Coffeecake

If you don't know etsy...

If you don't know Etsy, you should. 

Etsy.com is a wonderful website--sort of ebay meets your local craft fair meets the most unique shop in town.  What is it?  It is a website that enables artisans of all types to sell their wares online.  The site itself is beautiful to look out. Every day there is a completely unique home page featuring the editor's hand picked items for the day. I'm not sure how the items are selected, but the photo thumbnails make for a unique monochromatic palette.  The front page also profiles a featured seller, and links to additional articles on the site. 

Etsy sellers sell through their own storefronts.  You can search for items in a variety of ways, including by color. You can also browse through Etsy's gift guides. Currently, the home page features links to the Autumn showcase and Halloween shopping guide.

You can find a wide variety of items for sale, everything from  jewelry, artwork, photography, needlecrafts, stationery and beyond.  The common denominator is that all items are handmade by the seller.  Prices range from a few dollars to hundreds of dollars.  As with eBay, you can look up seller profiles and read feedback from buyers and sellers who have transacted with a given seller.  In order to purchase on Etsy, you have to create an account on the site. 

Etsy is great for gifts shopping, holiday and party items, and has wonderful baby and kids items.  You will find unique items, at prices that are very reasonable, often well below store prices for mass-produced goods. 

Vintage items and craft supplies are also for sale on Etsy.

From time to time I will be posting about some of my favorite Etsy "stores".

Great ribbon and labels on sale at Namemaker.com

The website www.namemaker.com now has 20% off on its entire site for a limited time only. Namemaker has a great selection of personalized ribbon and clothing labels. The website has been featured both in Oprah's magazine and on the Martha Stewart show--so you know is has to be good!  Get beautiful ribbon for holiday or school crafts or personalized labels to sew into kids' clothing or add a personalized touch to craft projects.  I personally have ordered labels to put into knitting and sewing projects.  (Note-- the ribbon featured in the picture above is from my own collection and is not available on the website). 

I'm on Ravelry!

 

I am so excited...I just set up my account on Ravelry, the new social networking knitting website!!  The site is super-cool, but unfortunately you can't really browse it unless you are a member (you can take a tour of page snapshots). It takes about three days to get your applications for membership approved (just by submitting your email address.)

Once you have your account set up, the fun begins.  You can set up your workbook, which includes a list of your current and finished projects, and list your yarn stash.  Say you have a yarn that you don't know what to do with. You can search the yarn in Ravelry, and find out what other patterns people have used for that yarn.  I have already gotten tons of ideas.

Check out my projects as sparkemama on www.ravelry.com (remember, you have to be a member to browse the site.)

How to reduce your junk mail

These sites are great for reducing a mailbox full of junk mail and giving your shredder a day off:

www.catalogchoice.org

Create an account and enter the catalogs you no longer wish to receive. There is no cost to sign up.

www.optoutprescreen.com

Opt of  pre-approved credit card offers.

I logged on to both of these sites (they are unrelated) a couple of months ago after reading about them in Consumer Reports.  I am still getting credit card offers, although they seem to have slowed down, and still getting catalogs.  On the Catalog Choice website, you can view the status of your request, and most of mine are still being processed.  Will keep you posted on the progress of my never-ending quest to reduce junk mail!

Knitters--sign up for Berocco free e-newsletters

Knitters,

Did you know you get get Berocco Yarn's free weekly e-newsletter KnitBits (sent on Fridays) by signing up at www.berocco.com?  I have been receiving this newsletter for several years now and it has some great FREE patterns.

Great Baby and Children's Bedding--Javis Davis

Today I want to tell you about one of my favorite finds ever. I do lots of my shopping on the Internet, so I was intrigued by the ad in Cookie magazine for a site that claimed to sell custom bedding in a short timeframe.  We adopted our son, and had very little notice between the time we were matched and his birthdate. We had to get a nursery together--fast, but we didn't wanted to buy a bunch of stuff, then have be stuck with it if things fell through.  Enter Javis Davis.  The site has an incredible selection of styles and fabrics for crib bedding, children's bedding, or even adult bedrooms, as they make bedding up to a queen size bed.  The prices are very reasonable, and comparable with store-bought bedding. 

The fabrics they offer include traditional girl/boy styles, as well as contemporary styles.  They have fabrics collections already put together, or you can design your own.  I designed my own transportation-themed crib set.  You can also add throw pillows, quilts, tablecloths and other accessories, also custom-designed.  To guide you in making your decisions you can order fabric swatches, at $3 for a fabric grouping. A plus--the swatches are generously sized.

When I initially called, I got an answering machine, and was a bit nervous about that. The staff promptly called me back.  They are super-friendly and extremely helpful in suggesting ideas, what colors work well together, fabrics that work better for certain products, etc.  The company is a small family-run business out of Alabama, and the products are made in their workshops by a small staff. 

When my crib bedding arrrived, I was amazed at the quality of the workmanship. I sew myself, and I am amazed they can provide the bedding for the cost that they do.
I was so pleased to be able to purchase a product that is actually made in the USA by a local family-owned company.  I was very pleased with the quality of the fabrics, and they have been wearing extremely well.  Family and friends also were amazed at the quality.  I cannot say enough great things about this product!! I was so happy with it that I already ordered twin bedding for my son.  I only wish they made king-size bedding, because I would order it for my own bedroom.

Javis Davis also makes fabric yardage available, if you want to sew your own matching accessories.