Indie Find: Good4You Herbs and Teas

I love my morning cup. I like to vary it up between coffee and tea. What I also love about tea is all the varieties that are caffeine free so I can enjoy them in the evening as well. I have purchased several teas from Good4You on Etsy: http://www.etsy.com/shop/good4you and enjoyed them all. They had a deal on Heartsy last week, so I stocked up. (Not familiar with Heartsy? Super discounts from Etsy shops! http://heartsy.me) You can order either loose teas or bags, whichever you prefer. I use a lot of loose teas but decided to try some bags this time. With great names and super fab artwork, this is a fun shop to browse. And excellent customer service makes it a breeze to purchase as well. Some varieties include: pure bliss chai, simmer down, wake up & live, for spring sniffles (speaking of Spring sniffles, we have some of that around our house right now, should have put that one in my cart!), and dream tea. If you are a tea lover, I highly recommend Good4You teas.

Etsy Find: imwithsully

The Etsy Twitter Team member featured this week is Kimberly Coles and her Etsy shop imwithsully. Kimberly makes original art, illustrations, prints, and graphic jewelry in her own unique style. She is a fascinating person! Read on--here is an interview in her own words:

What is the one thing people would be surprised to know about you?
I'm an award-winning Creative Director, Designer and Illustrator with more than 20 years of advertising and marketing experience. I have lead multi-disciplinary teams at large and small ad agencies and have developed many big name brands across a variety of digital and traditional mediums. In 2009, I was named one of the “50 Best Female Web Designers Around the World”. I was also recently featured on PBS.org as top woman web designer. My branding work, web design and product illustrations for Hello World Clothing were featured as “the most adorable pajamas ever” in the 2009 Holiday Gift Guide as on Dooce.com, the leading personal blog ranked 7th on Forbes’ list of the most influential women in media. My custom handmade mother's jewelry was showcased by the Clothes for a Cause - Pink Ribbon Collection through the Home Shopping Network.

What do you want your customers to know most about your products?
My wish is to transport viewers into dream-like worlds where mythical characters, whimsical fairytale princesses, precocious pixies, and vintage kitsch cuties tell tales of enchantment and merriment. I experiment with all different types of media: graphite, paper collage, color pencils, acrylics, oils, pen and ink, crayons, copic markers, pastels, digital, clays, metals... just to name a few. I have studiously avoided “signature” motifs and prefer to evolve my illustration work with fresh concepts, techniques, and materials. Many artworks start with the potential of being my favorite, but like children, I just can’t choose one over the other.

How do you use Twitter? Do you have a business goal with Twitter?
Because I am influenced by all sorts of creativity and creative people, I recently created an inspiration showcase blog at www.websitebakery.com. Now that I’ve made the leap to being an independent Creative Director with my own design studio, the inspiration site and social media on Twitter is the most relevant way to become to inspire other creative people and drive traffic at the same time.

What is the single most important way you bring traffic/sales to your shop?
My personal portfolio and blog is devoted to illustration, design, and interactive design. As an Interactive Creative Director by day, this is my chance to get back to the art of drawing by hand and promote my work online.



Links to Kimberly Cole and her work: Etsy Shop:
www.etsy.com/shop/imwithsully
Twitter: @kimberlycoles
Blog: www.imwithsully.com/blog
Portfolio: www.kimberlycoles.com
Inspiration Showcase site: www.websitebakery.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/kimberlycoles

imwithsully ships internationally.

Etsy Twitter Team: Etsy Twitter Team Shop of the Week: MindyG Jewelry Boutique

Etsy Twitter Team: Etsy Twitter Team Shop of the Week: MindyG Jewelry Boutique

Visiting MindyG's Jewelry Boutique is like getting a glimpse into Aladdin's treasure cave! Glowing freshwater pearls, colorful gemstones, gold, and sterling silver are all hallmarks of this shop's exquisitely designed jewelry.

Owner Mindy Greenville finds inspiration for her work in nature, fashion, music, and traveling with her family. "Its a great outlet for my creative side," she says." In addition to her online boutique, Mindy also designs custom bridal/bridesmaids jewelry locally in the San Diego area.

Introduced to Twitter when she joined the Etsy Twitter Team, she discovered a whole new way to connect. "I started using Twitter as a way to help promote my business and other artists that have amazing products to offer to the public. The power of online networking is a huge tool and a great way to meet others of like mind, those in the same trade who can offer advice, or just find some neat art!"

