on the move...

As you might have guessed by my complete lack of posting in the last two months, it's been a crazy summer. Just having the kids home throws me all out of whack. On top of that I've been struggling with a bad flare up of my arthritis for the last month or so. Unfortunately this particular flare is in the fingers of my right hand, which is my sewing hand. So it's all I can do to keep working on orders most days. But I trudge on with a smile...

In the meantime, during a routine visit to see family in Ohio over the fourth of July, the kids suddenly ALL agreed to the move I've been dying to make for probably 15 years! For about three weeks I was on the hunt for a house, quickly getting discouraged because I wasn't finding anything in the area I needed... BUT as luck would have it, I just so happened to find a place on another trip a couple weeks ago! The house I found is pretty cool. It's an older house but it's HUGE compared to where we are now, all the kids will have their own rooms AND a basement to play in and we'll be just seven blocks from my sister! I can't wait to start fixing it up and making it "mine".

In THIRTEEN DAYS my boys, the dogs, the cat and I are moving to Ohio!

Those of you looking to place an order or with currently pending orders, have no fear, I will be connected at all times! I'll be keeping my supplies close at hand so there shouldn't be more than a day or two on either end of the trip where I'm not sewing. I have complete access to email, Etsy and FB through my phone so if anyone has any questions about orders or anything else I should be able to get back to you fairly quickly. :)


In other news... there have been a couple new Lens Pet designs added to the shop in the last few weeks, an updated large giraffe and a standard alligator!

The summer is coming to a close, the holidays will be here before we know it! I've already received my first holiday order so if you're planning on sock monsters or Lens Pets as gifts this year, I highly recommend getting your order in very early. I can only sew as quickly as my fingers can move which limits what I can do in a day. Ordering in the next month or two will assure that you have your gifts in hand in plenty of time. :)


Well I'm off to do more packing and sewing... have a great weekend everyone!

Anniversary Week - WINNERS!!

More than 200 entries later and it's finally here!! What you've all been waiting for! The big announcement! Six chances to win... and EIGHT WINNERS! I won't keep you from reading on and finding out if you're one of the lucky ones. :)

• Contest 1: refer your friends (Monday, May 23) - WINNER: Wendy Byrd

Congratulations Wendy, your referred the most new "likers"! Your prize is one standard size Lens Pet {$15 retail value}. The standard size pets fit well on most 50mm lenses and other lenses similar in size.  

• Contest 2: suggest a new Lens Pet idea (Tuesday, May 24) - WINNER: Sarah

Congratulations Sarah!! There were so many great suggestions and it was hard for me to pick just one (I may use some more of everyones ideas in the future) but my sketch for the ALLIGATOR you suggested looks like it  will make a fun addition to the Lens Pet family. Your prize is one alligator Lens Pet in the size of your choice - mini, standard or large {$12-$22 retail value}

• Contest 3: take a picture (Wednesday, May 25) - WINNER: Courtney

Congratulations Courtney! I loved your photo of George with his elephant friend! :) Your prize is a $20 store credit good for anything in my shop! {$20 retail value}

• Contest 4: trivia (Thursday, May 26) - WINNER: Nichole Anderson

Congratulations Nichole! Your managed to find the most correct answers in my trivia game, a total of 18 out of 25! Your prize is a $35 store credit good for anything in my shop! {$35 retail value}

• Contest 5: the name game (Friday, May 27) - WINNER: it's complicated...

So the object of this contest was to come up with a name for a new product line I'll be releasing this year. Unfortunately, of the many names suggested, none of them were quite right. BUT I was so inspired by your ideas that I finally thought of one of my own!! So instead of one winner getting the prize (which was to be 3 of this new product before its official release in my shop) I have chosen the top 3 people, whose suggestions inspired the name I eventually chose!! Each of these people will receive 1 new "PIP SQUEEK" before they are available for purchase on Etsy! Those 3 winners are: 

--Robyn (who suggested pocket pets)
--Arlyn (who suggested squeaker pets)
--Girlgonechild (who suggested peppy pets)

***GRAND PRIZE WINNER --- kjurasevich***

Congratulations Katy!! You've won the big prize, a collection of Lens Pets from my shop worth $100!!

TO ALL OF THE WINNERS: if I had contact info for you, I have contacted you! If you haven't heard from me yet, please send me an email  at mandeefranee@hotmail.com for instructions on how to claim your prize!

I want to thank every single person who played along with me this past week. I would not be where I am today without all of the wonderful customers I've had over the last year. I am beyond grateful. :) 

and here's to another awesome year!!!

