Fishes Make Wishes

Monday moodboard - Spring

2012-02-13T07:36:00.000-08:00

{1. urbanblue 2. Evgeniya Maslakova 3. azulado 4. kspirapainted }

After these last two weeks of extreme cold and lots of rain this morning the sun was shining, and it feels as spring is just around the corner. The political situation in my country has been very fitting with the bad weather, watching the news lately just depresses me so I thought a fun, colorful moodboard might help me cheer up and remind me and everyone else after winter comes spring and hope :-)

Wishing everyone a great week,

to see more Monday moodboards check out Esther and Estella's blog!

xoxo

Aleka

Passing time

2012-02-11T03:01:00.000-08:00

I haven't been creative in any other way than to keep my 4 year old nephew busy this week. His teacher was ill so there's been no school and with the freezing cold playing outside is not an option. Here are the paper and pipe cleaners dolls we made, the green one is him, the red faced one is me and the one with red hand and feet is grandma. Super easy to make and he loved them too :-)
Wishing you all a great weekend
Aleka

Monday moodboard - Winds

2012-02-06T06:05:00.000-08:00

1. 10antemeridiem 2. ollina 3. Clariceonline 4. mayagencic

The winds today are so strong that made it really difficult to go even near the beach for my everyday walk, and they say it's only going to get worst. So with the gray and cloudy sky here's a moodboard to go with it.

For more Monday moodboards check out Esther and Estella's blog!
xoxo
Georgia

Snowy days

2012-01-31T03:46:00.000-08:00

It's been a freezing cold week, today there was even a little snow falling too. Too little to actually consider it as snowing but unfortunately it has been too cold to be able to work in the studio. So I've been looking around the internet and have collected a lot of ideas of things I want to try:
making snow globes, not Christmas ones but with a more general theme so I can have them in the house all year long :-)
making some shrink plastic fishes, got jealous seeing Evdokia's kitty and bird!
finish some paper mache houses I've had them unfinished for almost a year now, it's about time I think ;-)
draw on pebbles, I collected a few last time I was at the beach so that I could do this project.
These are just a few of ideas bubbling in my head, hopefully some will actually become real!

There is still a sale going on in our shop, 20% off on selected items, like the green necklace you see in the photo.
Have a great week
xoxo
Aleka

Flower Tags

2012-01-27T11:54:00.000-08:00

Can you tell I'm really missing spring and its flowers? I made these gift tags from thick backing board, I started by cutting two different sized circles. Then painted their back side and stamped it but you could just write a little message, that would be pretty cute too! From the graphics fairy I used two flower prints (1 - 2), I actually fitted four flower graphics in one page then just used two of them. I glued the circles in random places of the flower prints, on the unpainted side of the cardboard then cut of the excess. Punched a hole with the cropadile thingy, tied the pink/red thread and they are perfect for my little gift bags.

Now I have two remaining flower prints, I'm thinking of making something with them too, just haven't decided what that will be yet :-)

See more creative spaces here!

Have a great weekend

Aleka

Along the beach

2012-01-25T06:25:00.000-08:00

I took a long walk along the beach today, the weather forecast for the next few days is rainy so I'll probably won't be able to go on my daily walk. There weren't many people around, it was pretty windy, with heavy clouds but the sun came out for a few minutes. I only had my pocket camera and took a few photos, I'm hoping to go soon with the big camera so I can take some more!
have a great day (and rest of the week)
Aleka

Monday moodboard - Dark heart

2012-01-23T07:24:00.000-08:00

1. Baymut 2. Lasunka 3. TomBjornDesigns 4. Nafsika

Beautiful items in black from talented European sellers set the mood for today. It doesn't have to be red to be a perfect Valentine's day gift, so get on an early shopping spree!

For more moodboards visit Esther and Estella's blog.
Have a great week!
xoxo
Georgia

Messy

2012-01-20T02:44:00.000-08:00

I'm not one to thrive on messy spaces, I like my work space and home to be organized and clean but since the bazaar in December I had not managed to get things back in order. And yesterday after a sale on our etsy shop had me searching for a pair of earrings for nearly an hour I decided it's time to put an end to all this messiness. I've been sorting our inventory all morning, things that are already in the shop and things that I have to photograph and list. I'm halfway there as I still need to clean my workspace, it looks like something exploded in there but since it's been too cold to work there I'm going to put it off for another couple of more days. Of course in all this craziness I've managed to misplace (loose) my corner rounder puncher thingy, I've been looking for it all week and I'm wondering if it will eventually turn up or I'll have to buy a new one :-(

There's a giveaway you can enter here, it's open to international entries as well! Oh and his work is magical, just view these photos in the slideshow :-)
Linked to our creative spaces, join the fun :-)
xoxo
Aleka

Monday moodboard- Home again

2012-01-16T07:57:00.000-08:00

1. HandyHappy 2. granatina 3. MelashaCat 4. eleonorashop

We finally got back yesterday from our short trip and I'm so happy and warm at last. The temperature inside our house at the mountains was 6 degrees, quite cold as you can imagine! So I'm still trying to warm myself with the radiator and the fireplace here in Athens.

Have a great week and for more Monday moodboards visit StarOfTheEast

xoxo

Georgia

Leaving again!

2012-01-12T00:34:00.000-08:00

We are taking another short trip to our village, apparently the strong winds lifted small parts of our roof, so that needs to be fixed as soon as possible!
In the meantime I listed two Valentine heart sets, a red and white one and a colorful one in shades of red, they are very cute and can be used as tags or home decorations. I was thing of making something similar but in a much larger scale for the shop, don't know if I'll make it in time for this Valentine's but maybe next year :-)
I'm leaving you with two links: photographs from the depression in color and a public art project called Before I die, a very cool idea!
xoxo
Aleka

Monday moodboard - Snow

2012-01-09T08:14:00.000-08:00

1. FoxInTheBox 2. LaPerLaA 3.magalerie 4. XauXau

I was hoping for some snow on these holidays but was disappointed as the weather was cold but sunny on most days. So I'm keeping my fingers crossed and maybe I'll see some snow. After all we're in the heart of the winter and all is possible!

