HOLIDAY SALE!!!

"Corgman Family Christmas" Greeting Card Set, Size A2

Take 15% off your entire order until 12.31.14! Use coupon code SNOWFLAKE at checkout.

Sorry, sale does not apply to wholesale or previous orders.

Get yer Fidget Art! gear!

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Holiday Handmade Event!

The lovely Staci of Contempo Artisan Boutique and Kevin of Big Spring Spirits will be hosting an epic Happy Hour Holiday Showcase in Bellefonte, PA. During the first three Thursdays in November, a selection of Central PA's Contempo artists (including yours truly!) will be showcasing and selling their handmade wares at Big Spring. Enjoy the evening with some signature cocktails, Thursday night football, and tasty nibbles while getting your holiday shopping done!

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Preeeeettyyyy...

*_*

Picture taken from Steampunk Cruise's FB page. Their first annual cruise will be held on March 16-23 2013. Head over there and like 'em, mebbe book some tickets if you're planning a vacation next year.

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2012 holiday shipping dates and other important stuff

It's that time of year when everything picks up and gets uber hectic. For those shopping handmade during the holidays, I've posted mailing deadlines for Christmas delivery from the USPS website:

Domestic Mail
First Class Mail–Dec. 20th
Priority Mail–Dec. 21st
Express Mail*–Dec. 22nd
Parcel Post–Dec. 14th
Destination Network Distribution Center (DNDC) Drop Ship–Dec. 19th
Destination Delivery Unit (DDU) Drop Ship–Dec. 21st
* Some Express Mail destinations may have extended service commitments.

International Mail
First Class Mail:
-Africa, Central/South America–Dec. 3rd
-Asia/Pac. Rim, Australia/New Zealand, Canada, Caribbean, Mexico, Europe, Middle East–Dec. 10th

Priority Mail:
-Africa, Central/South America–Dec. 3rd <--- 1st="1st" as="as" class="class" don="don" it="it" know="know" p="p" s="s" same="same" t="t" the="the" why="why">-Asia/Pac. Rim, Australia/New Zealand, Mexico–Dec. 10th
-Canada, Caribbean, Europe, Middle East–Dec. 13th

Express Mail:
-Africa, Central/South America–Dec. 11th
-Asia/Pac. Rim, Australia/New Zealand, Caribbean, Mexico, Mexico, Europe, Middle East–Dec. 15th
-Canada–Dec. 17th

Global Express Guaranteed*:
-Asia/Pac. Rim, Australia/New Zealand–Dec. 18th
-Africa, Caribbean, Australia/New Zealand, Europe, Middle East–Dec. 19th
-Canada, Mexico–Dec. 20th
* GXG® Notes:

1. Cutoff date does not take into account time needed for customs clearance.
2. Should allocate extra transit day(s) for delivery outside major cities.
3. Last date to ship to Afghanistan is December 18. Last date to ship to Iraq is December 17. GXG does not deliver to APO and FPO addresses.

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CUSTOM T-SHIRT ORDERS:
Due to the fact that the American Apparel factory is located on the opposite end of the country and that shipped blanks can take a while for arrival, I'm advising all of my lovely customers to place their custom t-shirt orders in advance if you wish to have them arrive in time for Christmas. Below are the deadlines for getting your orders in:

United States–Dec. 7th
Africa, Central/South America– Nov. 23rd
Asia/Pac. Rim, Australia/New Zealand, Canada, Caribbean, Mexico, Europe, Middle East–Nov. 27th

This is for orders that are being shipped First Class only! Expedited orders will incur extra shipping charges for the buyer.

Please understand that I cannot give a 100% guarantee for Christmas delivery due to potential delays from bad weather, possible defects in merchandise, and/or human error. Many thanks for your patience!

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Running short on time? I can ship directly to the gift recipient AND I also offer gift wrapping and handwritten note services at no extra charge! Simply mention that the order is a gift in "Note to Seller" box and enter said recipient's name/address in the shipping address fields. You can also request the free gift wrapping/handwritten note in said "Note to Seller," and indicate what you'd like written in note. Copy of invoice will NOT be included in package, of course.

