where are my quarters?

i had to park downtown today for a bit, and did i have any change for the meter? no, of course not. so i took a chance and just didn't pay it.

no ticket!

but i have gotten my fair share in the past, so i'm thinking i might need a cute coin purse to keep some spare change in. here are some really cute ones!

i love the shape of this bag by pinky pig handmade.


megRNC has a cute one too, with lots of fabric choices in her shop.


there are some more cute fabrics over at JPATPurses!


bird versus bird makes bags from salvaged materials. this one is made from a vinyl waterproof banner.

robert ryan

you must check out the intricately gorgeous work of robert ryan. each piece is hand screenprinted. amazing!

it's cold here

oh, i am really starting to hate winter.

yesterday it was a lovely 52 degrees. for january in nebraska, that's a heat wave!

today, it's 9 degrees and snowing, with 40 mile an hour winds.

good times.

so i'll be posting today pictures of far away places, where it never snows and the beach calls your name. can you hear it? i'm coming!


alicia bock makes lovely pictures. i want to be on that beach.

beachy keen! by dandy tree.



who knew ireland had gorgeous beaches? judy stalus does!

oh my god, greece. must. go. there. by ppdesigns.

house for sale

*just a warning, i'm about to deviate from the usual topic of handcrafted goodness. hope you don't mind too much!*

as if i didn't spend enough time blogging.

i have just created a little blog that i hope will help me sell my house. i suppose it's not so much a blog as a free advertising website for my home, but i think it wil work rather well.

since i work at a newspaper, i get free classified ads (the best perk of the job!) and i've taken one out to run for a month. wish me luck!

if you know anyone looking to buy a house in lincoln, NE, send them here:

http://buymyhouse-lincoln.blogspot.com/

new pillow in shop

i really wanted to post this on saturday when i made it, but i could not, for the life of me, find the cord that hooks my camera up to my computer.

it was in my purse, where i thought i had looked. apparently not very well.

so here it is, the newest addition to my pillow collection. available in my shop!

i heart etsy

so it's a good thing i am obsessed (OBSESSED) with etsy and i check the front page about six (12) times a day for new shops to heart, because if not, i would have missed my laptop cozy on the front page!

and guess what? remember when i was last on the front? (new year's day). the lovely elizabeth williams was the curator of that treasury, and she is the curator for this one, too! what a lovely surprise. thanks again elizabeth!


elizabeth makes really lovely jewelry. check it out!

precious meshes

check out the gorgeous work of precious meshes, who creates jewelry by actually crocheting the metals. what a cool concept! here's how she describes it:

"Each piece is stitched by hand out of metal, using spools of wire and ordinary crochet hooks. All metal is either fine silver, sterling silver or 14k goldfill."

sweet.

mobile post 1

i spend entirely too much time sitting on my couch. which, while i'm working on my mobile, i have decided is a perfectly acceptable way to spend my time.

i started stringing up my mobile for meg of elsie marley's mobile swap today, and i'm really excited with the way i think it's going to turn out. my only concern is with the physical structure it will hang from, but i made a sketch, have an idea, and will try to make it work! (i'm channeling tim gunn here)

here's the beginning of one of the strands. i think i'll have five total; four like this around a central strand that looks a bit different. recognize my choice of materials? felt, of course!




this piece anchors the middle strand. i broke into my stash of fabric from kirin & co, which i've been waiting to use it for something special!


check back for more updates!

the small object (blog!)

sarah of the small object makes the coolest tiny things. love them! i just discovered her blog today, and wanted to share it with you. but be sure to check out her shop, too!

mobile swap

i am super excited. i signed up for my first swap! and it's a mobile swap, hosted by the lovely meg of elsie marley. how cool!

i told the maker of my mobile i would like something i can hang up outside when i move to phoenix. the person i'm making one for wants earthy colors. perfect! my favorite kind of colors!

i think i am going to get started on it tonight. i have about a month before i have to ship it off, but i have a tendency to procrastinate, and i want this project to be just perfect!

i'll update with photos as i work, but to see more photos from the other mobile makers (over a hundred - wow!) check out the flickr site meg has set up.

to get ideas and inspiration, i checked out etsy to see what other mobile makers are making. enjoy!

love the glass circles by leah pelligrini. my mobile will definitely not be made of glass. probably fabric. surprise surprise.



how cute is this rain cloud mobile by little green frog!



i love the shapes in this mobile by puka puka.



another cool circle mobile, this one by quilt baby.



and i am IN LOVE with every single mobile by spin designs. IN LOVE. i may have to have one...

ok, i'm all full of inspiration now. here i go, wish me luck!

etcetera media

sorry for the weekend hiatus. i went up to omaha to hang out with the family, and didn't feel much like posting. please forgive me!

back to business. i think we all know that i have a slight felt obsession. the felt i work with borders on craft felt, and i think it would be super fun to play with industrial felt, like the folks over at etcetera media do. they make some really cool stuff. check it out!

kristen doran design

i've long admired the work of kristen doran (and read her blog!) so i thought it was high time i posted about her lovely textiles.

i love them all, but especially sweet are her new ladybug designs. enjoy!

friends

i have lovely friends. thanks all for your kind words of encouragement and support. you're the best!

anywho, my friends christopher and ellen sent me this great picture of their daughter, anika, cuddling up with one of monsters that she got for christmas. i'm so glad you love it, anika!


christopher has also put some new cards on his etsy site, porridge papers, just in time for valentine's day! check them out!





p.s. i'm totally going to take credit for the genius behind a couple of those cards - i'll eat anything on a stick, boob jobs, and my boyfriend sucks. muh ahh ahh ahh! and my boyfriend definitely does NOT suck. he is the bestest boyfriend ever!

house woes

i have my home on the brain today.

i am having some house selling issues, as in i may have to rent it out instead of selling it (long story).

boo.

i'm finding it difficult to focus at the moment, so here is a lovely house picture by studio mela to tide you over until i can do a proper post. perhaps tomorrow...

