decking the halls...

love love love these decorations!
the teacher in me is reminded of sentence strips and bulletin board border. :) sigh.. those were the days.

autumnal fuzzies...

well, there's been a lot of blogger buzz about these velvet pumpkins... and seriously, they're awesome. but honestly, are they any cooler and more autumnal than these felt acorns?


obviously not! i'm in love and want to get some to and make a giant pile in the middle of my coffee table or decorate with them at Thanksgiving...


also, stay tuned! i'm feeling waaaaay better and we've started the $30 challenge over! details this afternoon.

mustache addendum..

the next best thing to a real one... i wish i knew how to knit!

meebees!

a beautiful friend of mine, Mary Beth, started a line of handmade jewelry on etsy called meebees.
recently i bought a pair of her earrings and LOVE 'em. anyway, i just got an email from her saying that this week she's offering free shipping! check her jewelry and see if you can live without it (bet you can't!)

a few more beards...

beard book from the world mustache and beard competition, beard disguises,
sexy beards tshirt, reForm School organic tee,

beards are really my favorite...

especially this last one...mostly because it's true.

beard hats, artbear, a Cup of Jo

More Mustaches!

fab etsy mustaches.




jack rabbit, bread and badger, avrilloreti

it's never too early for peace and joy...

i've been thinking about holiday cards lately, since it's about that time of year. I really hate how commercialized Christmas is...so i REFUSE to send anything with reindeer, or santa, or christmas trees on them. BUT I also feel incredibly uneasy about sending greeting cards to my non-christian friends that celebrate the birth of "Jesus Christ Our Lord and Savior," or things that communicate that "Jesus is the Reason for the Season" or say "Merry Christmas" or really ANYthing with wisemen, or mangers, or angels. ick. (these images via google images)


The thing is, I'd be happy to get a card from friends during their major religious holidays celebrating the central beliefs behind the holidays... in fact, I'd be thankful and honored that you valued me enough to include me in the celebration.

But I know that Christmas is different.

It just feels wrong to force your beliefs on someone who doesn't share them, which may not be what people MEAN to do, but does have that effect in a culture where other religions are often marginalized and their faithful are evangelized by well-meaning (or maybe not) Christians.

My problem is this: Christmas has a very particular meaning to me, and I don't want to have to sanitize what exactly it IS that I'm celebrating no matter who my holiday card is going to.
The good news for me is this: Although i am celebrating the birth of Jesus, I am celebrating even more the MESSAGE of Jesus.... Peace, Hope, and Joy.

So... here are some cards I found on Etsy that offer just this message to all of my friends (yes, ALL of them. i mean, what religion, or person, for that matter doesn't want peace, hope, and joy?)



cards by: oldtomfoolery, yeehaw, isabelle's umbrella, paper dragonfly, dappling, everydaygrace, swallowfield

yes, please...

I ran across these incredible necklaces slash collars yesterday on etsy. I mean, what a fab way to jazz up a white tank top or men's undershirt (and if you're anything like me...then this is your uniform and could stand a little jazzing-up) anyway, love. it.



thanks blue eyed freckle, for such cool stuff!

i'm feeling a little antsy...

the adorable house my boyfriend and his roomie live in has ants. lots of ants. so many that you can't leave a dirty dish in the sink for more than five minutes without attracting some (or about a hundred) tiny little six-legged creatures. in honor of the ants, i wanted to share these fun and silly plates from fashion-designer-turned-fine-artist Re Jin Lee of bailydoesntbark.





i mean, maybe they don't scream "let's have foi gras tonight" but they're just the sort of quirky things i love. visit her website or her etsy store for all sorts of other wonderful and whimsical handpainted pieces.

rings on her fingers and bells on her toes...

Now, when i think of buying jewelry, i think of my adorable little grandfather who used to go on hunts for the perfect pieces of antique jewelry for the women in my family. in fact, i have the mostbeautiful ring and gold watch from two of his excursions.






for this reason, when i'm looking at jewelry i don't usually turn to new jewelry stores to find something. first of all, it's much more ethical to use gemstones and metals that have already been put into the economy, and on another note, most antique pieces are just prettier to me.
and, let's be honest, i've been really into pretty jewelry lately... especially gold rings. Maybe it's because it's time for me to buy something new, or maybe i'm just hinting for a Christmas present, but, either way, i've been looking.

And if i look beyond my commitment to vintage and estate jewelry then i turn to handmade pieces from reused or recycled metals. Anyway, there are tons of great artists out there doing just this kind of work...but as for my faves, i think this turquoise ring from sarah perlis and this knotted ring from the rust belt are fab!

Not only are they just so pretty on fingers, but these ones are made from recycled gold, and sarah perlis uses conflict free diamonds. ;) yep, thought you'd like that.

i also love browsing on etsy for handmade jewelry...and er, well.. i'm a sucker for a bird or a tiny locket on a thin chain. i'm not sure about the materials these artists use, but their pieces are lovely and have a vintage-y look to them.

lockets from seaunicorn and earrings from kristinfriesen on etsy