Remember me?

Um...hi. Haven't been around in some time. There was a lot going on last year, including some health troubles, a new business and a big move. I thought I'd ease back in with this new Treasury I managed to get on Etsy tonight. Enjoy, and be sure to visit all the great sellers you see on the list!


Follow the links:
Mwilson, delightworthyn, annavos, askey, smashing, beetlegirldesign, PoleStar, jpet, Xenotees, HeyMieMie, Bebcha, GalleryOneZero

Recessionista

Now that the Etsy Canada Group Sale is over, it's time for me to start plugging my next big event: Recessionista! As you can see in the flyer, it's a 40-vendor show at Heritage Hall in Vancouver. The trick with this show is that every item for sale will be priced at $25 or less...which is proving to be a bit difficult to stock up for, as I won't be able to sell many of the new pieces I've been working on. But we'll all make do, won't we?! I'm looking forward to browsing the other artists in attendance. I generally have a rule about not shopping where I'm selling, but I might have to look the other way (from myself?) this time.

In other news, I think it's time for me to get back to one of the original purposes of this blog: showcasing some of the great, underexposed talent on Etsy. I've got some shops in mind, but if you have an Etsy shop and would like to be written up, post a comment here and I'll see about getting you some small-time press!

The big event kicks off tomorrow!

That's right: the Etsy Canada Group Sale starts tomorrow and runs until Sunday, May 24. Check out all the great Canadian Etsy shops below to see what kind of deals you can score, and don't forget to visit my shop, bedtimebeads, where you'll get half off your second item this week. And here's the best part: when you purchase from one of the 25 shops involved in the sale, you'll be entered to win one of three giveaways of a bunch of fabulous handmade items. Are you giddy yet?

Here’s a list of all of the participating artists by medium:

beads, glass and wire
akane.etsy.com
asecondtime.etsy.com
beadcrazed.etsy.com
bedtimebeads.etsy.com
brynnalex.etsy.com
bylynnkrestel.etsy.com
carolforsyth.etsy.com
cocosjewelry.etsy.com
debrasdesigns.etsy.com
gillianbeads.etsy.com
groovyglassgirl.etsy.com
luckytroll.etsy.com
prettybetty.etsy.com
sleepymoondesign.etsy.com
squareware.etsy.com

clay
jansonpottery.etsy.com

fabric and thread
barefoottams.etsy.com
ficklefaerie.etsy.com
owlandpussycat.etsy.com
radclothing.etsy.com
whiterabbit21.etsy.com

paint
acageybee.etsy.com
deandymentstudios.etsy.com
elseetee.etsy.com
luludesign.etsy.com

Happy shopping!

A new direction.

I haven't been around here much lately -- I've been dealing with health issues, a broken truck, and just trying to keep up with three kids. I haven't been pulling out my jewellery work every night like I had been doing, and I've been itchy to create something!

I got a bunch of new tools about a month ago, and here are some of my first attempts at cutting discs and working with them. The dapping block and punches are really exciting -- it's so satisfying to drop a flat disc of silver into a hole and turn out a perfect, tiny cup after a bit of hammering.


These firestained copper earrings are my first success, though I can see I need to go back and file the edges a fair bit more.

After working with copper for a few days, I felt brave enough to start in on the pricey sterling sheet I'd bought...only to learn that 22ga is way too thick to be worked easily in this manner. After several bad cuts and much frustration, I relegated the 22ga to the pendants/sawcuts pile.










These sterling earrings are 22ga, but I won't be trying to wring circles out of that gauge again!

On to bigger challenges! I convinced solder to join tiny copper cups to sterling posts, and [see top photo] prevailed upon it to connect two sterling discs and an earwire. What a sense of fulfillment! I know they're just circles, but there's just something about making things from scratch. When I look at these pieces I see every task that went into them, and by extension all my new skills. Do you have a hobby? You need one!

Feeling virtuous!

After stumbling across Little House in the Suburbs last week, I've been thinking about trying the homemade deodorant recipe posted there. It took a bit of hunting to track down coconut oil: I found it first at the health food store down the street, but I couldn't swallow the $22 price tag when the recipe called for about two tablespoons. I carried on to the giant Chinese supermarket, thinking they'd have it there for cooking use and for a steal, but they didn't carry it at all. In the end, I borrowed some from a friend! And here's where I digress into my love song for coconut oil: This is a beautiful product, and I can see so many uses for it. It's not that hydrogenated poisonous glop found in Twink.ies and millions of other nasty confections; it's gorgeous, squeezed-from-nature, fat. I'm definitely going to pick some up, price be hanged, for out-of-the-container hand cream, face moisturizer, lip balm...cooking?? When my daughter caught a whiff of it she begged for a taste....

I was talking about deodorant, right? I've often been uneasy about the list of chemicals and artificial stuff in deodorants and anti-perspirants, but smelling like a trucker (no offense to truckers) is just not an option in polite society. I've tried various of the natural varieties, but they all seem to reek of tea tree oil [okay, the recipe linked here calls for t.t.o., but I opted for lavender] or just have that characteristic health food store smell. And in the end, the sweat comes through. So, Se.cret or D.ove it has been...until today.
























At this point I should mention that I've only just assembled the deodorant and that it's still setting up. So, I haven't tried it and can't rave about its efficacy at this point. But I can still say that I feel just a little bit cleaner today. Tomorrow will be clinical trial day!

Not your grandmother's quilt!

I love to make quilts. I feel like I've done a pretty respectable job of teaching myself the basics of quilting, with the help of a slew of library books. But one of the things I struggle with, along with loads of quilters, is design. I think "the eye" is something that can be cultivated, but it's definitely helped along with a bit of natural gifting. I'm guessing Kim Hambric is one of those gifted artists. I stumbled upon this quilt of hers recently, and was struck by its gorgeous colour palette. I love how it features big, bold prints, but because of the limited colour range in each block, the effect is still muted. Well done, Kim! I feel inspired...maybe it's time for a new sewing project for me, too!

Take a look at detail shots of the quilt here, and give it a heart if you love it!

On another note, I'm losing hope that spring will ever show up! We had three inches of snow yesterday afternoon. So...

























...I made a cherry blossom necklace in case the trees don't bloom at all this year. Do you need a breath of spring? Check out the listing here, and drop me a comment!

I'm in the latest Vancouver Treasury!

All of a sudden, Vancouver artists on Etsy seem to have banded together to promote local work. There's been a run of Vancouver treasuries, a new shopping list that Akane is putting together, and a renewed vigour among street teams. There's a lot going on here: lots of talent and originality. If only we didn't all have to order our supplies from across the border!

So, here I am in a current treasury on Etsy. My onyx and pearl charm bracelet has gone for several rides on the Treasury, and even took a spin on the coveted front page. Hopefully someone will, um, buy it sometime!

Congrats to the others featured here. Sorry I cut off the shop names at the bottom. They're all in the tags.