take a penny...: August 2005

More Cute Jewelry / A Shameless Plug

My very multi-talented friend Wendy makes these adorable cherry earrings, a regular part of her jewelry line Sparklicious. As the company name implies, her style is fun and super sparkly!

My favorites are the dazzling Swarovski star items – my sister and I both own a pair of the little twin star earrings and receive tons of compliments each time we wear them. At $32 a pair, it’s quite a deal!

Also check out the cute doggy jewelry at Sparkle Barkle – accessories for your pampered pooch. (Bet they will look cute on cats, too!)

OC Fair (better late than never)

Here's what you missed

The cute: cakes in the shape of chickens, with coconut feathers:

The cool: a amall section of the GIANT lego town complete with fountains, Ice cream trucks and alternative energy sources (windmills)

The oriental trading company marshmallow craft entered into the fray:

I've got you to hold my hand

These are stuffed electronic puppies that sit in a basket, and when you press a button they sing "I've got you babe." You can buy them from JC Penny, full price is $40, but I'm sure they'll be on sale soon. They are awfully cute, but who the heck wants them?

From Kohl's

They have a bunch of strange pillows

Banned Book Week Bracelet

click above.

I meant to buy one (or both) of these a while ago. Then I forot. Then I remembered again.

Adult Bracelet:

The Color Purple by Alice Walker
Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden
Howl by Allen Ginsberg
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
I Read Banned Books

Kids Bracelet:

Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
King & King by Linda de Haan and Stern Nijland
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
Blubber by Judy Blume
Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey
I Read Banned Books

and check out the rest of her stuff, http://www.carolynforsman.com, it's pretty weird.

Hey Big Spender!

I LOVE this glass by Fishs Eddy. How cute is the little burlesque pole dancer? I'm totally going to buy a set with my next paycheck ($16 for a set of 4).

Also, this is the same company from which I purchased Beth's very loverly, very artist/designer-oriented Pantone plate, available in a variety of fun color combos.

This is my absolute favorite website for dishware (hint-hint for if *I* ever get married), and I do make it a point to visit at least biweekly for new cute stuff. They tell me that they're going to update again soon with new goods for fall, so keep an eye out!

koo koo for... nesting bowls

These $85 white nesting bowls from Koo de Kir are will make an excellent wedding gift for me someday.

I wonder sometimes about how that will work. The internet is full of so many pretty pretty things, but they are scattered all over these tiny little boutiques' websites. How to register for that? The Koo de Kir site seems to be a combo of exclusive items and then a compilation of brands and products that the buyers thought their audience would like. I kind of hate that. I can understand why a manufacturer in real life would prefer to sell to retailers and not bother with direct selling, but with the internet, why not cut the middle man? And if you're going to be a big warehouse of products that you just picked out for your customers, shouldn't you at least offer some services to make it worth their while on the mark up? Like wedding registry services?! Jana, you understand this stuff. And Kim. Explain.

I wonder if Amazon.com has a lifestye category system, or something to group products by taste and style. They should. It would save me the trouble of having to deal with these crappy little retailers with questionable inventory and not even a very clear concept of their core audience.

A Very Merry UnBirthday

Michael Lambert, a Northern Californian artist, makes these fabulous teapots, perfect for any mad (or normal) tea party.

I first came across his animated ceramic wares when they were featured in the window of an art gallery/shop on Pine Street in Long Beach. I'd drool over them every day I'd walk past the store on the way to buy my veggie sub dinner from Subway. When the shop went out of business and all the merchandise went on clearance, I couldn't help but treat myself to a little unbirthday present. I got a sunny yellow be-bop cream and sugar set for half the normal price! Great way to spend my hard earned wardrobe money.

