Part of something bigger - volume 2

Remember that I told you about lots of surprises for Julie in the mail and that is was part of something bigger?
Well, the mailbox got more of those and I'd love to share 'em with you. I still have not put together the entire poem as some words are still missing but I'm getting there. All of the gifts have a hanging tag and it will look so pretty when I will assemble the mobile. As soon as it's ready I will show you!
Anyway, here are some more words that came in the mail...

 Judit from Vadjutka (Hungary) send two times the word 'een' (means: a).

Anna from 'the house of mouse' (the Netherlands) send Julie the cutest sleep mouse. The mouse is holding the word 'slaap' (means: sleep).

Annemiek from TwoTreesWorld (the Netherlands) delivered her gifts in person. So nice to catch up with her. She made the words 'slaap' in the form of a flying porcelain sheep - cute! (means: sleep) and 'van' (means: of)

Anna Denise from The yellow umbrella (Belgium) drew something mighty cute - I love her drawings! Her word says 'reuzeke' (means: small giant)

Caro from Honoriginal (the Netherlands) made a supertiny & pretty book and a paper cloud with the word 'doe' (means: do)

Stephanie from PetitPlat (France) proves here that she can not only make tiny things, haha, she made a giant pea pod with the word 'reus' (means: giant)

Elles from Misusu (United States) send two intricately made patchwork pieces (amazing) with the words 'een' (means: a) and 'doos' (means: box)

Marijke from Sweet and simple stuff (the Netherlands) send a very soft and cute crocheted babushka with the word 'dicht' (means: closed)

And Kim from Viltalakim (the Netherlands) came to deliver her gift in person too. A cute felted heart with the word 'roos' (means: rose) and she also gave me a few tips regarding the poem.
Like that I was still missing about 8 words and that the poem consisted out of 8 lines.
Thanks Kim for clearing a few things up for me. I suppose that I'll be keeping an eye on my mailbox a bit more and hope that the mystery will be revealed soon.
Thanks so much everyone! You can't imagine how curious I am to see the end result! :)

Oh, and for those wanting to see how much Julie has grown, you can subscribe to my newsletter because I add images from her in there. We are a bit hesitant to post images of her on the world wide web...

Etsy Handmade Portrait

A few months ago, I got an e-mail from Etsy asking me if I would be interested if they made a Handmade Portrait of my work. I felt honored to have been asked to share my story via one of their amazing movies. I love Etsy's Handmade Portraits!
And it couldn't have come at a better time as I felt really ready to share my story in public.
It has been a bit over 3 years that I started making my feelings and they changed my life tremendously.
Since the story is quite personal, I never really spoke about it in public.
It wasn't always easy either so I just waited for the right time to share.
And while a new chapter in my life is about to start, it feels good to share and hopefully it can be a source of inspiration for anyone out there going through rough times or experiencing the same.
It's up on Etsy's blog if you would like to see it. I think it turned out great.
Lots of work and effort went into those few minutes & of course I'd like to thank all the people who made this video possible and beautiful, especially Beth & Bao.

Enjoy & thank you for being part of my community!

XO
Mitsy

Missed connections

Handmade Portraits: Sophie Blackall from Etsy on Vimeo.

I found this video today on Etsy's blog and I just love the story behind it. Such detailed drawings make the characters come to live and tell their own story. Would love to see some art like this in the city I live in.

Time wasting

I think I have blogged about Provox time wasting experiment before but when I saw the work live in Etsy's office in Berlin, I just couldn't resist taking a few snapshots.
Brilliant work which brings a smile to my face every time I see it. Check out Alyson's shop and waste 13 minutes going through the time wasting experiment. :)

Mini-Etsy-Labs at 101 woonideeën

image by 101 woonideeën

Later today I'll be heading off to the Netherlands. I'll be spending a few days at Marta's place and hang out at the Woonbeurs (Living fair). It's a big, big, big interior design fair in Amsterdam and I'm quite happy to snoop around there.

