Welcome New Members

Hello Crafty Peeps!

Time once again to

welcome our newest members to the team.

We have 11 new team mates this week,

So without further ado

May I introduce.....

Elsa Original Art

By MissAshleyH in Dublin

Bright Funky Floral Cushion Cover

By Honordesign

 

Shawl Brooch Barrett

By Irish Blackthorn in Dublin

5 Jade Cabochon Pewter Pendant

By SilverBeadsnPearls in Wexford

Mens Chianti Red Wool Felt Trilby

By Aoife Kirwan Millinery in Laois

Handbag Charm in Purple & Pink Lollipop Swirl

By RingPinClip

Beaded Crochet Doily

By mcelweetomomi in Carlow

Eye Test Necklace

By MayFlyEtsyShop in Dublin

Reversible Bib with Organic Terry

By The Organic Bib Shop in Tuamgraney

Owl Charm Bracelet

By Retro Style Charms in Galway

Rainbow Seed Bead Wrapped Bangle

By Ali and Milo in Cork

Welcome to the team everyone

As always we wish you all

Lot's of luck

and Many Sales :o)

Stop by our newest shops folks

and don't forget to leave some hearts and dollars!

Until Next Time

The Spiral Goddess

Eyes Open Ireland

Hello Crafty Peeps

This weeks Eyes Open Ireland

is brought to you by Anne-Marie from
 byAMOR

Anne-Marie says.......

Instead of trying to dig up several useable photos of one beautiful place, I thought I’d share a collection of scenes that inspired me this past year.

Though much of my wire work is free form, more structured, geometric shapes often inspire me, particularly circles and spirals. I guess it’s something in the Celtic blood.

Fresh, sea air always clears my head and gets my creativity going.  Sometimes elements of the sea creep into my designs:  undulating wavy lines or starfish charms, for example. Dunlaoire Harbour, South of Dublin, is one of my favourite quick getaways from the city. Here I can breathe and think.

Howth, in North Dublin, is another accessible haven away from the hustle and bustle.  A walk along the pier usually throws up some interesting shapes and textures; lobster pots, old rusty pieces of metal, even brightly coloured moss.

Now that I think of it, I do have quite a lot of green jewellery in my Etsy shop

Connemara Marble Heart Pendant 

The pebble beaches found along the Dublin coast can dig up some fabulous treasures. There’s nothing I find more inspiring than hunting out beautiful pieces of seaglass and pottery. Sometimes it can be hard going and I come away empty handed and disappointed. If there’s been a storm I can get a bountiful haul of pirate treasure that makes it very worthwhile.

My summer holiday to Valencia, Spain, provided me with the rest I needed after a serious slump in creativity. I didn’t find a single piece of seaglass on the beaches, but I did find a few pieces of beachworn tile.

This autumn I donned my hiking boots for the first time in years. Lough Dan in nearby County  Wicklow was breathtaking...in more ways than one! The hill up the forest trail to get there nearly killed me! 

The  lake water is naturally coloured brown from peat in the soil. I made a lot of brown jewellery and green Connemara marble items after this hike. 

In 2012 I intend getting out in the hills more often so I can get fit for an Alpine holiday next year.  Wherever I go, my camera and maybe even a sketch book will come with me.

Great Pictures Anne-Marie

Thank you for sharing with us!

You can see what Anne-Marie has made with some of her finds

in her Etsy Shop

Handmade by Amor



Purple Stone Pendant. Wire Wrapped Jasper Donut. 'Fruit of the Forest'

Full of fab pendants and jewellery made with Irish Gemstones

Check out Anne-Maries blogs
http://amor.craftblog.eu/

http://handmadebyamor.blogspot.com/

And you can follow her on twitter
https://twitter.com/#!/handmadebyAMOR

If you would like to take part in
Eyes Open Ireland

please contact me at my Etsy shop

or email me at

thespiralgoddess@gmail.com

Until Next Time

The Spiral Goddess

Tea & Chat...

Alexandria Reynolds and her Lexrey shop are this weeks guests here at Tea & Chat, the kettle has boiled, the tea is brewing, so let us begin!