Whimsical yet functional, these pieces brighten up any kitchen. Highly recommended for those of us who are not morning people. Check out more of Lambert's work at Made In Santa Cruz.

something cute we could make

At $25, the above shirt from Squidfire might not be worth buying, but I like the leaves as an idea for maybe a home silkscreened or even potato-printed tshirt for fall. The colors and positioning are nice. Squidfire also has some other cute shirts I like (click see entire line), especially the Cat's Cloud shirt.

rings and things

In response to Jana's scrabble ring post...
a) I have two whole bags of extra regular sized Scrabble tiles which I ordered from Hasbro last October with the intention of making keychains for Christmas.... unfortunately, I don't have access to any device to make tiny holes in delicate items, so I couldn't manage it, and now they are in my craft dresser waiting for a meaning and purpose. If Jana and Lydia would like to each receive one set, they are more than welcome to give me their addresses and I shall mail them. Although I think I may have wrecked all the P's trying to make a keychain for my boss Paul.
b) I also love the idea of mah jong tiles as rings. Jana, you should sign up on Etsy and start a-selling!
c) In a related topic, I saw this seller on Etsy seling the above shown wrapped "Uptown Girl" ring, "eye-catching amazonite and shiny faux pearls." The seller is called momo and they have a website where they sell other wrapped rings and such.
d) Lydia, I hear you have started your Etsy selling already.... send us a link of your wares! I have heard tell of a gorgeous tanktop of yours which I want to see!
e) We should just add Lydia to this thing and save ourselves some trouble.
f) I am very excited about my scrabble ring!

I want these! $39.99 - comes in blue and pink also.

Very cute artwork!

http://www.fulanita.com/

So I found this on someone's blog website when I was looking for plush food. The picture referred me to www.spiralandcircle.com and they had lots of cute stuff. They had the cat in food stuff but it is still very expensive (even with the free shipping the website offered). They even had that toast thing Jana gave to Beth for $10. The website is cool because it has lots cute stuff and they offer free shipping. But they didn't have this pudding case. I emailed the contact so hopefully I'll find out soon if they still have it or can direct me to a vendor that does.

Scrabble Ring

This miniature Scrabble ring is made out of a tiny Scrabble tile, 22 gauge sterling silver wire, and lots of love and care. Simple, and oh so cute!

I had originally come up with this wire ring idea out of necessity, because no one sells rings for us thin boned people and I don't know how to metalsmith yet. Plus I have so many cute things lying around that would make great rings - this method allows you to make a ring out of pretty much anything with a hole in it. (And if it doesn't come with a hole in it, put a hole in it, and tada!)

After a bit of internet browsing, I've discovered that some legitimate jewelry designers also use a very similar technique using semi-precious stones to create more decadent, organic looking baubles. Check out Rachel Leigh jewelry to see some of these beautiful wire rings.

If anyone has any other ideas of things I can wrap into rings, please share them with me - I might just make you a ring. (And Beth, you of course know that this "B" ring is for you).

Squirrel Invasion

One of my all time favorite jewelry designers, Pade Vavra , seems to have jumped onto the squirrel jewelry bandwagon as well. You know, it all seems quite suspicious...the moment I come out and tell the world about my hatred of squirrels, these creepy animals become super hip among the jewelry designers. How will I escape this at work? It seems like some sort of evil (squirrel driven) plan to drive me insane. I hope Chan doesn't start designing squirrel merchandise. It would be sad to have to quit because of squirrels.

Still, despite the mangey little animals, I'm lusting after this bracelet. Plated in gold, they seem quite pleasant. Plus, look how cute the acorns are! Sad thing is, probably by the time I save enough money to buy this expensive piece (Retails at $286!) I won't want it anymore. Perhaps this is all for the best. I wouldn't want any squirrels to think that I have changed my squirrel-hating ways...

feeling like fall

I saw the cutest acorn necklace by Marc by Marc Jacobs in this high-end fashion and lifestyle magazine I got from work the other day... I can't for the life of me find a photo of it anywhere on the Marc Jacobs site, but it's flash anyways so I wouldn't be able to post it. It's way out of my budget range, but according to the magazine, squirrels and acorns are *so* in for fall, sorry Jana. I do love the whole acorn thing, it's very fallish, even though I don't think we have acorn bearing trees around here. Maybe I can find something cute and acorny in NY.

The next best thing I could find to post comes from motel, a very cute gallery/shop in Portland that also sells such lovely items as the small things jewelry and these cute cloud necklaces. The clouds are from a designer called dottyspeck whose little mismatched bird/pear earrings might charm the socks off of Jana. I think the above-shown acorn bracelet might have to be my next big purchase...

