Quick and Easy to Find Handmade Stocking Stuffers

Are you looking for one of a kind stocking stuffers that won't break the bank? ArtFire.com, makes it easy for online shoppers to find unique yet inexpensive items as gifts this holiday season. Take a look at Artfire's Stocking Stuffer Trend Page.

On that page, you'll have quick access to items priced $10.00 and under that have been hand crafted and sized to fit in a traditional stocking. Below are just a few examples of what caught my eye when I went browsing through the stocking stuffer trend page:

Black Neck Warmer - Hand Knitted
by Orenda Luna

Lump of Coal Soap
by Alegheny Hearth (Soapsmith)

Ladybug Leaf Jumbo Paperclip Magnet
by RF Colorful Creations

Fleur de Lis (Pink and Black) Pendant
by Noisy Bird Studio

Amigurumi Hedggie Bubbles
by Rose Tree Creations

Please help the rest of us quickly find unique and fun gifts by leaving the URL of stocking stuffers that catch your eye in the comment section below. Or if you sell your handmade pieces through another online venue like Etsy, 1000 Markets, IndiePublic, Dawanda, etc. or even your own website, and your item would make a good stocking stuffer, feel free to post a link to the item you are selling.

Have fun shopping... And don't forget that most of the artists and artisans selling online are open to filling a custom order. Just contact them through their online shops to make your request.

And, as always, Kudos for buying handmade!

Tips for Transforming the Ordinary into an Extraordinary Experience...

Sometimes good ideas are born from "mistakes" and excellence is experienced.


Last week, my husband made apple sauce from the Maine grown apples we harvested, but alas, there was "a little" more sauce than we had jars. (The Mistake: we ran out of jars.)

After dinner, while the left over apple sauce was still warm, we decided to spread it over some Gillford's vanilla ice cream for dessert...Umm, Ummmmm, Good! (The Good Idea: warm apple sauce over ice cream.) It was like eating hot apple pie a la mode, without all the work of making a pie.

I was amazed at how the apple sauce transformed plain old ordinary vanilla ice cream into an extraordinary dessert. So the next time you run out of chocolate syrup, or whatever topping the kids are asking for, open up a jar of apple sauce, add a little cinnamon and other pie spices (optional), heat up a portion (microwave works just fine), and pour enough to blanket a scoop of ice cream.

What's that? "Too out of the ordinary!" you say? You are afraid your kids will balk. Well, forget the kids. Sneak a private taste test. Yes, you deserve something deliciously uplifting. Why not treat yourself to a bowl of this heartwarming combo when no one is looking. Chances are you'll decide to keep this little tip to yourself to ensure that your household's apple sauce and ice cream supplies don't mysteriously disappear from the kitchen while you aren't looking.

However, should you decide to share this dessert idea with your family, and if you succeed at convincing little Mikey and the other naysayers to try it, I bet they'll like it. Be forewarned though; there's a good chance that they might not stop eating long enough to actually say, "Thank you, Mom." But, as you watch them change their tune from "Yu-uck!" to, "Umm, Ummmmm, Good!" you'll know that you're a cool Mom in their eyes, at least for the moment.

Have you used an unusual topping to turn plain ole vanilla ice cream into an extraordinary treat?
Share your tip in the comments below.

And, Enjoy!

Sell Your Handmade Arts & Crafts through ArtFire’s Free-For-All

Do you like to dabble in crafts? Do you make your own gifts by hand? Have any of your family or friends suggested you try selling the items you create? Do you already sell online but want to try another venue?

If you answered yes to any of the above, now may be the right time for you to take advantage of the ArtFire Holiday Free-For-All--Just click on the graphic above. Artfire is the fastest growing handmade venue on the internet and is offering a risk-free way for potential sellers to test the market.

During the month of October, those who sign up for a Basic (free) account can use the the Global Product Editor and the Etsy Importer, which are features usually reserved for Verified ($12/month for life) account sellers. During October, even basic accounts can list an unlimited number of items in their studio. And there, are no listing, selling, or other fees.

It almost sounds too good to be true. But, Artfire is hoping that new sellers trying their venue will be so pleased with their experience that they will continue on as an Artfire seller after the holiday season. So this is their way of “Paying It Forward” and helping all handmade artists have a very merry holiday season.