Anniversary Week - Contest 5

Welcome to the 5th and final contest of the week! I hope every has had fun playing games this week. Don't forget ALL of the contests are open until Sunday at midnight so you have until then to get your referrals/answers/suggestions/photos in! :) Now, on to today's contest! What's in a name you ask?? Well, pretty much everything!

Today you're going to get a sneak peek at one of the new products that I will be debuting in the next few months! I have the idea, the designs, the supplies... the only thing I'm still lacking is THE NAME {obviously a pretty important part of the deal}! And that's where you come in! I have thought and brainstormed and made lists and crumpled them up. I cannot come up with a name that I think "fits" this little guy and his soon to be friends. Here is a picture of the first prototype {who shall be referred to from here forward as "the new guy"}:

Let me tell you a little bit about "the new guy" and his buddies. This line will have a variety of critters and creatures, the designs of which will of course be similar in style to my Lens Pet designs. They'll be made from fleece, fabric and felt, hand and machine sewn. Each is a perfect fit in the palm of your hand and has a squeaker inside. Making it the perfect little addition to any photographer or mommy's bag. :)  {button eyes can be replaced with felt to make "the new guy" more baby/pet friendly upon request}

Now, for the naming part of the game. I would like something that goes well with or is similar to 'Lens Pets'. But I'm not completely set on that. If someone comes up with a great name that is in no way related to 'Lens Pets' then that rule goes right out the window. Which makes the rules pretty simple and straight forward... come up with an awesome name, and post it here in the comments section! :)

THE RULES:

1. You're welcome to submit as many names as you can come up with, but one name suggestion per post please.

THE DEADLINE: This contest will be open all weekend to give everyone ample time to get all their entries in. :) On Sunday May 29 at midnight this post will be locked.

Winner will be announced in a blog post on Tuesday May 31.

THE PRIZE: THREE different "new guys" in advance of their release in my shop! {$45 retail value}
*prize will be new, not this prototype


As always, feel free to email me if you have any questions - mandeefranee@hotmail.com

and don't forget your chance at getting some bonus entries for that big grand prize...

BONUS:
In addition to the daily games and contests there are a couple bonuses that can get you a little closer to winning that big grand prize at the end.

• Each sale from 12:01 am on May 23rd until 11:59 pm on May 29th will earn bonus entries into the drawing for the grand prize. Every Lens Pet or sock monster purchased gets you TEN extra entries. Order two Lens Pets, you'll get twenty entries, three gets thirty... and so on. 
• Each person YOU refer that places an order gets you another 5 entries towards the big prize (plus of course, they earn entries for ordering)! Make sure your friends add your name in the notes section when they place their order so I know to give you credit.

Thank you so much for playing along all week! :) See you on Tuesday with the list of lucky winners!!!

Anniversary Week - Contest 4

Welcome to day four! :) Today the contest is more of a trivia/scavenger hunt type game! So I hope lots of you will participate. Some of the answers may be a bit harder to find than others, but they're all there if you're willing to do a little digging. You can find the answers you need in the following places:

• Blogger
• Facebook
   
• Flickr
   
• Twitter
  http://www.facebook.com/MandeeFraneeDesigns

THE QUESTIONS:

1. On what date did I list my very first Lens Pet on Etsy?

2. On what date did I share pictures from my first craft show?

3. What did I say in my very first status update on FB?

4. Name 3 of the weekly features I've run here on my blog in the past year

5. What are the names of all of the holiday Lens Pet collections I released in 2010?

6. How many sizes of Lens Pets do I offer? Sock monsters?

7. What is my best selling Lens Pet design?

8. What is my favorite number?

9. When did I host my very first giveaway?

10. What are the names of the bees in the OddSox fairytale that I wrote?

11.What was the title of my very first blog post?

12. Approximately how many Lens Pet orders did I receive in my first week on Etsy?

13.How many tattoos do I have?

14. Name something I am afraid of

15. What is my middle name?

16. How many photo albums do I have total between FB and Flickr?

17. Name one of my favorite Etsy shops

18. How many different Lens Pet designs have I created (NOT counting different colors of a single design)?

19. How many different sock monsters have I made (NOT counting multiples of the same animal)?

20. What did I do for work before opening my Etsy shop?

21. What crafts did I love to do when I was a little girl?

22. How many kids do I have?

23. How many pets do I have?

24. I won a contest in May of 2010, who sponsored that contest and what was my 'title' as the grand prize winner?

25.What do I want to be when I grow up?

