sale {etsy store}

morning! are you looking for a unique artsy gift for family or friends? i am offering a 15% discount with a minimum purchase of $20.00 in my etsy store starting today through december 20th to help with your shopping needs.

there is a nice variety there of prices and original handmade items. check it out!

christmas tree hand painted ornaments

hand painted wrapping paper

art dolls and original art

stocking stuffers- such as this postcard.

happy thursday. happy shopping.

xo. kristin

holidays.....

can you see the smoke from there?! 

i am already feeling slightly overwhelmed with the looming holidays. my head is already whirling and beginning to smoke....as i received my "holiday bootcamp" email last week and since then, my head has started ramping up.....

the email told me i was already signed up- well thank goodness! i must have been non-overwhelmed and on the ball with signing up for the camp.... whenever that was.

but, the email has prompted this mild panic.

• will i even sell anything?
• should i make calendars....i like these, but, let's be honest here....i still have a small pile from this year. (maybe cut them up and use them for something else....an art journal maybe?!) ok, to be mildly fair to myself....they had fallen out of my etsy store- haha....but, they are listed again at a cut n slash price. maybe you need a white elephant gift- buy this year's calendar!
• similar to my calendar expedition- are my postcards. i picked some of my favorite journal pages- but, i must have had too much coffee and surfing when i purchased those as i look at the huge stack in my studio......this is my favorite one but there are six to choose from.
• and i really, really like to sew something- like houses; but, then, i need to get going so i actually have some to sell. and i made the cutest weird sewn trees last year. i need to figure out how to ship those- cuz i am telling you....those were so darn cute but i didn't list 'em, cuz i wasn't sure how to ship....but, i am thinking a tube would work. i will do some checking.
• loving my art dolls....love sewing those.....and the pencil/ paintbrush bags.
• i loved those christmas balls up above.....i think i will have those again.
• should i list original work on canvas?

i feel like i am picking up a theme as i am writing, as i still have quite a few of the christmas balls left over. i think i panic and then overmake- driving myself a bit crazier. and then, have a pile left over.

ok- maybe i need to take some inventory here before i panic anymore.

i have had a few people ask about downloads or prints- but, i am on the fence on these. thoughts? do you like them? are you interested? let me know what your thoughts are.

xo. kristin

art dolls {listed} tgif....

tgif....both ladies listed in my etsy store

sewingswag {art doll-listed}

this art doll would be handmade and sewn in typical kristin fashion. her face is a mix of mediums and a cheek of triangle cream fleece.

i love the cream and black stripes and her cute pea-pod like legs. and those weren't a bitch to stuff at all! just kidding....they were a huge pain in the butt. aren't they cute?!

seriously though......anyone have any great ways to stuff skinny legs?

she is approximately 13" from the top of her head to the longest leg. her body fabric is a mix of repurposed clothing tag and a scrap of hand dyed fabric.

she is newly listed in my etsy store here. 

ornaments, wrapping papers, and fabric houses....

did you have a wonderful Thanksgiving?....ours was pretty relaxed. our college kids came home and because of the weather, it was just our family for the holiday. we were just thankful that they had made it home safely and that we could all hang out again for a bit.

on saturday i found some studio time to keep getting organized for the upcoming holiday....Christmas! i have new items in my etsy store just in time for the holiday.

check these out.....

love the mix of colors and the gold with everything....

and i have a good handful listed in my etsy store if you are looking for something special. and now for the wrapping papers....

above is a close up of one of the papers- i made the homemade wrapping paper in a variety of colors.

any package wrapped in this homemade wrapping paper is sure to stand out.

and last, but, not least are my fabric/ textile houses....listed 3 for you to chose from.

these fabric houses are just fun and quirky and a good mixtures of new and vintage, and machine sewn and hand stitching.

the houses all have matching sides

want to stop by my store and look around now?.....my store can be found here.

think gift....

think gift - for yourself or a friend......are you an artist? do you go and paint with friends or take classes? or maybe have a friend who is an artist?......this is a super cute pencil/ paintbrush bag; and everyone would gush over your super cute pencil bag- or your gift to an artist friend. it was listed this morning to my etsy shop.