The shop happily offers flat rate domestic and international shipping as well as custom designs. "I offer something for just about everyone-birthdays, anniversarys, for moms, sisters, and teacher gifts. "

You can discover Mindy's many treasures in her etsy shop: http://mindyg.etsy.com/ or on her blog. On Twitter, www.twitter.com/mindyg.

Etsy Twitter Team: Shop of the Week: Joslin Jewels

Etsy Twitter Team: Shop of the Week: Joslin Jewels

Sheridan Joslin, of JoslinJewels.etsy.com, creates, in her words, “fine wire wrapped and gemstone jewelry”. But if you take one look at her shop you can see that it involves so much more than that. Just saying “fine wire wrapped and gemstone jewelry” about her shop is like saying the sculpture David was just sculpted out of plain old marble and is no big deal! Her work is intricate. Her work is simple. Her work is the kind of art that the artist makes the infinitely complex look like it took no effort at all to make and that, my friend, is the hallmark of a great artist.

“Whether simple or intricate, I meticulously craft each piece of jewelry I create. I use only fine metals and carefully selected gemstones. Each piece is original and most are one of a kind. I love gemstones as much as I love a good puzzle. Making intricate wire jewelry is like a challenging puzzle. It involves shaping and forging straight wire into intricate designs with no soldering -- only wrapped connections. It's an art that dates back thousands of years, and many of the techniques used today are the same as those used in ancient times. With only a few simple tools and careful manipulation, a skilled jewelry artist can sculpt wire into beautiful works of wearable art.”

And that is exactly what Sheridan does with her work. Check out her shop and be amazed!

Follow her on Twitter @joslinjewels
Blog: joslinjewels.blogspot.com
Become her Fan on Facebook: facebook.com/JoslinJewels
Second Etsy Shop: BijouxRomantique.etsy.com
Second Facebook Fan Page: facebook.com/BijouxRomantique

Indie Find--BDK Signature

BDK Signature: Providing 100% Satisfaction With Cute Products! A very accurate tag line. BDK Signature is the dream of Brie, a college student looking for a means to make money to help pay her college expenses. Pretty glass pendants, crocheted scrubbies and beanies adorn this cute Etsy shop.
"While I'm using the profit to pay for college, sharing the joy of handmade and knowing that I am making customers happy is the bigger priority for me." Brie puts great care into her products, and it shows. I recently purchased a glass pendant and a set of little round face scrubbies. The items were not only beautiful and made well, but also packaged with care. Check out everything in her shop here: http://Beegrl88.etsy.com

Indie Find--Fresh Metal

Fresh Metal is a great name for this Etsy shop! Beautiful handmade jewelry with a very fun, fresh feel. Lush colors, beautiful Earthy and water-y stones, playful use of silver and copper, the whole shop is a feast for the eyes. Designed by Jill, a fellow Michigander and working mom of a little boy and 3 playful kitty cats! She made some lovely custom earrings for me a few weeks ago that turned out even prettier than I had imagined, and I highly recommend her work. Check out her jewelry at http://freshmetal.etsy.com and read more about Jill and her adventures in life and art at:
http://freshmetaljewelry.blogspot.com

Lake Erie Beach Glass

Sea Beach Glass is glass that was once a beautiful piece of tableware, a bottle, or a dish that once served a purpose. For one reason or another it was discarded and found its way into the water where nature refined this piece of trash by tumbling it into a beautiful, smooth, gem. It has been given back us by nature where we can find these beautiful pieces laying on the shores of our Lake! Headed up by Jodie, Lake Erie Beach Glass creates beautiful jewelry designs and art from the pieces that they pick up off the shore of Great Lake Erie. LEbg™ is a family business, enjoying their days beachcombing several beaches along the coast. In addition to sea glass they collect found objects and like to help our environment by picking up the "flotsam and jetsam" trash that is harmful to our wildlife and by properly disposing of it. LEbg™ is proud to be helping in hosting the 2009 North American Sea Glass Festival in Erie, Pa. Visit them October 17th & 18th as a vendor or attendee! Visit http://www.seaglassassociation.org for more details.
I love the colors of beach glass. Pale blues to vivid greens, warm amber and pristine white. They are fitting of the name beach glass! You can get some beautiful one of a kind pieces from Jodie's shop. I recently purchased this adorable pair of earrings in an emerald green color. So sweet, and they dress up my everyday wear, bringing lots of compliments. ;) Visit her shop at http://lakeeriebeachglass.etsy.com and check out the great selection of beach glass jewelry.

