Wednesday, February 24, 2010

A conjoining of blobs...blogs

I have made the decision to start a new blog!


I've bee aching to write about a more varied subject matter so I'm going to stop posting here (except to announce the giveaway winners of course). And continue my train of thought over to my new blog.

I will certainly continue writing about all things jewelry and eco-friendly, but there will also be lots on other things art and craft related with a dash of science and lots humor and silliness. The subject matter will blobbify..bloggify with the new blog to make one Monster Blog.

I plan on posting a lot more and have already spent more time working on it than I really should.

So thank you all for following my humble little blob and I'm inviting you all to check out my new blog and if you like what you see... follow me:)

 
following the moss trail....

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Yaye I made the front page!

My Orange Crush bird earrings were featured on Etsy's front page! Thanks Etsy!

Friday, February 12, 2010

For the Love of Bugs


I am a huge fan of bugs: all kinds... and not just the pretty ones. Even the ones chomping on my plants just doing what they were born to do, they are all fascinating mini animals!

Also a big fan of bugs:

Ok... spiders can be scary when they pop out of no where like "boogaboogabooga!", but they are incredibly fascinating!...as long as they stay at least 2 feet away from me at all times:) Oh and I'm much less afraid than before: I can now easily touch a picture of one just fine (still can't touch a shark picture though..)!

Me at a tender age:
 

Even if you aren't bbf with bugs these next eco-friendly jewelry selections shouldn't freak you out one bit: they will sit pretty on your finger,ears or shoulder if you wish and promise not crawl into your bed or surprise you in the shower!

Recycled, Upcycled Handmade:
Made from vintage and recycled components.
How cute are these!? Like having a little pet bug:)

Made from a wine cork and recycled steel auto parts!


Hilarious Beetle with a Shopping Bag Pendant made from a vintage postcard.

Hey, I think I know her! She was shoplifting produce from my garden!:



Pink Butterfly Necklace by Bionic Unicorn made from vintage parts.
(Her entire store is amazing!)

Boogaboogabooga!! 

Of course I use bugs in my own jewelry! Made from recycled vintage components.

Vintage!
Gorgeous glowing green Scarab Van Dell Earrings

Check out these funky creepy crawlies!


I like how he's all "hold up! you don't want to squish this one!"


I can't wait for Spring!

Friday, February 5, 2010

I Love Recycling Vintage Giveaway

GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

New giveaway! I'm really grateful for all the nice comments I've been getting on this little blog of mine so I can't go too long without wanting to give a little something back! This time I wanted to offer the most popular item from my store which happens to also be a great example of why recycling vintage rocks!

Believe it or not, the beads in these earrings are plastic! A very special vintage high quality plastic called Lucite which we know better today under the name Plexiglas. Trust me they look and feel like they are made of ivory and the detail is stunning! They are the prettiest beads i have come across since starting my jewelry business. Considering all the new stock out there it says a lot that a vintage one would steal my heart. 

Vanilla Moon

If you are a crafter of any kind you can discover a fascinating new world by looking into vintage supplies! You would also be doing this earth a favor by recycling vintage.

So on to the giveaway details...
 I Love Recycling Vintage

Contest will be open until February 28th and a winner will be chosen randomly on March 1st.

This time I'd like to know a bit more about you! :
-For one entry leave a comment telling me what your favorite item from my shop is.
-For an extra entry just follow my blog and leave a separate comment saying so.

Remember to leave your contact info in the comment so I can contact you if you are the winner.
The winner will have 48 hours to respond to my email titled 'This Is Green Blog', so be sure to check your spam folder:), otherwise another winner will be chosen.

Good Luck!

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Eco-friendly Jewelry Displays

Displaying your jewelry at shows or keeping things organized at home can be a challenge if you are committed to being Green. But actually it's a lot easier than it looks if you open your mind to unusual uses for materials. You can make quite an impact at shows by using some beautiful vintage displays or by some creative upcycling. It can also be much cheaper than buying new manufactured displays, not to mention more interesting! Just click on the titles to go to the shop listings.

Vintage jewelry displays:
How cute is this! A ladder earring holder with a kitten at the top:


Large expandable vintage jewelry boxes are great for craft shows. Wow I love this one!:

I love these little compact ones for the most precious items:

Here are some vintage items not intended for display but which work really well!:

I have one of these hat/mug racks on my wall for holding necklaces. I took it apart, painted it white with leftover house paint and put it back together.With ten knobs there is lots of room for necklaces and the shape is good for holding long ones.

These were designed to hold small mugs but are great for display. I could see a little forest of them for holding earrings and short necklaces at craft shows. You can paint them all the same color with metallic paint - just sand them lightly and clean with alcohol before.

Vintage dishes make unique jewelry displays. This one is gorgeous and would be great for holding small pieces like rings:

These tiered serving trays are great for saving space. You could hold rings on this one and hang earrings from the edges:
 

Just plain unusual but brilliant: Old bed springs! This one is sold as a set of six.
You could put a bunch of these on a wall for a funky effect! These could also be sanded and painted with metallic paints.

I didn't even know there was such a thing as apple racks but this is would be great for holding earrings:

I'm not sure what this would have been used for but it's great for necklaces and bracelets:

If you're a pack rat you can start using some of those hidden treasures, you just need to wear your green thinking hat and start finding new uses for all that stuff! Here are some unique upcycled displays:

These frames are a great ideas! Just use a staple gun and hot glue to hold a stitching canvas or other type of screen inside an old frame.
 

Add hinges between two identical frames to make it stand on it's own:

This awesome jewelry tree is made from  recycled scraps of steel pipe and heavy gauge steel wire!



Check out this amazing vintage briefcase jewelry display!
Vintage briefcase with hooks made from old forks and spoons and mesh salvaged from beekeeping containers!

Here are some standard store type displays but made with recycled and upcycled materials:


Here's another type of design to show off necklaces. Made from upcycled laminate flooring and reclaimed wood.

Shiny black necklace display made from recycled steel:

This one has a beautiful Victorian feel made from recycled vintage components : 
 

Here are some handy search terms if you want to go treasure hunting!:
Vintage, Recycled, Reclaimed, Upcycled, Eco-friendly, Jewelry holder, Stand, Display, Rack.

Thanks for reading!