Aaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!

The title of this blog post describes the week I have been having especially yesterday. Joe says I've lost my crafting mojo this week hehe.

It has felt like everything I have tried to do or make this week is just going wrong. I guess everyone has those weeks though.

The handmade presents are almost done. I wish they were done but its not the case. The alligator is all finished and hiding in my closet waiting for his debut. He turned out so cute. My only complaint about him is that alligators are suppose to have long tails and this one kind of had a short stubby tail. I would like to make this pattern again and adjust the length of the tail. This one was the patterns fault and not mine so I can kind of live with that. Joe says Victoria will love him anyway. He is going to get a big red bow and a tag and he is ready for giving. I did not want to attempt to wrap him.

The lamb is getting to the almost finished stage. I should be working on it right now actually. She may end up needing to wait on her cardigan until after she is given but Im pretty sure she will be finished on time.

The Llama pictures are in their frame and it turned out so cute. I was kind of annoyed that I bought a frame that fits 3 4x6 photos and had to trim them down because they wouldnt sit flat in the frame. But I guess that is what you get when you spend $2.50 on a frame. That was the start of my troubles.

I went to finish Megans pillow with the glass cutting board. I figured this would be a quick project to finish and get out of the way. Hmmm not so much. I finally got a pillow just how I wanted and its going to work great. I finally own a glue gun, pity even though its brand new it doesnt work. Yep I went to use it and it doesnt work. I think it melts the glue stick but no matter how many times you press the trigger nothing comes out. So that is going back to the shops and hopefully the next one will work. Hopefully there will be no other problems when I try to do this project.

I am making some red mittens for my father in laws girlfriend. I am cutting these from a felted jumper. The first mitten came out ok and I should have stuck to the way I did that one because the second one is not so great and I managed to cut my hand with the scissors in the process of doing it in this dumb way. I am now trying to stitch around the outside in hopes of improving them but this quick project is taking longer than I wanted it to and not looking like I want it too, Grrrrrr.

Victoria and I had been planning to make Gingerbread cookies for her class Christmas party treat for months. I found a good recipe the other day and we managed to get all the ingredients ready. The party is today. I looked at the recipe yesterday afternoon only to find out that it has to be chilled for at least 4 hours. Ive never made gingerbread before. There goes Victoria's chance to help make them that she was all excited about. I was trying to get the mixture made before she got home so she might get a chance to help. I was babysitting Lily at the same time. I got distracted and ended up putting in to much butter than I was suppose to and realized this when the mixture was way to sticky. GRRRRRRR! I had to throw the whole lot away and Joe went and got some more ingredients because I was out of some stuff. Well it was impossible to get the mixture done with Lilly there and they were late picking her up so the dough didnt get in the fridge until 6pm. So 10pm I am making gingerbread cookies. The first batch came out great. Things were looking good but then it went down hill. Every batch I cooked just kept getting more and more burnt and I couldnt figure out why. I was trying different things and it wasnt working. So out of the 78 gingerbread cookies I made only 32 were actually edible and able to take to school. The rest had to be thrown away. Its enough to make you cry isnt it. I apologized to Victoria and felt so bad when she left for school today with her meager amount of treats to share. There's not much I can do about it now.

Now today we have to go out in the craziness and finish up our shopping for the Christmas Eve dinner and get a few more presents all before the girls get home from school. After that its super crunch time to get the house cleaned before tomorrow. All my attempts to get ahead of the game in cleaning this week were thwarted by a baby named Lilly and her need to be held or fed all the time. Its lucky she's so cute hehe. Im sure we will get it done. Joe is on holidays, Victoria loves to help, Megan is capable and she has her friend John coming over today and I may have to put him in charge of some cleaning too hehe.

I apologize to anyone who came to read my Favourite Etsy Shop Feature last week. I had an interview all set up, sent the questions out and never heard back from the person despite messages sent. I am assuming the holidays got them busy. I wont be having a feature this Friday because I just figured it would be to much for someone to do this close to Christmas. I will try to have something else for that day. Oh my gosh that will be Christmas Day. I cant believe its so close.

Well I have some presents to attempt to finish and we are off shopping in about an hour. It should be interesting.

Its The Real Santa!

The real Santa came to our little village on Saturday. Who would have thought that he would take time out of his busy schedule for us? We took a short walk up the street from our house on Saturday night because Santa had arrived. We were all rugged up but it was still really cold. We got in the line to wait our turn. As we learned last year when Santa came to our village, he will spend long quality time with each child so it was going to be a wait. Luckily they have free hot chocolate, hot cider and tons of cookies to eat while you wait in line and watch the kids have snowball fights.


