A New Etsy Venture

My Etsy Shop is open again, and this time I've got something totally new for you -- decorative fabric cane covers.

You might remember me telling you that my mom had knee replacement surgery last summer.  Knowing that Mom would need to use a cane during her recuperation process, a friend shared some cane covers with her. Mom wasn't too sure about them at first, but she decided to use them.  She ended up receiving all kinds of compliments, so she decided to make some to put in the Etsy Shop, thinking that somebody else out there might like the idea, too.

These are decorative fabric covers for a 3/4" cane.  A cover is easily added to your own cane!  Just remove the rubber cap at the bottom of your cane, slip on the cover, and replace the rubber cap.  The cane cover is made to have a "gathered" look.  Pick one to match a favorite outfit, or for a special occasion or holiday.

As a reminder, you can always click the "My Etsy" tab at the top of the blog to go directly to the shop.  In this post, each photo is linked to it's listing in the shop.  If you know someone who uses a cane, and would like to spruce it up a bit -- or someone who is going/has gone through knee replacement surgery, and is/will be using a cane... please feel free to tell them about us!  Thank you.

A Mother's Day Etsy-Discount for You!

I haven't spoken about my Etsy shop around here in a long time.  Mother's Day is coming though, so I thought I'd just give a little reminder that I have some nice sets AND assortments of Photo Note Cards.

Or perhaps there's a special mom, mom-to-be, or grand-mom in your life that needs a little Brag Book. These are also a perfect little add-on to a baby shower gift, and just the right size to tuck in a purse or even a diaper bag!

All of the items in my shop are ready to be shipped.
AND, in honor of Mother's Day, I'm offering a 20% discount!

Just use coupon code MOMSDAY3.
Act soon.  The discount starts today, and expires this Friday, May 3rd.
This coupon code is now expired.

Gone Fishin'

That's the new joke around here.  You see, I've become addicted to these:

That's right.  Pepperidge Farm Goldfish SOFT Bread -- of the cinnamon variety, if you please.  It all started when my daughter spotted them at one of our thrifty grocery stores.  She was on a kick with them for a while -- and then she gave them up cold turkey.  I don't even know what to tell you about that.  I mean why, oh why would anyone willingly give these up?  Being the good homemaker that I am [*cough], I couldn't let the leftovers go to waste -- and now I'm hooked!

They are quite simply "delectable."  Not in the gooey P-Dub cinnamon roll fashion or anything.  I did say QUITE SIMPLY.  They are a nice subtle cinnamon, but I think it's the texture that gets me.  My favorite way to enjoy them is lightly toasted, with no toppings.

After I realized my addiction how much I loved them, we stocked up on them for $1.00-$1.19 a pack.  Oh yes, my freezer was full of our thrifty "catch."  Until one day, the freezer was... (cue the scary music... jaws maybe?)  ...EMPTY.  And so, I went "fishing."  My catch-as-catch-can thrifty grocers didn't seem to be carrying these any longer.  What?  Say it isn't so.  Well, you know -- when all else fails... ASK SOMEONE.  The lovely clerk that took my inquiry said that the Pepperidge Farm man told her these weren't selling too well -- so he hadn't been bringing them lately.  What?  Not selling well?  For crying out loud.  I was buying every thrifty pack I could find.  And then my husband enlightened me.  "I'm pretty sure the Pepperidge Farm man meant they weren't selling well at the regular grocery store [you know, for FULL PRICE?] -- and so he had none to bring to the thrift grocer."  Oh, right.

[heavy sigh]

I feel like I'm swimming upstream!!!  Now, I can't even find these in the regular grocery stores.  I have been sad, sad, sad -- and a little "in withdrawal" I suspect.

And then it happened.  One day I walked into a regular grocery store, spotted one lone pack on the shelf, and did the unthinkable...

... I paid full price!

And if I'm honest, I can't say it won't happen again.  But, I won't give up "fishing" at the thrift grocer.  I never know what good stuff I might catch there!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Do you have a thrift grocer?

What about a thrift bakery?  [We used to have a WONDER Thrift Store nearby.  I don't need to tell you that tale.]

What do you do when you can't find a particular food product that you've been enjoying?  Shop online?  Talk to your store manager?  Give up?

Have you ever heard of HometownFavorites?  It's an on-line site for hard-to-find groceries.  We've ordered some things from them in the past.  They didn't ask me to tell you about them, I just thought I'd throw this information into my Fish Tale.

