I'm a little late posting giveaway winners this time. Sorry about that. I've been swamped with custom orders, and it's hard to find time to fit everything else in. :)
Out of the 157 entries for the Red Toddler Pettiskirt from Plume de Nikola, the randomly chosen winner was #113. Congratulations, Dianna!
And the very last person to enter the Nonpareils Designs giveaway for the Horse Rubber Stamp, was chosen as the winner! Congratulations, Naomi.
Thanks again to everyone who took the time to enter these two giveaways. Don't forget you can still take advantage of the coupon code for both of these shops even if you didn't win the giveaway.
Just 5 more days to enter the giveaway from Plume de Nikola and Nonpareils Designs. If you haven't done so yet, check out the cute little red pettiskirt and the beautiful horse rubber stamp that are being given away!
I was also reminded that in posting the feature and giveaway, I forgot to include the coupon code! If you've been thinking about making a purchase from either shop, now is the perfect time to do it.
Use the code JSBLOG10 to receive 10% off your order total. And remember, any order you place will get you extra entries into the giveaway!
Do you have a little girl who loves to dress up? Does she love puffy, swirly, sparkly pettiskirts? Then you'll want to check out the shops I have the privilege of featuring today!
I met Nikola last year at a homeschool conference, and really enjoyed getting to talk with her. She is a very sweet and talented young lady who is using those talents to create adorable costume dresses and fun little pettiskirts for little girls. I have seen her work, and it is beautiful! I love sewing too, but designing patterns like she does is way beyond me! :)
How and when did you become interested in your craft?
I have loved sewing since I was about 10 years old. I started with dolls' clothes, then costumes for my sisters and I, clothing for our family, and then moved into my current line of internationally-inspired dresses for little girls.
What inspired you to open your shop?
When I first opened my Etsy shop, it was with my rubber stamps in mind. We had had them made from artwork I did when I was younger, but did not have a good enough camera to get the photos up on Etsy. By the time we did, I also had some dresses to sell, so we put everything up at once. We had shopped on Etsy for unique items and we knew it would be a great spot to sell my designs.
Where did your shop name come from?
When I first opened the Etsy shop, we used my rubber stamp name, PLUME DE NIKOLA. This refers to drawing, and means, "Nikola's Quill Pen." My trademark stamp is a peacock feather.
NONPAREILS, the name of my clothing line, comes from French, and means "one of a kind, unique, without parallel." Since it also is used in English for sprinkle-covered chocolates, and children love colorful sprinkles, it fit with both aspects of my designs --- uniqueness and fun!
What inspires you to create your work?
The initial inspiration comes from my love of International Folk Dance and costumes. My favorite spot in the fabric store is the embroidered trim section. I love the intricate designs found in ethnic clothing. The Duquesne University Tamburitzans' folkwear is incredible and I have spent much time examining and duplicating these works of art. Our family also owns many books of costumes from around the world, which I love to browse through...it is so inspiring! I thought that little girls' clothes based on international designs would be so cute. When one of my little sisters spotted a pettiskirt in a catalog, she fell in love with it! Since all little girls love to twirl, and since we do a lot of folk dancing in our home, I decided to sew one for her birthday. It was a hit! I got excited about making other pettiskirts to sell, and proceeded to add embellishments, such as fancy stitching or trim.
Where/How did you learn your craft?
I have never taken sewing classes, but my mother did give me the fundamentals and was always there to answer any questions. The designer of the Tamburitzans' costumes has also been helpful in giving me many tips via email.
Is there something that you do differently than other people in your craft?
I design and make my own patterns after studying the international costumes, so the clothing is truly "one of a kind!" I also try to set apart the pettiskirts with highlights of trim.
Describe your creative process. What inspires you?
I browse through books of collectors' dolls from around the world and purchase many of these dolls, study the traditional folkwear of many countries, view movies of international folk dance (Tamburitzans and others), and visit the trim section of the fabric store. I also ask one of my little sisters what kinds of things she thinks would be fun to wear. Trim also provides the inspiration for new accents on the pettiskirts and cotton skirts that I create.
