Featured: Photography by Jodi (+ Giveaway! [Closed])

This is a feature AND a giveaway! Meet Jodi, the shop owner and creative mind behind Photography by Jodi. I'm captivated by the imagery and emotions her photography evokes. Some of her prints take me back to cherished childhood memories of happiness and simpleness. Jodi not only uses a very nice fancy camera (which I want) to capture her photographs, but she experiments with toy and vintage cameras as well. Her shop offers prints, jewelry (made using her photos), and notecard sets! Not only that, but you'll get to win something from her shop, with more information located at the bottom of this post :)

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Name: Jodi Lebrun
Location: Timmins, ON, Canada
Shop: photobyjodi.etsy.com
Blog: livinglifephotographically.blogspot.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/livinglifephotographically
Twitter: twitter.com/photobyjodi
Flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/photomamato4

Blue Bike Against a Fence.

Tell me a little about yourself.
I am a natural light photographer specializing in fine art images and glass jewelry pieces. I am also a mom to 4 great kids and married to my high school sweetheart. I have been taking pictures for as long as I can remember and I recently took the plunge and opened up ‘Photography By Jodi’ out of my home. I’m having the most amazing time getting this business off the ground! I spend my days dreaming about what I can create next and then shooting these images with my amazing collection of digital and film cameras (http://livinglifephotographically.blogspot.com/p/polaroid-love.html). I then give my images an artistic spin in Photoshop before I turn them into prints, a variety of jewelry pieces, or a unique notecard set.

Featured: The Dapper Owl (+ Sale Coupon!)

This week's feature is of vegan friendly soap-maker, Alex, from The Dapper Owl! I received some of her soaps from a trade and they smell soooo good (not to mention they work very well and make my hands feel sooooo smooth :) I love the colors and shapes she comes up with, and wouldn't hesitate to display them in the guest bathroom or give them as gifts.

Set of 4 Dinosaur Soaps

Name: Alexandra
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Website: DapperOwl.blogspot.com
Shop: TheDapperOwl.etsy.com
Blog: fyeahcrafting.tumblr.com [crafting] OR iseegodinbirds.tumblr.com [personal]

My stash! I got a lot of goodies from her. They all look so professional and come shrink-wrapped. She even sent me a few extras.

Tell me a little bit about yourself.
I’m a twenty year old full time college student who's a part time crafter. I started making soap and other bath products about a year ago for friends and family, and they encouraged me to open up my etsy shop. I've loved making things since I was little, and it was just a natural progression into every day life for me.

Set of Six Babushka Dolls

Featured: Julie and Co.

I won a temari ball from Julie and Co. awhile ago and loved it so much that I wanted to share her talents with everyone! Not only did it come in a cute takeout box, Julie also included a little explanation of the origin of temari. From her note:

"Temari is an ancient folk art form originating in China and later introduced to Japan by traveling Chinese monks. First crafted as a child's toy from remnants of old silk kimonos, temari evolved into an art form adopted by noble women in Japan's imperial society and handed down from mother to daughter..."

Isn't this just amazing?!?! This is the Starry Night ball that I won from Julie! The takeout box packaging is the perfect finishing touch.

Name: Julie
Location: Grand Rapids, MI
Shops: http://www.etsy.com/shop/julieandco, http://www.etsy.com/shop/julieandco2
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/julieandco.etsy

fractal blue - hand embroidered japanese temari

Tell me a little about yourself.
I am married to a wonderful man (nearly 27 years of marriage!) and mama to four gorgeous and sweet daughters and now a son-in-law. I have been sewing and crafting since I was a teenager and love to try new things. I knit, crochet, sew, stitch, embroider, bake, cook, homeschool, read, laugh, serve, pray, and love life.

filigree

Featured: Yee Von Illustrations

Meet one of my favorite artists, Yee Von, of Yee Von Illustrations and Whimsy Whimsical. She creates wonderfully dreamy, soft, romantic, and whimsical (of course) artwork. Looking at her illustrations takes my breath away and transports me to the days of magic, wishes, and fairy tales! :)

