The weather in Texas is hot and we've decided that's a perfect reason to have a team sale. We are officially announcing the "Dang, It's Hot Sale!" - a fun opportunity to find a great deals from your fave Etsy Dallas artists. Get comfy in the air conditioning and shop handmade with these fun summer deals;

Tefi Designs - free domestic shipping on Clearance items

Color Box - Free US shipping

Pamela MIchelle - Free Shipping (US & Canada only)

ColorBox Design

Cut Out and Collect - free US shipping

XY Factory - Free Shipping

Modest Ambition -Free shipping US + Canada

ChetArt - Free U.S. Shipping on all prints

bonnybeads - $5 rebate on all purchases of $20 or more (before shipping/tax) AND free shipping to the U.S.

LaAlicia - $5 rebate via paypal on any size purse purchase

The Miscellany - $3 off prints, 2 for $40 necklaces

Pig &the Peacock - 20% off purchases of $20 or more (before shipping)

KarmaCrochet - 5 Scrabble pendants for $20 & Free Shipping

(US & Canada only)

paperfingers - 3 alphabet prints for the price of 2 sale

(great time to get your kiddo's initials!)

Dowdy Studio - twenty one dollar tee sale

Eye on the Sparrow - Free guitar string keychain from

The American Fuse and eye on the sparrow designs

koozie with each order!

MaggieMay - Free 18" Ball Chain Necklace With Each Pendant Purchase

Jane Joss - 20% off all items before shipping

Wordless Wednesday: Wedneday

Eco Monday: Australian Bike Path

Always cool to see new and different ways that things are recycled and staying out of landfills. In Australia the National Park Service is using e-waste to create a bike path and bridge. Items used include; cell phones, LCD Screens, toasters, etc. I hope other countries begin to copy this trend! Check out the whole story here.

Saturday Search: Grad

I love this button for Gnipmac. Sometimes I feel like offices should have a poster of this on their office walls - especially when there are stressful deadlines! :)

Heather's Feather

I recently checked this book out of the library to share with a friend's child. This was one of my absolutely fave books when I was little.

I thought her skinny bird legs and huge shoes were just too silly and cute!

:)

Wordless Wednesday: Kettle Confections

Eco Monday: Special Order Completed

I've been working on a custom map bag for a customer who placed the order at the Spring Bash 2010. I finally finished it just in time for her to take it to Europe with her! In the first picture, you can see all the raw ingredients for the bag. The second picture shows the shell of the bag without the lining and handle.

I love working on custom orders especially the ones using maps. The bag was customized to the measurements that would hold the papers she needed with her at all times during her travels. We were in constant contact while I was working on the bag to customize the strap length to work as a mini messenger as well as communicating about the lining and zipper color.

Completing these kinds of bags makes me so happy because they are made from out of date maps and fabric remnants that would otherwise end up in a landfill. Giving things a new purpose is very satisfying.

Bon Voyage, Gretchen! Safe Travels.

Saturday Search:Saturday

This unique print is from goccoboom's Etsy shop. It's called Saturday 9:27am.

DIY: A new twist

I just discovered this great site that has repair manuals and instructions on how to fix all kinds of things. There's even a section where you can share what you know and order parts for your repairs. Check it out. Seems like a great way to share what you know and learn from others. A great way to keep things running well instead of tossing them and getting a new one.

There are sections on all kinds of things like laptop repairs. Just choose your model and click on!

Wordless Wednesday

Etsy's Birthday Party

Eco Monday: Owl Babies are Fledging

So, since the last post about the growing owl babies - they have all flown! WOW! So exciting! Check out those almost grown up baby owls here. They are healthy and cute...it's just sad to see that whole adventure end. I hope they all have their own cutie owl babies in the future! :)

How does your garden grow?

So, all this summer produce has me getting crazy for veggies lately. I picked up some great fresh veggies at the local farmer's market. I ate tons of them raw and was ready for another way to eat them before they went bad. So, I cut broccoli, mushrooms, red peppers, carrots into similar size pieces and added whole snow peas and the mixture below;

1 part olive oil
3 parts balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper

I use a large bowl to mix it all together and coat all the veggies. Pop them onto a baking sheet and into the oven at 350 for about 30-45 minutes. Check them after 30 minutes to see if they are done enough. If not give them a few more minutes.

These are delicious as a side dish with a meal, cold as a snack, and if you chop the pieces a little smaller they work great in an omlette.

Eat your veggies!

Treasury Thursday: Dippidy Do Treasury!

Wordless Wednesday

Eco Monday: Father's Day Gift Ideas

Father's Day is coming right up! Are you ready? In case you are still thinking about it, here are a few ideas from my Etsy Dallas teamies. Handmade gifts are such a nice thing to do for someone -- they are just so much more personal than other gifts.

Check out this great bracelet from Eye On the Sparrow Designs -- it's made from recycled guitar strings and supports local bands.

This yummy smelling soap from the Pig and the Peacock -- Black Leather Glycerin Soap complete with a faux croc pattern.


And check out this Coffee Trio - 3 Pound Sampler set from Downtown Roasters! Choose three from this list; Guatemalan, Papua New Guinea, Colombian Supremo, October Blend, Sumatra Dark, Italian Roast. All yummy!

Jingle Bash Venue

Today I went to look at the space for the next Jingle Bash. Our event will actually be posted on this very marquee about a week before The Bash!

Seeing the space made it real. This event is gonna be so fun. Check out the Etsy Dallas team blog to stay up to date on details. While you're there, check out the info on the Etsy Birthday Party at Make Studio and join us if you can!

Treasury Thursday: Watermelon Crawl