The Whole is Greater than the Sum of Its Parts

Some people live disjointed lives, little bits here, little bits there, nothing really bringing everything together.


Not Kathryn Short. A photographer and all-around artist, she attended the Maryland Institute College of Art as a photography major. Kathryn now teaches art and photography at the high school level (bless her heart!), but also enjoys bookmaking and knitting.





So now Kathryn loves to knit and crochet, take photographs while walking outdoors, craft small books for collecting thoughts, and anything else that keeps her hands busy. And she has pulled it all together in a single Etsy shop, Purple Snowpeas. You can follow along with her on her hikes, as she captures hauntingly beautiful images, keep your head and hands warm on your own hikes, and journal along the way.







How balanced is that?

Learn more about Purple Snowpeas on her blog, too.

Kuddly Warmth for Your Babes

Toni Anderson from Fairbanks, Alaska, is a new Etsy shop owner, joining only this September, but is already up and running with 21 sales! She heard about Etsy from her college roommate, who is a photographer in Minneapolis. Overall, Toni has been creating her items for one year, and when she was deciding on a name for her shop, she wanted to pick a name that would reflect both what she makes and had a personal meaning to her. Kuddle Bugz Threadz is inspired from her 16-month-old twins, Tori and Trista, her true “KuddleBugz”. With the need in Fairbanks for warm baby items, she felt a tug at her heart to use her talents to help other mom's keep their "kuddle bugz" warm, too!


Toni works in fleece and flannel, and her first project was last year for Christmas when she made her boyfriend a Washington Huskies fleece blanket. Her favorite item in her shop is this Purple Paisley Infant Car Seat Cover. Mine, of course, is the cute burp cloth at the end of this post. Although she considers her first job is to be a "Mommy to two beautiful little twin girls," she promotes her business by handing out business cards, putting up flyers around town, word of mouth referrals, emailing family/friends, and participating in forums on Etsy. Her advice to other indie craft artists is "Don’t give up! Keep giving it 110% because it will pay off!"


Her future plans include to continue making sales, adding new items each week. Toni hopes that it will make enough profit so that she will be able to say at home with her girls! So for keeping your little ones warm and cozy this winter, check out Kuddle Bugz Threadz shop, and find out more about Toni and her cute little Kuddle Bugz on her blog.