Blog Feature

I got a very nice email from Emily of Gems by Em. It was her birthday yesterday and she picked a couple of birthday items to feature on her blog. She picked one of my shirts!

Thank you Emily - and a very Happy Birthday to you!

Buy Something New Today - Oak Trees!

So you have heard it all before! I love Fall! And that includes the beautiful trees changing colors. Before the not so fun part of raking them up comes seeing them float to the ground, stomping aroung in them, hearing them crackle under your feet. So how many things do you think you can find on Etsy relating to oak trees? Atleast 451 items. Here are 3 of my favorite.

O A K

T R E E S

First from the wonderful shop - Cutesie Clips - is this gorgeous assortment of hair clips for your little girls hair. I haven't ordered my set yet - but know that I will! And they will be perfect just like all the other clips I have ordered from Jennifer.

From Sweet B Studio is this too cute print of an oak tree, complete with leaves and acorns. From their original drawing this print can be personalized and your info will be "carved" into the tree. What a sweet gift for a wedding or anniversary.

And lastly, I love this little felt tree. It just makes me smile. Actually all of the things in the Hi Tree shop do. This is the littlest of the oak trees available but there are also sequoias and cypress trees.

If you want to read more on these items just click on the picture and you will be taken straight to the listing!

Once again...

Thank you Sydnei of Simply Sentimental! She has picked one of my personalized girls shirts to be in her very nice treasury that she created. You can view it here.

ok - so it appears I have been too slow in posting this. The treasury has expired but I still want to thank Sydnei! Alayna is modeling the shirt that was chosen for her treasury.

I also want to remind everyone to enter in my current giveaway featuring 5 very sweet cards from Sydnei's shop - Simply Sentimental! The drawing will be held tomorrow evening (EST) at 10pm.

Wordless Wednesday...

Just have to share...

I have reached a milestone - 100 sales!

I am so excited - but busy!! Ok - back to work now. : )

Home cookin'

I know I already said goodbye to summer, but...

I am so sorry I haven't had an update on Try Something New Today. I actually haven't been cooking too much lately. My mom is visiting so we have all enjoyed her home cooking. Tonight was red chile enchiladas! drool...

__________________________________

Although, I do have something to share. It is still in the beginning stages but in a few months I hope to have some homemade vanilla extract. It is super easy! All you need is some sort of seal able bottle, vodka, and Madagascar vanilla beans. I purchased my beans through this Ebay shop. You can buy the bottles here or here or here. The vodka doesn't need to be any kind of fancy brand. At my local liquor shop they have lower shelf vodkas and then top shelf vodkas. Grab something in the middle. Slice the vanilla beans in the middle lenghtwise and put into the bottle. Fill with vodka. Done! For the large bottle that I had I put in 8 vanilla beans. You need to store it in a cool, dark place for up to 4 months. Every once in a while invert the bottle to let it mix.

Here is a really great site with more information all about vanilla!

Saturday Giveaway - Simply Sentimental

Congratulations to Paula!
She is the lucky winner of the picture frame from the fabulous Etsy shop, Onkie Bazoobie. Thank you so much to Danielle for participating in this giveaway and for such a lovely prize! You can visit Danielle's shop by clicking on any of the pictures in her Etsy mini on my right sidebar. You can also view the shops of previous participants and preview upcoming shops that will be offering more fabulous giveaways!

This week Sydnei from the fabulous Etsy shop, Simply Sentimental, is offering a total of 5 of her totally cute handmade cards!

Just in time for the Fall season and Halloween!

Feast your eyes on the amazing details that this talented paper artist creates! All of these cards have been left blank inside for you to personalize. Click on the pictures for more information. And for those of you who can't wait to make a purchase - Sydnei has so graciously offered FREE SHIPPING from 9/6 - 9/12 throughout her entire shop to my blog readers. Just enter the code "CLOSET" during checkout. So go crazy buying - now you have an excuse! :)

And who wouldn't love to receive one of these in the mail?!

How can all of these be yours you ask?

* Click HERE to visit Sydnei's shop, then return to this post to let us know your favorite item.

* Make sure you leave your email address so that I may contact you if you are the winner.

* Only one entry per person

The fine print... This giveaway will be held from Saturday, Septmeber 6th - Friday, September 12th. The drawing will close at 10pm EST. The winner will be randomly picked and announced in next Saturday's Giveaway thread. This drawing is open to anyone, Sydnei is willing to ship worldwide.

Good Luck!

And please check out the rest of my blog - there is much to see!

What took so long?!

So I have finally been clued in on how to check if I have been included in treasuries on Etsy. So I decide to go trolling and looking for a gold star. I found one! :)

Thank you to Scribble and Script for picking me!

You can view my oh so uber popular witch shirt in the treasury here.