Sales sales sales

2012-01-04T03:41:00.000-08:00

We decided to have a month of sales in our shop, 20% off on selected items, some Christmas leftovers and a few selected jewelry to make room for the new things to come :-) You can see what's on sale on our sale section and hopefully we'll be adding a few more things as the days pass.
Hope you take this opportunity and do a little shopping for you loved ones, after all Valentine's day is coming soon :-)
xoxo
Aleka

For the new year

2012-01-01T09:31:00.000-08:00

Each year I tape a calendar on my closet door, it's proven to be very useful and I've done it for the past three years. The first one was a calendar I got at a book fair, the second one was made by my best friend and now I decided to make the third one. I used images from The Graphics Fairy, the image of the dancing children and a background with a floral pattern combined with a tea stained texture I had on my PC. I played around with the filters and layer blend modes to give it a vintage feel and this is the result, I must say I am quite pleased with it!
Just click on the image and print it, it's a bit smaller than an A4 paper, so you'll need to trim it a bit. I printed it on a bit heavier paper than regular and it looks fantastic, now I just need to trim it and tape it on my closet door :-)
Happy new year, may this year bring all of us the things we most need!
xoxo
Aleka

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T00:57:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas everyone! Hope you have a great time with the people you love, eat good food

and get a lot of rest :-) Above is a clip from one of my favorite animated movies of all times

The nightmare before Christmas. If you haven't seen it you should and you won't be disappointed!

xoxo

Aleka

Monday Moodboard with friends

2011-12-19T12:35:00.000-08:00

1. EpiArgiron 2. mARTket 3. Arju 4. CykLu

The bazaar is officially over, the house is almost cleaned from all the mess and we even put up our Christmas tree! The experience was a mixed one, sales were not very good for most of us there, a combination of bad location and bad economic climate I think. In any case it was an experience and we learned from it and I hope things will be better next time.

The most positive of this event was that we all got together, we met new people and made new friends. The online shop names became virtual people, which I think is the most important thing. The selection above are some of the sellers that were in neighboring booths: Apostolis, Georgia, Kornilia and Victoria.

We had a great time and hopefully we'll meet some of our friends in real life and not just online soon :-)

For more Monday Moodboards visit StarOfTheEast.

xoxo

Aleka

At Parapera

2011-12-14T00:07:00.000-08:00

Our booth at Parapera bazaar and everyone working to make the most beautiful Christmas lights and scrap fabric garland! We are in a Christmas spirit so with each purchase you take part in a draw where you can win a handmade present!

Ο πάγκος μας στο Παραπέρα και τα εργατικά χέρια που έφτιαξαν μια γιρλάντα με φωτάκια και κομματάκια ύφασμα! Ελάτε να μας δείτε και απο κοντά και όταν ψωνίσετε παίρνετε μέρος σε κλήρωση για να κερδίσετε ένα χειροποίητο δωράκι!

Christmas bazaar at Parapera

2011-12-10T04:52:00.000-08:00

This week we'll be at ParaPera with many more Greek sellers from Etsy. Visit the craft fair, there will be many workshops over the weekend and surprise gifts! It's open from Monday to Friday 17:00-22:00 and Saturday and Sunday 12:00-22:00.

Αυτή την εβδομάδα θα βρισκόμαστε στο ParaPera μαζί με πολλούς ακόμα Έλληνες δημιουργούς, ελάτε να μας δείτε απο κοντά, να παρακολουθήσετε τα δωρεάν σεμινάρια αλλά και να κερδίσετε δωράκια!
Επισκέψιμες ώρες:
Δευτέρα – Παρασκευή: 17:00 – 22:00
Σάββατο – Κυριακή: 12:00 – 22:00

See you there :-)

Shabby chic Christmas stars

2011-12-08T02:42:00.000-08:00

Since we've been preparing for the Christmas bazaars we haven't really had time to decorate our home and get into the Christmas spirit. So I did a simple and easy little craft, here is the shabby chic Christmas stars tutorial.
What you need:
linen fabric (I'm not sure if mine is actually linen but as long as it frays at the edges it's ok)
iron on transfer sheet with printed music sheets - I got mine at The Graphics Fairy
cotton thread
star pattern

Print your music sheet on the iron on paper but make sure you reverse the image, so that you'll avoid having it printed backwards. A simple horizontal flip on photoshop or any editing program will do. Trace the star pattern on the back of the iron on paper and cut out your stars. Place them on your fabric and iron them for a few minutes, usually until the paper changes color, it gets a yellowish hue. Leave to cool off, peel the backing paper and then cut your stars leaving a few millimeters around the edges. You don't have to be perfect doing this, so no pressure. Cut off another set of stars from the same fabric, using the printed ones as size guide, to use as backing. Choose your thread colors, I chose a light caramel color and a fuchsia red and stitch the two pieces together. Again you don't have to be perfect doing this, any imperfections just adds character :-) Use a piece of same color thread to make the hanging loops, stitch them and you are done!

Hope you liked it and try it yourself :-)
See more creative spaces here!
xoxo
Aleka

My Secret Santa is here

2011-12-07T01:22:00.001-08:00

My Secret Santa package is here! My Secret Santa was Annemiek from twotreesworld and she sent me the sweetest gift ever, literally and figuratively. The envelope contained chocolate, which is greatly appreciated (I ♥♥ chocolate) and the sweetest most beautiful brooch I've ever seen! I am a brooch person, I have a pretty big collection of brooches that I have either made and or bought but this sweet little mouse is so super cute, it really brings a smile to my face!
Thank you Annemiek for this wonderful gift :-)
xoxo
Aleka

Monday Moodboard Festive Red

2011-12-05T08:03:00.001-08:00

1.StormsHandicrafts 2.ILaBoom 3. bdbworld 4. MelashaCat

Today I realized that the Christmas holidays are so close, every house in our neighborhood has put on decorations and lights and Christmas trees. All except ours! We've been so busy making new stuff for the bazaars that we had no time to decorate our tree. I don't think that this has ever happened before and I really miss the Christmas atmosphere. I'll try to do it this week (keeping fingers crossed!).

For more Monday Moodboards visit StarOfTheEast.
xoxo
Georgia

Smells like Christmas

2011-12-01T01:48:00.001-08:00

On December the 11th we'll be attending a very local bazaar, so local it's just five minutes from our home, in our nephew's kindergarten school! We thought it would be nice to have candles up for sale too, so we've been slowly making them. Using scents like sandalwood and orange, the smells are heavenly. I just can't describe how our kitchen and the whole house smells :-) We'll be making a few small ones in red and sell them as sets of two, one red one green in a Christmas packaging, I think it will look great!

And a lovely way to start the month: here you can find a great giveaway on the Egst blog, just comment and you'll be eligible win a beautiful black lace cuff, open to international entries as well!

See more creative spaces here.
xoxo
Aleka

Cyber Monday Moodboard

2011-11-28T01:51:00.001-08:00

{1. Happyment 2. Akamatra 3. Hibbe 4. CelessaBazaar}

Cyber Monday is a pretty big thing and you can find some great deals on Etsy today! Starting with the lovely finds I have on my moodboard many sellers offer free shipping and have lowered prices on their items, so hurry up and get yourself a little present before it's too late :-)

See more Monday moodboards at Staroftheeast and come join the fun!

xoxo

Aleka

Things are coming along

2011-11-24T03:44:00.001-08:00

You can see we've been busy, the necklace from last time is finished along with the green one too but I forgot to take a photo :-( I love the metallic blue, it's such a sparkling color, makes the beads really pop!
Slowly making rings from little pieces of felt, I needle felted them and then wet felted them to make them more sturdy. With needle and thread they are attached to a ring base, I've got a few more to go but I like the way they look, so it's keeping me motivated. It's interesting but when an idea in my head works out well in reality it makes me happy and very productive!
As a side note don't forget to sign up for our monthly newsletter. You can win a cute heart brooch, it will be lovingly packaged and sent to you completely free :-)
See more creative spaces here!
xoxo
Aleka

Monday Moodboard for a princess

2011-11-21T09:04:00.001-08:00

{1. KoloBoloKids 2. ChoochMagooz 3. Blota 4. ERGANIweaving}

Christmas is getting closer every day that passes and I have to say it must be a child's favorite time of year. The decorations, the blinking lights, the yummy food and of course the presents! So here's a collection for a sweet little princess, hope you like it :-)
And on the subject of little people, you can visit this blog give a name to a wool/yarn skein and win a boy's ear flap hat or a bow fascinator for a little girl, made by Mairy the crochet master behind sidirom!

