lillyella: August 2009

Monday, August 31, 2009

Spotlight: Betsy Ryland

Since I know most of you, like me, agree that you can never have enough jewelry, I'm excited to introduce you to a new artist today, Betsy Ryland! Her shop has only been open a few months but she's really starting to build up her product line and I just love her unique work. Managing her studio and three amazing children keeps Betsy busy but she has a passion for all of it that keeps her going.

Read on to learn more about how she got started, what she listens to while working and the time she drowned a beetle. You can also enter to win a pair of earrings from her shop!

Where are you from - originally and currently live?
I was born and raised in Greenville, SC then left the nest to go to art school. I was married shortly after graduation and moved to St. Thomas U.S.V.I. After 2 1/2 years there, we settled in Richmond, VA, where we live now with our three amazing children.

How long have you been selling on Etsy?
My shop has been open for nine months, but I have had an Etsy account since 2007.

Do you sell on Etsy full time or do you have a day job?
Etsy is my only "paying" job. Otherwise I am busy raising my children, managing the house and trying to keep on top of it all...

What, if any, formal training have you had in your craft?
I have a BFA in crafts (with a metal emphasis) from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia.

What made you decide to open up shop on Etsy?
I was talking with a friend about building a website to sell my jewelry. When things started to get complicated, he suggested Etsy. Everything I wanted to do was already done for me. All I needed to do to get started, was provide the content. I have always been good at creating the art... selling/marketing was another story. Etsy is the perfect venue for both and I am thrilled to be a part of it.

What do you like least about your craft?
Polishing/finishing a piece. By that time all decisions have been made, and it turns into work...

Five favorite Etsy shops
keelyart
leahgiberson
valhallabrooklyn
groundwork
sugarsusan

Five things you love
non-fiction, Eames Design, warm weather, a good haircut, my children's laughs

Where is the coolest place you have ever been?
Once when we were living in St. Thomas we rented a boat with some friends and headed down island. We stopped at many beautiful places to swim and snorkel. We kept motoring south and reached Norman Island (southwest of Tortola B.V.I.) and right there in the middle of the cove was a old pirate ship looking boat turned bar/restaurant. We pulled our boat along side it and went aboard. The rest of the day was spent drinking and eating and jumping off the boat into crystal clear water. It was an amazing day and one of the coolest places I've ever been.

What is your favorite leisure time activity?
Some of the things I enjoy when I have time for myself are reading, gardening, sitting and talking with a friend (without being interrupted...), running, or perusing my favorite shops for inspiration.

What is the strangest thing that has ever happened to you?
Not so sure it is THE strangest, but I once had a beetle crawl into my ear while I was sleeping. It was the craziest, painful sensation- little prickly beetle legs scratching my eardrum. I ran down the stairs flailing and screaming (not making much sense) to an unsuspecting husband who had no idea what was wrong with me. Thankfully we have a close friend who is an ER Dr. who happened to be home when we called. He told us to shine a light in my ear to draw it out. The beetle came up, looked around, and then went right back in. Next suggestion was to drown him with ear drops. This worked and relief was immediate. Somehow we fished it out and got a good look at him. Needless to say, this type of beetle is now affectionately known as "the ear beetle".

If you could trade places with any other person for a week, with whom would it be?
Any one of my children. I would love to get a glimpse of what they are experiencing. I think that knowledge would be invaluable when plotting my course as a parent.

Share some of your favorite music
Lloyd Cole, Morrissey, Elvis Costello, Lykke Li, KT Tunstall, many more...

What makes you angry?
Health Care in America

What does the future hold for you and your shop?
I am shooting for growth. Personally and professionally I want to push myself to take it all to a higher level. I would like to expand my materials to include different metals and stones, improve my photography skills, beef up marketing and make a lot of cool jewelry that people really want to wear. I would love for my Etsy shop to be a thriving, lucrative business that provides me with the dollars and energy every artist needs.

You can also keep up with Betsy's work by following her on Twitter.

GIVEAWAY TIME!

Betsy is offering one lucky winner their choice of any pair of earrings from her shop!

HERE'S HOW TO ENTER:
Please leave a comment on this post telling us what your favorite item is from Betsy's shop along with what type of jewelry you wear most or what jewelry trends you'll be looking for this fall.

You can enter once per day and YOU MUST INCLUDE your first name -AND- etsy username or email address with every entry. If you are worried about email spam, you can spell out the 'at' and 'dot' rather than using the standard email format.

