Handmade Parade Ornament Swap!

Handmade Parade Ornament Swap!
Originally uploaded by littlelovelies

Sick of personality-free storebought ornaments? Want to build your handmade ornament collection? Want to meet other talented crafters along the way?

I thought so!

Here's the lowdown:

The deadline to sign up for this swap is Oct 4
The deadline to mail for this swap is November 1.
We will be accepting 24 swappers.
You must have a blog or flickr account (or know me in real life if you don't. I need to be able to bug you if you are late mailing) to participate.
This swap will cost $10 to participate (for shipping).

Each member will be making 12 ornaments and will not be getting their own ornament back. You need to mail me your finished ornament by November 1 so I can assemble and mail out the ornament packages before Thanksgiving. Your ornaments MUST BE HANDMADE.

If this is all peachy to you email me at thehandmadeparade@gmail.com with ORNAMENT SWAP in the subject and I'll get you going!

Upcycled Shirt Tote

Upcycled Shirt Tote
Originally uploaded by craftykaytea

Don't throw out those old tank tops! Upcycle them into tote bags (perfect for groceries!)

Awesome costumes! Go to flickr to see photo creds

Awesome costumes!
Originally uploaded by littlelovelies

Stumped on what to be this Halloween? Any of these clever costumes will make you the life of the party. I think the husband and I might sport the paper doll and car freshener this year!

Think I can make my four year old be Napoleon? Although if he sees that transformer its over for me!

Wow! Where have YOU been all summer?

You might be wondering where I was all summer long...one minute I was posting away and one minute, poof! She's gone!

Well...I have been busy crafting up a new baby! Our third baby, Charlotte Faith was born August 22 and since my last post I was on bedrest making sure she was healthy and safe and not born before she was done.

Not much computering was done during that time, but I am back and ready to kick off an awesome fall and holiday season! I am cooking up another challenge and Holiday Gift Guide and even thinking there might be a first HP sponsored swap in there somewhere.

I was told that life with three kiddos would be nuts, but so far it has been great and I have even been able to be productive!

I know! Crazy, huh?? Nothing is ready to be shared yet, but know this: big things are coming!! When I have some more details I will fill you all in, but for now you'll have to be content with me teasing you.

Next week I will be sharing what our next Handmade Parade Challenge will be, so get your creative brains ready!

Giveaway Clarification

Please forgive me I made an error in the last post!! Please leave your comments for the Fresh Squeezed fabric on Randi's Blog!!

Just in case the link above doesn't work cut and paste this into your browser:

http://ihavetosay.typepad.com/randi/2008/06/fresh-squeezed.html

Sorry guys!

Fresh Squeezed Fabrics Giveaway

Today marks the Grand Opening of the Fresh Squeezed Fabric shop on Etsy and to celebrate Randi is having an awesome fabric giveaway on her blog. Here is what she says about the exciting opening and giveaway. I hope you stop by and enjoy the wonderful offerings she has!


Today is the official grand-opening of my shop, Fresh-Squeezed Fabrics! Thank you so much for stopping by!

The idea of operating a fabric store has always been a dream for me, mostly because I absolutely love fabric and the thought of being surrounded by it seems so right. I didn't figure on it ever happening due to the money needed to start one. Hundreds of bolts of fabric, store rent, insurance, etc., etc., etc., cost too much for me to even consider it. I had never considered opening a shop online.

I did have a situation come up recently where I needed to research how to buy fabric wholesale and it turned out to be pretty simple. My mind started working overtime as I hatched a plan to start a store online. Then I happened to find that fabric can be sold on Etsy and things started to fall into place from there. My husband was surprisingly enthusiastic, so I decided to go for it.

Let me say that this decision has been laced with insecurity and indecision the whole way. For some reason, every time I receive a shipment of fabric I feel entirely overwhelmed for about 24 hours, but then that passes and all is well.

So far, so good for my little store, and today I want to celebrate! Plus I am in the mood to give something away. A drawing for some fabric is in order!

There are three ways to win:

1--One person will pick three 1/2 yards cuts of any fabric (totaling 1-1/2 yards). Anything you choose in my store will do.

2--One person will win this fat-quarter set. All I can say about this fabric is that it is beautiful! The colors and designs are amazing!

3--One person will win this fabric bundle. This fabric is so bright and cheery and just screams of a summer day!

If you would like to take part, simply leave a comment in this post to put your name into the drawing. If you link my grand-opening and my store on your blog, you may leave two extra comments (a total of 3 comments), which of course will up your chances of winning. I will close comments on this post on Thursday, June 26th at 6:00 PM and I will announce the winners on Friday, June 27th. Please be sure to leave an email address in your comment so that I can contact the winners!

***Due to the cost of shipping, US and Canadian addresses only please.

***I am leaving it up to individuals to decide whether to leave 1 or 3 comments since I know we are all trustworthy. ;)

Thank you so much for celebrating with me today and best of luck!

For a Good Cause

Sunday, June 29th a Liana of Mixed Plate is hosting along with her family a fundraiser to help with rising medical costs of treating her young cousin's lymphoma. One of our members, Crescent Maille has donated her beautiful Daisy Chain necklace to the silent auction happening that night.

If you would like to learn more information about the event and how you can help see Liana's entry over on her blog Mixed Plate. Thanks for donating such a beautiful piece, Crescent Maille!

I got this email from the people putting together the Strange Folk Festival and thought I'd pass it on!



Applications for the 3rd annual Strange Folk Festival are being accepted at strangefolkfestival.com now thru July 6th! Our 2008 show will be September 27th and 28th, Saturday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

This event is juried, and we will be choosing 120 vendors. There is no fee to apply. The vendor fee will be $65, and they have the option of renting a table or bringing their own tent. Last year, we hosted 100 indie artists and crafters from across the country in a one day event that attracted over 5,000 attendees from the St. Louis area.

Attached is our utterly adorable blog graphic, should you decide to post about it.

If you have any questions, or would like more information, feel free to e-mail me at strangefolkfestival@yahoo.com

Thanks for your support of the indie craft community!

Autumn Wiggins
Strange Girl in Charge

---

Strange Folk
A festival of social significance. A craft happening in psychedelic color.

September 27th and 28th, 2008
Saturday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Sunday 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Community Park
O'Fallon, IL

www.strangefolkfestival.com
Once upon a time, a strange gnome stumbled upon some twittering birds that told him how do find a magical book of faces. Watching the sunset flickr through the trees, he decided it was too late in the day for adventures. Instead, he went home to his mushroom and exclaimed, "This is my space, and I'm not leaving!"

Looking for some weekend fun?

You could make a bowling alley in your kitchen...


or you could make your own play dough...


or create a family of super heroes...


or enter a funny food contest...


or make your own hacky sack...



All of these would be great activities for kids to do with their dads this weekend. Hope all you dads have a great Father's Day! Keep the Summer Camp activities coming guys! They are great!

Handmade Parade Founding Member - Shannon Weary

Shannon of Cassowary Jewlery tells us a little bit about herself. Be sure to check out her creations at Handmade Parade!

I'm a Memphis born jewelry designer who started collecting rocks when I was small. I mostly am inspired by my supplies, and I'd like to be a counselor when I'm older.

I'm a nondescript person who likes comics, video games, and reading. I have a soft spot for small children, and nearly 500 movies on my netflix queue.


To see more of Shannon's work please go to her flickr page!