am working on a pug puppy decal to stick by the skirting boards. do i have it printed? is it a go-er? does it need more work? is it ‘aaahh’ enough, but not too ‘aaahh’? am pinning to the wall, leaving it for a week and regaining some perspective… feedback appreciated.

Original, bespoke & handcrafted jewellery, this Sunday, not too early, cool Leeds venue. Hell, its too hot for a roast! (tho who knows what Sunday will bring – this is England!) Get yerself down!

How great are these?! Am I’m not even a ‘girly’ girl!… And I don’t make cupcakes (or ‘buns’ as we say round ‘ere!) but I’m gonna have to buy some of these. Great for barbecue parties??? …or you could stick them into plasticine and display them in an espresso cup/egg cup???? 

Maker: Milla Love

Had coffee and cake this morning with jewellery designer-maker Rachel Lucie (pics above). I mentioned how the dollar signs on Etsy might put UK buyers off using it and lamented the lack of a smaller Brit equivalent. ‘There is one!’ she said. ‘Its called Coriandr‘. I’d never heard of it (think it must be fairly new) so I’m spreading the word! Rachel’s just signed up. I’ve managed one listing so far. mighty oaks an’ all that…

I take it for granted that everyone knows what etsy is but they don’t. It seems that those who have something to sell ( the ‘makers’) know and those who want to buy ( the ‘consumers’/the general populace!) usually don’t, which kind of defeats the object. 

Etsy is a mammoth of a website, American, but open to all. Anyone, anywhere, with a valid credit/debit card can ‘join up’ to buy and/or sell handmade and vintage goods. Its as easy as ebay to post listings and even easier to buy – just like any other online shop except prices and payment are made in dollars. You can contact the maker, post personal requests and feel better about where your hard-earned cash is heading; bypass the big names, starve the sweatshop owners and dictate the market! REVOLUTION!

Anyway, for the seller it costs 20 cents to list an item for five months and unlike ebay you can add up to 5 images for no extra cost and amend/update the details whenever you like. As mentioned – only down side: everything done in dollars.

EXPLORE: www.etsy.com

my etsy shop

see next posting for UK equivalent

I love these decorative trays by Ibride but I just couldn’t justify the £80 spend at the minute. However, Grand Ole Bestiary on Etsy sell $8 prints working around the same concept.

Yeah, we’re obsessed (with peacocks). Who isn’t? they’re so….unnecessarily extravagant looking…! kind of like one of those 4 tier shiny glazed, ribbon-rounded, cream frilled, chocolate filigree cakes you see in patisserie windows that thrill your eyes but taste of nothing but sugary sofa foam…eh? anyway, this lady (Schmooks) has some cute prints going on. this is her take on girl as peacock. love the little legs! think its great how we can all interpret something completely differently…

This kind of relates to a post a few day’s ago about Nienke Sybrandy archiving the life of her pot plant by cutting faces into the dropped leaves and casing them like a butterfly collector, in that Helen Coldwell also has the ability to be uniquely inspired by the overlooked, throwaway ‘bits’ of the domestic environment. Very clever concept.