Your Way Wednesday

It's been entirely too long since I featured my favorites from my weekly Your Way Wednesday posts, so buckle up, I've got three for you.  Starting with a little something I would love to be gifted... a file box of ideas! 

The Polka-Dot Umbrella submitted this post and I've been thinking about it since.  I love reading my favorite blogs, and I'm pretty good about filing the things I want to reference again later, but when it's time to make that project I've been meaning to tackle I'm probably gonna print off the tutorial... or when my 5 year old is begging for a "project" searching through my blog files and printing them just takes too long.  This is a great solution... inspiration at your finger tips!

Next up is this camera strap Originate and Renovated submitted.  I love everything about this strap!  The colors, the giant rick rack, the flowers, the big buttons, it's all so pretty!  I don't have a fancy camera or even pretend to understand how one works, but I would be beyond impressed if my photographer showed up with this beauty around her neck!

And from last week's links is this pretty ring One Artsy Mama made.  I love silver jewelry and the robins egg blue beads in the nest ring are perfect!

It's your turn!

Crafting is my way to relieve stress & stretch my creative muscles.

Sewing is my way to have some uninterrupted time to myself.

Bentos are my way to show Elle I'm thinking about her.

Parties are my way to love on my girls & our friends

Tutorials show my way of making this or that.

I want to see your way! I'm really excited to give you an opportunity to do just that with a link party!

Only two rules for you:

• Add my lovely "Your Way Wednesday" button to your blog or blog post that you link up to
• Please link directly to your blog post, not a giveaway, your link party, your Etsy shop, or even just the home page of your blog.

In exchange for following the rules, I'll leave a comment on your blog post & if you're my favorite post I'll feature you on my blog for my next Your Way Wednesday.







<br /> <center><a href="http://ellebellecreative.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="Link up you latest project every Wednesday on the Elle Belle Creative Your Way Wednesday link party!" src="http://i1127.photobucket.com/albums/l639/ebcreative/finalYWWbutton.jpg" /></a></center>





Featured Etsy Seller - LazyTCrochet

This month's Etsy Bloggers featured seller is LazyTCrochet

I LOVE this wispy clouds crochet fringe scarf! It wold be perfect for Florida winters when it's not cold enough for coats, but you still need something to take the chill off.

Or how about this great apple green cloche?! It would add a perfect punch to a black trench!

Stop by Lazy T Crochet and check out all the beautiful crocheted accessories!

Featured Seller - CREATE a THOUGHT

Everyday you are creating thoughts. Thoughts that are interesting and beautiful, profound and deep, silly and funny. Whatever your thought style is, they should be recorded. CREATEaTHOUGHT's mission is to help you do just that. Browse through this Etsy shop and find one-of-a-kind journals like this vintage bingo design:
I'll confess that I'm not good about keeping a journal... I ease the guilt by referring to this blog as my diary of creative endeavors... but I am a list making fool! I have notebooks stashed just about everywhere and of course they can't be those hideous cardboard brown ones...even boring grocery lists deserve an interesting place to land.

If you don't want to keep your thoughts all to yourself, CREATE a THOUGHT has you covered there too with Flair2Wear buttons.

Bloomhill Baby

The Etsy community is such a wonderful group of crafters! Case in point, Bloomhill Baby. The Etsy Baby street team hosted a baby shower for Moms on Etsy. If you were expecting or had a baby within 3 months you could sign up to be showered with some handmade baby goodness from 2 members of the Etsy Baby team. How sweet is that?!

The very tallented, Tammy of Bloomhill Baby, makes some really adorable baby items... some that even include machine embroidery that she custom designs herself. She created this pretty little onesie for Liv with her initials.

Bloomhill Baby's profile says she's a perfectionist and you can definitely tell it in her work! This onesie is great quality and her attention to detail on the trim and embroidered design is obvious. Tammy's commitment to excellence makes her a dream to work with and I so appreciate her generosity!

Featured Etsy Blogger: Two Zany Zebras

Check out the Two Zany Zebras shop out of Southern California. How cute would your little monster be in this little monster onesie:

One of these googly eyed monsters in your little one's room might actually get them excited to find the "monster under the bed"!

Featured Etsy Seller: Design by Nora

Isn’t this the perfect Easter purse?! It clutched in your white gloved hand would even make a great picture to frame & place on a vanity next to your makeup mirror… maybe I’m just in the Easter purse mood. I get a glimpse of Elle’s tiny white patent leather one hanging neatly with her yellow Easter dress every time I open her closet.

