Button, Button, Who's Got the Button? -- Check out TessaAnn on Etsy!

One night last week I was just browsing around on etsy and I came across a great shop that I decided I wanted to share with my readers.  I love buttons - any kind of buttons - so imagine my delight when I found TessaAnn and her wonderful shop of handmade buttons!
 http://www.etsy.com/shop/TessaAnn

According to her profile, TessaAnn got her start doing scrapbooking and decided it would be fun to make her own embellishments.  She began making buttons from polymer clay.  All of her buttons are completely handmade by her from start to finish -- she makes the patterns, shapes the clay, bakes, paints and then seals each button.

Sweet Cakes (Handmade Buttons set of 7)
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=40800180

TessaAnn's designs are all bright and colorful and fun, and her craftsmanship is excellent.  One thing I really like about her shop is that, while her buttons are listed as sets, she is more than willing to break up any set to meet her customer's needs.  She also loves to do custom orders.

Here are a couple of my favorite button sets by TessaAnn:

Nature's Garden (handmade buttons set of 6)
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=40923502

Melody (handmade buttons 6)
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=40409191


Please take a moment to visit TessaAnn's' etsy shop (http://www.etsy.com/shop/TessaAnn); I'm sure you'll find the perfect buttons for you!

I'm Being Featured in Another Wonderful Blog!

Evening, readers!  This week I've been corresponding with a wonderful etsy seller and blogger who is featuring me and my shop on her blog for the upcoming week.  Her name is Jessica, and her blog is called That Girls Crafty.

 (http://thatgirlscrafty.blogspot.com/)

You can find the feature about me here:

http://thatgirlscrafty.blogspot.com/2010/02/next-weeks-featured-seller-enlighted.html

And now, as always when someone features me, I'm returning the favor, so I hope you'll read on and allow me to introduce you to Jessica and her artistry on etsy!

Jessica is a former California girl currently enjoying life in Switzerland with her family.  She manages not just one etsy shop but two, offering two different types of products.  One shop is Simply Digital Designs

(http://www.etsy.com/shop/SimplyBannersnAds), in which she offers digital images for a variety of uses.  One which I will likely be taking advantage of at some point is her custom banner listing:

Customized Shop Banner with 3 Photos

(http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=28274956)

Very reasonable at $8 to have a banner customized with my pictures that I didn't have to spend hours fighting with trying to get the images the right size, resolution, etc.  Well worth it!  She does custom avatars as well, plus digital image collages, card graphics and scrapbook pages.

Her second shop is called Belles Mademoiselles (http://www.etsy.com/shop/bellesmademoiselles), an amazing place in which Jessica's sewing skills really shine.  Bags, skirts, pants, hair accessories and no-sew appliques as well as custom items.  Belles Mademoiselles also has a section for upcycled jewelry pendants made from scrabble tiles and dominoes (although you wouldn't know it to look at them!).

Aside from the fun and creative designs, I think the main thing that struck me about this shop is all of the bright, vibrant color in Jessica's work.  Lots of floral and geometric patterns, and everything very bright and cheery. 

Here are a few of my favorite listings from Belles Mademoiselles:

Butterfly Hand Cut No Sew Iron On Applique

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=35613960

Recycled TShirt Tote Bag Guinness

Ballerina Kitty Cat Recycled Domino Tile Pendant with Free Ribbon Necklace

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=37104705

Please stop by and visit Jessica's blog and etsy shops.  With so many different, beautiful pieces you'll surely find something you just can't live without!

Thanks so much, Jessica, for the wonderful opportunity to be featured on your blog!

Just a Quick Note to Announce My First Cigar Box Purse

I've been so excited about getting this piece completed and listed, and tonight's finally the night!

"Just Bee" Honeycomb Pattern Cigar Box Purse



http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=40804390

I had been wanting to try some cigar box purses, so a few weeks ago I stopped by a local cigar store and came across this honey of a box.  As soon as I saw it I knew it had potential.  Since I'd never tried something like this before, the whole thing was kind of one big experiment.

I had a blast finding all of the parts I needed: I found the button for the clasp mixed in with a bunch of old buttons I bought last year at a flea market; the handle came from an old metal pail acquired at another flea market.  I made the flowers from discontinued books of upholstery samples we were throwing away at work.  Painting the details was fun, too.