To see more Monday Moodboards visit Staroftheeast!
xoxo
Aleka

Necklaces and other things

2011-11-17T03:29:00.001-08:00

We are preparing for a Christmas bazaar, it's in 25 days and I feel a bit stressed, there are a lot of things in progress and things that I'm just starting to work on. In addition to that I have to finally finish my secret Santa and sent the package, I'm hoping I'll do that this Monday, if I can't make it tomorrow.
These wool necklaces have a few more steps before they are finished, wooden beads need to be painted (done that, now I just need the varnish to dry before I do another coat) and they'll be put together using black wool to close them.
Oh and did I mention I'm also taking part in the Greek secret Santa exchange? This time I know who the present is for but that doesn't make it any easier, I have a lot of ideas and still haven't started working on one yet :-(
And in addition to all this bazaar, present preparations the house looks like a bomb exploded scattering fabrics, felt, yarns all over the place, covering every single table... I'm dreaming of the day when all of this will be over and I'll do a major cleaning sweep (I ♥ clean surfaces, cannot function properly when things are messy).
See more creative spaces here, hopefully they're not as crazy as mine!
xoxo
Aleka

Monday Moodboard - in Color

2011-11-14T07:15:00.000-08:00

{1. XauXau 2. Birribe 3. askida 4. oddandcurious}

Today we drove our brother to the airport and took the chance to visit Ikea, as there were a couple of things we wanted to buy. I really have no luck with this shop as we did not find either of the items we wanted and when we asked we found out there were no longer available. It's like my sister said if you see something you like here, buy it now cause you don't know if you'll find it again.
So to cheer me up I made a collection of my favorite things, hope you enjoy it too!

To see more Monday Moodboards visit Staroftheeast!
xoxo
Aleka

A zine

2011-11-12T11:04:00.000-08:00

Taking part in our creative spaces every Thursday has been a wonderful opportunity for me to discover a lot of interesting blogs and creators. One of them is Emily Cater the woman behind Millicent Crow, who had a little giveaway going on and I actually won! So a letter was sent from New Zealand all the way to Greece and when it arrived I was very excited to open it :-)
I won a copy of her zine called "Denizens" and she also included a lovely screen printed birdie (I think I'll turn that into a brooch). I really enjoyed reading the zine, the few lines below each person were funny in a quirky/cool sort of way. You should check out her shop, she has beautiful gocco prints of old fashioned people and lovely feather brooches as well!
xoxo
Aleka

Secret Santa

2011-11-10T06:08:00.000-08:00

This year I'm taking part in the European street team gift exchange, which is called Secret Santa. I've been given the name and likes and dislikes of another teammate and now I have to make something for her. I realized how difficult it is to make something for someone you don't know, sometimes it's difficult even if you do know the recipient of the gift.
This time though I'm struggling with it, I had a lot of ideas for a brooch design, you can see sneak peeks of the three of them half made, not sure which one will get the green light! The one that's mostly finished is very different from what I usually make, I was inspired by India and the many bright and vivid colors they use but I'm afraid of being too close to the kitschy side of things. Then there's the absolutely simple one and the one that's a bit in between the two, not too simple but not too flashy either, that one is kind of growing on me more and more.
I'll be working on them over the weekend and hopefully I will make a decision before the due date for the sending the gift.
see more creative spaces here!
xoxo
Aleka

Monday moodboard - Paper holidays

2011-11-07T05:22:00.000-08:00

1.ahueofduckeggblue 2.zerabazaar 3.SoleDeVita 4.disheveledideas

Counting the days until Christmas comes and waiting impatiently to see what Santa brings me!

For more Monday moodboards visit StarOfTheEast
xoxo
Georgia

Our newsletter

2011-11-04T01:34:00.000-07:00

The painting of the hallway is done, now all we have to do is clean the mess and put things back to where they were. So I've been less productive in the creative part this week but I've managed to create a newsletter on mailchimp. It will be sent to subscribers once a month and will contain news about our shop, special offers and updates on our blog.
If you subscribe you'll also get the chance to win a felt heart brooch, any color you wish. Once a month I'll be drawing a lucky subscriber, who will choose the heart brooch he wants and it will be sent to him, completely free in any part of the world!
Wishing you a great weekend and don't forget to visit our creative spaces, for more fun stuff!
xoxo
Aleka
ps You can subscribe here:
Sign up for our free newsletter!

Monday moodboard - Black

2011-10-31T05:29:00.000-07:00

1. karmologyclinic 2. ZsBcreations 3. QuercusSilver 4. LucieTales

Today is the last day of Halloween and the mood is really dark. So I decided to pick items in black, not scary at all but very elegant pieces from members of the European street team.

For more Monday moodboards visit StarOfTheEast.
Have a great week
xoxo
Georgia

This and that

2011-10-27T07:12:00.000-07:00

My creative space has been a hallway these past couple of days. Taping doors and switches and then painting with a brush and a roller. My hand hurts, my back aches and we still have one more coat of paint to do. {sigh}
In an attempt to do something more creative I decided to take a little break and make some more bookmarks. We'll be attending a craft fair in December so I'm thinking I should begin to prepare for that. Now that the bookmarks are printed and drawn they need to go to the copy shop and be laminated, cut each one and then I'll punch a hole and tie a pretty ribbon.
I'm off to some much deserved rest but you can see more creative spaces right here!
xoxo
Aleka

Monday moodboard - Sunny days

2011-10-24T04:11:00.001-07:00

1. Melasha 2. FlowerLandShop 3. Owlsandco 4. pergamondo

The past couple of days the weather was warm and sunny so I've decided to start painting some walls inside the house since little nephew thought it would be a great idea to write big A's on them earlier this week! Though this wasn't how I pictured spending my week , I kinda like it now. So my paint and brushes are set and off I go...