We saw many people we know in line and could hear kids anxiously waiting their turn. Victoria being one of them. She was most excited to see the reindeer who we found out was Dasher. This was Victoria's third visit to a Santa but she concluded afterwards that this was the really real Santa because he had a reindeer and looked like Santa. Her little eyes lit up as she realized that she had just talked to the real Santa.


Victoria even got to pat the reindeer and in the next photo you will see that this reindeer took a particular liking to her as well. He kept getting closer and closer to her looking like he wanted a big old reindeer kiss which made us all giggle. Victoria kept pulling her face back because I dont think she quite wanted the reindeer kisses. She kept saying that she thought his nose was going to be all wet but it was nice and furry. After chatting with Santa he gave her a small bag of goodies with activities, crayons and other surprises.


Once we were done visiting Santa we took a walk down the street to the Firehall where they had free chili, hot dogs, chips, coffee, lemonade, cookies and brownies. Victoria also got another present which turned out to be a tub of playdoh.

We had a great time, it didnt cost us a thing, it was right up the street from our house and we have some lovely Christmas memories of when Santa came to town. There are some great things about our small little village.

Favourite Etsy Shop Friday

Favourite Etsy Shop Feature

Crocheteddybears
www.crocheteddybears.etsy.com

1. Tell us a bit about yourself.
My name is Paula and I live in Florida in a historic bungalow with my husband William and my cocker spaniel named Teddy Bear. I am a hospice nurse and a thread bear artist. I love to collect handmade art and antiques.

2. What made you open your shop and why Etsy?
I knew other thread artists on Ebay, who also mentioned that they had Etsy shops.



3. Do you sell your bears anywhere else?
I also sell my bears on Ebay under the seller ID Crocheteddybears.

4. What are your favourite things to do?
I enjoy reading, watching movies, cross stitching, antiquing, collecting, and crocheting bears.



5. What inspires you?
Shopping for threads, yarns, buttons, and ribbons. I love luxury fibers like angora, mohair, and suede yarns. When I see a ball of thread or yarn, I am already envisioning a new teddy bear.

6. Are your bear patterns your own original patterns?
Yes, the bear patterns are my original patterns.



7. Which bear was your favourite to make?
Each bear is my favorite as I am creating him or her.

8. Why do you think handmade bears are so appealing, even to adults?
I think that teddy bears evoke an emotional response from us. I can't help but smile when I look at the bears that I have collected.



9. Which handmade possession given to you do you cherish?
I love the quilts that were made by my grandmother. She taught me to crochet, but didn't teach me sewing or quilting.

10. Name 3 other Etsy shops you love to visit.
1. Binkys: I love her knitted dragons.
2. Quiltville: Fabulous quilts.
3. Blackcrowprimitives: Beautiful hand painted cloth dolls.



Thank you so much to Paula for being my favourite Etsy shop this week. How can you resist these little guys? Just look into their eyes just pleading to be brought home. I love how they are one of a kinds with each one having their own personality. Having made knitted bears before I know how tricky it can be getting the faces to look so expressive and cute and she manages to do both with each and every bear. When you take a look at this shop dont forget to check out the sold section so you can see other bears that have been adopted, just so adorable.

Let The Christmas Knitting Begin

Now that the craft sale is over and done with I can concentrate on my Christmas knitting. Every Christmas the girls get something handmade by me. It doesnt necessarily mean its knitted because I like to try other crafts as well. Victoria's present does involve knitting. In fact I could knit a ton of stuff for her and she would be happy. The two things I have chosen for her are an alligator and the knitted lamb that she asks me if I have started a couple of times a week. I have already begun the alligator. I got the pattern from Lion Brand. This is no small alligator let me tell you. Here is the link if you want to check it out Pond Alligator
I am making Victoria's alligator out of the Homespun. The main colour is Olive Green and the belly and scales colour is Apple Green. I have finished the top body part and Im now questioning whether I have my colours around the right way. It may be tricky to see his eyes on the Olive Green when he is all done. I will just have to soldier on and hope for the best.

With the knitted lamb I have been given specific instructions. She is to be dark orange and dark pink with a different pink coloured jacket. Luckily I have all those colours from unraveling one of Megan's old jumpers a long time ago. She wont take me very long so I am saving her for last.

