Saturday Night at 1000 Markets - 03/28/09

Yay for categories!!

Things are getting exciting over at 1000 Markets these days. Not only is there buzz about a "Grand Opening" this Spring, maybe even in April, but categories have finally arrived!! (If you aren't yet convinced that 1000 Markets is going to be the best handmade shopping site in the world, read this interview) The artists and admins are working hard to get all the category names finalized and our products sorted into them. I've always loved 1000 Markets as an artist, but as a shopper I was always afraid I might be missing something great because I couldn't browse by product categories. When I'm in the mood I want to see every single one of whatever it it I'm looking for!



Even though the categories aren't fully stocked yet, I've already found things I never knew were there. Or re-found things I forgot were there. Like this great clock from Mad Tea Party. This shop was one of the very first I ever discovered at 1000 Markets, and it was love at first sight. I could decorate an entire room around this clock!

And speaking of decorating, I also found this lamp titled 'Touch of Whim' in the shop. It would be completely perfect in my living room. This one is definitely on my wish list, right under the clock!



I also discovered that Mad Tea Party is a member of a great new market - Magical Talents, where I rediscovered Karen Sugarman's amazingly beautiful Peruvian Pink Opal Parfait necklace. This one just leaves me speechless - I can't stop looking at it! A year or two ago I made a bracelet out of gorgeous pink opal beads, and it would be just exquisite with this necklace. (hmmm, I need to go find that bracelet and wear it!)

Another piece of Karen's that I adore is 'Alexendra', another piece made of dreamy pink, and highlighted with citrine and pearls, and a lovely, regal focal pendant.

Karen's pink lovlies put me in the mood for more pink, so tonight's 1000 Markets Search Engine find is the word "pink".


And who wouldn't want a pink leather collar complete with jewels for their sweet little puppy? I think my Roxie dog would just love this! It's from Greenbelts' shop, and is made from a recycled full grain leather belt and pink rhinestones.


And on that pink note, I will close for now. I am falling asleep at the keyboard, a wee side effect from my lovely morning of gardening in the light misty rain. Picked the first bouquet of the year - Pink tulips and purple money plant. Good night!

1000 Markets - the Next Big Thing?

It's time to admit it - I've branched out from selling exclusively on Etsy. Like any first love, Etsy will always hold a special place in my heart, and I will be forever grateful for lessons learned and the fabulous opportunities that have come my way through my shop there. And yes, there's still no place like Etsy to reach an enormously huge audience if you are a seller. But.......I have found a new online artisan venue that I am truly thrilled to be a part of - 1000 Markets. If you are a shopper, you will be amazed at the variety and quality of what you can find there - everything from exquisite cookies to masterful paintings and photographs, to garden art, fine jewelry, and wearable art. Oh yes, and yummy artisan food! ...Homemade chocolate marshmallows, anyone?

If you are an artisan looking for a place to open up shop, 1000Markets is the place to be. Their link for potential shopkeepers is a perfect example of the professionalism, technical expertise, and pure marketing knowhow that this venue offers to artists. Check out the forums to gain an idea of the sense of community that is already present among the artisans there. Visit Matt's blog to read about the launch of the site in September, the concept of markets, and some of the exciting publicity the site is generating. Yes, indeed, 1000 Markets could be the Next Big Thing.

Lastly, in honor of my excitement about 1000 Markets, I'll be adding a new weekly feature to compliment my Sunday Morning Coffee series - Saturday Night at the Market. I will feature artists, markets and news about 1000 Markets each week. Be sure to stop by for the first installment Saturday, January 10th.

Saturday Night at the Market - 02/14/09

Hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day, filled with chocolate and love! Yesterday was gray and rainy here, so I had a lovely cozy day inside. I do spend a lot of time looking out at my garden through the kitchen window (makes doing dishes a whole lot nicer) and my eye is often caught by a pair of bright red cardinals eating seeds from last summer's flowers. An interesting thing about cardinals is that they mate for life, so I was completely delighted when I discovered this adorable little red box by Pasaii Design Studio - how perfect! Her box is this week's 1000 Markets' Search Engine Find. My search terms were 'heart' and 'red', and returned a perfect selection as always. Be sure to check out her shop - it is filled with lovely and original designs!