For more Monday moodboards visit StarOfTheEast.
xoxo
Georgia

New beginnings

2011-10-23T05:29:00.000-07:00

{image source}

A good friend of mine started a blog about her creative journey, making books from found materials. It's no secret I have a big crush on anything paper and she's making some pretty cool stuff with it. She also started an etsy shop, called paperstreak. Great name right?
And keeping up with the new beginnings theme I have also opened another etsy shop, alekaki, this one with my photos. I have been taking photos for the past two years, some are good, some are bad and some I think are pretty awesome. I'm still choosing photos and slowly I think the shop will fill up :-)
An interesting journey for both of us, hope you'll hang around!
xoxo
Aleka

Photo garland

2011-10-20T08:11:00.000-07:00

When I first started printing my photos I chose glossy paper, later on I discovered the matte option and liked it so much better. Still, I was trying to think of ways to use those glossy photos and had the idea of turning them into a garland. I used the flower puncher and when I had enough flowers I taped a piece of double sided sticky tape on one flower, then the yellow thread and finally another flower, so it's a double sided garland.
I still need to find the right place to hang it and in the meantime I also used a heart puncher on the scraps and now have these little hearts that I don't know what to do with!
See more creative spaces here.
xoxo
aleka

Monday Moodboard - Autumn

2011-10-17T04:38:00.001-07:00

1. astashtoys 2. madebyCsJ 3. Balanced 4. ericosmicgirl

Well autumn is officially here. The rain stopped and the air outside is so freezing. A sneeze here, a cough there,we are preparing for the first cold stocking up tissues and cough caramels. The only thing missing is the smell of the fireplace, that will keep us warm!

You can find more Monday Moodboards right here.

xoxo
Georgia

Seven things

2011-10-16T05:32:00.000-07:00

I was given an award from Annuk, she's such a wonderful, happy person so although I'm not too keen on list making and such I will play along. Here are seven random things about me:

1. I am a middle child
2. Disorder, I relate to this song when I'm overwhelmed
3. I prefer chocolate over vanilla
4. when I'm idle I can go crazy,
5. then I take on too many responsibilities and feel the pressure and go crazy again {sigh}
6. my favorite poet
7. I used to pass out every time I had to get blood tests done. This one time I was out for quite a while (dreaming of being chased in a city at night, with lots of lights flashing) only to be woken by the doctor slapping me pretty hard to wake me.

So that's it seven things about me,
xoxo
aleka

Gathering walnuts

2011-10-13T00:05:00.001-07:00

This is how we spent the day yesterday, gathering walnuts and still today my feet hurt! After we cleaned the flesh away, using gloves otherwise our hands would be stained for days, we laid them out in the sun to dry. We took them in at night and put them out again this morning, they won't be cracked open until they've dried well. To be honest I do dread it when the time comes to break them, they are so many and it can be so much strain on the hand that holds the hammer.
Still all this work and we'll have a pretty good supply of walnuts to make walnut pie and other sweet treats :-)
See more creative spaces here!
xoxo
Aleka

Monday moodboard - Finally some rainy days

2011-10-10T01:08:00.001-07:00

1. AdeloCreations 2. atelier28 3. astash 4. krize

Finally we got some rain yesterday, the weather got chilly and we had to take our winter clothes out of storage. Yay!! The way the ground smells when it rains is my all time favorite and with a hot cup of coffee and a snugly blanket watching the rain fall feels like I'm in heaven.

xoxo
Georgia

For more Monday moodboards click here.

Bookmarks

2011-10-09T01:35:00.000-07:00

A very simple diy project that resulted from my pressing need to not waste paper scraps. After printing a bunch of cards for the shop I was left is these long and thin scraps of paper. I took my favorite markers and drew patterns on them, cut them in smaller lengths, rounded their corners and the final outcome is these colorful little bookmarks. I have a rather big collection of bookmarks but these are right by my bed stand ready to be used.
You can also use pieces of paper shaped tike that to make something like this!
xoxo
Aleka

My book of lists

2011-10-06T07:21:00.000-07:00

I think I' mentioned it before how much I love making lists, so I figured it was about time I had a little notebook to write down everything that needs to get done. I already have a notebook like this one where I write my ideas, things to check out online and of course things I need to do. The problem was that my to do lists where getting kind of lost, surrounded by sketches, doodles, names of books, web addresses and so much more info. So in this little notebook I will only write things that need to get done, yes it's going to be the list that never ends!
See more creative spaces here.
xoxo
aleka

Monday moodboard - Red

2011-10-03T03:29:00.001-07:00

1.creationsbyeve 2.TomBjornDesigns 3.MatkirschPhoto 4.marbled

Feeling a bit chilly today so I need some red to warm me up!
For more Monday moodboards visit StarOfTheEast

xoxo
Georgia

A yummy treat

2011-10-02T01:36:00.000-07:00

Sesame seed paste and almond chocolate treats

250 gr dark chocolat
250 gr sesame seed paste (tahini)
100 gr honey
100 gr almonds (or pistachios, raisins & other nuts)
1 lemon zest

Melt the chocolate in a bain-marie and crush the almonds in chunks. When the chocolate is ready mix it with the sesame seed paste (tahini), the honey and the lemon zest. Add the crushed almonds and stir it a bit. Place baking paper into a baking tray and empty the mixture, use a spoon to fill the tray evenly. Once it's reached room temperature place it into the frige for two-three hours, take it out and cut it into small rectangles with a knife. Place the chocolate treats into a plastic container and store in the frige. Enjoy!

xoxo
aleka

Stamping

2011-09-30T00:10:00.000-07:00

I bought this pack of round erasers, six of them for half a euro, quite a bargain. I liked their round shape and decided to carve up some Christmas themes (and a little fishy!). I am a bit out of practice, so they are not perfect but I still like them. I'm also wondering if there are carving tools with smaller tips, the ones I have are quite big for such a small surface. Anyway, I'm planning on going there again and buying some more erasers, I'm thinking of doing a few fishes :-)
See more creative people here!
xoxo
aleka

Last ones

2011-09-28T09:28:00.000-07:00

Listed the last of the Christmas decorations, four garlands , seven sets of retro ornaments, one snowman and boot set, the clay trees tags and the small green and red hearts make it a total of fourteen on our holiday decor section! I've been busy with these and now that I'm done it's time to find something new to work on.
I'm thinking of entering this year's feeling stitchy contest, covered in stitches. I need to go through my books, find a cover I like and begin! This may be a bit tricky as I have lots of books and choosing one may be difficult, if you have any suggestions I'd love to hear them! It's quite a challenge, especially since I haven't done any serious stitching since the rainbow of stitches contest from last year.
Exciting new things to follow :-)
xoxo
aleka

Weekend finds

2011-09-18T06:33:00.000-07:00

1. JaneeLookerse 2. SeaPinks 3. VintageDawnJewelry 4. oldworldprimitives

Halloween is about a month away and even though it's not a big thing here in Greece, still we know this holiday from movies, projects from the internet and of course Etsy! Well it's all about the scary costumes, the carved pumpkins, the garlands, the candy and the trick or treating! And since I hate horror movies here's something different.
xoxo
Georgia

Feeling Christmassy

2011-09-17T04:01:00.000-07:00

I know it seems a bit weird listing Christmas ornaments in September but this is our second year on Etsy and last year we learned a valuable lesson: Shipping after the end of November is an absolute nightmare. So this year I'm listing my Christmas ornaments early, hoping to avoid the long delays that are linked with Christmas shipping. There are two more felt garlands and different color combinations of retro ornaments on the way, I'm hoping to list them all by next week :-)

