Haiti by Hand

Haiti By Hand is an artisan group of Haitian women begun by Rebecca Sower. Rebecca has established an Etsy shop to showcase and sell the handcrafts of the Haitians, as well as a shop to sell items donated by artists and crafters who want to help this group of Haitians rebuild and establish themselves after the devastation of the earthquakes.
The entire purchase price of every item in the shop goes directly to the relief and rebuilding efforts of Haiti By Hand in Despinos, Haiti.

I've donated several items to Haiti by Hand, including 2 yards of the lace shown above. To check out all of wonderful things for sale at Haiti by Hand, click here, and to find out more about the artists of Haiti by Hand, visit the Haiti by Hand blog.

Delightful Little Paper Flowers to Brighten your Day

I recently received the most delightful paper flowers from a fellow Etsy seller -- these magical handmade flowers from The Gilded Bee. I'm in love with these little nosegays of roses and forget me nots -- and of course I love the whimsical mushrooms. I have them bunched together in a vintage teacup on my desk!

Go check out these delightful flowers for yourself at thegildedbee.

Fun Valentine's Giveaway

Check out this fun Valentine's box giveaway on the Bailiwick Studio blog: it's a lovely box full of fun Valentine's treasures! Just leave a comment to enter, and please tell her that Dishy Vintage sent you!

New Lacey Journal for Valentine's Day

Just wanted to share a few pics of the journal I finished last night. I had lots of other things on my to-do list (in truth, my to-do list did not even include "create very frilly Valentine's journal"). But I came across this amazing vintage Victorian calling card in my stash, and I just knew it would be perfect for a journal. And off I went! I'm pretty happy with the results! I think I may need to make more.... But for now, this little pink and lacey wonder is for sale in the Etsy shop.

Trash or Treasure?

I was out on my junking rounds today, and I found these fun little apples and pears. I think they are vintage pics for wreath-making; they appear to be styrofoam shapes that have been covered with fabric. They have green velvet leaves!

I don't have a use for them, really, but they spoke to me, and I just couldn't leave them behind. I think they're darling, even if they're a bit shabby. I'm thinking they might make a really cute wreath around the 4th of July.

Even so, I feel a touch silly for buying them. So, here's my question for you: trash or treasure?

Tatting Goodie Bags Are Back!

I just put three different kinds of tatting goodie bags in the shop: blue & cream, purple & cream, and a pastel mix. Get 'em while they're hot!

Girls' Weekend

This past weekend I traveled to San Antonio with my friend Kari to visit our dear friend Christin, who recently moved home after living here in Houston for many years. We had such a wonderful time, catching up while shopping and consuming an alarming amount of Mexican food.

Christin took us to the most wonderful store: Fiesta on Main. Every inch of this incredible place is stuffed with fantastic treasures from Mexico. I took lots of pictures, but even the pictures can't fully capture how great this store is! From the paper flowers to the pinatas to the clothes, it was so fun!

We found a few really interesting items, like the glittered picture of the last supper (I'll put glitter on anything, but this was surprising even to me), and the sequined applique of the Virgin Mary. I bought several dozen confetti eggs for Easter, as well as the "Eternal Love" metal art piece which is now on my front door.

But my favorite purchase of the weekend was my Saints charm bracelet: love it! As I told the girls, I felt safer (protected) just as soon as I put it on.

Such a lovely weekend with the girls! Thanks, Christin! Can't wait to get back to San Antonio soon!

New Cosmo Cricket Material Girl!

It's time for the winter CHA conference -- which means all of the scrapbooking supply manufacturers are putting out sneak peeks of their new lines. This is a new line from Cosmo Cricket called "Material Girl." I'm swooning! So many cute graphics here -- love love love the measuring tape paper!!!

Working on my Newsletter

I've been working on a new project the past couple of days -- my email newsletter! January will be the first edition, so it will be brief, but I'm hoping that in the future it will grow to a bigger project, including crafting projects and tips, etc. For this first month, subscribers will get a special code to use for free shipping on their next order from my Etsy store! So, if you're interested, please subscribe in the box right over there ----------->. I hope to send out the first edition late today or tomorrow.
Have a happy day!

Darling Valentine's Crafts Treasury

How cute is this treasury?? I'm so excited to be a part of it! Thanks to pautluck for including my ledger hearts in her great treasury! You can check out her shop here: http://www.pautluck.etsy.com. And to check this treasury out directly, go here:
http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=105900. Lots of cute things from Etsy sellers for Valentine's Day!

Of Teacups and Tatting

I've always loved tatting -- I'm not exactly sure why, but it's the one thing I've always bought and held on to. Then last year I used some tatting on an altered art journal, and realized that tatting is perfect for crafts projects! At first I had to get over my reluctance to use it at all, but once I did, I used it on numerous journals and starting incorporating it into scrapbooking pages as well. Still, I was surprised last week when I listed some tatting goodie bags in the Etsy store, and they sold out almost right away! It was exciting, but in no time, I was out of tatting! Good news is, I got more tatting today -- hooray! So, new goodie bags should be in the Etsy store soon.

The other thing I wanted to share today is my "Ah-ha" use for teacups: business card holder! I collect vintage china, and one of my favorite patterns is Spode Mayflower from the 1940's. Unfortunately, it lives in a cabinet most of the time, where no one can see it or enjoy it. A few weeks ago I pulled out a teacup, filled it with business cards, and found a place for it on my desk. Now I get to enjoy my favorite pattern every time I'm at the computer (which is, frankly, almost all the time)! So, if you have some pretty teacups hiding in a cabinet somewhere, rescue them and find a way to use them!

Sneak Peek: Velvet Flowers and Leaves

I got some new products in today for the shop and I am SO EXCITED about them! I love vintage velvet treasures, but they are so hard to find, especially in good condition. These are new items, but they have a great vintage vibe. There are velvet strawberries in pink and red, fantastic velvet lilacs in a great vintage-y pinkish brown, and velvet leaves in three fabulous colors. I'm in the process of getting these lovelies into the shop now.






And I'm not the only one who loves the velvet flowers! A little pixie found the new velvet treasures and made herself quite a bouquet!

Happy New Year!

2009 was an interesting year, full of challenges and blessings and lots of new adventures (like the snowman in the picture above, which my girls were able to build on the neighbor's lawn -- in early December, in Houston!). But I was not particularly sad to see 2009 go.

I'm excited about 2010. I've got the usual resolutions (lose weight, eat healthier, yada yada), some ambitious business goals, and my husband has announced that he's going to train for a half-marathon. Between all of that, and the usual fun and craziness of our kids, it should make for an interesting and entertaining year.

I wish all of you love, success, and happiness in the New Year!