100th post, filled with love!

oh my goodness. i just noticed that today is my 100th post! not too bad for only blogging for three and a half months, huh?

i also noticed the the loved/hated holiday that is valentines day is one month away. if you have someone you love to buy for, or send a note to, this post is for you.

remember, v-day isn't just for lovers, it's for friends and sisters and brothers and dads and moms and grandpas and grandmas too!


citrus tree has a cute puppy love card. who doesn't love the puppy love!

gotta love the pirate. corrabelle makes a cute pirate love card.



love this little owl card by maeve donohue.


you can't go wrong with chocolate. try these chocolatey pretzel goodies from nuts4candy.



french love earrings from picky picky.



i (of course) love these cards by susy jack.



and last, but certainly not my least favorite, is a lovely print from the black apple.

cotton bird designs

how adorable are these little birdies and houses by cotton bird designs? wouldn't a little collection of them look so lovely on a bookcase? love them!

mademoiselle lemieux

love these earrings by mademoiselle lemieux. they're made from recycled pop cans. cool and eco-friendly!

mineral makeup!

ok, so maybe i'm a little out of it, but i didn't know that you can buy all-natural mineral makeup on etsy.

duh. you can buy very nearly everything on etsy.

i love that they are all-natural, some even vegan. no animal testing here, my friends!

so here you go (mom and emma, you makeup collecting fiends!)


clear mineral has lots of luscious colors.




strawberry margarita lip balm from lollibomb sounds delish!




mixology makes a line just for blue-eyed babes.




sobe botanicals sell brushes to go along with their lovely natural powders.




coffin color makes gorgeous shades with super cool names.

randomness

i'm feeling rather random today. so here's a random collection of some things i saw and liked.


a push phone pouch by hiné.

a felted dino by pipapiep.



a robot pin by send me mail.



a small art quilt by syko.

this one reminded me of mr. m: car + cactus = moving to phoenix!

ok, not so much the princess cat and the teacup and the carrot, but you get my point, right?

decorative vinyl

i think i need one of these decorative vinyl decals by splendid vinyl for my laptop.

although i'm not sure my ancient, no-memory, no-battery life 12-inch macbook deserves one. they sure are pretty, though! (and they come in lots of colors- hot pink is totally my pick!)

and there are even some manly ones for the boys!

dillon designs

loving these shrinky-dink rings by dillon designs, especially the camera!

a mother daughter team (cool!), they also have lots of other swell jewelry. check it out!

i miss you

mr. m left me this morning for phoenix. don't worry, i'll soon follow him (as soon as the house sells), but i am very sad today.

i miss you already my love!

in honor of my sadness at the separation, i culled etsy for some i miss you notes.

for the one you miss...


rar rar press has a couple of lovely i miss you cards. i love this one.



this is a pretty one from sapling press.



this one is so cute! by witty workshop.



see you soon love.

jamtart baby

since i am on a pillow kick, i LOVE these pillows by jamtart baby. they are absolutely adorable!

jill cards

oh, i love getting mail! i especially love when i come home and see an oversized envelope in the little mailbox on my porch.

a couple of days ago i got just such a package! it was a lovely gift from jamie of don't press me, whose lovely calendar i wrote about last month. (i sent jamie an iPod cozy in exchange.)

i love personalized things, and i love pink! how ever did you know!

thanks so much jamie. i love them!

200th heart!

i reached a milestone last week.

i got my 200th heart on etsy! 200 people like my shop and marked it as a favorite! that's a lot of people!

as a celebration, i offered a discount to my 200th heart, another etsy seller, stephanie of solidago. she chose a bird mini monster.


stephanie makes really great tote bags from vintage flour, seed and feed sacks and takes lovely photos. love the arizona bag!


thanks again stephanie!

fugu fugu press

how cute are the illustrations on the letterpress cards by fugu fugu press?

i love them!

necklace love

love these necklaces! i say you can never have too many, right mom? some day i aspire to have a jewelry drawer like you. . .

how striking! by green leaf and owl.

need a little luck in you life? by emily elizabeth jewelry.

this is so lovely! by lauren haupt.

so cute! by kelly lynn raspa.

love this silhouette! by lucky me beads.

another pillow

i like making pillows! i dreamed up this owl cushion today. i think i'll make a whale next...

another bird

yes, i have made yet another birdie object. this time it's a pillow!

i had been thinking of making some pillows for a couple of days now, and it's not quite how i'd imagined, but i rather like it. do you?

front page!

wow!

i woke up early this new year's morning (because the dog just will not let me sleep in) to find one of my bags was in the treasury on the front page of etsy! oh my goodness, was i spectacularly shocked!

thank you so much to elizabeth williams, the curator of the treasury, who has a very lovely