Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Baby hats and May treasuries



I finished a couple more baby hats and put them in my http://www.etsy.com/shop/BitsOfFiber?ref=pr_shop_more if you are interested in purchasing them and to see more photos and want more detailed info on them please visit my shop.

I'm still catching up with things and one of them is listing these great treasuries Etsians have created with items from my shops. So I better jump on into the treasury world!

This first one called "Come Sale Away" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/Surori featuring my knitted pumpkin hat which is ON SALE! Love the title of this treasury, so appropriate! If you want to save some money have a look at all the great items listed in this treasury and they all are ON SALE! The curator's shop specializes in one-of-a-kind jewelry, so unless otherwise stated every piece is unique to itself. We hope you find something that is YOU!!



Next is the treasury called "Blue Hue" I loooooooove this treasury. My itty bitty blue baby booties are featured in this one with lots of other beautiful blue things. This was one of the treasuries entered into the nonteamchallenge 30. The curator of this treasury http://www.etsy.com/shop/taanz# sells hand crafted products and artworks by New Zealand Multi-media Artist Tanya Dann. To view all of Tanya's work visit www.nzartguild.co.nz/tanyadann or www.facebook.com/tanya.dann.artist



Next up is "Ducklings and Daffodills" by AuntieKaren (who doesn't have an online shop) featuring my needle felted ducky. If you like little ducks, yellow and daffodils you will have to check out this pretty treasury!



Next is "Strangely Awesome and cute ... please ship them my way" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/AnnabelleArt featuring my white needle felted foal. This treasury has all kinds of darling creatures in it, a must visit! This is her shop announcement: "Our OOAK greeting cards are individually hand stamped and handmade by me. I do not use printed art; only the best quality papers, stamps, embellishments, inks and glue! Each card design is one of a kind, or produced in very limited numbers (2 or 3)."



Next is "For our Little Friends and their humans" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/RatAttackTeam featuring my needle felted mouse and a piece of cheese. If you love these little creatures (and I do!) a must see treasury with lots of cool items all rat and mice related. The curator's has been rescuing domestic rats since 1998 & hammock sales help with veterinary costs. Please make sure you visit her shop and website http://www.freewebs.com/ratattackteam/ for more info.



Next one is called "Wild Horses" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/TheStrumpetsTentacle featuring my needle felted white foal. If you like horses this is THE treasury to check out. Lots of shops with horse related items to go visit! In the Curator's shop you will find exceptional crocheted patterns,pieces and custom orders.



Next is "It's a Pink World" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/TheDoubleKnitters featuring my needle felted pincushion. In the curator's shop you will find beautiful knitted items.



Next is "A Mother's Love" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/LynnetteJewelry featuring my needle felted mother and baby hedgehob. The curator's shop announcement states: "I sell beautifully handcrafted jewelry, accessories, and vintage buttons. I personally design and make each piece, using only the finest genuine gemstones, beads and materials. Most of the pieces are one of a kind, and matching pieces can usually be made upon request. I have another Etsy shop called jewelry56, which sells more of the same items."



Last but definitely not least! Treasury called "Where the wild things are" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/AnyaCloudJewellery featuring my needle felted baby harp seal. I loooooove this treasury, it has so many cute items in it. Make sure you take a closer look at this one. In the Curator's shop you will find hand crafted jewelry.



Oops, almost forgot to list the pictures of my baby hats I just listed this past week. I'm working on some pumpkin hats which I will be listing soon. Thanks for visiting everybody. Have fun exploring all the great shops listed in these treasuries and don't forget to visit the Curator shops as well. Talk to you soon.

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Some new items added to my shop and another treasury for the nonteamchallenge 30



I've been busy finishing up projects I've started some of the a couple of months ago and I have more to come. But for now I have another baby boy hat/cap I crocheted which you can find for sale in my http://www.etsy.com/shop/BitsOfFiber shop on Etsy and a pincushion with lots of cute toadstools I needle felted which you can find in my http://www.etsy.com/shop/PurplePlatypus?ref=ss_profile shop also on Etsy. The pincushion also includes 3 pins which I decorated with toadstools I made of polymer clay. If you like toadstools then have a look at this blog http://www.make-it-do.com/celebrate-it/the-woodland-party which has the cutest cupcakes ... and you guessed it ... they are decorated with toadstools but it has some other really cute ideas for a woodland party so make sure you check it out.