THE RULES:

1. One entry per person for this game.
   
2. You must EMAIL me your list of answers. DO NOT post them here or others won't have to work as hard to find them! ;)
   
3. Send your list of answers to me at mandeefranee@hotmail.com with "day 4 trivia" as the subject
4. The person with the most correct answers will win the contest.
5. If there is a tie between two or more people, a random number generator will be used to choose a winner.
   

THE DEADLINE: This contest will be open throughout the weekend to give everyone ample time to get all their entries in. :) On Sunday May 29 at midnight this post will be locked.

Winner will be announced in a blog post on Tuesday May 31.

THE PRIZE: $35 credit towards the purchase of anything in my shop.


As always, feel free to email me if you have any questions - mandeefranee@hotmail.com

SPECIAL ONE DAY BONUS!!

Because today is the official one year anniversary of my very first Lens Pet sold on Etsy, for one day only I am offering 15% off every order placed from now until midnight tonight!! Just use code ONEYEAR15 when you check out. And don't forget, not only will you save $$ on your purchase but you'll also earn the bonus entries for your chance to win the GRAND PRIZE!! :) So if you were thinking about it, now's the time!!

BONUS:
In addition to the daily games and contests there are a couple bonuses that can get you a little closer to winning that big grand prize at the end.

• Each sale from 12:01 am on May 23rd until 11:59 pm on May 29th will earn bonus entries into the drawing for the grand prize. Every Lens Pet or sock monster purchased gets you TEN extra entries. Order two Lens Pets, you'll get twenty entries, three gets thirty... and so on. 
• Each person YOU refer that places an order gets you another 5 entries towards the big prize (plus of course, they earn entries for ordering)! Make sure your friends add your name in the notes section when they place their order so I know to give you credit.

Have fun!

Anniversary Week - Contest 3

Welcome back for another day of fun!! :) Today's contest is in part, a big thank you to every single customer I've had in the last year! 

And all you have to do to enter today's contest, is take a picture! :) 

1400+ orders, that's a lot of Lens Pets™ and sock monsters sold in the last year. So to get an entry into today's contest you need to take a picture of the Lens Pet™ or sock monster that each of you has purchased from me in the last year. ;) The more creative the better! Maybe you'll take your sock monster to a professional sporting event and get one of the players to hold it for a photo... or maybe you'll get the guy at the corner store to wear your Lens Pet™ on his hand while you snap the pic. {of course it's not required that you go anywhere, the picture could be taken in your own home} Whatever it is, just get creative... get crazy!! ;) I want to see where all of my creations have gone off to live!

example photo {taken from my FB page} by Ashley Swallow of Live Laugh PHOTOGRAPH

THE RULES:

1. One photo per Lens Pet™/sock monster. If you own 5 Lens Pets™ and 5 sock monsters, that means you can get a total of 10 entries. 
2. Post your photos to Flickr, PhotoBucket or another photo sharing website
3. Then come back here to my blog  and leave a comment with a link to your photo, otherwise I won't know it's been posted and you can't get credit! <---This step is critical! You can't get credit if you don't share your link!

THE DEADLINE: This contest will be open all week to give everyone ample time to get all their entries in. :) On Sunday May 29 at midnight this post will be locked.

Winner will be announced in a blog post on Tuesday May 31.

THE PRIZE: $20 credit towards the purchase of anything in my shop.


As always, feel free to email me if you have any questions - mandeefranee@hotmail.com

and don't forget your chance at getting some bonus entries for that big grand prize...

BONUS:
In addition to the daily games and contests there are a couple bonuses that can get you a little closer to winning that big grand prize at the end.

• Each sale from 12:01 am on May 23rd until 11:59 pm on May 29th will earn bonus entries into the drawing for the grand prize. Every Lens Pet or sock monster purchased gets you TEN extra entries. Order two Lens Pets, you'll get twenty entries, three gets thirty... and so on. 
• Each person YOU refer that places an order gets you another 5 entries towards the big prize (plus of course, they earn entries for ordering)! Make sure your friends add your name in the notes section when they place their order so I know to give you credit.

 Two days down, three to go! See you right back here again tomorrow!!

