Summer, wherefore art thou summer?

Where did my summer go?  I walked out the back door yesterday to help put the cover on the swimming pool, and it hit me.

It's fall.

I missed summer.

How in the heck did I miss summer????

We took no trips this year, not even day trips to local parks and fun spots.  My vegetable garden went to pot...very quickly.  I didn't work in any of my gardens.  I only went swimming a handful of times, and Amanda and crew only came over once to swim.

So where did my summer go?

Here.  On-line.  Social media.  Trying to make my shop a success. 

 And in living life in front of my laptop, it passed me by outside.

Well, no more.  I took to heart some advise I learned from Bethan over at The Craft Star.

The 30/70 rule.

If I make my workday for my shop full time, that's 8 hours per day, Monday thru Friday.  I should spend 30% of that time with the selling part of my shop, and 70% of that time creating.

And it worked.  I now set my timer on my phone for 2.5 hours, and while working on-line with all my shop and social media business, Hannah sits next to me and does her homeschooling.  I follow my spread sheet list on the sites I need to visit and or link to, and then when my timer goes off, so does my laptop.  Then I get to eat lunch, clean the house, shop for supplies, and create items to sell.

And guess what?

It worked.

Over the last few weeks, I finished several pieces and even got them listed right away.  I am so proud of myself. :0)  Here's the latest scarf I created, and now I am working on making matching clutches to use the extra yarn for these scarves.

Silver Opal Sashay Metallic Ruffle Scarf

I love how easy this pattern worked, especially since it's crochet and not knit. :0)

I found the pattern at Cre8tion Crochet.

Well, I can't talk any longer....my timer is about to go off, and I have some of my favorite bloggers to visit.

Be blessed,

Debbi

Friday Finds - getting ready for the cold

Well, our temps are finally dropping, fast.  I love the cooler weather (cooler, not cold!) and wearing sweaters and hats and scarves.  So let's go check out some wonderful handmade scarves.

I found these wonderful scarves over at The Craft Star.  Clockwise from the bottom left...

a cotton crochet skinny scarf from Bernoulli's Attic. 

a tweed knitted cowl from the Yarn Star.

a rainbow colored scarf from Annesknits.

Over at my old hangout, Handmade Artists, I found these beauties...

Starting at the top left...

a knit infinity scarf from Oaklies Fashions.

Cloud 9 scarf with flower by Magnolia Road Designs.

and I absolutely LOVE this fox scarf by dolly's designs.

And this week, I created 2 new scarves myself, and added them to the pot of handmade scarves.

shades of blue pom pom scarf

red sashay metallic ruffle scarf

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.  And support your local handmade artists.

Be blessed,

Debbi

HHC#25 contest winner - JewelryByJane29

Every week on HandmadeArtists.com we have a highlight challenge, which is a great way to showcase the wide range of items available on the site, but it is also a great way to get some free advertising on the On Fire For Handmade site, and win a free prize.  And the winner for challenge #25 is Jewelry By Jane with her highlight "Tickled Pink".



Aren't these just some great pink items?  If you click on the highlight (or the title link) it will whisk you off to the site, and from there you can click on any individual item to get to that shop.

Now for some info on Jane.  She designs and sells...well, take a guess.  Go ahead.  Guess.  Oh, all right, I'll tell you...she designs amazing jewelry.  Mostly beadweaving and wire wrapping.  Look at these and drool....(but not on your keyboard).

 

This Southwestern Turquoise Beadweave Necklace is a real eyecatcher, and would look great with your favorite black dress, or jeans and shirt.  Or how about this White Cats Eye Cabochon Pendant?  Very fancy...and unique.  And then there is her wire wrapping...and this Copper Wire Cuff Bracelet.  Let me tell you,  you won't find jewelry of this high quality, and handmade beauty, at Wally World.  So click on any link above, and shop handmade today...be an original.

Be blessed,

Debbi

oh, and before I forget, this is what she won from Oaklies Fashions...

 

 

so, what are you waiting for?  Come and join the fun at HandmadeArtists.com.

