By The Shore

Thank you to The Angry Weather for curating this beautiful treasury inspired by her walks along the Saint-Laurent River in Quebec. It makes me want to run to the seaside right now. Instead I will be  a responsible adult and get some work done.  And its misty out and I don't have the car, which  makes it easier to be responsible :)

The Angry Weather's etsy shop is new this month. Check out her Rainy Cloud Brooch, its brilliant:

Saltscapes Expo April 30 to May 2- Buy Local!

Come and join us at the annual Saltscapes Expo at Exhibition Park in Halifax, NS on April 30 to May 2. We've got coupons for $3.00 off admission at our farmer's market booth this weekend if you'd like to have them.

Exclusive Sneak Peek at Saltscapes East Coast Expo 2010 Plan ahead for the weekend of April 30, May 1 and 2 to attend Atlantic Canada's ultimate BUY LOCAL event - the 6th annual Saltscapes East Coast Expo at Exhibition Park in Halifax. More than 350 quality exhibitors welcome 20,000 attendees to the best of Atlantic Canada under one roof for one spectacular weekend. 100+  demonstrations and presentations with something for everyone. -    Savour the Flavour  -    Culture, Music and Travel -    Home, Cottage and Garden -    Living Healthy in Atlantic Canada -    Unique Retail Marketplace -    Live Entertainment -    Experience the Subaru Off-Road Test Drive Rally -    Be entertained and amazed by the Taste of Nova Scotia's Cutting Edge Culinary competition showcasing talented local Chefs competing in a black box challenge -    Action packed Family Fun Night Friday April 30 Sample Atlantic Canada Food & Drink all weekend long, hear the sounds of talented local musicians, plan a vacation - VISIT! SHOP! BUY! ENJOY! Visit www.saltscapesexpo.com to purchase advance tickets. Click here to view a video about the show. Friday, April 30         Noon - 9 pm Saturday, May 1      10 am - 6 pm Sunday, May 2        10 am - 5 pm Exhibition Park, Halifax Let us help you plan your summer travel experience. Visit our booth at Saltscapes Expo or call to book your hotel accommodations today at 1-877-680-7666

Halifax Farmer's Market

The Halifax Farmer's Market has been a favourite Saturday morning destination for more than 150 years. Its the oldest continually running market in North America, established in 1850. Thats a lot of Saturdays. Currently located at the Brewery Market, its fun to stroll through the maze of rooms, taking in the beautiful sights, the wonderful smells, and the local music. Its great to see so many people dedicated to buying local and supporting farmers and small business.

The musicians above are fairly new to the market. I don't know their names, but I've never seen musicians draw a larger market crowd than they did; vendors abandoned their booths to watch and listen.

The market will be moving to its new location, the Seaport Market at Pier 20 on the Halifax waterfront in July. The building is eco friendly in design, with reclaimed building materials, recycling of rain water, and a roof garden. The larger space will foster accessibility and community. Full markets will run on the weekends and on Wednesdays, with some vendors being open 7 days a week. Click on the picture below for an architectural concept video.

What I'm working on...

Its been a good week, lots of fun happenings and lots of time to create. My other half was in the USA on business all week, which logically should result in me having less time, as I pick up "his jobs" and run the kids around more often. But somehow it doesn't work that way. Which I must admit I kind of like. Absence makes the heart grow fonder and all that :)

I picked out a few special pieces of glass from my collection this week, gorgeous colours that were sick of sitting in a bottle on the shelf, waiting to be framed and adorned. The piece above came from one of the Hawaiin Islands-a couple of summers ago I traded some finished pieces of jewelry for sea glass gathered in Hawaii by  a gentlemen from Lunenburg. The piece above is a beautiful orange red with a little star on top, so very like a sunset.

These little earrings were forged from silver wire, and are meant to be leaves, although they turned out a little less leaf-like than I had in mind. Next time I will include a vein in the centre of the leaf.

I'm still in love with brass, and it photographs beautifully, contrasting with the aqua glass.

And finally, my favourite, a calla lily hand forged from sterling silver cradles a drop of brilliant red sea glass, this one from a Nova Scotia beach. Its been fun making the flowers, and I plan to do lots more botanical jewelry over the next few months. Here's hoping this week will be a good one for us all!

Cookielicious

My kitchen smells like freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. And its 10 degrees outside.  And the laundry is hanging on the line. And all is right with the world. Except for the big pile of receipts waiting to be filed for income tax. But I'm pretending its not there right now. And focusing on the cookies instead. This is a great cookie recipe, just one bowl and it makes 24 good size cookies.

2/3 c margarine or butter

1/2 c brown sugar (packed)

1/2 c granulated sugar

1 egg

1 t vanilla

1 1/2 c flour

1/2 t baking soda

1/2 t salt

1 pkg chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cream butter and sugars. Beat in egg and vanilla. Add flour, baking soda and salt to same bowl and mix these dry ingredients together lightly before stirring into the creamed mixture. Add chocolate chips. Drop rounded spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 10 to 12 minutes. Yum.

Busy with wholesale

I've been busy with wholesale orders this past month, and will be right into the spring, which is lovely as its one of the reasons I was able to leave my regular job, but between that and the Farmer's Market, its difficult to stock my etsy shop.  For fellow crafters who live in the Maritime provinces, consider applying to the Atlantic Craft Trade Show  for February 2010. This year's show was great, very well run, and we received lots of orders. On top of that, we met fellow crafters and learned tons from the seminars ACTS ran for the artisans. I'll stop gushing now, but it really was fantastic, and can help you take your business to the next level.

After a couple of weeks of not listing anything new in my etsy shop, I'm finally able to get a few things photographed. Should have them listed by the weekend.

Handmade Markeplace

 

I just finished reading this great new book by Kari Chapin, How to Sell Your Crafts Locally, Globally and Online. Its illustrated by Emily Martin of Black Apple etsy fame. I wish  this resource had been around a few years ago- its absolutely packed with tips and knowledge an indie crafter needs to be successful, and covers everything from marketing basics, social media, craft fairs (even a packing list!), to blogging, selling in brick and mortar stores, and basic business practices. Its an easy read, with wisdom and real life advice straight from other crafters. This is the kind of knowledge it takes years to accumulate if you're trying to do it on your own. Whether you're brand new at selling your work, or a seasoned crafter, you'll find this book invaluable.