The Design by Nora Etsy shop lists this handcrafted beauty for her Uncle, Naz, along with others in his line that’s more than 30 years in the making. In addition to these lovelies, you can find Nora’s handiwork in the form of polymer clay stud earrings. The simplicity of these stars are just my style!

Featured Etsy Blogger: Donna Pool

I'm not much of a talker... well let me rephrase that... I'm not much of a talker to strangers. You won't find me chatting up the checker at the grocery store or having a heart to heart at the water cooler, but I'll talk as long as anyone will listen about my latest creative endeavor or Etsy. I may find myself with less time to day dream in line at the grocery store, more friends at work, and maybe even more sales in my Etsy shop if I kept one of Donna Pool's I <3 Etsy buttons on hand.

Browse around Donna Pool's shop for super fun buttons and some great little vintage finds too!

Featured Etsy Seller: Spotted Cow Soaps

Handmade soaps not only leave your skin feeling fresh and pampered, they look lovely in your soap dish... much prettier than those pea green bars!
Handmade soaps make really wonderful gifts! I received a set of "sushi" soaps packaged in a take out container for Christmas 2 years ago and absolutely loved those! But my favorite use for handmade soaps is as party favors. I had some soaps cut in the shape of cupcakes made for favors for Elle's first birthday (since all the little ones were 12 months or younger, it was more for the adults), we had clear birthday cake scented soaps with black music notes floating in the center made for the adult favors for her 2nd birthday (I had separate favors for the kiddies), and we used bath fizzy's as favors at a Welcome to the World baby shower I helped plan.

Spotted Cow Soaps is the shop for all things soap related. This Vermont crafter not only creates 100% pure and natural soaps, she has tons of products to choose from! Spend a minute browsing her shop and you'll find some limited edition soaps (the peppermint one sounds so refreshing... that's got to be my top pick!), sugar scrubs that look good enough to eat, bath fizzies, body lotions, and even some soaps with a loofah submerged in the bar. Add this shop to your Etsy favorites for the next time you need a special handmade gift for the person in your life that deserves some pampering!

Featured Etsy Seller: Storybeader

An admittedly frustrated writer has found inspiration in the beaded pieces she makes. A love for writing and penchant for colorful jewelry is evident in the Etsy shop, Storybeader. Deb, the Storybeader, feels inspired to write by each piece she makes and includes a haiku written specifically for your piece with your purchase.

This sun catcher is my favorite! My Mom always hung a crystal in the dining room window. The mini rainbows that danced around the room during warm sunny mornings were a sweet way to greet the day!

EtsyBloggers Feature: BFBeads

This month's EtsyBloggers featured seller is Baby Friendly Beads. She is a breastfeeding Mommy who creates jewelry with the breastfed baby in mind, but you probably wouldn't have guessed this great jewelry has a purpose other than being a sweet accessory, check out all those colors:

Her reminder bracelets are designed to easily be moved from wrist to wrist through out the day as a reminder of which side to nurse on next. And the nursing necklaces give baby's curious fingers a place to land and hold their attention (ask any nursing Mommy... a distracted baby while nursing can make things a little complicated!).

The dish ran away with the spoon

One of the things I've enjoyed the most about running Elle Belle is that it's given me an opportunity to meet a lot of really talented crafters. I met Julie of Sew It's For You at a craft show we were both in about a year ago. Julie does hand embroidery, usually with a vintage twist. I needed an excuse to own a piece of her handiwork and thought a little towel for Elle's retro kitchen would be the perfect way. Julie embroidered the dish running away with the spoon on it and added some adorable big rick rack. It turned out super cute and Elle has been busy "cleaning up spills and drying dishes" ever since.

Cool Crisp Air

the crunch of leaves under your feet, hay rides, warm apple cider, bon fires, oh the joys of autumn! Huh? What? Oh ya, I live in Florida now! Those were my favorite things about this time of year... or at least the time of year we're headed into... while I was growing up in IL. Now autumn marks the beginning of not 100 degree afternoons. I love living in Florida for so many reasons, but no fall season is not one of them. Almost every year we plan a trip somewhere with some changing leaves to at least get a taste of it (this year it's Gatlinburg TN). I'm looking forward to our fall vacation, reminiscing of autumns past, and thought I'd share these fabulous Etsy Finds that set the perfect mood but apparently Blogger is having a bit of trouble with pictures these days, so I had to create a little mini in order for you to see the compilation of photos. I guess we'll have to do it this way until Blogger gets its little kinks worked out. Scroll down a bit to check it out.

