GIVEAWAY TIME!!!!

WELL, I'M ALL KINDS OF EXCITED TO BE DOING MY FIRST GIVEAWAY OVER AT

THE UNBELIEVABLY AWESOME BLOG BY

LILLYELLA

it's a 2-fold giveaway!

first up you can enter to win 1 of 2 clutches
brand new fresh off the sewing machine clutches made exclusively for my new shop- Get Ready Set Clutch from TenthStreetSaks. made out of soft vinyl, sewn to give a 3d effect on the front and UPCYCLED by me! all artwork is hand drawn using waterproof ink. clutch measures 10 inches wide x 6 inches tall and comes with attachable wristlet handle.

You'll have plenty room for whatever you want to put in this fun clutch: makeup, phone, ipod, money, credit cards, and more. perfect for everyday use, concerts or just a night on the town!

you can also enter to win a $20.00 gift certificate to my luggage shop

A HUGE THANKS TO NICOLE @ LILLYELLA FOR SPOTLIGHTING ME.
YOU SHOULD ALL FOLLOW HER BLOG BECAUSE IT'S FULL OF artist interviews, recipes, craft projects, daily fashion finds & more! THEN, YOU MUST GO TO
HER ETSY SHOP
AND BUY YOURSELF SOME JEWELRY FOR ALL THOSE SUMMER WEDDINGS- AND WHILE YOU'RE AT IT YOU CAN BUY YOUR FRIENDS SOMETHING TOO!
allllllllright. get your shop on and enter to win free goods:)

DO NOT SUPPORT COPIERS!

i have been thinking about this post for quite some time now but every time i went to write it i just didn't think it was right. recently a few other etsy sellers have sent me some information and photos of other people getting copied by the same person as me and not getting an once of credit for it. so, this time when i sat down to write it all made sense.

below are a bunch of photos.

all the photos on the LEFT are that of different etsy sellers, mostly decal shops.

all photos on the RIGHT are pieces of luggage which pretty much have the EXACT same design and GIVE ABSOLUTELY NO CREDIT to the decal shop from which they stole the image.

take a look:

this next one is a piece from my shop on the left and her's on the right.

when i confronted her about this she responded by saying:

"I did this on purpose so you could feel the same way I did, you add a bird, I reverse the picture and every time you copy me, I will just copy you right back."

now the problem with this is that i had already drawn birds on branches and on wires before- they had sold and weren't currently for sale in my shop. it might have been a good idea to check my sold items before claiming that i stole hers.

the nasty response i received isn't worth writing but the fact of the matter is that she did indeed copy my work and is copying other work as well.

this last little cube is basically a rip off of a decal artist and one of my bags that she combined and called her own. again, work on the left is mine and another decal artist while work on the right is hers.

We MADE it ALL the way HOME.....

"CONGRATULATIONS, cause we made it.
all the way home
all the way home...."
EISLEY

so here's what's new:
i'm busting at the seams with excitement. but i fear it's too early to explain!
oh well, here goes nothin'.........
many of you have seen my new extension shop
WWW.GetReadySetCLUTCH.etsy.com

it opened so quickly and then i got slammed at the other shop with custom orders, then my family came into town, then i got a migraine..... soooooo i wasn't even able to blog about it. shame on me!

anyways, i am excited to announce that the clutch shop is soon going to be filled with colorful goodies of brand spanking new custom made clutches from a most fantastical new shop
www.TENTHstreetSAKS.ETSY.COM

my new buddy jay is one sweet sweet little elf! she is in the process of creating a clutch not so brilliantly named by me- the GRSClutch!
but just because the name isn't brilliant don't be fooled-
THE PRODUCT IS!
the clutches are coming in a variety of colors
Pink, Red, Purple, Yellow & Green to start

each clutch can be customized with whatever drawing you want. i will be making a set of about 16 or so options for you to choose from and as always, i will be more than happy to do a custom drawing should you so desire.

i wish i had photos. i am trying to be patient but i had to let all of you know what's coming.
hopefully i will be selling other travel goods with artwork on them in the near future.
thanks for reading and
Get Ready for my partner in crime and i to stir up some
wicked- cool CLUTCH MADNESS VERRRRRY SOON.
good night, good morning
will keep you updated!

(anons have finally been blocked- phew!)

ETSY ARTISTS UNITE!

i've been meaning to blog about this for some time now.... it seems like i blink and a month has flown by.

i recently have gotten the opportunity to work with some of my fellow ETSIANS and their fantastic designs.

below is a piece featuring 

www.ELEPHANNIE.Etsy.com

i drew the elephant and then a row of poppies!!!

i was in love with the case and it turns out someone else fell quickly in love too because it sold within 2 hours of it being listed! i'm currently working on another case using this design and others from her fabulous decal shop!

next up is this SHABBY CHIC Silhouette of a Lady with a Parasol from the radically cool 

www.NESTAHOME.Etsy.com

the above tote was the first piece i used her on. then i tried her out on a train case.... 

SHE'S BEEN A HIT!

Nesta came up with naming her Scarlet and i think it's so very fitting!

A HUGE THANK YOU TO BOTH OF THESE ETSY ARTISTS & THE OTHERS WHO HAVE GRANTED ME PERMISSION TO USE THEIR DESIGNS.... COMING SOON TO THE SHOP!

a Broken FOOL.....

if you read my blog, if you've read a few entries of my blog then you know that i don't just blog about the shop. i often blog about the insanity inside my head. maybe that is about my shop though? because it's out of that insanity box that comes my ideas for new pieces, new drawings, new photos, new uses for a train case etc.

either way, not the point of this post.
my all time FAVORITE quote, it inspired this post

"Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact you must give it to no one, not even an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements. Lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket, safe, dark, motionless, airless, it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. To love is to be vulnerable."
C.S. Lewis

i know i wear my heart on my sleeve. i know it irritates people. i know i will be a target for certain people to hate. i was recently called brave.... and it really got the wheels in my head churning more than usual. sometimes i feel brave but most of the time i feel foolish.
but here's the thing,
i'd rather be an honest FOOL if there is ANY remote possibility of my honesty helping another to feel less alone, than unbreakable and safe in my casket.
some people may not understand me, why i chose to write the things i write. sometimes that bothers me. but when i stop- really STOP and think about it- i wouldn't change a thing. i will keep on coming back for more of the punches because it's worth it.
because i'd never want to let go of feeling love.
i've felt the pull of general malaise quite often in my life.
and i can say with absolute certainty,
that feeling nothing at all is
far worse
than feeling intense pain.
love hard, love even though it will hurt sometimes.

and that's all i am going to say for now.......

SLACKER KID PART 2

no, this doesn't count as a real post- more of a continuation of my SLACKER KID post from yesterday..... just 3 more shots i had fun shooting, thought i would share.

i will get back on this blogging thing

for real......

take em or leave em

SLACKER KID!

this is absolutely unacceptable- my blogging is shameful! i've neglected this space so much i'm surprised i was even allowed to log in and type here. a really good post is coming i promise.....

wedding ideas and graduation gifts galorrrrrrrrre.

for now i will leave you with some incredibly fun shots i have taken over the past few days.

all my apologies for being such a slacker kid!