For some things, Kermit was wrong - It's easy being green!

The whole gang behind the Etsy Twitter Team is going green for July! As for me, I am jumping on the bandwagon with a brand new collection of jewelry I am calling "Upcycled Bling". I have amassed a collection of vintage and thrift store tins with amazing graphics and converted them to fun and funky pieces of upcycled bling.




One of my commitments in the creation of these pieces is that I cannot buy anything new to put into a piece - everything must come out of my existing stash of inventory. Anyone who has seen my stash may think this is no big deal, as surely I must have at least one of everything in the world, but this includes all my findings and other supplies that I keep in limited supply. So for some things I am getting creative, and other things I am rolling out the silver smithing and making things DIY. As much as I appreciate those folks in China who roll out the jump rings at amazing affordable prices - No - I'm making them myself! And who says chains cannot be re-purposed into links?

So, check out the new section in my shop, and check out all the "green" things coming from all the wonderful folks in the Etsy Twitter Team. As for me, I'll be including these earrings in the promotional giveaway to occur next week. Stay tuned for more details!

Art from the Heart Feature

Foxy G Knits' blog on artists who create from the heart has featured me! I want to thank her for the fabulous write up - and while you're there, be sure to check out all the wonderful folks she's written on besides me. You will find an impressive array of artists who give back through their work. I'm humbled to be a part of this community she is highlighting. Thanks Lois!

Gotta Love the Twitter Team - They're the Best!

I'm the Etsy Twitter Shop of the Week! So many great folks with so many great handmade items - check out the list of participants on the blog, and you can search tags on Etsy with the term "etsytwitter team", too.

The Team can be checked out on Twitter, too, with a search on the tag #etsytwitter - lots of promotions and sales to be found!

It's Spring, and I Love Green!

Wonderful group of folks from Etsy have created a Twitter mutual admiration team - check out the lovelies in lampwork and seaglass from this week's featured member: Renee Suich. I absolutely love the way she has combined found sea glass (well, Lake Erie glass) and her beautiful lampwork in the piece pictured (click on the pic to take you straight there). A perfect piece for a spring day, don't ya think?

A New Treasury!

My Five Peas in a Pod earrings made it to an Etsy Treasury today! It is always an honor for someone to select one of your items to showcase. These are the collections that are selected to be on the Front Page of Etsy when they are especially beautiful. If you've never visited Etsy, you may wonder what that means, so I'll give you the bottom line - FREE ADVERTISING when it happens. you see, when it happens, thousands of people see your item. So thank you, chuletindesigns for including me in your selections.

This particular Treasury is funky enough that it might just make it. Probably because of that strange little doll. A bit creepy, don't you think? In general, Treasuries that are selected for the Front Page are considered the creme de la creme.

To my knowledge, I've never been on the Front Page. Maybe someday.

What a great first day!

I started my new shop today, and right off the bat got three sales - woohoo! As I mentioned before, prices in this shop are set to MOVE some stuff, so it's not like I made a lot of money, but how sweet it is to have a sale...doing the happy dance!

So you know more of what I've added to Ginny's Veranda, here's a mini from the shop:



Drop by and "set" a spell. Who knows what you might find, as I've got lots more in that closet to bring out.

A New Alias

I'm starting a new endeavor on Etsy, much to my husband's delight, who has insisted on a reduction in my "stuff" footprint for some time now. Beginning very soon, I will have an additional shop on Etsy to destash my vintage and antique collection of small items such as textiles, jewelry, pottery, ceramics, paper ephemera....and just cool stuff that I could never throw away, but never quite found a place in our home. If hubby has a hand in this, some of the things that did find a way into our decor may be finding a way out, too.

My new shop will be named "Ginny's Veranda" and this post brings you a sneak peak of some of the treasures soon to be listed, and priced to SELL. Stay tuned.

Artisan Jewelry Holiday Extravaganza

Hey! I'm on YouTube!