Marta asked me if I could give a small Etsy lab there & I am thrilled to participate. So on thursday I'll be making moss terrariums at the stand of 101 woonideeën from 1PM till 3PM.

image by Dutchhandmade

And tomorrow evening I'll be at the koopavond (buying night) at the Etsy's pop up shop in Leiden called 'Etsy Open - (be) zoek de makers'. (Etsy open - visit the artists)
It will be the last few days the shop will be open & lots of stuff has sold already so if you are in the area and want to take a last peek: hurry up! :)

Time wasting experiment

Sometimes I bump into a shop on Etsy where I just have to see every listing...
Provax is one of those shops:
And when looking into her profile I see there was an interesting feature about her work in Etsy's blog which I completely missed at the time but glad I found it now.


Great stuff hey?

Happy weekend, everyone!
X
Mitsy

PS: The porcelain rings came out of the kiln well - some of them are slightly deformed but not in a disturbing kind of way. Will show a picture soon although it won't be the end product yet...

Me time

Yesterday I cleaned up my table with all my clay mess and decided it was time for some sewing. An evening me-time and instead of using the already bought fabric, I bought some more...
I made a jersey skirt and cut out a dress. It was too late at night to finish it and I don't really understand the dress pattern so I'm going need some help with that.
This morning I quickly sewed a needle book from some left over fabrics. Just to use in my sewing class as I never seem to find needles when I need 'em.

I found some really cool needle cases on Etsy too. I especially love the wooden needle case by The small object & the pretty hedgehodge cases by Namolio.

1. Saw See Sew Wooden Needle Case Holder
2. Small linen needle book - Hedgehogs

3. Mouse pine needle case
4. Mini needle case

Update packaging & listings

About a year ago, one of my customers let me know that the display boxes that I used in my Etsy listings were not available in IKEA anymore. I had used 'em to show off some display ideas for my feelings. Bugger, that meant I had to change all my listings, description & pictures and I put it on the 'to do' list...

Then later this year, my supplier told me that the lime green boxes I use for packaging my feelings, would be taken out of production. So that meant that I needed to think about a new way to package 'em. I bought all the available boxes and hoped they would last me a while...
I'm down to my last 5 boxes now so I quickly need to change my packaging and my listings.
This will be the new packaging from now on. I loved the lime green boxes as they brought a little color to my work but I do like the natural kraftpaper look too.
Earlier this week, lots of editing took place in my Etsy shop: description, tags, price & shipping profiles and pictures. It's been a major job but it was long, long overdue.
Too bad that the mosaic pictures turn out to be so small in the Etsy listing. I have no idea why that is as I saved 'em as before.It will have to do for now as changing 99 listings is no small feast...

Textured love

Today was probably the worst day of light for taking pictures so I'm sure I'll have to re-take this session sometime but I couldn't wait any longer to add this new heart-ART to the shop.
After all, it's nearly valentine's day.
So here are 9 textured and framed hearts.
They do take a bit after the feelings but it really weren't supposed to be 'feeling'-hearts. But of course they can be if you like 'em to be.
I showed some before when they were bisque fired but I love 'em even more porcelain fired. It gives 'em this beautiful, delicate shine...
And of course I was most excited about playing around with packaging. I love the gingham fabric and for the occasion, I thought a red happy girl would do magic...
You can find 'em in my heart-ART section in my shop.
Happy weekend everyone! :)

Guestpost: Handmade Interior Design

Note: If you would like to guest post @ ArtMind please contact me (mitsy@artmind.eu) and I'll send you the 'how-to-blog@ArtMind' -info.

by Bethany Dirksen from Dirksendabbles

We see so many wonderful ways to incorporate handmade goodness throughout our lives these days. Fashion, food, art, and functional products are widely available. But what about those larger projects? I studied interior design in college and have worked in the field for several years. Because of this, I was wondering how easy it would be to decorate an entire room through a handmade venue such as Etsy. And guess what?! You absolutely can.

Here is a room I have designed with products found on Etsy.

Every room has to start with a great piece of furniture. My virtual living room would have this as it's star.

