Home & Handmade Christmas Shopping Guide!

This year, I have decided to do something a little different with my Christmas shopping. All of my gifts will be either home made out of materials from locally owned Orlando stores or they will be handmade by  other talented individual store owners!

What does this mean for you guys?

Etsy finds galore!

So many yummy recipes!

So many fun and simple DIY's you won't know what to do with yourself!

So to start the handmade off right, here's an idea that was a huge hit for me last Christmas: Canvas tote bags! These typically inexpensive presents are perfect for anyone. They can either be given alone as a new school bag or reusable shopping bag or You can stuff them with more presents and use it as fun, reusable and eco friendly wrapping!

1. Camera Tote via lastearth $10
2. Screw This wine tote bag via PamelaFugateDesigns $16.95 FREE SHIPPING
3. Foxy Lady Tote via squarepaisleydesign $15
4. Dandelion Tote via Westmama $28

And my absolute favorite, that I already bought 2 of as presents...

Pamela Fugate Designs is also having a Cyber Monday sale so snatch these babies up while you can get them for only $12.95 a piece plus free shipping!

If you are a handmade shop owner and are interested in being featured free of charge in one of these December shopping posts, shoot me an e-mail! I would love to help you spread the word about your art!

Etsy every other day!

If there is one thing Annika and I have in common above anything else is our love for craftiness. We were both photography majors and love art especially when we know its made with care. We both love to make things, at this point the majority of our walls are covered with something we have either bought off Etsy or found and decided we can make ourselves. So with that said here are a couple of my favorite "I want to make that" items I've found on Etsy in the last couple days. I know some are way beyond my scope of wood working ability but that just means its another thing for the Christmas list right!

I want an Iphone...not because of how hip or user friendly it is, honestly I've hacked my android to be so much better. I want an Iphone because of this case. Hand etched and one of a kind wooden cover for your phone.

(by the way the shop name is "grandmaswoodentooth" if only grandma was actually making these)

Ok I can actually make this one! Or at least I need to learn how before Annika and I move because I promised her I would. There custom wall mounted bookshelves from "Stellabluedesigns". They've got all different styles and forms ready to ship and all have an awesome rustic and modern feel to them and even though there dark piping they still feel kinda warm.

As previously stated, we love good art for the walls. With that said it seems that alot of people feel like only pictures and paintings can be art and that wood can only be used for the frame. Why not just make the frame the art and fill it with the left overs! I was watching The Walking Dead last night and the follow up show had an amazing piece of art in the background. I need something similar and I feel like I can pull this one off for sure but if I fail miserably this shop will definitely be there to help out. "Inner Beauty Designs" creates custom wooden artwork for your walls, just browse the shop to much variety to describe!

Ok, now I have no way to make this myself but it's wood, its wearable, and its pretty amazing that someone made this. I love watches, pocket watches especially. Annika got me an amazing pocket watch off Etsy about a year ago and even though she thinks I never wear it I absolutely love it. So this is on the christmas list for next year. A hand made wooden wristwatch thats also digital..SO COOL! Credit goes to "KurtWakefield79"

Alright so Annika is on her way home now, time to clean the house and try to make it presentable before she gets back. Got a 2 hour drive to Tampa to pick her up, hope I did her some justice! Happy Halloween!

Etsy Every(other)day: Sponsors and birthdays and cheesecake, oh my!

So, I dont know if I have told you guys this lately, but my sponsors are positively awesome! They are all some of the sweetest and most creative girls in the world and have given me a very warm and fuzzy welcome to the blogging world!

One of these girls in particular though, has helped me even more than she knows! Tara over at Deer in a Bottle not only has an amazing blog but also a darling Etsy shop! About a week ago I was on the hunt for a birthday present for Nick's cousin and she's a pretty girl who likes pretty things and just happens to have just started going to the same college as I do! So of course I had my eyes peeled for something black and gold (yay knights!!) when I stumbled upon this lovely gem!

Deer in a Bottle

I cleared the present selection with the boyfriend and ordered away! Not only did it get to me super fast (and I mean super fast like, only about 4 days turn around) but Tara had the cutest packaging and an adorable little note included!

The necklace is even more lovely in person and really made me wish I had ordered one for myself! Like this one!

Or this one?

Ok ok, you get the idea. And yes, everything in her shop is just as cute as the ones I mentioned! So after a yummy meal and some cheesecake, Danielle loved her birthday present!

The moral of this story? Blog buddies are fantastic and you should go visit Tara here and especially here!

The hunt is on...

A long long time ago on a random tumblr (far far away?) I found a picture and saying that made me unbeliebably happy. It's cute, funny and truly words to live by. It has been stuck on my desktop ever since.

This adorable image has kept me chipper on many a bad day. After an especially bad weekend, I decided to find the original creator and try and find out about getting a print. Well, if you've ever tried to find the original home of something from tumblr before, you know what happened. That tumblr lead me to a blog, which lead me to another tumblr, that was reblogged from weheartit, where they found it on pinterest who had sited the original source as another tumblr. At that point, I was about to give up. Until I realized...

ETSY! The place for all things wonderful and hand made! My search finally lead me to a fantastic shop called Studio Mela and not only did she have my bird print for sale and at a reasonable price, she also sells it in just about every color you can imagine!

I'm pretty sure I'm going to stick to the peach one though, just because it has been to engrained in my memory. I'm also toying with the idea of grabbing one of her other adorable "surround yourself with positivity" prints!

