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Make It An Artisan Handmade Valentines Day!
Posted January 10, 2021
Before we know it, Valentine’s Day on February 14, will be here with hearts, cupids and items in pink and red assailing us everywhere. Across the United States and in many other countries around the world, candy, flowers and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. Although the history of Valentine’s Day and its patron saint is shrouded in mystery, February has long been celebrated as a month of romance. St. Valentine’s Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman traditions.
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Make It a Handmade Christmas 2020 - Week 12
Posted December 8, 2020
Tick . . . tick . . . tick. According to the Christmas clock, there are now only 16 (!!!) days until Christmas! It’s hard to believe that December is already here and, with it, the last week of the Countdown to Christmas 2020. The Countdown has been graciously hosted by Julie and Blue of Blue Morning Expressions on their The Blu Print blog. Yes, Week 12 has come and gone and 33 artisan handmade items from 11 artists were left in its wake, any of which will be perfect for a Christmas gift that was carefully created from the heart. Support handmade artists by helping Santa make it a HANDMADE Christmas this year!
Red, Green and White For Christmas! - Three for Thursday - December 3, 2020
Posted December 3, 2020
According to the ever ticking Christmas clock, there’s only 21 days until Christmas arrives. If you haven’t already started your holiday shopping, now’s definitely the time! To help you select gifts, I pulled together three handmade beauties from three artists in the christmas colors of red, green and white. These are gifts that are guaranteed to please. The handmade artists are: Linda of VictorianStyleTreasures; Charlotte of Covergirlbeads; and me, Catherine of Shadow Dog Designs. I hope you enjoy these selections and will visit the artists’ shops for more gift ideas. There will be something there for even the hardest to buy for Mom or aunt! Remember: SHOP SMALL and BUY HANDMADE!!!
Gotta Love Those Earrings! - Three for Thursday - November 26, 2020
Posted November 26, 2020
Not sure about you, but I adore earrings. If I walk out of the house and later find I forgot to put a pair on (which doesn’t happen too often), it seems as if the earth tilts a bit on its axis and the rest of the day seems kind of strange . . . until I can put a pair on. I especially love long earrings, the more boho the better, but will also wear shorter earrings. But rarely wear studs unless I put one in the second hole of my left earlobe (which normally has a small sterling hoop in it).
Because of my love of earrings, my Three for Thursday blog features just that: EARRINGS! I chose three pairs of earrings that I would definitely wear from three handmade jewelry artists. The artists are: Elaine of ELDumont; Julie and Harry of Blue Morning Expressions; and me, Catherine of Shadow Dog Designs. And I do want to confess that it's hard for me to let some of the earrings I design to be offered for sale in my shop. OK, a LOT of them! I hope you enjoy these selections:
Make It a Handmade Christmas 2020 - Week 10
Posted November 24, 2020
Wow! Christmas Eve will be here in 30 days! And there are only two more weeks left in the Countdown to Christmas 2020! Where does the time go? The ever ticking Christmas clock doesn’t let up and keeps ticking down those seconds until Santa and his herd of reindeer make a nighttime visit to leave gifts or lumps of coal. The Countdown is the place for handmade artists to share three of their beautiful (often one of a kind) creations. Need a perfect start to your Christmas shopping? Shop the Countdown to Christmas: browse and purchase that special piece for that special person! An excellent motto to follow this holiday season: SHOP EARLY, SHOP OFTEN! And, most of all, SHOP HANDMADE from small artisan shops!
Make It a Handmade Christmas 2020 - Week 9
Posted November 17, 2020
Christmas is barreling down on us - it will soon be here! Week 9 of the Countdown to Christmas 2020 has come and gone. The ever ticking Christmas clock doesn’t let up - according to what it says today, Santa will start his journey in only 37 days, just barely a month from now! The Countdown is a place for handmade artists to share three of their beautiful (often one of a kind) creations. Need a perfect start to your Christmas shopping? Shop the Countdown to Christmas: browse and purchase that special piece! An excellent motto to follow this holiday season: SHOP EARLY, SHOP OFTEN! And, most of all, SHOP HANDMADE!
Make It a Handmade Christmas 2020 - Week 6
Posted October 27, 2020
It’s hard to realize that we’re half-way finished with the twelve week Countdown to Christmas 2020! Yikes! That means Christmas is bearing down on us and will soon be here, just a bit less than 2 months! According to the ever ticking Christmas clock, there are only 58 days until ho-ho-ho-ing Santa and his merry band of clattering reindeer arrive once again. Now is the perfect time to start your holiday shopping and the Countdown is the perfect place! Remember this motto: SHOP EARLY, SHOP OFTEN! And, most of all, SHOP ARTISAN HANDMADE!
Make It a Handmade Christmas 2020 - Week 5
Posted October 20, 2020
Week 5 of the Countdown to Christmas rushed right on by (the time goes quicker and quicker each week, it seems!), and a huge variety of fabulous artisan handmade items were left in its wake. According to the ever ticking Christmas clock, there are only 65 days, barely over 2 months, before Jolly Ol’ Santa and his reindeer arrive once again. Now is the perfect time to start your holiday shopping and the Countdown is the perfect place! Remember this motto: SHOP EARLY, SHOP OFTEN! And, most of all, SHOP HANDMADE!
Red, Roja, Rossa, Rouge! - Artisan Handmade - Three for Thursday
Posted September 10, 2020
Anyone who knows me well, knows that red is my favorite color . . . a color I have always adored, even as a small girl who only wanted to wear her “pretty red dress.” If my Mom would have let me, I would have worn that “pretty red dress” until it disintegrated on me. Red makes my soul sing.
An artist friend, Jacki of Christie Cottage, listed a beautiful red felted wool pouch recently in her shop, which got me thinking about a new blog featuring the color red. So, here it is: Red, Roja, Rossa, Rouge! The new Red, Roja, Rossa, Rouge (English, Spanish, Italian and French for "red) Three for Thursday post features three items from three artists that feature a hefty dose of red in their handmade designs. The three artists are: Jacki of Christie Cottage; Charlotte of Covergirlbeads; and, me, Catherine of Shadow Dog Designs. I hope you enjoy all these unique handmade designs with blazing red!
Autumn Beauties - Artisan Handmade
Posted September 3, 2020
"Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower." — Albert Camus
I don’t know about you, but autumn is my favorite time of the year, although it’s somewhat bittersweet since winter follows. It’s a time where the temperatures (at least here in the Desert Southwest) are moderating and thankfully, the gates of the blast furnace of Hell for this extreme heat summer have closed. It’s a time for rethinking and replacing plants that didn’t make it through this summer. Many people start fall gardens and farmers bring in their harvest. Fall is part of that ongoing cycle of loss, rest, regeneration and, ultimately, regrowth. The Autumn Equinox is a balance between light and dark, a balance between the season that happens again in the spring. And who doesn’t love the trees and some shrubs with their gorgeous leaf displays as they prepare for their winter sleep.