 

What's new at our place...

We've been busy here filling our stores for your holiday shopping...here's some new items just recently listed...

Over at Handmadeartists we now have a whole section dedicated to just our jewelry.



Right now we have only listed our necklaces and bracelets, but the earring will be up soon.  And we offer free shipping in the United States on all our jewelry.

 

At our Etsy shop our hooks have been flying.  I created this child's size Newsboy cap, and then made a matching hat for your little girls doll.  Now Hannah has never played with dolls (much) and the one doll she does have, she gave her a (bad) haircut, so I used one of my vintage teddy bears for a model.  Kids...gotta love 'em. 

And in honor of my late sister Kathy, for Breast Cancer Awarenss month, I created this breast cancer scarf with a pattern I got at Craftsy.com.  I am donating $5.00 from the sale of this scarf to the American Cancer Society, and I have plans to alter the pattern a bit, (the single crochet makes this nice and thick, but I want to try and also make it lacier and lighter for those of us where the winter does not get super cold).  So when you purchase these scarfs, you are also supporting a great cause.

And that is what I have accomplished these past few weeks....you can click on any link above to go to our shops and/or each item.  Plus you can visit the tabs at the top of this page to get an overview of all the items we have to offer at both shops.  So come on by and say hello.

Be blessed,

Debbi

new listings

I don't normally "toot" our own horn, but I've been a busy little girl this week, so I figured I would show you what all I accomplished.  Here are the new items we listed for sale this week.

On Etsy we have...



this bright orange, pink, and yellow Inkle loom woven belt.   Remember when I told you that my wonderful husband, in response to my desire to learn a new craft, he built me an Inkle loom.  This belt was my first attempt and it turned out very well.  I love the colors, and with the long fringe, it is very retro looking, think 1960's hippy.  It measures 45" long.  This is also a great summer look, but the weather is changing, and before we know it, it will be Christmas!  So I've started to add items for the holiday season.

Last year I sold several sets of this Santa scarf and mittens.  This listing is for the scarf only, but if you would like a full set, just let me know.  I also have several Christmas hair ribbons.   The traditional colors of red and green are offset with contrasting pom poms and beads.  Perfect for little (and big) girls.

 

Over in our HandmadeArtists shop I listed this fun fur lime green and turquoise striped accent pillow.  It only measure 10" square, so it looks great anywhere.  And the colors and fur would be great for a teens bedroom.

 

So click on any link above to visit our shops, and bookmark our shops for your easy Christmas shopping!

 

Be blessed,

Debbi

The BESTeam outfit for your holiday party

This week, as part of my BESTeam commitment, I am sharing 3 wonderful Etsy shops today.  Joy Flower, Creativity Bugs, and Stitch Princess.  While browsing thru their shops, I decided to put together the perfect holiday outfit.  It was great fun, come and see what I found to wear.

First up...the dress.  Look at what Faith has to offer in her shop, Stitch Princess.  This formal gown with a gathered bodice is shown in gorgeous gold, but can be made in any color or length you wish.  Faith has several different gowns and dresses to choose from, and you can also find aprons, purses, and beautiful photographic artwork.  Here are all Faith's links.

Etsy / Blog / Facebook

Just picture yourself dancing the night away, but as the sun goes down, you feel a little chill on your shoulders, Joy from JoyFlower has you covered with some real beautiful hand painted silk scarves.  Like this one, Earthsong handpainted Silk Ruana.  The following is a direct quote from the items page.  "A ruana is similar to a cape, but more versatile, very wearable. Open on the sides, so many ways to drape and wrap."  The colors are just....wow!  You can find Joy here.

Etsy / Blog / Facebook / Flickr / Twitter

Now I am not the most serious person, I like to be different.  So I would definitely use this fun and flirty handbag from Creativity Bugs.  Sandy and Sue are the 2 sisters behind Creativity Bugs, and they started out with cards and paper crafts, but now you can find cool photo cubes, party favors, and great handbags like this one.  Their shop literally EXPLODES with color.  Follow them here.