Many thanks to Etsy artisan MonaJewels of Bellaire, Texas, who pulled together a wonderful collection of jewelry artisans to celebrate the season. She chose two pieces of mine to include.

Mona host's an on-line radio talk show for independent jewelry designers at nowlive.com called THE JEWELRY CONNECTION -broadcasting every Sunday afternoon at 12:00PM PST, 2:00PM CST, 3:00PM EST. Starting on the 23rd of November, she'll be hosting a holiday jewelry show, exhibiting each designer's work individually and promoting the videos in her broadcast room. There will be Christmas music playing in the broadcast room starting on the 23rd that will continue throughout the holidays to promote all of the artists. On the 23rd she'll be offering a drawing for door prizes so it will be a "Holiday Event" and a celebration of artisans and their Christmas Muse!

Oh Lucky Day!

How did your day go today? It was a blessed day all around at our house - even though it was a pretty typical Saturday with chores and errands and whatnot....but we had our family together, and good spring weather, and I didn't have to cook dinner, which is ALWAYS a blessing. I feel very lucky to have the life that I do.

There's an Etsy artist who knows all about lucky days, and feeling lucky in life. So much so that she has created a shop dedicated to making every day a lucky day...Lucky Girl Trading. In her shop you'll find beautiful art glass, dichroic glass, and pieces of Kumihimo and Temari. Both are centuries-old crafts, and she feels that both give her a zen-like tranquility while working.



You can find jewelry full of sparkle or calm beauty. For boys, for girls, for anyone with a yen for her zen.

Her Temari balls are especially fascinating, intricate fabrications of an old stocking stuffed with rice hulls and padded with yarn reclaimed from an abandoned knitting project. This Temari ball has a rattle housed in bottle caps inside, so playing with it, Lucky Girl claims, can become addictive. I think it 's just beautiful to gaze upon.


So if you're feeling lucky, or maybe more importantly if you are not, drop on by Lucky Girl Trading to find out more about why she's feeling so lucky in her life, and see if you might be interested in procuring a bit of her lucky feelings for yourself. Try her blog, too, for more on a lucky life.

Ooooh, Shiny!

I have a confession for all of you out there that appreciate my work.....there are more out there like me, maybe even, dare I say it? even more talented than me but with the same aesthetic and motivations as me. And by that I mean pretty shiny rocks woven together with beautiful, artful wire, with a focused eye on color, texture, and wonderful geometry.

And I've found one to share with you - Etsy artist Yazmin Wickham of A Pretty Rock . Yazmin creates one of a kind or limited edition pieces of jewelry, which she brings to life with carefully selected gemstones, mineral stones and freshwater pearls. Her collection is meant to lend affordable, quality elegance to all. And boy-oh-boy does she deliver!





These Fresh Cut Earrings - OMG - how do I keep these out of my head so I don't accidentally re-create them?! They are so beautiful, with the greens and blues that I love, and the wire-wrapping that I find so fun to do. And she has done such a wonderful job of photography on her pieces - I am so envious!










And just to prove how in sync our design sensibilities are, here is a bracelet of amazonite Yazmin has created that would be a lovely match to my Caged Blossoms Necklace below - a coordinated set from two different shops - who knew?










There is no reason why every woman shouldn't have A Pretty Rock in their life (or three or five I say)! Drop by her shop to see for yourself, and take some time at her blog for more. Oh, and did I mention that A Pretty Rock offers gift certificates, too? Hint hint hint, all you gift-givers out there!

Spring Spring Spring!!

I am so ready for spring....the redbuds and mountain laurels are exuberantly fuschia and violet, the coreopsis and primroses have started to peak out along side the roads, the days are growing longer and warmer. And my brown and black clothes - they are so last winter. I want color. I want pink, green, bright blue and yellow. Are you feeling the same? Are you yearning for the garden? I think I might have found just what you need to push you into the next season - an Etsy artist with a fine eye for color and texture - one of the beadweavers of whom I am so in awe - Cigarboxbeads. Check out her Cottage Garden Bracelet with a click on the image above.


