Etsy Treasure Tuesday: Packagery

I'm having a difficult time getting into the Christmas swing this year for several reasons.

1: It's the middle of December and it's 80 degrees outside here! What is going on!?

2: I did almost all of my Christmas shopping online this year, so I (happily) missed that whole "rushing out to buy gifts" experience that usually signals the season's beginning.

3: I was so busy leading up to Thanksgiving and at the beginning of this month that I haven't had time to put up the Christmas tree, so my house looks just the same as for the other 11 months of the year, except dirtier and with a lone little aqua wreath lounging on the piano.

Despite the fact that I don't have a tree to put the presents under,

I do love wrapping them. I love the creativity I get to exhibit, and I love the pretty papers and ribbons and trims. Which is why I chose Packagery for today's Etsy feature, and why I'm feeling a little more in the mood to put on Bing's "White Christmas" and get started.

Doesn't that make you want to stop what you're going and play in the floor with all of the pretties? Me too. Happy Tuesday and happy wrapping, friends!

My DIY Wreath

I'm not sure if any of you will remember that last year in December, I put up a DIY post about how to make this adorable ruffle wreath with felt circles. I bought the materials right around Christmas last year, but didn't get around to making it in time to put up for the holidays. But last weekend, I finally sat down and put together the pretty little wreath below.

I decided to wrap it in (of course) aqua yarn, then I attached my 85 or so circles of ivory felt. Unfortunately, they didn't quite cover the whole wreath. I like the fact that you can see the pretty yarn, but it still looks funny to me, so I need y'all's opinion on the finishing touches. Should I buy more felt to cover it completely? Or should I remove some of the circles so that it's mostly a yarn wreath with a band of ruffles? And what should I embellish with? I bought some vintage-style bottlebrush trees with which I was going to plant a little forest on the bottom of the ring, but I tried to spray paint them gold, and learned to my dismay that bottlebrush trees are impervious to spray paint (at least mine were, after 5 solid minutes of spraying). I could hang some mini Christmas ornaments from the top of the ring to dangle in the center, I suppose. Any other brilliant ideas?

I'd love to hear about any holiday craftiness you've been up to recently!

Etsy Treasure Tuesday: Laura Amiss

I fell in love with all of the gorgeous prints and textile artwork in Laura Amiss's Etsy shop at first glance. The colors make me happy, and the sweet themes make me giggle. I dare you not to smile immediately.

I think "Teapots" and "I Was Different" would be at the top of my list, but the cityscapes are close behind. So charming, yes?

{all images © Laura Amiss, and pulled from the Etsy shop}

Just .... A Little ..... Further .....

I'm this close to making my 200th sale in the Etsy shop {picture me doing the thumb and first finger thing with my face scrunched up}, so I wanted to invite you guys to help me out with that; if you've been thinking of doing any of your Christmas shopping at pink street, go ahead and jump on that! I'm offering a special little free gift to be included with the next four sales, which will be wrapped beautifully and packaged with extra attention (because that's how I roll).

So go ahead, please, make my day!

Holiday Trading

So thrilled that I made it into the 2010 oh, hello friend Holiday Trade Guide! It's such a fantastic way to discover other artists on Etsy, and get some of my shopping done without spending any money! Hooray for supporting each other and being thrifty!

Check out Danni's lovely collection here, and if you make things and are interested in arranging a trade with me, visit my shop here! (That's my Meryton necklace, at the bottom left. Sold a few days ago, but there's lots more prettiness where that came from.)