  

 1. What has been your art/craft journey so far?

 Making things (mostly trouble) since I could hold a needle at 4 or 5. Mother a tailoress; on top of that inate creativity I come from a long line of eccentrics.



                        2. What are your 3 favourite products to work with?

                        It has to be wire - silver; crystals and diamonds (or rather inkeeping with my budget   MARBLES, tee hee hee!)



                       3. What is your favourite quote?

                        'Better to paint the walls than be runing up them!'


                         4. If you could have a perfect work space what would it look like?

                         Any 5 star hotel - (with spa) in a big city; beside the sea or Mongolia - will do.

                      5. Who or what is your inspiration?

                       Me - that's who but hey, ETSY comes a close second. An incedible site with out of this       world contributions



                    6. What is the most important lesson you have learned in your creative business?

                    That I should bave studied to be a Banker and be shopping in Tiffanys (& of couse Etsy)



                   7. Marmite or Marmalade????                   Marmite actually but I don't believe in limiting myself so one half of toast Marmite - the other        Marmalade (gonna need strong coffee to down that!)


                   8. What has been your proudest moment?                   Has to be my FIRST Etsy sale; and my second; and my third; and my . . .

Thanks Alexandria for answering the questions, you can find her lovely jewels over at 

Lexrey ~ pop over and say hello!

If you would like your Etsy shop featured then drop me a line at Scrapzville 

Enjoy your weekend!

Felicia x

Reminder - St Patricks Day Competition

Hi Everyone

Just a quick reminder to check out the St Patricks Day Competition Blog Entry - it's being run by Sarah from Sarah Mai Designs - check out her shop!

http://etsyireland.blogspot.com/2012/02/st-patricks-day-competition.html

Thanks
Caroline
Cari Design

Getting To Know You #5

This week we get to know the Vintage Market team. This is a very active team of vintage sellers on Etsy. I was really inspired by the vintage listings from both teams and have put together a joint treasury called "I used to travel around the world".



As always, please feel free to convo me if you have any comments or requests regarding this treasury or the coming ones. Wishing you all a great (dry or wet?) week-end.

Raphaële

Wednesdays Treasury Slot

Morning everyone, hope you all had a nice Pancake Tuesday.  Don't worry about scraping pancake of the ceiling!

Ok so we have some GORGEOUS treasuries this week so diving straight in we have

"The Grass is Green" curated by Madebyjillybean

"The Universe is a Friendly Place" by JewelryartNassarius

We also have a first from Solittles called "Irish Winterland"

Next we have ahhh "The Patter of Tiny Feet" curated by PuffinPatchwork

Anne Marie has designed this lovely treasury this week wittily entitled "The Brass is Always Greener" - thanks AM!

I thought since I am writing up this post every Wednesday that perhaps I should make a treasury so I did!

Warm Glow from Ireland curated by me  or rather my other shop

That's it for this week folks.

Thanks for stopping by and don't forget to comment, heart and importantly share treasuries. Oh and also why not try your own?

Don't forget to tag your treasuries with Craftyirelandteam if it is a 100% irish.

Fi

Welcome New Members

Hello again crafty peeps!

Sorry to interrupt your
fabulous pancake flipping 

but it's time once again to 

Welcome our Newest Members

Our team gets bigger and better every day

At this moment we have 483 members

and there are 7896 items listed for sale on Etsy tagged

craftyirelandteam

So without further ado

and for you shopping pleasure

may I introduce....

Blue Whirl Handknit Scarf

By Linda Kelly Designs in Offaly

Love The Sky Original Painting

By Tom Campbell Art in Cork

Rosette Necklace

By Born Rubie in Dublin

Wild Mountain Mushrooms

By Twist & Tangle in Kilkenny

Handmade Kenmare Lace Inset Silver Keyring

By Kenmare Lace in Kerry

3 Notebooks/Jotters

By SoLittles in Dublin

It's a Hoot Owl Pendant

By Grace Of Eden in Wexford

Welcome one and all!

We wish you all

Lots of Luck and Many Sales!!!

Great talent to check out here peeps

so stop by and leave some hearts and drop some dollars ;o)

Until Next Time

Enjoy Your Pancakes!

The Spiral Goddess

St Patricks Day Competition

Sarah from Sarah Mai Designs is now running the St Patricks Day Competition.