Megan's projects are not knitted this year. She got her panda hat so she is happy. Megan is big into Llamas at the moment. I am going to take 3 pictures that she and I took at the zoo of her favourite white llama and print them out and put them in a frame. I think she will be happy that I used her very own photos because she is into photography alot and they are good photos. This is going to be an easy present to put together. The other one which should be easy in theory is proving tricky. I saw a craft program where they hot glued a glass cutting board to a pillow so that you can use it on your lap and write. I found the perfect pillow being just the right size and I didnt get it because I didnt have the cutting board yet and wasnt really sure it was going to be the right size. I am kicking myself because there was only one of these and it is becoming difficult to find the right type anywhere else. I have been on a pillow hunt for the last two weeks. My only hope is if I go back and they have more of them or no one has bought the one I saw otherwise I will have to settle for some other pillow that is not as good. Dont you hate when this happens? I am determined to do this project for her because I think she would really like it and use it alot when doing homework. We shall see what happens with that one.

Are you curious what happened with the craft sale? Well it was kind of a bust. I worked on items for about 3 months and ended up selling one scarf. I had my business cards there so you never know a future sale may come out of it one day. This just confirmed to me that I hate doing craft sales. This was my second one and it just reminded me that they are not for me. I can chalk it up to experience and know that I should not really do one again because my heart just isnt in it. It confirmed my love of Etsy and how much easier it is to sell online. I guess now I have alot of extra things I can add to my shop that didnt sell. This will be a week of taking photos and adding new things. If you would like to see what I had made for the craft sale stay tuned to Knitted For Ewe as will be on an adding frenzy.

Favourite Etsy Shop Friday

Favourite Etsy Shop Feature

Fairy & Fantasy Art by Rachel Anderson
www.twosilverstars.etsy.com

1. Tell us a bit about yourself.
I have been fascinated with the world of fantasy since I was little. The idea that you could fall down a rabbit hole and enter a strange magical world took hold of me and inspired me to create my own characters and stories through drawing and painting. Eventually I discovered online communities of artists and was introduced to the medium I currently use, which is digital painting. I create my paintings using a pressure sensitive tablet and pen in photoshop, mainly using the brush tools in a similar way to how one would work with oil paints.

2. What made you open your shop and why Etsy?
I knew other artists who had Etsy shops, so I started poking around the site a bit. Of course I got sucked in right away by the huge variety of cool handmade items. I signed up in January of 2008 to save the user name that I usually use online, but didn't actually start listing until late July of that year. And then I was inspired to create some new items for my shop, like the jewelry and pocket mirrors which feature my artwork.



3. Do you sell your items anywhere else?
Yes, my main website is http://silverstars.us

4. How did you choose your shop name?
I've been using silverstars or twosilverstars as my online user name at other sites for many years now, so I figured I would use it at Etsy as well. If silverstars is taken (which it usually is) I add the "two". The name doesn't really reflect what I sell in my shop, I just thought it was pretty.


5. What are your favourite things to do?
Well, my artwork is not only my career, but it is also one of my favorite things to do. It's nice to be able to do what you love for your job. I also love baking and reading. I often listen to audio books while I'm painting.

6. What inspires you?
I have a chronically overactive imagination so I'm never short on ideas for my artwork. Even little things like listening to music, watching a movie, or just seeing a certain colour can all inspire ideas for new paintings. I love nature and how peaceful and magical it can be walking through a forest. So I try to reflect that in my artwork.



7. Of all your fairy pictures, which one is your favourite?
Hmm, this is sort of like trying to pick a favourite child... I think right now I am most satisfied with Sweet Dreams. I have felt a bit "stuck" as far as skill advancement goes, and I think maybe I made a bit of a breakthrough with this one. Hopefully...

8. Which product is your most popular?
As far as products go my prints are definitely the biggest sellers, and pocket mirrors are probably a close second. As far as paintings go, Lily of the Valley and Sweet Dreams are probably my biggest sellers.


