My 25th Birthday and Etsy Sale

Yesterday I turned 25.  For my birthday I got dressed up and did my hair and makeup and then I stayed home and relaxed.  I was going to watch Tim Burton movies because that's pretty much my birthday tradition/favorite special day activity but Jordan and I got about halfway through Ed Wood, which we had never seen, and then fell asleep.  I just wasn't feeling movies a whole lot yesterday.  After our nap I watched a whole bunch of 2 Broke Girls and finished season 1.

My mom sent me a bag full of Christmas (haha, I mean birthday) presents and I opened them all yesterday morning.  She got me some jewelry supplies, 2 king size Pay Day candy bars, and an amazing adult coloring book (by this great artist lady, it's the Lost Ocean coloring book) with a pack of twist up colored pencils.  Jordan got me the new Dropkick Murphy's CD for my birthday but I got it the day it came out as a great surprise from him, because he pre-ordered it for me.

I intended to have pork chops and dairy free gluten free Daiya mac and cheese for dinner, but the pork chops hadn't thawed so I'll cook them today instead.  I had mac and cheese for dinner and treated myself to a Toblerone bar.

All in all, it was a pretty laid back birthday but it was great and exactly the sort of birthday I like to have.  Here are my pictures from the day:

I had Jordan take photos of my hair since this hairpin is a new item I'm making to list in my shop.

The thing that I was most excited about my birthday for is my annual birthday sale in my Etsy shop.  Every year I have a sale for the percent off of the age I'm turning, so this year for five more days everything in my Etsy shop is 25% off.  Here are some of the things on sale, all handmade by myself:

Inspired by Reading: Drinking the Rain

This month for Inspired by Reading club we read Drinking the Rain: A Memoir by Alix Kates Shulman.  This is probably the last book I'll be reading for reading club for a little while because I am super duper broke and can't even buy my vitamins, let alone books.  I loved this book partially because it made me think of the game I've been playing lately, Stardew Valley.  In this book a woman learns how to be independent and live off of the land at age 50.  Among other things, she learns how to identify new plants and cook with them.  One of my favorite things in the Stardew Valley game is foraging for different plants and cooking different dishes with them, so that's what was in my mind while reading this book.  To be honest I wasn't feeling inspired at all while reading the book but as soon as I finished reading it this design popped into my head and it seemed fitting.  I originally had an ammonite in place of the wood beads but these worked better with the design.

I used pyrite, matte frosted onyx, an orange agate tusk, wood beads, and a hammered copper clasp.  This necklace had to be made of things I already had because of how the book talks about not adding to the glut and re-using things you have, so I salvaged these wood beads from a broken necklace and they seemed perfect here.  I made the clasp out of copper wire scraps from previous pieces.  I feel like this is the sort of necklace Alix would wear and possibly even make for herself.  It speaks to me of nature and of adventures and being tough, which I think relates well to the book.

Inspired by Reading: The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake

This is my first piece of jewelry that I designed after reading a book.  I joined the Inspired by Reading group this month and I really liked the book we read.  The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender is the story of a nine-year-old girl who discovers that she can taste people's feelings in the food they make.  She struggles with this throughout her life until she finally learns how to live with it.  I intended to make three pieces inspired by this book: one for the innocence of childhood before she discovers her ability, another for the chaotic years of trying to handle it, and a third for when she learns how to live it.  Because of the fact that I only finished this book two days ago and have had low energy I only ended up making the first necklace, the one that represents her innocent childhood before discovering her "gift".

The imagery that stood out to me the most in this book was the red and white at the beginning, especially the red strawberries in the bowl on the lace doily that her mother made.  That's what inspired this necklace.  I had this scrap of lacy ribbon with stitched plastic pearls in a drawer and I added wire wrapped glass beads in red.  I made it a choker-length because it is the length of a necklace for a small girl of almost nine.  This necklace also reminds me of Alice in Wonderland, which seems fitting because it's another tale about a girl whose life is changed forever by things that she can't possibly understand.

Big News and You're all Invited!

You guys!  YOU GUYS!!!  A lady from this indie arts show happened to come across my shop on Etsy and invited me to be a featured artist at the next show!  I'm super excited! (if you can't tell from the massive amount of exclamation points I'm using in this post)  I only have a few weeks to get ready, since I'll be going home for most of June to see my brother!  He'll be home on leave for a month and I haven't seen him in two years.  And after that he'll be stationed in the U.S.!  So many good things!

So the point is that if you are in Seattle on June 22nd you should come to the art show.  There will be a fashion show, live music, and lots of talented artists.  Tickets are $15 and can be purchased here.  And it's cocktail attire so it's also a fun reason to get all dressed up.  I have this lace dress I bought a year ago and haven't worn because it's fancy and I didn't have a reason to wear it yet, and I'm excited that I finally get to wear it.  Here is the Facebook event invite thing for the art show.  I hope that some of you come.  It should be super fun!


