Christmas on Etsy.

Well, tomorrow I'm going home for the holidays, so this blog will be on a mini-hiatus as I celebrate with my family and friends. When I return, it'll be back to tweeting, posting, and Etsy-ing while doing art. Also, I'll be reviewing Orglamix makeup and holding a giveaway for one of her amazing eyeshadow collections, so don't forget! :)

For my "final" blog post, I just wanted to showcase some items I found on Etsy that are Christmas-themed or colored. Some are just plain cute, some are elegant, and some are practical. Here are a few of my favorites, in no particular order...

Necklace of Mother of Pearl Buttons and Felt Balls, $35

By derinmavi

Eye Pillow Slip Cover - Funky Christmas, $3

By BoutiqueKarma

Felt Christmas Tree Ornament, $2

By MiniMaxwell

Ribbon Candy colored pencil art, 8x10 print $23

By paulapertile

Noelle Headband, $18

By FlockTogetherCrafts

Little Red Dress, $82.50

By 3ampoems

Ceramic Christmas Cereal Bowl Set, $40

By handpaintedbykristin

Garden Essentials - Garden Journal, $32

By PrairieGarden

Hot Chocolate Soap, $4.75

By MySpaSecrets

Hope your eyes had a lovely feast! Hope your actual holiday feast is delicious, hope you have a wonderful time with your loved ones... and hope you get the gifts you wanted. :) Happy holidays, Merry Christmas, and to all a good night.

My first handmade journal.

I've always wanted to make one of these!

It's made from cardboard, decorative paper, handmade paper inside (made from elephant dung?), and yarn. I used the Japanese stab binding technique. It's the same thing as the lesson plan I used in field experience for middle school; it's a lot of fun!

I'm proud of it and honestly don't want to sell it. I encourage you to try it out!

I passed my PLT by 20+ points more than needed for my state, yay!! I can't believe it, considering I didn't study as much as I should have. That's one down, two more to go.

So glad Christmas break is here, finally! Time to get to work relaxing and doing what I want artistically. :)

My Multi-Prize Giveaway!

Hey everyone! I hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving holiday, whether it was spent stuffing your face or stuffing your stockings for loved ones (and yourself, hehe).

So, it's finally here. I'm really grateful to my internet buddies and fellow Etsians. I've reached 300 followers on Twitter, and over 100 on this blog. I sure hope it will continue to grow as the days go on! In lieu of this community, the holidays, and just good ole fun, I present to you..

My Multi-Prize Giveaway!!

Some Etsy sellers have graciously donated their items to this giveaway in the spirit of giving. Please take the time to visit their shops and peruse their items and their sales. (You'll want to do this anyway for entries!)

ONE lucky winner will receive this prize package, valued up to $60, after being selected by Random.org. Here's what is included, and how to enter:

First Item



Tina from FlockTogetherCrafts has donated a beautiful Guinea Hen Feather Headband. Love it!

Second Item



John and Donna McLean from LaughingFridge has donated one of their adorable magnets, the Pirate Fat Cat Aaaaarrt Magnet! :3

Third Item



Tricia from SimplyUniqueKreation has donated a gorgeous Red Wave Ring. It is a size 8, but the ring size can be adjusted for the winner.

Fourth Item



I am offering a 3-card set of a mystery printmaking design, as well as the pretty photo album shown above. Album contains 10 plastic sleeves, sized approximately 6x6".

Fifth Item:



Haley from Haleysscrapbooknook is offering one item from her store valued at $7.50 or under. Check it out!

Sixth Item:



Danielle from 7SeventeenGallery is offering a lovely little original painting titled A Little Windy. It is already framed!


How To Enter!!

MANDATORY: Visit each shop and pick out your favorite item. Then come back and post in a comment the items you picked, whether by name or URL. Please do this all together, for it counts as 1 entry only! Don't forget to put your contact info for all entries.

Extra Entries:
1) For EACH shop you heart, including mine at laurart, you'll get ONE entry. Please list your Etsy username. Do separate comments.
2) If you buy an item from one of the shops before the deadline, you'll receive a whopping 5 entries! Just post the item listing with your Etsy username.
3) Follow my blog using Google connect. 1 entry
4) Subscribe to my blog feed. 1 entry
5) Follow me on Twitter AND post a tweet about this giveaway that includes my name @spektorish. Please include your Twitter username and a link to this status. 1 entry
6) Follow @Flock_Together. Leave your Twitter username. 1 entry
7) Follow @uniquekreation. Leave your Twitter username. 1 entry
8) Follow Tina's blog for 1 entry, Tricia's blog for 1 entry, and Danielle's blog for 1 entry.
9) Become a Facebook fan of FlockTogether for 1 entry.
10) Blog about this giveaway, then comment with the link to it for 1 entry.

This giveaway will run until Saturday, December 12. The contest will close at noon or 12:00pm CST. Later on the winner will be picked, and I will post their name with their permission the following day.

So many entries to be had, wow! I am so excited, it has been so long since my last giveaway. I wish you all the best of luck. Tell your friends! :)

This giveaway ends December 12th at noon CST. Any posts after that will not count. For shipping costs, this is only open to the U.S. and Canada, sorry!

Giving thanks.

Give thanks to your neighbors,
and strangers on the street.
Give a happy smile and cheer
to everyone you meet.

Forget our troubles, differences,
just have a happy day.
And please forgive my poetic attempt
at what I'm trying to say:

Have a Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! :)

No Friday Featurette, since there's shopping and whatnot to be done. Don't worry, though, because a lovely giveaway will be coming up! :D

One more to go!

Wow, I'm already just one follower away from 100 Google friends! That's amazing! You know, I never saw myself being a blogger. Activity has died down a bit, sure, but that's not anyone's fault but my own for my busy-ness. Don't forget, I'm thinking of cooking up a giveaway when I reach the 100th. It could be a shop gift certificate to a featured Etsian, could be an item I'm giving away myself... just stay tuned. :)

In the meantime, speaking of giveaways... therikrakstudio is hosting an INCREDIBLE giveaway! And when I say incredible, I mean just absolutely incredible. It contains a huge prize package worth over $450!! WOW! And ONE lucky winner will receive it, picked by random.org


So head on over and enter! Great gifts for the holidays, for sure.