Wishes Granted Everywhere….

Ok, just the material wishes….

I have always adored the wishlist feature on Amazon.com… It makes shopping/giving so much easier and I am convinced it is a clutter buster as we don’t always wind up with things we will never use (or can’t use…I’m not an XS. I haven’t been an XS since I was a fetus.)…

On the other hand, all of you know I love handmade. Most of my amazon.com list is comprised of books on metal technique, SID, SPD, ADHD, etc… There are a couple of tools, and occasionally a big ticket item… I often use my wishlist as a holding place for things I will buy myself…Of course, if anyone wants to get them for me before I save up enough ducats, than hey. I’m not complaining! I like them because they give direction to family members that are far away when buying for boyo… It’s all good…

What I really love is handmade stuff (and not just because I am a maker of handmade goods)….

I have a million things I adore on Etsy.com and SmashingDarling.com that I would love to put in a wishlist… Etsy has a favorites list but I tend to favorite things either I want to give to someone else or that I want… Last year I wound up with a really cool nitroglycerin holding keychain from hubby. Um, I’m not on nitroglycerin…I can’t remember who I earmarked that for, but it wasn’t me…. So until that allows for greater organization and clarification I am so excited that Amazon now has a Universal Wish List button that you can add to your browser.

You can add anything from anywhere. It adds a title, image, and link…You can put a description and the price if you would like… When someone views your wishlist they just click and bam! they are on the item page… The only potential issue I can see on this is that checkout will of course be with the linked site, not with Amazon…Might confuse those who are not yet familiar with venues like Etsy… For now though I am hoping it brings more exposure for the fabulous Etsy (and all of us who peddle our handmade goods there…Me included, of course…) and a great way to organize and add to wishlists….

Here’s a link to the button!

Now head to Etsy.com and have fun! Enjoy!

Etsy and BUST!

Ad

Originally uploaded by Outlined.

Voila! The ad!

Be sure to visit KnottyByNature -lots of cool paper goods and other treats! Knottybynature, aka Outlined. (on flickr) is totally awesome and scanned this baby in…

Can you spot my piece? Hint: It’s red and cordiform (word o’the day)

Congrats to everyone who got a space and fingers and everything else crossed that even with this economy this ad gives all of the fine Etsy folks a little nudge in the sales department!

And for the time being…Tell me how you found my Etsy shop in the “notes to seller” area during checkout and I’ll refund your shipping via Paypal. (Even if you have shopped with me before…Just tell me how you originally found me.)…

Hugs all around!
B

Spring box….

Spring box….

Originally uploaded by CleverGirlBek

A lovely CleverGirl parcel for a dear friend and customer….

I always wrap the treasures I send out in this style… Typically, I do ship using padded envelopes… This box arrive the morning that I was wrapping these treats up, and I have quite the volume of easter basket grass that I am trying to use up…. So voila….

I make the sushi grass stickers myself (occasionally they are made by one of the boys…VERY occasionally)

The lovely paperclip flowers come from the brilliant Naomi at Art by Naomi . I have been buying these posie clips for awhile now, and I love working with Naomi. She has lots of cheerful treats in her shop, please be sure to check them out! (lots of good stuff for giftwrapping, scrapbooking, etc…)

Spring has sprung…

Tree by TimothyAdam

Originally uploaded by CleverGirlBek

Or at least it looks that way since I put a bunch of my earrings on the tree I ordered from TimothyAdamDesigns… Really cool steel piece, beautifully made… I put a bunch of earrings from my etsy shop on it and am more in love with it. Now go visit TimothyAdamDesigns…

Mixed Plate!

Yay!  My work was featured on Mixed Plate today!   Mixed Plate is a really wonderful resource… Lots of cool indie treats chosen by Miss Liana… Truly an honor…. Now what are you still doing here?!?!? Go visit! (p.s. I think a bot posted this post on Mixed Plate as a comment on the bit about my pieces…Anyone know anything about how this stuff works?)

You Rock My World.