9. Which handmade possession given to you do you cherish?
I've been given a lot of jewelry from etsy sellers that I really love. I think my favourite is a pair of hand made glass twist earrings that my mom gave me Glass Twisty Earrings

10. Name 3 other Etsy shops you love to visit.
Oh wow, it's hard to pick just three!
Sweet Fritsy
AmberSky
Beastlies



Thank you to Rachel Anderson for being my favourite Etsy shop for this week. Aren't these fairy pictures just amazing. I dont know any little girl who doesnt love fairies. Even my Victoria who likes alot of boy type things, loves fairies. I dont think that the love of fairies ever goes away either. I know I still find them beautiful and fascinating. How wonderful that Rachel has incorporated her wonderful paintings on items that you can take with you and show off so you will always have a fairy with you. You just have to check out her other pictures and the other products you can purchase with these pictures on them. There is something for every fairy lover.

Meet My New Buddy

This week I have started my babysitting adventures. This is Lilly Mae my new niece. Isnt she just the cutest thing. So far I have had her for the last two days and its been so much fun. Today she is spending the day with her Grandma. Apparently Grandma needed some Lilly time but she will be back again tomorrow.


As you can see here our kitty Ringo is quite intrigued by our new visitor and all her baby smells. His nose goes into overload when she is here. I didnt think Victoria would care one way or the other if Lilly was here because she hasnt really been around babies before but she looooooves having Lilly here. She loves that she is here when she wakes up and is here when she gets home from school. She told me that she wishes Lilly were here all the time and is always asking me when she leaves when she will be back. I dont know if she has gotten over the fear that Grandpa instilled in her about touching her but hopefully she will get better in time ( grrrr to Grandpa).


I seen Lilly several times and have yet to hear her really cry. She kind of fusses a little but never really fully cries. I have heard it happens and Im sure I will hear it one day but she just generally likes to snuggle, eat, play and sleep. Here she is fascinated by our Christmas tree that we just put up and decorated over the weekend. The lights werent even turned on at this time and she was still loving it. You should see her face when you turn the lights on hehe.


Is this a little dimple I see with this cute baby smile. This could be a real smile or it could just be gas hehe. You never know at this stage. I like to think of it as a smile. Needless to say I am having alot of fun being a babysitter and its so very nice to be able to hand her over in the afternoon and not have to do the night shift.

Favourite Etsy Shop Friday

Favourite Etsy Shop Feature

Nikki Makes Scents
www.nikkiscandles.etsy.com

1. Tell us a bit about yourself.
My name is Nikki and I live on Long Island, New York in a city by the sea. I live about 4 blocks from the beach & boardwalk of which I hardly take advantage of. I love to travel, web surf and craft and spending time with friends and occasionally family (j/k)

2. What made you open your shop and why Etsy?
I kept seeing other shop links to Etsy and thought it would be a good place to list some of the one of a kind items I make since I no longer do craft fairs. I signed up in October 2008 but didn't start listing and become immersed in what a wonderful community for handmade items until July 2009. I love it!


3. Do you sell your products anywhere else?
My website. NikkiMakesScents.com, friends, family and a couple of stores.

4. How did you choose your shop name?
My name is Nikki and I make scents...thus Nikki Makes Scents. Nikki Makes Scents is my business name nikkicandles is my user and Etsy shop name.


5. What are your favourite things to do?
If I had time I would travel more, read, write, and make more candles.

6. What inspires you?
My inspirations come primarily from my customers. If they say I want a candle that is blue and smells like bubble gum if I like it I try to see if such a candle would appeal to the masses. I also am inspired by the scents. Some scents just immediately sparks the imagination to make certain candles or bath & body products.


7. Of all the products you sell, which do you enjoy making the most?
After 10 years of doing this, making candles and being impatient to see the final project I still enjoy making the most.

8. Which products are the most popular?
It depends on the season although my chunk votives are a hit year 'round.


9. Which handmade possession do you cherish?
My mother is a crafter too and several years ago she made a beautiful dried floral arrangement for my office when I was promoted. To this day people still think it's real and a lovely bright arrangement. I bring it to any office I'm in and spray it with a linen fresher in a floral scent that fools everyone.

10. Name 3 other Etsy shops you love to visit.
* XOHandworks
* Sea Babe Jewelry
* oktak


Thank you so much to Nikki Makes Scents for being my featured favourite shop this week. I found this shop while in an Etsy chat not long ago and just loved all her stuff. The thing that I like about this shop is its not just candles. There are body lotions, perfumes, lip balms and all sorts of good smelling stuff all in the one shop. This appeals to me as I like to use good smelling stuff not just while burning candles but on me as well. I see many ideas for gifts for the people I know and for myself. She even makes it easier by having a gift set section. The pictures in this blog feature are just the tip of the iceberg. You have to go and see the other goodies you can find in this shop as well.

