September 29, 2011

Wonderful Treasury Thursday

This week's treasury is inspired by "At Seventeen" by Janis Ian. I felt (and still feel sometimes) that I was one of those "brown-eyed girls" or an "ugly duckling girl" throughout my years in high school and college. So this song is very special to me. If you've never heard the song, it's posted first and then the "AT SEVENTEEN" treasury featuring some very talented Etsy artists.

L Delaney

Pieces By Emily

Ultra Betty

My Primitive Boutique

Petite Hermine

Viv Strauss

Susie Tenzer

Ana Ramirez Photo

Red Whisper

NineXMuse

BalletArt

Geek Girls At Heart

Crocheted by Charlene

Ashlyn Design

Laurie Breton

ToyStoryNutty

Death of a Dear Friend - Repost

"Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:-Knowing when to come in out of the rain; - Why the early bird gets the worm;- Life isn't always fair; - And maybe it was my fault.
Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies, don't spend more than you can earn and adults, not children, are in charge. His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.
Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.
Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims. Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.
Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement. Common Sense was preceded in death, by his parents, Truth and Trust, by his wife Discretion, his daughter Responsibility, and his son, Reason. He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers; I Know My Rights,I Want It Now,Someone Else Is To Blame,I'm A Victim.Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, do not"

This was posted today on by FB page by my cousin. While I don't usually re-post from FB, there is too much that is true here. WoW!!

September 22, 2011

Yesterday was such a crazy emotional day. After having a gut wrenching cry early in the morning, I jumped into my Etsy teams discussions and got busy. Went down into the workshop and made some new items, prepped some others for shipping. Got a severe case of the sleepies and took a nap. Got up on the run, to get ready for kids to come home from school and then off to TaekwonDo. Stopped by an old friend's dance studio and she asked if I wanted to teach for her again. YES!!!!!!! Had a great ride home with the kids, singing Michael Jackson songs and other great oldies, like "Scrubs" by TLC. Now I'm up at midnight, typing this crazy rambling blog post. Yea, exactly.     I have no idea, but I wanted to do something before I went to bed.

See you through the screen.

Thought of You from Ryan J Woodward on Vimeo.

September 21, 2011

It's not that easy being green...or so the song says. Unless of course, you're a member of the Etsy Promo Frenzy Team! This week's treasury collection was inspired by the song "Scarborough Fair" by Simon and Garfunkel. When I was younger, I just liked the song and had no idea what "parsley, sage, rosemary and time" had to do with going to the fair and true loves. I now know that Scarborough used to be a major trading town in days of olde, and so the call of the spices is reminescent of tradesmen (and women) harking their wares. I also found out as I got older that it wasn't TIME, but instead THYME, a spice I cook with quite frequently now and has found it's way into some of my holiday products.

Okay, so no more chitchat -

Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Time

 

And, now, of course, Scarborough Fair by Simon and Garfunkel

If you've never seen "The Graduate" with Dustin Hoffman, this is sure to peak your interest in seeing the whole film.

September 17, 2011

Two Days Left

To Enter

The Birthday Giveaway!!

Don't be the only one of your friends who didn't enter

9 gifts

in the 9th month

on the 9teenth!

 

Click here to enter

 

September 15, 2011

Multicolor Chakra Rainbow Earrings by Linda142

Dark Indigo Crystal Heart Earrings

 by Galla15

Orange Shroom Handmade Lampwork Bead by AshlynDesigns

Pearl Earrings by SabtisDesigns

Emerald and Fine Silver Necklace by GlitterbirdGlamour

Midnight Pomegranate Sugar Scrub Cubes by SymbolicImports

Multilayer Necklace by Pepindor

Ink Bluebell Flower Focal Bead by UglyDucklingBeads

Aren't those colors divine? Color can make the difference in everything. Ever been shopping and saw the cutest sweater and it's only available in the color that makes you look like death warmed over when you wear it? 

Exactly.

I've been shopping at Home Depot this week, because I've finally decided to spruce up around the house and make it feel more "home-y". What's the first thing to do? Change all these white walls into something with some personality. Right - ADD COLOR! My mom, of course, suggested "tans" and "creams" because "you can always match those colors". Well, here's the thing - there's nothing to match. I literally have no living room furniture. Yep, not even a coffee table. The kid's study/den has two peachy colored arm chairs and boring wood colored bookcases. Our bedrooms - more humdrum. SOOOO - bring on the colors!

When my daughter was 3 years old, her room (in our first house) had walls in burnt orange with white trim. Burnt orange? For a three year old? Yeah, so I'm not so conventional when it comes to color and kids. I never liked pastels, so most of the colors around me tend to be strong - hot pink, electric purple,  "in-your-face" shades and tones, that kind of thing.

Ruffled Knit Scarf by BeadedWire

Glidden Scrubbable Flat Paint in Crisp Autumn Leaves

The paint was flat, so no extra shiny stuff and I love flat paint for that very reason. You get true color with flat paint. And it's even better because now it's SCRUBBABLE!

For my boys, however, I've got to do something that works for elementary, middle and high school, all in one room. Since all three boys love drawing of any sort - manga, doodles, textures, etc - I'm going to create the "Art Board" on the door to their bedroom. Simple cork 12"x12" tiles down the side, split the rest of the space in half vertically and paint the top half with black chalkboard paint and the bottom with white whiteboard paint.

Black Onyx Gemstone Teardrops by KrystalsJewelry

Black Mini Bow by TheMayflower

Daisy In The Spring Print by CrystalPhotography

Then, its on to picking the colors. I have always admitted to being an "organizer-monger" and so each of my kids and myself have signature colors to identify us throughout the house. Oldest son is Hunter green, Middle is Tommy blue and youngest is Christian yellow. The girl child is Meggie brown. My color is usually Mommy purple and the hubby is Daddy black. To this end, towels, toothbrushes, hair care supplies, linens, backpacks, everything, follows this color pattern. It makes sorting so easy and it's really quick to identify who didn't put their towel back on the rod and who left the toothpaste out. I also use these colors at Christmas for either gift wrap or gift tag identifiers (we use paint card samples as gift tags). I just don't know how to blend the boys colors into the walls of their shared room. They have vetoed the each bed wall gets it's owner's color. I considered carpet, walls, ceiling, but I'm not sure. Any ideas? I'm open to all suggestions.

Lost Lemonade Giveaway

Lost Lemonade Giveaway

The Lost Lemonade Birthday Giveaway is finally here! Click on the above link for rules on how to WIN!