A Quartzy Life

Another great addition to my wonderful array of art is a beautiful piece from A Quartzy Life, titled "As I started looking." Lauren, a College student, makes beautiful (and all original!) pieces of very affordable art. All her pieces have some message to convey through them. They all incorporate lots of colors or textures (like mine!) that make her work very unique.

My piece of art was a mixed media piece painted on light weight wood. I love mixed media pieces especially if they are on wood because you don't even need to frame them! They look great on their own. If you don't want to buy a frame or worry about framing one of her works on paper, she has a few pieces for sale that are already framed for very reasonable prices.

Lauren was such a pleasure to deal with. She was very accommodating and kind. If you want an inexpensive, unique and original piece of art, go check A Quartzy Life out! I can't wait to get a bigger place so that I can add another one of her originals to my collection!

Soy + Soy Wax Melts

I love when my room smells good and especially love burning candles. I was looking on etsy to get something to make my room smelling good when I came across home fragrance oils. I bought them and they are great, but it was a hassle buying those tea lights and constantly having to add water to the oil. So I kept looking for a better alternative. Then I came across soy wax melts.

That got me thinking, what's the difference between regular wax melts and soy wax melts. I looked up information about soy and it's used as food, made into tofu, soy milk, wax and oil. It has many uses and is very healthy and better for the enviornment than it's 'other' counter parts. When I started to read about soy wax vs. regular (bees & parafin) wax there was a huge difference. Soy wax burns clean where regular candle wax can leave soot on your walls! It has a very low melting point so you can use it in low-watt wax burners and it burns more evenly than regular wax. It's also bio degradable since it's made from a plant. I was hooked when I read all of this.

So I made a purchase from Sparkle Puss for some soy wax melts. They smell divine and I had them in a tart warmer in my room. You could even smell it coming up the stairs in my house and my mom even made a comment about how nice my room smells! If you love burning candles or wax melts, consider soy as a more environmentally friendly option.

Long time no post

Yes, I know it's been a while since I've posted but I've been quite busy. I moved back to the US from Poland and have just finally been able to set in. And now my mom got a job in West Virginia so we will be moving in 4 weeks. Time to pack everything up again, but this move won't be as bad as moving to another country again! I think I can officially consider myself a pro at moving now, having done it about 12 times already.

Hopefully soon I'll be able to update with some great Etsy shops when I get a bit more free time. But for now, I just wanted to let everyone know that I'm still alive :)

More Art...Now from krize

Well here is another cute little shop to feed my addition to art! Kristin Sabaite's Shop takes you away into her imagination. Her shop is filled with quirky people and fun animals. She is a children's illustrator from Lithuania but now resides in Spain. Again, I had a hard time deciding exactly what I wanted from her shop because each illustration is so unique!

Once again, I had to get something with a dog (is this an obsession or what?) and of course one of her quirky girls. I chose three! things in the end. I got the "Sea Theme Note cards, " "About Friends" and a mini notebook with a cute little pup drawn on the front. The sea theme note cards are great, but I'm being a bit selfish and am going to frame them instead of sending them to friends - they are too cute, can you blame me?

The "All About Friends" print fits me so perfectly..straight from Kristin's Shop.. "There are days, when you feel especially sad, hours - full of loneliness and gloom ...On these days you sit down and close your eyes. At least your best friend is here ... at least you are far away from everything ... Your friend doesn’t speak, because at this moment you don’t need words. You need his presence. Nothing else. If you have a friend like him, does the sadness really exist?
You rise and give him a kiss on his wet little nose and say "Let’s go my friend, it’s very cold here." And all that is left are a few footprints in the snow ... yours and your friends." After reading that how could I not get it?

Lastly I got the mini notebook with the dog drawn on it. I'm a sucker for notebooks & journals so when I saw a dog drawn on one, I knew it had to be mine!

Although I did not get anything from Kristin's second shop, It's full of bags and jewelry with her wonderful illustrations on them! I recommend checking both of her shops out, maybe you'll also walk away with some art of your own!

And the winner is...

panyizsuzsi! Congratulations!

I used randomizer.org and Zsuzsi's number got chosen! Zsuzsi chose the Nancy Bag, which I think just fits perfectly with her glass art!

There was also a secret to my giveaway! I let randomizer choose a second number to win a smaller prize, a wristlet! And the secret runner up winner is ingermaaike. She chose the Kelly wristlet. I hope both of these wonderful ladies enjoy their new bags!

I just want to thank everyone that left a comment on my blog. Maybe I'll do another giveaway in the future since this one had a good turnout.

Be Happy Now

I don't remember how I found Jenny's shop, but as soon as I found it I was in love. All her paintings and drawings are so original and definitely show her style. I was especially drawn to her work because it's not the typical things that are popular these days - deer, birds, cupcakes, matryoshka dolls, etc. Don't get me wrong, I like all of the above and think they're cute, but as soon as the fad is over then all these stuff just looks strange all over your walls. But then again, I do have an eclectic style.

I hearted many of her items, many of them selling out before I could purchase. Most of her artwork incorporates some kind of animal or monster, which I just love (I'm a dog lover myself). The colors are just so bright and lively, they really do make you Happy! I really had a hard time deciding what I wanted but I finally made my decision. I got "3 Monsters and a Dog" and "Just Be Happy." The Monsters and dog painting, I think is obvious why I got it and I got the Just Be Happy because I have many days when I need to be reminded to not take everything so seriously and Just Be Happy!

The shipping was fast coming from Isreal and Jenny even drew on the envelope (which I will probably cut the images out and frame too!) and sent me a little thank you with the work that I bought. I wish I had more room on my walls to buy more, but I guess I'll just buy some as gifts to make others happy :)

Left or Right Brained?

I found this on a fellow EST members blog. I always knew I was both left and right brained - love the sciences but I have also been crafty my whole life. I wanted to see which I was more...

You Are 40% Left Brained, 60% Right Brained

The left side of your brain controls verbal ability, attention to detail, and reasoning. Left brained people are good at communication and persuading others. If you're left brained, you are likely good at math and logic. Your left brain prefers dogs, reading, and quiet. The right side of your brain is all about creativity and flexibility. Daring and intuitive, right brained people see the world in their unique way. If you're right brained, you likely have a talent for creative writing and art. Your right brain prefers day dreaming, philosophy, and sports.

Are You Right or Left Brained?