Wordless Wednesday

Bamboo Make-Up Remover Pads
Originally uploaded by madebymelissa

National Coffee Day

Today is National Coffee Day! Now, this means nothing to me, since I do not drink coffee. I've tried it on several occasions and simply do not like it. But, my husband LOVES coffee as well as several of my friends and co-workers. I've noticed that coffee drinkers are very particular about their coffee and no two people will take a sip from the same cup and have the same reaction to it. Its just one of those things that I don't get.

Anyway, happy National Coffee Day to all you java lovers!

Upcoming Events

In addition to this Saturday's Fabulous Fall Festival in Ridgewood, I am also gearing up for some great events in the month of November.

On Saturday, November 14, I will be at the Bogota High School Holiday Craft Show and Market from 10 AM to 6 PM in Bogota NJ.

On Saturday, November 21, I will be at the Englewood Holiday Craft Boutique at the First Presbyterian Church in Englewood, NJ from 10 AM to 4 PM.

For more details take a peek at my Facebook page!

I'm Featured At Darn Good Yarn!

Just one more post about Darn Good Yarn (for now). Two of my patterns are featured on their website! This was my first time writing down any of my patterns. I usually just pick up my yarn and my hook and go, which is why I have such a hard time making the same thing twice... Anyway, I am quite proud of myself and really excited to have my patterns featured.

Recycled Silk Scarf Pattern - http://www.darngoodyarn.com/2009/09/free-crochet-scarf-pattern/Hemp Dish Scrubber Pattern - http://www.darngoodyarn.com/2009/09/free-scrubby-crochet-pattern/

So, buy the yarn, test the pattern and let me know what you think!

Fabulous Fall Festival!

It's almost time for the Fabulous Fall Festival! This was so much fun last year, I am really excited for it. There are pony rides, games, rides and face painting for the kiddies, great vendors and of course, food!


Date: Saturday, October 3, 2009
Time: 10:00am - 4:30pm
Location: Graydon Parking Lot
Street: Corner of Van Dien & Northern Pkwy
City/Town: Ridgewood, NJ


Check out the event page on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/event.php?eid=139384722121&index=1
And while you are there, become a fan of my page for updates and special sales! - http://artist.to/madebymelissa/

Featured EtsyBlogger - Designs By Vanessa

The featured EtsyBlogger for the month of September is Designs By Vanessa! Vanessa's shop is stocked with unique jewelry and cards.

I love this swallow necklace:


I also like these cupcake note cards:


Once you are done shopping, be sure to stop by her blog as well!

Show Your Face!!

Well, apparently, the EtsyBloggers want to see my face. While I'm not really ashamed of how I look, I really don't have any pictures of myself, I am usually pointing the camera at my son or my dog. I do have one decent picture from last October's Fabulous Fall Festival that I will gladly share with you.



Yes, I know, its a year old, and yes its not an extreme close-up of me, but hey, its the best I got on short notice. Perhaps I'll have my darling hubby take a photo of me sometime soon... ;-)

Wordless Wednesday

Lacey Pastels Baby Blanket
Originally uploaded by madebymelissa

I Want It! - Tiger Lilly Earrings

These Vintage Purple Tiger Lily Cabochon Earrings from Venetia Jewelry are really pretty and would be a perfect match for my purple striped blouse.



Be sure to take a look at her silk ribbon bracelets, I've never seen anything like them before and they are definately versatile!

Hey! Your Ears are Naked!

Do you have naked ears? GASP! You do?!? Well, these vintage pink crystal earrings will remedy the situation!

They are super sparkly and are made with reclaimed crystal beads from a broken vintage necklace. There are two crystal beads accented with a silver plated spacer bead and a tiny sterling silver bead hanging from an ear wire. The earrings measure 1 inch long not including the wire.



Pink isn't your color? No worries! Check out the earring section of my shop for more colors and styles. Just in case pink is your color, click here to see all the pink goodies in my shop!

I Want It! - Origami Paper Bangle Bracelets

I was browsing through EtsyNJ member shops (I tend to do that a lot) and came across these really cool one of a kind oragami paper bangle bracelets in Katylua's shop. This Trio of Skinny Origami Paper Bangle Bracelets is my favorite out of the ones she currently has listed since the colors are a good fit to my wardrobe.

Hemp Dish Scrubber

As you all know, I recently stumbled upon a yarn shop with some different and fun yarns called Darn Good Yarn. I made a great scarf from their recycled silk yarn and I also played with their hemp yarn.

I pictured the hemp yarn as a dish scrubber before I even got it, I just assumed it would be sturdy enough to really scrub out that stuck on gunk. And, I was right! I was surprised by how thin it was, so I had to go all the way down to an E hook, which for me, is pretty small. Here's a picture of the finished product:


I've been thinking of making coasters with this yarn as well and bordering each one with a different color of equally thin yarn - perhaps sock weight or even embroidery floss.