What is the most exciting thing that has happened since you've started?
In the fall of 2010 we attended a Tamburitza Extravaganza in St. Louis where one of the workshops featured a vast array of ancient folkwear from Croatia, Bulgaria, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, and Macedonia. The thrill of walking into the room whose perimeters displayed beautiful, intricate costumes, some hundreds of years old is unforgetable!
Do you take custom orders? If so, how do they work?
I do, but since each creation is unique, I cannot always duplicate the original. People I have met have asked me to do this, and it works best if they are local.
Besides crafting, what else do you do? What are your other interests?
Is there life beyond crafting? Seriously, I love music, and play piano, clarinet, and violin. Reading, writing, history, and fine arts represent some of my other interests. I also love hiking, visiting new places, playing games with my family, and trying new recipes.
Why do you do what you do?
God has given me many talents and I feel that He wants me to use them to benefit my family. It is also satisfying to share my designs with others.
How do you make time to craft?
I have graduated from homeschool highschool and my parents have encouraged me to pursue this endeavor which I so love.
What advice would you give someone new to online selling?
I am just learning myself, but I think being very productive and getting up lots of items with photos is a good tactic. Make sure your work is of high quality and guarantee your buyer's satisfaction. Maintain good communication with your buyer and be sure to send his or her purchase out as quickly as possible.
Anything else you'd like to share with our readers?
I love the fact that I can work on my dresses and still participate in the life of our large family. While they do science, history, and vocabulary, for instance, I can be in the same room with them and participate in the learning and the discussions. I can stop to look at a sibling's artwork, help my little sister get dressed, start a meal, or practice hymns on the piano. The variety of company, music playing, and fun happenings would not be accessible to me if I were cooped up somewhere in an office, far from home!
Aren't those International outfits just adorable! What little girl wouldn't love to dress up in one of those. They'd make such special birthday gifts for some little princess and so would those cute fluffy pettiskirts! :) Next time you need a special gift for a special little girl, don't forget to stop by Plume de Nikola and see what beautiful, one-of-a-kind treasure she has for you!
Not only is Nikola a talented seamstress and designer, her original drawings also make beautiful stamps that are perfect for creating all kinds of paper crafts! Check out her whole line of stamps here.
Speaking of pettiskirts and rubber stamps, I have not one but two giveaways for you! Nikola has generously offered to give away two of her creations.
Giveaway #1 is for an adorable 12-18 month red pettiskirt.
Giveaway #2 is for a beautifully drawn horse stamp.
Enter to win one or both of the prizes by completing the entries on the Rafflecopter forms below.
Can you believe it's already nearly the middle of January? January 2012! Christmas has come and gone with all of it's special activities, gatherings, and joys. Now we are settling back into normal life again. We're also settling into winter here in Missouri. We got our first snow a couple days ago and the temperature has been in the teens!
With the cold winter weather come sweaters, scarves, gloves, hats, and mittens. You don't have to settle for just any old hat or sweater though! A handmade knitted item is so much more special (and lots prettier too). I want to introduce you to a very special shop where you can find beautiful, soft and expertly crafted hand knitted items to choose from!
Ashley, the master knitter behind A. Victoria, is a personal friend of mine, and I can personally vouch for the superb quality of her work! And now let me open the door into this gorgeous shop full of soft yarn, knitting needles, and lots of talent and love.
Ashley says:
I have been knitting for 13 years this fall. My Parents home schooled me and my siblings. My Mama wanted me to learn the basics in the craft area and natural way of things (sewing, knitting, quilting, embroidery, canning, herbs, gardening, farming, homeopathic options and so on). She found a lady in our area that taught me knitting (the one thing that my Mama did not know how to do.) As it ended up I loved knitting and picked it up really fast. The first year I knitted every one in my family and close extended family hats.
We moved not too long after I learned the basics, so I taught myself some more of the stitches and how to read a pattern. A few years later my parents were finally able to find me another teacher and I went through a book with my teacher that taught a new pattern stitch each week. I loved learning the new patterns and getting to see how you can put things together to create something totally new.
