Folksy Friday: Holidays are here

School's out soon so maybe you need some of these items from Folksy sellers if you're off on holiday or just hanging round the garden hoping to see the sun!

This holiday aceo by Ghost Goose brings back some memories

Soap flip flops - what a great idea! - by Just Bev Soaps

For those of us who dream of owning a boat or a beach hut, 

recession-beating options from Buttons and Stars and Charlotte Hupfield Ceramics!

Bluebells and Oystershells (fantastic name!) will help you remember your passport 

and Cherry Tree Handmades will keep your souvenirs together in style.

What else do you need for the perfect holiday?

BESTeam weekly feature: Sandyvern on Etsy

It's a pleasure to feature Sandyvern this week, especially as she shares my love of animals and runs a pet sitting service.  If only she weren't many miles away in Stamford, Connecticut, I'd love to use that for Lucca!




Anyway, not content with that skill, she is also an all-round crafter with a beautiful Etsy shop selling traditionally hand-made soaps and bath products, as well as stitch markers and earrings, knitted toys etc. And there's a second shop at Simplysandythings specialising in earrings and charms.

Browsing the shop is a real pleasure, because the soaps and bath bombs are not only made of pure natural ingredients, they also look good too!   Being a child at heart, I've had to pick some of the animal ones ;-)  I reckon you could even get little ones to enjoy washing with these.




The knitting soap would be a great present for a crafter too!



Love the way these bath bombs are presented as flowers as well.  This is scrumptious oatmeal - guess it's best not to eat it, even though it sounds delicious!

These 'soapsicles' are another tempting treat as well.  They really do look good enough to eat!

There's a whole Hogwarts section as well, for those of you who are Harry Potter fans :-)

You can find out more about Sandyvern by visiting the blog at http://theadventuresofsandyvern.blogspot.com

Folksy Friday: Dragonflies

Saw a beautiful dragonfly on a walk this week.  I thought I'd just find a picture of in on the net and blog about it.  What I didn't realise is how many species of dragonflies and damselflies there are!  So I gave up trying to find a picture and selected some lovely Folksy items instead.  Click on any of the images to go to the shops.






1. Dragonfly print by Spiral Moon Fantasy
2. Dragonfly vegan soap by Oracle Lake
3. Dragonfly in glass by Bubble Bees painted glass
4. Silk painting with dragonfly by The Owl and the Pussycat
5. Watercolour by eastwitching
6. Jute dragonfly bag by Art on a Bag

Beautiful, aren't they?

And in case there are any dragonfly experts reading who would like to help identify the one we saw, it had a deep bottle green body with translucent green wings, and it looked just like someone had shaken a pot of green and silver glitter all over it.  It kept its wings open when it landed so we could see just how amazing it was.  Quite a bit bigger than the blue ones we see more often around the river, this one was some way from any water.  Any offers?

BESTeam weekly feature - Bathtime with Artesia Products

It's a real pleasure to find a shop where a purchase will benefit someone in real need.  Every purchase from Artesia Products means a donation to Water 1st International.  So not only do you get a natural, fresh and luxurious bath or beauty product, you also get the assurance of knowing you have helped to bring fresh water to someone in the Third World where clean water itself is a luxury.

What's more these products contain ingredients you'll want to eat, and are only tested on friends and family, so you can be reassured that everything you buy is pure and simple and fun to use. These products are truly a little bit of luxury and pampering which will allow you to take time out from the busy world!

Here are some of my favourite products.  Click on the pictures to go to the shop.

This SubLime Lip Balm looks good enough to eat.  Probably best to use it on your lips though!





And these products are what I need right now that the summer weather has come and my feet and my skin aren't ready yet!

1.  Yummy peppermint pumice bar
2.  A fizzy foot soak with moisturiser
3.  A decadent all over almond shower scrub with cocoa butter

As well as Etsy, you can find out more about Artesia on Facebook and on her blog .