Welcome new members! - April Edition

Tweet Hope everyone is having a good week! I just wanted to take a moment to welcome some of newest Team Fest Members...



Hope Lane from HopeLaneArt 
"My name is Hope and I'm excited to join a Florida based team. I started my shop HopeLaneArt as a place to feature my custom pet portraits and other paintings for sale. I live in Lauderdale by the Sea, and am thankful especially this year, I no longer live up north where I grew up.

I try with my paintings to capture the emotion we feel about our much loved pets and their individual personalities, and spend quite a bit of time communicating with my clients about just what makes their pets special. Hopefully this comes through in my work." 



Dee n Ralph from DeeSweetNostalgia
"I live in the Sunny State of Florida. Wife, Mother, Grandmother, Artist, Christian, and now, loving what I am and do. I work hard with my husband to find the best items from the past that we think deserve a second chance. I hope you find something you'll like. Also you can leave comments at: www.facebook.com/DeeSweetNostalgia" 



Artbypilarfino from Artbypilarcofino
"Just joined the team!!! Giclee Reproductions of Original Paintings and Photography - We create the original work, paintings or photography, then print on our EPSON printers using pigment based ink on fine art paper and canvas.We also create giclee reproductions using original photography from family members."



Debbie Epstein from DEPSTEINPHOTOGRAPHY
"Hi, My name is Debbie. I am new member and I live in Boca Raton. Check out my photographs and found pieces. I take photographs of what moves me, pick pieces that speak to me, and try to find new ways to present them. I look to reuse, repurpose, and upcycle, so you’ll find things in the shop in their “natural state” or gently used. You’ll also find repurposed objects, art, and an eclectic array of decorative elements."

Roll Call! April - Favorite Stay-cation site?

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Every month we ask our members to sign-in by answering a fun question, this month’s was “Favorite Stay-cation site?” Below is a sampling of some of the great answers from some of members (there are already 7 pages and April isn't even over yet!) – maybe it will inspire you to check out a new Florida vacation spot!

"Daytona Beach and St. Augustine. We are so lucky to have great places to vacation in our own state." JL Jordan from OldRedBarnProduction

"The Florida Keys!!" Cindy from TheSleepySeahorse

"Cocoa : ) and when/if I retire, that is where I will spend my time. I was born in Rockledge and lived in Cocoa until the early '70's. LOVE that place, so quaint and calm, not like Jacksonville with the big city feel. I have family there and hopefully will be visiting soon (May). Love the beach side, the river (even in the stink of summer, lol), the citrus, the retro-vintage ambiance, just everything!!" Renee from ReneeBrownsDesigns

"I would like to see more of our state. Love St. Augustine and all its history" Isabel from IsabelsVintage

"I love Key West, going out on a catamaran with the wild dolphins and eating the great seafood there. Riding the scooters around town and enjoying the people that live there."
Debbie Epstein from DEPSTEINPHOTOGRAPHY

 

"As a kid growing up our parents took us to the Ichetucknee River every summer and it is still one of my best memories . Our entire family (aunts, uncles, cousins..) would meet up there at the State Park and would pitch tents and hang out for the weekend. Best Tubing in Florida! for the adults its lazy and relaxing and for the kids its fun and adventurous! (back then it only cost .50c a person!) "  Rose from GentlemansVintage 

"My favorite staycation site would still have to be Orlando ~ either Disney World or Universal. Always a kid at heart!" JeniLuScraps from JeniLuScraps