As I started my market browsing with the 1000 Markets front page yesterday, my eye was caught by these lovely little peyote stitch earrings, aptly named 'A Hint of Passion', and decided to focus on bead woven art this week. In fact, I think I'm going to do a whole series on some of the many incredible techniques and mediums used by the talented artists who have shops at 1000 Markets. I particularly love how the the grey fades into white at the center of these little gems which can be found in the Njema Original Beadwoven Jewelry shop.


The work found in the Njema shop is interesting and varied, sometimes created from her own patterns, and sometimes completely freehand. Another stunning example of her work is the Purple Netted Cuff, which shows off her skill at freehand design, as well as polymer clay beadmaking.



No article about bead weaving would be complete without a piece or two from The Beaded Lily, one of the members of the Wearable Art Market. Her beadwork is amazing and original, and always with an interesting background behind its creation. I especially love her Catkill cuff, with its beautiful cat's eye lampwork bead paired with found bluejay feathers.



Also from The Beaded Lily is the stunning Ocean of Storms cuff, a masterful mix of blues and silver, and perfectly named as well. I love the way she has woven the wonderful silver tube beads in amongst the beads. The remind me of whitecaps on waves.


Another wonderful shop on 1000 Markets is Patricia Vener's Silver Dragon Creations. I met Patricia through the Art Jewelry Collective, another great group that I am a part of. I particularly love the fabulous and colorful earrings that Patricia creates, and these Red Sky earrings just take my breath away.


I hope you've enjoyed this introduction to the wonderful art of bead weaving. If you'd like to see more, check out this great book, by Carol Wilcox Wells - Masters: Beadweaving: Major Works by Leading Artists.

Saturday Night at the Market – 01/02/10

   I am looking forward to creating more one of a kind pieces in 2010, and my 1000 Markets shop is the perfect place to feature these new pieces.  I’m also happy to have the time again to share the beautiful things I find at 1000 Markets when I do my ‘armchair shopping’ from my cozy chenille chair – no malls for me!  If you haven’t heard of this wonderful online shopping site, or you have not stopped in for a look around in a while, do go and check it out.  It is still a new online venue, but over the last year, lots of little tweaks have been made to make shopping there easy, pleasant, and just plain pretty!  I do love the boutique feel that it has, and I always feel like I’ve been on a trip to an eclectic little city full of artsy shops and cafes when I stroll though 1000 Markets on my laptop. 

Something I have been looking for lately is Lavender – especially culinary lavender  because I am planning to be a vendor at this year’s Farmer’s Market here in Greeneville, and will be selling lavender based food items in addition to having a display for my jewelry.  (I’ll be planting a special culinary variety of lavender in my garden this year, too) 

I searched for “lavender” at 1000 Markets, and to my delight the very first result was fine culinary lavender grown and packaged by Blossom’s Wild Herb Lavender Farm.     In their own words:  “We grow all herbs and perennial plants on our 12 acre farm in an unheated polyhouse. We feel by not forcing our plants to grow un-naturally, we create a hardier plant to take on the hard cruel world. To view all plants with pictures it is best to visit www.blossomfarm.com for complete listing.”

They also have several yummy lavender  recipes listed, and I will surely be trying them as I prepare my Farmer’s Market product line this winter.  The Lavender Blossom muffins sound splendid – I can’t wait to try them.  

Something  else I want to start doing is making homemade  bread this winter now that the holiday rush is past.  There is nothing more wonderful than dipping warm homemade bread into herb-infused olive oil, so I was excited to find these fabulous  Tuscan Lavender Bread dips – in Blossom’s shop.  Of course, homemade bread is also delicious toasted with butter and honey, so I’ll have to try the Lavender Honey as well!