Dragon Slayer Sofa - $2900

And to sit in front and beside

Classic II Coffe Table - $450 Walnut Side Table - $425

Next to all of this, put two of these

Red Eames Chairs - $125

Then underneath it all, and hanging on the wall

Shag Rug - $400 Doggie Drapes - $150

Lovely accents to make us happy

Green Sky Painting - $75 Modern Wall Shelf - $59.95

And finally, let's light it up!

Botanical Drum Shade - $89.95 Buddha Lamp - $200

Now... let's see it put together with a little watercolor to help us visualize.

See! Etsy is a great place for handmade and vintage interior design needs. And as always, this was just the tip of the iceberg for great finds in the handmade world.

Positive note

After my rant the other day, it is time for a more positive note as most of the time, it IS all positive.

Needless to say that I love what I do: make, create, share, show, wrap, sell and send.
I blush when I get messages out of the blue from people telling me they found my work and that it made 'em smile, happy and that they find it amazing and inspirational...
I get all fuzzy inside when someone shares why they buy a certain feeling. Quite often it's really personal but it connects me to the person I'm sending my work to and that makes it even more special.
My heart melts when parents order a feeling for their kid as it's high on their birthday wishlist. Kids are such honest creatures and for me, it's the biggest compliment I can get.
I'm grateful for all the treasury inclusions, blog features and press mentions 'cause without those, all of those above wouldn't be happening.
I grow a little bit every time a customer takes the time to leave a lovely feedback or send me a message to let me know they received what they ordered and are happy with it. And sometimes, they even send me a picture! Look here how ace Sam, Emma and Izzy look! It made me smile big time - thank you for sending it, Nicole!
I honestly think that I have the BEST customers ever.
After all, they make it possible that I can do what I love doing.
And I hope I can continue to do so for a very long time.
So, here's a big THANK YOU for all of those above and more, who make me happy lots and lots!

How to - love

I love this Etsy how-to, how about you?

Weekend impressions

On friday I left for a weekend Amsterdam with my Etsy friends. In the evening we went to an Etsy meeting at the Lloyd hotel. What a fun crowd gathered there. I don't have any useable pictures of the meeting itself as it was dark and small in there but it was cozy and fun for sure.
Matt and Benedikta from Etsy's Berlin office were the hosts and they certainly spread the enthusiam about the conference for micro entrepreneurs next spring. Can't wait for this summit of awesome!
All these flowers were in the hallway of the toilets - a creation of Vlinder & Vogel Isn't it beautiful?On Saturday we went with a bunch to the Craftymarket. Even though the market was connected to a cultural festival, it wasn't really busy which surprised me. But being there with like minded souls, it was certainly the highlight of my weekend.
The weather was kind of weird: sunny, cold, cloudy, warm, rainy,... typical Dutch weather for this time of year...
My friend Vanessa came to visit me at the market. I hadn't seen her in over a year and she's not only an amazing Etsy-supporter but also a good photographer as I asked her to take some pictures from the stands. I'm so glad she spend the entire afternoon with us chatting. Thanks for popping by, Ness! :)It's fun sharing a stand with someone who's a fan of your work. Marta from Martice did a great job explaining my work to people with her never ending enthusiasm! Thanks Marta! :)Nicole from Babongohome hides behind her beautiful and ecofriendly mobiles.Swee is checking out ThongbaiTatong's work.Barry & Liesbeth from Pinipiru shared a stand with Annemiek from TwoTreesBelgium.Bai from ThongbaiTatong spoiled us with a beautiful pouch and Swiedebie gave me a plush apple pincushion which will be excellent in my sewing space. Thanks so much, supersweet, smiley ladies! :) I bought this cutie hat from Swiedebie for my nephew who turns 1 in 2 weeks. He will look much cuter in it then I do but I wanted to show you how awesome it is.
So happy I remembered his birthday when chatting with Swee while looking at her pretty stand! I'm terrible at remembering birthday's! ;)It was a fab weekend spend with friends & it made me forget a bit about the load of work I still have on my plate the coming weeks. Better get back to the to do-list now I suppose...
Have a great start of the new week everyone! :)