Anniversary Week - Contest 2

Welcome to Celebration Day #2!! Today's contest will be decided based solely on your creativity! ;) As many of you may know, I currently offer nearly 80 different Lens Pet™ designs and with a list waiting in the wings, there are many more to come! But some of my favorite designs have come right from the customers and the special requests they've made. So today, I challenge you to come up with a new idea!! The rules are as follows:

THE RULES:

1. You post your suggestion for a new Lens Pet™ design in the comments section here on my blog.
2. You may enter as many times as you'd like, but each suggestion should be a DIFFERENT idea and in a separate comment. (they need to be separate so they can be counted as individual entries for the big contest at the end of the week)
3. Check **here** for the designs I currently offer so you're not wasting your time suggesting something I've already done. ;)
4. I will select the winner based entirely on what I like best and what I think will be translated well into Lens Pet™ form.

*additional info:

please keep in mind, I am unable to use copyrighted images. unfortunately that means no Disney, Sesame Street, Nickelodeon or other popular kids characters. I can however create Lens Pets™ based on your own business logos or drawings that you've made yourself. :)

THE DEADLINE: You will have until Sunday May 29 to enter this contest. At midnight I will lock this thread so make sure to get all your ideas in before then!! 

Winner will be announced in a blog post on Tuesday May 31. 

THE PRIZE: one Lens Pet™ made using the winner's suggestion (winner may choose from mini, standard or large size so the prize will fit his/her camera)! {retail value $12 - $22}

Winner will be announced in a blog post on Tuesday May 31. 

Stay tuned for more fun and games every day this week!! :)

and don't forget the bonus entries...

BONUS:
In addition to the daily games and contests there are a couple bonuses that can get you a little closer to winning that big grand prize at the end.

• Each sale from 12:01 am on May 23rd until 11:59 pm on May 29th will earn bonus entries into the drawing for the grand prize. Every Lens Pet or sock monster purchased gets you TEN extra entries. Order two Lens Pets, you'll get twenty entries, three gets thirty... and so on. 
• Each person YOU refer that places an order gets you another 5 entries towards the big prize (plus of course, they earn entries for ordering)! Make sure your friends add your name in the notes section when they place their order so I know to give you credit.

Anniversary Week - Contest 1

It's time to celebrate! Today is your first of SIX chances to win big with MandeeFranee Designs this week! :) And our first contest is a snap! All you have to do to be entered is this:

• invite your friends and anyone you think might be interested in my products over to 'LIKE' MandeeFranee Designs on Facebook. 

After being invited, new fans will need to complete this simple task: 

• once they click that 'LIKE' button on my FB page they'll need to come back here to my blog and leave a comment letting me know who invited them. 

Easy peasy! :)

Because of strict FB contest rules, no one is required to post on my wall (though of course everyone is  welcome to say hi). To get your entry for each new fan, you should direct them to post HERE on my blog after they 'like' the page. That way you are sure to get credit for each person you invite. 

**PLEASE NOTE** If your friends don't post here on my blog with your name, the entry will not  be counted.

BONUS ENTRIES:

To earn up to three extra entries for this contest you can share a link to this blog post with friends in these additional ways:

• Twitter (be sure to tag me @MandeeFranee in your post so I can see it)
• Tumblr
• Your Blog

Just make sure to leave a comment here with a link to wherever you posted about MandeeFranee Designs Anniversary Celebration!

THE PRIZE: Of course I'm sure what everyone is really interested in is the prize! ;) The winner of this contest will receive one standard Lens Pet {$15 retail value}!

 *design and color of prize may vary

THE DEADLINE: This contest will be open all week to give everyone ample time to get as many entries as possible. :) On Sunday May 29 at midnight this post will be locked.

Winner will be announced in a blog post on Tuesday May 31.

Feel free to email me if you have any questions - mandeefranee@hotmail.com

and don't forget the bonus entries...

BONUS:
In addition to the daily games and contests there are a couple bonuses that can get you a little closer to winning that big grand prize at the end.

• Each sale from 12:01 am on May 23rd until 11:59 pm on May 29th will earn bonus entries into the drawing for the grand prize. Every Lens Pet or sock monster purchased gets you TEN extra entries. Order two Lens Pets, you'll get twenty entries, three gets thirty... and so on. 
• Each person YOU refer that places an order gets you another 5 entries towards the big prize (plus of course, they earn entries for ordering)! Make sure your friends add your name in the notes section when they place their order so I know to give you credit.

ANNIVERSARY WEEK CELEBRATION!!

May 26th, 2011 marks the one year anniversary of my very first sale on Etsy!! It's been a crazy, amazing, BUSY year!! To celebrate I'm going to be running a handful of different games/contests/giveaways all week, starting on Monday May 23rd! :) I hope you'll all play along!!