As St Patricks Day is fast approaching, it's time to take this opportunity to gain some extra exposure for our team.

I believe last year we ran a treasure hunt and it was a lot of work for everyone involved so I want to try to keep this as simple as possible.

The plan is to ask a simple question that sends entrants to each of our stores. For example how many team sellers listed below live in Cork? I will only list the sellers that have contributed a prize so entrants will have to follow the links rather than take a shortcut to the team page to find the answer.

If you would like to have your store included in the competition please send me a message via my shop Sarah Mai Designs by Sunday 26th February confirming that you will provide a prize.

I will post the competition details here as soon as I have a list of stores who will contribute.

The closing date for customers to enter the competition will be St Patricks Day and we will draw the winners on Monday 19th March.

There will be a blog post soon detailing the prizes etc.

Thanks

Eyes Open Ireland

Hello Crafty Peeps

This weeks Eyes Open Ireland

is brought to you by

Sarah of Sarah Mai Designs

Sarah Says.....

 

The first picture I've enclosed is of Niagra Falls, the Canadian Side. I always wanted to go there and finally went to Canada in 2008. I went on a houseswap which for all you recessionistas out there is a fantastic way to travel and with no hotel costs, you can afford to go places that maybe you couldn't otherwise! I love the colours and the lacy way the water foams and rises. The power and noise when you travel around the Falls is really something else.

This second photo is one of my favourite places in Ireland - Kerry. This is the Men's Beach in Ballybunion one February morning. Again water is something I really love having grown up in Kilkenny where we don't have the sea or large bodies of water so I am always fascinated by it. Blues, greens, shades of white and purple are my favourite colours and I see them in the interaction between water, sky and the land.

My third picture is my favourite building in Rome, where I lived for a year. It's hard to pick a favourite place in Rome but the legend that goes with it is so interesting and I really loved emerging from winding streets lined with leaning buildings casting dark shadows into blinding sunlight to see the bridge to this building over the Tiber. Rome is an amazing city and I really love the architecture there.

This is the People's Park in Limerick, a lovely public park only a few minutes walk from my house. It's not very big but it is lovely and colourful especially in spring when all the bulbs flower. I love this vista as it's just lots of colours agains a green background which is something I do in my 'Butterfly' range of fascinators. It's the tiny spots of colour that draw your eye through the picture.

 

My last picture is one I didn't actually take but is of Kilkenny Castle in the snow. I love cold, snowy weather and my home town is Kilkenny so it combined the two! I'm originally from Kilkenny and it has the most amazing arts and crafts scene there. Everywhere you go there are artists, sculptors, designers and artisans working in lots of media. It's the most fantastic place to be an artist and I hope to move back there one day...depending on the economy of course!

Wow Sarah, thanks sharing you fab pics with us!

Check out Sarah's Etsy Shop full of gorgeous

Fascinators, Headpieces and Accessories.

 Pink Fascinator Hair Comb

Sarah's Blog:  http://sarahmaidesigns.blogspot.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/SarahMaiDesigns/186668224754212

If your a Crafty Ireland Team Member 

and would like to share your favourite photo's with us please contact me at my

Etsy Shop or email me at

thespiralgoddess@gmail.com

Until Next Time

The Spiral Goddess

Tea & Chat.....

Well, I hope you'll forgive me for this....... this week has passed in a blur, suddenly its that time again and I haven't interviewed anyone so this weeks interview is with.... Me!!!!

To prevent the horror of having to read my answers again please email me and i'd be delighted to hear your answers instead!!!

So, here we go:

Felicia Thomas from Scrapzville

1. What has been your art/craft journey so far?

Well, it is very recent actually, I have always been crafting away at bits and pieces, knitting, sewing etc. but I didn't think I could paint. My Dad is a watercolour artist, I thought the art gene had just missed me out, but then I discovered mixed media and the Polly Dollies came into being  - there is a big difference between fine art and what I do!

2. What are your 3 favourite products to work with?

Galleria acrylic paints, stamps and perfect pearls.

3. What is your favourite quote?

Oh, I have so many, but a good one I heard recently was, "A year from now you'll wish you'd started today" - aint' that the truth?!