TeaNoir, I’m talking about you…. I liked tea before… Really, I did… I had implements for brewing tea and neat little mini-paint cans from a well-known tea house stacked high on my counter….I have two italian glass jars (the kind with the hinged lid and rubber washer to keep moisture out) one for Redhot, one for Blackout….  They grace my counter and invite me to brew yet another rich cup….  But now I have a cabinet dedicated to the brewing of TeaNoir.  It’s true…  I’ve moved beyond Redhot and Blackout, although they are still part of my tea entourage.  I now have a dozen different bags of TeaNoir tea for whatever desire might strike me, at any time of day.  They are not only tasty but the art that Miss Kate, the TeaNoir Teamistress, has cultivated reveals itself sip by sip… The flavors are layered to perfection.  Some versions are drinkable in the most simple sense- they taste great and so I drink them and get a little twinge of panic that I might run out…So I place another order for those and whatever new varieties she has introduced….  Others are like Willy Wonka’s Everlasting Gobstopper… No they don’t turn you into a giant blueberry.  They reveal themselves in a most gradual and sensual way… A cupful is a journey, a potful is a most wonderful, epic adventure… Because of my film background, perhaps I see things mostly as photographic in my imagination…. Bangkok, with it’s gentle waves of coconut and sexy lilt of anise, is a sepia toned hotel porch where Hemingway sits before tending to another safari story…. (and yes, I’m aware that Bangkok is not where most safari’s of Hemingway’s work occurred but TeaNoir’s Bangkok tea takes me from Florida to Bangkok to coconut cocktails on an otherwise deserted beach, to writing the tales of this tea journey on a hotel porch in the early part of the century.) Mango Lassi is perfect.   A smooth and silky and sweet and tart tea translation of the delicious yogurt based beverage.   I’m in Mumbai, exploring the city with a dear friend, and no longer just looking at the postcard of the coastline and the traffic… I can feel the warm air and the market and smell the spices and the sea… I’m at peace but something in me longs to explore…. Anyway, I could spend a month talking about my favorites… But these are the two newest ones that I am enjoying this weekend…  Kate of TeaNoir is truly an artist with a most creative and thrilling palate….  Stop on by her digs on Etsy and send her my best….   She does, by the way, offer a sampler on occasion, where you can try a small amount of three different teas…  It’s a great way to try some new flavors, or her versions of some of your old favorites… If you have questions just ask- she is very helpful and provides excellent customer service as well as tea.   

There is still time to buy handmade for the holidays!

One of the many joys of buying handmade and direct from the person who makes and ships your goodies, is that you usually have a wider window for shopping when there are deadlines involved….

I’m finding that many domestic US sellers on Etsy.com are shipping orders placed by 12/17 in time for the holidays…  I am one of them and you can find me here: CleverGirl.Etsy.com

My top tips for buying handmade with the shipping windows closing:

COMMUNICATE.  Check communication the seller may have left for you- check shop announcements and always check their profile on Etsy.com - lots of shop policy info and sometimes some fun info about the artist can be found in the individual’s profile….

If you don’t see the info you need- click contact and send them a message and be sure to include: the item(s) you are interested in, when you need it to arrive, and where you need it to go (city,state, zip are helpful!)…
I have added a priority shipping upgrade to my shop but it must be purchased as an “item” as Etsy doesn’t allow for us to have multiple shipping speed options and prices within a listing and I’m busy packing up orders to head out tomorrow and I just don’t have the time to go in and edit 100+ listings…

Of course, my dear blog readers, if you buy before noon tomorrow (12/17/2007) and put “beclever” or “blog” or something that lets me know you read this in the “notes to seller” area when checking out of Etsy, I’ll upgrade you at no charge (so don’t add that Priority shipping upgrade listing to your cart!)  to USPS Priority…

Also, as someone who has worked retail and done lots of shipping over the years, please keep in mind that once a package has left a seller’s hands and is in the hands of the US Postal Service there is nothing they can do to change or speed up the delivery of your package- so if you want it faster let us know- I can do 3, 2, or overnight via FedEx (make sure you allow for 24 hours in addition to the delivery/shipping times as I do need to pack up your goodies) at an additional charge- many folks can and are happy to help with such details…

Also, at the risk of sounding a bit cranky (from when I worked in shipping for a major US toy store way in the past…I still have flashbacks :-) please do not lambaste the person you purchased an item from (or leave them negative feedback)  if there is foul weather, and if the post office takes longer than their “suggested” time on first class mail and priority mail this time of year- they do not guarantee delivery dates on those types of packages.  Once a package is out of our hands, and it has been labeled and shipped properly, it really is in the hands of our friendly postal workers!

*hugs*

Let’s all do our part (read the instructions, ask questions, and not expect anyone to be a mind-reader… I think that goes for everyone this year- buyers, sellers, husbands, wives, parents, kids, etc….)   to keep all of our increased stress levels to a minimum and let’s all work together all year to make the holidays more enjoyable and less stressful!

Woohoo!

Group hug.

Peace out.

Always be clever. 

xo

B

…in other news…

I was interviewed for an article over at LoveToKnow.com!