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New Print!

"A Very Corgman Christmas" 8x10" Illustration Print

Bob Corgman the Welsh Corgi is back, and he's brought his family! It's that time of year when the Corgman family is decked out in kitschy, holiday-themed sweaters for their annual Christmas family portrait. Afterwards, Bob will shudder off the tackiness via sipping on a large glass of vanilla brandy and smoking his favorite pipe. All while listening to some good ol' Bing Crosby and The Andrew Sisters on the radio.

Also, Junior is NOT amused.

This is a limited edition print available only during November and December. After that, it'll be gone 'til next holiday season, so snap it up while it lasts! I also have a 5x7" version available.

(The oval shaping on the print itself isn't actually cut off on the top and left - it's just some weird cropping on the listing pic).

Also, until November 22nd, take 10% off your entire order by using coupon code EARLYSHOPPER.

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Post-Valentine's Day Post

Hope everyone's Valentine's Day went well. The SO and I agreed that we shouldn't be arsed with getting each other flowers, cards, etc. this time around, so we stayed in all day relaxing. We started the early afternoon (yes, we got to sleep in!) with breakfast in bed of bacon, eggs, and french toast with a bit of honey (my guy took his bread regular toasted).

For dinner, we whipped up some champ w/ sauteed onions and mushroom, and grilled big-ass slabs of steak.

Totally conquered, like a BAWSS.

For dessert, which happened a few hours later due to being too stuffed, I made chocolate-dipped strawberries. They didn't look as presentable as I'd hoped, but they still tasted groin-grabbingly good.

And to cap off the night after a nice massage, a glass of this:


One would think that after omnomming on so much calorie-laden food, an extra couple of pounds would be expected on the scale the following day, but...nope. Lost about .4 lbs and down to my lowest weight so far. :D Go me.

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Halloween movie line-up

And so, with Halloween fast approaching, my friends and I will once again be lame and stay indoors for a horror movie marathon. Because seriously, there's absolutely nothing to do in my town but get shitfaced and act like morons, which gets tiresome rather quickly.

We've compiled a watch list for said night, as well as for the following couple of days:

MirrorMask
Event Horizon
Below
Jacob's Ladder
Eraserhead
The Exorcist (Director's Cut)
Poltergeist I and III (not II, because the ending blows)
The Living Dead series (original and 90s versions)
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Shaun of the Dead
Ghostbusters I and II
Meet Joe Black
High Spirits

The only other highlights would be a nice, home cooked meal and communing with the dead (in the respectful way, mind you...none of that ouija board crap).

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Plague Doctor!

In preparation for Halloween, I wanted to do a piece that will fit the atmosphere of the holiday and I've been itching to sketch up some plague doctor art for a while. Actually, I did draw several pieces on the subject earlier this year but they didn't turn out the way I wanted, so they wound up in the ever-growing reject pile.

But now I got it down right this time! At least I think so...the results are below:


The work-in-progress version. Credit is due to my awesome-possum Connor for the hand modeling. Initially, I shaded in the eyes with vertical stroke marks but replaced them with circular strokes to give the doc a more piercing gaze.


Aaaaand the finished version (both posted pics are intentionally lower res). Background has been darkened some since the scarlet in the WIP just wasn't cutting it for the end result. I've also toned down on the glow of the flame to accentuate the warm tones. Overall, I'm quite pleased with how the shading turned out on his proto-bio hazard suit, hat and gloves.

However, I'm also on the fence on whether to add in texture to the background (or overlay it over the entire illustration) or to leave it solid like some of my other Fidget Art! pieces. Thoughts?

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Black Friday/Cyber Monday Sale!

Hey hey, hope that all who celebrate Thanksgiving had a wonderful time. I had a small get-together with a few friends, we cooked and we nommed. Had roast leg of lamb, mashed potatoes with gravy, buttered rolls, baked butternut squash and had low-fat carrot cake. Yup, I'll definitely be struggling into my jeans this season. -_-;;;

Before I go into another food coma, I just wanna post my epic Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale.