Poppies Fall - Small Print by chanyeevon

Name: Yee Von
Location: Malaysia
Website: http://chanyeevon.com
Shops: http://chanyeevon.etsy.com,
http://whimsywhimsical.etsy.com
Blog: http://chanyeevon.blogspot.com

I Love Spring Time Notecards by whimsywhimsical

Tell me a little about yourself.
I'm Yee Von, a freelance illustrator from Malaysia. My artworks are pen on paper and colored digitally in Photoshop. I love the feeling of putting my imaginations onto paper with ink. Other than that, I enjoy stargazing and looking at the clouds in the sky which just makes me feel relaxed. I currently have a full-time day job, and my etsy shops are my part-time job :)

Simply Happy - Mr Hedgehog by whimsywhimsical

Featured: Eldorado Soaps

I wanted to share with you some of the most gorgeous, delicious-looking soaps I've ever seen. Okay, so soaps will never be delicious, but nothing wrong with looking good :) Meet Crystal of Eldorado Soaps and be amazed!

Don't you want to eat this?? Or just touch it? :O
Sweet Berry Cordial Glycerin Soap Bar

Name: Crystal
Location: Seattle-Bremerton, Washington (Pacific Northwest)
Shop: http://eldoradosoap.etsy.com/
Blog: http://eldoradosoap.blogspot.com/

Sweet Orange Glycerin Soap Bar

Tell me a little about yourself.
My name is Crystal, I was born and raised on Bainbridge Island, a small island in the Pacific Northwest. The neighborhood where I grew up was filled with many local artists. Summer was a wonderful time of the year in this place.

An artist who lived very close to me had her own art studio and I used to watch her create some of the most amazing soft sculptures. Throughout my childhood I was encouraged to be just as creative. It is this childhood experience that has followed me through life, and led me to my own passion for creating beautiful things.

Orange Sherbet Bath Fizzie Bomb

Featured: Annemarie's Breiblog

Who's ready for another featured artisan and some cheerful crochets? Just in time for the coming of Spring (and Valentine's day), Annemarie's adorable and colorful crochet garlands (among other goodies) will brighten your room, work space, or anywhere else that needs some uplifting.

Choose your own colours - Little Hearts Garland



Name: Annemarie
Location: The Netherlands (ships internationally)
Shop: www.etsy.com/shop/annemariesbreiblog
Blog: www.annemariesbreiblog.blogspot.com

Pink Hearts Garland

Tell me a little about yourself:
I am 35 years old, I have a full-time job and I live in The Netherlands. Although my job takes a lot of my energy, I try to crochet every day. My first crochet projects were made out of t-shirt yarn. In The Netherlands they sell it in shops and it has become very popular here over the past year (see www.hoooked.nl). I think working with t-shirt yarn is a great way to learn to crochet because the thread is huge so you can see very well what you are doing.

Crochet Fish

What Could Be Worse Than Snowstorms?

Icy rain. It's actually the term for rain that immediately turns to ice once it hits the ground, which is what we're going to have today and tomorrow. Snowstorms are much better because you can at least walk/drive in it without sliding and you won't get drenched within 10 minutes of being outside.

Newsboy Crochet Aran Fleck by PowersOfLove

I lost my favorite knit cream hat (very similar to the cute one above) somewhere just before this winter started. I originally bought it at Target about three years ago and wore it every winter, but I just haven't seen it again :( which is probably a good thing because I've discovered so many great handmade knit items on Etsy!  The newsboy hat above is actually the same price as my hat from Target, but I could be supporting a real person instead of some corporation with questionable sources.