Each day I'll post on my blog with instructions on how you can enter each contest. Each day there will be prizes offered, all leading up to one BIG prize at the end of the week! :) Play each day and earn an entry into the drawing for that day's prize... enter every day for more chances at winning the big prize! And what is that big prize you ask???? Well I'll tell you! :)


The GRAND PRIZE winner will receive a collection of Lens Pets from my shop worth $100!! What photographer wouldn't love to have their very own army of Lens Pets to get those smiles flowing?!
*Sizes; colors; designs will vary, but the prize will equal $100 retail.


BONUS:
In addition to the daily games and contests there are a couple bonuses that can get you a little closer to winning that big grand prize at the end.

• Each sale from 12:01 am on May 23rd until 11:59 pm on May 29th will earn bonus entries into the drawing for the grand prize. Every Lens Pet or sock monster purchased gets you TEN extra entries. Order two Lens Pets, you'll get twenty entries, three gets thirty... and so on. 
• Each person YOU refer that places an order gets you another 5 entries towards the big prize (plus of course, they earn entries for ordering)! Make sure your friends add your name in the notes section when they place their order so I know to give you credit.

Stay tuned and get in on the fun!!



*Daily prizes will be announced each morning when I post the game for that day.

Something old, something new!

I've been working even harder than usual to get orders completed and shipped with the HOPE that I could catch up and stock my shop with ready to ship items instead of everything having to be custom made and with such a long wait. After weeks of literally, non-stop sewing, I can see the finish line!! I'm back IN FRONT of my wait time and chuggin' right along. I have a list of games and contests planned for the week after next to celebrate the one year anniversary of my first Lens Pet™ sold on Etsy. :) There are new things to come in the second half of this year and a glimpse of them can be found in the new Lens Pets™ introduced lately...

Persnickety the Parakeet is one of the new characters who recently joined the cast. I sketched and cut out the pieces for him months ago but just didn't have the time to put him together until recently.

Something old was updated and turned into something new. In my opinion, the updated version is a million times better. I had a standard size tiger in the shop awhile ago but decided I wasn't entirely thrilled with it so when I received an order for a large tiger I decided to give him a little facelift.

OLD (standard size)

NEW (large size)

I don't have the same orange scrunchie for the standard size, but I do have another shade of orange that will work and I will be adding a standard tiger with the new look back to the shop soon. :)

Two more Lens Pets™ recently received facelifts as well, the cow and the jellyfish...

and this unique ladybug joined her more recognizable friend in red and black...

In addition to these and of course the many (many, MANY) unchanged Lens Pets™ churning out of the MandeeFranee workshop these days, I've also had a few sock monster orders to complete...

a couple of brand new designs - the lion and the turtle

and another kitty cat

As you can see I've been a busy bee. :)  I'm off to take a walk with my youngest as the weather is GORGEOUS here today and I feel like I haven't been outside in a year! Stay tuned for details on the anniversary celebration and a couple of new products in the near future!!

Etsy Stalker Contest Results

Announcing the April Shadowbox Giveaway Winner!

The lucky winner of one of my Limited Edition tie dye crazy face Lens Pets™ is....

(insert drum roll here)

Natalie! Comment #46

Congratulations Natalie! I hope you will enjoy your Lens Pet™, I will be in touch to get your address today!

Monster Monday

I think this week's monsters are my most unique. :) They're much bigger than the rest of my monsters as well and I LOVE them. You can't help but grin every time you look at them! They camp out on the back of the chaise sitting next to my desk. The light pink one is an Iffiet, the dark pink one is a Trolliak.

Usually they sit there nicely, they're very well behaved monsters. :) But the sun was out today and when I walked outside with the dog I found the Iffiet and the Trolliak climbing trees in the front yard! ;) 

The very talented plush designer behind these unique monsters is Megan of  Green Elevator Industries. Megan took a few minutes out of her busy monster making day to give us a little behind the scenes info... read on!

-Tell us a bit about yourself.

Greetings! My name is Megan Barbour and I'm a plush designer originally from Ohio, now based in Brooklyn, New York. During the day I'm a project manager/producer at a media arts company, and 90% of my time outside of the office is spent getting my craft on. The other 10% is spent playing games with the wonderful cast of silly characters in my life, running, traveling, biking, and telling very bad jokes.

-What is your shop name and is there a story behind it?