This is one time you might not want to procrastinate. After all, it’s a Free-For-All.

Breathing New Life into Old Treasures

While taking a stroll through cyberspace this week, something caught my eye and held my attention as it tickled my trash to treasure fetish.

Elena, of EP Designs based in Australia, wrote about what she did to breath new life into some old discarded gravy boats and a friend's well-used silver trinket box. Elena's store Timeless Treasures is hosted by BidMate.au.


I'm a decorative painter as well, but have never thought about painting some of my old, well-worn, silver plated pieces. So thanks Elena for getting that light bulb to go off in my head. The article that inspired me is entitled: "Created With Love" and can be found on Elena's Blog.

Not only did her article fan my passion for transforming trash into treasure, it also introduced me to something called "Pink Saturday". Now being a tomboy at heart, and not much of a girly girl, the color pink isn't usually something that captures my interest. However, what Beverly, author of the blog How Sweet the Sound, started on June 6, 2008 has caught on and spread like a wild fire among fellow bloggers. "So Just What is Pink Saturday" describes how Pink Saturday got started, and "Let's Talk About Pink Saturday" is an update on the goals and rules of engagement.

If you're a blogger, you may want to look into this. This past Saturday, 157 bloggers participated. There were six new participants this week, so it's not too late to jump on the bandwagon. Even if you decide not to participate by posting something pink on Saturday, visiting the blogs of those who do and seeing some of their "Pinks" is a hoot. So, have fun poking around. It's so much more entertaining than most of what's on TV these days. I even saw a photo of a live pink poodle. (I suspect the photo was altered digitally, but maybe not.)

Enjoy!


Photo Courtesy:

Top and Middle Left: Elena of EP Designs

Botton Right: Beverly of How Sweet the Sound

Pennsylvania Brick and Mortar Shops Dedicated to Handmade

Seems like the handmade movement may be really catching on through out America, or at least in Pennsylvania. Michelle, the jewelry artist behind Michabella Creations, recently wrote two blog posts about brick and mortar shops dedicated to promoting the work of local artists and artisans.

In Michelle's article entitled "Hello Bluebird Grand Opening" she introduces an online friend's brand new boutique and gallery located in the historic business district of West Reading, PA. By going to Hello Bluebird's website, you can learn all about why the owners dreamed of establishing such a shop and how they turned their dream into a reality.

In another article entitled "My First Jewelry Class", Michelle mentions The Hodge Podgery, an establishment located in Midtown Harrisburg that is dedicated to promoting the independent arts and crafts movement in Pennsylvania. Besides offering artists and crafters the opportunity to consign their functional handmade creations this shop also runs classes and workshops to the DIYers interested in learning how to do a specific craft themselves.

Where there are two, there are probably three, four, or even more. So, if you know of other brick and mortar shops throughout the country, or the world for that matter, please leave their name and link in the comments section below. If enough of you reply, I'll try to include the local shops and their links in another article about making your Christmas this year a Handmade Christmas.

Etsy Artists Help Fellow Etsy Artists

Visiting blogs is often like going on a treasure hunt. This past weekend, while checking out others’ blogs I found a wonderful, inspiring and uplifting nugget on a blog called “Bags by Melanie.” In the right hand sidebar, Melanie, who has an Etsy store also called Bags by Melanie, has a short write-up that Introduces H.O.S.T.

H.O.S.T. is the Etsy “Helping Others Street Team”, which is comprised of over 100 Esty artists who share the virtuous quality of compassion. HOST has its origins in a discussion thread started by Heather, of Heather R. Lange Art, at 3:15pm on December 20, 2007 entitled “Is Anyone in Need This Season?”

The response was overwhelming—almost 3000 posts in only 7 days. There were a lot of sad stories relating the need of Etsians and their families, but each sad story was answered by an outpouring of posts with words of encouragement, freewill gifts and donations, and leads on resources that might help meet a specific need.

Approximately five hours after the thread began, an Etsy buyer of handmade who goes by GeauxOrganic, commented “I think there needs to be an Etsy gives back street team.” Many participating in the discussion, agreed and 3 days later HOST became an official street team on Etsy.

