Extra Extra Read all about it!

The Burlington County Times wrote an article about me! I'm so psyched! They even had a pic :)

The article is all about the Handmade Faire, and how / why I started doing it - check it out here:
http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/local/burlington_county_times/bct_news_details/article/26/2010/july/12/homegrown-talent.html

And a cute pic of me @ Jersey Made to boot!

Abbie

Team Tuesday!

I've missed a few team tuesdays, I just have not been in a blogging sort of mood - mostly because I've been working on my website a lot, working on a new launch and I haven't really been feeling any extra web work haha! I am just sick to death of photoshop and computers right now! But the show goes on :) at least until the new website and shop is launched, then I can pretend photoshop doesn't exist for a little while!

I thought it was important to participate in this week's team tuesday, because I love the EtsyNJ team and didn't want to neglect them! Haha!

Since Mother's Day is coming up, I thought I'd do a little feature on that. The shop, PetScribbles makes these great greeting cards - this one in particular I was chuckling about the other day,.... from your furbaby on Mother's Day:I read on her facebook page that she will customize this card for you too "From Fluffy on Mother's Day" hehe..... great for the mom of your fur baby out there!

Her shop is full of pet themed cards, not all of them are *from* the pets, but they do all seem to have a pet theme, they're all adorable too!
Check out the list of other EtsyNJ bloggers that are busy doing features today!

By the pricking of my thumb...

I've been creative lately.... made a few new art pieces to create my art blocks out of this year. The art blocks aren't ready for sale yet so I'm only doing a little sneak preview of one of my new pieces. I actually have quite a few new pieces - but I think this one is one of my favs!
So... what do you think it is? It's not really THAT secretive...if you really look at the pic you should be able to figure out what it is :)

Team Tuesday: Blackbird72

Dandelions were one of my favorite things as a kid - I remember picking the yellow ones and making "Dandelion Soup" outside in my playhouse. Do you remember holding a dandelion under someone's chin - if it reflected yellow then that means that person likes butter.....the logic doesn't really translate into adulthood but I remember it being pretty neat as a kid. Of course there is that sick little rhyme where you put your thumb under the bud of the dandelion and say "momma had a baby and it's HEAD popped off!" and flicking the flower bud off the top as you say it... yeah, another sick little endearing child's rhyme! I hope I'm not the only one who remembers these rhymes....Then there are the puffy dandelions like in Blackbird's photo. I couldn't pass one of these as a child without picking it up and blowing the seeds all over. As an adult I can barely pass one without sneezing....but, that's another story haha. Check out the rest of Blackbird72's Shop: She has lots to offer. She offers custom photography too!

Team Tuesday - Hanging Out

Saturday was my first show of the season, at the Natural Resource Education in Waretown. I got to see some of my show buddies that I haven't seen since show season ended, right before Christmas! So, today for team Tuesday I'll feature the etsy shop owners that spent the day with me on Saturday!
First up is Robin from Creations by Robin, last year we did a bunch of shows together, and it rained at nearly all of them - hope our luck is better this year! She makes fabulous sea glass jewelry from sea glass that she finds right on the Jersey Shore! Her creations can also be found in the brick & mortar shop in Mount Holly, NJ - Jersey Made.
Another show buddy that was there was my friend Doreen, she is from Seahorse Designs and she crochets and knits all sorts of wearables - hats, fashion scarves, fingerless gloves, etc. She had her son with her, and it was particularly cold for playing outside so she wowed us all when she crocheted him a winter hat to wear in what seemed like no time! This is one of my favorite things she makes, it's a scarf that looks like a vine of roses. It's in pieces so you can wear it in lots of different ways - so cool. Her creations can also be found in the brick & mortar shop in Mount Holly, NJ - Jersey Made.The other show neighbors that were there was Amanda from Dragon's Den - she makes wonderful soaps, lotions & lip glosses. I bought 3 lipglosses from her and I just love them, so silky and smooth! Great scents too - I am such a lipgloss addict, when I see it I just can not resist! I got Coconut, Mango, & Vanilla - they're all lovely!And my last booth neighbor of the day was Susann from Alonia Creations. She makes all sorts of adorable sewn goodies for kiddo's and some awesome stuff for the home too! My favorite was this adorable outfit for a little girl, the top could be worn as a dress too if you wanted to - which I think is just adorable for a little girl!
Team Tuesday - Week 6
Blog post must be about an EtsyNJ member shop . To find an EtsyNJ shop see the side bar of this blog or search EtsyNJ at Etsy . com . You do not have to be a team member to participate but you MUST feature an EtsyNJ member on your blog .
Want to be a part of this Blog Hop? Click here for instructions and code...