As I mentioned before, I also have the white recycled banana silk yarn waiting to be used as well. I just visited the website and now they have it in some really cool colors! This yarn is really chunky, so I can't wait to play with it, I think it will make a fabulous scarf.

PS - as a follow-up to the previous post on the recycled silk yarn, I talked to the Darn Good Yarn folks about the softness factor and found out this: "let the silk settle and break in... it gets really soft..." See? I was just too impatient!

Flour and Sun Bakery

As some of you may know, I recently started working in Westchester County, if you follow me on Twitter, you've probably seen my rantings on the traffic that I've been sitting in. I found a silver lining!! There is a little bakery in Pleasantville called Flour and Sun Bakery - they make cupcakes and only cupcakes. In fact, Westchester Magazine has declared them the best cupcakes in the county. Wow!




I only tasted two flavors - cupcake sundae and chocolate chocolate - and they were both amazing. They must have some secret frosting recipe because their frosting is unlike any other frosting I've ever tasted, its sweet (but not too sweet) and creamy and just generally delicious.

Next on my list of flavors to try are pumpkin, chocolate coconut and pistachio.

So, if you need a reason to visit Weschester, here it is! You can also find them on Twitter and Facebook.

Recycled Silk Scarf

I was surfing the net a while back looking to find some interesting new yarns to play around with. I was mostly looking for some organic cotton and bamboo (hopefully cheaper than it is in the craft stores), and instead I came across a fabulous yarn shop called Darn Good Yarn. The recycled silk yarn was quite intriguing and the shop owner is just sweet as pie. After much debate, I ordered me up some recycled silk, hemp and banana fiber yarns.

When the yarn arrived, it was thicker than I had anticipated, which I was very happy about, I love working with chunky yarns and big hooks. Being that it was silk, I expected it to be soft, its not, I was bummed, but the yarn itself is so cool, that I wasn't bummed for long. It was so much fun to work with, the colors changing and the thick and thin nature of the yarn. Here's my first finished project - a breezy and lightweight scarf.



I also had some time to work with the hemp yarn, so stay tuned for details on that!

Happy Shopping!
~Melissa~

Wordless Wednesday

Baby Blue Shell Beaded Necklace
Originally uploaded by madebymelissa

I Want It - Organic Cotton Yarn

I drool over Pancake and Lulu's shop all the time, there is some amazing handspun yarn in there! This Caramel Organic Cotton is my new favorite, its undyed natural color and its thick and thin which I totally love.

Custom Order - Amigurumi Giraffe

As you know from my post a few days ago, I am in love with amigurumi. A friend of mine saw all the totally awesome little creatures I was making and asked if I had a pattern for a giraffe. I did not, but of course, I immediately started looking for one. I came across a few and one was just perfect. Here is the finished product - how cute is she?



I do not have any in my shop right now, but feel free to custom order one! You can contact me by sending me a conversation in Etsy or by leaving your email address in the comments here (don't worry, comments are moderated, so your address won't be published if you don't want it to be).

I Want It - Black Onyx Flower Ring

I love this Black Onyx Flower Gemstone Protective Ring by Kelbelle Designs. I actually really like a lot of her rings, but there is something about this one that makes it stand out among all the other things in her shop.

I love amigurumi!

I am having a blast lately making amigurumi! Now, just in case you aren't familiar with amigurumi, they are those cute little crochet or knit plush creatures that you see floating about Etsyland and craft shows. They are super fun to make and are oh-so-loveable! My son is also enjoying my newest craze - he's claimed a turtle and a snake.

There are quite a few listed in my shop right now, including elephants, jellyfish, an octapus, bunnies and a piglet.




Don't you just want to snuggle them all? The best part is, they are all baby safe (well, except for the jellyfish....). The eyes are sewn on and cannot come off - no choking hazards!

Happy Shopping!
~Melissa~

I Want It! - Classic Pearl Studs

I love these classic pearl studs from JuliaCatherine! The name says it all - they are classic and every woman should have some pearls in her jewelry box!

Personal News and Autumn Leaves!

I recently started a new job (Yay!) and although the commute is a killer, the jon itself is pretty cool. What's even cooler is that my cubicle has a window!! With the office being on the second floor, I can see all of the trees that overlook the parking lot. I've seen some monster mosquitos, crows and a blue jay, but mostly I've noticed that the leaves are slowly starting to change color. Fall is almost here! My favorite time of year. Anyway, staring at all those leaves all day long got me thinking about what I'd find on Etsy if I searched for leaves, and of course, I narrowed it down to my EtsyNJ friends. Check out the EtsyNJ blog to see what I found!

Wordless Wednesday

Green Glass and Ceramic Beaded Bracelet
Originally uploaded by madebymelissa

Wordless Wednesday

Jolly Joey the Jellyfish
Originally uploaded by madebymelissa