BESTeam Feature - Redemption Art

This week my BESTeam feature is on the shop Redemption Art. The owner, Connie, lives in the beautiful state of Hawaii with her husband. She has 4 children and 10 grandchildren! She has worked in the corporate world for 25 years and now admits that she is fortunate to be able to finally do what she loves...creating one of a kind hand sewn pieces and collecting vintage items.  She welcomes everyone with "aloha" and has a blog where she writes about art and artists, faith, food, friends and the Hawaiian lifestyle.  She writes that Hawaii is a great place to grow up and has played a huge part in her creativity as well as her love for "all things Hawaiian".

Here are just a few things that caught my eye.  I especially love this little vintage owl...so cute!

Vintage Resin Pueo Owl

Vintage Hawaiian Earrings

Pair of Vintage Miniature Ceramic Mime Masks

Vintage Cast Iron Asian Tea Pot

Vintage Hawaiian Hula Girl Outfit Newborn to Three Months Handmade

Honolulu Baby Handmade Hawaiian Vintage Skinny Bands

To find out more about Connie and Redemption Art, you can check out her blog, Island Buzzy, to find out what is going on in her life and is important to her.  And you can check out her second Etsy shop, featuring her handmade items at Volcano Girl Creations

I feature an etsy shop weekly as part of my commitment to the BESTeam.

We are a group of etsy artists, vintage curators and crafters whose purpose is to support and promote each others etsy business via features and mentions on our personal blog sites and any on line communities where we are involved.

If you are an etsian and an avid blogger who is serious about your shops' visibility and success, I would like to invite you to click on the BESTeam logo above to learn more about our mission, purpose and requirements.  If the BESTeam appears to be an opportunity that fits for you, please contact us and a team administrator will get back to you promptly.

Tuesdays??

What is blog worthy on this rainy (SHOCKING!) Tuesday in CT??  Well, I have to admit...not much!  I am enjoying a morning with nothing really on my schedule.  Ok...well there could be plenty of things on my schedule but I have purposely ignored those things and have enjoyed an 'almost sleep -in'....I was awake at about 6:30am but besides getting up to let my old dog out so as not to have any accidents...I just got back into bed and decided to check out some of the 'cheap' books I downloaded yesterday to my Kindle.  I got sucked into a post on Facebook about "Summer Reads" for your Kindle and downloaded about six things...all of which were either free or under like $2.  And I have to admit, at least from the one book I decided on, that they are probably 'cheap' for a reason.

I was thinking "Summer Read" when I downloaded some of them...and since they weren't that expensive I figured it couldn't hurt to download a few things,that if I were in the book store I wouldn't probably buy, even though I would picked them up because the title caught my attention. Well, I think I have learned my lesson!  One of my choices was "Diary of a Mad Fat Girl" by Stephanie McAfee...which looks to be amusing, right?!? I have to admit that I was thinking of Stephanie Pearl-McPhee who writes some entertaining knitting books ("Things I Learned from Knitting...whether I wanted to or not"  and "Knitting Rules!:  The Yarn Harlot's Bag of Knitting Tricks") when I first saw the author's name....so that is really what I was expecting.

BUT this book "Diary of a Mad Fat Girl" is probably the worse book I have ever read!  And I haven't really even read it all...I think I have gotten to chapter 17 which is only because I was hoping it might get better...but I don't think it will.  I can read pretty much anything and there are only a few books that I have put down, saying "I can not read this!"  One of which was the first Harry Potter book....but that was just because it reminded me of a little girl I knew and it sounded like she was telling me a story) and I have since made up for that by reading the entire Harry Potter series many of times.  To me it just seems like ramblings of a crazy woman?!?  Which from the title may be what it is supposed to be...but still...it's a 'book'.  I tend to expect more from a 'book' than I would if I happened to just read something someone wrote for a paper or a blog or something.  I have wanted to be a writer all my life...and was kind of hoping that all of my 'reading' skills would just somehow be enough to make me able to sit down and write....but I know it doesn't!  I think this person maybe thought the same thing...and it didn't work in her case either!!