Blossom’s shop is filled with many more heavenly herbs and spices, but they also have a wonderful collection of lavender items for the bath and for weddings and special occasions.  The heavenly looking Purple Bouquet Lavender gift collection is a positively decadent collection of goodies to pamper yourself with!

I’ll close for now, as I am heading off to dream of the warm sun shining on fields of lavender while I sleep……..

Saturday Night at the Market - 01/10/09

Welcome to the first Saturday Night at the Market post! Pull up a chair, and come along with me for some armchair shopping ....and 1000 Markets is definitely a great shopping experience! Browsing through the markets is as much fun as an outing to your favorite artsy little village. New delights await at every turn. If you're not in the mood for browsing, type what you are looking for into the search box - the results will more than likely be just want you wanted - The search at 1000 Markets works better than most I've used.

Each week I'll be highlighting one Market, as well as my favorite find from a specific search topic. My other passion in life is gardening, so this week I'm featuring Beau Jardin, a market specializing in amazing garden art. The fresh new garden catalogs that are arriving daily in the mail have dreaming of spring, and Beau Jardin is just the place to continue that dream.





I have been dreaming of one of John T. Unger's Bowls of Fire for years now, and I was thrilled to find his gorgous work is part of the Beau Jardin Market. I'm also in love with Julie DeGroot's whimsical copper moon windchime. I've got the perfect place to hang it! And what garden would be complete without a fairy shoecottage?

Now for this week's favorite from the 1000 Markets search engine. Today's search topic was 'Pottery'. Those who know me know that I am a true pottery addict. I have been known to give away or sell sets of dishes just so I can buy new ones. I also have a weakness for unusual cups and vases. This fabulous vase from Fehu Stoneware's shop was my hands-down favorite from today's search.

Saturday Night at 1000 Markets

My mom and I had a wonderful trip down to Hanover Gallery in Chattanooga, TN on Friday afternoon to deliver all the pieces I've been working on for the last couple of days. We decided we needed to get out more often, so we'll be traveling to the other galleries that are close enough to visit, as well. I always wanted to be a travel writer, lol! Just the one photo of Missy Peirano, who is the owner of this delightful gallery, sitting behind the jewelry display case for now, though - I'll be writing a post about our trip with more pics and details of some fab food later this week. Now it's time to move on to the great new items I've come across at 1000 Markets during the last week!

First, there is a new member in the Wearable Art Market, and her work had my full attention the very moment I first laid eyes on it - meet Peggy and her shop Maskwoman. Each of her wondrous creations has a many-layered story to tell. These are the type of pieces where you notice a new delight every single time you look at them. She makes masks that are small enough to be worn as pendants (they come with a tube bail affixed to the back for hanging), as well as larger masks to be used as wall art.



One of my favorites is the sweet 'Empty Nest' pendant mask with its lovely shining gold. The dreamy look of the eyes in this one gives me the feeling that just about anything is possible - if you dream it you can do it!

And of course, I can't help but love her 'Back to the Garden' pendant with it's lovely sagey green paired with a sweet rose and a touch of deep red - most definitely on my wish list!



As a bird-lover, the ever so unique 'Birdgirl's Prize' caught my eye right away. I would so love to hang it on my wall - the colors were just made for my house! This is a large piece, 12" by 8", and the little 'prize' at the end of the string is a wonderful touch of whimsy. The expression of the bird reminds me a lot of my own little african grey, and I definitely think he keeps me on a string, ha ha!


The Metalcraft Market is a 1000 Markets marketplace that I manage with the help of several other metalsmiths who are members. The work there ranges from jewelry to fine sculpture and wrought iron work - just about anything that can be created from metal is represented. The longer I work with metal, the more I am fascinated by what can be done with it. You can push it to the limit, then anneal it, and it returns to soft pliability waiting to be push to the limit once again. I was greatly inpsired when I first saw the work of Patrick Conlin, who creates both stunning jewelry and amazing metal vessels.