I'm also including a picture of the treasury I made for the nonteamchallenge 30 on Etsy. I love entering this challenge on a weekly basis, they give you an inspiration item which is an item picked by the shop owner who won the challenge the week before. I think it's a great way to keep this going without having to belong to an actual team. If you go to http://treasurychallengenonteam.blogspot.com/ you can read all about it. I have more treasuries to share with you in which I've been featured but that will be for later this weekend. And before I forget HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to all you mother's out there! Hope you have a lovely day. I do have to work on this day but I do love my job so I'm not fretting having to go to work on Mother's Day.

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Rosie on her Sunday Best and Laura's Tired Ballerina



While I was visiting my family and friends in Belgium I wanted to show my mom how to needle felt so I made this little bird. I wasn't sure yet at that point what else I was going to do with her until I brought her home. She's now turned into a cute little pincushion wearing a hat and 3 heart pins I made of polymer clay. She's looking for a nice home so she can be put to work helping her new owner sew, quilt and/or craft or would be very happy to be used for decoration only! Would make for a unique mother's day gift that's for sure so go and check her out on my PurplePlatypus shop.

I also made the Tired Ballerina statue for my niece Laura. She is made of electrical wire, aluminum foil you use in the kitchen, painters tape, old T-shirts and other types of fabric. I used Powertex in lead color and a metallic paint to dry brush her with. Isn't she a doll?

April Treasuries

Finally got a chance to sit down and finish posting the treasuries I was featured in during April so let's just jump right on in and list them.

This first one is called "Felt" and in it is my needle felted foal together with lots of other gorgeous felted items. The curator of this treasury http://www.etsy.com/shop/Fefie# makes and sells Needle Felted animals and teddies made from different wools and silk. She often wash, card and dye raw wool to produce colours and textures that are perfect for these Felted Friends.



This next treasury called "I'll love you forever" which featured again my needle felted foal by curator http://www.etsy.com/people/AuntieKaren who's an Etsy buyer and doesn't have a shop.



Next treasury called "For the love of Momma" featuring my needle felted mom and baby hedgehogs by Curator http://www.etsy.com/shop/ShirleysStitchery who makes and sells quilts, baby blankets, bibs, cloth diapers, wet-bags, dresses, and reusable snack bags in her Etsy shop.



Next treasury called "She sells seashells by the Season" featuring my needle felted harp baby seal by Curator http://www.etsy.com/shop/foreversew who makes and sells hand stitched art, unique items and chic modern crafts.



This treasury called "H is for hedgehog" features .... what do you think? ... haha of course ... my needle felted hedgehog family! The curator http://www.etsy.com/shop/AliceCreations makes and sells beautiful photographs, hand etched glass and other handmade items so make sure you check out her shop.



That's it for the month of April. Already have my list going for treasuries posted this month of May but I will feature those in a different post. Thanks to every Etsy curator for featuring items from my shop. I don't have the time these days to make treasuries and include all of you in a treasury so I hope doing this will still help you out with new visitors and customers to your lovely shops!

Saturday, April 30, 2011

Catching up with all these lovely treasuries!

Goodness, again I want to thank all of these lovely Etsy artists for featuring items from both of my Etsy shops. Got a long list of some really pretty treasuries ... sorry it's taken me a little longer then normal to get these out but as you can read in my previous post I wasn't able too do anything for 2 weeks while I was in Belgium.

Alright here we go ... first one is called "Feeling delicate and blue" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/BohemianBaskets who sells beautiful baskets handmade from both recycled fabrics and beautiful, new designer fabrics. I love the purple one! In this treasury my felted baby shoes AND a set for a newborn which includes baby booties and a hat are featured so not just once but twice I got featured!



Next up is a treasury called "The color of granny squares" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/allthingsgranny who sells baby blankets, scarves and lots and lots of granny squares to make up your own items. Pretty cool idea so make sure you check it out. In this treasury my granny square baby blanket or lap blanket is featured.



The next treasury is called "Happy Mothers Day ... to me" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/weebit who sells classy sassy handmade jewelry and most importantly ... she is going to be a mommy in October! Congratulations Weebit! In this treasury my granny square baby blanket is featured.



Now we're off to my other etsy shop (PurplePlatypus) items that have been featured. First one is called "Gifts She will love starting at $5" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/FavorFancyAndFun featuring my needle felted ducky. In her shop you will find favor boxes, gift boxes and more.



Next one called "Barnyard Rouge" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/WellCriated featuring my needle felted bird. In their shop you will find your source for Sustainable Art and Wellness products! They use primarily 100% all-natural alpaca fiber and other upcycled and sustainable materials.