Receive additional entries if you follow or subscribe to my blog, twitter about the giveaway and/or blog about the giveaway. Just leave a comment/link letting me know! You only need to mention each one time and do not need to leave separate comments.

You have until Sunday, September 6 at 10 pm (est) to enter and I will announce the winner on Monday morning. Good luck!

Betsy is also offering a special discount to Lillyella readers, take 20% off all orders through September 15 when you mention 'lillyella' in the message box at checkout!

Thanks so much for stopping by, I hope you have enjoyed learning about Betsy and her work!

Enhabiten Giveaway Winner!

A big thanks to Liane for being in the Spotlight last week and to all of you who stopped by to check out her interview and enter the giveaway!

Before I announce the winner, Liane is generously offering 10% OFF all orders in her shop when you mention 'lillyella' in the message box at checkout. I know I'll be jumping on that myself, I love the new 50s barkcloth pillows shown above!

Now onto the giveaway winner…

Congratulations to SYDNEY S! She adores the 'love' hemp pillow shown above and had the clever suggestion of a set of pillows with the words 'truth' and 'dare' - so perfect.

You can keep an eye on Liane's shop to see what new ideas of yours she stitches up and follow her on twitter for all the updates!

Another awesome new Spotlight starts this afternoon — see you then!

Couture de Jour

Jeweled Mock Neck Top Charlotte Russe $12.99

Black Onyx Arc Earrings kusu $28

Tie Dyed Platform Shoes DSW $39.95

High Waist Button Tab Pant JC Penny $19.99

Today's ensemble was created by Sydney S., who is a fabulous supporter of the Etsy community (and one of my favorite stylists)!

Click here to submit an outfit of your own for Couture de Jour!

Friday, August 28, 2009

Awesome Art of Etsy

To Be by f2 images

I've always loved great art, and more so, decorating my walls with it. But I just realized a few weeks back that I've barely hung anything on the walls of my home since we moved in nearly seven years ago. Is that pathetic or what?! I have of course some pieces up, in a few of the (closer to) finished rooms, but most of my house has been (and still is) a work in progress since day one. Yeah, we move slow. Anyways, this realization really got under my skin so I've been on an art kick ever since. I still haven't hung any of my new pieces, but I got 'em, so I'm one step closer! The print To Be (shown above) by f2 images is just one of the pieces anxiously awaiting a new home on one of my walls.

I decided to devote a new blog series to all the Awesome Art of Etsy, and this is installment one! I'm kicking it off with many of my favorites which you may be familiar with, but there is so much amazing art to discover on Etsy, I hope to introduce you to many new shops along the way. So sit back, enjoy and look for some empty wall space!

F2 IMAGES

Gangly

Magnolia

In addition to the To Be print shown at the top of this post, I also have Lost, both of which are amazing. The other prints shown above are just two of Emi's pieces I'd like to own in the future. Visit f2 images.

SHARON MONTROSE

Porcupine

I do not own any of Sharon's work (yet), but I think we can all agree it is amazing. I'm trying to make some space for a 'barn yard trilogy'! I've always had a thing for goats. Visit Sharon Montrose.

AMBER ALEXANDER

Coal

Burp

Blueberries

Most of you have probably seen Amber's work on my blog before. Coal, shown above, is one of my all time favorite pieces and is 100 times more amazing in person. I think many of her pieces would be darling in a childs room. Visit Amber Alexander.

THE BLACK APPLE

Marianne and Marshmallow / Terrarium

Escape from the Black Forest

I have to thank Rachel of Get Ready Set GO for turning me onto The Black Apple. After seeing a couple pieces on Rachel's walls, I knew I needed some for myself. The two prints shown above, Marianne and Marshmallow and Terrarium and now part of my collection and I absolutely love them! Visit The Black Apple.

STEPHANIE CORFEE

Grow

Create

Stephanie's shop is fairly new to me, I discovered it recently while browsing my blog list, and I just love her whimsical illustrations. Visit Stephanie Corfee.

INSPIRATION BOARD

Fine Lace

Cheery Blossoms

Not long ago, I introduced you to the new shop from Amy of the b-line, Inspiration Board. I'm in love with so many of her whimsical photographs but when I saw Fine Lace (shown above), I just new it had to be part of my collection. Another favorite is Cheery Blossoms, also shown above. Visit Inspiration Board.