Etsy Twitter Team: Shop of the Week: LM Creation

I've blogged about LM Creation before, since buying one of her business card holders that I love so much. But here's a little more info from the artist herself, Lisa:

Lisa's aim is to make "the best quality piece that I can in my own style and with fabrics that really appeal to me. I also aim to provide the best customer service that I can, the same kind of service that I would like to receive as a customer." Inspired by the beautiful variety of fabrics available, Lisa, like many textile artists, often feels that the fabric "tells me what to do, so when I see the right fabric I just know that it will make a special bag or wristlet or whatever." Her tip for using Twitter? "Get involved with other people on Twitter, respond to their tweets, re-tweet something that is interesting or good for a new twitter member who might need some help. I might tell people what I'm working on, but I only post links to items in my shop once or twice a day, no more than that. People get to know me and the things that I make and I've had sales and custom orders from twitter contacts, as well as being featured in blogs and treasuries."

Special Deal Offered : 10% discount offered to Twitter customers until July 12. Use code "EtsyTwitter" in the Message to Seller and 10% of purchase price will be refunded.

Check out all of Lisa's lovely card holders, wristlets, iPod cases, and more at http://lmcreation.etsy.com

The Crochet Hamburger Dress

Browsing around some of my favorite sites and blogs looking for some crafty crochet type things for a certain yarn loving sister of mine, I came across this Crochet Hamburger Dress. I love this! So creative and fun! Joy Kampia O'Shell is the artist behind this dress. She also has an Ice Cream Cone dress and a Sundae dress in her line up of fantastic wearable art. Check out all of her delicious and fun creations at her website: http://joykampia.com/

BelaDonna Jewels

I am so excited to report that I won this ~lovely~ "Key to My Heart" necklace from BelaDonna Jewels! The pale pink heart stone is so pretty and delicate next to the bright silver key. The vintage look is girlie, yet the right amount of fun and funky at the same time. As soon as I opened the package, I put the necklace on immediately. It just so happens that it looks great with my outfit today, and in fact goes perfectly with my daily style! This lovely necklace was made my designer Anabela, a truly multi-talented lady. She is a graphic designer as well as artist in many mediums. Adorable wooden Japanese Kokeshi dolls, polymer clay sushi rolls, origami, to name a few, and of course jewelry. Anabela makes her jewelry using stones, semi-precious stones, glass, swarovski crystals, pearls, vintage finds, lucite and more, bringing a very elegant touch to her designs. Check out more at the BelaDonna Jewels Etsy store here: http://beladonnajewels.etsy.com and her blog (with monthly giveaways!) here: http://thebeladonna.blogspot.com/

Etsy Twitter Team: Shop of the Week: A Cagey Bee

Etsy Twitter Team: Shop of the Week: A Cagey Bee

I like the creative name for this Etsy shop. The artist is Kris G. Brownlee – or KGB = A Cagey Bee! Very clever!

“I'm a painter, so my first love is creating the actual paintings - from sketching to swirling the paint around my canvas. But because I know a lot of us can't afford to buy original work, I try to offer a variety of lower cost reproductions: prints, notecards, and even little pendants with my characters!

I want my customers to know how much heart and soul and pure joy is poured into my work. I think most of my customers *do* know this, but it's not always easy to get a sense of who someone is via the internet. I was a very quiet, shy child and spent years creating elaborate stories for my imaginary friends. It's really no wonder that I've started to bring some of them to life in my paintings. The idea that I get to share that with my customers? That new friends from all over the world look at my girls and smile? I couldn't have dreamed up a better possibility for my life. :)”

Read her blog at www.acageybee.com
Follow her at Twitter: twitter.com/acageybee

As a special thank you to her Twitter pals, all prints in her shop are 2 for the price of 1 this week. Buy one print and simply enter the name of the second print you'd like in the notes to seller box. Double the cuteness!