Take 25% off your entire order during this weekend! Simply enter coupon code HOLIDAY2010 at checkout. Sorry, sale does not apply to custom orders or previous orders.

My Kanzashi Shop
Yay For Fidget Art!
My Photography Shop


Also, new t-shirt dresses! And now's the perfect time to snatch these up. ;)

Japanese Pine Tree T-Shirt Dress - Sizes S/M/L/XL


Coffee Owl Crewneck T-Shirt Dress - Sizes S/M/L


Oiran Crewneck T-Shirt Dress - Sizes S/M/L/XL

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A bit of horror is always good for the soul.

And there couldn't be a better time than October to feature these great indie horror flicks. Even if you're not a believer of the paranormal, you can't deny that these videos are mildly entertaining, at the very least. :)


"Ten Steps" - A similar incident actually happened to a good friend of mine. Scroll down if interested, but it does contain stuff that will spoil the ending if you haven't seen this video yet.


"Upstairs"

Bloody Mary Part 1 of 2 - It's been up for a while, but it's still one of my faves (sorry, embedding's been disabled)

Bloody Mary Part 2 of 2 (sorry, embedding's been disabled for this as well)

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In reference to the "Ten Steps" film posted above, a close friend of mine (I'll call him "C") had a rather interesting paranormal incident not too different from said film. He lives in an old apartment building in St. Louis, Missouri. This apartment building has quite a bit of history, but due to the way management runs things, it hasn't been updated in some time...so it has "character."

Anyway, said building was prone to semi-frequent power outages, and one night when the power went out, C decided to step out for a bit until it came back on. To get down to ground level, he had to walk down a couple flights of stairs that consist of approximately twenty-five steps. Everything was pitch black, but he's lived at his apartment long enough to know his way around.

C heads down the stairs, and instead of expecting ground level after the twenty-fifth step, he found himself walking further down more steps. He was baffled and creeped out as all bejesus, yet felt compelled to continue onward. He claimed that he must have counted about 400 steps and felt like he was walking for ages before he reached an actual bottom. And at that very moment, the power came back on. He looked around to find that everything around him was back to normal, with the staircase at its normal twenty-five steps. He had no clue what just happened and cannot find any logical reasoning to it. He made it clear that he wasn't inebriated in any sort of way at the time. I knew well enough that he doesn't lie about things like this, but I'll just leave that to the reader's judgement. Still entertaining, at the very least. :P

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St. Patrick's Day Favorites

I apologize for last week's lack of Friday Favorites - I've been terribly busy working on my spring collections for my shops. So, I bring you here a very special feature dedicated to one of my favorite holidays ever!

(Items listed in no particular order, or course)

1. Royal Green precious emerald drop pendant wire wrapped silver necklace by Studio1980

2. Hobbit Forest Felted Landscape Playmat by Evergreenivy

3.
Slainte - St. Patrick's Day Greeting Card by 2nd Coming

4. Lova Lotta Latte SOY edition Spring Green Hand-Knit Cup Cozy - Eco friendly by Underhill House

5. Letterfrack, Co. Galway, Ireland - 8 x 10 Fine Art Photography by BillyStroArt

6. Perfect Fit Irish Art Print by Wee Irish Gallery

7.
Wild Green. Green Dhalia Tsumami Zaiku. Ornate Hair Piece. by Bright Wish Kanzashi

8. St. Patrick Rosary with Two-Sided Center by Simplicit Retro

9. Lucky Clover by Fuzzy Sheep Cards

10. Emerald Green Taffeta Prom Dress by Dig For Victory

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Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

"I'll Have a Pint" 8x10" Illustration Print

Since our shop initially joined the Etsy bunch on good ol' St. Paddy's day, we're offering 15% off EVERYTHING in our shop, plus free shipping EVERYWHERE!! (yup, worldwide). Sale is one day only and starts on the 17th!

(Sorry, sale does not include custom orders)

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Ireland + Geekery = F-IN' WIN!

Binary Clover Greeting Card

Here's one for Irish geeks! Or for those who have geeky, Irish spirit in them...or LOVE those who are geeky and Irish!