"I have got to say I love St. Augustine. A beautiful city with so much to see and do and do go online for special coupons and discounts for tourists. Jacksonville has some fabulous thrift ships and Tampa has the Dali Museum and some great things to see and do. Everyone knows Orlando. Miami is a world unto itself. I lived in Panama City Beach and Panama City for awhile and Vero Beach both are okay. I guess when you have lived some place and seen all there is to see there it is not on your stay vacation list anymore! If you do go to Panama City you must go to Southport nearby and to the Econfiina Canoe and Kayak livery and take that trip also the Chipola River has a short and a nine mile one down the river and people take inner tubes and they shouldn't but they float along coolers with beer in them. I use to canoe it and I had paddled fast past them as they - especially college students can be a raucous bunch. They never take the Long trip - But most of the trip especially if you take the long one is absolutely gorgeous and filled with rare wildlife and some caves you can walk into after climbing up to them over some boulders (secure your canoe :) you can walk all the way to the back and it has a room with a stone like bed in it and many other alcoves where American Indians must have lived as well as bears. Pitch dark so bring your flash light. Wish I could still do this stuff but am thankful for the memories. Blessings to all for good health prosperity and happiness!" Sarah Jackson from StoneForestJewels

What is YOUR favorite Florida Stay-cation site? 

September's Em-Powering Days

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If you are not familiar with Ellen Whitehurst then you should be!
Ellen Whitehurst is a Better Living Expert and is recognized as the country's premier expert in Feng Shui and other empowering modalities.
If you would like to know more about Ellen Whitehurst, you can subscribe to or read her website.
And as part of this month activities, we would like to share our picks from the Florida Etsy Street Team to help your Shuistrology for this month.

SEPTEMBER 1 ………   Mercury the Messenger is opposing nebulous, foggy and cloudy thinking Neptune so then a perfect day to spend inside your own imagination!  Dream.  Create.  Wish.  Up there in your head.  You will have time enough in a week or so to take these dreams, wishes and creations out into the real world.  Today is NOT that day.  Today IS however a day to try something out of the ordinary.  Taking a different route to work.  Drinking tea instead of morning coffee.  Switching up dinner with breakfast.  Any or every time you do something outside your regular routine you activate your imagination.  Or you could climb over the footboard to get yourself out of bed.  That’s considered REALLY good luck.  Imagination, wishing, creating - - now there’s a day I dream about!


TessieTextile


SEPTEMBER 2 ………   Venus squaring off against pissy Saturn could cause the family and friends to need you a whole lot more than the partner.  But, unfortunately, the partner doesn’t know that you can’t be in fifteen places at one time.  Give yourself a time out.  Take a balance bath.  From the peels of nine oranges get nine quarter-sized and rounded pieces of the peels.  You can do whatever you wish with the rest of the oranges.  Let the 9 pieces of peels soak in a tepid bath for at least twenty minutes.  When ready to soak, fill the tub with water to your temperature liking and stay in the bath for twenty minutes at least.  When you pull that plug KNOW that negativity and whining should all now do down the drain and that you’ll now be back to your brilliant and beautiful self.


AquarianBath


SEPTEMBER  3 ………   Entrepreneurial Mars is making hay with powerful purpose driven Pluto.  Hmmmm.  Interesting.  And a practically perfect day to devis a plan to improve your financial situation, boost your bank account and/or increase your income.  Any or all of those efforts taken today will eventually pay off in a big BIG way.  Put an image of flowing water (including abundant white foam and open, expansive views) anywhere immediately INSIDE the front entryway door.  You can leave it there for 27 days or until waves and waves of opportunities improve your finances, boost your bank account and increase your income.  Word.


kellywarrenphotoart


SEPTEMBER 4 ………   Ohhhh, this one’s a keeper!  Mercury the Messenger is making all nicey nice with the planet that influences your personal power, Pluto!  What a great day to embrace engaging and optimistic inspirations and ideas and then to share them with the ‘powers’ that be.  Those is authority will be all ears AND all support today.  Take advantage.  Schedule an interview, presentation or you could even connect with some intentional networking as well.  Either way this day is HOT so don’t forget to light those nine red candles in the ‘FAME’ area of your home and/or office.  Light them and declare your intention aloud.  Then blow them all out and BURN BABY BURN!


theprismaticpeacock


SEPTEMBER 5 ………   Mercury the Messenger is SEXtiling aggressive and entrepreneurial Mars.  See yesterday’s device and stay lit!

 
artbymsr


SEPTEMBER 12 ………   DING!  DING!  DING!!!  SUPER STELLAR DAY!  Now, you know you can’t get access to this info anywhere BUT inside my free monthly newsletter so get on over to www.ellenwhitehurst.com and sign up!  You simply won’t want to miss this month’s info, in fact, I can guarantee you’re going to LOVE (!!!!!) it!  Really and truly LOVE it!