Indie Find--Blazing Lily

I won! Blazing Lily had a drawing in appreciation of reaching 50 hearts and I won! My prize was a lovely knitted bookmark and a pretty puzzle necklace! The puzzle necklace is much like the one in the photo above. It's even prettier in person, so sparkly and cute! And the pretty peach bookmark adorned with a little silver flower is already stylishly marking the place in my current read. This Etsy store has a lovely and fun variety of crafts. I love browsing this shop--it's lively and colorful, and I always see something great. Blazing Lily is a sister duo in Arizona. Between the two of them, Kelly and Mandy have knitted items, jewelry, and other pretty projects. Knitted coffee sleeves, a pretty computer wrist rest, lovely copper scroll earrings....I know you'll find something to fall in love with, too.

Go check them out here:
http://blazinglily.etsy.com
http://twitter.com/BlazingLily
http://blazinglily.livejournal.com/

Etsy Twitter Team: Shop of the Week: Tamara Garvey

Etsy Twitter Team: Shop of the Week: Tamara Garvey

Tamara Garvey, of TamaraGarvey.etsy.com, has some really cute and beautiful illustrations. Her style is quirky and fun!

“I draw fun, whimsical, pen-and-ink scenes, usually involving at least one animal and/or tree, as these are my favorite things to study and draw! I sell them as prints in different sizes, including ACEOs, as well as note card sets.

I'm really inspired by the classic pen-and-ink artists Edward Gorey and Aubrey Beardsley. My drawings are made with care in my cute home studio, usually with my dog snoozing on the floor nearby. I'm saving up for a large-format printer of my own so that I can have complete control over my prints (that sounds diabolical! mua ha ha), but in the meantime I have them done at a print shop nearby that does an awesome job. My prints have great color and are printed on nice quality card stock.

My drawings are inspired by my walk to work through Savannah, Georgia's squares, magazines, other artists/crafters on Etsy, color combinations of a stranger's outfit, tattoos, particularly cute dogs at the dog park...anything really!”
Tamara has a degree in Illustration from Savannah College of Art and Design and a B.S. in Biology from Mary Washington College. Her biology background comes through in her piece titled “Enchantment under the Sea” – it’s like looking into a microscope and seeing all sorts of neat little creatures swimming around in the pond water.

She ships everywhere and all her illustrations are shipped wrapped in a waterproof cellophane sleeve, sandwiched between pieces of thick, non-bending cardboard.

Special for the Week: Put “EtsyTwitter” into the “Messages for the Seller” box and await a revised invoice with a 15% discount off any of her items! (If you forget, just send her a convo.)

Indie Find of the Day- BookWormz

BookWormz are so brilliant! Finally an elegant, fun, no fail way to mark the place in your book. No more scraps of paper to lose, little receipts to fall out, or embarrassing shreds marking your cool novel. Oh, and you can finally get rid of that Garfield bookmark from 1982, ok? This is much more presentable for that summer reading at the pool or beach. Available in a variety of sizes, including a one-size-fits-all and some really cute styles. These are great for gift giving, too! Perfect for the BookWorm on your list! Check them out on Etsy at http://BookWormz.etsy.com.

Indie Find of the Day--Curious Mess

Also the Etsy Twitter Team shop of the week for this week, and fellow UWIB member, Starla Petersen’s Etsy shop, CuriousMess.etsy.com, is anything but a mess. It’s a shop filled with curiously wonderful and lovely items! And the item photography is delicious!

“When I first opened my shop, I was only making the wood paintings. But as things have progressed, I've begun to work my love of fabric into it as well, with the newest items being fabric bowls and fabric brooches/pendants. I love fun and whimsical.”

And it shows in her work. Her fabric bowls are stunning in their design and detail. You can really see the fine craftsmanship in her new line of embroidered brooches, too.

“Everything you see in my shop, I truly enjoyed making. It makes me so happy to be able to express myself creatively, and I hope that comes through in my artwork. I want my work to make people smile.”
What inspires her to create? “The whole entire process inspires me. From start to finish... sketching out ideas... playing around with fabric... picking colors. My absolute favorite part of it all is that first spark of a new idea or design. I get giddy. Unfortunately, my ideas usually come to me as I'm lying in bed about to doze off. It's very hard to get to sleep once I've got a new idea bouncing around in my head.”

When asked about her Twitter habits: “I like to make sure I keep my Twittering fresh. I want people to see not only the shop updates and the things I create, but get a good glimpse of my personality as well. You want to be memorable in a good way. Reply to what others are saying. Make connections. Yes, I just added a new bowl to the shop. But I also LOVE 80's movies!”

