Wedding Tie Patches - for the Groom or Father of the Bride

"The Patch that Changed my Life!"

Becky created a wedding day gift that turned out to be the patch that changed her life.  She was struggling to sell her hand sewn items on Etsy, and a friend of hers asked her to hand stitch a special note for her groom onto the back of one of his ties.  She did this, and it was an instant success.  So Becky took this idea and started creating wedding tie patches to sell in her Etsy shop in June 2013.

First patch - wedding love note for the groom

Becky now sells these wedding tie patches at her Etsy shop, Sew Happy Girls. Her patches became very popular, and soon Becky was featured on Huffington Post, various blogs, and now in Southern Weddings magazine.

This success did not just drop into Becky's lap.  She spent many years of work to get to this point.  Her path took her from the corporate world, to interior designer, then photographer, and then sewing wonderful rag dolls, hence the shop name Sew Happy Girls.  You can read more about this journey at Etsy-Preneurship.

Becky's Art

Here are some of my favorite items from Becky's Etsy store.

This is a wedding tie patch for the father of the bride.  I really appreciate the hand stitching of the words and date and the yellow stitching that outlines the heart.

Wedding patch for the father of the bride

Becky also stitches up some very pretty embroidered jewelry.

Embroidered pendant

Etsy Success

Becky is very enthusiastic about selling on Etsy.  She offers many excellent tips in her interview with Jason Malinak on the Etsy-Preneurship website.

I have enormous passion for selling on Etsy and I tell anyone who asks me, “Do it! Start today! You CAN make money as an Etsy seller!  BUT. Growing a successful shop takes time and lots of it.”

Becky is ramping up for the 2015 wedding season.  If you are having a wedding or have a friend who is getting married, check out Becky's shop for a tie patch.  What a perfect gift!

Morse Code Communicaton Art

Morse Code has never fascinated me.  I understand that it has been very important to communication, but always thought of it as something used either in the past or by the military.  Mostly I have just seen it in movies, not in real life.

Created by SomniumOfAlexZim

Morse Code as Art

I was browsing my feed in Etsy today and happened upon a bracelet that grabbed my attention.  It is really a bracelet/necklace.  It can be wrapped around the wrist multiple times are around the neck two times.  It is absolutely beautiful. This lovely piece of jewelry was designed and created by SomniumOfAlexZim.

This bracelet contains the message "Imagination is more important than knowledge." This is an Albert Einstein quote.   The artist explains that the beads represent the dots and dashes to create the message.  I was intrigued by this and decided to see if there are other items created with Morse Code.  I did a search for Morse Code in Etsy and found listings for 899 items.  Who would have thought?

This inspired me to create a treasury of some of my favorites.  It includes jewelry, neckties, pictures, and old telegram machines.  Take a look and enjoy.

Broken China Jewelry Book - Boho Chic Jewelry

Broken China Jewelry Book

I first found Laura Beth Love online and started following her on Facebook.  She is the author of the new outstanding book, Boho Chic Jewelry, 25 Timeless Designs that is now on sale through Amazon.  I have always had an interest in broken china jewelry so I was very excited to pre-order her book which just came out on March 14.

When I received my copy, I poured over all the pages to understand better how broken china jewelry is made.  I found the instructions here to be very thorough.

What is broken china jewelry?

Broken china jewelry is made from small to medium pieces of china broken from a dinner plate, saucer, teacup or other piece of china.  The jewelry can be made from a piece of china that is already broken, or you may select an area on a plate or other china piece to feature the design you want in your jewelry, cut that out with a glass saw, and grind it with a glass grinder.  The piece is then smooth and ready to transform into a piece of jewelry.  After that you apply foil tape to the edges of the piece, burnish it and then apply solder.  As you can see, it is a multistage process to create a broken china jewelry pendant, but it is so worth the time to do it.   The finished product is so unique, and it may contain wonderful memories if you use some china that you remember from grandmother's Thanksgiving dinners or some other special events.