Linked to zsazsazu's blog where you can see more beautiful things!
xoxo
Aleka

Stained glass box

2011-09-15T04:22:00.000-07:00

In my second year of stained glass workshop we had to make a box. This is the second one I make, the first one was a rectangle.
So today I've finished the top of the box and tomorrow I'll start with the bottom. I've cut about 50 small pieces which I will solder them on the oval base. Then I will finish it off with a black patina. It's a big box so I think it will make a great solution for storing my jewelry.
See more creative spaces here.
xoxo
Georgia

Finishing things

2011-09-13T07:27:00.000-07:00

I have my lists, if I could name one (of my many) compulsions it is to make lists, lists of things I have to do each day. It makes me happy when I cross something off and then I can get so miserable when something is repeated in my list day after day.
These few days it seems that I just can't finish anything, I write the same things in my list each day and that is making me so very sad. Trying to open a new shop, trying to write some guest posts, trying to keep up with the existing shop, too many things just half done. I guess I took on more than I could handle so I figure now it's just a matter of sitting down and focusing and finishing these tasks, crossing something off my list finally.
Oh and doodlers anonymous is holding an amazing competition with great prizes, check it out :-)
xoxo
Aleka

In circles

2011-09-09T01:09:00.000-07:00

The reason why I love taking part in our creative spaces is not only because I get to see what so many other amazing creators are making but also because I'm motivated to make something too! These past few days all my creativity has been focused in the computer leaving me little time to work on anything else but I decided to follow through on one of the many unfinished ideas.
I was inspired by Gia's round brooches and I wanted to try and make one too, I used jean's scrap and some pieces of linen with iron on transfers. My sewing skills are pretty good when it involves straight lines, I had trying sewing in circles before but that had been a complete disaster. So this time I followed Gia's advise and really went for it, no hesitation, no stopping. I'm pretty happy with the result, they are not perfect but now I know I can do it I just need to try and try and try some more :-)
xoxo
Aleka

Bloglovin

2011-09-06T01:50:00.000-07:00

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

I discovered bloglovin' through a beautiful mess, it was suggested as an alternative to google's reader. I started using it and loved the fact that you can see the entire blog, not just a single post. So I have some of my favorite blogs there and you can follow me too!
You can check it out here.
xoxo
Aleka

Weekend finds

2011-09-04T11:21:00.001-07:00

1.EVI's MetalworkJewelry 2.montserratlacomba 3.ticklebean 4.dawily

Sorting out my work space today I found my tools and supplies from the metalwork lessons that I took last year and amongst them were two rings, three pairs of earrings and a lot of unfinished projects that really need to be finished. Copper is my all time favorite metal, so for today I picked out these amazing copper jewelry from my favorites! Enjoy!
xoxo
Georgia

Apostolos Georgiou

2011-09-03T01:20:00.000-07:00

One of my goals this year is to visit more museums in the city and see interesting art exhibitions, so I've been reading the papers hoping to find one that catches my attencion. One of these is the current exhibition of Apostolos Georgiou at the National Museum of Contemporary Art (EMST). I fell in love with his truly large paintings portraying tender and sarcastic stories too, surreal moments filled with emotion and loneliness. Above are two of my favorite ones, at the EMST site you can see a few more and also see the space where they are showcased.
The museum is temporarily located at the Athens Conservatory and the show is until the 16th of October, you really shouldn't miss it!
xoxo
Aleka

For my niece

2011-09-01T03:11:00.000-07:00

This summer my niece was obsessed with one of my necklaces, so I had no choice but to make one for her. She's eight, dresses up very girly and boy does she accessorize! I really hope she likes the colors I chose for her.
Visit many more creative spaces right here!

xoxo
Georgia

Entering challenges

2011-08-30T09:46:00.000-07:00

We listed two new things in the shop. The brown paisley brooch is taking part in the Etsy Greek Street team challenge, inspired by greek traditional costumes. The green necklace is taking part in the European street team challenge, with "leaves" as the theme.
xoxo
Aleka & Georgia

Weekend finds

2011-08-28T07:47:00.000-07:00

1. ERGANIweaving 2. huiyitan 3. MommyMakes 4. PriaVanda

Today I realized that the summer is coming to it's end and very soon schools will be open. Even though i finished school some time ago I couldn't resist searching Etsy for awesome school stuff! So here's what I found. Enjoy!

xoxo
Georgia

New things

2011-08-27T02:30:00.000-07:00

Finally got around to editing some photos and listing two new things in the shop. The blue felt necklace and the pencil brooches from paper mache in blue, green and red.
I'm hoping to list more items in the following days, I'm in a very creative place right now! I've been writing down new ideas for the blog and the shop, taking photos and keeping busy. I'm really liking the way summer is ending and hope that I'll be just as creative when September comes :-)
Linked to zsazsazu, check it out for more Saturday shopping!
xoxo
Aleka

Planting seeds

2011-08-25T03:16:00.000-07:00

I bought a box of biscuits the other day and after I ate them I looked at the plastic container they were packaged in. I figured I could reuse it to plant some calla lily seeds and freesia seeds. First I made lots of little holes in the bottom with a pin. Then I filled it half way with soil and put in the seeds, filled with another layer of soil , watered, put in little tags and I'm all done! Now all they need is sunshine and water :-) We'll keep track of their progress and post more photos.
You can see more creative spaces right here!
xoxo
Aleka & Georgia

Pink

2011-08-23T08:00:00.000-07:00

Vacations, the EST challenge and life in general have slowed things up a bit. Now, everything will return to normal and to start I made a new listing in the shop! It's a ring in bright pink and white cotton fabric with green french knots. I love how girly it is, so much different from what I wear but I like it :-)
Cheers!
Aleka

The winner

2011-08-22T04:38:00.000-07:00

This has been the most difficult choice we had to make! We've been debating it all night and today still could not decide, going back and forth, deciding then changing our mind over and over... Seriously the hardest decision ever but we finally came to a unanimous vote so without any further ado the winner is:

DOUBLE SQUARE Button Art Ring by kraplap

Circles and squares, shape inside the shape and hidden patterns made this ring stand out! Congrats Petronella :-)

Congratulations to all the participants, you made our choice very very difficult, you really deserve a prize for your super cool geometric entry!
xoxo
Aleka & Georgia

Entries part 2

2011-08-21T14:04:00.000-07:00

Reversible White Cotton Tote with Large Pink and Red Mix Circle Applique Pocket-Medium by oneperfectday

School is Cool - Geometry Necklace - Lesson 4 by Staroftheeast

Coral and turquoise embroidery floss on Geometric rectangle pendant by AntigoniCreations

Black and white sticks, golden and black beads and three golden spheres necklace by Pergamondo

Baby Hat Knitted Teal by Alatvian

lines and circles- Eco handwoven case with pens and notebook by ERGANIweaving

These are the final entries for the EST challenge! We'll be back with the winner shortly!
xoxo
Aleka & Georgia

Entries part 1

2011-08-20T23:57:00.000-07:00

Organic silver ear studs earrings by FiliGracejewelry

Striped two finger socks Red and white by Sexyhandmade

Denim Earrings By MadebyMada

DOUBLE SQUARE Button Art Ring by Kraplap

Clay earrings - Geometric minimal ruffle by BlackRedDots

These are the entries so far for the EST challenge, we'll be accepting more until late Sunday night and post the rest on Monday morning! It's not too late, join the fun!