Happy wrist-warmers to get me through the crappy weather.
Wrist Warmer Fingerless Gloves by PowersOfLove

Lisa, the woman behind PowersOfLove, started her shop with the intention of financing the adoption of children from foster care. The costs of adoption can run high, but she and her husband dream of providing a stable, loving, and (most importantly) permanent home for some lucky children :)

Earflap Hat Crochet Infant/Toddler by PowersOfLove

She also crochets little hats for infants! Isn't this adorable? Check out her shop and her blog for more cozy winter goodies and custom orders.

On another note, here's a pretty little treasury to distract you (or me) from the icy rain...

'Beauty in Simplicity' by priya123

Coco, Cute bow neck... yanessab $26.00	Petite shabby cotta... BarkingBirds $12.00	dainty... breezy to... sunnybrookfarm... $30.00
Fine Art Print Love... Mirthquake $25.00	Set 6 pink Giraffe ... Mariapalito $7.99	Three Pebbles toget... AmuAndPriShop $28.00
Rabbit Silhouette C... kattuna $3.50	Sunday Morning, 8x1... cottagelightst... $22.00	The KEY to My HEART... timelessNchic $29.95
Icicles Necklace - ... petitehermine $20.00	Small Clasp Purse -... blota $28.00	Double strand embro... PonderandStitc... $26.00
DMC Perle Cotton Th... NAKPUNAR $2.69	Vintage Scalloped R... NevermorePrimi... $11.50	Unique, Blue and Wh... oldebuttonshop... $27.50

Treasury tool is sponsored by Lazzia.com.

Featured: Calliope AZ Creations

It's time to shine the spotlight on another noteworthy Etsy shop owner! This time, it's one of my favorite jewelry makers, Marianne of CalliopeAZCreations, who makes some beautiful, intricately-beaded necklaces. They're definitely worth treasuring.

Can you imagine all the time and work that goes into stringing those millions of tiny beads by hand??? It's amazing!
Shady Path Spiral Necklace

Name: Marianne
Location: Tucson Arizona (the Wild West)
Website: http://www.etsy.com/shop/calliopeazcreations
Shop: CalliopeAZCreations
Blog: http://calliopecreations.blogspot.com/


Tell me a little about yourself.
I’ve been beading, weaving, working with clay and collecting interesting natural specimens since I was very small. I seem to be doing pretty much the same things now but on a larger scale.

I'm primarily self-taught but have spent time learning from local artists willing to share their techniques. I live in Tucson, Arizona. When not working on my various creative projects, I can be found training and showing my Shetland Sheepdogs and my Border Collie in Herding, Agility and Obedience competitions. This takes me outdoors, out of town and into the country which provides inspiration and nurtures my spirit.

My work has been sold at the Tucson Museum of Art gift shop as well as in galleries in California and Arizona. Many of my pieces are in private collections across the country. I am delighted when someone likes my work well enough to purchase it. Hopefully, they enjoy wearing the jewelry as much as I did making it.

Most of my jewelry is one-of-a-kind or Limited Edition designer pieces featuring a variety of elements. These are eye catching pieces utilizing unique combinations of semi-precious gemstones, pearls, sterling silver, gold-filled elements, natural stone, seed beads and fibers.

Earth elements include small stones, feathers, natural and glass elements, small pieces of desert driftwood and anything else that catches my eye. To many, these are small decorative elements. To others, these have metaphysical significance depending on the contents.

Anemone Glass Pendant

Flowers and Jewelry: Pre n' Das by Enid

The Terracotta Headband by prendasbyenid

I wanted to share one of my favorite Etsy friends with you today: Pre n' Das by Enid. Her items are one part whimsical, one part dainty, and two parts eye-catching! If you like flower headbands, flower brooches, and a variety of jewelry and other pretty things, check out Enid's Etsy shop!

A Tiny Heart

You can also find her on her blog, Twitter, and Facebook!

Here are more of my favorites :)

Purple Flower in a Bobby Pin

Orange Soft Velvet Earrings

10 EcoFriendly Recycled Envelopes

90 Large Bobby Pins