I think Melanie’s mention of the HOST team caught my eye, because I recently wrote an article for HanmadeNews.org which was published in their Guild and Team Department. “Virtual Strangers Offer Surprise Support to Team Member with Cancer” tells the story of Etsy Artist Joyce Richards of Wild Orchid’s Beads of Glass who was recently diagnosed with Cancer and how members of her Etsy Twitter Team (ETT) reached out with the same kind of compassion that members of HOST show their fellow Etsians.

“Hosties”, as they call themselves, offer friendship, emotional support, help with shop promotion, and basic financial assistance. If you’d like to help the Hosties help others, you can become a member, go to their team blog and make a monetary donation, purchase an item from their team store or donate an item to their store. Below is a glimpse into the HOST Etsy Store.

I do believe that when we have compassion and act on our compassion, we make the world a better place. I also believe, that in a time when so many in our country are struggling, it’s wonderful, inspiring and uplifting to hear and share good news. I hope this brief article, warms your heart and stirs up even more compassion in all of us.

New Type of Button Creatively Crafted

Normally when I think of a button, I think of a fastener sewn onto clothing. However, these days in the internet world of blogging and websites, creatively crafted buttons can add eye pleasing pizazz and polish for online readers.

Recently while cruising down blog lane, I stumbled upon "Critical Mass", a blog written by a Texan named Rae Ann. As I began reading about her travels, my eyes kept wandering to the sidebars which are loaded with "buttons". And then, I finally realized that Rae Ann designs web buttons, banners, and backgrounds which are for sale online at the Button Box.

There are many other graphic artists out there who also design web buttons and other "branding" aids for the online entrepreneur. I did a quick search on both Etsy.com and Artfire.com, seeing as those are my favorite two handmade selling venues.

I found the variety of styles amazing, from cartoon like depictions, to vintage collage, to professionally business like to name a few. Somewhere, there is a graphic artist that can give you the style you're looking for. So if you're in the market for web buttons or other graphic design services, here's a list of artists I ran across in my preliminary search, all of whom would be happy to work with you on a custom design to fit your exact needs.

• With Love Studio
• Make Your Shop Pretty
• Sea Dream Studio
• A la Parisienne
• Lost in Dreams
• Dodie's Digital Designs
• Wendy's Web Creations
• The Photo Spot
  
• Boutique Graphics
• My Messy Studio
• CoffeyHouse Collection
• The Buzz
• Tiffany De Michele
• Accentuate
• Erin Bradley Designs
• Simply Banners & Ads
• Pole to Pole Consulting
• Calobee Doodles
• Swieky Siggies
• JoyfulRose

I designed my own logo, avatar, and banner, but if you used a graphic designer for your shop or blog, please tell us about your experience in the comment section below. Also, feel free to leave a comment if you are a graphic designer and want to add your name to the partial list above or just tell us more about your style or the services you offer.

It's great when we can support each other artist to artist.

Photo Courtesy
Top Left: Rae Ann of the Button Box
Bottom Right: Joyful Rose

Read through the comments to see graphic artists like hotgluemedia.com that have been recommended by other readers!

Working Magic with a White Elephant

I truly believe “Necessity is the Mother of Invention” and nothing stirs up my creative juices like the need of a friend. And Mezz, of MezziG Creations and author of Creative Outlet, is a perfect example of exactly that. She took a friend’s sentimental white elephant and worked her magic by turning it into 8 upcycled heirloom pieces for members of her friend’s family. To the left is a picture of one of my favorites. To get the whole story and see the other 7 necklaces as well as a picture of the original piece of jewelry that she creatively re-purposed, I suggest you read her article entitled “For Friends.”

Mezz is a talented jewelry artist from Sydney, Australia who recently picked up kumihimo. “What is kumihimo?” you may be asking, at least I sure did. Kumihimo is an ancient Japanese art form of “gathering threads” and braiding them into intricate and highly decorative designs. It’s sort of a refined macramé that is done using a special disc as a loom. If you’d like to learn more about kumihimo, I once again point you to Mezz's blog where you will find these three articles: Braiding One, Braiding Two, and Using My Kumihimo.

