Studio Peek

Etsy Bloggers are sharing photos of their studios this month.

With bits and pieces of my various projects migrating to almost every room, my whole house seems to be my studio. I mainly work at my kitchen table, not terribly glamorous but it has great light and a wonderful view of my backyard.


I have a variety of storage containers.


I'm particularly fond of these.

I like the orderly little compartments and the fact that I can see what's inside without opening the lid.

This case is very efficient at storing a number of larger items. The multi-level tiers give me a lot of storage in a small space which is really great when I go to workshops.


I'm pretty low tech too and have been 'green' well before it was the 'in' thing to be.
I re-use all sorts of containers from plastic bags to cardboard boxes.

This has been my long time favorite way to keep my supplies semi-organized. The emphasis on semi, because while I'd love to be super organized I never quite seem to get there.

How do do like to organize your supplies/workspace. I'd love to hear your tips and tricks.

Blue Bird

Damask blue and green cardstock mounted on acid free paper and made into a set of three all occasion cards, this is just one of the lovely handmade items you will find at DesignsbyVanessa.

She also makes sweet jewelry items at great affordable prices.

And she has a fun, colorful blog where she features many great Etsy artists. Stop by and take a look.

River of Gold

AKA Vinyasa by Susan Pandorf.

I've been lusting after Susan's patterns for a while but being fairly new to lace knitting, and being prone to mistake making, I hesitated trying one of her patterns.

Vinyasa is a very easy pattern. Her directions are clear and the pattern is easily memorized. Of course that doesn't mean I haven't made any mistakes nor did I have to frog it and start all over, twice. But that's just me.

I would like it if she would include the pattern repeat in the specs. Otherwise, it's perfection.

BTW Vinyasa is my very favorite yoga style to practice and to teach.

Enchilada Casserole - Picky Eater Approved

Love this casserole from the FatFreeVegan site. It was just the right amount of sweet and spicy and was so easy to make. The hardest part was opening all of the cans.

I tweaked the recipe just a bit.

1) Added some salsa to the refried beans to make them easier to spread.

2)Used a can of salt free diced tomatoes because I forgot to buy fresh ones.

3)Used 3 cloves of garlic.

4)Subbed green olives for the black

5)Added cocoa powder and cinnamon to the enchilada sauce recipe. I didn't measure but I think I added about 2 Tbsp of the cocoa and 1/2 tsp of the cinnamon.

I served it with honey ginger marinated chicken breasts. Because there be meat eaters among us.

Tiger Lily

Artisan lampwork beads crafted onto sterling silver that has been hand coiled, formed and hammered into a one-of-a-kind bangle.

I love this latest piece so much I am tempted to keep it for myself.

Fall Into Color

Rich and luscious, soft and smokey I am so excited about the colors that are being shown for the fall and winter season. Normally I don't pay a lot of attention to the current trend but I really love the color combination and overall fashion feel that I'm seeing in the latest magazines and catalogs.

So with these colors in mind I've begun creating new pieces for the fall and holiday season.

This bangle features delightful artisan lampwork beads in shades of plum with coral accents. I've added dangles of amethyst, chalcedony and a sweet little sterling silver flower to echo the pattern in the focal bead. I'm sorry you can't see the little flower in this photo. It's next to the chalcedony nugget.


I fell in love with these beads the moment I saw them. They have such subtle depth of color and pattern, so interesting to look at. I've combined them with sterling silver and ceramic beads to make this one-of-a-kind bangle.


I don't know what it is about Fall, maybe it's the whole 'back to school' phenomenon, but I'm feeling particularly fresh with new inspiration.

Memory Maker

Memories for Life creates the most amazing albums and scrapbooks.


Here is an example of a custom design she offers to hold those special vacation/ destination memories. How clever is that! And so very personal.


And this cute 'Flip Flop' album is quite an attention grabber. It comes in several different designs so you can match the album to a number of different occasions.

She has a great blog too, where you can see more about her and her designs.