THE MINCING MOCKINGBIRD

Listen, If we could be serious for a moment…

It is folly to assume my awesome lies dormant

I had to end with this long time favorite of mine. I'm almost embarrassed to say that I do not yet own a Mincing Mockingbird piece, but it's only because I can't decide which ones I want! Even if you are not a bird person, it's worth your time to browse this shop for the titles alone. Visit The Mincing Mockingbird.

I hope you've enjoyed this first installment of the Awesome Art of Etsy! I'll have lots more amazing art for you soon. If you have a favorite artist you'd like to share or see featured, leave it in the comments below or email blog@lillyella.com.

Fresh Faces: Le minuit

Couture de Jour

Blue Jay Jacket Mod Cloth $59

Vintage Lucite Earrings puffluna $14

Charlotte Flats Payless $24.99

Scoop Neck Sweater (cream combo) Old Navy $15

I tried those shoes on yesterday and they are darling! Comfy, too. And if those earrings don't sell today, I'll have to snatch them up myself!

Click here to submit an outfit of your own for Couture de Jour!

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Crafting the Candy Bar

Candy Shop Dessert Table by Amy Atlas

Nope, that amazing creation above isn't mine. I can only strive to create something so perfectly wonderous as an Amy Atlas dessert table. But, I aim high and I hate to disappoint, so Candy Bar perfection is my goal. As I previously mentioned, I decided to go with a big buffet of candy at my wedding for guests to make up their own favor bags, and I'm having so much fun putting it together! Not being so hip on the wedding scene, I had no idea this was such a popular trend these days when I thought about doing it, but that just meant there is a lot of great inspiration and tons of resources out there. Here's a small glimpse at the prep work for my candy bar and the results of last weeks Candy Poll!

Since my wedding will be on the more casual side and we are using old bottles and jars for the table displays, I wanted the candy table to have the same feel to it. There is, of course, no better place to start than with old fashion penny candy jars! You can find really fabulous old ones at antique stores, though they will cost you more than a pretty penny, but I found these in two sizes at Target for right around $5 each.

I had thought about using just the penny candy jars, all one size, two neat rows, but decided to go with variety instead! I already had the two square crackers jars shown left above, though you can also get those at Target and I saw some at Hobby Lobby, too for right around $4 each. The two containers on the right are actually candle holders. Hurricanes and other similar containers work great for this purpose. I found those two at my local Flower Factory for less about $3 each!

The most important thing to keep in mind is how the candy will fit in your containers and how easy it will be to get it out. Some containers may look great but are not very functional. I wanted to avoid anything very tall (too hard to scoop at the bottom!) or with a small opening.

Since I like things a little eclectic, I wanted to add a few different pieces to the mix and I think they will really add a nice touch. I had the white plate which I previously picked up at the Flower Factory for only $1.50 (I'm going to get another one) and I found the small footed dish at TJ Maxx for $7, which is a great place to find all sort of containers. I noticed they especially had a lot of fancier styles, such as apothecary jars, which are beautiful if you are going for a classier look.

Now, I think one of the most important elements to a nicely arranged table is height – having some! You can do this by finding (or making) things to use as risers such as pillars, crates, boxes, cake stands etc. I found this awesome set of four nested cedar crates at Flower Factory for $17 and they are just the look I was going for.

The unfinished wood section of your local craft store is another great place to look. You can find a variety of different sized crates, boxes and shelves that you can stain, paint or finish any way you like. You can also hide your risers under the tablecloth and drape fabric around.

To add just a little more height and variety, I picked up one taller lidded candy jar (also at Flower Factory) for $2.50 and found the awesome photo holder at Hobby Lobby to use for a sign on the table. I really wish they had more than one because I would use them on the cake table, too.

I don't really have the room anywhere to set up the full layout for you (other than across my carpeted floor which looks ugly), so you'll just have to wait until after the wedding to see the finished display :)

Now onto the good part – the candy! You can do two things, either pick your candies based on size and color for overall aesthetics such as the examples shown above, or you can pick candy based on what you think your guests would enjoy eating (or what you would enjoy eating leftovers of!) There are more examples of both further down the post.