Free shipping worldwide April 6th - 12th. Just mention “EtsyTwitter” in your message to seller and shipping will be refunded.

Cinnamon & Honey

I recently made a discovery of the bloggy kind thanks to the fabulous artist Kristen Stein (http://kristensteinfineart.etsy.com which is another blog post all together)--Cinnamon & Honey! Cinnamon & Honey is written by Robin, who is a very talented writer and also very paper crafty (check out the cute handmade cards in her Etsy shop here: http://CinnamonAndHoney.etsy.com). As well as "hearting" a number of her cards, I completely fell in love with her blog! She has such a great writer's voice and overall super cool vibe. And I am in awe of paper crafty chicks...I swear I can barely get a straight line even with the aid of a paper cutter. I've decided that I'm much more the mad scientist type crafter which is I guess why bath and body product formulating appeals to me so much (well that and my lifelong obsession with skin care). But I digress. There are always interesting articles and tidbits on Robin's blog, so I am totally honored to be featured this week! Check out the feature and explore her blog here: http://cinnamonandhoney.blogspot.com.

Etsy Twitter Team Shop of the Week

Angel Kisses Jewelry is a collective of related artists. Michelle Aguilar, her mother Sherry Hadley, and sister Annette Crews create one of kind jewelry pieces using semi-precious stones, glass beads and their own handmade polymer clay beads and pendants. Many of their creations are available as full sets of matching earrings, necklaces, and bracelets. They make unique pieces any woman would be glad to wear around town.


“Each of our pieces is unique. We spend a lot of time selecting the best available materials to ensure our final pieces are unlike anything else. The art of jewelry design is a form of self-expression. We each bring ourselves into our designs and continually strive to learn and perfect new techniques and materials. This broadens our available selection to our customers.

We love to create and inspiration can strike at the funniest times. Sometimes we are inspired by fashion or art, and other times it's like a mental getaway in your head while you type an email at work. We have each had our own arts and crafts we have been helplessly addicted to throughout the years. I think the inspiration and draw for our jewelry is that we sit down with a pile of beads or a clump of clay and we have a gorgeous piece that we can instantly wear out the door when we are finished. It's like instant gratification for crafters.”

When asked about networking: "Twitter has been an invaluable networking site for us. It has allowed us to keep our followers informed on both the personal and business fronts of being jewelry designers, bringing us closer to our customers. We tweet our new listings, updates and promotions as well as personal updates about working together as a family and our own passions in life.”

From March 2 - 8, 10% of all proceeds from sales will go to support HIV Positive women in Addis Kidan, Ethiopia, through the Good Samaritan Organization. Sherry personally visits this organization in Ethiopia to ensure the funds go directly to the women. Her next visit to Ethiopia is scheduled for March 16, 2009. http://AngelKissesJewelry.etsy.com

Originally posted by In My Head Studios http://etsytwitter.blogspot.com/.

PinkFink's Creations

I love funky cute jewelry, and these earrings I just received from PinkFink's Creations are exactly that! They are so light, I can barely tell I have them on. They are handmade with polymer clay and coated with a protective finish that gives them a nice polished look. The detail work is amazing! Perfect on-the-go earrings to match my particularly groovy outfit today. I'm in a gray, yellow and black argyle sweater and I'm feeling like a pretty hip chick. Too bad the only person that will see me today is the post office lady! :) She has lots of other fabulous creatures...some jewelry, some little sculptures, all adorable. So check out all the other one-of-a-kind pieces at PinkFink's etsy shop: http://pinkfink.etsy.com

Indie Love Blog

"A blog for Artisan Love"--check out the Indie Love Blog! http://myindielove.blogspot.com/ Headed by Nyblaque, a fabulously talented jewelry artist and Etsy seller herself, this blog features interviews of other Indie Artisans. Thought provoking questions, colorful photos of handmade items, and an eclectic collection of designers makes this a great place to stop in, shop around, and learn about other sellers. It was my priviledge and pleasure to be interviewed on Friday. Swing on by and spread the indie love!

I confessed!

To my great honor, I was invited to confess my secrets at http://bonhomiejewels.blogspot.com and I must admit, it was very therapeutic...rehabilitating even. ;) If you have a moment, hop on over there and take a look at my skeletons revealed. While you're there, you should definitely check out Bonhomie's jewelry. I have added several pieces to my favorites and my Wishpot List. Fantastic handcrafted silver and copper jewelry!