Earthbound - Treasury

I stayed up all night to make this treasury... I got inspired and used the Poster Sketch tool to work on two treasuries based off each other... This one is the first of the pair - Earthbound. It's filled with all kinds of goodies themed around our little planet! There's a piece that I think represents microscopic organisms, to dinosaurs, to things we see today like roses - butterflies- and a zebra. It's all about EVOLVING.

Here's a list of the items from left to right... Again, the fourth column is the "hidden" alternatives in case one of the main items sells. That doesn't mean they aren't important to the grand scheme of things though!

1. Magical - 5x7 Fine Art Print - by Lori411
2. Opalized Conchina, 14k Gold, and Oxidized Sterling Silver Necklace - by BloomStudios
3. Miniature glass-Outdoor live moss terrarium-Shade Gardens - by teresab123
4. Burnt Wood Photograph 16x20 - by ZafelDesigns
5. Green Sea Pebble Necklace - by LaughingBird
6. Terrarium Trio - print - by bestiaryink
7. Waffle the Zebra - by skunkboycreatures
8. Specimen 652 - 8x8 Print - by dsbrennan
9. Eggs -Natural History Series - by brandywine
10. Evolve Burnout V neck - by circularaccessories
11. Rice Paper Real Butterfly Framed Natural History Display - by BugUnderGlass
12. Skeleton Diagram Retro Design Screen Print Alternative Apparel Cap Sleeve Girls T-Shirt - by happyfamily
13. Pterodactyl (wants a cracker) - Print - by amberalexander
14. 35 - Original Monster Art by Harry - by 365monsters
15. Dinosaur Eggs Pendant - Smaller Version - Sterling Silver, Freshwater Pearls - by StemsAndPieces
16. Owl Under Glass - by kgrandey

Like always, please check the treasury out and the items in it!

Hugs,
Cait

For The Love Of - Treasury

So, I stayed up to get a treasury spot this morning and as luck would have it - I got one! "For The Love Of ... falling leaves, apple pie, and tea..." is packed with all kinds of things that I love - like flavored tea, cute cups/mugs, a notebook, awesome stuffed animals, soaps that smell like fall treats, and jewelry. If you don't know how treasuries work - the 4th column is "muted" because they are alternates in case an item in the other columns sells.

Here's a list - left to right - up and down - of the items and who made them since the treasury will only be viewable on the website for 3 days.

Here we go!

1.Owl Cup - by catherinereece
2.Flames - 8x10 Fine Art Nature Photograph - Abstract Dahlia Closeup - by flandersfield
3.Squirrel and Acorn Tile - by lesperancetile
4.Nude Female Figure Painting - by GalleryJunana
5.Pair of Stuffed Plush Bunkins (bunny and pumpkin) - by stringfellowart
6.Leather Poppy Wristlet - Brown - by tmStudioDesigns
7.The TANGIERS Halo Earrings - by emilygrayjewels
8.Porcelain Cup with Translucent Bottom - by stepanka
9.Scary and Sweet - Set of 7 Halloween Tags - by poshpaisley
10.Gold Leaf Necklace - by Peaches4me
11.25 Gourmet Apple/Cinnamon Teabags - by teaman
12.Original Painting - The Spinster - by thelittlefox
13.Bark Beetle - Coptic Bound Notebook - by paperiaarre
14.Betty the Giraffe - by skunkboycreatures
15.Pumpkin Pie Spiced Goat Milk Soap - by paradisesunrise
16.Natural Sweet Orange and Spice - Goat's Milk Soap - by daisycakessoap

I hope you enjoy the things I picked out as much as I do - I want them all! Leave comments in the treasury and click all the items to check them out and see more photos and get information about the products.

And if you'd like - check out my own shop!

Hugs,
Cait

Rings and Things

I recently added two print items to my Etsy shop. It's been mostly jewelry thus far, but I have a bunch of limited editioned, one of a kind, and hand colored prints in my studio. They are all signed and dated - most are numbered - unless they aren't editioned prints and they are one of a kind. Some are varied prints - so they are editioned a little different from my tradtional ones.

I also added one of my sterling silver textured band rings. It's perfect for stacking or by itself. I have a bunch more of them to add with all kinds of different textures on them. They are all oxidized to bring out the textures.

Hugs,
Cait

Puppet Monster

My boyfriend has a 2 and a half year old son. He's a lot of fun to be around because I love to play. At the park recently he introduced me to his little "monsters" game. There's a big climbing-slide-bridge play set at the park and he likes to pretend that underneath the bridge is a tunnel that monsters live in! He runs back and forth making yelping scared sounds and seems like he's having a great time. I started playing along by going under the bridge when he was on top of it and making "Grrrr" sounds and reaching through the bridge's bars.

I got a fun idea to make the game even greater... A puppet. I think it would be fun to bring a puppet along to play monster's with and I decided making one would be neat. I like making things and this way I could make any kind of monster puppet I could think up. I was looking around online to try and find a pattern or some sort of how-to and came across a video link for step-by-step instructions on making a talking mouth hand puppet. The videos are on eHow and are by Paul Louis Muller. It seems pretty easy to make - especially for something that isn't made from a brown paper bag.