My shop is named "Green Elevator." When I first moved to New York, I met my dear friend Steff who lived in my apartment building. She and I instantly bonded over how much we loved cheese and crafts. We spent most weekends crafting up a storm, and decided one night we should form a business. This idea was formed less out of the desire to make money, and more for wanting to make a million crafts and not really NEEDING all of them taking over our apartments. We decided to form our business while riding upstairs in the elevator. Steff said "We should call it something silly like... ::looks around:: Green Elevator, so we don't fuss over the name forever." Agreed. Done. Green Elevator was born. I should also note that this is a very GREEN painted elevator that we often joked about. Apparently, our landlord loves the color as it also appeared in the lobby, hallways, doors, and bathroom walls...

-How did you get started making monsters?

Another one of my craftastic friends, Kaitlin, inspired me to learn to crochet a few years ago. Once I did, she sent me a link to an article about "amigurumi" (which I had never even heard of at the time). I wanted to crochet a little mouse to cheer up my desk at work, and just never got around to stop making creatures. I crocheted basic animals at first, then more abstract creatures, then gave sewing a try with some scrap fabric, then fleece, and now fur has taken over my life.

-What inspires and motivates you to create?

I've always loved making things. At this point, I can't imagine not creating something on a daily basis, so I really don't need any motivation outside of my obsessive natural desire to do so. I draw inspiration from all things silly in my life - which tends to be quite a bit.

-If you could have one super power, what would it be and why?

Flying. That is over done and predictable but I don't care - it would be awesome.

-Top 5 favorite foods, tv shows, and bands?

Foods:

1. Chinese food. Not authentic. not fancy. cheap, greasy, delivery Chinese food.

2. cereal

3. cheese

4. fruit

5. Annie's Mac & Cheese

TV Shows

1. Glee

2. 30 Rock

3. House

4. The Gilmore Girls

5. The Daily Show/ Colbert Report

Bands

1. Tilly and the Wall

2. The New Pornographers

3. The Beatles

4. Mason Jennings

5. David Bowie

-3 etsy shops you just LOVE?

There are about a thousand shops I LOVE, so I will narrow it down to Plush and then narrow it down again to three shops that were big inspirations to me when I first started out.

1. Love and a Sandwich

2. Cutesy but not Cutesy

3. Scrumptious DelightThe

-One year from now, I hope...

1. Start doing craft shows/gallery work on a more regular basis.

2. Officially go nonprofit with Green Elevator. I'm working out some of the details now.

3. Continue to grow creatively and expand my technical skill set.

4. Integrate Green Elevator with a free teach/learn group that Steff and I formed to spread the power of craft.

-Where can we find you on the internet?

Facebook

Twitter

Blog

Etsy

Flickr

 Megan and the original Iffiet (mine is an extra special one thanks to those BIG rainbow horns)

Go check her out! Her work is phenomenal!!  And don't forget to check back next Monday for another peek at some great monsters!

CIC Saturday!

Whenever I go searching Etsy for another Crafting in Color team member, I'm always amazed at the variety and talent of them all! This week's featured member is no exception. Dyna and John are a team of two unbelievably creative people and I'm so excited to share their beautiful work with everyone! I've got a number of pieces from the shop in my favorite folder, here are just a few of them:

 

 

 

 

And without further ado, meet... Owl Creek Ceramics!

-Tell us a bit about yourself.
(Dyna) I grew up doing all sorts of arts and crafts. My mother and grandmother always had new projects going. I went to the University of Kansas for a degree in textile design and painting. Right after college I moved to California to blow glass. There are many similarities in glassblowing and pottery. You’re working with the concept of balance, constantly rotating the glass on a rod or a pot on a wheel. Also glaze is glass.

-What is your shop name and is there a story behind it?
We live on Owl Creek Road and we love the area (it’s the sticks and beautiful rolling hills) and so “Owl Creek Ceramics” was a natural.

-How did you get started painting and what is your favorite subject to paint?
(Dyna) In 2000, I was having tons of fun with friends going to the “paint your own ceramics” shops. I happened to mention to John that one day I would like to have a kiln, maybe in a year or so. Well, within a week we had our first kiln. I went to decorating and John figured out how to fire the thing. Soon we had added a potter’s wheel for John. At first everything was an experiment for both of us. We made lots of mistakes. It’s true what people say, every time you open up the kiln it’s like Christmas seeing how the pieces turned out or not.

-What is your favorite color?
We love all colors but right now we are absolutely crazy for lime green (chartreuse, kiwi). Just can’t get enough of it!

