Title? I don't need no stinkin' title!

In all honesty expect this post to be all over the place. It would be as hard to put a title on this as it is to choose which is my favorite child. (Don't tell the others but I'm partial to Chico the cat. He never sasses and always agrees when I think it might be time for a nap.)

So as mentioned in a previous post (go ahead... I'll wait) I am trying to make my house look more like normal people's houses (and less like your grandma's garage sale) before class tomorrow. I do have a book review almost ready for you. But in the meantime I'll just cheat and share some links with you.

*gathering inspiration from these two online mags

Sweet Paul's Spring 2011
LMNOP's Holiday Issue 13 Yes, I'm a little late.

*loving these blogs

Pia Jane Biajkerk
Newspaper Taxi

*aching over these artists

Holy Smoke
Kristin Perers

*loving these books

Scandinavian Stitches by Kajsa Wikman

Scandinavian Needlecraft by Clare Youngs and Sarah Hoggett

*playing with the cool kids ;)



I have to admit when I joined Pinterest a few months ago I knew it was cool, handy, all that, but I had no idea it would explode like it has. You can find almost anything and anyone there. So if you haven't joined yet, what are you waiting for?!

Website: Google Books has Art/Craft books?!?

Blogger is currently having issues so I'm having trouble posting much. (I also lost also the linking I did in this post. I apologize.) Hopefully, that will be resolved soon. I'm doing what I can on this end. In the meantime...

Are you guys familiar with Google Books?!? The last time I looked at the site was when they first started it and most of the books were public domain. Well, a lot has changed since then. I found books dated anywhere from 1964 to 2009 even! Not just those old musty fussy books that we really only look at to copy the old illustrations from. ;)

There were at least a dozen books about bookbinding, tons on knitting, crochet and quilting, silkscreen and printmaking, and just general crafts. This was in the crafts and hobbies category - 394 books. In the art category there are 6,357 books! Oh, the graphic design and typography books are awesome... to a newbie, that is. I'm not sure just how up to date the graphic design is but I love the typography. And I finally had to stop looking because I was getting lost in the fiction and cooking and comics & graphic novels and...

Do be sure to check whether a book is the full version or is just a preview. Most of the newer books are just a limited preview but it's quite a preview. The preview for Creating Handmade Books by Alisa J. Golden was 17 pages and wasn't just the glossary and such that doesn't really tell you anything about the book. (like some websites we know. *coughcoughAmazoncough*)

I suggest taking a look at Google Books even if you looked at it in the beginning. Even if you just use it to get an idea whether you want to buy one of the books they have listed, it's worth it.

Handmade Holidays: The Handmade Gift Guide Feature

Long before we started tightening our belts because of the economy handmade started making a huge resurgence. Not only do most people love receiving a gift with time and thought invested in it, it is incredibly rewarding to give a gift that isn’t found at the local discount chain store. But what if you don’t have the time or the particular skill required? Support indie artists.

We all know about Etsy. But did you know that there are several other handmade markets available online? Fortunately, someone has done the work of gathering those links together as well as featuring many of the best artists daily.

Anne Hayman, or Enna, is the brains behind The Handmade Gift Guide. The Handmade Gift Guide bills itself as “THE place to go online to find gifts for every occasion. A mix of featured artist's shops, places to buy and sell handmade gifts.”

The beauty of the internet is that we can meet people virtually that we would not be able to otherwise. Recently I had the pleasure of sitting down with Enna in just this way. I had my coffee and emailed her questions. She had her tea and answered them. We discovered we share a love of handmade and of talking. ;)

Is this the first year for the guide?
Yep. I just started in October. I am putting together a new page for The Guide called On Sale. It will list all of the sales and special events I find for handmade gifts. I also have a Facebook page where I ask people to post their sales and special events.

Are you the only one who runs the guide?
Yep, it's mostly just me, my daughter does help me find cool stuff, she is 13, and has great taste...

How do you determine who is featured?
I window shop a lot online, and just ask artists if I can feature them. I also have people request to be featured. I try to feature everyone who asks. I do get a lot of requests to be featured from jewelry makers, so I have to space them out a little. I try to feature as many of my twitter followers and FB fans as possible. They are amazing! I try to look at everyone's shop who follows/fans me.

Do you feature Etsy and non-Etsy alike?
Yes, I feature shops from all over the internet. I have had a lot of requests from people who have Etsy shops, but I try to include shops from other venues like 1000 Markets, Artfire, DaWanda, etc...

Do you have a shop yourself?
Yes, I have a few... I make Aromatherapy and Herbal Wellness Products, Spiritual Art, Healing Gemstone Jewelry, and I sew clothes and toys as well. I even make a few purses with my mom :)

http://rheedunn.etsy.com
http://lotusflowerherbals.etsy.com
http://lotusflowerherbals.artfire.com

How close to Christmas will it run?
It will be an ongoing thing. I try to post daily.

Right up to the day if they offer overnight shipping maybe?
I will do a last minute shopping post of a few shops that are offering overnight shipping for those procrastinators out there!

Or will you stop at some point just to relax and enjoy the holidays with your own family?
I spend a couple nights a week up late after my family goes to bed writing features for the week. That way I am not always on my computer during the day. I work a lot while my kids are at school and baby is napping.

Are there any other handmade markets that you especially recommend?
I love what Tim Adam is doing for Etsy, his HMC app is super amazing. Artfire is really great too. Supermarket is a very cool spot as well. I really like all the ones in my link list. They all have their finer points. :)

Anything else you'd like to share?
I am very grateful for all the help and support I have received from the handmade community. They have helped me so much in the past month. I hope to grow The Guide into THE place to go to find handmade gifts for loved ones. I really believe in the handmade movement, and want to support it fully.

I enjoy getting to know each artist/crafter that I feature. I think people enjoy buying from people they know something about. I really love the 'Causes of the Month' feature... there are some very loving and caring people out there, and I want them to be recognized for their efforts to make this world a better place to live.

I also have another blog, http://lotusflowerherbals.com for my aromatherapy/herbal wellness business. I am a busy girl. I detest boredom. I want to do it ALL :) {Editors Note: Sounds like a girl after my own heart!}
You can find me here:
Twitter
http://twitter.com/hndmdegiftguide

Facebook
http://facebook.com/thehandmadegiftguide
http://facebook.com/ItsOn Sale
and of course on The Guide
http://thehandmadegiftguide.com

*Artists/crafters can find out how to be featured here: How To Be Featured


Thank you for so graciously answering all my questions, Enna! For everyone visiting The Guide, be sure to check out the plethora of links in the sidebar. Not only has Enna gathered her November Etsy Favorites (soon to be December!), but there are also tons of other handmade market listings. And if you still haven't had your fill, check out the archives. Don't forget to grab a button for your own blog to share the love. :)