I'm hoping I can get my sewing machine to work. The last time I tried to use it (years ago) the sewing machine freaked out and was doing horrible stuff like sucking the fabric into itself. My mom was trying to fix it claiming I was doing something wrong - but it did it to her too. The machine is pretty old and never had any work done on it... Sewing the puppet by hand will be a pain in the butt, but at least it isn't a ton of sewing. Since the machine broke, I sewed a whole tiger Halloween costume for myself by hand!


Tools & Supplies: How to Make a Puppet -- powered by eHow.com

I'm really hoping to get this little project done. I think it would be so much fun to play with!

Hugs,
Cait

GalleryJuana - Treasury

I got a convo. on Etsy today from GalleryJuana saying I was featured in a treasury they had just made! There's all kinds of really cool items in the treasury - my favorites being the super colorful journal and the clock. It was a really nice surprise.

Go check out GalleryJuana's Etsy shop - especially if you love cats (there are some really awesome cat paintings) and the treasury!

Hugs,
Cait

Christiecottage - Treasury

Jacki who happens to have a shop on Etsy - christiecottage - made a treasury on Treasury West and included a pair of my pen nib earrings. The treasury has some super cute items in it - including adorable polka-dot baby booties (I want them for myself!).

Go check out christiecottage and the treasury!

Hugs,
Cait

Etsy Front Page - Yours Sincerely

I was just looking at Etsy.com and when I saw the front page I was pretty sure one of my items would be in the treasury. I never saw a writing themed treasury list before, and I happen to have two pairs of etched pen nib earrings in my store right now. I was a tad disappointed that I wasn't picked because my earrings couldn't have been more perfect for that specific treasury. Sometimes I feel like I'm secretly "black listed" or something because I'll have an item 100% completely perfect for a treasury on Etsy and I'm never picked.





Have you made a treasury before?
How did you pick the items you picked?

I'm not busting on the person that made the treasury or anything like that... I'm just saying I would have loved to be included and wondering how people go about picking the items they pick.

Hugs,
Cait

Black Diamond

I love necklaces... My boyfriend bought a great sterling silver cast heart necklace by Thomas Mann for me around Christmas - which I used to wear all the time. Funny thing was that we seemed to get into little "bumps" in our relationship whenever I was wearing it. I'm not sure if he noticed how I haven't been wearing it lately, but I do keep it in a glass box that belonged to my grandmother before she passed away. It means the world to me and I really wish I could wear it all the time without feeling like an idiot.

I've been obsessed with rough cut diamonds since I learned who Todd Reed is and really wanting a piece of jewelry that had them in it. I've also been ogling some of the recent pieces that Christine Mighion (aka Bloom Studios) has created and listed in her Etsy shop when I came across this rough cut black diamond necklace. I knew it would end up on my "What I want for Christmas" wishlist.





Hugs,
Cait

Busy Bee

I've been a bit bee like lately. Maybe like those busy little bees - I'm preparing for the upcoming cold weather. I guess in a way I am - holiday season means shopping... Shopping hopefully means my jewelry, fine art cards, and fine art prints find loving homes! Oh, how they do not like living in boxes and baggies and cellophane sleeves.

I've been working rather hard recently trying to make Etsy really work for me. After reading a ton of the "Quit Your Day Job" interviews with artists who are already making Etsy work for them I got a little inspired - maybe even a bit jealous. I want to be able to do what I love from the comfort of my own home too! I want to be able to drink coffee in my pajamas while I answer e-mails and post in the forums before starting my day creating.

One thing everyone has in common in the interviews is that they list new items a few times a day - everyday. I've been listing on a semi-regular basis and I really have seen an increase in items views. I've also been spending times in the forums, started posting photographs in my Flickr photostream, updated links in my deviantART... According to Google Analytics my Etsy store has a 1,460% increase in views so far this month... None of this hard work has lead to any sales so far, but I have gotten item and shop hearts. I'm hoping for some sales soon!

Hugs -
Cait

Silver Lining - Etsy Treasury

I'm moving this post from a blog I used to have... I was excited to write it and it was fun and colorful - plus it's storming right now. It was storming when I posted it in the first place...

Originally written September 30, 2008

Saturday evening I played a fun waiting game... Wait, wait, wait, plan... All in order to get an Etsy Treasury spot. The game paid off and I got a spot. Goodie! I'm very proud of this treasury... It's been raining a lot lately so I decided to do a whole "silver lining" theme. Finding the silver lining in crappy weather means - silver jewelry! So to make the treasury more interesting than just silver jewelry pieces I chose pieces based on the background colors. I set it up to be a spectrum of sorts... I dig it, so should you. It's up until Tuesday - late afternoon. Please check it out and click away. The artist's deserve their work looked at in full views. Plus, the pieces are inspiring to anyone who creates!




Wow, the storm just picked up and right now I'm sitting here hoping the power doesn't go out! Doing laundry won't be much fun without electricity.


Hugs-
Caitlin