And many many other adorable and happy images! Hop on over to Studio Mela and make yourself as happy as a bird with a french fry!

Etsy Every(other)day: Well, Owl Bee!

It's baby shower season!! And for me, that means crafting all things cute! I have had a few ideas for things to make but I'm pretty sure Fresh Stitches takes cake..

Sadly, I know all too well from endless Etsy trolling, that custom stuffed animals can be really pricey (not for me of course. New babies and little sisters and such... yeah.)... But these little darlings are actually crochet patterns all for $5 or less! So, for the cost of yarn and a very reasonably priced pattern you can have endless little kid (and little kid at heart) gifts!

Etsy Every(other)day: Special Edition

This week has just been an off one for me. Not bad, just off. I procrastinated a paper (which is something I never do), deleted an entire folder of edited photos (luckily I had a back-up on my thumb drive) and of course, forgot to post any Etsy finds this week! So to make up for it, get ready for Mint Madness!!! Which may or may not be entirely influenced by my unhealthy obsession with my Essie Mint Candy Apple nail polish.

Source

Earrings Nation

Live In Style

Jessica Durrant

Darrielles Clay Art

Joom

River Of Romansk

And to top it all off, here's a picture of a baby bunny. 

Etsy Every(other)day

Original Art Expat Diorama Barn Wood Rustic Paper Sculpture

I will state only few technical details about it, but it is up to you to add to it what you feel. Old weathered rescued board with rusty starred bar hanger (Djordje, my son, who folded butterflies designed by Rikki Donachie, said that bar is not rusty, yet oxidized), is a base for flowers made from rescued books in several languages, and the title as well the signature are written in Cyrillic. Just as this gorgeous country, that embraced us, and which I deeply love, is diverse, the same are the flowers in it - each different, but yet each equal with others. Two butterflies are made from US map - each of them folded from east and west part of America. If you feel the same about it, you may want to have it in your home.

These piece is much too far outside of my budget for me to afford now but it does allow for very lovely day dreams of it decorating the walls of a vintage home covered from top to bottom in Southern charm… And the love and thought that were put behind each and every detail just make me love it even more!!

And to play a little catch up on my photo challenge (all of which can now be found here)!

Day 5: someone I love

Sure, I could have posted one of the 5 thousand pictures I have taken of Nick but technically, this guy has been in my heart longer. Meet Ace. I adopted him during a rather rough patch in my life and he's stuck around every since. He is one of the most empathetic animals I have ever met so if you come to my house and for one reason or another start crying, expect him to instantly being in your lap. These days, things are better and I am much happier but still without fail if I'm ever feeling sad, he's right there. I'm still not sure if I rescued him, or if he rescued me. 

Day 6: childhood memory

And some tunes to start your day with! Have a great weekend, my lovelies!

Etsy Every(other)day

Retro Modern Eames-style Coffee Table Furniture Plan

This table may in fact be one of the coolest things I have discovered on Etsy. Not only it it a gorgeous design that looks like something out of 'Mad Men' but it also is a full size coffee table that will only cost you roughly $30 and requires no shipping & handling.

How is this possible? Because this company doesn't actually SELL you the table. They sell you a plan on how to build the table, that is specially designed to use only 1 piece of plywood and dowel pins.

Plywood- $20

Dowel Pins- $3

Plan- $7

Genius, right? I may have even convinced Nick to take on this project with me! Keep your fingers crossed!!

Etsy and then some!

A few days ago while trolling the internet in search of some nifty Etsy find to post today, I stumbled upon something even better. An awesome Etsy shop that just happens to be owned by an equally awesome blogger! Dana over at Wonder Forest also owns a shop by the same name where she sells these simply adorable plushes

Wonder Forest (the shop) has given me a serious dilema though. Apparently, when you turn 24, that is the instant when ALL your friends start getting pregnant. This is an amazing thing for me because while I adore babies, my maternal instinct has not kicked in yet in the slightest. So when my friends have cute little bundles of joy, I get to play with them and buy them cute things but also hand them back to their mothers when tears start or funny smells make their presence known! So on one hand, I want to buy one for all of the baby showers I have coming up in the next few months. But... I also fear for the safety of this adorable creature in the hands of a small child... So to combat this feeling, I think I'll just have to pick up one of her wonderful DSLR camera straps and give the gift of baby pictures!

As for her blog... Well, let's just say I adore it. Everything from the layout to the tutorials and just daily insite on life (oh and one really cute story about she and her future hubby)! And through her blog I also discovered this:

And decided to give it a try. 2 years ago I graduated college with a degree in photography and not to be a Debbie Downer but, it sort of killed my passion for the camera. After my recent trip over seas though, the Annika hearts Nikon love affair is back on in full force! So what better way to re-hone my skills than a 30 day personal challenge? That being said, Day 1.

Bright-eyed, only slightly bushy tailed and enjoying a coffee before work. I just finished participating in my very first link party too! Thanks for hosting Just A Girl!! Good morning world! I wish you a lovely day!

Etsy Every(other)day

Oh Florida… Home of the year round Summer, your Grandparents, Mickey Mouse and me. How could I not love you? A cute and simple way to show some home state pride! Destiny's Creations has a personalized touch for everyone from

all the way to...

My best friend's birthday is only one day apart from me but as of 2 years ago we are about 5 states apart.. So this year I'm going to order the Florida one for myself and the Mississippi one for her as a modern twist on the classic Best Friend necklace! But shhhhh don't tell her!!

All this and more, brought to you by DestinysCreations