Featured EtsyBlogger: Pruitt Handcrafts!

Wow, Linda is a crafty grandmother of 24.  She has three separate etsy shops and does some amazing work as well as, supports the etysybloggers street team.  Congrats for being December's Featured Etsyblogger.

Pruitt Designs, Pruitthandcrafts, and Pruitt Supply are the 3 shops that she maintains on etsy.  Here are a sampling of a few of my favorite things from Linda's shops:



Congrats and keep up the amazing work!

Blog Carnival: Inspiration

Inspiration???? Hmmmm, that's a tricky one. I am inspired by so many different things depending on my mood. If I'm feeling Zen, I like to create jewelry with affirmations like "meditate, love, and om" on them.

            Dyed Jade and faceted glass with sterling silver clasp.

Silver plated Om charm and love inspiration.

If I am longing for the ocean or the beach, I like to create pieces using hues of green and blue with some sea glass thrown in. Or I like to use dolphins, sea stars, or sand dollars.

Turquoise nugget focal bead with turquoise colored glass rondelles and

twisted green sea glass.  Silver plated toggle.

My favorite season is Autumn and during this time I am inspired by the changing colors and I like to use hues of orange, red, yellow and copper...oooohhhh, I love copper.

Glass and carnelian with copper toggle and beads.

Really no matter what, I can be inspired by just about anything in my surroundings. I like natural looking stones and ceramics and sometimes I like to add a touch of silk ribbon.

I guess as an artist, I can find inspiration and beauty in everything. One day I could look at something and not be inspired, but the next day, I can come up with something beautiful by looking at the same thing.

"What you see depends on what you are looking for."

EtsyBloggers Featured Blogger: Devine Designs Jewelry

Every month the Etsybloggers Street Team picks a different member to highlight their talents.  November's featured artisan is Devine Designs Jewelry.


Devine Design Jewelry owner says that she is  mostly a self-taught wire and cold forge metal jewelry artist.  She tries  to take metal to the extreme; by bending and twisting to create unique designs. She uses lots of wire to make twists, coils, and spirals that she adds to her work. She strives to form designs that have not been done before, original works of art jewelry. 
She only uses high quality components in her jewelry such as: sterling silver, high grade Thai silver, pure copper, gemstones and artisan made glass beads.
Here is a sampling of her unique creations:

Splendid Little Stars and Sparkly Park: Featured Etsyblogger

Margaret is a very active member of the etsybloggers street team and she's been selected as this month's featured etsyblogger. Congrats to you.

She owns two different etsy shops:

Splendid Little Stars and Sparkly Park. Splendid Little Stars contains many hand dyed and painted items and Sparkly Park contains some of her jewelry creations. She also blogs about her crafts at http://www.SplendidLittleStars.blogspot.com.

She's been selling hand~dyed and hand~painted clothing for about 20 years now. She's been making jewlery for much longer than that. For about 4 years, at the turn of the century, She owned a gift shop along with other artisians. They made and sold their own creations along with some "ready-mades." She says that the most meaningful part of this was the relationships formed with the treasured customers. As an etsy seller myself, I can understand this. I create for the customers and really love when people fall in love with my creations. Customers are so appreciative of the crafts we as artisans can provide.

Wedding Fun

I am part of the amazing etsybloggers team.  This group helps promote each other as artists and as creative people by blogging about their crafts and each others.  Part of this involves having different blog topics that we do bi-monthly.  I am participating in a the second topic for the month of September.  It's all about weddings.  So here it goes.  I was asked to include a picture from my wedding and also to include something from my shoppe that could be used for a wedding.  I really wish I knew how to make jewelry 9 years ago.  I would have worn something more interesting than pearls.  However, these are my Mom's pearls so they are special to me and I guess that's all that matters.

This gorgeous necklace is made with cream colored Swarovski Crystal Pearls and vintage crystals.  The crystals came from a necklace that was my great aunt's that I deconstructed.  I believe that they are around 75-80 years old.  I also added a sterling silver toggle heart clasp to this beauty and there is a bezel set cubic zirconia at the drop.  I love this necklace and it would have been something I could have created and worn myself on my special day.

How Do You Celebrate The End Of Summer?

Labor Day is just around the corner.  Traditionally, it marks the end of summer and the beginning of a new school year.  Around our house, we are trying to soak up the last bits of summer by going to the pool one last time; by having one last outdoor BBQ with friends; by hitting the beach for just one more jump in the cool ocean waves.  

We are also getting ready to start another year of school.  This is a big year for us.  My oldest son is starting second grade and my little baby (oh where did the time go???) is starting preschool this year.  It's only 2 mornings a week, but it seems like just yesterday that I was dropping off my older son, clinging to my leg, at his first day of big boy school.  We have gathered our backpacks, lunchboxes, pencils and erasers, and our first day of school outfits...not that boys this age care so much about that "just right" outfit.  I can't wait to capture the first days of school on film for prosperity.  

As far as creativity goes, I have been working on many new jewelry pieces for the Fall months.  I love using the reds, oranges, and greens.  To me, it symbolizes change.  All the deeper hues of the colors we use other times of the year.  I love the crisp scent of the air, wood burning in an outdoor fireplace, the colors of mums and pumpkins.  Everything is just so beautiful and I love to spend time outside this time of year.  I hope everyone enjoys the change in the weather and all the beautiful colors!

"A woodland in full color is awesome as a forest fire, in magnitude at least, but a single tree is like a dancing tongue of flame to warm the heart."  -Hal Borland