I very much enjoyed running into Mezz in cyberspace. She comes across as energetic yet grounded. Her writing has a casual upbeat tempo and I found the samples of her handmade jewelry intriguing and her stories heartwarming. I thought you too might enjoy meeting her. And if you head for her blog, I hope you enjoy your time there as much as I did.

Honoring American Women and Being Honored

Mary Anne Gruen, of Startlight Blog, blew me away twice today. The first time was with her July 4th post (which I just read yesterday) about four American Heroines I had never heard of before. And the second time was when I discovered that Mary Anne had bestowed upon me (for my blog) the Neno's Award.

Most importantly, I hope you'll visit her blog and read In Honor of July 4th. It's an enlightening article about the impact four women had on our developing country--these were four women I had never heard of before: Sybil Ludington, Deborah Sampson (alias Robert Shurtliff), Nancy Hart, and Phillis Wheatley. Reading a short recap of these women's stories reminded me that no matter whether we are men or women, slave or free, young or old, we all have a contribution to make and a chance to leave our mark on the world.

Secondly, I admit that I'm better at tooting someone else's horn than tooting my own. So it was a very pleasant surprise to discover I had been given the Neno's Award by Mary Anne. I was both honored and humbled when she recognized me as a "team player who's always looking to support other artists." It's so empowering and uplifting to be recognized for who I am, and not just the quality of my stained glass and decorative folk painting. So thank you, Mary Anne. You made my day!

The Neno's Award was originally created by Retno Sofyaniek from Denpasar, Indonesia and first distributed to her exchange-links on March 16, 2009. Retno, who goes by her childhood knick name Neno, did a search for "Neno's Award" just for curiosity sake on May 2 and was totally amazed to find out that in those 6 weeks thousands of bloggers had received and posted the award. Neno is an English teacher working for an educational company in Kuta and the name of her blog is "I Can't Stop Smiling All the Time".

Neno initiated this award as a way to recognize and applaud those who love blogging and love to encourage friendships through blogging. She also wanted the receipients to share why they enjoy blogging. These were the "rules" she suggested for the receipients of the award.
• Put the award in one post as soon as you receive it.
• Don’t forget to mention the person who gives you the award.
• Answer the award’s question by writing the reason why you love blogging.
• Tag and distribute the award to as many people as you like.
• Don’t forget to notify the award receivers and put their links in your post.

What amazes me the most about this award, is that when I searched "Neno Award" there were 358,000 results, yet it has morphed very little. The "rules" cited by Mary Anne asks that the reciepient includes links to the person's blog who game them the award as well as links to the blogs they are recognizing witht he award in their post about the award. And the new stipulation is that one nominates 5 fellow bloggers to receive the award instead of leaving it up to the receipient.

I don't think it's important to follow the specifics of the rules, but rather to remain in the spirit of the award's creator. So with that in mind, I'd like to nominate the following:

Military Spouse Web for their tireless efforts in promoting and supporting the businesses run by military service members' spouses. It's a noble patriotic thing to do and a great way to recognize the sacrifices made by the spouses and families of our soldiers. Thank you.

TeriB of S & T Creations for her openness and eagerness in sharing her expertise through several on line venues. I often catch myself wondering if she ever sleeps.

Arlene of Spirit Essence Art for her creative enthusiasm and her willingness to spur us all on by sharing both her struggles and her successes in living an artist's life. A stop by her blog always leaves me inspired.

And lastly, I should mention why I like to blog...it's simply I love to write, I love to connect people with other people, and I love to reflect on life. Blogging lets me do all three at once.

Copper Wire Caught My Eye

Recently, I was refered to the blog By Earth Expressions where artist Suzy of Earth Expressions on Etsy.com was showing off some of her latest handcrafted copper jewelry. I was immediately drawn in and found many of her jewelry pieces to be intriguing.

As a stained glass artist, I often work with copper wire as reinforcement as well as decorative embellishments for my pieces. I also enjoyed seeing the way Suzy used glass, wood, and resin to make one of a kind necklace pendants. So I thought I'd share the links to her blog and her shop with you, in case you have a minute to take a look.

For a quick trip to see either of these items in Suzy's Etsy just click on their photo. And, thanks Suzy for letting me use your photos.

Enjoy!
Coco