4. If you could have a perfect work space what would it look like?

It would be a room with lots of natural light, a woodburning stove for staying cosy, open shelves (I don't use things unless I can see them) a seperate desk for computers and printers and another for crafting. And bookshelves, lots of them! Pinterest is brilliant for storing ideas for my dream craft space.

5. Who or What inspires you?

Nature, I love trees especially, my family, my online art friends and Elenor Roosevelts quotes.

6. What is the most important lesson you have learned in your creative business?

That there is room for everyone.

7. Marmite or Marmalade?

Marmalade for sure - Marmite is gross!

8. What has been your proudest moment?

The amazingly kind and encouraging reception I got from being part of  the Killarney Art and Wine Exhibition, its a hard thing to put your work on display and then stand and listen to peoples comments.

You can find me on:

http://www.scrapzville.com/ - there you will find links to my blog, Etsy shop and gallery.

Facebook

and Twitter (but i'm very new to it and have only tweeted once!)

Getting To Know You #4

Today we share a treasury with the Jewelry Promotion team. Valentine's Day may be over but we still need love. So more love please!
I wish you all a nice week-end. If there is a team or a theme you would like me to include in coming weeks treasuries, please let me know.

Food & Craft Fair in Dublin

Food & Craft Fair being held in Dublin


Attention for all of you who might be interested!!!


There is a Food & Craft Fair being held in Deansgrange, Co Dublin between 1st - 4th March being organised by Shopping World.


The cost to attend is €35 per day and you must commit for the full 4 days.


Shopping  World have arranged for a camera crew from Ireland AM at TV3 to be there filming the event.


If anyone wants any further information or to book a place please get in touch via the following email addresses:      
gary.harwood@shoppingworld.ie  or info@houseofsadie.com 


Good Luck Everyone - hope its a great event.
Caroline

Thank You Notes: A Simple How-To

Thank You Notes: A Simple How-To

This is republished with thanks again to Ruth from Nice Day Designs!

I include thank you notes with all of my online orders. I always make them in bulk though so I have them ready to hand when I get orders. It's a nice little touch that makes my work stand out from the crowd and makes it more personal. People shop on Etsy for these little extra handmade touches, it's part of what sets it apart from buying from faceless multinationals.


In an effort to keep costs low I make my own rather than buying them. I always take notice more of a handwritten card, rather than a business card thrown in with the order. Here is a simple how-to for how I made my most recent cards: 


You will need:
Scissors
Ink pad (two colours preferably)
Clear stamps of your own choosing
X-cut corner cutter (optional)
Blank Cards (small) I used something similar to these
Envelope (optional but it makes it nicer)
Printing sticker paper (optional)

1.  Since I make cards I also have a lot of odds and ends or cards lying about the place. I have chosen to cut them in half so I can get better value for money. For a neater finish cut either side on the centre crease, making two cuts. 

2.  I love rounded corners on cards, I think it adds something elegant to them, I know it's more work but it's worth those extra few minutes. You can get one here at a reasonable price, and it's great value for money, I use mine all the time. 

      3. Since I sell crafty items I chose a scissors and thread stamp from my               collection (I also like that it kind of matches my tattoo). I've been building up my collection over the past year because I make cards, but you can easily pick these up in your local craft shop. I first stamped my image using black ink. I then found a thank you stamp and used red ink for the lettering to make it stand out more.

4. It's always important to keep on branding yourself. I made up these little stickers in Photoshop in a few minutes. I added my website address below my logo, and also the Facebook, twitter and blogger logos so people know they can search my business name and find me. This is a lot tidier than typing out all the addresses, handy when working with a small space. Weirdly I picked up a pack of 10 sheets of sticker paper in my local €2 shop, and I can use them in my printer at home which is really handy. I fit about 40 of these stickers on a sheet, the sheet costs €0.20, so that works out cheap as chips!

5. I put the sticker on the reverse of the card, and write my message of thanks to my customer just below it. 

I hope you all found that as useful as I did. Much thanks again to Ruth for allowing us to republish it.

If any of you have any information that you would like to see included in this blog or if you have any articles, advice or tutorials that you think might be useful please get in touch with me, Caroline, through my Etsy Shop Cari Design. 

Thanks again

Caroline