointed a gun in her face while drunk, threatened to kill her and the kids, peed in the closets and all of the house while drunk, and passed out naked in his son's bed drunk. She went to the police but they said there was nothing they could do. She didn't want to leave him because she firmly believes in family and was hoping she could change him.

In July of 2008, she took her kids and moved back to her home state of New Hampshire. She did not tell the father. She feared for her life because of previous experiences, and he had also told her that she would never leave the state alive with his children. She was able to get a restraining order against him in NH temporarily, and it was lifted in February when he made it out there for the hearing and it was clear he wasn't a threat to them since he could barely afford to get there.

In April, she went back to Michigan to begin court proceedings. She was told be the Friend of the Court that she was a disgrace as a mother for taking her kids so far away without notifying him and they don't see anything wrong with him. So, obviously he has been lying to them as well. He is saying that she is mentally unsound, a liar, and all kinds of other stuff. The recommendation made to the court was for him to receive full custody of the children.

This is the man that left because he said that he couldn't handle being with them all the time, told his son that he deserved nothing more than a bag of dogshit as a birthday gift, and told my friend that he liked his younger son better so maybe she should take the older one and he gets the younger one.

Please, if you pray, pray for my friend. If you don't, then please just keep her in your thoughts and hope for the best.

I don't agree with everything she did. I know that she put herself in this position by not leaving sooner and filing reports and all that other stuff. I know that it was wrong for her to leave without telling him. In her mind she was doing what she thought was right. And I hope for her sake, and for her children's sake even more, that she wins out on this one.

Thank you.

Featured Seller: kirevi8

Ok, I told you that would be get back into the swing of doing a featured seller series. I searched through the time machine to look for some awesome pieces and guess who I found.....

kirevi8

Take a look at anything in her shop and her talent and uniqueness emanate from every piece she has in there!

Take this piece for example - new joy of anatolian woman.
This was the one that REALLY caught my attention when I was scrolling through the hundreds of images in the time machine. I couldn't take my eyes off of it and I knew I had to see more. Once I was in her shop I wanted to meet the woman and creator of such wonderful pieces of wearable art.


Tell us about yourself. Who is the person behind kirevi8?
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My name is Semra Ascioglu and living in Istanbul -Turkey with my family and my 9 years old cooker, KUKI.
I studied Journalism and public relations. My section was Radio -TV

Despite of different jobs, my hobby followed me since my young ages up to now.
I have been always happy to learn and practice all kinds of handmade arts, work with my hands and always been told that my designs were original and very stylish.
I started my own line with bali style and modern jewelry and specialised in authentique anatolian jewelry.
In other words I want to bring the old ethnique traditions to our modern life.
In my designs I like to use exotic colored beads, crystal, hand stitched flowers, ethnic symbols as oya flower, ceramic and glass beads, leaves, coins, leather, knitting pieces and combine them with modern materials.

Every piece is unique and each jewellery has its own story in Anatolia which makes sense to me.

I have to agree with her here. Look at this piece! There is so much variety in the materials and colors, it's easy to see how anyone could combine the old and new into any outfit.

What inspires your pieces? They are all so unique and very creative!
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I like very much to visit art museums in Istanbul.
Specially I prefer Turkish Islamic Arts Museum and Ethnography Museum where I can find old Anatolian and Turkish traditional accessories, dresses, life style.
I follow all Turkish and Foreign publications, reviews concerning traditional Turkish arts.


Because the ocean is one of my favorite places, I couldn't help but fall in love with the fantastic sea shell necklace! I love the variety of shells used and how they all look so elegant together.


How did you get into crafting in the first place, and what motivates you to keep doing it?
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I really do not know how or when I started to get into crafting.
I started to make different kind of handwork since my very very young ages, lets say when I was 4-5 years old. First I learned how to knit, then comes stitching, then decorating flowers, patchwork, glass painting, painting, one stroke, wood painting, stitching, etc.
It is a lifestyle for me to make or to work on handmade arts. I love to do it and always I try to progress in my works.

This piece is absolutely stunning! This is an oya Turkish lacework necklace. The delicacy of this necklace, to me, makes it absolutely beautiful and so feminine. The colors in it are so rich and wonderful. Awesome work!

What do you have planned for the future of your etsy shop, or any plans with your crafting business?
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I am planning to list more and more oya turkish lacework flowers. They are so beautiful and all they have their own story. I want to share all my knowledge with my customers. Also I will add new textile designs to my shop. I want to open an other shop for supplies and accessories. I guess I will do it at the beginning of next season.



Is there anything else that you would like the readers to know about you?
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I can tell this - that I faced a lot of difficulty when I started this business professionally. I was off from work for 20 years. I did not know how to use PC, programs, how to make photos, resize them,... what does it mean to give a link?? what is to open a shop in web... etc etc..
It was really very very difficult and hard for me to learn it. But I never gave up. I begged my sons to teach me all about PC. They were very helpful. After 5 years I know almost everything about PC. But it was really very hard and harmful process for me. Now when I look behind I am smiling and I feel very proud of myself. After 20 years I made big job.

Well, we are so glad that you learned and tried as hard as you did. You are truly an example of how hard work, persistence, and passion really pay off. The Etsy community is lucky that they have such wonderful talent to share!



Anything else that you would like to share?
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I would like to say that now I am very happy to be a member of Etsy family. I am working very very hard to improve my sales in Etsy and make myself to be well known there. But the most important point is that I met very nice friends there

To see more of kirevi8's beautiful pieces, you can visit her shop by clicking on her name at the beginning of this post, or by clicking on her etsy mini in the sidebar. Thank you so much for reading and I hope that you enjoy kirevi8's creations as much as I do.

KITTY PHOTOS!!!!!!!

These aren't the same tiny kitty ones I promised, but any kitty photos are cute kitty photos!!!

These ones were taken of the farm kittens that are up near my dad's place in Maine. These ones are only about 3 weeks or so old, and there were 11 of them!

My dad has a crate that he keeps them all in when they are at the farm this way they can't get lost and the other cats can't get in. It has a top that closes and screened in sides so that they can see out and everything, and the mamas can get in.

For being little kitties, they were SO LOUD! Especially when they are all competing with each other for attention. When we first went over and opened the crate up they were all piled on top of each other sleeping and we could only see about half of them since the rest were buried underneath.


In this picture you can see how little they really are. I held my hands out and one kitten fit nicely in my palms.

This little black and white ones was one of my favorites! He fell asleep right there in my hands and I just wanted to take him home with me.

I'll try to post some more pictures soon! but since my sis is the one that took them, I have to wait until she posts some more.

Enjoy everyone! I hope this little guys make you smile, because I know they make me smile!



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