Geometric Beauty - EST challenge theme

2011-08-09T00:44:00.001-07:00

1. MI lines, 2. 60s geometric print dress, 3. Triangles earrings II, 4. [Central Point], 5. geometric ring, 6. Escher Geometric Bracelet, 7. Elemental, 8. fade to green, 9. Geometric Prism Earrings Burnt Yellow and Teal, 10. Colorful Squares Messenger Bag, 11. 1980s fresh geometric dress, 12. AB COCO necklace, 13. Stripes of Key Bank, 14. geometric brass earrings, 15. Geometric Oval Hoop, 16. Geometric Messenger Bag Strap

We were so excited to win the European street team challenge with our mermaid earrings hosted by Gia, so now it's our turn to host the challenge and set the theme! It's been pretty hard deciding on one but I think we finally have a new theme: Geometric Beauty. Geometric shapes, circles, triangles and more, patterns like stripes, polka dots, chevron with color or black and white the possibilities are unlimited! So go and start creating something with geometry in mind!
And now for the rules:
1. You must be a member of the European Etsy Street Team.
2. Your entry must be a new creation inspired by the current theme. Please no re-listings.

Entries will be accepted until the 21st of August and the winner will be announced on the 22nd of August!
Convo us with your entry and we will post them here on our blog.
And last but not least: have fun creating!!
xoxo
Aleka & Georgia

Silk necklace and a holiday

2011-08-04T11:46:00.000-07:00

We are on holiday, up in the Peloponnese mountains. Not much to do all day but in the afternoon we take a long long walk, feels really good and thankfully it's not too hot. We've been feeding the cats and kittens every night, they know when we come back from our walk that it's dinner time!
And some news from the shop: I started listing the remaining silk necklaces, two have been sold but three more remain. And a fabric one. The first one is in the shop, it's green and red with yellow wooden beads, the rest will be listed soon!
xoxo
Aleka

Mermaid earrings

2011-07-30T23:42:00.001-07:00

The european street team challenge is hosted by Gia from oneperfectday. For the theme she chose mermaids and my take on this is this pair of earrings. Painted in blue, green and turquoise with white scales they look like mermaid's skin. I really liked the theme and had so much fun making them!
They are now listed in the shop, right here :-)
xoxo
Aleka

Jean bracelet

2011-07-29T00:57:00.000-07:00

I saw this in the Marie Claire Idees magazine, turning the jeans' hem into bracelets. I thought they looked pretty cute so I decided to have a go at it. I used an orange ribbon, folded like a flower, buttons in orange and white and velcro tape for closure. Simple and eco friendly, I think I'll make one for myself too!
More creative spaces here!
xoxo
Aleka

The missing blog post

2011-07-26T03:05:00.000-07:00

This weekend we were at a bazaar at Poros island, there was supposed to be a blog post on Friday with a poster of the event and details about it. Although I am pretty good at managing my time before a trip, for this one that didn't happen, I was packing things until late Thursday night then woke up super early on Friday so there was no blogging.
It's always nice to meet with the other girls from the etsy greek street team and I didn't come home empty handed. This is a photo of the things I bought: in the box a present for a friend from Eleanna, handmade soaps from Aspasia, gorgeous color photo by Elena, my favorite brooch ever from Gia, notebook with hand woven cover from Eleni and black and white photo of the monastery in Poros from Eirini, Eleni's niece.
xoxo
Aleka

A friend's show

2011-07-20T07:44:00.000-07:00

My friend Alexia Tagka has her first personal show, from 12 to the 17th of August you can see her black and white paintings and engravings in the old school of Koukouli Zagoriou . She draws inspiration from the tradition and the people of her place of origin, Giannena. You can see more on her facebook page here.

Η φίλη μου Αλεξία κάνει την πρώτη της ατομική έκθεση, ζωγραφική και χαρακτικά, στο Κουκούλι Ζαγορίου στα Γιάννενα. Θα διαρκέσει απο 12 εως 17 Αυγούστου και περιλαμβάνει έργα εμπευσμένα από τον τόπο καταγωγής της. Μπορείτε να δείτε περισσότερα εδώ!

Weekend finds (a bit late)

2011-07-18T09:02:00.001-07:00

1. creationsbyeve 2. eried 3. blackreddots 4. zdrop

A bit late posting these weekend finds but I've been so busy! In a few days we'll be going to Poros, a greek island, to take part in a summer bazaar there. So I thought I'd do a weekend finds with some of the other etsy sellers taking part. There is a facebook event with more info about the place, the participants and the workshops, you can see it here.
Hope to see you there :-)
xoxo
Alex

Lavender sachet

2011-07-14T08:40:00.000-07:00

After seeing Gia's beautiful sachets I figured it was about time I made one, I have wanted to for quite a long time but other things just got in the way. I had the idea of using linen and making french knots in different shades of blue, then I added the yellow knots to make it more cheerful! To stuff it I used lavender and rosemary leaves from my garden and some leaves from our louisa plant. It smells absolutely fantastic, now I want to make more and experiment with more plants and spices like Gia suggested.
More creative spaces here!
xoxo
Alex

Sales

2011-07-13T12:52:00.000-07:00

We will be participating in the Christmas in July sales by offering 15% off on all our jewelry and decorations listed in the shop! You can use the coupon JULY15 during checkout, sales will start on the 14th of July and will last until the 24th of July.
xoxoxo
Alex

Weekend finds

2011-07-10T05:22:00.000-07:00

1. elenapaint 2. artLAB23 3. ShebboDesign 4. RockArtiste

Today as I was looking on etsy I stumbled upon these beautiful rocks! All of them hand painted and one of a kind. So tomorrow morning I'll go to the beach and pick some, paint them with my nephew and hopefully by the end of the week we'll have something like this to show you!
xoxo
Georgia

Cats

2011-07-09T05:39:00.000-07:00

It's been a very quiet week, we spent it in our village in the Peloponnese mountains. The weather was great and all I did was take long walks and read books! Oh and we had lots of cats to feed and photograph, the two kittens above have two more brothers! They were so cute playing together but were very afraid of us, even if we had food they wouldn't come near us.
Anyway, now we're back in Athens where the heat is scorching and I'm hoping to overcome this summer boredom and start working on new things.
xoxo
Alex

Something to make

2011-06-30T10:45:00.000-07:00

I don't know if the braided jewelry trend is out of style or still in fashion but I had made my sister the blue braided bracelet a while back and she requested a new one. So I made her the brown and now she could stack them together. They look pretty good and are super easy and fast to make, just cut strips of fabric, tie a knot on one end and start braiding. When you reach the end tie another knot, add metal clasps and voila you're done. Don't forget to fray the edges of your fabric strips, that makes it look so much more better!
Here is one tutorial for a necklace.
Have a great weekend
xoxo
Alex