Ok...so if you were looking for a good 'summer read' to enjoy while lying on the beach or just hanging out...I would highly suggest crossing off "Diary of a Mad Fat Girl"!

So...maybe Tuesdays should be 'Train-Wreck Book Review Tuesdays"...or maybe not....??  Let's hope there are not too many of these books out there that are going to suck me into reading them because the title caught my eye!  I think I will keep my options open for Tuesdays....

In order to help me be a more regular blogger, I would like to start doing some 'regular' features other than BESTeam features.  But not sure where to start?!?!  I have had heard ideas about things like "Wordless Wednesday" or "Fantastic Find Fridays" but not sure what my features should be.  Any thoughts or suggestions I would love to hear from you!  Please leave a comment if you have any ideas!

And what about Mondays??  What about "Monday Meanderings" or "Miscellaneous Mondays"??  After looking up the definition of meander....I think I kind of like the idea of 'Monday Meaderings'.  It leaves room for so many things.  I have highlighted the parts of the definition that I particularly like :-)

me·an·der

verb /mēˈandər/ 
meandered, past participle; meandered, past tense; meandering, present participle; meanders, 3rd person singular present

(of a river or road) Follow a winding course
• - a river that meandered gently through a meadow
(of a person) Wander at random
• - kids meandered in and out
(of a speaker or text) Proceed aimlessly or with little purpose
• - a stylish offbeat thriller which occasionally meanders

noun /mēˈandər/ 
meanders, plural

A winding curve or bend of a river or road
• - the river flows in sweeping meanders
A circuitous journey, esp. an aimless one
• - a leisurely meander around the twisting coastline road
An ornamental pattern of winding or interlocking lines, e.g., in a mosaic

---

Web definitions

• a bend or curve, as in a stream or river
• weave: to move or cause to move in a sinuous, spiral, or circular course; "the river winds through the hills"; "the path meanders through the vineyards"; "sometimes, the gout wanders through the entire body"
• ramble: an aimless amble on a winding course

wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

• A meander in general is a bend in a sinuous watercourse. A meander is formed when the moving water in a river erodes the outer banks and widens its valley. ...

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meander

• In art and architecture, a meander is a decorative border constructed from a continuous line, shaped into a repeated motif. Such a design is also called the Greek fret or Greek key design, although these are modern designations. ...

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meander_(art)

• In mathematics, a meander or closed meander is a self-avoiding closed curve which intersects a line a number of times. Intuitively, a meander can be viewed as a road crossing a river through a number of bridges.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meander_(mathematics)

• Meander is Carbon Leaf's first album. It was released in 1995 by the band's own label, Constant Ivy Records.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meander_(album)

• Meander or Maiandros (Μαίανδρος) is a river-god in Greek mythology, patron deity of the Meander river (modern Büyük Menderes River) in Caria, southern Asia Minor (modern Turkey). He is one of the sons of Oceanus and Tethys, and is the father of Cyanee, Samia and Kalamos.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meander_(mythology)

• A winding, crooked, or involved course; as, the meanders of an old river; A tortuous or intricate movement; Fretwork; To wind, turn, or twist; to make flexuous; to wander

en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Meander

• meandering(a): of a path e.g.; "meandering streams"; "rambling forest paths"; "the river followed its wandering course"; "a winding country road"

wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

• meandering - An instance or period or roaming; winding or rambling

en.wiktionary.org/wiki/meandering

• an exaggerated, looping, bend in a river. Once formed, meanders grow in such a way that they will eventually cut themselves off from the river and cease to exist. ...

www.tuition.com.hk/geography/m.htm

• River with a single channel that sweeps back and forth in smooth curves.

www.environment.nsw.gov.au/bioregions/BioregionsGlossary.ht…

• a running ornament consisting of an intricate variety of Greek fretwork.

www.artemisillustration.com/assets/text/NEWEST%20TERMS%…

• stretch of river that changes course many times.

www.dakotapathways.org/3/glossary.htm

Ok...so I think I have decided on "Monday Meanderings"....what about Tuesdays?

BESTeam - What We Are?

Here I am in a panic thinking I am not going to get my weekly feature done in time....and it turns out that the world has been off its rocker with crazy weather all over the place, mysterious warnings about the worldwide earthquake, floods, nuclear core meltdowns and apparently four days of Blogger outages...and I missed it all!! 