FeedYourSoulThreads


SEPTEMBER 18 ………   Uh oh.  Are you listening to me here?  UH OH.  Stay on the down low because there just won’t be any up high.  Nope, nope, nothing heading up or getting high at all.  Unless, well……Although Pluto has been retrograding for what seems like forever and although that power planet turns direct today, well, that news is being waaaaay overshadowed by a SHOCKING Uranus squaring off against Pluto and all that power.  Shit surge.  And mark my words, something happens on a societal and/or global scale to shake things up during these shaky days.  You need to stay grounded, steer clear of the drama and breathe!  Standing with arms outstretched, palms facing slightly up and feet planted firmly on the ground, breathe in through the mouth.  Fill the belly and then blow out through the mouth like you’re whistling.  Twenty seconds after each exhale:  “Universal Life Force energy flows through me now.  I feel it.”  Wait twenty seconds and repeat.  Four rounds should get you good and grounded.  You’ll thank me later.


awpphotography

SEPTEMBER 20 ………   Mercury opposing Uranus.  Mercury square Pluto.  Mercury needs therapy  and should leave the rest of us alone.  But until Mercury scores some Zanax and chills you might want to have lots of green all around you.  Healing, stress-relieving green.  Sleep on green sheets.  Water your green plants.  Show them some love and inhale their color with our eyes.  For today, the wearin’ of the green just might mean the difference between being lucky and being loco.  Choose luck.


OmishaDesigns


SEPTEMBER 26 ………Previously rampaging and pissy Mercury (now in treatment) trines generous, expansive and jubilant Jupiter.  That’s better.  Oh and Mercury’s trine the moon too.  Finally a day to intentionally align with accord and cooperate with compassion.  Don’t get too too comfortable though as this is the port in the pending storm.  That’s right – the worst of this wave is yet to come.  So all the more reason to take today’s energies to heart and take a break.  Read haiku.  That’s right.  See, traditional haiku writings/poems contain three lines and exactly 17 syllables.  The first and last lines deal with stable and secure conditions while the middle one interrupts with a changing image of some sort.  It’s not the meat but the motion since the rhythm of the haiku is said to have the ability to instill serenity as well as to calm and relax.  A perfect poem for today.


starandcrossbones


SEPTEMBER 28/29 ……….   Okay, are you ready?  The Sun is really hot under the collar and so is opposing surprising (and surprised!)O Uranus while also being searing mad at Pluto during these dark days too.  The to top it off the aggressive Aries Full Moon on the second of these two tense days just caps off the volatility, drama, anxiety and angst.  Keep a bottle of Bach Rescue Remedy handy.  Accent on that second word of that life-saving flower essence.  Four drops under the tongue, four times a day.  Washed down by Rhodiola and magnesium.  That should do it.  That should DO YOU!

SanAntiques

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'The Last Whispers Of Summer With TEAM FEST' by MonasCreationsFL

A collection of beautiful,soft and feminine items from my talented FEST TEAM colleagues. Please give them a round of applause by pressing the like button.

Pink Rose Hair Ador... GiftsandStars $24.00	Pink Wispy Business... MoreThanColors $34.50	Light Rose AB Swaro... beadloverskorn... $5.40	Vintage Pink Rhines... LeVintageGalle... $36.00
Pink Sandwich Glass... WindchimesAndW... $25.00	Rose Quartz and Pea... cjwdesigns $35.00	Nuno Felting Start ... BlindSquirrel $15.99	VINTAGE AUSTRIAN RO... JoyfulMoonDesi... $40.00
Lavender Rose Soap ... AquarianBath $5.50	Rose Copper Glass P... catilla $11.00	set of eight vintag... compostthis $50.00	12x18 print - Aming... SarahJaneImage... $30.00
Vintage Porcelain H... JoyfulMoonDesi... $14.00	Tuscan Sun Leaf Bra... AudreyGardenLa... $26.00	Pearl Czech Cathedr... PluffMudDesign... $48.00	BACK to SCHOOL SALE... RedeemingBeaut... $4.00

Treasury tool supported by the dog house

"Something Blue" April Team Challenge

Tweet Team FEST has been hard at work creating something blue for the bride. Please view the choices below and then vote for your top pick by using the voting poll in the right side colomn ->.
 Voting ends at midnight on April 30th.