its' front panel is hand dyed and stamped with a black and white fringe along the lime green zipper. the back panel is a large turquoise polka dot.

this will hold even your long paintbrushes....see my silver one? one of my favorite paintbrushes for sure....wouldn't leave the house to paint without it!

the end has a cute vintage button sewn onto the end- just to keep the details on point for this bag. this bag also has a sari ribbon handle to snag this bag with a finger.

a favor....

i have a favor to ask.....are you an etsy shopper? yes, no?......would you be willing to take a peek at my newly updated etsy store?

i have been updating some things like my banner, shop information and item titles and i would love some feedback. if you have just a moment- will you follow the link and see what you think- then stop back and leave me a comment?

like the bag shown above? want to see more? i will be listing that lined bag later today.

need a bit of happiness?

been a long week?....need a little something to make you smile? how about a mini bit of colorful happiness?

i listed a few of these mini's in my etsy store today just for you!

happy friday!

thinking of hearts

moving through this cold, wintery month of january and thinking ahead to february and valentine's day.

i love making valentines and my kids are too old now, but, i still found myself making valentines.... so i am selling valentines in my etsy store. each valentine is original- similar to its' friends, but, different all the same.

so do you need a few personal handmade valentines? maybe special ones to give to the grandparents or an aunt or uncle? or maybe you are tired of those mass produced cartoonish valentines?

i have just what you need then. yep- got 'em all stacked up!

i even kept it simple on the backs....just a "to and from" so you still have a small space to put your message to this very special someone.

the valentine's measure 3" x 3.5" and currently do not come with envelopes, but, if you need envelopes- be sure to message me and i will whip some up for you.

happy wednesday!

alcohol inks on tiles

my jet-setting mom has been hanging out in much warmer weather than what we have been seeing here in the midwest. so on saturday i went to play in her studio with her before she leaves again. she had learned a new technique while she was gone and wanted to share with me.

so i loaded up all of my own inks and headed to her studio. she had bought each of us tiles to use for this project. check out my tiles below...

the tiles were great fun to make and we each made a total of 4 tiles that day. the tiles take a bit to fully dry and then, my mom did the finish work and attached the hangar. these shown here were still drying.

keep an eye on my etsy store as they will be making an appearance there!

honesty and mailart

my honesty comes with a very pleasant surprise of a sale in my etsy store.....here is my scoop...i am only techy enough to be dangerous and especially when i first started my store, the resizing of pics, and all the steps required to get something posting was almost more than i wanted to do. so, my store sat empty for long periods of time. i did not give it the time and patience that it deserved. i did not do my part and work harder to do the research and learning to get my store up and going.

but, this year one of my goals for my artsy self was to work harder on my etsy store. so, i gave it a bit of a facelift and freshened the pics and updated the wording; and i pledged to myself that i would post current work to my store and if i had a sale- perfect....and, if not, at least i was giving myself a fair chance.

i have been making "softie" ornaments that i of course, think are so darn cute, and decided to post those in my etsy store for sale. on monday when i got home from work and checked my email....i had a SALE!! from my etsy store!! i have sold paintings in the galleries, done commission and private requests; but, nothing from etsy.

a little squeak came out with pure joy and then, i did the happy weird momma dance in the living room! this continued throughout the evening and every half hour or so, i would tell anyone close to me at home that i had an etsy sale. my family was tired of me by the end of the night....

but, with this sale, i wanted to make sure that the package was shipped appropriately and in some proper mailart fashion. so i went straight to the studio to whip up a package.

 i started with a file folder that i had gelli printed and worked on building my layers from there. this is one of Roben-Marie's famous mailart preferences for paper and i would agree. love printing with my gelli plate on file folders. the other thing i used was Roben-Marie's Art Pops for my address label. her Art Pops line of cards has been a main staple of supplies in my recent mixed media pieces- the cards have been easy to slip into use.

i loved how this piece of mailart turned out, but, with all my packing to ensure that my ornament's vintage dangles would not break- my package would not safely hold together during shipping. so, next best thing, i placed the mailart and ornaments into a boring plain shipping folder that will arrive safety- but, when she opens it....poof- mailart and ornaments happiness will come out!

anyway- if my buyer stops today....thank you so very much for your purchase! you made my night and week!