Fabulous Friday Finds -- Orange!

Today's Fabulous Friday Finds are made possible by the color orange! (Sounds like a PBS/Sesame Street tagline, right?)

Thankfully, orange is one of my fave colors! A glance at previous blog posts will attest to that! I had fun searching for bright and cheerful items on Etsy. Here's just a few...

Show her how much you love her with this stunning glass heart necklace from ccvalenzo -- gorgeous!!

This print of an original painting from oladesign is beautiful. I love the contrast of the two black birds and bare branches against the deep orange background.

This bag from mahandbags will add color to your spring and summer outfits!

And for your favorite crafter (or yourself, because it is super-cute!) a handmade wool needlebook from JennMaruskaDesign. The button flowers are just adorable!

Tune in next Friday for a bunch more Fabulous Finds!

Fabulous Friday Finds -- Rubik's Cube!

Ok, truth be told, when I pulled "Rubik's Cube" from my little cup o' nouns, I thought I was in deep trouble. What could I find on Etsy by searching for "Rubik's Cube"????

Well. not a lot, but what I did find was kinda kitschy and cool.

There's a mini Rubik's Cube that bunnylogic turned into a pendant (bonus -- it's already solved!):

Or how about mini Rubik's Cube earrings from tinyminds (I love the checkerboard patterns!):

There's a Rubik's Cube felt plushie from kittymiaowwow (no hard plastic corners here!):

Or decorate your space with a Rubik's Cube decal from vinylwalldesign:

Whatever you choose, you'll be honoring the 80's in your own way! Just please, no parachute pants and Flock of Seagulls hair-dos. Some things should be left in the past.

Fabulous Friday Finds -- Fish!

Welcome to this edition of Fabulous Friday Finds! If this is your first visit, here is our premise: My boys chose a bunch of nouns, I select one from my little cup, and I'm off to Etsy to find handmade items by searching for the chosen word.

This week's word -- Fish!

For your baby, this cute little hair clip from shopmayapapaya. Looks good enough to eat (like the Pepperidge Farm crackers), but please don't.

For your teenager, these great fish hoop earrings from sstargell! 3 sizes are available.

For your mom or sister or BFF, this gorgeous fish brooch from Sonseeahray. I love the movement in the fins!

For you dad or DH, a set of 3 handmade handkerchiefs from TheHoneyPress. The hankies are silkscreened with fish and other images on soft 100% cotton plaid fabric. Great for those allergy sufferers out there!



And finally for your crafty friend, a crochet goldfish kit from AmyGaines, packaged in a take-out box! Really, so cute! And if your friend already has a huge stash of yarn, the fish pattern is available by itself.

Thanks for checking out the latest edition of Fabulous Friday Finds. To see past editions, check my blog archive.

Fabulous Friday Finds -- Pizza!

Today's Finds are inspired by the word "pizza"! Yum!

This kitty pizza chef from annya127 just makes me smile! He obviously loves to make pizza! (Check out the companion piece where kitty chef serves the pizza, too!)

These pepperoni pizza charms from fornever are sooooo adorable! They are tiny perfection! I love the way you can see the layer of sauce under the cheese. Also available from fornever are pizza hairclips and a pizza cellphone charm. Soooo cute!

This pizza necklace from shayaaron looks so real! I love the way the cheese oozed out when the slice was taken -- authentic! Plus it has green olives -- DH's favorite topping! And the way it is photographed with the miniature pizza board, pizza cutter, rolling pin, jar of pepper flakes and jar of grated cheese! Wow!!!



And speaking of pizza cutters, how cool are these pizza cutter earrings from celiefago! They are beautifully crafted of sterling and copper, and both disks spin. These are definitely on my wish list!


Well, now I'm craving pizza! My fave is pepperoni, mushroom, and black olive! Be sure and come back next Friday for more Fabulous Finds!

Fabulous Friday Finds -- Island!

Today's edition of Fabulous Friday Finds is perhaps inspired by Spring Break -- the word today is "island." (If you're new to FFF, I choose a word every Friday with the help of my three oldest sons and feature items from Etsy that match the word.)

Etsy is chock-full of original photographs of islands! It was difficult to choose favorites. Here's a very small sample of what you can find by searching for "island".

How gorgeous are the clear waters in this photograph by travelographer of one of the San Blas Islands:

Islands are gorgeous in black-and-white as well, as seen in this photograph by DAJPhoto of Ruby Beach in Washington (Destruction Island is visible in the horizon):

The Hawaiian Islands are naturally subject to the photographer's lens. This photograph by PuaArts captures the lava flow from Kilauea:

This photograph of palm trees and blue skies was taken in Tonga by worldloop. I can just picture spending a lazy afternoon on a hammock beneath these gorgeous trees:

From the skies to the sand -- this photograph of the changing tides on Pawley's Island by joytannerphotography is stunning:

I love the graphic element of this photograph taken under the pier at Tybee Island by fotojo:

3lovely captured this unique shot of the steps leading down to Cupecoy Beach, St. Maarten:

I hope you will take the opportunity to check out these wonderful photographers. (For your convenience, I have also linked each photograph to its Etsy listing.)

Tune in next Friday for more Fabulous Friday Finds and have a happy and safe Spring Break!

Fabulous Friday Finds -- Tank!

Nouns can be funny things in that they have wildly different meanings. This edition of Fabulous Friday Finds is a perfect example:

I asked my boys for a list of 20 or so nouns from which I would randomly draw one in order to choose the Finds from Etsy. (This is our new method of selecting the Finds, which eliminates me waiting for them to get home from school on Friday because I had forgotten to ask for the word at breakfast.) So what's the first word I pull from my little cup?? Tank. Yep, tank.

