Post-holiday wrap up!

Now that the gift giving of the holidays is over, I can share some of the great handmade stuff I gave as gifts this year without ruining the surprise. Of course, most of it was not handmade by me, which was my original goal, but it was great to support small businesses and give gifts that seemed especially meaningful. Here are some of the great Etsy shops I bought from this year.


For my sister and sister-in-law, I ordered two of these cute pink bird zippy pouches from Bethysak. She was very helpful with the custom order and really friendly to work with.

To match the pouches, I was able to get custom-made sleep masks in the same fabric from one of my teammates and favorite sellers, Our Side of the Mountain Crafts.


Debbie from Our Side of the Mountain also took a custom order for two half aprons that went to my mother-in-law and grandmother-in-law. They both love to cook, so the aprons were perfect, and I can't say enough good things about how sweet Debbie is and how great her stuff looks.


My sister, who is always stylish, also got some silver sparrow earrings from the Urban Muse. They have a lot of great jewelry and I'm sure I'll be back for more from their shop soon.


I also ended up with some great stuff for myself this Christmas. Through trading with other sellers, I managed to pick up some wonderful items that had been some of my favorites for awhile. These beautiful filigree earrings are from Beaux Bijoux Jewelry. I've worn them several times already and they always get noticed.


The POE team (Photographers of Etsy) held a Secret Santa Swap and I got paired up with fellow team member Risamay. She sent me a print of her amazing Let There Be Lights photograph, along with some Obama post cards.


And last but not least, I got this set of three adorable pink bird ornaments from Woodmouse. Her shop is temporarily closed for the holidays, but make sure to check it out when she reopens in January because she has really wonderful toys and decorations. In addition to being so cute, these little birds are incredibly sturdy. That comes in handy, as I found out, if your cat enjoys trying to knock your Christmas tree over!


I hope everyone had a great holiday season. I had a wonderful time with my family and friends and love all the wonderful gifts I was able to give and get. Happy New Year!

Fall Crafts Challenge

I'm participating in an online monthly challenge where a small group of crafters and artists submit a piece of their work for the month's theme. Anyone can vote on which item they like best. The winner and two runners up will receive small prizes from everyone else who submitted. This month's theme is autumn, and I submitted a picture I took over the summer at the Getty Center. The photo is of a single orange leaf in a shallow brown stream.


To check out the other wonderful entries, go here. If you'd like to vote, all the items are listed in a column on the right.

Blogiversary.

I'm a little late in remembering, but October 13th was the one year anniversary of when I started this blog. In the course of that year, I've bought a new digital SLR camera, learned and experimented more with photo editing programs, and opened up an etsy shop. I've also been commissioned to photograph a handful of weddings and events. So several photography goals have been met in that relatively short time frame. I'd like to think my skills have improved a little as well. So here's some champagne and confetti to celebrate, and with hopes that the next year will bring even more experience, accomplishment, and success. Cheers!

Excessories

I decided to try branching out with my photography by making some jewelry and accessories out of it. I ordered a small glass pendant starter kit and went to work. By sealing some photos onto these little glass tiles, they end up the perfect size for pendant necklaces, charms, or keychains. I'm still working on my technique, but I think they've turned out pretty well so far. One necklace has been given away to my wonderful friend Ivette for her birthday. One keychain has been promised to my husband. The others will soon be going in my etsy shop, and hopefully more will be on the way soon.

Carded

When I first decided I wanted to open an etsy shop, a fellow etsy seller, ettu, suggested including note cards as well as photography prints. I thought this was a great idea, so I had a small amount printed, and have been offering them in my shop and giving them away for birthdays since then. While I liked the way they came out, printers who will print small quantities are few and far between, and I didn't want to be stuck with 100 robot or disco ball note cards cluttering up my apartment if they weren't that popular. So since then I've started making my own cards by mounting 4 x 6 inch prints to blank white cards I found at a crafts store. This is so much easier, since I can make them to order in any quantities I want, and don't have to wait for them to be printed and shipped. And since the photos are a standard size, it gives the option of having a small frameable print in addition to the card. Of the two new card designs I've debuted, both sold almost immediately. So I think it's a success and I'll be making more cards like this, with more photos, in the future.

"His & Hers" shoes card

"Confetti" 3 card set

Photographers of Etsy

As I mentioned earlier, I started an etsy shop as a way to showcase some of my photography. I also joined a team of other photographers there, and together we talk about techniques, new photos, and generally try to promote each others' work. This group has a blog that discusses and shows a lot of talented photography: http://photographersofetsy.blogspot.com

I was featured on the blog last week as part of a welcome to new members. Please check it out here if you have a chance. This is the photo of mine that was featured:

Miscellaneous

In Los Angeles, even the cats have scripts.


This is my cat sitting on a script my husband was reading. Later on, she was yawning, so I guess that means she's going to pass on it for now.


In other news, I started an Etsy store for my photography - Flash Frame. 

Etsy.com is a website for buying and selling all kinds of handmade arts and crafts. It's an awesome site, and a nice way for me to be able to sell prints of my photos. So check it out if you are interested. 

www.flashframe.etsy.com