 Layout of the Boho Chic Jewelry book

This book is a wonderful read about broken china jewelry, and it also addresses how to make jewelry from flat wear.  Each page of instruction is very clear, takes you step by step through the process, and provides excellent photos to help guide you along.  A full  list of supplies needed is presented at the outset.

The following instructions are provided in the first section of the book.  This is not an all inclusive list, but is a list of things you won't normally find in a book on beaded jewelry.

• How to choose and apply copper foil tape
• All about soldering - equipment, supplies and how to do it
• How to do decorative soldering
• How to apply patina
• How to cut glass manually or with a ring saw
• How to use a glass grinder and a jeweler's hand saw

After this general instruction section the projects begin.  There are 25 projects in this book, and they are incredibly beautiful.  Again detailed instructions are given for each project.

Photos of Laura Beth Love's work from her shop

This first photo is a necklace made from a piece of china cut from the rim of the plate.  It is then soldered with a decorative soldering technique.  You will learn to make this type of piece in the book, Boho Chic Jewelry.

Brown Toile English transferware necklace

The piece in the photo below has an entirely different feel from the one in the last photo.  Here the design came from the all over pattern of the plate.  You also learn from the book how to make a piece into a nice oval shape using a template, a glass saw and a glass grinder.  More decorative soldering completes the design.

I am so partial to this one in the photo below because I own a set of this china that has been in the family for 50+ years, and I really like hearts.  There are no instructions for hearts in the book, but once you learn to make a template, cut the china and grind the edges, I think you could tackle this.

If all of this sounds like a lot more involved than you want to be then please visit Laura's shop, Dishfunctional Designs Broken China Jewelry and purchase one of her beautiful pieces.  Laura's work has been featured in Country Living and other places.  Read more about her here.

You may also find Laura on Facebook and at her blog .

Handmade Girl's Hair Bows by Irish Bowtique

I just need to let everyone know about a wonderful boutique called Irish Bowtique.  Kyrie McGill designs and constructs beautiful bows for little girls.

I bought two of her creations for my 3 year old granddaughter.  Here are pictures of them.   Go visit Kyrie's shop, Irish Bowtique,  to find fun bows for the little girl in your life.

Note Cards to Send Across the Miles

As the holidays approach many of us begin to think more about family and friends who live far from us.  I find that I think of experiences I had in the past with these treasured people, and wonder how they are doing.  Of course, I can hop on Facebook or Twitter and see if I can find one quick glimpse into their lives.  Technology has changed how we communicate.

But with the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, I get nostalgic.  I think of dinners together, cozy fires in the fireplace, playing games around a table.  Technology seems at odds with that.  One of our honored traditions is to reach out across the miles with a note card.

I found some delightful note cards recently sold by a delightful seller on Etsy.  The shop is Firegems 2010.  Heidi Erb is the creator of these wonderful note cards.  Heidi is a single mom who takes lovely photos and makes them into note cards.  She also raises Golden Retrievers.  Look at this cutie.

Heidi enjoys nature photography as stated in her own words at her Etsy shop:

"Take your time while you are strolling through my photographs. Imagine yourself watching a beautiful sunset, or hearing the waves come to shore, the leaves crunching under your feet or the sounds of nature all around. Gaze upon the beauty of a flower or see the details on a building and so much more. "

Here is one of her more spectacular nature photos.  This is her Fire in the Sky Landscape Print.  Heidi also sells her prints.  This one is an 8x10.  You can also get this photo as note cards.

Of course, as I was saying earlier, the holidays remind us to reach out to our family and friends across the miles.  Heidi has a number of choices with a holiday theme.  These penquins are cute.

Check out all of Heidi's goodies at her Etsy shop, Firegems 2010.  Then get to know her a little better by visiting her on Facebook at Firegems 2010 Creative Escape.