Okay -- I'm done with all this fishy folderol.  But from now on, if I leave a note saying "gone fishing," you'll know exactly what I mean.  I'm outta bread.

~ The End ~

p.s. I've listed some new Brag Books in THE SHOP.  I hope you'll check them out.  Here's a peek:

What's New?

Well, a new day for one -- and new weather.  That's Ohio for you!

Also, some new Etsy items that I forgot to tell you about - Mini Brag Books.  You might enjoy these if you're a fan of "red."  You can check them out in MY SHOP, but here's a little preview:

These Brag Books are the perfect purse size, but I'll tell you a little secret...  since I'm a parent of teens and a little beyond the Brag Book stage, I fill my Brag Book with all of the new school photos that come in our Christmas cards each year and I leave it out on the living room side table for browsing.  I do love to look at those cute faces and how they've grown!  I've had my book for a couple of years, and I tend to just put each new picture of a kiddo over the last one.

Don't forget these hold wallet-sized photos, but they'll also hold a business card -- so they'll make for pretty and feminine little business card holders too!

And... below is a little preview of what I hope will come soon... STAY TUNED!

Winter Be Gone!

Wow - another really cold morning.  I don't know about you, but I'm ready for winter to be over.  I'm trying to be upbeat, but it's dragging me down.  I'm ready for buds and blossoms, and all things green.  How about you?  I could really go for a little breeze through an open window this morning, but... well, that's not advisable.

There IS a light at the end of the tunnel, though -- or at the end of the DAY, I should say.  And mornings don't stay dark for so long.  All good signs that spring is coming!

One good thing about spending lots of time bundled up at home is that I can stock up my little shop.  I've been having fun with that.  Now, in addition to card assortments, I also have stocked a few card sets (same design).  One is this pink Gerbera Daisy design.

After some great feedback on THIS POST, I decided to make up some of these "Twine Heart" cards too. Valentines Day may have already passed us by, but ANY day is a good day for a little love note, right?  I'm hoping you'll like these.

Today, I have a sick girl at home -- so I'll be hunkered down here working on a few more ideas for you.  Stay tuned -- and stay healthy!

A Big Solution for a Little Problem

I love a good solution to a problem -- albeit a small problem.

A few years ago, I bought this sweet set of measuring spoons while on vacation.  A glistening silver set of  a "dash," a "pinch," and a "smidgen."  They came with a hook for hanging.  When we returned home, and I planned to hang the spoons, I soon realized that the hook did not properly account for the thickness of the spoons, and would not allow them to hang flat against one another.  Fail.

Now, I had three little spoons with awkward hanging holes at the top -- and no way to hang them, or keep them together as a set.  Enter Pinterest (of course).  I spotted a sweet set of measuring spoons from a popular store.  The spoons were held together with what looked like a kilt pin.  Do you know what I'm talking about?  (As a little girl, I had a plaid wool wrap-skirt with just such a pin.  Gotta say -- it was an awesome favorite of mine.)  So, I started googling kilt pins -- and speaking of awesome... um, yeah.  If you're a seriously kilt-er, you can pay a hefty price for your pin!  Just sayin.

Maybe I was on the wrong path for my little spoons?  Afterall, I wasn't looking to spend a lot of money for this little fix.  And then...an idea. I wish I could tell you where this idea came from.  I don't even remember now...

A stitch holder!  Found in the crocheting/knitting section at JoAnn Fabrics.  For a mere dollar or two, I had my solution!

I love a good solution to a problem.

Shop update~ Coming soon: sets of notecards w/ 5 of the same photo (as opposed to an assortment).  Also, I am glad to take custom orders for sets of 5, using any photos you see in my Etsy shop.  Just message me to work out the details.

An Etsy-Bitsy Announcement!

I am SO excited to share that...

I have taken the plunge, and opened an Etsy shop!

I've received so much encouragement from my family and friends as well as so many Note Card Party commentors -- and decided the time was right to try out some photo note cards on Etsy.  I hope you'll stop over and check out my little shop.  You'll see a new <---Etsy box in the left side-bar here on my blog.  You can click on any of the thumbnail photos or on my shop name at the bottom of the box.  Both will take you to my Etsy shop.

You'll recognize many of the photos there as being photos shared on my blog.  Some have been shared in Note Card Parties, and others are just within blog posts here and there. ALL photos have been taken by yours truly!  I've picked some favorites (lots of flowers, a set of roses, a pretty set of yellows, and some favorite vignettes) and compiled sets of FIVE -- with envelopes included, of course.  There are a lot more details over on Etsy...

... and I am OPEN for business.