Shop closed!

I just want to inform everyone out there that my shop has been closed for personal reasons. Thank you so much for your support!

Easy Updo for Moms on the Go

My fabric button bobby pins were featured in the Cafemom's Beauty and Style Buzz! Click on the link below to view:-

Easy Updo for Moms on the Go

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Christmas shopping?

I just created a poll on the site bar. I wanted to know if anyone is still shopping for Christmas given the current economic crisis. Please put your thoughts down by voting!

Meow!!!!!

To all cat lovers, Kitty clippie and Kitty hair clip holder are now available in my shop. Check it out!

Kitty clippie (selling price: $3.60)

Kitty Hair Clip Holder (selling price: $4.85)

MEOW!!!!

Featured Artist # 5: Milkmaidmama

This week, I'm so proud to feature MilkMaidMama http://www.milkmaidmama.etsy.com/.

MilkMaidMama is a new Etsy shop selling nursing items. If you're a mommy to be, stop by her shop and take a look.

Btw, just saw this in her shop announcement:-

"In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month (October), when you purchase any nursing pads or nursing covers (including the "instant covers" clips, and custom orders!!) between now and October 31st, I will donate 35% of the purchase price to the CIBC Run for the Cure! The funds go to the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation".

Up close and personal with MilkMaidMama

1. Tell us a bit about yourself

Hi, I’m Megan from Saskatchewan, Canada. I’m a stay-at-home mom to one crazy toddler, with one on the way –due in late December. I have a passion for drawing, painting, and other crafts. I also love watching musicals and curling up with a great murder mystery. I have a major weakness when it comes to ice cream and I love to bake.

2. What are your products? (Give some description including description on your creative process, i.e., how and materials)

In my Etsy shop I make accessories for nursing moms and babies. Right now the shop mostly has nursing covers and nursing pads, with a few extras. However, I am working on getting more variety.I mostly work in cotton and flannel so far, and have been making my own patterns.I do have a few baby shower games listed as well. These are hand painted with acrylic paints. Then I write on them using ultra fine tipped permanent markers in various colors. I love these tiny wooden blocks. They are so like babies –delicate and adorable.

3. How do you promote your work?

Since I don’t have a huge budget for advertising yet, I mostly use free advertising. I promote on the Etsy forums, blog (milkmaidmama.blogspot.com), started a facebook group, put my Etsy mini on my personal facebook page, have friends promote by word of mouth, etc. I hope to make a few sales soon so I can afford to print up some fabulous business cards.

4. What will you like to be in 5 years from now?

I hope to be selling enough so I can make the money I need to support my love of creating –so I can keep on making the things I love!

5. What is the best comment you received from your buyer?

Why not buy from me and find out? Haha. So far, no sales… but I have high hopes!

MilkMaidMama, congrats on your 2 sales! Keep up the good work!

Check out Megan's shop at http://www.milkmaidmama.etsy.com/

New products from Clippy Hut!

I'm so glad to introduce my new products. Fabric button bobby pins and snap clips! These type of clips are great for adults. As I always said, mommies need to look pretty as well. All fabrics are imported from Japan. Beautiful and great material!

Here are some pics of my new creations.

Fabric Button Bobby Pins (Selling price: $6.40)

Flower and Butterfly Snap Clips (Selling price: $3.50)

Strawberries on Icing and Apple Snap Clips (Selling price: $3.50)

I accept request on the fabrics and type of clips. If you prefer kawaii type of fabric on bobby pins, I can definitely do it for you. Same for snap clips, if you want floral fabrics on those, not a problem at all. You can even request to have it mix up on fabrics and type of clips!

I will be adding more of these products soon! Check it out!

Featured Artist #4: Pink Parchment Soaps

Are you a soap lover? Here you go, check out Pinkparchmentsoaps. All the soaps are so pretty and yummy that you'll reach for a spoon! Best of all, the pricing are so reasonable!

