final blog giveaway mentions

So this week, Monday to Friday, I've been giving a shout out for some sellers taking part in The Tiny Fig's blog giveaway.

Here are my final selections, picked for beautiful product photos. Click on each photo to find more. And also one of my own "i'm feeling quite smug about this one" pics - eccentrics cufflinks (square version) now for sale here.

ah! if only this were scratch and sniff!

Pictures and very few words this morning. My inbox seems to get progressively fuller as the week goes on even though I've been patting myself on the back for being relatively efficient and productive so far!










Please click on the pics to get more info about the items, all are from sellers taking part in The Tiny Fig's blog giveaway (you know the score by now, blog and leave a comment here).

Meanwhile my desk is covered in silver filings as I polish up a pair of stud earrings ready for soldering later today. I've also got a ring blank waiting for my first piece of art clay soldering on top and I finished another fine silver constellation cuff.

BTW if you're wondering where else (apart from Etsy, Artfire, Dawanda and icraft) you can get your hands on ebb and flo goodies then if you're a local shopper check out The Treasure Room at the Arts Council of New Westminster. I have a few constellation wire crochet cuffs and some sterling wired cufflinks on sale there from December 1st. Work by other local artisans is also on sale there up until December 23rd so it will be a great place to buy those OOAK gifts for your nearest and dearest.

buy now for christmas

A really quick post today with more on The Tiny Fig blog give away.

My first pick today is the awesomely titled askingfortrouble who sells from her own website and is based in Glasgow, Scotland. These beautiful christmas cards immediately caught my eye and also made me a wee bit more homesick than usual!

My second quick pick of the day comes from the US. Jilldrapermakesstuff certainly does 'make stuff' but it was this amazing watercolour handdyed and spun yarn which took my eye. I've been bitten by the knitting bug again recently. Seeing such beautiful fibre makes my eyes water and my fingers twitch!

Meanwhile, all is busy in my little studio. I finished off a fine silver constellation cuff last night and today polished up some ring blanks for a project this afternoon. I will be selling at Portobello West in Vancouver on Sunday 30th November and again the week after at the Got Craft market on Commercial Drive. I sent out my newsletter announcing these events yesterday with some sneak peeks of what is on offer. If you would like to receive updates on all things ebb and flo (not just the local stuff) then just send me your email by leaving a comment on this post (don't worry, I'll delete the details once I receive your post).

more blog giveaways

As per yesterday I'm blogging about more of the fantastic blog give aways which Tiny Fig is running from her blog (full details here).

In order to participate you need to visit the shops listed, blog about them and then leave a comment under the blog give away post at Tiny Fig - easy peasy!

My selections for today are dog biscuits and flowers. Read on ...

First up is organidog's wonderful pet treats. Don't forget your dog at Thanksgiving with these amazing drumstick biscuits.

... and secondly, even though it's miserable wintry weather outside (well it is for me!) how about adorning your earlobes with some enchanting chainmaille flowers by Xiztance. The design is very simple and is in fact one of the patterns I cover in my chainmaille class at Beadworks.

Lastly, do you have a man on your christmas gift list? (I'm meaning to buy for, not as a 'please santa, give me a hunky man for christams' cos it's a well known fact that the man in red and white knows that you are going to be naughty with this gift and anyway it won't usually fit down a chimney so give up on the idea anyway). Well I might have an answer to your problem - I listed some cufflinks in my Artfire shop last night - sterling silver wired designs in lapis lazuli, picasso jasper and pressed glass. Go get 'em!

attack of the giant fluffy pom poms

attack of the giant fluffy pom poms, originally uploaded by ebbandflo_pomomama.

something a little different while i wake up to start my day!

giant fluffy pompom eats sterling silver cufflink and moves in on the copper rings i finally finished off.

PS: i will be listing more cufflinks in my etsy shop and have already added some custom projects to my new artfire store.

righting wrongs

OK I've been terribly remiss about blogging recently and also about participating in the Tiny Fig blog giveaway which Connie has been running since the beginning of November. My fellow Vancouverite has rounded up a great selection of give aways from fellow Etsy sellers and conducting a Christmas give away from her blog (full details here). I blogged about it right at the start but then vanished from the blogosphere!

Part of the deal is that I should blog about some of the sellers taking part - so here goes!

First up is chendric who makes awesome fine silver jewelry, such as the beautiful fine silver branch earrings shown here.

Cheryl works in precious metal clay (PMC) and also beads for some colour in her handwork.

She's also a member of Etsy For Animals street team, a very worthwhile cause.

My second choice for today's give away blog is TooAquarius who has the most awesome polymer clay beads available in her shop.

This sampler listing immediately caught my eye. Now while anyone can pinch off a bit of fimo and rool it into a bead, I think that these beauties show a really professional touch and deserve to be incorporated into something stunning! However if you do fancy trying your hand at making a bead, Elaine's canes can be found at her other shop ClayChicks.

.... and PS: this is what I'm offering for the blog give away!

mod dots orbital wire crochet bracelet (glass, tinned copper and resin)

Go visit some of the featured sellers then leave your comment at the Tiny Fig blog!

whassup?

... or in translation, what am I doing these days?

Well, while my lil' sis was staying I finished setting these adorable glass cabs in sterling daisy mounts ........ but I'm not sure what they will end up being! They are definitely too heavy for earrings unless you have reinforced lobes.

I drew the flower outlines freehand then cut the sheet metal (yes, one petal is a little larger and the whole daisy looks very random) shapes out. The flowers were then domed slightly before soldering the bezels in place.


Polishing was tricky.
Setting the cabs was a dream.
Now what?

I also finished up another pair of cufflinks. These are a square version of the circular eccentrics I have for sale in my Big Cartel store.


They are just waiting for the sterling toggle bars which I'm hoping Canada Post won't send all the way back whence they came instead of notifying me they were waiting at the PO for me to collect!


Now that I've found I can complete the soldering on these at home I'll be making more with the stash of glass cabs I have in stock.


PS: am quite pleased with the way these turned out! (smug)


....... and I got blogged (thanks Rob and Andrea)!

sea anemones

sea anemones
Originally uploaded by ebbandflo_pomomama

you will either like this or it will make you faintly sea sick!

summer 2008 afloat

Finally added the waterproof camera pics to my flickr site!



After a lot of logistical planning and deliberating we decided to kayak with me in the rear cockpit of the double, the wee guy in the front cockpit and mr ebb in a single in case of emergency!

Since we haven't done a family capsize drill the whole set up is at best theoretical, but we did get afloat and managed a short expedition from Belcarra to Jug Island.

Next year the wee guy is going to summer camp and will learn to paddle his own kayak!

Respect treasury November 2008

Respect treasury November 2008, originally uploaded by ebbandflo_pomomama.

The "Respect" treasury curated by the always eloquent cynmb and featuring some of the squeakiest wheels which etsy probably wishes would shut the f*** up - in fact at least two of the artists featured have been muted permanently from taking part in the forums, one of the artists was muted for a prolonged period and most of the others have 'flirted' with occasional reprimands from etsy high command (myself included).

For a purported 'community' of artists/creative types/ freethinkers i personally find the judicial system on etsy incredibly illogically repressive (and i've worked for/with some real dross in my life too).

All the artists featured here have at one time or another (or continue to do so) made critical (but mainly constructive) comments about etsy inc and the way it is run. In the early days the Ideas thread in the forum welcomed feedback from users about how the site was working and what improvements could be made. Nowadays it can feel like shouting into the wind. It is very easy to be frustrated as a user, even three years into 'life'.

sniffle