A Closer Look at Ottoman

dearest Mouffette

My sister has re-opened her shop with a new name...and it's a sweet one: dearest Mouffette. Her shop has lovely upcycled jewelry and most of her pieces are made from vintage bits...redesigned for a modern look. She also integrates agate into her work for some really bold, yet feminine pieces. Here's an example....

a golden winter necklace

a golden winter necklace

And, for a limited time, dearest Mouffette is offering free shipping!

There's nothing like buying local, handmade, or vintage for a guilt-free holiday season...and if you live in Southern California, dearest Mouffette fits the bill for all three...now go shopping.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday

Just a very quick note to let you know that you can receive 10% off all items in my shop Friday through Monday by using the coupon code "BLACKFRIDAY2010" at check out. I'm excited to use Etsy's new coupon code! And, if I'm in a food coma and forget to activate it, I'll be sure to refund you via PayPal. :)

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving everyone!

Blooming While Snowing

It's snowing as I write. The flakes are small and few and seem to be falling in slow motion. It is helping a bit in this weather that my Christmas Cactus is blooming.

I think I'd like to get a couple more of these in different colors, maybe a fuchsia and a white one.

I've never forced bulbs in the winter. Have you? Which one(s)? I think it's a wonderful reminder of growth when growth is halted outside...even in green Oregon.

On the topic of plants, I've listed a set of four plastic flower frogs in my shop. They aren't new, but I'm not sure if they are vintage...so I've listed them simply as a supply. I think they work nicely to hold name cards at the holiday table. Thanksgiving is in two days...I hope you have a lovely meal.

Here's the flower frogs...

Also, A big thank you to the rikrak studio for this feature. A post inspired by tatting.

Stay warm and cozy today...and if you're someplace warm...send me warm thoughts.

What To Do With Weeds

Jenny sent me a couple of links the other day and I gasped. Check out this work by Patterson Clark:

3-Weed Note ~ 2009 (Multiflora Rose, White Mulberry, English Ivy)

Clark has an undergraduate degree in biology and an MFA (one of my favorite things is the art/science blend). He makes paper and ink from the invasive species in his area rather than just getting rid of them. The woodblocks he carves to print his handmade ink on his handmade paper are also from the weeds he removes. The picture above is an example of currency made from the noxious plants and the value of the different notes is determined by how many plants, grams of a particular plant, or how many differnent species are used for that particular piece.

"'I'm going more in this direction of making art talk more directly about its origin,' Clark says. His prints are available for sale on his website in the 'endless' edition, or as long as the plants are available. He never destroys the blocks and says he likes the idea of intentionally devaluing his own currency to make it more 'weed-like.' By conventional standards, 'they're probably worthless,' Clark says. 'Rather than go through traditional rarified paths, I'll take the weedy path.'"(via American Craft Magazine...I may have to go get a copy! And, here's Patterson Clark's website)

Also, here's a link to Intelligent Clashing...beautiful! (via forestbound)

It poured on Boo and me at the farmers' market today and half of the venders weren't at the last market of the season, but we endured and made the best of it! Thank you local farmers!

And More Gift Tags

I have to admit that I'm having a lot of fun making gift tags. Here's the latest....

Make Your 40 Gift Tags Double-sided

These are specifically for this listing. You can either have me print on the reverse of the TO/FROM gift tags (like in the image above) or have me fill-in-the-blank...like this:

Can you tell that I recently read Emma by Jane Austen? I've re-read all her books within the last few months with the exception of Sense and Sensibility...I need a new copy for my book shelf as my previous copy was damaged by water. I think that Persuasion is my favorite.

Up next...blank gift tags....

Blank Gift Tags (Set of 10)

Use your own handwriting for these, or make them into bunting!

And a larger amount....

Blank Gift Tags (Set of 20)

The blank gift tags are dyed with tea and are subtly iridescent just like the other tags...they're very sweet.

In other news...it's definitely fall here; the weather changes drastically from week to week. And, this week is the last week of the farmers' market until March which is sad. However, I'm sure the farmers are happy to have some time off.

Thanksgiving is next week already...where does the time go?

I hope your week is going swell. Thank you for reading my little blog.

 

 

Recent Thrifting/Rummage Sale-ing

Goodness! Boo's school schedule (getting up early...we're both night owls) and this time change has got me tired all the time lately. So, it's been a bit spotty on this here blog.

However, I did get to my church's rummage sale and have done some thrifting, so here's some highlights....

I've been looking for a sweet cake stand, and here it is! There is a hairline crack on the edge which is barely noticeable. I don't know whether to fix it or not (for structural reasons). If you have any wisdom on the subject, please share!

Here's the top:

Yes, it's pink milk glass (oh, these dark days!). I think it begs for a cake with whipped cream frosting and maraschino cherries!

These wee candle holders were made in West Germany. I think they would be very cute at Christmas with beeswax candles.

I got this little chipped-up deer for Christmas decorating. It's a happy little thing.

Jenny actually gave me these spreaders. They are handmade, from Sweden, and made of juniper. Mmmm...goat cheese...or jam!

I hope you are adjusting to the colder, darker weather...and if not, I hope you are in the Southern Hemisphere. Happy Thursday!

More Gift Tags

I did a bit of a listing marathon on Etsy yesterday of more gift tags. Here's the results (Oh dear, have I been listening to too much election coverage, or what?)...

For You - gift tags (set of 20)

I made larger quantities of the gift tag sets (with a discount for the larger amount too)...just in time for the holidays...but, heck, they can be used any time of year and for any occassion!

Personalized Gift Tags (set of 20)

Make Your 20 Gift Tags Double-sided

The above is an add-on for 20 gift tags to be printed on the reverse...perhaps for a secret message...and customizeable.

To and From Gift Tags (10 of each)

These To/From tags are a quantity of 20 (10 each of TO and FROM)...with plenty of room to write a name yourself.

To and From Gift Tags (20 of each)

Yes, the above listing has a total of 40 tags, again 20 of each. All of these tags are dyed with tea, are made from scrap fine paper, and have an iridescent layer on them (red, yellow or blue...chosen randomly...unless your wee heart cannot live without a certain color). The TO gift tag in the above photo is with the blue iridescent layer and the FROM, red.

Also, I want to write a little thank you to marinatea84 for making such a lovely treasury with myself included that made the front page of Etsy yesterday.

And, a thank you to Meredith for including me in this blog post.

Happy Wednesday!

 

Lichen Jar (V2) 1

So, here's the jar that I mentioned in the last post....Finally listed...

Lichen Jar (V2) 1

Lichen Jar (V2) 1

Then end of last week was very busy...I had to finish Boo's Hallween costume (lots of hand-sewn detail)....It was worth all the sore fingers, hand, wrist, neck and back because he loved it. He was a superhero monster (upgraded from "monster" after my Mom sent up a cape she had made for him).

On an autumnal note, I watched an old episode of Chefs A' Field the other day and this recipe for Apple-Rutabaga Soup by Patrick O'Connell made my mouth water. Gotta make it soon (but substitute 1 c milk for cream instead of fat-free half-and-half...is that as yucky to you as it is me?).

I hope you had a happy and safe Halloween! Oh, and remember to vote!