-What inspires and motivates you to create?
(Dyna) Repetitive patterns fascinate me and they are found everywhere. Fabric design, nature, advertising, industry. Many of our pieces incorporate my celebration patterns. Celebration patterns come from all over. I start with banding sections and then use the lines as a border for the doodled patterns.

-If you could have one super power, what would it be and why?
I’d like to be supersonic fast so I could rapidly finish all the tasks that keep me from painting.
John says he’d like to fly just because.

-Top 5 favorite foods, tv shows, and bands?
Fajitas, baked sweet potatoes, fish, salad, pizza
Masterpiece Theater, Blue Bloods, Swamp People, No Ordinary Family, House Hunters International
Lucinda Williams, The Subdudes, K.T. Tunstall, Rob Thomas, Five for Fighting

-3 etsy shops you just LOVE?
www.etsy.com/shop/batikwalla
www.etsy.com/shop/YeeHaw
www.etsy.com/shop/romyandclare
www.etsy.com/shop/judemcconkey
www.etsy.com/shop/ecarlateboutique

-One year from now, I hope... 

June 11, 2011 is our first day going full time Owl Creek Ceramics! We’re so excited! We’ve been job sharing for about four years. Before that we both worked full time and John traveled a lot. Now we are so ready to totally immerse in an art life. We have big plans for experimenting more with new techniques and ideas; producing and hopefully selling more; and, spending more time together and with family and friends.

Check out these fun behind the scenes pictures Owl Creek Ceramics has shared with us...

Owl Creek Ceramics set up their lovely booth at the craft fair

Dyna in front of the studio

the kitchen inside the studio

John trimming a bowl
*love the Snoopy pants! ;)

Dyna finishing pieces

I hope you enjoyed getting to know the crafty couple behind Owl Creek Ceramics! Don't forget to stop by next week to meet another talented Crafting in Color team member! :)

Friday Favorite Finds!!

I don't have much of a sweet tooth to speak of. But lately I've REALLY been craving some cupcakes. And there's nothing like dressing it up pretty for a photo shoot before you eat it! So this week's favorite finds are of the baking supply variety! :)

LOVE these!!! so colorful and stripey! 

berry striped cupcake liners by HeyYoYo

ooooo pretty Spring colors!

sherbet polka dot cupcake liners by the bakers confections

I have some heart shaped silicone baking cups and I LOVE them! the cupcakes (or muffins) pop right out, easy peasy! I've been looking for other shapes!found a few more here too.

round silicone baking cups by diy mold

these come in other colors too!

orange-yellow swirl cupcake liners by  Lulus Cupcake Boutique

mini cupcakes are the perfect little bite size snack - and I thought they couldn't get any cuter!?! but these baking cups would definitely do the trick!

mini purple with polka dots baking cups by  little monster hugs

gorgeous colors! love the big polka dots!

pink and lime bubbles cupcake liners by Cupcake Social

This only makes me want cupcakes even more! A big stack of PRETTY cupcakes! Good thing International Monster's Day is this weekend. ;) That means I can make a big ol' MONSTER CAKE and get my fix (even though I probably won't eat more than a bite or two before it gets too sweet for me).

Top Ten Tuesday!

Yay! Another Top Ten Tuesday! This week I am going to be sharing my top ten FAVORITE movies! This one is VERY hard for me because I am a HUGE fan of movies. A LOT of them. I have a substantial collection and can find entertainment in just about every movie out there, even the less than great ones. BUT I am head over heels in love with movies from the 80's and 90's. Probably because that's when I grew up, but I don't think anything can beat them! They're CLASSICS! So if you grew up around the same time frame as me, you'll probably recognize most, if not all of the movies on my list. ;) Here they are, in no particular order...

1. The Goonies - Who doesn't like this movie?!? A group of kids on a treasure hunt, being stalked by a family of crazy bad guys! This movie rocks!! Plus I totally had a huge crush on Sean Astin when this movie came out! ;) And Cyndi Lauper on the soundtrack?!? WIN! 