This four-leaf clover is composed of binary code that translates to "Erin Go Bragh." Great for St. Patrick's Day or anytime of the year!

Size A2 (4.25x5.5") Printed on 110lbs. cardstock paper with archival inks. Blank inside. Comes with its own green envelope (not pictured).

(Click the image to head over to the listing)

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Happy St. Patty's Day!

I'll be spending the day hiding in the safety and comfort of my apartment from the drunken college students. And I also get to spend the day with my two favorite Irish guys...NOT in that sort of way! Well, just the one of them, since he IS my hubby! :P

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New Screenprinted Goodies!

I've added new t-dresses, scarves and tank tops to my YFFA! shop! Find the perfect Valetine's Day gift for your loved one. Click here to start shopping!

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New Kanzashi

Something more simple for everyday use :)

For the next one, I wanted to make a kanzashi that celebrated the month of March, and ultimately Saint Patrick's day. Originally, I wanted the main flower to be a black rose for the Irish theme, but it didn't pan out so well. It was just one of those days when the dye wouldn't set in evenly into the silk, and that it was much too cold and humid for the glue to dry quickly enough to form the petals. So I went with the camellia (not native to Ireland, but it's still a March motif). I decided to stray a bit from the more traditional-looking kanzashi and have the seven, four-leaf clovers crest over the camellia. On top of that, I added seven Swarovski AB crystals to the hand-dyed velvet leaves. For extra luck.

Click the images to head over to the listings!

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Whoopie pies!

Making a huge batch of them for various friends and relatives. The rest...*in Gollum's voice* FORR MEEEEEE!!! (j/k! :P)

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Etsy Site Review: CraftPudding

CraftPudding is home to some of the cutest stamps I've ever seen. Owner, Magda K. painstakingly carves out her original illustrations into rubber stamps, which are perfect for cute little projects. Stamp it on fabric, greeting cards, thank you notes, anything you can think of! She also has a few Christmas-themed stamps, tags, stickers, stamped boxes, ceramic goods and handmade trimming. I've personally taken printmaking courses during college, and from what I can tell you, the procedures are teeeeedious. I'm utterly impressed by how fast she can churn out these stamps!

Currently, CraftPudding is not taking any custom orders due to the high volume she's currently dealing with. For further updates, please visit her blog and Flickr.

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Etsy Site Review: Greencard Designs

Send messages to your friends and loved ones the creative way! Greencard Designs specializes in fun, cheeky and clever greetings in contemporary, colorful greetings.

Katherine Kelly's humble beginning started with designing stationery for her own wedding. From then on, friends and family convinced her into turning her hobby into a profession. She has since expanded onto holiday cards, announcements, locker notes (great for kids!) and notecards of the tongue-in-cheek variety. Her eye-catching designs incorporate a modern approach with bold colors, clean lines...and a hint of vintage influence. And what's also great is that her cards are printed on eco-friendly, 80lbs. card stock.

Katherine has been featured in Wife, Mom, Woman. Also, please check out her other website to view her other past creations!

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Etsy Site Review: Moody Girl Aromatherapy

Here are some brilliant bath and body products I've never heard of before: Moody Mud (TM), Bath Taffy (TM), Bath Icing (TM) and Moody Scrub (TM). All available exclusively at Moody Girl Aromatherapy.

Moody Mud is stress-relieving play dough that releases aromatic scents with every squeeze while the essential oils "work their magic in your hands." It's reusable and can be used like a stress ball.

Bath Taffy is aromatic bubble bath in bar form, made from natural ingredients derived from coconuts to be mild and gentle on the skin. Simply crumble 1/2 to 1 bar's worth into your running bath and watch it bubble! Comes with two bars, or in a set of eight. SLS-free.

Bath Icing is a SLS-free, versatile cream that not only moisturizes, but can also be used as body wash, facial cleanser and even shaving cream!

Moody Scrubs are sugar scrubs that moisturize and exfoliates at the same time. Infused with extra moisturizing coconut oil, olive oil and vegetable glycerin that leaves your skin super-soft and glowing. Comes in a variety of yummy scents!

For further updates, you can follow Moody Girl at her blog.

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