Flores del Sur, Your Virtual Little Bazaar

This week I am featuring a very special Etsy shop named Flores del Sur. This delightful shop is the creation of Marisa Kraiselburd from Uruguay.  Her shop is bright, lively, and beautiful.  She designs and creates lovely handmade hair pins, hair clips, pins and brooches.

Marisa has developed a line of poppy pins that mix lovely colors together for a gorgeous design. My favorite of these is the Plum and Violet Poppy Pin.

She also uses brightly colored felt to make Felt Bouquet Pins, perfect for a coat or sweater.

You could get lost in the spiral swirls of color in Marisa's Ribbon Rolled Hair Pins.

You can read about Marisa on her blog, Facebook,and Twitter.

Marisa is a member of BESTeam, a group of creative artists who sell their work through shops on Etsy.  If you sell on Etsy and have a blog, consider joining this group.

The Sparkle of Gemstones ~ The Luster of Fine Pearls - BESTeam Featured Artist

Jewelry by Jaynemarie is an elegant Etsy boutique that offers fine jewelry.  Jaynemarie has dedicated herself to becoming a jeweler who can create beautiful jewelry for every occasion.

Here are some of my favorite items from her shop.

Green is one of my favorite colors.  The Handmade Prehnite and Peridot Filigree Necklace
 is fabulous.

For everyday elegance consider these Handmade Sterling Silver Swirly Earrings.  Dress them up or down, they are just right for many different occasions.

For a bit of subtle drama, wear these Handmade Sterling Silver Bridal Pearl Chandelier Earrings.  They make a statement.  They can be worn for events other than weddings, and Jaynemarie will create these in other types of pearls if you would like her to do so.

Look for Jaynemarie on:

                                            Facebook

                                            Twitter

                                            Blog

Jaynemarie is a member of BESTeam on Etsy.  She and many of us have Etsy shops, and we have joined together to promote artists on Etsy and to learn more about marketing our art online.  If you have an Etsy shop and write a blog, please consider joining us.

CK Silver - Timeless and Elegant, Extraordinary Customer Service - BESTeam Featured Artist

I am so delighted to feature CK Silver a BESTeam member shop on Etsy.  Cindy and Marilyn, a mother daughter team, create classic pieces of jewelry that you will be proud to wear anytime, anywhere.  They use nature for inspiration and enjoy creating from what God has already created.  Their pride of workmanship carries over to their customer service.  They are always willing to work with you.

Enjoy the colors in this Southwest Autumn Necklace.  The beautiful turquoise stands out against the brown jasper and red garnet, a very pleasing combination.  CK Silver also has matching earrings and bracelet for sale to go with the necklace.

These Spring Tulip earrings feature lovely soft colored beads with sparkly crystals handwrapped with sterling silver wire to the earrings. They are lightweight and very pretty. CK Jewelry has a number of other earrings in different colors made in a similar style.

A different elegant style is featured in these Agate Sparkle earrings.  Notice the wonderful circular swirl of sterling silver at the bottom of the earrings.  Beautifully crafted, and there is a matching bracelet available for sale as well.

This next bracelet is dear to my heart.  It is a Fruit of the Spirit bracelet.  Each crystal represents one of the Fruits of the Spirit from Galations 5:22.  The sterling silver dove represents the Spirit of God.

Please make a visit to CK Silver at the Etsy shop or visit with them on their blog.

  

Are you a handmade artist who also blogs and has an Etsy shop?  If so, please consider joining BESTeam.  We promote each other shops and share marketing tips. 

Creativity Bugs - BESTeam Featured Artists

Hi Everyone - This week I am featuring the shop of two sisters, Sandy and Sue, who enjoy creating paper crafts & gifts, handmade cards, paper craft kits and supplies, holiday gifts, doll clothing and accessories, plus a whole lot more.  The shop is Creativity Bugs.  Creativity Bugs opened its doors in January 2011.  Since then they have provided sweet, cute cards and other items for various occasions.