A shout out to Sydnei of Simply Sentimental for this screen shot of my treasury!!!

Buy Something New Today - For the Girls!

Today's selection of must have items from Etsy are things I found while browsing through the hundreds of thousands of handmade goodies. I am window shopping while trying to find things for my daughter's upcoming 2nd birthday. Of course I may have found a couple things for myself too! Click on any of the pictures for more information on the featured item.

G I R L S

I had always thought of these silhouettes as old fashioned. But I love the updated twist with the girly pink! Sold from BabyCakes Art as a set of notecards with matching seals, it can be personalized to reflect your little beauty(ies)!

From a talented jewelry artist, RHB Designs, is this gorgeous copper disc pendant accented with a sterling heart charm. It is then stamped with the name of your choice. It is truly simple but a piece anyone girl would love.

Last we have this big, beautiful letter of your choice from Kiss Me Kate. The painting and embellishments look so great together and would be a fantastic gift. There are several sizes and fonts available so be sure to check them all out!

Signs of Fall

I need to go out and start buying my Fall stuff for outside. I go crazy with cornstalks and scarecrows, mums, and of course pumpkins. When we bring in the new stuff - that means that other things must be put away in the barn until next year.

Our little bear steps off of his rock perch and goes into hibernation until next Spring.

And our star plaque will be replaced with a gorgeous autumn wreath.

But one of the things I love the most - is all of the apples that have fallen off the trees in our orchard. Some are half eaten by the deer and other's look almost perfect, but soft. It is the smell... My husband cuts the grass on the lawn tractor and runs over all the apples. It smells like fresh apple cider right in my backyard. Love that!

Alayna's Closet Giveaway!

How would you like your very own Alayna's Closet original dino shirt? If you head on over to Maternal Spark you can enter to win your choice of a girls or boys dino tee.

Goodbye Summer!

I hope that you are all enjoying a Labor Day weekend filled with family, friends, and fun!

Saturday Giveaway - Onkie Bazoobie

Congratulations to Deb!
She is the lucky winner of the pendant from the fabulous Etsy shop, The Pretty Peacock. Thank you so much to Ana for participating in this giveaway and for such a lovely prize! You can visit Ana's shop by clicking on any of the pictures in her Etsy mini on my right sidebar. You can also view the shops of previous participants and preview upcoming shops that will be offering more fabulous giveaways!

This week from the talented artist, Danielle, we have a gorgeous hand distressed picture frame. Just take a look at this...

Here is some more information from Danielle about how she created this beautiful one of a kind frame:

My papering technique makes the paper look like it is seamlessly merged onto the frame and is really quite a beautiful process. I have done quite a bit of hand distressing on each and every corner to give it an aged look and make it feel like a piece that has been handed down throughout the years. I handstamped the word "believe" in a copper bookplate set with copper tacks. The picture opening is 4x6 and the entire frame measures 9x7.

How can this be yours you ask?

* Click HERE to visit Danielle's shop, then return to this post to let us know your favorite item.

* Make sure you leave your email address so that I may contact you if you are the winner.

* Only one entry per person

The fine print... This giveaway will be held from Saturday, August 30th - Friday, September 5th. The drawing will close at 10pm EST. The winner will be randomly picked and announced in next Saturday's Giveaway thread. This drawing is open to anyone, Danielle is willing to ship worldwide.

Good Luck!

And please check out the rest of my blog - there is much to see!

Buy Something New Today - Cancer Awareness

Today's selections have been chosen in honor of my husband. Just 3 months ago he was diagnosed with Leukemia (ALL). He spent another tough day at the hospital in preparation for his bone marrow transplant next week. He has shown so much courage and strength throughout this ordeal. So from Alayna and I - we love you!

C A N C E R A W A R E N E S S

This pendant from Gems by Em can be custom created to your specifics - but I love the simple message. Hope.

30% of the proceeds from Etsy shop Mirrorific will be donated towards Leukemia and Lymphoma Society in San Diego.

And this sterling silver with swarovski charm bracelet from Rosebud Boutique is shown in colors to show your support for Leukemia.

An apple a day...

We went to the Farmer's Market today and scored all kinds of goodies. We picked up a nice baguette because my husband is dying to make some cheesy garlic bread. I bought a bag of apples and I am figuring out what to try and make with them. You can see Alayna sampling the merchandise. Some local wine, a bunch of sunflowers, and some nice yellow tomatos!

What a perfect day...

Alayna is wearing my Pretty Paisley Flower shirt, available now.

Witch City...

I am being overrun by witches!

I am so glad that my little witch shirt is so popular! Better order yours today before they all fly away!

Something new to love...

