love is in the air

kats in the belfry has been getting some love on a few oh so nice websites/blogs. it is quite a wonderful feeling, i must say. lookie here:

* pure pixie features autumn. doesn't he look handsome?

* a few items are shown on natural suburbia, though only my portobellas are mentioned. if you look closely you may also spy my mini mushroom set, & spring on the bottom shelf.

* scroll down oh my! handmade goodness' fantabulistic (real word) holiday gift guide to see my birthday crown.

if all that were not woohoo enough, today i spoke with a woman about carrying my birthday crowns & birthday tiaras in her lovely boutique! we shall see where that path takes us. & yes, i am speaking of the royal we :)

i hope you get some love today as well.
~peace

a fresh start OR finding me

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i have been spending a great deal of time thinking about my blog & biz. lately i have not had the time to give either proper attention. that's resulted in half-arsed posts; when i remember to post; & too many shop items in desperate need of being rephotographed. those things - for me - lead to stress.

all that thinking; besides being vastly less fun than daydreaming; led me to decide it was time for things to get back on track. or get on the right track. oh! now this song is stuck in my head. your welcome :)

blogging how i used to should be an easy enough thing, once i get my mind set on doing so. & um, perhaps get a bit of sleep & exercise? a sluggish body makes a for a sluggish mind. or something like that. remembering to take photos should also aid in getting back to my bloggerific ways.

as for theshop? i am not sure yet what i am going to do. closing isn't an option, i love creating & selling too much. i do think i need a fresh start though. i want to get back to how i began this adventure: sewing. i miss making funky drink slings, & market totes. i have never even put my funky mama/kid aprons in my shop, not to mention a bunch of other things i'd sold only at shows, or given as gifts. & do not get me started on the ideas that fill the pages of my sketchbooks!

that is not to say the little wooden dolls & toys are going to be discontinued, not in the least. i just want to things to be more me. some days i think a brick & mortar shop would be a better venue for me. etsy is just so big a pond, & it hard getting people to find my quirky little fish of a shop.



so my first step on this fresh start is to clean house, so to speak. it came to me that a sale of freakish proportions would be just the thing. i get my stock moved out to make room for my fresh start, & you get quality handmade items for freakishly low prices - just in time for the holidays.

from now, until the end of november (or stock runs out) everything in theshop will be 40% off!!!! i told you it was a sale of freakish proportions. so let's get things rolling: please take a look in my etsy shop, &  shop till you drop. oh, & don't forget to share the link with others - no hogging the goodies! thank you :)

here's to a fresh start, & finding me again. (did i forget to tell you that you'd need a glass of wine with this post? sorry.)

~peace.

drawing of a blog-a-thon-y kind

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i loved reading what your favorite springtime foods are. the comment that had me all a-giggle was atypical girl's cadbury cream eggs. to that i have to say, bock-meow bock-meow!

my 2 favorite veg were amongst those listed; asparagus & leeks. i love them best fresh off the grill. & to those who said ice cream, that is not a springtime food - that is an every day food. except today, for i haven't any! i know!!!

thanks to all of you for playing, i enjoyed it immensely. now on to the drawing! no hobbity top hat this time, i'm a week into dealing with a family-wide pestilence. instead we'll rely on the random number thingamajig.

Domestic Diva said...
Asparagus is my favorite springtime food too. Yum! It's especially good with fresh eggs.

congrats domestic diva! send your address to , & i'll send your prezzie! this is just too much fun.

next on the fun calendar, is the earth day fabulousness of the utmost kind!


okey doke, as much as i'd love to stay & babble at you all day, i've got snotty noses to wipe. blah.

peace.

walking in perfection

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thehobbit came in from checking for ladybugs on our porch, to proclaim it a perfect morning for a walk.

i quickly dressed, found my camera & elfling's sunhat, & headed outside with my boys.

he was right! the air smelled of newly mowed grass, the only sound to be heard was that of birds singing, & the sun warmed our skin - perfect.



we walked, looked at flowers, searched for butterflies, & took photos of nature's beautiful creations.



as well as photos of my beautiful creation.


the warm air soon turned hot, & we were forced back indoors. i don't do well when the mercury is anywhere near hits 80. our walk was lovely while it lasted. perfect, in fact.


i hope your day is perfectly lovely.
~peace.

give-aways galore!

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unrelated photo of the privet budding!

i've lots of give-aways happening right now, & by lots i mean three! oooh. aaaah. ok, so 3 isn't exactly a large number, but my swiss cheese brain can only handle so much in any given moment, so there.

*there is my spring blog-a-thon give-away with the natural kids: all you need do for a chance to win spring is leave a comment about your favorite springtime food. click here to enter. i'll draw the winner on march 26th.

*next we have my quest to have 100 fans on facebook: a chance to win a mini birthday bunting is easy; fan me here. (note :: i have hit the 100 mark, so the drawing is a go!) the drawing will be this sunday.

*& finally my quest to have 150 fans on facebook: the same as above, fan me here! that drawing is also scheduled for sunday - assuming we hit the magic number by then.

*

a friend announced her easter give-away today: polarbear creations - i want to win this bunny.

for more, please look through my posts since the blog-a-thon began! i've listed a few blogs at the bottom of each post. most of them have drawings going on.

good luck to all of you!

~peace.

thursday things - blog-a-thon-ing with natural kids

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when i first heard about this i thought um, no thanks. unless it's to a thrift shop, i don't run. it didn't take me long to realize that this -athon had nothing to do with running a marathon. blogging on purpose? with others? now that's something i can do!



the naturalkids team began in 2007, by woodmouse. a small group whose members shared one mission; to create natural products for children. an early post read:



We are a diverse bunch from all over the globe who have at least one thing in common: we all work with natural materials in our products for children. Oh yeah, and we're all pretty darn crafty & talented too! Wool, wood, cotton...just simple materials direct from the Earth.

So who are we?
Some of us are mothers of small children.
Some of us are mothers of grown children.
Some of us make dolls, some of us make hats, some of us make toys.
Some of us have been selling our wares for many years.
Some of us are just starting to discover our talents and start selling.
Some of us work with natural materials for environmental reasons.
Some of us work with natural materials as part of the Waldorf educational philosophy.
Some of us work with natural materials because we believe they are healthier and safer.
Some of us just like working with natural materials.
Some of us sell our wares for a living.
Some of us sell our wares as a hobby.



since then the group has grown by leaps & bounds. added to the above?



some of us are dads.
some of us are amazed they have the energy to create, now that they have a teeny elfling, & a hobbit in puberty.



back to the blog-a-thon: for the next month i'll be chatting about what i, & other blog-a-thoners are creating for spring. there shall be links to fabulous blogs (to which you are expected to visit - yes, i am bossing you around, but we both know you like when i do.), some with give-aways even!



here are today's blogs: the reluctant city dweller & the fairies' nest & sewn natural studio.



my official springtime-blog-a-thony-give-away is that little lady pictured above. spring is the first in a line of pagan people. she would love to get snuck into an easter basket, put on an ostara alter, or be the envy of the dollhouse. of course, if you're like me, you'd keep her for yourself, & give your wee one an extra egg.

to have her for your very own, leave a comment in this post, telling me your favorite springtime food.
to earn more chances to win you can share my give-away on your blog, tweet the link, & facebook the link. i'm not sure that sentence was grammatically correct, but not much here is.
thehobbit shall draw the winner from his top hat on march 26th. oh! don't forget to come back to let me know about the linking, tweeting, & such.

the contest is officially closed!

good luck! now go read today's blogs, & enter their give-aways. (more blogs tomorrow)
~peace.


** you can also purchase spring here. **