Whenever I need to write a thank you note, I am always looking for an appealing design on a card.  Look at the following two cards and the detail put into their design and creation.

Another sweet card is for your true love.

If you need a favor for a party or shower, consider a pretty Tea Light Flower.

Creativity Bugs is a member of the BESTeam on Etsy.  This team is a community of artists who support one another's business on Etsy, and teach one another about being an artist who sells online.  If you are an Etsy artist, and if you have a blog, please consider joining us.

You can find out more about Creativity Bugs at their blog.

Ardent Reverie - BESTeam Featured Artist

"Two crazy sisters", Melanie and Meghan Mina, have put their "two crazy styles" together to create exciting handmade designs that grab your attention, and tempt you to buy.  Their Etsy store Ardent Reverie has lots of great items in a variety of mediums. Being a jewelry fanatic, I was immediately drawn to their garden mosaic necklaces and their solid perfume necklaces.

The necklace above features flowers, pearl, Czech glass and amethyst artfully arranged on a square pendant. This is one of the garden mosaic necklaces available from Ardent Reverie.

Another spellbinder, is this Solid Perfume Necklace.

This item is totally different from the jewelry and so beautiful.  This Crane Hairclip is an origami design in printed fabric designed to wear in the hair.

Wear this elegant sophisticated Holly Shawl to a party or an afternoon tea.  The crochet work in this is exquisite and the large buttons are a fabulous design element.

Melanie and Meghan also have a website, Ardent Reverie.  You can find out much more about these two sisters and their creations there.  They belong to BESTeam, an Etsy group dedicated to promoting one another's shops and helping each other learn more about marketing on the internet.  If you have a blog and an Etsy shop, please think about joining us.

Jewelry with an Oriental Flair - BESTeam Featured Artist

My featured artist introduces her shop on Etsy as "a modern version of East meets West".  Her shop Blue & White Wear is truly a meeting of the orient and modern USA.

One of the things I find truly delightful about this shop is the unique descriptions of each piece of jewelry that tells the story of the piece. This Tibetan Mandela Necklace is an example. Look at this piece in her shop and learn of the significance of the brass mandela.  This one was purchased by the artist on her recent trip to Tibet.  Fascinating and beautiful!

Fans are frequently decorated and used in oriental art.  The fan in this Oriental Fan Necklace has Chinese characters on it, but is soft and subdued and goes well with the smoky quartz and bronze color chain.  I see this as an east meets west piece.  Casual but very unique.

If you make jewelry representative of the orient, then you will surely include pieces made with jade.  The artist did just that with this colorful jade necklace, Burmese Beauty Jade Necklace. The soft green jade elephant pendant is wonderful, and notice how the artist continued with the soft green for the beads at the front on the beads that are close to the pendant, and then changed colors as she moved up the sides, then back to the green to provide balance.  The artist explains that jade has a balancing and harmonious effect.  This necklace certainly elicits such a response.

Finally, I would be remiss if I didn't share one of this shop's blue and white pieces of jewelry with you.  This gorgeous necklace combines blue and white porcelain beads with white freshwater pearls.  Click on the link to this Pearls and Porcelain Necklace and learn about the porcelain beads, how they are made, their history, and their meaning.  I think you will be glad you did.

There are many more treasures to capture your heart at Blue and White Wear.  Shop for something special there today.

You can find Blue and White Wear at the following locations.

Blog                   Twitter              Flickr             Squidoo

Blue and White Wear is also a member of BESTeam on Etsy.  This team promotes and supports the Etsy sellers who belong to the team.  If you are an Etsy shop owner and also have an active blog, we would be happy to talk to you about joining our team.  We are a friendly group, but we are also serious about developing our Etsy business and promoting it to people everywhere.