Or try out her Twisted Garden Path Choker, braided into one "beauteous strip of color."

The founder of this shop is a retired Home Ec teacher, who loved what she did, but now loves what she's doing now.

Beadweaving is her joy, along with knitting, crocheting, sewing AND being with her twin grand daughters. Not at the same time though, they love to 'help', according to their grandmama! They do have 'crafting time' every day that she watches them, so she hopes she is instilling the love of creating in them. At the very least, she is creating memories for them that will last their lifetime. What greater gift?

Cigarboxbeads became a non-stop beadweaver when she purchased 3 vintage cigarboxes full of beads at a flea market---about 20 years ago. She is still using those beads, plus a 'few' more she can not help but purchase! I know how that goes!

She also knits, sews, crochets, decoupages and lots and lots of other stuff so some other goodies might show up at her shop, Cigarboxbeads, as well, along with beads! Check out her blog, too, for info about her creative life and her features on other Etsy artists.

And summer is just around the corner (especially here in SA, where it shows up about May!) - so have some lemonade!

Erin go bragh

Ireland forever....on March 17, everyone can catch a little o' the Irish and have a bit of levity in the celebrations of St Patrick's Day. Wearing of the green is de rigueur of course, and how better to grab a bit of extra luck than to wear shamrocks on your wrist? This sweet little concoction of green glass and silver wire in the form of earrings and matching bracelet comes from Etsy artist Jonquil Thiessen, aka Thumbelina Creations.

Jonquil Thiessen is a stay-at-home mom of three boys who loves to be creative in many different ways. She loves to sing, knit, crochet, draw, scrapbook, write music, and make jewelry. She would feel lost if she wasn't able to be creative.


Her creative side really shows through with this set she calls "Dragonfly" - how pretty for the summer, in such a beautiful citrus-y palette of colors.

She started young, singing in church and at weddings at three years old. Music and art have always been her passion. She took art classes and music lessons all through school and college.

During college, she met her husband, Keith. They have been married for almost ten years. He also enjoys music and encourages her to further her interests. (Or maybe, she says, he justs puts up with it.) He does say sometimes that she has too many hobbies. I think this is a pretty common complaint from spouses of crafters!


Jonquil's favorite medium is ... well ... she claims it's hard to pick a favorite. She likes jewelry, but is considering opening a knitting store as well. I love this wire wrap ring of amethyst - so regal and so affordable! Take a click and see!

For more of Thumbelina Creations, drop by her shop, and visit her blog to find out more about her and the Etsy artists she has chosen to feature.

Meowrrrrr!

Relatively new to the blogging challenge, Etsy jewelry artist Purrfectlydevine brings beaded creations to her Etsy shop when she's not working hard at her career in special education and spending time with her husband and three kitties.




Classic designs with beautiful bead choices and affordable prices means there's "something for everyone" at Purrfectlydevine. Check out her shop and her blog, too.

Seeds of Glory

I am always amazed by the talents of those jewelry artists who choose as their medium seed beads. If one were to look at just a single seed bead, it would seem so humble. Tiny and cute, perhaps, but very underwhelming. How can this tiny blip of a thing be a part of any substantial beauty? But oh my, in the hands of a master weaver, these tiny bits of glass and color are transformed into swoops and collages of wonderful texture and form. As much as I stretch in my artistic pursuits with gemstones and silver to achieve texture and celebration of color, I stand in awe of the weavers.



One such master is Ann Burke of My Fair Lady on Etsy. A member of Etsy's street team Etsy Beadweavers, she is a crafter of works extraordinaire in seed beads and gemstones. You name a weave, a technique applicable to the palette of seed beads, Ann Burke can give you a beautiful expression. She also loves gemstones, and uses them with a talented eye to balance and rhythm.