My favorite thing to make are cables. During this time, my teacher thought I should take a knitting certification/knitting instructors certification class via mail. It was challenging and such a great experience. I made certain things that the certification organization asked for and in the end, I had to design something, write it out and send it to them. I designed a sweater, to my teachers amazement. Since then I have taught classes on and off, designed a hand full of patterns and started knitting items for people. I started the Etsy store, because people saw my items on family and wanted to know if I could make that item for them.
My husband loves colors and helps me pick out color combinations and come up with more ideas. My daughters, sisters, cousins, nieces and nephews are great models to try out patterns and allow me to work on pattern ideas. My Mama helps me with the lining of the purses. Little by little I have been adding more items to Etsy and coming up with more ideas. I love sitting down with natural yarns (merino, alpaca, silk, bamboo, cotton, and wool) they feel amazing. When I sit down with a skien of yarn and an idea, I love to see if the end product looks the way I visualized. I love seeing what others have designed and come up with, it sparks creativity and gives me more ideas. Knitting is classy and full of life and history. My girls (2 and 4), husband and I love to have movie night and the girls are used to the fact that I always have something on the couch with me, that I am working on. They love to sit on my lap and watch me knit, it makes it a slower process, but I love allowing them to do that with me. Whenever I am in a car I bring knitting with me and in the past (before children), I would read a book and knit. My sister thought I was crazy to read and knit. My favorite thing to do is get a good book on audio and listen to it, while working on a project. My daughters love to spend time with me, so we do a lot of fun projects with yarn, whether we knit, glue yarn to paper or they help me pick out yarns for a certain project. They are a great help.
My daughter 4 year old and my niece 6 years old are learning to knit this year and it has been fun seeing the craft passing on to the next generation. I am teaching in a public library right now. I also have some of my items in a local coffee shop.
The items that I knit are from others patterns or from things I have seen in the world around us. When I use a pattern already written I change something to make it slightly different (a thumb hole, a different cable, a different combination of stitches and so on). I want my items to have character and a personality of its own. I want it to make me feel cozy and warm. When someone wears that item, I want them to be able to feel cozy, warm, and comfy. As if they are sitting by a fire with a cup of coffee, not outside in the cold. My items will last and hold up, as long as they are cared for. I want my items to be a part of the new owners life, something that is connected to memories for them. I know that when I knit the items I have a feeling of love, warmth, and I hope that it passes on to the new owner. I want each item to have detail and uniqueness. The natural fibers last a lot longer then synthetics, so the items that I make out of natural fibers will last for a long time and continue to feel great.
5 things that I could never do with out in my craft:
Nice textiles, vibrant colors, cozy environment, my daughters for inspiration and encouragement, coffee. ;-)
Advice for someone that just started knitting:
Find a good teacher and make sure you have the basics down before you start playing with pattern, otherwise it is easy to get frustrated when you do not understand something.
Custom Orders:
I do take custom order, just contact me with what item and the color you want it. I will let you know what it will cost and we can go from there.
What else do I do?
I am a Mother of two little girls and I am beginning to homeschool them. We stay busy working on projects and activities with them, I also teach knitting 2 times a month, I help in our community with different groups and I am very involved in our church.
Aren't those items gorgeous?! I can do okay on basic knitting, but these things are WAY out of my depth! :) If you're looking for a new cozy sweater, hat, gloves or scarf for your self or a loved one, A. Victoria is the place to look!
You can also find Ashley in her Etsy shop, on Twitter & Facebook, or blogging about all of her wonderful new items on her blog. Go take a look around and then come back here for the giveaway!
I have a very wonderful giveaway to offer you today! Ashley is generously offering one of my readers a $20 gift code to her Artfire shop! Just follow the instructions on the Rafflecopter form below to enter the giveaway!
We have a winner!! The very popular Jewel of the Lion giveaway has just ended and the happy winner is Tracy with entry #365 out of 402 entries!! This has been the largest giveaway I've ever hosted! Thank you so much to all of you who entered.
