Buy Handmade!

You won’t find me shopping the Black Friday "sales", as I prefer to purchase from an artist or artisan and buy handmade. I am participating in Small Business Saturday however and I’ll be looking for handcrafted goods or service offered locally by small business. While the masses are out pushing, shoving, waiting in line only to be let down when the deals are not really that good, or what they wanted is gone, I am sitting here with my cup of coffee, sweet music playing, talking to you.
Remember to look for gift certificates for services in your community. Not limited to but including car repair, car wash, child care, housekeeping, providing meals, yard work, snow removal, haircuts (at small locally owned beauty shops/barbers) just keep it small, keep it local! If you plan to visit a coffee shop, try out one of the small, independently owned shops rather than one of the large chains.
A lot of folks tend to believe that if you buy handmade you are either paying way too much or not getting good quality while the opposite is actually true.
The sweetest thing about getting something handcrafted is it is almost always unique. For instance, if you buy a piece of jewelry or a hat from me I guarantee you that you will not see another one like it coming down the street towards you unless you purchased it as a gift. The same is true with most handcrafted goods.
Consider these points:
First and foremost you are supporting your economy, a small business, an entrepreneur, or a stay at home mom perhaps.
The quality you get when you buy handmade in most cases far exceeds the "made in China" goods you can buy at big box stores.
It is easier to shop handmade from home and there are a lot of artisans who offer free shipping and gift wrapping, like myself. No gas to waste, parking spaces to hunt for or lines to stand in. Use keywords like "handmade", "handcrafted", "artisan-created" or you can go to Etsy or, Artfire where they have a large community of wonderful creators. You do have to be careful of Etsy. When they first began everything had to be handmade, not so anymore but all you have to do is hit the "handmade button" and it will limit your search to handcrafted items…almost. I do suspect that some of the shops located in the East are mass produced as they will sometimes have a large quantity for sale or when you look in the "sold" section of their shop they have sold 150 of the EXACT same thing. Making 2 handmade identical-in-every-way items is extremely difficult; just keep that in mind.
You can use the "shop local" feature and discover artisans and crafters you never knew existed right in your own back yard!

I hope everyone will support independent artisan, crafters and small business this year and each year forward. Start small if you like. Commit to buying this way for 3 people on your list.
Have some fun, express your individuality and that of your recipient…shop outside the box!

Call to Artists

Because I love to buy handmade regardless of what I am buying I have decided to have some fun and feature a different handcrafted item and the artisan who created it 3 times week. You will find all sorts of things here, fine arts, fiber arts, artisan created jewelry, pottery, clothing and the list goes on.

My goal is too help other designers and artists promote their work. Let's make the handcrafted market explode together by supporting those who through their creative vision bring beauty into our world.
The artisan will be submitting photos, description of the piece, price, a short Bio and a link to where you can find them on the Internet!
Check back next week for the first one…who will it be?
Are you interested in being featured? Send the above info to info@divelladelights.com






--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Zipper Pull

Have you ever lost a zipper pull on a jacket or a bag or had one break? Here is an easy fix… This one is the first. You see, the zipper pull on my favorite wool jacket broke so I whipped this one up at 4 AM before I had to wear to go to work. I need to work my wire better for the next one but considering this one was done before sunrise, I am OK with it!I used a beautiful lampwork bead, 2 silver round beads, a scrap of felted wool I cut into a bead shape, one head pin and about 4 inches of silver wire and a bog lobster claw clasp. If you have some odd beads lying around this is the perfect item! If you want step by step directions, let me know and I will do a detailed demo with photographs for you. Thanks for stopping by!

Small Felted Bags

Because I had a request from the local jewelry store to do these little bags I thought I would make some for my Internet customers as well. They are all hand knit with 100% wool and some novelty mohair and angora then felted. They have a heavy-duty snap closure and most of the embellishments are handmade by me as well. They are great for gift bags and perfect for business cards, money, credit cards, etc… I am also making a variety of other sizes perfect for all those pesky little items that get lost in your bigger bag. I use one to keep my GPS and digital camera from getting scratched. Lots more to come so stay tuned into Divella Delights for more felted bags and jewlery!