I have had a week of very limited computer access because my computer decided it should die on me at the end of last week (shortly after finishing last week's BESTeam feature) which has basically left me with no news of the outside world since I don't really watch tv...and I tend to switch stations in the car while driving whenever the news comes on.  So for me....it has been a relatively quiet week....

So it comes as a bit of shock to find out that the powers that be within the BESTeam have decided to use this week as a 'make up' week for all of us on the team that were unable to post our features because of the craziness of the week and all the natural and not-so-natural disasters going on in the world.  And so now that the panic has past about getting my feature done on time...I now  sit here wondering what I should write about....

Maybe....about the BESTeam?

BESTeam....."The Boosting Etsy Shops Team (BEST) is a group of Etsy Sellers from around the world, representing a wide variety of crafts, products and services sold.  We have members who are yound and just getting started in the business world ans well as many seasoned veterans of many different occupations, all with different levels of experience and life skills to offer each other to achieve our common goal of being successful in our business endeavors.  We are team mates and we are friends, we encourage and we challenge each other to better ourselves and our businesses - and together, we are the BEST!"

Our Mission Statement... is to help our fellow teammates boost their shop presence by promoting their shops primarily on our blogs, but also on Facebook and Twitter.

If you are an Etsy artist, and a blogger, looking for a great team to join...join the BESTeam

BESTeam Feature - Designs by M'Ayanna

This week's feature is on Designs by M’Ayanna. The principle designer and owner is Patrice.

Her jewelry making started out as a business idea for her 10-year-old daughter.  Her daughter's interest lasted for all of three weeks and in the meantime Patrice got hooked instead!  The name of the shop reflects that initial relationship. M’Ayanna is short for “Mommy and Ayanna.”

Making jewelry was, at first for Patrice, just a hobby –– it soothed her mind and allowed her to put the pressures of daily life aside for a while.  As her skills improved, however, she began to buy more and more beads and findings and books and beads and ribbon and chain and… well, you get the picture.  It sounds suspiciously like how I got started in soapmaking and knitting...before you know it you have a book shelf dedicated to crafting books and a closet full of all kinds things you 'need' for your craft!

Here are just a few things that caught my eye while checking out Patrice's shop....but this watch is my favorite!

Kiwi Stone Wristwatch fashion jewelry online

And blue always catches my attention...but I love these copper swirls as well!

Blue Glass Cube, Copper Spiral Necklace fashion jewelry plus sized

 So many cute items and such reasonable prices for quality handmade jewelry....I may just have to get something nice for me :-)

Leopardskin Jasper Necklace, fashion jewelry plus sized

Green Amazonite Rounds and Glass Beads Earrings, fashion jewelry

Champagne On Ice Earrings

To find out more about Patrice and Designs by  M'Ayanna follow her blog at http://designsbymayanna.blogspot.com/

BESTeam Feature - Las Flores del Sur

This week's BESTeam feature is on a little shop Las Flores del Sur.
Marisa is a craft-crazy person and has been crafting something since she was a little kid.  She is also, a graphic and web designer from Buenos Aires, that now lives in Montevideo, Uruguay.  She loves to experiment with all kinds of materials and different techniques.  Her shop includes various pins, brooches, hair clips and bobby pins, made from various kinds of fabric, metal and ribbon. 

Here are just a few of her items that I chose to show off cause they just look so springy!

Orange, Yellow and Red - 6 Mini Poppy Flowers - Handmade fabric applique

On Sale 3 Little Bouquet Pins - Colors of your choice - Free Shipping

Bright Yellow Poppy made of Fabric - Pin - Free shipping

Would you like to see more of Las Flores del Sur?
Visit her Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Las-Flores-del-Sur/126539847362890




You can visit her two shops at:
 http://lasfloresdelsur.etsy.com (Jewelry)
http://www.craftsandpixels.etsy.com (PDF tutorials and supplies)

  Her blog: http://www.lasfloresdelsur.blogspot.com

Find her on Twitter!
http://www.twitter.com/floresdelsur