November Sparks on Folksy

Can't believe it's the last day of the November Sparks listing club on Folksy today.  It's been great fun, as always, and I think the first month I've managed to list or relist every day.  Amazing sales tally too!  Thanks to everyone who's featured me on their blogs or retweeted my listings - really much appreciated.

Here are some pink and red picks from the last few days.  Click on any of the pictures to go directly to the shops.







1. Lovely coin purse by Moody Cow Designs
2. The sweetest brooch by Made by Lolly x
3. Silver and pink combo by Jessicas Jotters
4. Wear your heart in your hair with this clip by Astrid's Garden
5. Pink Lucite handbag charms by Blue Forest Jewellery (me!)
6. The cutest pink dice earrings by SP Jewellery

See you all in the December Elves!

BESTeam weekly feature: flutteringflowers on Etsy

What a fantastic shop Fluttering Flowers is - you can indulge all your whimsical fantasies here - own your own octopus, village or fuss-free bonsai, furnish your dolls house or make your house plants look way more funky!  Everything is beautifully modelled out of polymer clay for you by Deborah from Guthrie, OK.  She has been modelling with clay since childhood, and only a little break when life got busy intervened.  I imagine that some of these little sculptures must take ages to fashion out of the clay.  They are not intended as toys, but they would surely charm the little ones as well as adults who appreciate the whimsical and playful.

Here are my top picks.  Click on any of the pictures to go directly to the shop.





Yummy chocolate cake - but no calories!  Excellent ;-)
Two little octopussys seeking a forever home together...





Lovely labybugs and strawberries for scrapbooking or card embellishments
Little forest collection - amazingly intricate little sculptures!





A bonsai - no pruning or watering required - perfect gift!
Your own little village - you know you want one.

Catch up with Deborah and her craft at these links:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/FlutteringFlowers
http://polymerplaytime.blogspot.com/

(and yes, another fellow dog owner, and you can see pictures of the very handsome Foxy Brown on this blog!)

Fabulous handmade gifts from Dreamaid

Magnolia bud print by Clevedon

Shopping for gifts that give a little extra to charity doesn't mean compromising on style.  Check out these delightful one of a kind, handmade items from Dreamaid sellers. Click on any of the images to go directly to the shops.

Beautiful vintage style bracelet by Josephines

Mini notebook by Jolqa

BESTeam weekly feature: RaeoLight on Etsy

Raeolight from Joplin, MO, is a shop dedicated to fine photography, converted into prints, cards and magnets, calendars and jigsaws and other great gift ideas.  There are some great photos, all taken by Rachel, who despite having no formal training, uses the power of photography to really offer some really stunning images.

I'm going for a spring, summer, autumn and winter collection to show how all the seasons of the year are captured by this talented young photographer.  Click on any of the pictures to go directly to the shop.

Spring and Summer





Fall and Winter







There are some seasonal items too, and a special section of gifts under $20 - perfect for this time of year.

You can catch up with Rachel and see more of her work here:
www.facebook.com/raeoflightphotos
or
www.raeoflightphotos.blogspot.com

Cutting edge modern or downright retro?

These earrings I was quite proud of.  They're not listed yet, but I was all ready to write the blurb about how they are cutting-edge modern, in line with the current 'tribal' trend, mixing geometric with organic shapes, bold and eye-catching, a contemporary and subversive use of pearls etc, etc.  (I tend to ramble on a bit when I really like something...)

Showed them to the OH, who to give him his due, is usually pretty much on the money when I ask his advice on my makes.  He smiles and says, 'Are they your tribute to Downton Abbey?'

(For my US followers, I should explain that Downton is a Sunday night TV serial that's been gripping the nation recently, set just before the first World War.  The dresses have been spectacular.)

Hubby and I have a short, friendly discussion about this.  We've been married a long time, so agreeing to differ is by now relatively painless.  But I'm left undecided.  What do you think?  Modern or retro?  Trendy or vintage?  Or a mix of both?  Your opinions, please, lovely blog followers.

Children in Need: crafting for charity

Blue Forest Jewellery is having its first charity auction this week.  These items are open to bids from my work colleagues - hopefully they will bid generously because they really want the jewellery, as well as to show their support for charity. So far, after 1 day, the combined bids amount to £42, which I think is a great start!

I'm delighted to be able to contribute in this way.  I'm not one for sports, or dyeing my hair green, or sponsored silences, so I usually end up just sending a cash donation.  This seems like a lot more fun, if a bit more stressful (I don't find it easy blowing my own trumpet, even for charity!) and I'm giving more generously by donating the items too.

Let's hope Friday is a good night and lots of money is raised.  Here's the link if you want to make a direct donation.

BESTeam weekly feature: Gilliauna on Etsy

Gilliauna on Etsy is a shop absolutely bursting with items and color - what a great find!  It's probably the best stocked shop I've come across, and it takes beading and bling to a new dimension, with everything you could want in bookmarks, rosaries, lanyards, eyeglass chains, zipper pulls, purse charms and so on, as well as earrings, bracelets, rings and necklaces. The shop motto, like mine, is all about adding a bit of color to your life, and helping to recycle at the same time, as many of the vintage items on offer use parts from charity shop purchases where the profits go back to the community.