Ahhh, cute stuff overload!

shecky's

I was looking at some of the designers listed for our Shecky's Girl's Night Out and I saw this cute purse from someone named Marie Elanne. It costs $65, but hopefully it'll be discounted for the event... She has a few other very cute purses that I also like.

Jana at the Tofu Festival

The Tofu Festival was by far the BEST of the food fests so far! They were so good about creative and interesting uses of tofu, and the food plates were all like $1-$3 so you could sample a variety of items, plus there were tons of free samples, and cute stuff aplenty. Jana and I saw Emily's name on the tofu creme brulee booth, so hopefully Emily will give us some feedback on her experiences, but we loved it and everyone should go back next year! I think my favorite item was the tofu tostada, although the tofu nuggets and garlic tofu come a close second. Jana seemed to enjoy her tofu satay. We missed the tofu fries, so next year for sure!

Sorry we forgot to take pictures of the food. We got too wrapped up in eating it.

ETSY

Buy and Sell all things Handmade

Seriously, no fees until November. Do it!!!! Or I'll come after you.

Aren't these cute! I want them but they're only available on that UK site and with the currency conversion, they're expensive! I want the big cake too. I love plush food. I should start a line of plush food. Yummmmm.....

I found this direct from the manufactuer. Its ugly but cute...something Emily would appreciate.
http://www.besteverinc.com/

For all you Cat in Foods lovers!

http://www.snailmailcorner.com/

Waxing Poetic?

Poetic Waxing

Hamster Mania is sweeping the nation!

http://www.hamsterhideout.com/

Squirrel Hater

Squirrels suck. I usually hate all things squirrel as much as I love all things Peeps, so you can only imagine my surprise when I became inexplicably attacted to this "oven squirrel".

I have no idea what it actually does (Googling "oven squirrel" only provided me with delicious squirrel recipes) but I found it in the kitchen section while hunting for matzoh bread potholders like Beth's, so I believe it does belong in the oven somehow. In any case, I do think it would look mighty cute in my (non-existant) kitchen.

Maybe I have found a new found appreciation for squirrels?

Still, as Carrie in "Sex and the City" once said, squirrels are just rats with cuter outfits. How true. The black squirrels are a bit cuter and more tolerable since they look like miniature cats, but most of the rest of them look like bushy, disease-infested sewer rats.

Plus when I read articles like this, it makes me want to kick them all : Squirrel Attack

If anyone knows what an oven squirrel is for, please tell me!

Here is another something miniature...MINATURE FOOSBALL!

Peep-a-licious

I know everyone in this co-op-like blog team shares a love for cupcakes and Peeps, so I thought I would post this incredibly cute Peep cupcake picture.

Oh, how I do love Peeps! I still think that my big yellow Peep pillow is the best $10 I ever spent!

An Unlikely Pair

It’s true, I do have a love of all things mismatched. I think it’s the greatest, especially when it comes to earrings.

I made this pair almost a year ago, when I decided to recycle the gold star bracelet I bought on sale at the “Japanese K-Mart” during my first and only trip to Japan. I combined the stars with scraps of gold-filled chain, pretty watermelon tourmaline teardrop briolettes, and a couple of brass charms of wild animals (both of which, apparently, one can attempt to pet at the OC Fair).

Expensive Bonbons

This would mostly interest Jana, with her love of mismatched earrings: Bonbon Oiseau

Also, mainly for Jana I guess but for anyone who might know, I'm looking for a good online guide to cool shopping/dining/arts in New York. It's still in the air, but I want to get a head start in case we do go for sure, and I'd like a city guide with a little more edge, a little more artsy-ness.

Also BTW, Jetblue is doing a HUGE sale on airfare now until Aug 10 on select cities... we're going to get our tix for $109 one way to NY! I assume that's a pretty good deal, yes?

I also love things jumbo and here is the definitely a jumbo sized hamster cage. Its the IMAC Fantasy. I really want to get Rascal one once he gets bigger but unfortunately its only available in the UK. =(

I love things that are miniature so of course I have to love cupcakes because they're miniature cakes. Well I also like cakes but that's another point. Here is a cute candy dish from Hallmark!