Getting to know Etsy Day

Today is Etsy Day! Woohoo!

For those of you that aren't familiar with Etsy - it is an online marketing community predominantly for those of us that manufacture BY HAND.

Hundreds around the world form this cottage industry. With this kind of selection you're sure to find something uniquely original for yourself or someone else.

There are sellers of handmade paper goods, leather goods, original acrylics and photos, prints, jewelry - costume to fine, custom clothiers, etc... If you can dream it, they probably have it!

Click the button to find the treasures..

Special thanks to schugirl for this fantastic idea. This image is copyrighted to be used only for Etsy Day.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

My dear mother's birthday occurred this week. She made it back from Germany just in time to celebrate! Unfortunately, I've been unwell since Saturday night and wasn't able to properly celebrate the day. Hopefully that will be rectified this coming week as she has requested that we take a jaunt down to the beach for a few days.


This was the conversation -

"Danita, would you like to go the the beach next Monday? I want to go back to get more socks."

Side note on the sock story - One of Mom's best friends has a beach house and they went down the weekend before she left for Germany. There are many outlet stores in the area and they hit a few stores while there. She found "the best socks I've (she's) ever owned in my (her) entire life" at the Easy Spirit outlet. Upon her return and subsequent use of the few sets she picked up at the beach, she visited the local Easy Spirit store only to be told that the socks were very popular but not an item that they carry here in town due to space limitations. Don't you hate it when that happens?


Back to the conversation...

"Mom. Are you seriously going to go all the way back to the beach for socks?" Additional unspoken thoughts - This trip is about 4 hours, with no traffic and not even considering the gas expenditures - FOR SOCKS.

"Well, yeah. I told you I liked them and I can't get them here. Remember, I tried."

Okay. I'm vocalizing my thoughts, "It's a 4 hour ride and a lot of gas."

"Uh-huh," she replies, not batting an eye.

After a few moments of thought I uncover the suspected true plot. "You want to go to Tony's, right?"

"Uh, well, we can..." imagine the largest, cheesiest grin you've ever seen in your life and insert it here, "Or we can get some seafood."

A few years back she discovered what she considers to best the best little pizza shop in the world, right on the North Carolina coast - Tony's. Every time we ride anywhere remotely close to the area she wants to stop. Does she get pizza? NO. She gets a steak and cheese sub. Alright, I confess that it's a pretty good sandwich, but 4 hour ride good? Hmmmm....

"But, I really want those socks!"

"Right, Mom. Socks."

Here I am turning the lights out to save the world from Global Warming.

Here's my Mom, riding 4 hours in an SUV to buy socks and a sub.

Am I going? You betcha! It's time with my Mom...and that matters more than all the rest.

**********

For tangible gifts, I picked up this cute little Duke Blue Devils "Dammit Doll" by pghpatchworkgal on Etsy. (By the way, it can also be changed to a Darn It doll for those of you that are more sensitive to wording.)

Photo from pghpatchworkgal's listing on Etsy

Mom LOVES Duke. She's been a fan for years. She follows them in football and basketball. I do hate that her birthday is just shy of the main basketball season, but football season will be here before we know it!

The little tag attached to the doll has a rhyme about the uses. Basically, you use the doll to fuss at the team. You can beat the doll or throw it at the TV when your team makes a bad play, neither of which would cause any damage to anything. Of course, this doesn't make the best example for small children, but my sister and I are both grown...use it with relish Mom!

Next...

Two weeks ago I found an aluminum pound cake pan at the Goodwill exactly like my mother's, from the 60's. When she saw my find she immediately instructed me to find her one, too. Mom makes the best pound cakes and has requests for them often at church functions and from family. Since she says that this is the only pan she can make her pound cakes in, and you can no longer find these lightweight aluminum ones in the store, she only makes one at a time. I found two for her while she was gone!

Do you think that picking up some gifts at Goodwill will make up for the ecological damage we'll do next week on the beach trip????

Announcing a Giveaway!

Hey, ya'll! I decided to do a giveaway to coincide with the opening of my new Etsy store. Up for grabs will be a brand new, crocheted set of 4 cotton cloths, handmade by your truly. This set is a cheery, springtime color combination.

These cloths are perfect for kitchen or bathroom duty. Since they're 100% cotton, they'll quickly and easily absorb any spills but are gentle enough to remove your makeup! The texture given by the crochet method lends itself perfectly to light scrubbing jobs in the kitchen or bathtub.

I'm consistently told that there is nothing like using an all cotton cloth around your home. Here's your chance to give them a try...on me!

Leave your comment below as your entry. The contest will end Friday, April 3rd at midnight, Eastern time. The drawing will be held Saturday morning and the winner notification will be posted then. Kindly check back Saturday at lunchtime to see if your the lucky winner ! (One entry per person, please.)

Switch your lights off for Earth Hour!

This Saturday, March 28th, between 8:30pm and 9:30pm (your time zone) join other concerned citizens in turning off your lights! Yup, that means no computer, no television, no charging cell phones. Don't pass out...you can do it!

The thought behind this is to show support for taking action against global warming. Apparently data will be gathered on the changes in electricity use around the world during this time frame. They'll compare this to the same time last year and announce the difference at a Global Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen this year.

If the usage comparison shows a decrease the Conference attendants will know that Earth's citizens want an improvement in how global warming is being handled. Of course, if an increase appears the attendants will presume that we don't care and they will continue on the same disastrous path they've been on for years.

Sign-up to show your support at the Earth Hour website. And, most importantly, TURN OFF THOSE LIGHTS and unplug those appliances!

Vanessa at Etsy reported about Earth Hour today, otherwise I wouldn't have known. Yet, another reason to love Etsy!

Etsy, the online marketplace for handmade goods

You may have noticed that I was absent from my blogs for a few days. (If not, I still love you anyway!) I took a break last week to get my Etsy store up and going. It's called La Vida Dulce and there is a box on the right hand side of the screen where you can preview my current offerings.


I discovered Etsy completely by accident. I've had an e-Bay Store for years and was searching for another selling venue, when I happened upon Etsy. They're very similar as to how listings are posted, although their fees are substantially different and Etsy is oriented almost entirely toward handmade items and support for those crafty people.


Etsy is also a "Buy-It-Now" community. There is no auction and waiting period. If you want it, you buy it. There is the familiar feedback and store set up, but the listings all look very similar. There apparently is no use of HTML, which keeps the listings from being overly gaudy or sensational.


Of course, I'll still have my e-Bay store, as I sell books there. Did I tell you that I'm a book worm from way back? It's true. And I love to learn! When I was piecing together my sons' curriculum for homeschool this year I went so far overboard I almost touched the bottom of the ocean! Embarrassing but true. Hence the textbook selection. I would never need all of those books on hand and I'm not planning on starting a library anytime soon, so off to e-Bay we went!


I will be selling a variety of items on Etsy, made in between projects for the Prayer Shawl Ministry. The first of which is listed now - a Pink and Black boucle shrug. Perfect for spring!





Thanks to my lovely friend, Lauren, for being my model!

Coming soon:

Cotton household goods - wash or dish cloths, reusable dusting cloths for floor and above!