My New Felted Bag

I wanted a cool new bag for my trip, especially since I am going a-marketing so I whipped this one up. It is large, has a beaded crochet rope handle and cool brass leaves attaching it to the bag. It has a magnetic snap and a crochet free form button made with all kinds of cool stuff. Neat huh? Here is is hanging with all y junk in it.

Hand Crocheted Hats for $8.00

I took some time out to make some crocheted hats as the weather is changing here in New England. In addition to gemstones, knitting and crocheting is an addiction of mine and one that I enjoy very much. Typically I am in my studio upstairs during the day making jewelry. When my husband gets home I sit with him and knit or crochet while we watch our favorite shows and work on our various projects; he with his wood and me with my yarn.
He will occasionally say to me "Can’t you just sit and relax?" My answer is that knitting and crocheting is very relaxing for me. It is very difficult for me to sit and do nothing; I even have a sock bag so I can knit in the car!
I hope you enjoy the hats and other hand knit and crocheted items I offer as an aside to my jewelry. I love making them! The hats like those pictured here sell for $8.00 n my shop so I think they are very reasonable. I also have some felted bags and other fibre goods in my shop. Cruise on by www.divelladelights.com and take a peek!
My favorite yarn store has a huge sale every January so watch periodically for more hand knit and crocheted hats!

HUGE DISCOUNT ON BAGS AND HATS

These are just a couple of the bags that are being cleared out during my shop closing sale! I have hats,scarves and other knitted and crocheted times too. My shop in ETSY will close for good this Saturday and there are some really great bargains. If you are ready to do a little shopping for the Holidays, now is the time! It is a little sad because I do love knitting but my time needs to focused elsewhere. Take advantage of me and stop by http://www.divellasfibers.etsy.com

More Great Bags and Totes

Another super bag find and at new low prices.".... I started sewing strictly handbags about 13 years ago for someone who sold them at craft fairs. I decided to strike out on my own just recently so I could experiment with different patterns and fabrics as I was not able to do this working for someone else. I just love it! I love the freedom to be as creative as I want and Etsy is the place to showcase the different totes I can dream up!" See her profile to see what else she has to say. She has just lowered her prices to help out in this suffering economy. Visit her shop and you will find a bag perfect for you. Her bags are priced between $8.00 and $36.00 so they are a real bargain and handmade right here is the good ole US of A. Just click on the title and you will can begin shopping for that perfect bag!

THE ultimate bag/reversible and recycled too!

OK, so here I sit coffee at hand perusing the Internet, mainly Etsy.com and just look what I have found! Talk about the ultimate, perfect bag. Great size, reversible, handmade, sturdy and the best part they are made from recycled coffee bean bags! WOW!! I think I alone could support our local coffee shops and I make my own lattes at home as well. If you have someone on your shopping list who is a coffee lover (and even if you don't), it does not get any better than this. They have wonderful colors and designs, different sizes and styles, what a great place to shop! They also have bags for your little diva. Here are a few words from these wonderful ladies..."We are excited to show you all the fun and functional designs we have created. We love to hunt for treasures in unlikely places. And we get a kick out of rescuing thrift shop or vintage items and giving them a second use! Many of our items are one of a kind since we are committed to using as many vintage or recycled materials as we can. So our creations are not only unique, but "green"!! " You can check out their shop at http://www.diengiedesigns.etsy.com/. Make sure to check out the profile page to learn more about this talented trio.

Take me out to the ball game!

Here is something Red Sox and Yankee fans can agree on. This is the perfect bag for all those weekend activities; ball games, picnics, shopping. This is a great size for our latest knitting adventure. I love to have one packed with a project I am knitting to take with me in the car wherever I am going. It is made by Jennifer VanKlingeren from Ohio. This delightful and practical bag can be seen and/or purchased at http://www.CreativeJenV.etsy.com She has a wide variety of color schemes, styles and sizes available. Pick one up and head out!