I read that averaging about 1/2 pound of candy per guest is good for quantity but that also depends on the favor containers you are using. The little bags I found happen to be 1/2 pound bags so that works for me! I decided on ten different varieties, 5 pounds or so of each and am having about 80 guests. I picked ten varieties because that number of containers worked well on the table and broke up the amount of candy needed nicely but I am going to add in smaller amounts of a few extras that I will set out on the plates and little footed dish I found.

I decided to mainly go with candies I love but did keep color in mind a bit. I was really having a hard time figuring out what a crowd of such varied age would enjoy and the candy poll I posted here last week was really helpful!

I had lots of favorites and ideas in mind so I narrowed it down to 18 different candies and asked everyone to pick their ten favorites. After 150 votes, here are the results:

I never would have guessed caramel squares to be the crowd favorite, though they are yummy. Chocolate covered nuts came in a close second followed by lemonheads, salt water taffy and butter mints (all surprising!) and of course, malt balls – a personal favorite of mine.

Funny enough, my other two favorites came in last, though I'm not all that surprised. Black licorice and Mary Janes, but because it is my wedding after all, I'm going to use them anyways!

Here are the candies I decided to go with: Malt balls, chocolate covered nuts (or bridge mix), caramel squares, chocolate covered raisins (didn't rate too high on the vote but they are mom's favorite!), lemon fruit slices (love lemon AND picked them for color), mix of pink and white gummi grapefruits (again love these and love the color), butter mints (they come in a variety of colors, too, so yellow it is!), mix of red and black licorice wheels, a little plate of mary janes, salt water taffy (while I would love one solid color, I'd rather have a mix of flavors), cow tales (I'll be putting these in the tall candy jar I found), butter rum life savers (one of the only two candies Tyler cares about), cinnamons bears (the second), and last but not least – rock candy! Because it's just so gosh darn pretty :)

Overall, the color palette is not exactly perfect but because the rest of my decorations will be fairly eclectic, I think I can make it work. But most importantly, we have candies that I believe everyone will love!

I am lucky enough to have a huge bulk candy store nearby, B.A. Sweetie Candy Company. I've already, on two occasions, spent hours wandering up and down the aisles. I am able to find most of what I am looking for here but will be ordering a couple items online. In the store, 2lb and 5lb bulk bags are standard, while online it seems 5lb bags are most common. The prices are very similar in the store and online but due to the weight and sometimes heat concerns, be prepared to pay hefty shipping costs when ordering online.

Here are a few good websites I found for ordering bulk candy. You can search by color, flavor, size, theme etc!
www.acandystore.com
www.candywarehouse.com
www.candyfavorites.com
www.bulkcandystore.com
www.groovycandies.com

And here is a great resource for candy scoops and tongs (watch out for annoying voice-over):

www.scoops-scoops.com

Im going to get two sizes of metal scoops for most of the candies and small tongs for the gummis and licorice.

Now back to some inspiration! This table I found has a very similar look to what I'll be doing with the wooden rises and casual feel. I really love the subtle color palette. One benefit to ordering your candy online is there seems to be more color choices. You can even get malt balls in different colors!

This is one heck of a buffet! I think I even see some cookies in there. Chocolate covered pretzels are another great option, as well as flavored popcorns or salty treats like potato chips to balance out the sugar!

Here is another beautiful creation by Amy Atlas. This is more of a table of goodies to eat while at the event, rather than to package up and take home as a favor, but it is still a great example to reference.

Here is another example where all the candies fall into a certain palette, and it's quite beautiful. You can see how layering different colors of the same candies look pretty and how using a dish of small candies to hold things such as rock candy or lollipops works nicely.

One more dessert table by Amy Atlas. I love how she creates decorations that coordinate with the desserts. Those are lollipops on the 'trees'!

Here you can see how having a variety of color can still look awesome and cohesive if you arrange the table nicely.

Another important thing to consider when choosing your candies is the favor bag or box you want to use. This post was too long to share some good options but I'll do another post about that soon! I love how the bags shown above are customized for the event and notice how they included round stickers for closing the bags, definitely something you need to consider. I think I'm going to fold the tops of my bag overs and use little oval paper clips I found on clearance at the craft store. They have little charms that dangle down with words like love and joy etc. I'll share some pics but I think they will be perfect!

The last thing I need to do is decide if I'm going to label each jar with the type of candy or just include a list on a sign. So much to think about! Ultimately, I could make myself crazy thinking about all the possibilities, compulsively matching all the candies, searching the globe for the perfect containers, but really, all I want to do is eat the candy.