Next is the treasury called "Over the rainbow" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/dzynrkitee?ref=pr_shop_more featuring my colorful handpainted wooden gift tag. Her shop is made up of items from her personal hope chest, as well as her grandmother's collections. Some of the pieces have never been used. She would love for these items to be appreciated, cared for and enjoyed just as she has. Hopefully you find that "gotta have" treasure, or just enjoy looking around!



There are more treasuries but those will have to wait until tomorrow so make sure you come back and have a peek for the rest of these lovely treasuries. I'm sure you will find lots of things you just can't live without looking through all these fun shops ... and hopefully my shops as well! ;0)

Friday, April 29, 2011

It's been awhile ...




but I'm back. I've had a rough couple of weeks behind me. I had planned a trip home (to Belgium) to visit with my best friend (Erna) and my family and then things went wrong. See, my best friend Erna, whom I've been friends with for 40 yrs has been fighting breast cancer for 17 yrs. Can you imagine, non-stop on chemo for that many years! I don't know how she did it ... but she did ... strongest women I've ever met, never complained until about 4 weeks ago. She mentioned to me then that she didn't think she'd be around when I would arrive in Belgium. So we did what we thought was right ... we said goodbye to each other just in case she wasn't going to make it till then. The hardest thing I've ever had to do ... but I think when we did it, it made us both feel better about the situation. Then every evening and morning I texted her, she ended up in the hospital only 2 days before my arrival and the evening before my flight she wished me a good and safe trip and a happy face and that was it ... that was the last text message I received. When I arrived in Belgium she went into a comma and peacefully passed away shortly after my arrival. I didn't make it to the hospital in time so you can imagine how sad I was not have seen my friend before she passed away but I'm so glad we did say goodbye the week before and were still able to communicate up until the evening before she died. I'm so sad I lost my best friend, sad for her family and especially sad for her two wonderful daughters. She was a fantastic mom and I know that those 17 yrs she fought breast cancer she did it to see her kids grow up. It's hard to loose a loved one, 51 yrs old is just way too young to die but I do thank God for letting her be part of my life. I miss her e-mails, chats and messages but most of all I miss my best friend.

These are flowers from Erna's garden, purple lilacs are my favorite and since they were from her garden they are even more special!

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Springy treasuries




I'm happy to share some more treasuries with you featuring my items together with lots of other beautiful things from many Etsy shops. Again, many thanks to all the curators of these treasuries for including my stuff! While I'm gone to Belgium I won't be able to blog much but when I get back I'll jump right back into blogging.

Here we go ...
This first one is called "Here comes the Easter bunny" featuring my needle felted bunny by http://www.etsy.com/shop/DaniCalve This is what she says about her shop "Nature and Color are my muses~they bring comfort and vibrance to my life as I hope they will do for you.
Let me bring you a conversational piece of art to grace your neck, for your lapel or even on your wall and into your world. Take a walk through my paintings, relax on a pillow and don't forget to wear a flower in your hair." The treasury she made has some lovely Easter bunnies and other Easter goodies listed. CLick on the items in the treasury to take you to the shop who made it and sells the item.



Next is a treasury called "Peace Love and Happiness" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/FIApdx featuring my hand painted wooden gift tag. In the curator shop you will find unique, not so ordinary, quirky things created mostly from Eco-Fi felt (100% vegan & recycled material), fleece and cotton fabric. She loves making plushes, pins, toys, buttons housewares, phone/mP3 cases & everyday life accessories composed of vivacious colors. All of the items are hand sewn, she doesn't use a sewing machine.



Next is a treasury called "Birds, bees, flower trees" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/eleuthera featuring my needle felted bird named Ernie! I love the paintings for sale in the shop of the curator, the shoe paintings are my favorite. Her shop announcement states: "shoes, cows and Swedish landscapes delivered worldwide". I love that!



Next up is a treasury called "Farm Fresh Fantasy" by http://www.etsy.com/shop/HangingTreasures featuring my striped knitted acorn baby hat. The curator shop you will find beautiful earring frames. This is her shop announcement: "Like many women, I've got more jewelery than I can practically store in my jewelery box. One day I got tired of fishing around for my favorite earrings and decided to try something new. I made my first earring frame and loved it so much I started making them for all the women that I love. The response was so overwhelming that I decided to start selling them so that more women would have a chance to display their jewelery in a beautiful and practical way." The treasury is part of the nonteamchallenge 25. She incorporated the inspiration item using all farm related items which makes me want to jump up and run to a farmers market!



Last one for today (but not least!) is a treasury called "Love comes in all shapes and sizes" by featuring my striped baby hat, which seems to be a popular item for people to use in their treasuries. In the curator's shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/inspiredbymckenna you will find some really pretty nogin wear and cool vintage items.