Undiscovered Gold: Recycling at its best

It is just starting to get cold here in New Jersey. Leaves are turning shades of brown and yellow. It is time to start pulling out those heaver weight clothes. Old sweaters are boring you? check out what Bluefangtooth has done.

Every single one of the gorgeous creations in Bluefangtooth's shop have been created from recycled sweaters. Thats right, she has taken those old and boring castoffs and created new and amazing pieces. Each item is one of a kind and made of a mixture of materials ranging from Cashmere to Cotton. They are all made with external seaming for additional character.

Gwen, artist and designer of these masterpieces of fashion, began her creative journey at a young age. In the mid 90's she taught impressionable youth to explore their artistic side, then moved to work in the digital arts in the new millenium.

You can check out all of her current designs in her etsy shop. You can also learn more about her art and design work by checking out her website.

Shop at Idiosyncrazies!

Can you believe it? Tracey Knits is now available in 2 retail locations!

Today I dropped off some of my braid belts to an amazing store in Point Pleasant called Idiosyncrazies. Sharon Murphy, owner of this eclectic little shop, has put together a space full of treasures.

There are the handmade items from local artists, including jewelry from my good friend Dori's line Face of Contentment.  There is a collection of items made of recycled materials and a gorgeous collection of Fair Trade.

Be sure to stop by her shop if you are in the area. I was there to sell her something and ended up buying a fantastic recycled/fair-trade purse made of used tires!

Recycled Greetings

i looked at that pile of old phone books and said to myself, what a waste. There must be something i can do with all that paper. Why not flowers?

Materials:
yellow pages
scissors
glue
blank cardstock (to make a greeting card if you choose)

1) tear out a few yellow pages, white and green if you have them (you can always color the pages with crayon, marker or pencil.

2) cut the yellow pages into thin strips and then round out one of the edges

3) squeeze a thin circle of glue onto the white paper and begin adhering strips to the paper

4) add another thin layer of glue and another layer of petals, keep adding layers until you like the appearance of your flower

5) if you choose, add a green stem and petals

I took mine and glued it to the front of a blank greeting card, but you can be creative and use it in so many ways. Be sure to share your ideas!

How to make recycled art postcards

Postcards are a great way to promote your etsy site. Many etsians have them printed using images from their shops. You can include them in your orders when you send them out or hand them out at craft fairs instead of business cards. They are not terribly expensive but they are little more then a business card in most cases.

These cards are miniature works of art! You can give them away and be sure that they will be kept and displayed or mailed out to someone special. And every single one of them will have you shop info on it to remind them of how talented you are.

Materials:
recycled thin cardboard box (like a cereal box)
ruler
scissor, x-acto knife, or paper trimmer
glue, mod podge, or varnish medium
good size flat paint brush
scraps of decorative paper
pen or marker

pick out a nice clean box with thin cardboard
rip it along seam so you can get the most cards from the box possible
measure out as many cards as you can size 4.25"x6", this is a standard size postcard and will be accepted by the post office for postcard rate

brush glue across the colorful side of the cardboard and paste paper to it, leaving brown side blank
make sure to put a layer of glue on top of your design to seal it
flip the card over and draw lines with a ruler for the address, then be sure to put your shop name and address in fine print (but still legible) across the bottom.

Not only are these good for promoting your shop, they are good for the earth! Be sure to post a link to pics of your creative designs.

Handmade Shop of the Week: ThreePeats Jewelry

Suzanne Lamberg, of Threepeats Jewelry, has been creating handmade jewelry for her shop since January 2007. She works often with recycled materials to make beautiful new things to adorn necks and ears.

I started creating my unique necklaces for myself, friends and family. When strangers started asking me to make them one I decided to open an online shop. Since I had discovered etsy as a buyer, it was the natural place for me to start selling.

I have added several new necklace designs and incorporated new materials such as vintage ribbon and lace and recycled t-shirt yarn and felt beads. I also started creating earrings at one customer’s request.

The majority of my customers seem to be young women, especially college students (I often ship to dorms!). I promote the shop on facebook and twitter where many customers seem to be hear about my work.

I have many inspirations. The materials themselves, especially the vintage beads and chain, speak to me. I also am inspired by people, places I’ve travelled to and music.

Right now, the favorite group of items in my shop are the T-shirt Yarn Necklaces. They are soft around the neck and lightweight. I’m all for comfortable, affordable jewelry.

I think personal connections ( as much as possible in the virtual world) have helped to make my shop successful. I create treasuries, respond to convos, twitter and blog about other peoples’ work. A new style of necklaces (shorter) I’m working on now came from ideas given to me by several prospective buyers. As an online buyer, I also know how important fast shipping is. I make sure all items purchased from me are shipped within 48 hours (easy to do if you live in NYC:))

I write two blogs, one about my jewelry ( http://threepeats.blogspot.com// ) and one about life in NYC ( http://sittlife.blogspot.com/ ) People can follow me on Facebook @ http://www.facebook.com/threepeatsJewelry and/or twitter @ http://twitter.com/threepeats I am also a member of the very active Etsy Twitter Team whose blog can be found @ http://etsytwitter.blogspot.com/


LETS DO A GIVEAWAY! Threepeats is happy to offer the item of his/her choice from her etsy shop to one lucky winner! You recieve one entry into the drawing for each of the folowing actions: 1) Comment here on your favorite item in her shop 2) Tweet/Facebook about her shop and/or this amazing giveaway 3) become her fan on facebook and follow her on twitter 4) Heart her shop and/or your favorite item 5) Blog about it or find someother way to share your love of Threepeats with the world. Contest ends March 8, 2010

Interested in becoming Handmade Shop of the week? Email me for more information.