Queen of Redeem! BESTeam Featured Etsy Shop

Connie Haskell refers to herself as the "Queen of Redeem" in her profile of her Etsy shop, Redemption Art.  Connie specializes in recycling, upcycling and redeeming especially items with a Hawaiian theme or history.  Connie is located in Hawaii, and much of what she does reflects the Hawaiian spirit and culture.

Enjoy this cookbook which provides Hawaaian recipes gathered together.  It was published as a band booster for Kalani High School and includes many Hawaiian dishes.

This beautiful red Hawaaian hula newborn outfit is enchanting.  The rich red contrasts with the white flowers for a beautiful set.

Another lovely vintage piece is this Hula Apples Product Label.  It brings back an earlier era.

Hawaaian Apples

Connie and others join together for fun and to promote one another's Etsy shop through the BESTeam, and Etsy team of sellers and bloggers.  If you like to blog, sell and create, please join us at BESTeam on Etsy

You can read more about Connie and other crafter at her blog.

Creative Grandma Dreams of Retirement - BESTeam Feature

Her name is Agnes, and this lady is a busy person who crafts, spends time with her six grandchildren, works a full time job, and is doing a countdown for the time in a few years when she can retire and do the HAPPY DANCE!

This week I want to take you to Beader Bubbe's creative world.  Her shop on Etsy reflects her style and love of crafts.  She makes jewelry, and she finds that much of her jewelry goes to family and friends before she has an opportunity to post it on her Etsy site.  Here are some of her pieces that made it to the Etsy shop.

The first one caught my eye right away.  I like hearts .... a lot!  When I used to do decorative painting, I found myself painting hearts into many of my designs.  This Hearts of Glass pendant is simple and elegant.  It features red hearts on a pink background encased in smooth glass.  Beautiful!

This Unakite Accent Beaded Bracelet will accent your wardrobe any season of the year.  The oval unakite beads are rich with both greens and oranges.  So nice!  Sometimes unakite semiprecious stones are mostly green and don't offer the contrast that this bracelet has in it.

Beader Bubbe is also featuring the work of SuzieQ.  SuzieQ has hand painted this tote bag with Dora, and the bag is loaded with goodies for the sweet little girl you buy it for.

Agnes of Beader Bubbe also has a blog and a facebook page. Visit her there.

                                  Blog                                             Facebook           

Join Agnes and others as a member of the BESTeam (Boosting Etsy Shops Team) on Etsy if you have an Etsy shop and a blog.  We are a nice group of people who take seriously promoting one another's creative endeavors through our blogs and other social media.  Stop by our BESTeam blog for a preview of our work.                      

Oh, and by the way,  I am also one of the wannabe retirees on the countdown.  I could create jewelry and write blogs all day long if I had the opportunity. Happy arts and crafting!

LeAllyson

A Welcoming Place - Our Home to Yours ~A BESTeam Feature

Our Home to Yours is a welcoming and inviting Etsy shop run by the mother/daughter team of Debbi and Amanda.  Each of these ladies bring special talents to their arts and crafts.  They both like to try different crafts, and hence have sold different types of items.  All of their crafts are one of a kind designs.

I enjoyed looking through the things for sale at this shop, and also looking at the things that have been sold in the past.  They are happy to recreate something that they sold in the past, if possible, should you like one of those items.  I noticed that they made some lovely crocheted items that they sold, but now they are focusing on jewelry.  So please look at both the sold and for sale items in their shop to get the full picture of their talents.

A number of the pieces of jewelry stood out to me.  Debbi created this lovely Orange and Pewter necklace.  It is so appealing with its cool pewter pendant and the warm orange beads.  There is something so engaging about placing cool colors with warm colors like Debbi did here.

Have some fun with these Funky Fuzzy Lime Green Fun Fur Flip Flops.  Very affordable!  Kick up your heels with these!

It's wedding season, and we all enjoy watching the child who is the ring bearer coming down the aisle.  The pillow on which the ring is laid will have even more significance if it is a hand crafted Crocheted Ring Bearer Pillow.