Up close and personal with Pinkparchmentsoaps

1. Tell us a bit about yourself

My name is Trish Herndon and our company is Pink Parchment Soaps, LLC. We are a small, family company (mother and 2 daughters). We love making and using handmade soap. We are located in beautiful Troy, Michigan where the weather changes every 20 minutes.

2. What are your products? (Give some description including description on your creative process, i.e., how and materials)
We make handmade soap. For us, making soap is a very creative process - developing the formula, deciding on the fragrance,and deciding on the color. Nature is our best inspiration - colors and fragrances are everywhere!
We take pride in making soap that we love and feel that others will truly enjoy using. We only use ingredients that we feel are not only safe but good for our skin.People should also know that once they start using handmade soap – they will never go back to commercial soap again.Using handmade soap is as addictive as making it!

3. How do you promote your work?
We promote our work in a few different ways. We always hand out business cards, we attend a few craft shows, and we do online and print advertising.

4. Where will you like to be in 5 years from now?
Sitting on a beach on an island!But seriously, we plan to have larger variety of soap, and to add lotions, bath salts, and scrubs to our product line. We also plan to add more wholesalers.

5. What is the best comment you received from your buyer?
Don’t ever stop making soap! Both my husband and I absolutely love your soap.

Be sure to check out Trish's shop at http://www.pinkparchmentsoaps.etsy.com/

Price range: $3.50 - $32

Featured Artist #3 : Maybeads

Are you looking for something special? Look no further because this week, I'm featuring Maybeads. In her shop, you will be able to find lots of lampwork beads that are cute and adorable and the prices are reasonable too given that she created those one by one!

Up close and personal with Maybeads:-

1. Tell us a bit about yourself (name, location and other personal stuff you would like others to know)

My name is Lauren Mazursky, and I live in a northwest Chicago suburb. I am a lampwork bead artist; I make glass beads. I am 38-years-old, married, with three kids ages 12, 9 and 5. I have a degree in journalism from Indiana University and was a newspaper reporter for several years after college. A year ago I didn't even know what lampworking was. I discovered after I took a jewelry class at a local craft store. I loved the class, but I was less than impressed by the choice of manufactured beads we had to choose from. So, when I went home I got online and quickly discovered the most beautiful glass beads I'd ever seen: lampwork glass beads. I read everything I could about them and watched every how-to video on YouTube that was available. Finally, I found a place about 40 minutes away where I could take a beginner's lampworking class. It was six hours of pure joy! No, I was not a natural, and my beads were lopsided and wonky, but I absolutely loved it!

2. What are your products?
Though my intention when I started lampworking was to make beautiful bead sets, I soon found a tutorial on how to make penguins and I gave it a try. I was immediately hooked. I began making all sorts of beads with faces: penguins, cats, ladybugs, cows, and finally, turtles (at my sister's urging). I do make and sell some bead sets, but most of my shop is made up of what are called "critter" beads. I also make smaller versions of the animal beads and wire-wrap them into little charms to hang from kids' necklaces. These are probably my favorites, because I love seeing the girls in my neighborhood wearing little penguins or cupcakes that I have made.
All of my beads are made from Moretti/Effetre or Vetrofond glass. These are thin rods of colored glass that melt when I hold them in the flame of my Hot Head torch. As I melt the glass using one hand, I use my other hand to heat up what is called a mandrel, a thin steel rod that has been dipped in bead release. The bead release keeps the glass from sticking permanently to the mandrel. Once the mandrel is heated and the glass is molten, I wind the glass around the mandrel to form a bead. The glass moves when it is molten, so I have to keep the mandrel moving as well, so the glass does not drip off. It takes a lot of concentration.
My beads are all annealed in a kiln, which gives them strength and durability. I also clean the hole of each one (to get the bead release out) with a Dremel tool.

