The Letter S... Etsy Product Review #11

Recently I ordered some letter "S"s so that I could make some workout journals. I got them from Tweet Memories on etsy and am impressed with the price and quality.My neighbor is the one who actually found Tweet Memories and has ordered 3 banners this year for various parties. I saw a puppy banner, a cupcake banner and the twilight banner... and was impressed, so figured she was the right one to help me make my journals.

The price was great and shipping very reasonable. Tweet Memories papercrafts are put together great - all items are punched/cut perfectly with no flaws that I can find. Everything is glued perfectly center and there is no extra glue or bubbles in the paper from too watery a glue. All papercrafts should be such high quality!


I haven't had time to even look at my journals yet, but when I do, I'll make sure to post follow-up pictures.

California Blue Giveaway Winner!

Recently, I've been busy entering myself in a bunch of giveaways. Fellow hitchiker on the handmade highway, California Blue sponsored a giveaway on her own blog and I was lucky enough to be the random winner so I thought I'd share a quick picture of my winnings. I got my choice of her summer designs - I selected the "Beach Casual" earrings. (Sounds like me, doesn't it!)

So over the weekend, I go this cute little blue box in the mail - I like how the color matches the theme of the store :) Inside it were these little beauties:

Please excuse my pre-dawn photos with the kitchen light - I don't think it does the earrings justice. I won these at the same time that I ordered a couple of things on etsy and these arrived faster. The quality is outstanding - the earwires have been hammered in the fashion that I like and the wrapped loops above the beads are perfect. I can definitely recommend California Blue as a quality jewelry maker and don't forget to check out her new autumn collection!

A Sunflower Sunset... Etsy Product Review #10

Do you ever have a favorite that makes you keep going back again and again? Well, that is what this shop is doing to me :) Here's my latest purchase - a print of an original surreal painting mounted on a card. Shipping, as normal, was extra fast (I've ordered her items at the same time as 5 other sellers... one seller's item has arrived 1 day later, and rest are always 3 or more days behind Aunt Jane.) My beautiful card arrived in another handmade envelope (blue-grey this time instead of green) and makes me wish I had the time to start making my own special envelopes. The print is high quality and mounted on a card stock card that is thicker than most of the cards I order making it just right!

Do you like whimsical artwork in both 2-D and 3-D? then I am sure you will want to check out Aunt Jane!

Beautiful Sea Glass... Etsy Product Review #9

Here's a different sort of product review... My mom bought me this beautiful set of sea glass jewelry from a Guantanamo Bay craft fair from the maker of Castaways Jewelry Design. I had the opportunity to meet this talented lady at a memorial day craft fair this year (My table was 2 rows behind and one to the right of her table). When I was comparing her packing up at the end of the show to how my mom and I packed up our tables, I decided she is much more organized that we have ever been :) Now, Castaways Jewelry has let her etsy shop listings expire in August, but hopefully she comes back soon! I noticed that this summer she has a new display in a Guantanamo Bay gift shop and I'm so glad because now people can buy this jewelry all the time versus just at craft shows.

Castaways Jewelry uses only sea glass found on the beaches of Guantanamo Bay to create her designs. My set was accented with amethyst and fresh water pearl beads on silver settings.

So if you're ever at a craft show and see Castaways, you definitely want to check out this booth!

The Basil Fairy... Etsy Product Review #8

I've talked about the shop Aunt Jane Can in an earlier blog post. Now, I liked the shop so much, I had to buy this Basil Fairy Notecard. The Basil Fairy Card arrived in my mail box just a couple of days after I ordered it. Aunt Jane makes her own envelopes to mail her cards which is charming and probably a tip for how she keeps her shipping costs very low. The handmade envelope looked like construction paper (green to match the card) on the outside and was lined in white paper.

The electronic picture of this card does not do the beauty of this card any justice, but this is what I will have to live with as I have already posted the card to my grandmother (who in reality is a fairy grandmother).

Don't forget to check out Aunt Jane's alter ego, Blue Jane on her blog.

Bright Fire Notecard... Etsy Product Review #7

Looking at a neat treasury a bit ago, I ran across this firey peacock print on a notecard from ARTSHARYNE. I love the combination of brilliant colors and vibrancy of the illustration. I received the card from Australia in less than a week and it came in a resealable plastic liner and cardboard lined the envelope. Overall, I believe this is the most professional looking package I have received from any online order.

Sad to say though, the card is no longer in my possession as I have already written on it and posted it in the mail to an aunt who also appreciates artwork and loves animals.

If you like this illustration, check out her blog.

Goddess Ear Cuff... Etsy Product Review #6

A few weeks ago, I was browsing around and saw an article on a woman who makes ear cuffs and does it full time... so one day, when I came across a sale at Thyme 2 Dream, I couldn't resist getting my own goddess ear cuff :) At Thyme 2 Dream, she makes all items to order, so I was pleasantly surprised when my ear cuff showed up only 2.5 weeks after I ordered it. (I know she has some bad feedback from people who thought she took too long, but I guess for me, on made to order items, I expect 4-6 weeks for delivery because that is what it would have to be for me.)