That’s right…

They were working on an article on “Plus Size Jewelry” and I found them and the list of links to plus size jewelry and I commented that Etsy.com is a great place to shop at any size as working with the person who is making your piece of jewelry offers so many opportunities for custom sizing and complete custom pieces, and not just for plus size gals- for people of all sizes and shapes and needs… I also tried to focus on how jewelry should be about feeling great so you can project confidence and beauty, at any size.

Anyway…

Here’s the link…

Interview

Love, Norman Love.

Love, Norman Love.

Originally uploaded by CleverGirlBek

Oh Norman Love…Why do you and your mad confection laboratory have to be on the way home from hubby’s office?

and the strawberries taste like strawberries!

You think of the most lovely combinations that fill me with childlike joy and giddiness and grown-up decadence all at the same time… You are a mad genius. Your confection creating crew is beyond fabulous.

Willy Wonka can truly retire now….

Oh and for those of you that aren’t familiar with Mr. Love and his crew and their genius creations and think “eh- I’ll just give Godiva because everyone knows the name” think again… Norman Love is the genius behind the “g” collection….

and

(from Godiva’s press section):
Always an innovator in the industry, Love is the former Executive Pastry Chef for Ritz Carlton Hotels. His passion for sweets has landed him on Chocolatier Magazine’s Top 10 Pastry Chef’s list and USA Today’s Top 10 Artisan Chocolatier’s list.

These are the best.

Yummy.
Exquisite.
Perfect.

Here is the link to the Norman Love site:
http://www.normanloveconfections.com

Artisan made from fresh ingredients….

(and of course if you can’t send chocolate treats and confections for whatever reason- customs, dietary restrictions, etc… You can always check out the candylike treats at

CleverGirl

(mention you saw this post in the notes to seller area this weekend (code: beclever) and I’ll send along an extra special rockin’ treat with your order….Sorry, not chocolate but you will like it and it is fairly bon bon-esque in appearance!)

Buy handmade.

Did you take the pledge? Here’s the link: Buyhandmade.org

Sign it. Live it.

and BUY IT on Etsy!

Ok. Now on to my birthday news… It was a tough one this year, lots of mixed feelings and mounting health problems….Blah blah blah..

I did wake up this morning to a little birthday treasure hunt that hubby invited boy to join in (which makes it even more fun)….

Turns out that the baldguy signed up for his very own etsy account and raided my favorites. Yup. My birthday was handmade this year and it all came from my Etsy favorites list!

Links to the treasures coming tomorrow, after some sleep which will renew my ability to put some pictures on here, hopefully…

The best gift, by far, was that the baldguy took the time to figure out the whole Etsy thing and he listened… And I’m thrilled to report that all of the sellers were hugely helpful in answering his questions, getting the packages out, and providing excellent customer service to someone new to the whole Etsy thing. Big round of applause for the artists of Etsy- for not only making awesome things but also balancing good business practices on top of it! Yay!*hugs*

Off to bed to burn off the last hour of this day as I have to catch up on work tomorrow.

Oh and I usually name my present, if we have the funds, and buy it myself around my birthday. That being said, every year since we have been married we have mourned the loss of a major appliance (or a technically minor one that we “need”) or welcomed a new major medical device(insulin pump, muscle stimulator, TENS unit…another insulin pump…) into our lives -always between October 31 and November 7th…. This year, it is our garbage disposal (garberator, or in this case the in-sink (garb)erator :-) BUT, it is covered, thankfully. And I squirreled some money away…Woohoo. SO I did splurge and I have a fabulous custom bag coming from MoxieAndOliver

(ok and a little coordinating case for business cards and my id n’ stuff)

I will, of course, share photos when it arrives! Caitlin is a sweetheart and so talented! She is the very same genius who made my cane straps for me- her work is beautiful and unique- I saw the cane strap and knew I needed a bag to match it! It feels so good to put a bit of my hard earned money into another artists work…To get a little snapshot of their creative spirit to treasure…. Sure I could have bought a bag at one of our local mass merchandise chains but these days I am enjoying buying handmade, direct from the maker - better products, unique products, better quality, and tons more fun.

Oh and I am having a little free shipping thing until midnight… I was hoping to get to my blog a bit sooner but Lexo the Great read me “The B Book” (because my name starts with B) and one of my most favorite kids books “My many colored days” by Dr. Seuss (link is to the hardcover version…we are still reading our gnawed board book version and loving it!) SO for my friendly blog readers, free shipping until midnight 11/8 (up to $5, free shipping will be given via a shipping refund from paypal…if you are paying with propay I will send you an invoice reflecting the discount, just put “beclever” in the notes to seller area)….

What are you still doing here! Shop! Shop! Shop!