His piece titled 'Seaform Teapot' is just simply one of the most amazing pieces of functional art I've ever seen. Incredibly, the teapot is functional, and includes an infuser in the lid, a beautiful hardwood handle, and two matching cups. Unbelievable.

The 'Flared Vessel' is a perfect example of the distance that metal can be moved through the skillful use of hammer and torch. This one has me inspired to try and create one of my leaf pieces with ragged edges. Read more about how to create raised vessels here.

Another way to form metal into a 3-D design is through the art of Repousse. Patrick has a gorgeous Repousse Sterling Cuff in his shop that is a stunning example of this art form.

This is another technique on my 'short list' of things to learn. Hopefully I will be trying this at the annual jewelry retreat in October. Read a more about the art of Repousse here and here. Oh, my, how I want to take one of Valentin Yoktov's classes!!

Saturday Night at 1000 Markets - 04/04/09

Things are still really hopping this week at 1000 Markets! The new ability to shop by Category is still being tweaked until is perfect. Much hard work has been put in by everyone involved and it shows! It is so much fun to be involved in the beginnings of what is sure to be a wildly successful site after the official launch.

There is also a lot going on at the great market where I am proud to be a member - the Wearable Art Market. The big event this week is our first Sunday Night at the Market event, and you are all invited - hope to see you there! Here is the official invitation and link to the forum:

One of the most special things about 1000 Markets is the way the format encourages everyone to get to know the people behind the art!

With that in mind, the artists of the Wearable Art Market will be getting together Sunday evening and we'd love to have you join us!

Art will be the subject of course-- inspiration, latest ambitions, recent successes-- or works in progress-- general levels of creativity, chocolate addictions-- Who knows what else and where it will lead? Join us and find out!

The thread will be in the Wearable Art Market public forum-- on Sunday April 5th, 7 EST, 6 central, 5 mountain and 4 pacific till whenever!

Just jump right in with your own comments and observations (or questions if you're a wearable art fan) and help us make this first Sunday Night at the Market a grand success!

I'd also like to introduce our two new members who joined the market this past week - Carol Dean Sharpe of Sand Fibers (I am the proud owner of two of her gorgeous peyote braclets, and 3rd on the way - yay!) and Rachele Dagley of Rachele's Originals. These two bead artists have simply gorgeous work.


My favorite piece in Rachele's shop is her Splendor Beadwoven Cabochon Necklace with an Ammonite as the focal point. The warm colors in this piece are truly splendid, indeed!

Another piece I particularly love is the Crystal & Bugle Beadwoven Bracelet. Those blue crystals are mesmerizing with the brown bugle beads!

Carole's work has long been a favorite of mine, and I love how she incorporates bold geometrics in her pieces. Check out the gorgeousness (is that a word?) of her Elegant Undulations cuff. I might have to add this one to my collection!

And then we have the stunning Youthful Fancy Necklace. The colors here are just delicious, and the mix of materials is a fascinating mix of raku, cotton batik and 'iris bronze' delica seed beads.

I'm about ready to turn in for the night - hope you all had a great Saturday, and hope to see you tomorrow at the Wearable Art Sunday Night at the Market. Again, the thread will be in the Wearable Art Market public forum-- on Sunday April 5th, 7 EST, 6 central, 5 mountain and 4 pacific till whenever!

Goodnight!

Saturday Night at the market - 01/31/09

I do love pretty paper, and I have blogged about it several times. 1000 Markets has
a great arcade called Papercraft, and I stopped by for a visit tonight. One of my favorite shops is a member of the arcade, Taylor's Eclectic. Their shop is filled with amazing wearable sculptures and decorative vases created from paper and wire.

The stunning 'Under the Sea: Jewel of the Ocean' sculptural vase is a study in vibrant plum accented with multicolored 'bubbles'.

I also love the 'Grains of Sand' earrings, another study in brilliant colors, and just begging to be worn.