Easter Basket!

As I was cleaning out Neil's room, purging some old toys and clothes that he's outgrown, I came across two Easter baskets he's used in the past. One shaped like Lightening McQueen, one shaped like a Firetruck. I'm sort of a traditionalist here, so I am not a big fan of the plush commercial Easter basket.So that spurred me to feature my mother in law for this week's Team Tuesday.WebmavenNJ, aka my Mother in Law, Pola. It occurred to me that I should ask her to make Neil an Easter Basket, after all - she's a basket maker. Don't know why this never occurred to me, I guess because I have different idea's of Easter baskets vs functional or decoration baskets so it just never came to mind. Between my mother in law and her best friend (and basket mentor) Mary from Pineland's Folk Music & Basketry Center I have been conditioned to appreciate and recognize quality handmade baskets. They've made me quite the basket snob!
So, within a few days I asked Pola to make one, and she came up with the design off the cuff & created it! She's still gotta sign it, but it's all done! It's great - Neil loves it! Extra strong bottom, to hold all that candy :). I asked for a yellow accent color on it. Before the bunny hops along and fills it up, it's going to sit on the center of the table as a centerpiece. I have an idea for some eggs I want to fill it with! I'm so excited to have this heirloom Easter basket for Neil. Handmade baskets last forever (We just bought one from the 1920's!) and Neil can pass this basket down to his children some day. Pola is taking custom orders for Easter Baskets if you are interested. The price is $75, which is not much for an heirloom quality basket like this. It's got a double bottom for extra sturdiness, and the handle is extra strong too. The basket is about 6" deep, 13" diameter, and from bottom to the tip of the handle it's roughly 16" tall. Act fast if you would like a custom Easter basket, because Easter is just around the corner! You can contact Pola through her etsy shop, or her facebook fan page.Of course I had to put our new little baby Gypsy Rose into the basket for the photo op! She's just too cute, and while I do not condone getting bunnies as Easter presents, she just happened to arrive around Easter time for us. She sure is a cutie pie!

This post is part of the EtsyNJ Team Tuesday Blog Hop! Visit the EtsyNJ Blog!
Check out my other team members that are also blogging about New Jersey Artists today!

Even more goodies!

I scored so many awesome goodies at the auctions, it'd have been way too much of a pic heavy post to have them all in one blog, so here's a little more. I love these too, but I might end up selling the canisters. I love them, but I don't know that I can find a hope for them. I bid on them with the intent to use them in my hoosier cabinet for storage, which, they would make great storage - but - the hoosier is in my dining room and I think the canisters make it look too kitchen-y. If that makes any sense.
They say "Lincoln Beautyware" on the bottom, they're metal and the striping looks a bit more pronounced in the photo's than in real life. If somebody had a retro kitchen, these would be a perfect fit for it. I don't know, may list it on ebay or etsy, or maybe just craigslist. If I got $25 for the set I'd be a happy camper! So, if anybody is interested, let me know. I am happy to trade too!
I also picked up some more contractor rulers. I love these things. I got these ones at the flea market. I have quite a collection of rulers going hehe. I just can't get enough of them! Although yesterday I picked one up and the seller said "oh - it's $25 for that" and I nearly burst out laughing in front of him. My cohorts in flea market junking, Holly & Nicki were laughing at that too. We always find good deals when we go to the flea but there are the occasional people who think they can charge antique store prices at flea markets - and we just have to laugh. I haven't paid more than $3 for one of my rulers yet and I have quite a few - most I even paid as little as $1 for!