So many pretties to see, you must take a trip to visit Ann at her shop in Etsy, and find the time to find out more about her on her blog, where she delves into her art and writes features on other Etsy artists. Her jewelry is truly inspired.

It's a Beadiful Day!

There are oodles of jewelry artisans on Etsy, providing limitless opportunities for personal adornment. Most often (like me) they create standard jewelry items of earrings, bracelets, necklaces, yadayadayada.... how mundane! Whilst perusing the artisan creations of C Serpent Designs and all the beautiful jewelry to be found there, I was drawn instead to her wonderful and whimsical "whole lot more". She uses her eye for color and fabulous beadery to create pieces to add the delight of beads to items in your life besides your ears, necks, and wrists. Like phone charms, barrettes, brooches, bookmarks, letter openers....the list goes on.


Susan, the artist behind C Serpent, was nicknamed "Sea Serpent" by her husband following a scuba trip, and has been making jewelry for friends and family as well as selling in a gallery in La Jolla, CA, for four years. She is inspired by all the gorgeous lampwork glass beads she has found on Etsy and other sites, and also works in semi-precious gemstones.

Her enjoyment and excitement in the creative process shows in the beauty and balance of her work, and I just love the way she expands that creativity beyond jewelry. Which isn't to say you should neglect checking out her jewelry! Visit it all at C Serpent Designs, and find out more about Susan and her work in her blog, and have a beadiful day!

Many, Many Thanks!

Well the holiday spending seems to be dying down, and I've tallied all the purchases made from my Hope for Whirled Peas Collection created to provide support for the Fisher House ™ Foundation. Many, many thanks are due to all the wonderful folks who chose pieces from the collection for themselves or for gifts. Today I was able to donate $140 to support the Fisher Houses at Fort Sam Houston and Lackland Air Force Base here in San Antonio - woohoo! This is so beyond my expectations, and I owe it all to my fabulous customers, and also to the amazing bloggers from the 90/90 challenge who featured my fundraising collection, including Phyllis Mufson who included me in her feature on Etsy artists that give to charity, and to "Allison" who submitted my Three Peas in a Pod Earrings to Etsy Finds where they were featured on December 3 (and sold minutes thereafter!). Thank you all again.


I still have the wonderful pea green pearls in stock, so I will continue making pieces for the collection as they hold out (and I'll keep looking for more in the meantime). The signature necklace sold, and I hope to create another wire-wrapped pendant to replace it in the collection soon, so keep posted for that.

Peas out, y'all.

Bright, Fun and Affordable

A relative newcomer to Etsy, and one of the latest artists to join our 90/90 challenge (an Etsy blog challenge to do 90 artist features in 90 days -- oops, we've gone past that 90 days, but we'll keep at it 'til we get to that 90th blog! This is my 57th, if anyone is counting out there, and it's Day 91.), Shannon Saylor brings a fun eye to beaded jewelry, creating affordable earrings, bracelets, anklets, necklaces, and set combinations. She joined Etsy in September, and lives in the mountains of southwest Virginia with her husband, four cats and a dog. How idyllic that must be!



Her creations use the vast variety of colors and textures of glass beads, and she can custom create combinations based on your favorite colors. Regardless of whether you like earth tones, blues, greens, pinks, whatever, Shannon can make you a one-of-a-kind set for a very affordable price. So check out her SDS Designs shop for all her design expressions, and visit her blog to read about her featured pieces and her take on the 90/90 blog challenge.

Oh, Robert Redford!!!!!

Judy Richards, the Etsy artist behind Cats Paw Artifacts resides in Portland, Oregon where it rains this time of year. According to Judy, a well kept secret is that it doesn't rain all year around. Ahhhh, but what I want to know is what she means by "all"!

Judy makes lampwork beads and designs jewelry - unique and hopefully artful jewelry. She is always striving for new ideas, new shapes in glass. Judy's work is inspired by nature (flowers, birds) as depicted in glass. She loves abstract lampwork most of all with layers of glass and complexity. She is always striving to that goal.