Holiday Greetings!

Happy Thanksgiving!

We are off to Joe's cousins house very soon for the much awaited turkey and cranberry sauce. I cant wait to enjoy all those Boston Cream Minis I made yesterday. Fingers crossed I will get one.
I hope everyone who is celebrating Thanksgiving today has a great day.

A Good Old Fashioned Tasty Tuesday

It was pointed out by my Mum that I haven't done a Tasty Tuesday in a long time. It wasn't on purpose, I just kept forgetting. So here is a long overdue recipe. I thought I would use this recipe this week because I will be making these tomorrow to take with us to Thanksgiving at Joe's cousin's house. These are sure to be a hit as every time I make them they disappear. What are they you ask?

Boston Cream Pie Minis

Ingredients
1 pkg (2 layer size) yellow cake mix
1 cup cold milk
1 pkg (4 serving size) Jello-O Vanilla Flavour Instant Pudding & Pie Filling
1 1/2 cups thawed Cool Whip Whipped Topping, divided
4 squares Baker's Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare cake batter and bake in 24 greased medium muffin cups as directed on package. Cool 10 minutes in pans. Remove to wire racks: cool completely.

Pour milk into large bowl. Add dry pudding mix. Beat with wire whisk 2 minutes or until well blended. Let stand 5 minutes to thicken. Meanwhile, using a serrated knife, cut cupcakes horizontally in half. Gently stir 1/2 cup of the whipped topping into pudding. Spoon about 1 Tbsp. of the pudding mixture onto bottom half of each cupcake; cover with top of cupcake.

Microwave remaining 1 cup whipped topping and the chocolate in small microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1 1/2 minutes or until chocolate is almost melted, stirring after 1 minute. Stir until chocolate is completely melted and mixture is well blended. Frost each cupcake with about 1 1/2 tsp. of the chocolate mixture. Refrigerate at least 15 minutes before serving. Store leftover cupcakes in the refrigerator.

Makes 24 cupcakes

These are so easy that we made them with Megan's old Girl Scout troop and they turned out great. It is completely crazy cooking with about 10 crazy girls but we had fun and they loved the end results. We have been making them in our house over and over ever since.

I hope you try this recipe and let me know how yours turned out.

Favourite Etsy Shop Friday

Favourite Etsy Shop Feature

Mae
www.lovemaestore.etsy.com

1. Tell us a bit about yourself.

Mae is the best part of three ladies - Peta, Emily and Rebekah. We make fabric wall stickers for children. Mae is Australian made and owned, and we always keep the environment in mind - all our supplies and materials are sourced from local small businesses, we use recycled packaging and our stickers use eco inks.

2. What made you open your shop and why Etsy?

We have all been big fans of Etsy for a long time. It was an easy way for us to get our stickers out there, to start selling. It's a whole lot easier than the markets!

3. Do you sell your wall decals anywhere else?

Yes, you can check the stockist page on our website www.lovemae.com.au

4. How did you choose your shop name?

We created Mae as a character that we all aspired to be like - her name matches her personality - sweet, charming and old-fashioned (to a certain extent!). She comes from a place where things are far less complicated, and everything is beautiful.

5. What are your favourite things to do?

Eat, snuggle my cats and draw pretty patterns

6. What inspires you?

Good blogs, pretty photos and creative people doing what they love.


7. Of all the wall decals you make for your shop, which is your favourite?

Hmm. I would have to say Teatime, but that could change with the new range coming out in January!

8. Which decals are the most popular?

Easily the Build a Tree, Forest Critters and Twitters.

9. What handmade possession do you cherish?

My family portrait which was painted by Audrey Malo:
Rebekah's Family Portrait

10. Name 3 other Etsy shops you love to visit.

nothing elegant
Proper Pact Vintage
Geninne

Thank you so much to Mae for being my favourite Etsy shop feature for this week. Don't you just love these wall decals. So many possibilities and ideas come to mind when I see these. What a wonderful and easy way to make your children's room look beautiful. I was so excited to read that there are going to be new designs coming out in January. I know I will be rushing over to see what they are when the time comes. If you love the pictures you have seen on this feature hop on over to the Etsy shop or the website and see the other designs. You will fall in love with them too.

A little message to my sister, make sure you check out where they sell in NSW on their website because they probably have a stockist near you.