If you explore Debbi and Amanda's sites further, you will find on their blog page, All About Us, that their faith and relationship with God is extremely important to them.  One of their creations that expresses that is this Beautiful Blue and Gold Cross Necklace.  This lovely large blue cross features gold detail on a blue background.  The beads in the rest of the necklace are a perfect match to the blue and gold in the cross.

Amanda and Debbi are members of the BESTeam (Boosting Etsy Shops Team ) on Etsy.  This is a team that mentors one another and promotes one another to help us be successful with our Etsy shops.  If you have an Etsy shop, please drop by and see our team on Etsy.

 You may also catch up with Amanda and Debbi at their following websites.

Blog            Twitter             Facebook

Indigo Objects - A Fabulous Marketplace - A BESTeam Feature

The owner, collector and creative mind of Indigo Objects has created her own marketplace on Etsy.  This artist's favorite color is ultraviolet indigo, hence the name of her shop. Indigo Objects, Fine Art Jewelry and Metaphysical Objects has many interests that are reflected in her items displayed at her shop.  She creates handmade gemstone jewelry and also carries antiques and vintage clothing.

As I spent time perusing Indigo Objects offerings, I found an amazing variety.  Let me share some of those that really caught my attention.

I always appreciate beautiful colors, and this anklet has a wealth of colorful beads.  It is five luscious strands of bold, wild, colorful semi-precious stones to wear around your ankle this summer.  Enjoy!

Another bold colored item from Indigo Objects is the red windchime.  Beautiful red cinnabar disk beads are combined with carved wood beads, mother of pearl, and jingle bells to create this windchime that will delight your senses as it blows in the breeze.

Of course, as a person who likes jewelry, I am drawn back to the handmade jewelry in Indigo Objects shop, and find that this purple flower jasper pendant is quite lovely.  This would be a fabulous addition to a warm sweater in the winter, or a soft peasant blouse in the summer.

Finally, I have to share with you the most magnificent antique.  I admire antique pie safes, and this one is a beauty.  It dates pre 1850 and has 12 Gothic Punched Tins in Church Cross Caduceus design.  My knowledge of these is not great enough to explain this design, but it is beautiful, and obviously of great value after all these years.  Take a look at this, and read all the information that Indigo Objects shares about this unique piece.

I have shared some of my favorites from Indigo Objects, but please take time to visit her shop and wander through her offerings.  You will surely find something there of interest to you.  Indigo Objects is online in a number of places.  Please visit those sites also.

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Indigo Objects is a member of BESTeam on Etsy.  We are bloggers who have shops on Etsy.  Please take a look at our team on Etsy if you also blog and have a shop on Etsy.  We promote one another and educate each other on online marketing.  Stop by the BESTeam on the ProBoards Forum or our Team Page on Etsy. We look forward to meeting you!

Fascinating Ms Formaldehyde - a BESTeam Feature

Ms Formaldehyde says "I can make anything you want just ask". She lives up to her word. Take a look at her bright colorful shop full of flowers, feathers, tikis, skulls and so many other things. Kelly Formaldehyde is the artist behind all of this, and she is a member of the BESTeam on Etsy. The BESTeam is all about Boosting Etsy Shops.

When you enter Kelly's shop you will notice lots of beautiful colors, many of them used in hair accessories. Look at this fabulous fascinator made with gold feathers, rustic orange feathers, hand dyed rooster feathers and a pretty white flower with rhinestones. This is a Wedding Fascinator and offers lots of drama.

Another favorite design for me is the Orange Zinni Flower Barrette.  It has beautiful colors in it, perfect for summer.

Are you ready to have some fun and start some great conversations?  Get these Purple Tiki Earrings and wear them.  Someone is sure to comment, and you can have some fun with it.  These are nicely detailed.

For many more choices, go to MsFormaldehyde's shop.  Also see her at her blog and her Facebook page.