All about family and fabric, love and laughter, and handmade super coolness

That’s how Joey & Aleethea rock! Just a quick look around the Joey & Aleethea blog and you’ll find a Mom, a military wife, owner/operator of one of the most successful shops on Etsy, the leader of the EtsyBlogger street team, a member of several other Etsy street teams, and an awesome crafter/artist all rolled into one! If that doesn’t impress you enough to stop by her shop then let me entice you with a couple of my favorites:

How stinkin’ cute is this?! I’m so in love with these little scooters, if there were a way to safely strap my 2 year old to one I would totally sport one of these little numbers EVERYWHERE! And who doesn’t love the color Tiffany blue?

Check out these cutesie bibs! I particularly like the tuxedo one. If I had a little guy I wouldn’t reserve the tuxedo bib for special occasions only (although everyone at your cousin’s wedding would think you were the hippest Mommy!) every day could use a little Fred Astaire ware!

Featured Etsy Seller - Tulips Treasure Box

I just joined the Etsy Blogger team. I'm so proud of myself for keeping my commitment to post more regularly on my blog and decided I should take the next step and make a commitment to an entire team. The Etsy Bloggers are, as you could probably guess, a team of people who have Etsy shops and also blog. I knew the team existed, but the Storque just recently did an article about them so I got to learn more about them. I think I'm really going to like how organized they are, how they hold everyone accountable to participate, and that for someone who is already dedicated to blogging, there's not an unreasonable amount of commitment required.

Each month, they select a member of the team for everyone to blog a feature on. So, my first official assignment is to feature Tulips Treasure Box:

Lily of Tulips Treasure Box designs and creates some really amazing jewelry! I particularly like the thorough descriptions she gives of each piece, some of which include background information about the materials she uses, like this one for her Caribbean Necklace and Earring Set:

Bright sea-green Apatite is regarded as a gem for collectors as well as for jewelry makers. Its name comes from the Greek word for "deceit" since it's so often mistaken for such stones as beryl, topaz and tourmaline. The green variety is sometimes called asparagus-stone.

She also creates these adorable eco friendly Tee Totes. Not only do they serve the eco friendly purpose of reducing waste of plastic bags, they're constructed from recycled Tees... they're an environmentalist's dream!

So head on over to the Tulips Treasure Box shop, plan your next fabulous outfit around one of her beautiful pieces of jewelry, and do something good for the environment!

Daydreaming Welcomed at Dream ON

Dream On features a collection of watercolors & acrylics by artist, Mary Hamilton. One of the things people have said about Mary’s artwork is “that it tends to promote mental vacations.” What a lovely thought…especially during this hectic time of year!






For instance, “Let’s Take A Spin” (pictured above), transports us to a mountain lake in early Spring. Wouldn’t you just love to go on a road trip to this destination?


Or you could take a much needed cocktail break anytime, with “Martini of the Day.” I really like the simple lines and bold red and gold used in this painting. It would make a great addition to a modern professional’s office!

This Etsy artist states, “I always loved to cut, paste, paint and draw from my earliest memories. Creating art is what I do, it's built-in by my creator, He enables me, and I love it.”
I was also impressed by Mary’s definition of her work – “I value the presence of a recognizable subject in my paintings. I love it when the center of interest appears in the midst of background objects that aren’t so well-defined. I want watercolor to look like watercolor, and I want my paintings to have a painterly look, not a photographic copy. Therefore I am an impressionist, because I don’t want to over-control the media.”

Based in St. Petersburg, FL, you can find a lot of “local” inspiration in the paintings at DreamON.

“Egmont Surprise” is an original watercolor of the Egmont Key Lighthouse, which sits on the SW coast of Florida, on a lonely island in Tampa Bay. She takes license with the hibiscus flower in the corner (they don’t grow on the island!), to add a stunning splash of color.


This shop offers some lovely visions – escape to Dream ON!