Feeling A Little Rusty

I just listed these cable fingerless mittens in Knitted For Ewe. These are so fun and quick to make. I love this yarn as well. It feels really soft and comes in really great colours. This has to be the first yarn where I want a ball of every colour it comes in. You may have heard of it, its called Vanna's Choice.


Megan was my lovely model again. She much prefers to model these types of things because she doesnt have to worry about her facial expression hehe.


I went back and forth on this rust colour and what it would look for. This colour tends to take on a different hue with whatever colour it is paired up with. It looks especially nice with brown.

Im still working on things for this craft show that is coming up in a couple of weeks. If I dont sell much at the craft show then my Etsy shop sure is going to have a huge boost in inventory. We shall have to wait and see how it all goes.

Sad Knitting News

I met a lady last night at the new Monday night Knitting Group at the library. We have been having a Knitting Group on Wednesday morning but now we have one at night for those who cant come in the day. We were discussing yarn shops in the area and I mentioned The Falconer Yarn Loft where I use to go all the time. They lady I was speaking with asked me if I had heard that the lady that owned it had passed away. I had not heard this and I am so sad to hear it. This lady was always so so nice to us. She sold my knitted critters in her shop and I use to get store credit. We would also just go there so I could get a yarn fix every now and then. She just loved Victoria and would always try to get her to come out of her shell when we were there. She liked to give her a little something just to brighten her day. Without her we wouldnt have Victoria's beloved Dragon Mittens that she has worn non stop all winter for the past 2 years. She chatted football with Joe and always commented to Megan on how tall she was getting.

She had decided to move to California to be near her children and grandchildren. She said she had always dreamed of living near the beach and decided the time was now. She had giggled with us as she talked about wanting to ride a motorcycle across country. It saddens me to say that I found out last night that she had only been in California for 2 weeks when she passed away. It just really puts you in that mindset of you just never know whats going to happen and to live every day as if it was your last. I am so glad that for at least 2 weeks she lived her dream.
She will be sorely missed.

Chocolate Raspberry Swirl Hat

This past week I finally got to add something new to my Etsy shop. I made this Chocolate Raspberry Swirl Hat and I love how it turned out. I love it so much I have since made a second one. They dont take very long to make. The second one I made is brown and a silver blue. It will be going to the craft sale that is coming sooner than I want to admit.


So many different colour designs start bouncing around my head when I think about making this hat. I think each one would give a different affect. You may be seeing more swirl hats in my shop in the future.


About a week ago I sent some knitted critters off to a lady I met through Etsy who asked me about doing some wholesale knitted items. I really meant to take a picture of them all together when they were finished but ended up finishing them and quickly sticking them in the mail. I sent her a baby monkey in blue and white, a fuzzy bunny that was big and fat and black and white, a Marcel Mouse and a lamb with a pink cardigan. I found out the other day that these guys are going to a real shop to be sold which is kind of exciting. So if you happen to be in New York city go to
Canine Country Club
at the dedicated Stoopher & Boots displays
452A Columbus Ave (between 81st and 82nd sts)
New York NY

If you happen to see them there I would love to hear about it. Maybe you can take a photo on location. That would be so fun.

Favourite Etsy Shop Friday

Favourite Etsy Friday Feature

Vessels And Wares
www.vesselsandwares.etsy.com

1. Tell us a bit about yourself.

Hi! My name is Jeanette and I live in Atlanta, Georgia. I am a clay-nerd.

2. What made you open your shop and why Etsy?

I didn't want to be a health food store grocery buyer anymore. And my pottery was starting to pile-up. I thought that maybe, just maybe, I could support myself doing what I love. So I opened an etsy shop to begin building a business.

3. Do you sell your pottery anywhere else?

I have pottery in several stores nationwide.

4. How did you choose your shop name?

I really have no recollection of where my shop name came from. I remember drawing this hideous picture for a banner that included a sailboat. Some sort of clever/weird word-play on the "vessels" part. Thankfully, I didn't know anything about how to turn that picture into a banner at the time. But I kept the "vessels" in my name.

5. What are your favourite things to do?

I like reading and the internet. I like to cook. I like to wander aimlessly around thrift stores.


6. What inspires you?

Pretty much anything. I seem to have this urge to translate everything I see into clay. So I do lots of experimenting and playing in clay. Mostly, these little projects just sit around gathering dust. But every now and again, I will incorporate them into what I produce.

7. Of all your different pottery items, which do you enjoy making the most?

Berry bowls.

8. What is the most popular item you sell?

It is pretty evenly split between berry bowls, cupcake stands and mugs. I think.

