Autumnal Awesomeness (My 1st Etsy Treasury)
By Valerie | September 3, 2010
Autumn (Fall) is my favourite season (along with Spring). “The season of the year between summer and winter, lasting from the autumnal equinox to the winter solstice and from September to December in the Northern Hemisphere” (source:http://www.thefreedictionary.com).
Items chosen here are representative of all I like about this season – through colour, texture and shape, as well as the smells and tastes invoked!
 red oak tree acorns… $7
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 Japanese Scarf Car… $69
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 OOAK stunning open … $480
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 Vintage Forest Gree… $14
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 Big beaded cuff in … $39
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 Flower Brooch Autum… $11
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 Spiced Apple Pie Ha… $5
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 Cloth Napkins – Set… $15
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 Quilted Maple Cutti… $67
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 Sweet Peaches – 1/1… $9
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 Iced Gingerbread Ha… $5.5
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 DaSweetZpot Italian… $7.75
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 Paris Autumn Cowl N… $98
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 Leather wrap, 4x wr… $30
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 Faux Boot Legwarmer… $49.5
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Generated using Treasury HTML code generator by Whale Shark Websites.
Topics: Me | No Comments »
Vacation
By Valerie | August 13, 2010
See you soon!
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YanniCreations
By Valerie | August 3, 2010
Meet Yanni who holds a deep appreciation for recycling . Give her some trash and sure enough she will make something beautiful out of it!
Wear the Rainbow Recycled Long Paper Bead Necklace - YanniCreations
In her own words………
“Hi, I am Yanni of YanniCreations.I am a free spirited recycling artist. I am engaged in all sorts of crafting but I hold a deep appreciation for recycling and creating with decoupage to be the most fulfilling. My love for upcycling and remaking started because I have an enormous collection of bits and pieces that I have stocked since childhood. I used to do collage, woodworks, beads and more traditional kinds of things. I did lots of recycling projects back in school and proud to say, my crafts had always gained the nods of viewers in exhibits. I really enjoyed those moments, and from that I started making things with any kind of debris I find. If I see any discarded and unloved materials along the way headed for a trash pile, I couldn’t help but pick them up knowing one day, I would create something beautiful out of those rubbish. When I eventually started making funky and unique jewelries, it was hard to stop. Currently, I have tons of maps, stamps, vintage books and lots of found objects that I try to incorporate in my pieces.
Atlas/Map Paper Beads for Your Craft Project - YanniCreations
With themes of green politics, conservationism and climate change becoming increasingly popular in the art arena, I commit in putting eco-friendly philosophies to practice, with jewelries, accessories and home decors made entirely or at least 90% of unwanted objects. Recycling and reusing stuff normally destined for the landfill has always been a creative process for me.
Lidded Decoupaged Map Wooden Bowl with Wood Spoon - YanniCreations
It is my personal goal and YanniCreations to help change people’s minds and hearts to reconsider what is garbage and realize that anything seemed worthless could still be salvaged. Ephemeras that are normally discarded can be transformed into eco-friendly accessories with just a bit of imagination, creativity and a sense of fun.
Under the Sea Map Decoupaged Wooden Cat - YanniCreations
Everything in my Etsy store is handmade .You’ll find a collection of hand made stuff and accessories that range from chic jewelries to delightfully decorative functional pieces. It is my commitment to offer original and inventive designs. Although the materials are common such as paper, I make sure my paper crafts are well-made and long lasting. I do not mass produce my creations and I see to it that each piece is unique and OOAK.
In parting, I want my creations to encourage recycling by showing that the life cycle of a thing doesn’t end when it’s no longer functional and that just about anything can be re-used, recycled, remade long after it has served its primary purpose!
Take a peek at some of my maps and paper beads and then look in your trash bin for inspiration!. Unleash your creativity”!
Ice Cream Ad Recycled Paper Beads for Your Craft Project - YanniCreations
…published with the artist’s permission – thanks Yanni!
Topics: Featured Artist/Creative/Designer, Make Do And Mend | 2 Comments »
Menapause and Mid Life Transition
By Valerie | July 27, 2010
July 2010 (me and nephew)
Had my hair cut short 2 weeks ago (see above pic), after trying to grow it for the past 2 years (see bottom pics). Have finally ‘grieved’ and come to terms with the fact that it will never grow as thickly as it used to and that the grey hairs at my temples have a mind of their own and are unruly (unlike their grey counterparts which streak rather nicely through the rest of my hair).
Circa 1986 (me and 'baby' brother)
Circa 1992 (me and mum in Pompeii, Italy)
Am still coming to terms with passing a mirror and being startled as I realise, yes, it is me looking back at me, and wondering with some awe and yes, bewilderment, for the millionth time how I suddenly got to be 50? I feel liberated (I had a full hysterectomy) from the horrors of fibroids and painful, oh so very painful and heavy periods…but am stunned as to how in the space of a couple of years ones shape can change so much; oh, and the aches and niggles one feels in various parts of the body that disappear almost as quickly as they appear making you wonder if you imagined them…………wearing variofocals…..and hot flushes – don’t even go there!
Me (photoshoot - 2005)
Me (summer 2009)
Me (summer 2009)
Topics: Me | 2 Comments »
Phenomenal Woman: Lisa Ferrante – Mixed Media Artist
By Valerie | July 14, 2010
….in her own words and artwork (with kind permission – many thanks Lisa)…..
Phenomenal Woman - Lisa Ferrante
“My name is Lisa Ferrante. I am a self-taught mixed media artist, a wife, and a mother who is blessed with a beautiful supportive family. I have always wanted to express myself in a creative way but could not find the medium at which I would both excel and which would give me the most satisfaction.
She Cried Mixed Media Print - Lisa Ferrante
Once I discovered mixed media, years of feelings about my life literally began to flow from hands and from my heart. Initially I found myself expressing long suppressed feelings about my mother who died when I was 5 years old.
Sacred Love - Lisa Ferrante
Intimately woven in are my passionate feelings about my own two baby girls and how mothering them finally allowed me to work through the pain of the absence of my own mom while celebrating every moment of their young lives.
Roots Run Deep - Lisa Ferrante
I can get lost in a painting for hours, and am most often completely suprised at the final product. I am never certain where the journey of any-one piece will take me. Sometimes a word will inspire an entire work; other timesit is only when the piece is complete that it is clear what it is meant to say.
Me and You (True Love Always) - Lisa Ferrante
All are about love. Maternal love, romantic love, self love and self empowerment. These themes are a reflection of me; they are me exposed; each purges another powerful emotion, another profound realisarion. Each piece represents another step in my own evolution as a woman. As the themes have evolved from the worship of a goddess mother I never knew to my love for my girls, the loves of soul sisters and romantic love for my husband, I have learned to love and accept me for the first time in my life”.
I Am Me With No Apologies - Lisa Ferrante
Topics: Featured Artist/Creative/Designer, Phenomenal Women | No Comments »