3. How do you promote your work?
I promote my work in several ways, but I know there is room for improvement. First, on Etsy, I'm often in the forums or on chat to get my work seen. I also have been featured in another blog, and now this one as well. In my area, I do rely on word of mouth. I gave out necklaces as favors at my daughters' birthday parties, so there's a way to get them seen. I also use them as gifts. Promoting has not been my strong point, but I'm working on it!

4. What will you like to be in 5 years from now?
I would love to still be doing what I'm doing in 5 years, only with more success. Even when I'm not making sales, I continue to make beads. I just love it! I also would love to have a "studio" for all my supplies. At the moment, I work in my dining room.

5. What is the best comment you received from your buyer?
As for favorite comments from buyers, I love this recent one "OH MY GOODNESS!! My daughter and I are in love! I never imagined these would be SO adorable. We'll be back for sure!" And I really enjoy receiving pictures of what people make out of my beads. There are some talented jewelry designers who can make a kitty bead look very elegant or a doggy bead look funky. I love that!

Pricing (based on pics shown above):-

Timmy the Tropical Turquoise Turtle Handmade Lampwork Bead : $10
Walter the Wise Young Owl Handmade Lampwork Bead : $12
Piper the Purple Butterfly Handmade Lampwork Bead : $8

Check out her shop at http://www.maybeads.etsy.com/ for more lampwork beads!

Christmas Tree Clippies are on sale now!

Never too early to shop for Christmas!!!

Here you are, my Christmas tree clippies! I have 2 versions of those clippies listed in my shop. The Tall Christmas tree clippie is great for older toddlers and the Little Christmas tree clippie is great for babies or younger toddlers. Best of all, you get to choose the ribbon you want me to make the Christmas tree.

Below are pics of the clippies:-

Tall Christmas Tree Clippie (5 tier)

Little Christmas Tree Clippie (3 tier)

Selling Price for Tall Christmas Tree Clippie :$5.50

Selling Price for Little Christmas Tree Clippie: $4.50

Be sure to check out my shop for other Christmas clippies!

Featured Artist #2: Jenniferladd

This week, I am pleased to feature Jenniferladd in my blog. She has such a great shop with awesome products that you really don't want to give it a miss! If you're a mom to-be/a new mom or even someone looking to buy for shower gifts, this is a great place to shop. Jenniferladd has some cute booties, bib and burp cloth sets as well as diaper changing pads in her shop. And if you're looking for purses, do take a look on what Jenniferladd has to offer.

Up close and personal with Jenniferladd

1.Tell us a bit about yourself
I'm Jennifer Ladd. I live in Milwaukee, WI with my husband and my one-year-old daughter. I'm a stay-at-home mom and an Etsy shop owner, and I am LOVING my new job! I get to spend every day raising my wonderful daughter and creating cute things -- life doesn't get much better!

2. What are your products? (Give some description including description on your creative process, i.e., how and materials)
I make handmade bags, purses, and baby items. I use bright colors and funky patterns. I strive to pay attention to all the details of my pieces, such as adding cool lining or surprise ribbon accents to the inside pockets. I also love simplicity, sleek lines, and modern design.

3. How do you promote your work?
I love to participate in the Etsy forums - a great way to promote and learn from others at the same time. I also spend a lot of time trying to promote locally.

4. Where will you like to be in 5 years from now?
Five years from now, I would love to have an even more successful Etsy shop! I love creating and I get such a happy feeling each time something sells, I would love to continue having this much fun! Right now, my time is limited since my daughter is my number one priority. In five years, my daughter will be in school and so I plan on spending even more time creating and developing my business.

5. What is the best comment you received from your buyer?
I have received so many sweet comments from my buyers, and they all mean so much to me! I especially love having repeat customers - a great endorsement that they loved the item enough to come back again and again! I had one buyer tell me that buying from me was the best Etsy experience she ever had - that was probably one of the most memorable things I have ever heard!

Be sure to check out her shop at www.jenniferladd.etsy.com

Price range for purses: $32-$40
Selling price for booties: $12

Jenniferladd, I wish you "All the Best!".