Saturday, December 29, 2007

Feathers


Baby Leaves by MStevensonDesigns

These are called the Baby Leaves earrings, but don't they look a bit like ostrich feathers to you? They'd be fun to wear with a feathered headpiece like this one:


Woodland Pixie by begurple

If you were the sort of person to wear feathered headpieces, that is. Wish I were.

Felt Beads

The felted bead of preschool days is coming back in a big way, it seems. Look at these fabulous bobble-baubles from 3FUN:


Three-in-One (Colorful Felted Necklace) by 3FUN


These turquoise felt earrings are unexpectedly sophisticated:


Buddha Blue Fuzz Earrings by TMJ - norsola johnson designs

This piece is listed as a necklace, but apparently moonlights as a funky bracelet:


Crocheted and Felt-Ball Necklace by hine

Keri Rounding's delicate felt brooches have been featured on a number of blogs this winter, but they're still so wonderful to look at. A friend remarked that these often look like Dr Seuss botanicals, but they do come in some more natural shades:


Hand Felted Brooch-Sprouts by Keri Rounding.

Want to make your own felt jewellery, or even your own felt beads, old school style? Ornamentea and lusitania have got the hook up.

teeny weeny felt balls by Ornamentea



Felt Beads with Mirrors by lusitania

More Whale Whimsy

Can't get enough of these whales.


DONT BE A BLOWHOLE bookplates by One Good Bumblebee

Don't be a blowhole, okay? No, I know you were thinking about it. Just put the book down. That's my book, blowhole.

I thought about getting this for my sister, but I don't know if she'd appreciate the blowhole humor.



Brainy Whale T-Shirt by Spitting Image

The inscription on this shirt is "Grand est le cerveau de la baleine," or "Large is the brain of the whale." Interesting whale-brain facts: the brain/body size ratio of the whale is comparable to that of humans; whales have a type of brain cells in common with humans; and it is thought that whales sleep just one half-brain at a time because they are conscious breathers, and can therefore never be fully unconscious for fear of drowning. You can bring home your very own tribute to the cerveau of the baleine for just $25 USD.

Not Etsy-related, per se, but if you are interested in saving whales, the story of Mister Splashy Pants may interest you.

Whale Whimsy


lost at sea print by Sarah Blank.

The work of painter Sarah Blank has a magical quality to it, and it appeals to a sometime-New-England dweller like me. Her paintings of girls in dreams are especially captivating, but I feel drawn to the whales this week. The ships, too. At $15.50 apiece, any of these prints would be wonderful to have on the wall of your study or snow room (I speak as though I had either of those, but I regret to say I have neither. Still, wouldn't they be good in an imaginary one?)

Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Gold Medal Find



Paris Romance by LulaBoutique

I don't know where all of these darling vintage-style medals are coming from, but I'm glad they're here.

Black and White


Classic Arches Gift Tags by Digital Paperie Black and White



Striped Stoneware Mug by Gone to Pot (Texas)

These ended up next to each other on my Favorites list, and I really like them together. Digital Paperie is a wonderful little shop that carries the most darling gift tags and labels on the internet. I wish I had a few things to label. Or that Christmas wasn't over. Anyway, if you've got a few birthday presents to give, or if you celebrate Epiphany, or if you are incredibly organized with labels, give this shop a glance.

Gone to Pot (Texas) carries handbuilt porcelain and stoneware. Everything is a little rough around the edges, but in a charming way. This mug reminds me of the Cat in the Hat - they also have a matching teapot.

Etsy Finds: or, How I got sick of waiting for a Treasury spot

I was never very sure about making a Treasury on Etsy. Sometimes, I'd get to that page and there'd be only 344 on the list. 344! That's almost 333! My Treasury-making time is close at hand! As I waited for that list to dwindle, doubts inevitably arose. What if I didn't really have anything to put on that list right now? How do they work, anyway? Do I need to know what I want to put on there ahead of time? What if the items I pick have already been featured? What if I put together a Treasury that I think looks nice, but it ends up being one of those lame treasuries that everyone sees and hopes will cycle off the page more quickly than your average treasury? I quietly bookmarked a series of items in a side folder, just in case I needed to have everything ahead of time. They were all egg-themed - it seemed like a good idea at the time. I kept it at the top of my bookmarks, in case I ever got to the Treasury page and found it to be at 332.

This morning, I found this delicious pincushion from Createitcottage, who runs a shop full of delightful felt bits and bobs. "I can include this on my first Treasury!" I thought. "No, wait," I reconsidered, "this is not egg-themed." I thought long and hard about other possible themes. Fall theme? Pincushion theme? Felt theme? Those round leafy-things maybe look like eggs... That's when I decided that I don't need to make a Treasury. Why not just blog?

Advantages of an Etsy blog:
-No need to hover anxiously on the Treasury page for hours at a time
-No need for themes
-No need to stress over whether everyone else thinks my egg-picks are cool.
-Coolness factor of saying "I'm putting this on my blog."

Disadvantages of an Etsy blog:
-"etsyfinds" was already taken by a mysterious test blog. Hope you all can remember the hyphen.

I leave you with one of my treasured Treasury eggs:

Vintage Look Eggs 1 by Bluebird Lane