The ear cuff was placed in a small purple jewelry box (and purple being my favorite color, it made me happy) and the box was shipped in a small bubble mailer. It all arrived in great condition and would work as a great gift (if I didn't like it so much and want to keep it myself!)

I enjoyed this seller and will definitely be back for any of my fairy jewelry needs.

Fun Soaps... Etsy Product Review #5

A couple of weeks ago, I ordered 7 different pieces of soap from Annie's Powder Room on etsy.I really thought the little gun was just too cute to pass up for a small gift for a male in my family and just kept looking around Annie's shop. They arrived quickly and each soap order was packaged with red stuffing in a clear box and tied with red tulle. I like that the soaps came with plastic boxes - makes them very easy to wrap and send away as a gift.

For future soap gifts, I think I will shy away from the very dark colors and more intricate designs like the little revolvers - there are areas of the soap where because of the details in the mold design, the soap is almost clear because the layer there is so thin. Although, ones like the sea urchin would definitely be good for me in the future!

Origami Earrings... Etsy Product Review #4

I ordered these cute earrings off of etsy when they were on sale (always the bargin hunter, is me). They are very cute in person and will be great as a gift for my nine year old cousin Jessie. The shop is called Azure China and the crafter has a variety of paper and fabric items. The stars themselves are much sturdier than I would have guessed and do not appear to need any special or delicate handling. The little box they arrived in was cute - the shop owner had taken a regular white earring box and hand sewn fabric to the outside to make it decorative.

I may have to return to this store for a gift for another special girl in my life.

Wildflower Soap... Etsy Product Review #3

I found this soap while participating in a Sneak Attack on etsy. The shop called Sunny Bubbles is actually run by a bunch of elementary school kids... well, actually they're the labor! Anyway, their products are all decently priced and all proceeds are donated to something that is always near and dear to my heart... the Oregon Humane Society.

The soap is a good size for a stocking stuffer gift and would fit in any of the soap dishes in my bathrooms. It has a light fruity/flowery smell that is pleasing and in no way overbearing.

Shipping was very fast.. I think I had this soap three business days after purchase and I was not expecting it near that fast (especially traveling from coast to coast). The soap was contained in a small plastic bag and wrapped in newspaper (it even looked like someone found a colorful ad and purposefully wrapped the soap up in the middle of it to look like it was actual wrapping paper) - everyone probably knows by now that I greatly appreciate the recycled wrappings more than anything else.

The sneak attack sold them out of inventory... but I'll be sure to look for more when school starts up again!

Shopping on Etsy... Product Review #2

So, would you think to find handmade dog toys on etsy? It never would have occured to me.

I was trying to participate in a shop critique thread (even though I did a critique on three other shops, I never was able to get mine critiqued... ho hum...) when I ran across a crotched dog toy maker. Now the newest addition to my family, Libby who was adopted from Carolina Animal Rescue and Adoption, has made me a complete sucker for all sorts of cute dog toys... although the neighbors think I indulge her "come and get me" games a little too much.

Anyway, here is the Ice Cream Cone toy I bought for Libby. And there are more dog toys available in this store: http://www.originality123.etsy.com/

It arrived in a regular large envelope with 2 crocheted toys and a couple of dog treats. Packaging was minimal - which is what I like because I hate having to throw away lots of that stuff. The price was great for what you get - at Walmart you can hardly get one toy for the price of the two that were sent to me.

Shopping on Etsy....

I have found my new obsession.... purchasing items on etsy.

And to think my husband was happy that I had just given up my e-Bay obsession. Have you never heard of etsy? That's Ok, I hadn't either until about 2 months ago - I was working a booth at what was supposed to be an Artists' and Crafters' tent at a local fair (was a major bust because the organizers FORGOT to mention to the crafters who had signed up that they didn't sell all the booths by the deadline, so they openned it up to flea market vendors). There was a papergoods lady sort of behind me in the tent that showed me etsy... an online venue for artists, crafters, their supplies, and unique vintage items only! So unlike e-Bay, you don't have to sift through the trash in order to get to the good stuff... and selling handmade on e-Bay is hard since "most" everyone on e-Bay is looking for a deal or steal only (I'm guilty, too.).

So in the process of setting my own etsy shop up, I have managed to find all sorts of cool items and sellers on etsy and want to share them with the world :)

So the first product I want to share with you is from: http://www.jandmspecialty.etsy.com/ These guys specialize in both seeds and unique vintage glassware and pottery.

I have bought their Heirloom Fruit Seeds for the SunBerry plant. They were a great price, too - only $1.50 and they sent a pack of pepper seeds as a free gift. So much more exciting than going to Lowe's and getting your seeds. At first I was sort of disappointed in the price for shipping - $1.99 (Being an avid online purchaser and single-handedley attempting to keep the post office affloat, I have a pretty good idea where shipping prices should be for any given item.) But reading their profile more, I saw that they charge the same shipping for your first 10 packets of seeds - now that is very reasonable. I just should have bought more seeds!

It arrived in the mail in a standard envelope (the same size all your bills arrive) so I didn't realize I had gotten them already. Inside the envelope there was a nice handwritten note about both of the seeds (handling, planting, etc) and the seeds were wrapped in a bit of bubble-wrap.

I'll take a picture of the plants in a few months and let you know how the berries are!