Berry Patch Designs

Berry Patch Designs offers lovely handmade jewelry featuring stones such as purple lepidolite; rich, bold moukaite; patterned ocean jasper; red agate and deep blue lapis lazuli, among others. Like Elle Belle, this shop carries jewelry designed by a small group of women in Central Florida. They promise lots of bargains, including some terrific stocking stuffers!!

This Etsy artist’s favorite thing about designing jewelry? Hearing and seeing that people enjoy wearing her designs. She writes, “I love to combine the varying colors and textures of the natural world. There are so many feelings and places to love about our world!”
Here are some featured items in their shop:

A Lovely purple crystal butterfly center has deep purple crystals dropping from a dark antiqued chain hanging below, like magical sparkles as the butterfly takes off into the air.

A large stone heart (variety uncertain) seems to beat, as veins of dark red streak the creamy pale surface.

Fine art paintings, Collage, Lino Prints, & Note Cards

I’ve already shared with you my appreciation for all things guitar related, so the item I picked from today’s featured artist, George McKim, won’t be a surprise. Not only is this a lovely piece of art, I really enjoyed George’s description of it. You can “hear” his passion for the art and this piece in particular.

Description: This collage is a homage to the great art movement known as Cubism, you know with that guy, what's his name? Umm, oh yeah, Picasso and that other guy named Braque. It's an abstract design based on the shape of a guitar. I think this is one of the best collages I've ever done, even if I do say so myself! It's a tip of the hat to the great Cubist painters, but it's light and lively yet subdued and classic. The paper size is 11" x 14" and it has some white border area. With a really nice framing job this collage will look stunning , don't you agree?

George also offers for sale in his shop note cards made from images of any of his work. It’s a wonderful way to own a bit of art inexpensively!

Germany Meets Brazil

Since 2006, Brazilian, Suzy Wortberg, has been designing custom jewelry where she resides in Cologne Germany. She collaborates from afar with 2 artists from her native country Brazil, Bebe and Ana. They’ve found that were cultures meet, ideas just natural spring up, and together they’re able to produce exciting new concepts. Inspired by her remembrance of Brazil, Suzy’s jewelry is rich in color and texture. She desires to create a reflection of life in Brazil in each piece and bring the wearer just a taste of Brazil’s light and many sided culture. You can see for yourself in her Etsy shop, Contas Brasil

Prints, Art, and Paper Lovelies

Valérie Parizeault is a Canadian Illustrator & designer from Montreal. She is the owner of Rose Flash, Playfully spirited Jewelry (http://www.roseflash.ca/) and the creative mind behind the Witty workshop (http://www.wittyworkshop.etsy.com/), a place to buy and enjoy her Illustrations and prints. Inspired by whimsical moments, children’s universe and storytelling, she is living her dream life as an artist with her husband by her side and her black cat Tokyo. Tree hugger and business connoisseur, she blogs both in French and English about Eco-friendly causes, Indie designers and her daily life trough her creative blog Pot aux Roses (http://www.pot-aux-roses.blogspot.com/) and about the ups and downs of entrepreneurship through her business tip blog Bite (http://www.bitethebusiness.blogspot.com/).



This is my favorite little piece of Valerie’s art and I am forever in need of a good bookmark! I’m fundamentally opposed to defacing books (yes, even a dog ear qualifies in my… errr…book), and this bookmark would not only ensure that my books stay pristine but also that they’re adorned in quite a lovely way. This sweet little girl with hair just the tiniest bit awry and her best friend call to mind visions of care free Spring days.

Featured Etsy Artist - Earths Charms

The featured artist today is Earths Charms. Check out what she has to say about herself –


My name is: a title used to facilitate communication.

My home is: a little slice of paradise despite the paper-thin walls and windows.

My goal is: to make macrame fashionable.

My soul is: owned by a thieving kitty.

My dreams are: not all that unrealistic, and involve comfort instead of riches.

My life is: meant to be enjoyed to the fullest.


I find her comments about her dreams and life insightful ways to think about things, and I’m quite sure she’s already meeting her goal! And, although my home could be described as “a little slice of paradise despite the tiny space and lack of seating” I’m in full “let’s host a holiday party!” mode. So, I’m featuring her drink charms today:
They’d be a fun way to keep track of everyone’s glasses at your next party, I guarantee you’ll get comments on how clever you are for having them, and if you’re feeling particularly generous you could even let your partiers go home with theirs as a favor. Have fun!