So anyway, besides this one, I've already got at least 10 more ideas in my head for others!  Thanks for reading tonight!

A Mention, A Silly Goat and A Busy Weekend Ahead

I am excited!  A really cool photographer named Adrienne needed opinions as to which of her newest prints to list in her etsy shop, Studio Haus (http://www.etsy.com/shop/StudioHaus).  Of everyone who voted for their favorites, she randomly selected one person to be mentioned in her shop announcements for the next week.  And guess who won -- ME!

Wanting to return the favor, I asked her to select her favorite listing for me to post here.  She selected this one as befitting of the upcoming holiday:

Headed for Love


http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=39308548

Adrienne is a really talented photographer who has great perspective and an eye for terrific photo ops.  And even better, she not only sells 5x7 and 8x10 prints of her work, she also makes them into greeting cards and journals.

I just completed my purchase from her shop, which I'd love to share with all my readers.  My girlfriend selected this 4x6 journal:

Love the Beach


For me, it just had to be the one I voted for in her opinion poll -- it makes me giggle every time I look at it, so I knew I had to have it:

Silly Goat


Please take the time to visit Adrienne's wonderful etsy shop, follow her on Twitter, and check out her blog:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/StudioHaus

http://twitter.com/StudioHaus

http://twitter.com/StudioHaus

Thanks again, Adrienne, for the awesome promotion opportunity and for your new friendship!

As for me and my shop, I've got a busy weekend planned creating some new items to list.  As I've tweeted and facebooked over the past few days, I'm working on some cigar box purses...my plan is to have the first one listed tomorrow.  Until then...Enlightened Artisan signing off!

In the Bloginning...

Ok, wow, so here I am writing my first blog.  Despite the fact that blogger isn't wanting to cooperate in letting me set everything up nice and pretty, I'm going to go ahead and give it the old artist's try (kind of like the old college try, except that if you fail, you've still made something...even if it is a goofy looking piece of crap!).

For everyone who doesn't know me, here I am (in no particular order):

cheerful (that's what my first name, Larissa, means in Greek)
creative
a former archaeologist now working in design for a design-build general contractor
a horror movie fanatic
funny and always looking for a good laugh
38 years old
a large, brown, flightless bird (well, in name only...my middle name is Rhea)
an artist, and loving it
outgoing and friendly (my girlfriend Vickie says she never knows who she'll find me talking to!)
mommy to a dog named Molly Brown and three cats, Jake Ryan, Samantha Baker and Idgie Threadgoode
lesbian, and madly in love with my girlfriend of 8 years, Vickie
totally prepared to kick ass in any upcoming zombie apocalypse

And, well, there's a lot more to me, but those are just a few fun and semi-essential tidbits to start us off.

Here's a little about my art.  I've always been into making stuff.  Since I was a little kid.  I can't just sit and do nothing.  Watching tv = making stuff.  Waiting room = making stuff.  Nights & weekends = you guessed it...

For years I've thought, "gee, how cool would it be to be able to make a living at making art".  But I couldn't figure out how to do that.  It just made me frustrated.  Until I stopped trying to figure it out.  In December I found etsy.com by accident, and it hit me.  Nobody at etsy hit me, everyone is so super nice!  No, it just seemed that I was meant to find it, and everything just kind of fell into place immediately.  Setting up my shop, working on some initial pieces to list, joining an etsy team and beginning to network -- everything has just been easy and fun.

My shop at the moment consists of painted stones, origami boxes and soon, very soon, some cool little cigar box purses.  I've been painting stones for about five years, and learned origami last year.  My idea notebook is crammed full of new projects, so I plan to be very productive over the coming months.

I've never blogged before (I can talk a blue streak, however), but I wanted to add this to my list of contributions to etsy; to my shop and to the shops of others.  I have met so many cool people in just the first four weeks my shop has been open, all willing and eager to share knowledge about etsy, help me promote my shop and items and send friendly convos of encouragement.

So...my plan for this blog is to pay it forward.  Once I get the setup worked out, I'll be promoting, promoting, promoting!  Featuring artists, cool items, categories of items...whatever I can think of.  We'll have fun, we'll make friends, hopefully we'll get sales!!