If you are unable to attend but would still like to be supportive, you can donate a ticket! Purchase a ticket online and I’ll give it to someone who can’t afford one but would love to go.

Two for Tuesday: Anna Joyce and Rachel Pfeffer

Two for Tuesday is a post series where I'll be sharing two great Etsy shops and two of my favorite items from each one.  Click the image to go to the product on Etsy.

I picked Anna Joyce this week because the fabric is so bright and colorful and great for spring.  Her shop contains all sorts of lovely sewn goods, including purses, totes, clutches, table linens, and pillows.  I love the bold prints and fun patterns.  These two items are my favorites from her shop.

This hoodie has been a favorite of mine on Etsy for a long time.  It just looks so cozy!

I love the design on this pillow.  It also comes in blue, but orange is my favorite color.

I discovered Rachel Pfeffer Designs over a year ago and I love everything that she makes, so it was really hard to choose just two favorites, but I did it, kind of.  I won't say that these two are absolutely my favorites but they are definitely two of my favorites.

I really love the look of the double chains on each side of this.

I love mixed metals, and I adore the stunning blue color of these stones.

Two for Tuesday: Weirdly Cute and Iluxo

Two for Tuesday is a post series where I'll be sharing two great Etsy shops and two of my favorite items from each one.  Click the image to go to the product on Etsy.

I may have featured the first shop on my blog before, but I don't care.  I love this jewelry.  The first shop is Weirdly Cute, which has tons of jewelry, all cute and unique, and sometimes weird (which is coincidentally how I like my men).  These are my two favorite pieces from her shop.

This necklace is so cute and incredibly unique.  And it will last a lot longer than an actual goldfish would.

I'm always drawn to weather-themed jewelry and yet I don't own any.  I can't wear studs but these are still amazing.

The second shop this week is Iluxo, which contains some amazing jewelry, as well as home decor and accessories.  It would have been hard to choose two favorites if I hadn't excluded the jewelry from my choices, in the interest of promoting a variety of products.  But you should seriously check out the jewelry; it's amazing and the wooden pieces are so intricate and lovely!  Here are my two favorite items from Iluxo, and they're both clocks.

This clock is both gorgeously detailed and simple at the same time. (Pun not intended.)

I tend to really gravitate toward things with cute woodland creatures and this stunning modern cuckoo clock is no exception.

News of the Bad Kind

I got laid off today.  I also caught a cold, which I had been trying to avoid for about a week now.  So it would help me out a ton if you could maybe share my shop with all of your friends, since that's my main source of income until I find a new job.  I also sell desktop wallpapers now, for just $5 each!

You could also sponsor my blog for one month from just $3 to $7!  And if you really like me you can donate.

And as a thank you, you can download 6 tileable patterns that I made for use in Photoshop here.

A Nature Walk and Gift Ideas for Nature Lovers

I went on a walk in the park last weekend.  There are some nice trails and I took a bunch of photos.  These six are my favorites.  I love living in Seattle but sometimes I just miss being in the woods.  I'm glad that this park is so close that I can go for a nice walk there whenever I'm missing nature.

If you've got a nature lover in your life, check out these gift ideas.  (Some of these are affiliate links and I will earn a small commission if you click them and make a purchase.)  Click the picture to go to the product page.

These earrings are from Vanishing Tribe, one of the indie artists I discovered at Urban Craft Uprising this summer.

This backpack from Moorea Seal is perfect for holding everything you need for a day hike.

Beetle dress, beetle dress, beetle dress.  Well, that didn't make it appear in my closet but I'll keep trying.

This sweatshirt is from Make It Good, another great indie business.

This handmade double finger claw ring is so cool and unique!  Snash Jewelry makes some great pieces.

Slide Sideways makes all sorts of cute screen printed items, and these nature patches are no exception.

I think this dreamcatcher print from my Etsy shop would make a pretty cool gift, but I may be a little biased.

I certainly wouldn't mind if these boots from ASOS showed up in my wardrobe.

And if none of those gifts are quite right I'm pretty sure you can't go wrong with a cozy hoodieor a comfortable sweater.

Seattle Etsy Love

Seattle Etsy Love by jaythejedi

The fact that I picked these items because I loved them all and then realized that they all have light grey backgrounds can probably tell you a lot about Seattle.  The Seattle sky is usually close to this shade of light grey, but lately it's been nice and blue and sunny.  I find myself drawn to crystal jewelry, flower headbands, and bright bags.  These are all items made by Seattle Etsy sellers that I really like and wanted to share.  Click the picture to see where you can buy the items.  Enjoy your weekend.  I hope it's full of lovely weather.