I'm pretty sure this is what the boys had in mind (wooden military vehicle patterns from JandDWoodcrafts):

Or maybe this tank (in the form of soap from saltsmansoap -- hey, that's a great boy gift!):

But to me, a tank is an article of clothing, something for a sweltering summer day in South Texas. This gorgeous silk tank from LotusLuxuries fits the bill in a dressy, date-with-your-sweetie, kind of way:

Or this lovely tank dress from louderthanwords (honestly, it could not look more comfy -- this is sooooo on my wish list!):

And if I had a daughter (or for that matter, could knit) I would certainly make this sweet little tank (knitted pattern from pixiepurls):

(Be sure to check out all of the photos on this knitted tank pattern -- the variations are adorable!)

Since daughters are not in my future, maybe I can learn to knit for the granddaughters I hope to have some day (a long, long, loooooong time from now.) Then their daddies can think of tanks in a new way.

Fabulous Friday Finds -- Sandstorm!

Today's edition of the Fabulous Friday Finds is brought to you by my 7yo, who thought up the word "sandstorm". Actually, that was his second choice -- his first choice of word was "hail" as in icy precipitation, but waaaay too many listings at Etsy were called "hail to the ___", and there were very few precipitation-related "hail" listings.

So "sandstorm" it is!

My first find is this hauntingly beautiful photo from LarryNicosiaPhoto. He's a new seller to Etsy, and many of his photographs have a desolate quality. And since I love being at the beach when it's cloudy and grey and a storm is coming in, this particular photo really spoke to me.

This original abstract piece from kellyvanhook is appropriately titled "Sandstorm." The color and texture recall the blinding nature of a sandstorm.

I just love the swirly colors of this handmade lampwork bead from blackriverbeads. It almost looks atmospheric, like the planet Jupiter. Gorgeous!

What happens when yarn gets lost in the desert? According to WhirligigYarns (from Boulder, Colorado -- where I was born!), this is the result -- a delightful mix of yellow, pink, taupe, and brown:

On a personal note, I once found myself in a sandstorm. We were on a chartered bus heading from Dallas to Colorado for a ski trip. It was raining in Dallas when we left. We hit the sandstorm in the panhandle (the bus had to stop on the side of the highway because the driver couldn't see anything), and it was snowing in Durango, Colorado when we arrived. That was the weirdest precipitation day ever!

Fabulous Friday Finds -- Computer!

Today's finds are brought to you by the word "computer," chosen by DS2, who is no doubt a child of the computer age.

The first item I chose from Etsy is a laptop sleeve, because in this day and age, travelling with your laptop is often a necessity. And how sad would it be if your laptop was damaged. This laptop sleeve was made by annyandme:

And when you pull your laptop out of its handmade sleeve, it makes an impact with this gorgeous graphic decal from michellechristina:

But let's not forget about the lowly desktop computer you leave at home, the one you depend on day after day. How about a set of lavender and flaxseed pillows to both decorate your space and keep your wrists from fatigue through the hours of blogging, posting, commenting, Etsy shopping, etc. The pillows are found at HomeGrownPillows:

Also your desktop deserves a special mousepad from billoneil. What a great way to brighten up your desk!


And how cute is this memory stick from 123smile, made from real Legos! (And I loooooove legos!)

Without a doubt, my favorite find this week is this sweet baby bib from colbylanedesigns:

I predict the child who wears this is a computer whiz in the making! Remember, it's the geeks who rule the world!

Tune in next Friday for more fabulous finds!

Fabulous Friday Finds -- Potato!

Welcome to the second edition of my Friday feature. My boys challenge me each week with a noun, then I search Etsy and find the most fabulous items (to me) that match the noun to feature.

This week's challenge word: Potato!

"Potato," I thought, "What in the world will I find on Etsy with potato?" It seemed daunting or at least, nearly impossible. Who makes potatoes to sell on Etsy??

Well, personally, I love potatoes, and this little gem sums that up (from jenjensirene)!



And what could be better than playing with potatoes? This yummy felt lunch set from christinamaedesigns features 2 kinds of potatoes -- fries and chips! Now that's what I want for lunch!

And for dinner, we'll serve Mom's meatloaf with mashed potatoes (check out the perfect pat of butter), from opheliamcphee!



Speaking of Mom, how about a gorgeous strand of potato pearls, from briguysgirls! Trust me, she will love this necklace!

And let's not leave out the baby in the family. Here's a sweet newborn set from potatopatch featuring 2 of the cutest chicks ever:

Potato, you ask? Where's the potato? Well, the chick design is hand-stamped with potato stamps! Clever, right?

Thanks for stopping by! Tune in next Friday for a whole new batch of fabulous finds!

Fabulous Friday Finds -- Sheep!

I'm starting a new Friday feature, and here's the first one. My boys challenge me each week with a noun, then I search Etsy and find the most fabulous items (to me) that match the noun to feature.

This week's challenge word was Sheep!

This is soooo adorable -- and functional too! It's a bamboo stitch gauge decorated with little sheep. From karatstix!

More functional sheep: stitch markers from scarymerry! Baaaaa!

What fiber artist wouldn't love crochet hooks or knitting needles featuring little clay sheep! The crochet hook is from designsbytami!

The knitting needles are from ClayAndYarnBarn!


These fabric covered buttons with hand-embroidered sheep would rock on a handmade wool sweater! From butteredparsnips!

And finally, because sheep are just toooo cute -- a primitive woolly friend to decorate your home from SimplyEwe!

Be sure to join me next week for another Fabulous Friday Find!