Gilliauna is a US citizen, but lives and works in British Columbia.  She has over 20 years experience in making jewelry (and you can see this from the designs) and sells on Artfire and from her blog as well as from her Etsy shops.

Definitely visit the blog - it's updated most days and there are Etsy picks, giveaways, shop features and of course, lots more information about Gilliauna makes.

With so many items to choose from, and the emphasis being on color, I decided to pick a rainbow from Gilliauna's shop.  Click on any of the pictures to visit the store. You may have to move fast, though, if you want any of these items, as not only is there a huge inventory, this shop is also very popular with Etsy buyers, with over 250 sales since opening just over a year ago, and fantastic positive feedback too - a real Etsy success story!


You can find out more about Gilliauna by following these links:

Facebook - http://facebook.com/BitsnBeadsbyGilliauna
Blog - http://www.colorfulartisanjewelry.com
Twitter - http://twitter.com/gilliauna
Flickr - http://flickr.com/photos/gilliauna
deviantArt - http://gilliauna.deviantart.com
Tumblr - http://gilliauna.tumblr.com
The Meandering Musings Blog - http://www.handmadeshoppingguide.com

Folksy November Sparks Week 2

The Sparks are no less sparky this week, despite the cold here in the UK!  Here's a selection of my favourite items.





1. Sparkly heart by Stars and Scars
2. Flowers for your hair by Crown and Glory
3. Colours of moonstone earrings by Alicia's Stones
4. Beautifully printed journal by Ellson Design Cards and Prints
5. Fused glass pendant by blue daisy glass
6. Pink cat brooch by Jings Things

I listed these holly berry earrings this week on Folksy.  I think they are quite sweet, even though I say so myself and I shouldn't!

Catch up with more November Sparks next week.

The Handmade movement can solve your problems!

I've said it before - the handmade movement has the potential to outshine all other retail in customer service.  Here's just a couple of recent examples of how Etsy and Folksy have solved dilemmas for me!

Problem: you want to send a little gift to someone you know from Etsy.  The person in question lives thousands of miles away and you don't know her address.  You don't really know what her taste in presents is.  What do you do?

Answer: You contact Christie at The Spotted Barn on Etsy who is only too happy to arrange a custom gift listing for your friend to come and choose what she would like from the fabulous selection of purses and wallets on offer in the shop.  Then you go back and buy a couple more wallets because they are such perfect Christmas presents - here's an example:

Problem: you need flowers in a hurry, to go to a close relative who lives a couple of hundred miles away.  You want beautiful flowers that will stand out and last.  You want to be able to send a card and have guaranteed and quick delivery. 

Answer: You buy these incredibly beautiful beaded flowers from Fleur de Perles on Folksy - or in fact, any of Megan's creations, which sometimes look so lifelike you have to check twice to see if they are alive!  Megan helped get these to my mum-in-law in double quick time, prettily packaged and with a personalised card and message.  It was quicker, easier and much more friendly than dealing with an big online florist. 

I love to give great customer service in all my shops, and I like to receive it even better. Thanks to both these seller for being a credit to the handmade movement.

BESTeam weekly feature: LeoandJunie on Etsy

If I had four words to sum up the jewelry in LeoandJunie on Etsy they would be chic, vintage, colorful and sweet. And every piece tells a little story!

Christine is the owner of this neat shop, based in Easton PA. She worked in the fine jewelry industry so she knows her stuff and you can see this from the pieces she crafts - vintage inspired but with a modern light and airy feel, fun and using charms, gemstones, crystals, sterling silver and brass.

Christine describes her home as 'pet friendly' - I counted 3 darling dogs featured on this blog post, they are real sweeties!

These are my hot picks from the shop:





These hair pins will keep you tidy, and you can see how they influence by a cup of coffee! A simple and classic pendant, with a modern twist - the Celtic knot charm with a moss green crystal is quite stunning.






Such a delicate color, these lilac lucite flowers with embedded crystals would suit any skin tone, making them a perfect present. Love the combination of orange and yellow in this sparrow and flowers necklace.


Check out more at the links below:

http://twitter.com/leoandjunie
http://leoandjunie.blogspot.com
http://facebook.com/LeoandJunie

Folksy November Sparks: Week 1

It's great to be back in the Folksy listings club - this month called the 'November Sparks' and seeing such lovely items every day is definately hard for a shop-aholic like me.  Thanks to those who've featured my items on their blogs this week :-)

Here are some of my favourite picks from shops in the club. Click on any of the images to visit the stores.







1. Pretty tree card from Lily's Night Garden
2. Sweet apple blossom brooch by noodleBubble
3. Snowy photo by Sprinkles
4. Lavender sachets by Vintage Dreams
5. Very trim trees by Swirlyarts
6. Funky fluffy handbag - and it's reversible! by NOfkantsCurios

And a couple of my new listings on Folksy this week!  Shameless self-promotion, I know, but I like these two a lot!