Enjoy

*** FREE SHIPPING ***

(First Class Ground Advantage - U.S. Only)

 

Blog entry

Make It an Artisan Handmade Christmas - Favorites - Week 5, 2023

 

 

Time seems to go by more and more quickly each week - week 5 of the Countdown to Christmas has already come and gone!  According to the ever ticking Your Christmas Countdown Clock, there are only 60 days (2 months!!!) before the ho-ho-ho'ing, reindeer driving man clothes in red and white arrives once again. With the rapidly approaching holiday season in mind, Julie and Harry of Blue Morning Expressions comtimue to host a twelve-week Countdown to Christmas 2023 of artisan handmade items on their Buy Handmade from Makers blog. Now is the perfect time to start your holiday shopping and the Countdown is the perfect place to begin that!  This week, 36 handmade/designed items from 12 artists were shared in the wide-ranging gift collection: jewelry of different styles, Christmas ornaments, throw pillows,nurse hoodie, a wire kippah. lampwork beadsand more.  Remember this motto: SHOP EARLY and SHOP OFTEN!  And, most of all, SHOP HANDMADE to support small indie businesses.

 

Each week during the 12 week Countdown, I pick a favorite item from each artist (hard to do!) and feature them here on my blog.  These are my favorites for Week 5:  

 

 

Artisan Handmade Gifts - Thank You

 

 

Recently, I asked several artisan friends to aprticipate in a "Christmas in July - Artisan Handmade Gifts - 2023" blog promotion, involving leaving two items on an InLinkz.  Once the InLinkz ended, I pulled together a blog featuring the wonderful items.  All items from the InLinkz and the blog were to be promoted on at least two social media sites.  That's the usual deal for the many years we have been promoting each others items.  Twelve friends participated, making a total of thirteen counting me.  To thank the seven artists who took the time to stop by and leave a blog comment (as of writing this, Wednesday morning the 19th), I decided to pull together an "Artisan Handmade Gifts - Thank You" blog.  From each shop, I chose an item that immediately caught my eye and shared them here in the order of the comments left.  I hope you visit the shops of these wonderful artists.  And remember to SHOP SMALL and to SHOP HANDMADE.  

 

 

Make It A Handmade Mothers Day - Week 4

 

 

It's hard to believe that week 4 of the Mother’s Day Countdown 2021 has come and gone and it's almost April.  Easter is next Sunday!  Where does the time go?  Anyway, the Mother's Day Countdown 2021, hosted by Julie and Harry of Blue Morning Expressions on their the Blu Print blog, is a place artistsans come together and share three of their unique items.  This week 9 handmade artists shared a total of 27 lovely items - each one a wonderful gift for Mother’s Day.  Since the big day will be here before you know it - about 6 weeks from now - this is the perfect time to start thinking about and buying a gift(s) for your Mom.  Browse all the wonderful handmade shares for Week 3, visit the shops of the artists featured and buy your Mom a unique beauty that was artisan handmade from the heart.  This year, Make it a Handmade Mother's Day!  

 

 

Radiant Red - Artisan Handmade Three for Thursday

 

 

For friends who know me well, they know red is my all time favorite color.  Always has been and probably always will be (although fuchsia and turquoise are right up there, too).  I love the vibrancy of the color and that, in ancient Egypt, it represented life, health and victory. Yay! 

 

So when I was musing on what the theme of this week’s Three for Thursday blog, I decided RED was it!  Three handmade items with red as a main component of the design are featured from three artisans. The three artists are:  Charlotte of Covergirlbeads; Jacki of Christie Cottage; and me, Catherine of Shadow Dog Designs. I hope you enjoy these picks and will visit the artists studios for more handmade beauties.

Handmade Valentines Day Gift Ideas

 

 

On February 14 each year, candy, flowers cards and gifts are exchanged between loved ones not only here in the United States but also in other countries all around the world to celebrate Valentine's Day.  The Greeting Card Association estimates that approximately 1 billion Valentine's Day cards are exchanged each year, the second most popular card-sending holiday after Christmas (about 2.6 billion cards).  How did Valentine's Day develop?  Here's a short history:

Make It an Artisan Handmade Christmas - Week 1

 

 

WOW, wasn't last Christmas like . . . last month? Yikes!  According to the Christmas clock, there is only 90 days, 22 hours, 30 minutes and those quickly descending seconds (as of 1:30 a.m. Tuesday morning) until Christmas is here . . . once again!  And it's even closer by the time your read this "Make it an Artisan Handmade Christmas - Week 1" blog post!

Second Page, Second Item - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade

 

 

Emmaline Bride, writer of The Handmade Wedding Blog, gave three reason to buy handmade:

 

Handmade is made with love

Handmade is made with care

Handmade is made just for you

 

 

I certainly agree with all three of these reasons.  Why buy mass produced items - your neighbor next door can be wearing the exact same thing - when you can buy handmade, which can be  one of a kind, and only YOU own it!

First Page, Sixth Item - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade

 

 

 

Lately, the days just seem to drift one into the other and I sometimes don’t remember which day it is.  Like today! Since I have a whole host of arts festivals to participate in this fall, I was creating some new jewelry late this afternoon.  Then I suddenly realized it was Tuesday . . . and I needed to pull together a Wonderful Handmade Wednesday blog. Yikes! But never fear, it got done.  With the help of my trusty “numbers bowl,” today’s theme is “First Page, Fifth Item” (as of when the items were added). You’ll find a wide range of unique items in this post, something just waiting for the woman who adores artisan handmade beauties. Also, browse more of the items in the artist's shops.  You'll be glad you did!  Enjoy!

School Daze - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade

 

 

When I drive the back way to Spa for Paws, where Seamus goes to romp and play with his doggie friends three days a week, we pass by an elementary school.  Today I noticed on the school sign that the first day of school is August 13, with teachers back at school August 3!!! What??? No wonder I have been bombarded with “back to school” brochures and coupons in the mail. I imagine that there a huge amount of ads on regular TV, but since I only watch PBS, NetFlix or the like, I don’t see them.  Thank heavens for that! But it sure seems awfully early for school to begin. Where has the summer gone???

 

The school sign prompted the theme for today’s Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade, titled School Daze.  The artisan handmade items chosen will be welcome “just because” first day of school gifts, to help counteract the daze of school starting up again.  The meaningful, unique items chosen span a wide range of ages, from kindergarten/first grade through high school. I hope one of the beauties goes to school that first day!

First in the Shop - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade

 

 

I always enjoy browsing through the handmade shops of artist friends.  So much talent and such creativity! This week’s Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade features the first item in each shop (as of when this blog was being worked on) featured here:  First In the Shop. Oftentimes the first item is the newest - sometimes it’s not. Either way, the items are all wonderful and each will fill that need for a gift perfectly.  

 

Remember:  SUPPORT INDEPENDENT, HANDMADE ARTISTS

 

Syndicate content