Clay works

2011-06-28T04:38:00.000-07:00

I started working with clay taking classes in my community center two years ago. I loved working with natural clay, loved its earthy smell and how easy it was to manipulate. Unfortunately those classes are now over due to many reasons, financial cut backs being one of them. So I decided to try commercial clay, the air drying one. At first I hated it, I found it was too difficult to blend and manipulate but I finally figured how to use it. I started making miniature houses and then simple beads for necklaces, I began to like the fact that I can control the whole process from making the bead to painting it. And I do love painting them so much, I guess that shows!
This cube necklace is one of three that I made, I love how colorful it is and that each bead is unique, no two are alike. It's listed in the shop along with other clay necklaces, the fish and disc beads designs. Now I have started working on one more new design, I'll show you how that turns out!
xoxo
Alex

Weekend finds

2011-06-26T02:48:00.000-07:00

1. original coffee painting by PaperArtists
2. brown mug cozy by natalya1905
3. wake up & smell the coffee poster by Posterinspired
4. aluminum coffee brown rose earring studs by MistyAurora

Hi, this is Georgia, the silent partner (not so silent as of today!). This is the first time I post to our blog, since Alex said it was high time I got involved here and not only in our shop. So as I was sipping my second cup of coffee so far I stumbled on these amazing finds on Etsy. My favorite is espresso freddo but I could always go for something like this!
Happy Sunday
xoxo Georgia

Vote for the Etsy Greek Street Team

2011-06-24T09:41:00.000-07:00

When we joined etsy the first team we joined was the Etsy Greek Street Team and now as members of this team we are taking part in a Handmade top ten contest. Support our team and vote for your favorites just by clicking on the orange title of the photo :-)

A phone case

2011-06-23T02:37:00.000-07:00

Georgia's newest purchase is an iphone, she got it about a month ago and ever since then she's been searching for a case to put it in. She found a couple online that she really liked but the drawback is that they would take at least a week to get here. So I thought I'd make her one, my sewing skills on the singer are basic, good but not perfect so it's a perfect excuse to practice!
This is the case I made her and I did learn a couple of things so I'll make it better next time: 1. I should cut the pieces with a rotary cutter, I am absolutely useless with the scissors and 2. make sure my paper patterns are perfectly straight, maybe use graph paper for better results. I still need to trim the edges and apply fray check and it's done, not bad for half a days work right?
Visit many more creative spaces right here!

A house

2011-06-21T02:21:00.000-07:00

Finally listing something new for the shop! The first thing I learned in my clay workshop was how to make decorative tiles, an easy task which teaches you the basics of working with clay. I made a couple for my home, they are decorating my living room wall. Then I made a few for the shop, the colorful hearts, the house and the tree which will be listed shortly. I'm hoping to expand the home decor section of our shop, not just with wall art but hopefully other cute things to decorate your home!
I'm pretty happy with the photos I took, although I faced the same problem I've had for a while: photographing shining things. There is a glare, a shining that I just can't avoid I can only try to minimize. Since a lot of my stuff is coated with an acrylic varnish, they inevitable are very shiny so I need to figure out a solution to this.
Have a great day :-)

Weekend Finds

2011-06-19T05:34:00.000-07:00

1. The student owl zippered cosmetic, make up, wallet by Chapulin
2. Tiny Houses Post Card Set by mogutakahashi
3. Berry Trio Paper Bead Earrings by snakeandroxy
4. Colourful statement necklace with rino by zdrop

Wow, it's been a week with no new posts! Well in my defense I had what started as a busy week and ended with me being a bit under the weather. Funny phrase because the weather was rainy and cloudy all week and this weekend it's absolutely glorious. The sun is shining but there is a light breeze to keep me cool and I'm wondering if it's the weather that's suiting my mood or the other way around. I don't know if I should be blaming the sunshine I've been looking for color all day so I chose all these colorful things from my favorites!
Enjoy :-)

Weekend Finds

2011-06-12T09:21:00.000-07:00

1.Rockabilly Cherry Print Bow Headband by mademoisellemermaid
2.Crochet bow necklace, grey and pale yellow cotton by Sidirom
3.Lovely little bow ring - I am wildflowers in summer by iamahunter
4.Grey BOW Hair Pin with Vintage Button by InezGill

I always thought of bows as too childish, something a little girl would wear like a dress with bows or bow ties in her hair. Lately I've had a change of heart and something I would consider a slight obsession. I'm loving bows as jewelry, necklaces and rings, crochet bows as hair pins and so on.
I found a great tutorial on making hair bows and also on wearing them!
Have a great day!

Monotyping - the kid version

2011-06-09T10:06:00.000-07:00

I've been monotyping with my 4 year old nephew, well actually he's been doing it with a little help from me! I had a small piece of thick acrylic, he paints on it with temperas then we flip it over on the paper, press hard (he loves this part) and lift carefully. Ta da instant art! I'm definitely framing these, they turned out so great! Unlike the second page we did where he insisted on mixing ALL the colors together on the acrylic, that resulted in a brownish/greenish color not at all pretty.
To see a lot more creative spaces just visit our creative spaces!

Still tired

2011-06-08T02:04:00.000-07:00

The bazaar has ended and I've been slowly cleaning my workspace, which I left in a completely chaotic state. It's been a three day cleaning fest but I'm finally done and the space looks so pretty.
Now for the bazaar: We didn't really sell as much as I had hoped, we did cover our expenses (thankfully the participating fee was not high) and had a good profit but we sold a lot fewer things than I had anticipated. Another thing that bothered me was the reaction of a lot of people visiting the fair, they would walk by without asking any questions or even taking a business card from us or the other sellers. I don't know maybe it's the difficult economic state, I did expect that to be a negative factor. Still, I consider it a positive experience, we got to meet many other lovely artists and gained valuable experience for the next one!
I haven't started working on anything new yet, I have a lot of new jewelry to photograph and list in the shop. I started by listing a necklace and these earrings, I just love the green color combination. I was a bit surprised (and sad) that nobody bought them, I thought they are perfect for summer! Oh well, that just goes to show you can never tell what other people will like!
Have a great day!

Our booth

2011-06-02T04:24:00.000-07:00

Getting ready for the summer bazaar and I took the advice of Kim from ViltalaKim, who suggested I do a test set up, photograph it and print it so that I know where to put everything when I set up the table at the bazaar. It really is a super idea (thank you Kim!) not only because it will save me time but also because I can see now the improvements I need to make to my set up: I'm going to paint the two newspaper covered boxes white, I know it's a lot of white but our stuff is so colorful and the white really makes color pop. The little white box where I put the bracelets has to go, it blocks the view for our name sign. And finally I REALLY have to finish the last two silk necklaces, time is running out and I've got lots more work to do!
You can see more creative spaces right here, you can play along too!