Blog and Shop of the Month 1

The first ever Blog of the Month is a blog that I discovered fairly recently.  It is called Eef Etc. and I discovered it through my discovery of Indie Gift Box on Twitter.  Erin is the mastermind behind Indie Gift Box, which I've blogged about recently.  She also shares my love of Supernatural and does amazing graphic design work.  She makes jewelry too.  She is a really nice person and has very good taste, so you should all pay her a visit.

Blog | Twitter | Pinterest

My first ever Shop of the Month is Beejou Designs.  I discovered this shop last week and fell in love.  All of the jewelry is so beautiful and well-made while still being completely affordable.  It also makes me wish I had a place to hammer metal but alas, my neighbors would not appreciate all that racket.  Emily has only been on Etsy since November.  If you still have some Christmas shopping to do, you should definitely stop by her shop.  Even if you don't have money, you should at least look at her gorgeous jewelry.

Each month I will pick a different blog and shop to feature.  You can find them in the upper right sidebar.  I really like doing this because it allows me to appreciate and share people who I think do great things.  It also works better than just tweeting "You guys should check this out; It's really cool."  I hope that you all enjoy this new feature as much as I do.  Congratulations to my first featured people : )

Guest Post and Giveaway

Hey everyone, I'm over at Lulu and Sweet Pea today giving away some of my handmade jewelry.  Go enter to win a bracelet and a ring and a month of free ad space on her blog, and read my guest post about how I started making jewelry.

You could win a ring like this.

Where to Shop in Seattle: Wish

How cool is their sign?!
(photo courtesy of Wish)

When I first saw the sign, I had to go in.  The windows displayed cute outfits that were just my style.  I had an hour to kill before catching my bus to go to the dentist and I spent it in Wish boutique.  Wish is a cute little shop located at 4419 Wallingford Ave N. in Seattle.  I immediately fell in love with the decor, the clothes, the jewelry, and most of all the hats and I knew that I had to share it with everyone I could.  My camera was away for repairs that day, but I talked to the owner and told her that I'm a blogger and that I would love to come back and take some pictures.  I really wanted to share her shop on my blog.  She was such a nice lady and said that would be great.  I tried on some jeans (unsuccessfully but I have such a hard time finding jeans.  I bought an adorable hat that fits my style perfectly.  I was looking at the jewelry and the owner told me that it is handmade by local artists.  That's when I told her that I actually make jewelry and gave her my business card so she could look at it.  I told her I would bring in some of the newer stuff for her to look at on my next day off.  She was very friendly and we talked for quite a while.  Before I knew it, I had just about killed the hour and had to go catch my bus, but not before purchasing a cute robot ring.

On Tuesday I had my wisdom teeth taken out.  Which meant another trip to the dentist.  Which meant another trip to Wish with another hour to kill before catching my bus.  I came prepared this time, with my newly repaired camera and a bag of all of my jewelry, both new and old.  I took pictures of the shop while the owner looked at my jewelry.  It was good that I brought it all with me, because for some reason there was a fluke and she wasn't able to look at my Etsy shop without creating an account, so she hadn't seen it yet.  Imagine my excitement when she said that she would keep four of my necklaces there on consignment!  My biggest goal for my jewelry business was to have some of my jewelry for sale in an actual shop and not just online and she helped me achieve it :)  I had a permanent smile on my face after that.  It lasted until my surgery because I had to open wide so they could use the sharp things in my mouth to cut my wisdom teeth out.  I was really happy and had to share the news with everyone I know.  I also had to share this lovely shop.  If any of you live in Seattle or are planning to visit Seattle, it would be a great place to visit.  And did I mention the amazing prices?!  We all know that I love a good deal.  My hat and my robot ring were each less than $20, and they weren't even on sale.  They were both really well made too.  The robot ring is really cool, because it's made from the nice kind of metal that doesn't make your skin change colors, but it's also adjustable!  Many of the rings at Wish are adjustable, which I really appreciate.

And now for the part you've really been waiting for: the pictures!  All of these photos were taken by me at Wish on Tuesday.

Who doesn't need a new scarf or two for Fall?!

Look at the lovely decor!

These two dresses are on display in the window, and look at all those fedoras : )

I love every single part of this outfit.

This is the perfect outfit for Fall.

Bird necklaces always hold a special place in my heart, and I love the detail on these two.

So many wonderful hats!  The one on top in the center is like the one I bought.

Cute elephant and camera necklaces.

I adore the displays and the decor, and obviously the jewelry too.

How cute is this bicycle jewelry? I can hear all of you Seattle people drooling.

I love this dress! I also love the lace topped one behind the leather jackets.

So what are you waiting for?!  Go to Wish and buy some fall clothes.  You know you want to.

New Jewelry

These are some of the new things I've been making lately. Sorry that the pictures are unedited but I just got my camera back and am super busy tonight doing everything I need to get done for tomorrow.  Tomorrow I'll be showing my jewelry to one of the stores, eating sushi, then getting my wisdom teeth removed.  But anyway, here is the jewelry.