She has done the work of reasonably exact glass beads - but yearns to break out of that toward something more complex and deep in an artistic sense. She also has a sense of humor and doesn't take herself too seriously - she is the owner of 2 cats, hence the cat beads. Judy likes to laugh and make others smile with her work.

Judy's dream buyer is the Sundance catalog. (Calling Robert, Oh, calling Robert!!)

Probably the best things she has made are jewelry with her own lampwork beads and semi precious stones that have sold that push the envelope of what we think of as jewelry and adornment.

Judy is a member of the International Society of Glass Beadmakers, a seller on ebay for 5 years - over 500-100% positive feedback, a member of the Portland Bead Society, the ORBS (Oregon Regional Beadmakers Society) and the ISGB (International Society of Glass Beadmakers). Check out all the lovelies from her shop, Cats Paw Artifacts, and her writings on her blog.

Here Kitty Kitty Kitty

One of the best things about this 90/90 blog challenge (90 blogs in 90 days!!) is the opportunity to meet a lot of Etsy artists previously unknown to me. Some are new to Etsy, some are just new to me, but they've all been fun to investigate and find the things I like best about them. One shop that's new to me is Lazy Cat Gifts, and one would think I would have come across them sooner given their name and their fabulous work, but no, they were lost in the crowd for me. No more.

Named in honor of their kitty friends (although I know a few people who would claim the name of their shop is highly redundant - what cat isn't lazy?!! - lol!), their pictures appear above, snagged from their very clever blog. Nemo is little and orange, Mittens is a polydactyl tuxedo, Zorro is the princess who likes to sleep on yarn, and Emma is Mittens' sister who loves to snuggle. (Zorro and Emma look like my Stella!) Lazy Cat Gifts was created by three friends in Ann Arbor, MI. Two of them were in medical school at the University of Michigan and the third worked in a laboratory there (yea laboratorians!!). They were all inspired by their grandmothers who crocheted, and have applied that inspiration to both jewelry and accessories for their shop.



They began their enterprise at local craft shows, and then began on Etsy in January 2007. They have really enjoyed the community on Etsy, as I have, and it has the added bonus for them in allowing them to continue in their business even though one of the partners moved to Philadelphia.





They enjoy using the skills from their grandmothers to create wonderfully hip and modern pieces. They crochet in both yarn and wire, creating artisan bead crochet jewelry, scarves, hats, etc., and are constantly looking for ways to expand crochet.

As I mentioned above that they have a blog, I want to point out their very clever "match-up" features. What a helpful thing to provide for shoppers! Click on the image below to get to the post where they show how to complete a look starting with this fabulous crocheted necklace. Maybe they should consider a personal shopping career - they sure can pull a look together!

So take a trip over to Lazy Cat Gifts, check out their blog for great features on other Etsy artists as well as their fun match ups, and get shopping!

The Maine Event

MaryAnn Anderson from Norridgewock, Maine, and the Etsy artist behind BackWoods Creations, has been doing the arts and crafts thing since she was a "wee child." Her mom always told her that idle hands can make trouble. Now her hands are busy keeping the creativity flowing, but she insists she still finds time to get into trouble. MaryAnn's creative endeavors focus primarily on painting, fabric, textile art, and the creation of art dolls.

The results of her creative efforts include whimsical batik and handpainted creatures such as Fergus above. Not toys for children, but three-dimensional fabric sculptures inspired by real-life animals, often created to raise funds for Etsy for Animals. EFA is a street team or group of artists and craftspeople on Etsy who donate some portion of their sales to animal rescues and charities. They change the charity monthly, and BackWoods Creations donates 10% of the purchase price of her EFA-specified listings to the charity designated for month of the purchase/adoption.


MaryAnn also creates fabric art jewelry and mixed media collages for a shop that provides a variety of options to indulge in her artistic expressions. Head out to the BackWoods to see for yourself, and find out more about MaryAnn on her blog.