Esty / Blog / Facebook

The name BESTeam stands for Boosting Etsy Shops Team, and that is exactly what we do, thru blog features, twitter, facebook, the team blog, and treasuries.  So if you have an Etsy shop and a blog, and are looking for a great and supportive network of friends, come and see us.

Debbi

Monday Madness continues

Last week Bob was hiding with our Alien buddy.  Unfortunately, nobody found him, so our buddy is still up for adoption.  What a great gift to put in your little boys Easter basket.

This week the word is SPRING, because I am tired of winter.  Speaking of being tired of winter, don't forget that we are offering free shipping on all our scarfs.  Time to make room for our spring things.  And back to SPRING....for those who missed last Monday's blog, Our Home To Yours has started a weekly game.  Every Monday we will blog about a word, and then you have to find that word somewhere in our Etsy shop.  It could be in an item's picture or description, but it will be somewhere on a specific items page.  When you find that word, and order that item, you will get 35% off that item.  You will need to convo us at check out so we can refund the discount.  So start searching, and remember the word is SPRING.
Debbi

m.sartin design, a BESTeam feature

I know it's late in the day, but my stinkin internet connection was freaky today.  But I'm glad I got it to work, because there is this cute Etsy shop I want to share with you, m.sartin design.  Mindy Sartin has a real creative talent with a hook and yarn, and loves color.  Deep and rich, or bright and loud, her choice of color stands out when you visit her shop.  She makes wonderful cowels, scarfs, and hats, and will even gift wrap them for you before shipping.  Just look at the warm rich brown of this scarf.  It looks so soft, and what a touch of class this would add to any outfit.  And a cream cuff for your neck?  What a great idea, and look.  But my all time favorite is this custom baby hat.

Mindy also keeps up a cool blog, full of guest bloggers, and info/promotions of other shops.  Click on any of the links and pictures to be magically trasported to her shop and/or blog.  And if you are an Etsy seller that likes to blog, consider joining the BESTeam for that extra exposure, and lots of fun, friendship, and support.

25% off sale. just in time for the cold.

We are having a sale in our shop right now, 25% off all our scarfs. If you order today, we can ship it in time for Christmas. Here's a few to get you started.

a "mink" stole for animal lovers

I made this "mink" stole with fun fur yarn, and while crocheting with that yarn can be difficult (you can't easily pull out mistakes), I was pleased with the finished piece. It's now available on our etsy shop, ready for the dress up holiday season!

BESTeam feature, Gardenmis!

It's time for my weekly feature of a BESTeam member, and I was sooooo excited when I started to research mine, Gardenmis from Etsy. The first line of her profile made me jump right out of my seat..."I am a born again believer in the One True God Jehovah that loves handmade, vintage, and all things girly!". I also love Jehovah with all that is in me, and handmade and vintage, and my girly love is......SHOES!!! hahaha. Since opening our shop in January of this year, I kept the thought in the front of my head that I need to balance my faith with what I write on my shop and blog, but after reading Priscilla's profile, I now realized that my faith should always be front and center!!! Thank you Priscilla for being an inspiration to me on that subject.

Now to get to her shop. As a mother of 3 children that she homeschools I don't know where she finds the time to create the beautiful items in her shop. My first pick to share is this way too cute layered yo yo hair clip. The checkerboard pattern will set off any outfit, and the yellow center gives it a nice splash of color.

This next piece is a great idea for a scarf. The soft blue color and white trim makes a nice accent to dress up a solid color shirt.

And my favorite is this bright and sunny orange flower. Looking at it just makes me smile.

There is something you should know, she is also a pet lover. So if you have any allergy problems, read her policy page. While she takes great care in her studio, dander may happen. ;p

You can learn more about this amazing woman by visiting her blog "Life, Love, & Adventures of Gardenmis". You can also tweet her at twitter. So sit back, relax, and go shopping at Gardinmis. Priscilla is offering a free gift with your purchase, just mention that you read about her on my blog for our BESTeam features.