Weekend finds

2011-05-29T01:34:00.000-07:00

1.Red Wattlebird , Etching by Bridget Farmer
2.The Cat - original etching by GrazvydaArt
3.Small original feather etching by Fleurografie
4.June Bug - Original etching by Chartwellprint

One of my favorites blogs is Chantal 's, she is a talented artist and she makes the most amazing lino prints among other things! Screen printing and linocut printing are took techniques I am familiar with since my studies were in the field of technologies of printing. However etching is one of the forms of printmaking that I am not familiar with and today I was introduced, through Chantal's blog to Bridget Farmer and to this blog post where she showcased step by step the inking up and printing process of an etching. So I did a little etsy search and came up with these lovely etching prints!
Enjoy :-)

Lists and fishes

2011-05-26T01:43:00.000-07:00

I've been neglecting the blog but I have a good reason for that. At the beginning of June, the first weekend actually, we'll be taking part in a bazaar. It will take place in the center of Athens, in a cafe/bar at a very popular location. So it's been a super busy time, I've been making lists of things to make, things to take with me, things I need for the set up of our table. Endless lists where I cross one thing out and then remember to add a couple more!
Still I've been updating our flickr page with some of our new stuff, just a little sample of what we've been working on. The photos above are necklaces from air drying clay, five fish necklaces I finished yesterday, each one different from the other! These two are the orange and purple fish, there are also a blue, turquoise and green fish necklace!
See more creative spaces right here!

Painting silk

2011-05-12T01:33:00.000-07:00

We finally got around to painting our last piece of silk. We use special paints that are set by ironing and salt to make these pretty funky effects. We left it to dry overnight and now it just needs heat setting and cleaning and it will be ready to be used. I'm planning on making a couple of necklaces and also using any smaller scraps for earrings. I need to brainstorm a few designs for that I haven't really tried it before. That means I'll be super busy but that's OK!
Have a great day and check out more creative people right here :-)

A bouquet for mom

2011-05-07T09:28:00.000-07:00

My 4 year old nephew and I made this paper flower bouquet for his mom. It's pretty simple to make, all you need is colored paper, glue and pipe cleaners for stems. I cut circles in different sizes and a couple of funny looking flowers but in my defense I was cutting in a hurry because the little guy really loves gluing stuff. It was a challenge keeping up! After all the gluing was done I cut a little hole in the center, pulled a small part pipe cleaner through and then twisted it around. And voila you get a little flower arrangement, a perfect handmade gift for mother's day :-)

A silk necklace

2011-05-05T03:57:00.001-07:00

My sister made the top necklace a few years ago in a hand made jewelry course she was taking. They painted a piece of silk, then turned it into a necklace using wooden hand painted beads. Now we're making a new one, the one on the bottom photo. It's almost finished, the only thing missing is the little metal clasps to make the closure, I need to go supply shopping to get them and I'll buy a few more, I have an idea about making a bracelet the same way.
Have a great day :-)

May is here

2011-05-01T04:33:00.000-07:00

The first day of May is celebrated here in Greece. We make a flowery wreath and hang it on our front door, where it will stay until the end of the month!
Wishing everyone a lovely day!

Work in progress

2011-04-29T04:55:00.000-07:00

I'm making three pairs of balsa wood earrings in these new colors: tangerine, lime yellow and french vanilla. Still have to paint some patterns on them, not sure what they will be. But I'm not worried, ideas come to me as I work.
I absolutely love {the interview series} on Ana Pina's blog, you must check them out!

Springtime

2011-04-25T00:48:00.000-07:00

Hope you had a lovely Easter, we've been running around the countryside. We'll be back to the city this week, with a few projects in mind!
xoxo

Taking more photos

2011-04-07T10:16:00.000-07:00

The sun has been shining all week, it's the reason why I decided to re shoot some stuff from the shop. I really wasn't all that excited about the original photos but I think I have (finally) improved my product photography skills. I like these so much better! These are my green bunny brooch and the blue heart brooch.
Friday will be here soon and I've got a little road trip for the weekend, really looking forward to getting away from the computer for a couple of days :-)

Weekend finds

2011-04-02T12:47:00.000-07:00

1. Little explorer I by Cake with giants
2. Madalina and Mahfi by Pop pop portraits
3. Accordion playing bears by Daphne Cellophane
4. Breakfast by HerbstKind

This article prompted a search in my favorites folder, it's quite a big collection of favorite illustrators on etsy that just keeps growing! These are just a few.
Have a great Sunday!

The sniffles

2011-04-01T09:23:00.001-07:00

I meant to post more this week but I got a cold, runny nose, cough and a feeling of exhaustion so I mainly just stayed in bed and watched tv. I saw this yesterday morning and found it hilarious!
have a great weekend!

Spring things

2011-03-28T00:58:00.000-07:00

Some new things in the shop: a cold clay necklace in pink, yellow and turquoise and new bright colors for my felt heart brooch. I'm currently loving yellow, pink and orange it must be a spring thing! Also finally the weather is warming up and I'll be able to work in the studio again, I've really missed that. A very sunny day today and I have a few things in my to do list.
Have a great day!

Weekend finds

2011-03-27T09:33:00.000-07:00

1. snugstudio 2. Joogr 3. ragsbazzar 4. LedannaPatchwork

This week has been dedicated to European shops on etsy, helping me discover a lot of new stuff. Snugstudio are from Germany, Joogr is from Greece, ragsbazzar from Spain and LedannaPatchwork from France!
Hope you had a great weekend!!!

A fish brooch

2011-02-24T02:34:00.001-08:00

The lat few days I took advantage of the sunlight and took some photos of the earrings and paper mache brooches in my hand and the felt brooches on the mannequin. I'm hoping it will help with the size reference. Then the sun went away only to come back today so that I could photograph this fish brooch, I wasn't really happy with the first photos. It's still trial and error trying to get the perfect photo!
Another thing I've done is change the avatar and banner for our jewelry shop, I liked the old ones but I have to admit I like the new ones a lot more! Also I like the jewelry with a twist shop title, I'm thinking of making it more specific but maybe I'll do that later...

Love notes

2011-02-11T04:07:00.000-08:00

A pretty easy tutorial on making little love notes perfect for Valentine's day. I used small scraps of heavy paper about 7x3.5 cm, a heart stencil, colorful markers and pencils. Making the heart stencil is quite simple: you just draw a heart shape on a piece of paper and then cut it carefully using a cutting tool, make sure that the paper you use is thick so it won't get torn while you draw. Place your stencil on top of the paper scrap and using a pencil or a fine tip marker start drawing from one side of the heart to the other. Do the same from the other side so that the lines crisscross. You can just draw vertical lines, or even try horizontal and vertical together. Fold in half, write a little love message inside, punch a hole, tie a pretty string and you're done!

Lazy daisy

2011-02-08T01:41:00.000-08:00

I've been making a few new things, taking my time and really not rushing it. I know I will eventually get back to my working schedule and I'm trying to prioritize my to do list, it's a pretty long one too! I made these two felt heart brooches and did a little lazy daisy flowers, I think they look quite cute.
Jules Verne was born today, google's page was a lovely reminder!