9. What handmade possession do you cherish?

I am lucky to have lots of handmade items in my life. But one of my favorites is a small painting that my grandpa did. Unfortunately, he passed away before I was born, but that painting allows me to have a connection to him and his artwork.

10. Name 3 other Etsy shops you love to visit.

That is tough. Really, really tough. I have been known to lose hours just clicking away on etsy. I love looking at other people's favorites and have a ton of favorites myself.

New discovery:
animama

Just a gorgeous shop (and current source of inspiration):
Yellena

One of my favorite potters:
Kieffer Ceramics



Thank you to Vessels And Wares for taking part in my favourite Etsy shop feature this week. I love her pottery. Not only are the designs beautiful but the colours are amazing. Its so great when something is not only useful but pretty to look at at the same time. You just have to go over and take a look at the rest of the pottery in her shop. These pictures are just the tip of the iceberg. The trouble you will have is picking what you want to buy first.

Late Halloween Photos

I am finally showing off the pictures that I took at Halloween. A little late I know but here they are. I just had to show Victoria in her vampire costume. Her picks this year was to either be a vampire which she had been talking about since last Halloween or a late entry of being Darth Vader. She ended up going with a vampire which was nice and easy to do. One cape which apparently has to be black on the outside and red on the inside and a set of fangs that came with the makeup. She just loved those teeth even though they were a little big for her mouth and turned her into a very drooly vampire hehe. She was very specific about wanting the blood dripping from her mouth as well.


This Halloween we saw a completely different Victoria. I was so proud. In the past we had to walk her up to every door as she edged her way there. She wouldnt say Trick or Treat and was to shy to say Thank You. This year she was running to each house, shouting trick or treat and saying thank you all over the place. The only thing we had to do was keep saying slow down so that we could all catch up to her. It was pretty chilly that night but she was determined to be a true vampire and refused to admit she was cold to put a jacket on. Her hands were red with cold but she wanted no part of being warm and who were we to rain on her parade hehe.



So this Halloween brought Victoria out of her shy shell a bit and it was wonderful to see. Now Megan being 15 said she didnt want to dress and all she wanted to do was be with her friend Maya so off she went. I knew being with Maya that some dressing up would have to take place, I was right. It was very Megan's style though. She wore her panda hat that I made her and her Zebra mask on the back of her head so she was a Zebra and a Panda. Wish I could have seen that hehe.



I just had to show the drawings that Victoria did on her pumpkin this year. They make me giggle when I see them. I just love the monster. He reminds me of a monster from Where The Wild Things Are. We were all impressed. She is a good artist, even her Art teacher has told us so. Just like her big sister.


Victoria is still talking about this message she wrote on her pumpkin. If you are having trouble seeing it, it says, Vampire! run for yor lives! She thought this was really good.

So that was our Halloween this year. I hope everyone else had a great one too.

A Little Bit Of Sugar

Ive been meaning to share my sweet little bear for a while. Her name is Sugar. She was found a Handmade Teddy Bear Convention that I went to many years ago with my friend Nerida. My love of handmade bears comes from her. She and her mother make wonderful mohair bears and when your around that you cant help but fall in love with them. Sugar was part of a set. Her partner is Spice and he is brown. Nerida bought Spice and we couldnt seperate them so I bought Sugar.


While living in America my sister had gone over to my Mum's house and seen Sugar there because all our stuff is still at her house. She decided that Sugar wanted to come and visit her house for a while. Well this was a very long visit. You could say Sugar moved in. Years and years she had been there. When Kylie said they were coming to America I realized this was an opportunity to have at one of my bears here so I asked her to bring her with her. She is kind of heavy so posting her would have been alot. My collection isnt that big, I probably have about 3 more sitting in my mum's house just waiting to join me. I especially miss Charles Winston III the eccentric millionaire. He has such character. These bears are such a luxury so I dont get them very often. I do drool on Etsy alot though hehe. If you checked out my favourites list you would find quite a few of them dotted throughout my long list.


One sad thing happened to poor Sugar during her stay with my sister. She had this puppy and apparently she didnt realize Sugar was a special bear and thought she was a rather nice puppy chew toy. My dear Sugar now has no ears due to some puppy nibbling. I was shocked a little when I saw them as I was informed that they were just torn a little only to find there really are no ears left but it just means I have to give her extra love and hugs. Im so glad to have her here with me. Thanks Kylie for lugging her all this way.