2. Labyrinth - SO in love with everything about this movie... Jim Henson is a GENIUS. The characters are outstanding, amazing, incredible! Ludo, the Fireys (which totally terrified me as a child), Sir Didymus and his trusty steed... I totally wanted to be Sarah. I can still recite the lines from this movie almost word for word 25 years later!! Not to mention, the Goblin King was SOO HOT! ;)

3. The Never Ending Story - oh to actually become a part of the story in a book you're reading! what kid (or even adult) hasn't dreamed of just that?!? I watched this movie over and over and over as a kid. It just has everything! Mystery and suspense and awesome characters!! THE LUCK DRAGON??! Are you kidding me, I wanted one of my own! lol Oh and course there was a crush... Atreyu. The little boy who would try to save Fantasia. I cried and cried when his horse got caught in the swamp of sadness. :( I still get a lump in my throat to this day at that part. They just don't make movies like this anymore!

4. Dirty Dancing - I bet you KNEW this would be on the list! ;) Who DOESN'T love this movie!!! I was in 7th grade when this movie came out. I had an awful perm at the time which actually sort of resembled Jennifer Grey's hair so friends at school called me 'Baby' for a while. lol The music, the dancing... "Nobody puts Baby in a corner" the LINES! This movie will NEVER go out of style! Patrick Swayze was AMAZING! And though (surprisingly) I did not have a crush on him, I did love him in this role. :)

5. The Dark Crystal - more Jim Henson. I'm a HUGE fan of absolutely everything he did. What an imagination! Though my kids don't mind some of the other movies on my list, they never really liked this one. I on the other hand still love it! My very favorite character... Fizgig, the fuzzy little ball of fluff monster 'dog' that Jen (one of the Gelflings) had.Ya know, the NAMES of all the creatures in this one was half of what made it so great! Gelflings, Skeksis, Urskeks... so fantastic! Don't get me wrong, I love me some good CGI, but classic Henson movies like this just can't be beat!!

6. Ferngully - I was a junior in high school when this movie came out and it was one of the gifts I got for my 16th birthday. I watched it over and over and over again. Every single day for nearly a year. I still have that original VHS movie (though I also have the DVD now). A lot of people I knew at the time hadn't even heard  of it until I made them watch it with me. ;) But there were some great actors doing the voices - most notably Robin Williams did the voice of my very favorite character - Batty Koda!! I loved this movie and that character so very much, when I turned 18 and my mom took me to get my very first tattoo, I walked out of the tattoo parlor with a cartoon bat on my ankle. ;) Everyone should watch this movie. Even though it's "just a cartoon" it has a great message. The animation is beautiful and the characters are just adorable! :)

7. Lucas - think back to a time, before Charlie Sheen was Bi-Winning (as opposed to bi-polar, don't get the two confused) and had tiger blood running through his veins. He was great in this movie. Almost as awesome as Corey Haim as Lucas. BOY did I have a crush on these two.  Corey Haim was adorable as the dorky, but lovable Lucas! And I totally remember writing Charlie Sheen in huge letters on my folder in 6th grade. I'm only slightly embarrassed about that now. This is an amazing movie!

8. Gremlins - Comedy? or Horror?? With this movie you didn't have to choose! lol As you may know by now, I'm a big fan of "puppets" and imaginary creatures. Gremlins fit the bill. Gizmo is SO freaking cute! I always wanted my own mogwai... ok, or just one of the plush toy versions of him. ;) Never did get one though. :( Gremlins 2 was cute, but nothing can touch the first one!

9. Footloose - Name one person anywhere in the world who doesn't like this movie. Seriously. Kevin Bacon is the man! The dancing. THE MUSIC! This movie is fantastic! It never fails to make me smile. :) The soundtrack is almost as good as the movie!! I even had (still have) the album, the one with the picture of Kevin Bacon covering the whole front side of it! SO COOL!

10. Purple Rain - maybe you've seen a general theme with all of my favorite movies... when they were released, I almost always fell in love with the lead boy. lol I was kinda boy crazy as a child. I can't really confirm or deny that much has changed in that respect. ;) Ok yes, I still fall in love with guys in movies. ;) Purple Rain was no exception. Though I was already in love with and planning to marry Prince, this just solidified that dream/goal. ;) And oh how I wished I could be Apollonia! I thought she was so beautiful! I love Morris Day and The Times too. This movie was just all around spectacular!! :)

BONUS: The Karate Kid - I know I already have 10 on the list but I just couldn't leave this out! I'm sure it will surprise you to hear I had a big crush on Ralph Macchio as a little girl. ;)  lol I haven't watched Dancing with the Stars in the last few seasons, but actually might have to this season just to see how he does! :) The remake with Will Smith's son was good, but nothing can compare to original! I still cheer at the end when Daniel kicks Johnny's butt!

That was fun! :) Got an idea for another top ten list you'd like to see??? Leave me a comment! :)