Even if you didn't win this giveaway though, there is still time to order before Christmas! Be sure to place your order by tomorrow to ensure Christmas delivery, and don't forget to use the coupon code FEATURE10 to receive 10% off your entire order! Julie's Fudge would make a wonderful Christmas gift!
Yesterday I eagerly watched out the upstairs window from the computer desk where I was working as the mailman pulled up. Yes, it looked like he might have a small box in his hands... After finishing up what I was working on, I went straight for the mailbox. There it was, the small Priority Mail box with my name on the front. My Christmas Sampler of fudge from Jewel of the Lion had arrived!!
I used to think of fudge as mainly either chocolate or peanut butter. Yes, some might have nuts or you might even get chocolate mint, but that's about as far as my knowledge of fudge went. That was BEFORE I discovered Jewel of the Lion on Etsy! Wow!!! I've never seen so many varieties of fudge! Fudge isn't the only thing Julie sells in her shop though, she also sells her famous "Aunt Helen's Pumpkin Bread", Cookies, Scones, Muffins and more!
Before you run off straight to Jewel of the Lion to satisfy your curiosity about those multitudes of flavors of fudge or to make yourself hungry with the yummy looking goodies, let me give you a peak behind the scenes at the woman who runs the shop.
What inspired you to open your shop?
Originally, my shop was full of jewelry & crafty things, as I was inspired by a fellow artist/friend who turned me on to Etsy after we crafted together a bit. With no activity in the jewelry arena, I decided to sell my Aunt Helen's Pumpkin Bread for the fall of 2010. My family had been telling me to sell it for years, and as a sort of homage to my Aunt Helen after she passed, I decided to give it a go.
Where did your shop name come from?
I'm a writer, and I love to play with words - they fascinate me! So, my name is Julie, I'm a Leo, originally I was selling jewelry....and Jewel of the Lion was born! :-)
What inspires you to create your work?
Oh, my! Inspiration comes from everywhere - friends, family, food shows, magazines, billboards, random cravings, strange dreams...you name it! The world is my inspiration, and making people happy because they ate something I made is the best feeling ever! People don't just eat something, they cherish it, they remember a good time from a simple flavor, they travel back to childhood when things were easier. They have a bite and think of a long lost loved one...so many stories and so much love comes from a little something sweet.
Where/How did you learn your craft?
In kitchens, where the smells wafting out make you feel like family is all around. Where comfort reigns, and familiarity finds you in every stir of the pot, every taste from the spoon, every swish of the hand-sewn apron.
Have you taken any courses or classes? I've never attended a single cooking/baking course, but have logged in thousands of hours in the kitchen with so many beautiful, passionate ladies....no culinary school can touch that.
In your opinion, what sets you apart from the rest?
A lot of things set me apart...but I think one of the main things is that my fudge creations actually look like the desserts they are inspired by...my cheesecakes & pie fudges have crusts, my ice cream fudges look like ice cream...they are beautiful & unique, and taste like their original counterparts. It's fantastic! :-) I also have over 70 flavors of fudge...and I've found no one with anywhere close to that variety!
What is the most exciting thing that has happened since you've started?
Every new customer is exciting, every new relationship I make, and every new confection I make that makes someone happy.
What’s the best advice you’ve been given in regards to what you do?
Follow your heart & keep your numbers straight!
Do you take custom orders? If so, how do they work?
I LOVE custom orders! Generally people just request what they want, we work together, and everyone's happy!
Besides crafting, what else do you do? What are your other interests?
I love to write, analyze things, be with friends and family, spend quality time with others or alone. I love to paint, craft, create, live, love, laugh, learn!
How do you make time to make your goodies? It's what I do most of the time....and somehow, there's still not enough time to do all I want.
What advice would you give someone just learning your craft?
Be courageous, try new things, believe in yourself!
What advice would you give someone new to online selling?
Study, study, learn, research, and study some more!! And customer service is 10000000% the most important next to having a solid product & good photos.
Is your mouth watering yet? As I was looking through Jewel of the Lion to find pictures for this post, I kept coming across flavors of fudge I hadn't seen before and kept thinking, "Yum!! I want to try that one!" This fudge would make a great gift for that person on your list that is so hard to shop for because they already have everything! I even have a coupon code for you!
