We have sun again! I hope it lasts. It’s still very chilly, but the sun is bright, the sky is very blue and I’m spotting a wee bit of green on the trees.

I think this calls for colour this Monday.

- Yarn Wrapped Stacking Bangles, set of 5, from Mystic Fibers

- Indian Summer II Fine Art Photograph from Eleanors

- Tweet Blue, Eco-friendly Handmade Greeting Card from The Spotted Sparrow

- Gold Ring with Yellow, Green and Orange Gemstones from toosis

Monday Moodboard is a feature of Etsy’s European Street Team. All of these beautiful items are created by members of EST. Want to see some more inspirational moodboards? Head on over to Fleur Fatale.

March 8th, 2010 | 4 Comments »

Christmas in our house involves a lot of handmade items. So, when the husband asked if he could use some of our plain glass ornaments to make some super special  colour changing LED ornaments, I said, “hells yeah!”.

It’s not easy to get a photo of something that changes colour.

Well, I suppose we could have just videotaped it. But, we didn’t.

My husband is cooler than yours.

December 22nd, 2009 | 2 Comments »

… is the cutest movie I’ve seen in a very long time.

I have a huge appreciation for all the work that goes into making a movie like this.

Mary and Max is a 92 minute Australian  ‘clayography’ stopmotion film that took almost 5 years from script to screen to make.  Each of the six animators on average created 4 seconds a day!

Max (my favourite Atheist) is played by Philip Seymour Hoffman and Mary is played by Toni Collette. There are plenty of other big names in this movie too.

Watch the trailer here:

Some other facts about the movie…

- 133 separate sets were created for the film

- 475 miniature props were made, BY HAND!

- 394 individual pupils were hand punched then had a white, sparkly dot painted on them

- 147 tailor made costumes were created

- 808 miniature Earl Grey tea bag boxes were hand cut, folded, glued, wrapped and airbrushed.

- 12 litres of water based sex lube were needed to create everything from tears to a surging jungle river.

Mary and Max is innocent but not naive, as it takes us on a journey that explores friendship, autism, taxidermy, psychiatry, where babies come from , obesity, religious difference, agoraphobia and much, MUCH more.

I highly recommend it.

December 18th, 2009 | No Comments »

These arrived today from the lovely Tanya of TanyaMac.etsy.com . A fellow member of the Crafty Ireland Team!

I adore them so! They are extremely well made and came beautifully packaged.  I intend to put them up in my craft room, but she also sent me an extra bauble which looks gorgeous on my tree! Love them!

Go check out her shop for more beautifully handmade items. You can also find her here:

Blog :: http://etsyireland.blogspot.com
site :: www.arabella-invites.com
Flickr :: www.flickr.com/photos/cheekyurchin/

December 15th, 2009 | 1 Comment »

These are some of the new ornaments I was happy to acquire this year. I adore them all!

Crochet Snowflake Ornament from small packages

Full Moon Ornament from minouette

Fly Agaric Mushroom Ornaments from minouette

Set of 5 Miniature Mushrooms with wire stems from craftsty

Herbie the Hedgehog ornament from BeeLoveLee

I would have loved to have  photos of them on the tree for this post, but it’s 4pm already and completely dark. I can assure you though, they look fantastic on my tree!

December 14th, 2009 | No Comments »

The Crafty Ireland Team, of which I am apart of, is hosting a BIG BIG giveaway over on the team blog. http://etsyireland.blogspot.com

The prize is essentially a mystery box -containing an assortment of handmade items made by various members of the Crafty Ireland team! All you have to do to enter is head over to the original post and leave a comment. The winner will be drawn on Monday, November 16th!

Good luck!

November 12th, 2009 | No Comments »

1. Guests For Tea Locket Necklace from Locket2You

2. Adaline Brown Flower Strap Sandal from Alternative Outfitters

3. Tara Checks Wrap Dress from Matta

4. Woven Beige Satchel from Engage Green

August 24th, 2009 | No Comments »

I’ve been looking for a new desk and I will, more than likely,  go with this simple Ikea one as it ticks all my boxes. Plain, cheap, white, basically a table with a lot of surface area. And now that we finally have an Ikea here I can have it delivered.

But, if I really had the money I would love this Antique Mahogany Secretary Desk and Chair by Vintage Chic Furniture.

It’s just darling!

August 19th, 2009 | No Comments »

This gorgeous Hammered Sterling Silver Stacking Ring from MissesBird. I got the oxidized Silver version and I think I will get some more. Right now I’m stacking it with my wedding rings. They’ve become a little loose since losing a bit of weight and it’s keeping them nice and tight.

I also got these cute little magnets from button empire.  I couldn’t resist them, it was like they were made for us! Though, based on the many sales of these, it seems this dynamic within couples is quite common. Who knew?

And then this gorgeous Small Ceramic Tray – “Cornus Florida in Olive” from Blue Green Designs.  I wanted a small tray specifically for these tiny cacti plants we got. It worked out perfectly. I’ll try to get some pics of them together.

August 12th, 2009 | 1 Comment »

1. Rose Cut Garnet Ring by Elizabeth Scott Designs
2. Love is Maroon Dress by Cocoricooo
3. Danse Du Ventre Necklace Set from ModCloth
4. Pavana Sandals by Matta

August 12th, 2009 | No Comments »