Today Alayna and I went to welcome our newest neighbor. They opened a brand new Michael's in a plaza fairly near our home. I had my trusty 40% off coupon with me and I was ready to shop. They had alot of great deals to celebrate their grand opening week and was able to take advantage of a few of them. I had thrown a rotary cutter into my cart and thought I would use my coupon towards that. But as I wheeled my way through the aisles I found this...

It is perfect for my ribbon and other little things. My ribbon had been in plastic containers on a nearby shelf but it was kind of a pain having to open each container seeing which was the best match. Like my thread, I can now just glance up and see everything at once. My handy hubby hung it up for me lickety split.

Can you tell I love organization! In my studio anyways!

Hello - old friend...

Today I decided to venture up into our attic and find something to dust off and bring into the furniture rotation. I found an old friend. She hasn't really found a permanent place in our house so she had been residing up in dustville for the last couple of years.

I bought her in the Fall of 2004 after we first moved here. There was an antique sale at a local church and I snagged her up for a song! She has a beautiful antique white finish with lovely little crackles.

I thought I could find her a home in my studio. I tried several places and I don't think it's going to work. I am already busting at the seams and need a bigger place to create. Maybe I can move her out into our hallway?

I referred to this desk as "her" 4 times.

Saturday Giveaway - The Pretty Peacock

Congratulations to Diane!

She is the lucky winner of the set of earrings from the fabulous Etsy shop, Lily in the Garden. Thank you so much to Lily for participating in this giveaway and for such a lovely prize! You can visit Lily's shop by clicking on any of the pictures in her Etsy mini on my right sidebar. You can also view the shops of previous participants and preview upcoming shops that will be offering more fabulous giveaways!

This week we have a gorgeous Etsy shop called The Pretty Peacock. Ana specializes in heirloom quality Indian influenced jewelry. She creates custom pendants and bracelets using sterling silver and Swarovski crystals. She has been so generous to offer this beautiful eco friendly silver pendant and ball chain to my blog readers.

Here are some details from Ana's shop:

This is a beautifully unique, eco-friendly sterling silver teardrop pendant ( I try to purchase all my metals from companies who use Earth friendly means of refining).

I hand stamped the Sanskrit word "Abhaya", which means "Fearlessness". I oxidized the characters slightly so they would stand out against the shiny metal. I wire wrapped a gorgeous, 6mm bicone Swarovski crystal in garnet and used a sterling silver Bali spacer and headpin to set off the exotic theme of the necklace. The pendant set is hung from an 18" ball chain

How can this be yours you ask?

* Click HERE to visit Ana's shop, then return to this post to let us know your favorite item.

* Make sure you leave your email address so that I may contact you if you are the winner.

* Only one entry per person

The fine print... This giveaway will be held from Saturday, August 23rd - Friday, August 29th. The drawing will close at 10pm EST. The winner will be randomly picked and announced in next Saturday's Giveaway thread. This drawing is open to anyone, Ana is willing to ship worldwide.

Good Luck!

And please check out the rest of my blog - there is much to see!

Try Something New Today - Green Chile

Today I am longing for family and home.

I'm from New Mexico and my parents and most of my family still live there. When I think of NM I think of the food. I grew up with green and red chile. While I didn't particularly enjoy eating it when I was younger I have come to appreciate it more and more. Living in New Mexico you find chile everywhere. You eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The common question when you go out to eat is - red or green? If you like them both - it's Christmas. You can even find a green chile hamburger at McDonald's and other fast food restaurants. During Fall you can smell the chile roasting in the air. The local Smith's grocery store sells them by the burlap bag full and they have giant roaster's out front with flames lapping away.

Unfortunately New Hampshire isn't known for it's overabundance of chile. When my parents make a trip out this way they pack a large cooler full of dried red chile, frozen roasted green chile, and tamales. (Thanks Mom!) But if we run out 3 or 4 months later then we just have to wait and salivate until they come again.

So I decided to buy some green chiles at my supermarket and roast them at home. There is a process to follow.

I was in the mood for green chile meatloaf and canned wasn't going to cut it. Sadly the chile greatly lacked in the heat and flavor department.

Green Chile Meatloaf


1 pound ground beef
1/2 yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 Hatch green chiles roasted, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup ketchup or tomato sauce (I used v8)
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
2 eggs
1 cups bread crumbs1/2 cup parmesan cheese
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine ground beef, onions, garlic, chile, cheese, thyme, eggs, bread crumbs and season liberally with salt and pepper. Mix by hand until mixture is combined. Form into loaf on lightly oiled shallow baking pan. Brush outside of loaf with ketchup and brown sugar. Bake in oven until just cooked through (about 40 minutes). Remove and let rest for 10 minutes before cutting.

I served this with some roasted garlic and onion potato wedges. Dinner was good - but could've been better with some flavorful New Mexican green chile.
If you are like me, and don't live near NM - order some of your own up here.