Julie is offering a coupon code to all of my readers which will give you 10% off your entire purchase from her shop. Just use the code FEATURE10 to receive your discount. She is also offering a 15% discount on the purchase of any of her 1 or 1.5 pound Christmas Samplers with the code XMASSAMP15. You can see her shop announcement for details.
Speaking of Christmas Samplers, I have a very sweet giveaway for you! And let me tell you, the winner of this giveaway is certainly in for a treat! Julie is generously giving away one of her 1 pound Christmas Fudge Samplers to one of my readers!!
The Christmas Sampler gives you your choice of 4 different flavors of fudge. You can choose from Pumpkin, Just Chocolate, Peppermint Candy, Walnut, Holiday Eggnog and Pecan Pie. Hard Choice!
When I was offered one of these Christmas Samplers to review, I was so excited! We chose Peppermint Candy, Just Chocolate, Pumpkin, and Pecan Pie. WOW! My family and I had a taste testing party last night and sampled all four flavors. Yummy! We LOVED them! That Pumpkin Fudge tastes just like pumpkin bread, and the Pecan Pie makes you think you're actually eating pie instead of fudge! Our ultimate favorite of all the flavors we tried though was hands down the Peppermint Candy Fudge!! The peppermint and chocolate combination are wonderful! The perfect fudge for Christmas!
I'm thrilled to now get to offer one of my readers their own Sampler Package of fudge! Just follow the instructions on the Rafflecopter form below.
Disclosure: I was sent a complimentary Christmas Sampler to review. All opinions
When I'm browsing through Etsy or Artfire shops and looking at the beautiful collections and treasuries that are made with the handmade items from these shops, one thing that always catches my eye are baskets! I just think baskets are so pretty, and handmade baskets are extra special! Some of the baskets I've seen are beautiful and so intricate! These baskets are definitely a work of art and are each handcrafted with love by the talented crafter! One such talented person is Joanna from Joanna's Collections, and I'd love to introduce you to her and her shop!
Here's what Joanna says:
"I have loved baskets ever since I received my first wooden-lidded picnic basket as a wedding shower gift 35 years ago. Our home has since been decorated with baskets.
We carried our babies' necessities in “diaper baskets”; I have hidden the Scotch, masking, and duct tapes in market baskets, (so it's there when needed); our kitchen is filled with bread baskets, muffin baskets, napkin and paper plate baskets, utensil baskets, and casserole baskets; the laundry is hauled in wash-day baskets; our books are held in magazine or carry-all baskets; library books are transported to and fro in leather handled tote baskets; etc., etc., etc., :-) In other words, I am never found without a basket in hand!
Although my love for baskets has covered the last three decades, I was not actually "hands on" involved until the summer of 1991 when I was introduced to basket weaving. At the time, our family lived and worked at a Christian camp in northern Wisconsin, and a lady from Milwaukee was attending a week-long family camp. She was an avid basket maker, and so she offered a class out on the deck of the dining hall. Being on a tight budget with a family of seven, I did not even have the $10 material fee needed to take the class. But a good friend paid my fee, and we spent a beautiful afternoon weaving our first baskets. I was immediately hooked! Up to that point in life, I had enjoyed many other types of crafts, but now, basket weaving quickly moved into first place.
Since that memorable summer afternoon 19+ years ago, I have woven over 4800 baskets, taught hundreds of classes, and designed a countless number of patterns. I am currently teaching basketry for adult community education in four different public school districts. It is always such a joy to share in a new student's delight with the completion of their first basket weaving project.
I create and weave all of our baskets in our own home shop. We have been blessed with a restored 1916 country farmhouse on a 20-acre hobby farm located in eastern Minnesota, and have had nine children, three of which are still at home. (The others keep coming back home with more!)
We have a large vegetable garden, a dozen apple trees, a long row of raspberries, and lots of flowers in the summer. We raise chickens and turkeys, keep honeybees, and have three horses, two dogs and a varying number of farm cats. There are bikes in the dirt driveway, a swing set and swimming pool in the back yard, and two small ponds out in the pasture. All in all, it is a great place to raise a family and — WEAVE BASKETS!"