Another shop I discovered has just recently joined 1000 Markets and the Papercraft Arcade - Emily Wilson's Paperlace Greetings. Her work is positively enchanting - it was love at first sight for me when I saw her valentines!



Of course, my favorite is the Double Dragonfly Valentine, but then again, the Hearts and Flowers is a total stunner too - I might have to order both of them! I know I'll be a regular visitor to her shop, and the Papercraft Arcade.



Paperlace's valentines got me in the mood for more Valentine goodies, so tonight's 1000 Markets Search Engine Find is based on the search keywords, Valentine & Pink. I got 136 completely relevant lovely pink Valentine-y things.


I love this little box of ceramic chocolates - no calories! All the little flowers are completely handmade, wow! Check out this stunning teapot, too! I found the most perfect mug in the world in Bud and Lucy's Kid's Ceramic Confections shop, too. Yes, I know I have blogged about 'the perfect mug' before, ha ha...but this is my *new* perfect mug, which I just had to order. My very own Violet Rose mug is now on its way to me - what could be more perfect for Lavender Cottage?

Saturday Night at 1000 Markets - 3/21/09

With the arrival of Spring, and Easter just around the corner, I thought my first spring garden photos, plus a bit of whimsy and rabbits were in order for the 1000 Markets shopping post this week. I love sweet little rabbits (unless they're eating my garden plants) and I was thrilled when I saw this great garden bench at our local salvage store a couple of years ago.

You can see what a messy gardener I am, too. I never clean up the previous year's garden until spring so the birds have goodies to eat all winter.
Isn't that a lovely reason to not do the fall 'cleanup' chores? My little tulip patch is getting ready to bloom, though, so it's time to get busy now!

It's also time to start dreaming of my wonderful fragrant Rugosa rose blooms - my sweet Moje Hammarburg is off to a great start already. Check out those thorns, too. (but I love her anyway)

Now, on to the spring shopping....

I fell in love with the whimsical art in the Blue Dog Rose shop the instant I saw it. I love the delightful creatures peeking out everywhere in her paintings. In my little dream world, this is how things would be - all the different creatures (including us, ha ha) living together in perfect harmony. My favorite painting is her Crossing the Lake limited edition print. I can just see a child's room decorated in this theme - or better yet, my studio wall! Her rabbits remind me of the rabbit in the wonderful story of The Velveteen Rabbit, recently mentioned in Nicola's last blog post.

Another painting that caught my eye is the Mushrooms and a Nap limited edition print. This one reminds me of my introduction to wild mushrooms on one of our family vacations near Rhinelander, Wisconsin. The family in the cabin next door to ours happened to be mushroom experts, and they took us on a mushroom hunt in the woods. We dined that evening on sauteed mushrooms that made me a mushroom lover for the rest of my life. One of these days I'm going to get someone to take me out hunting for the delectable Morels that everyone loves so much. Tennessee has wonderful wild plants, including great morels, so I'm hoping to find some one of these days.


Or, how about a dozen fabulously decorated Spring Mix cookies from Cake Box Cookies? I have been dreaming of some cookies from this shop ever since they first opened their 1000 Markets storefront. Not only are they beautiful, but their customers say they taste great, too, with just the right amount of soft and sweet, plus a hint of lemon. YUM!

If you're still dreaming of last year's garden, here is a perfect necklace for you from Bluhealer's shop. Called "Dreaming of Before" it is a beautiful glass vessel pendant, adorned with pansies and rosebuds. In fact, she has several other pansy pieces in her "Winter Garden" collection, and every one of them is gorgeous!

Not only does Bluhealer do lovely glasswork, she also has beautiful enamel work as well. (I am dying to try enamel myself!). These lovely "Summer Fields" earrings whisper of the warmth that is yet to come with lovely clover green enamel on 18 gauge copper adorned with dainty flower murrini.

So, that is all for now, as my own garden is calling my name. I must go out commence my new year of gardening.......see you all later!