Aren't they beautiful! So much variety and so well made! You can find these wonderful baskets on Etsy or their brand new website!
Not only would these American made, handwoven baskets be wonderful for using around your home, they would also make very special gifts!! And speaking of gifts, I am thrilled to announce that Joanna's Collections is offering one of my readers their choice of one of the two baskets below!
This is one time I wish I could enter the giveaways I list on my blog! :)
To enter for your chance to win one of these beautifully made baskets, fill out the Rafflecopter form below. Please be patient as it may take a minute to load. Remember to record your mandatory entry in the form or it will not be counted!
Out of the 157 entries for the Red Toddler Pettiskirt from Plume de Nikola, the randomly chosen winner was #113. Congratulations, Dianna!
I was also reminded that in posting the feature and giveaway, I forgot to include the coupon code! If you've been thinking about making a purchase from either shop, now is the perfect time to do it.
How and when did you become interested in your craft?
What inspires you to create your work?
Do you take custom orders? If so, how do they work?
We moved not too long after I learned the basics, so I taught myself some more of the stitches and how to read a pattern. A few years later my parents were finally able to find me another teacher and I went through a book with my teacher that taught a new pattern stitch each week. I loved learning the new patterns and getting to see how you can put things together to create something totally new.
My husband loves colors and helps me pick out color combinations and come up with more ideas. My daughters, sisters, cousins, nieces and nephews are great models to try out patterns and allow me to work on pattern ideas. My Mama helps me with the lining of the purses. Little by little I have been adding more items to Etsy and coming up with more ideas. I love sitting down with natural yarns (merino, alpaca, silk, bamboo, cotton, and wool) they feel amazing. When I sit down with a skien of yarn and an idea, I love to see if the end product looks the way I visualized. I love seeing what others have designed and come up with, it sparks creativity and gives me more ideas. Knitting is classy and full of life and history. My girls (2 and 4), husband and I love to have movie night and the girls are used to the fact that I always have something on the couch with me, that I am working on. They love to sit on my lap and watch me knit, it makes it a slower process, but I love allowing them to do that with me. Whenever I am in a car I bring knitting with me and in the past (before children), I would read a book and knit. My sister thought I was crazy to read and knit. My favorite thing to do is get a good book on audio and listen to it, while working on a project. My daughters love to spend time with me, so we do a lot of fun projects with yarn, whether we knit, glue yarn to paper or they help me pick out yarns for a certain project. They are a great help.
The items that I knit are from others patterns or from things I have seen in the world around us. When I use a pattern already written I change something to make it slightly different (a thumb hole, a different cable, a different combination of stitches and so on). I want my items to have character and a personality of its own. I want it to make me feel cozy and warm. When someone wears that item, I want them to be able to feel cozy, warm, and comfy. As if they are sitting by a fire with a cup of coffee, not outside in the cold. My items will last and hold up, as long as they are cared for. I want my items to be a part of the new owners life, something that is connected to memories for them. I know that when I knit the items I have a feeling of love, warmth, and I hope that it passes on to the new owner. I want each item to have detail and uniqueness. The natural fibers last a lot longer then synthetics, so the items that I make out of natural fibers will last for a long time and continue to feel great.
5 things that I could never do with out in my craft:
Custom Orders:
In your opinion, what sets you apart from the rest?
Do you take custom orders? If so, how do they work?
Although my love for baskets has covered the last three decades, I was not actually "hands on" involved until the summer of 1991 when I was introduced to basket weaving. At the time, our family lived and worked at a Christian camp in northern Wisconsin, and a lady from Milwaukee was attending a week-long family camp. She was an avid basket maker, and so she offered a class out on the deck of the dining hall. Being on a tight budget with a family of seven, I did not even have the $10 material fee needed to take the class. But a good friend paid my fee, and we spent a beautiful afternoon weaving our first baskets. I was immediately hooked! Up to that point in life, I had enjoyed many other types of crafts, but now, basket weaving quickly moved into first place.