Wedding Earrings

HorizonCottage

Blue Denim Colored Wine Corks

TheWoodenBee

Bracelet Natural Gemstone Blue Aventurine and Moonstone

  TheLotusBlossomShop

Bridal Necklace and Earrings Set in Crystal and Pearls
MonasCreationsFL

Swarovski Aquamarine Earrings

TheBeadedPathway

Kitchen Dish Towel Blue and White Bon Appetit Embroidered

InYourBones

Blue Lace Meenakari Earrings

beadloverskorner

Blue Glass Heart Ornament Hand Painted on the Inside

Creationsbyjdb

Handmade Avocado Cucumber Soap, Blueberry Scented with Crushed Sage

BlackWillowSoaps

4 Tier Dessert Stand

ARTfulSalvage

Wedding Favors, Customized Lip Balm

AquarianBath

Blue Apatite Bali Bead Necklace

ChiavariDesigns

Clutch, Purse, Wallet, or Makeup Bag in Blue Floral 

MarciAnnDesigns

Team Blog Share- Tee Giveaway

Tweet One of our team members, Seventy1Percent is having a special giveaway. They are giving away their classic tee, "Seas the Day." This tee shirt is for people who love the ocean, sailing, surfing, or just love living life. The winner will be able to choose the shirt in S, M, L, or XL.

The winner will be announced and contacted on Sunday, April 15th. The tee will be shipped directly to you or as a gift to someone you love. The selection of the winner will be completely at random.

Interested? You only have to take two steps.

1. “Like” the Seventy1Percent facebook page. www.facebook.com/pages/Seventy-1-Percent/156350834391341
2. Write on Seventy1Percent's wall “Seas the Day." This will let Seventy1Percent know you want to be entered in the drawing to win this inspiring tshirt.

Good luck everyone!

Kiss Me I'm Irish!

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Well no not really. I am actually Dutch and French descendent. But are we not all Irish on St. Patricks Day? Good Friday morning, everyone. I hope everyone saw the treasury contest and got in your entries. I got mine in, it ends tomorrow, so hurry. I have shared a little video on the history of St. Patrick's Day, History Channel has a very good one as well.

In my spare time, spare time hmm, I have been trying to take new pictures of my jewelry and with a new camera to boot. We bought some new plants and for some odd reason I had a thought to add the jewelry to the flowers and see what kind of pictures I get. I like them, they could use some tweaking, but they are unique. Tell me what you think. How do you take unique and different pictures of your items? Taking good pictures is very time consuming, and a topic that is often discussed in groups. We all know a good picture can say so much. I have others listed on my jewelry blog. If you would like to stop by and give me some constructive criticism, I would be very happy.

I love the color green, it is fresh and alive. For those of you who read this, comment and leave me a link to one of your places you would like to share. It can be your store, blog, Pinterest, or other site. In three days I will share all links on my blog for some linky love. I do this each month, and last month only had a couple of takers. Come on and get some free linky love. Have a wonderful weekend to all of you, and don't drink too much green beer!

Hello Again!

Tweet It has been a while since I did a guest post here on the FEST team blog. For those of you who do not know me, I am Melissa. I will be guest posting on the third Thursday of each month. As you can see, I am late. I loathe being late, so I will try harder next month. I live in Trenton, FL, homeschool my two beautiful children, am a part time nurse, gemstone collector, jewelry maker, and I am learning to paint. Are there any painters here? I am sure there is. I am having a ball learning to paint, and would someday love to be able to paint on jewelry. That is my goal. My mom is our painting teacher, and we do it for homeschool art. That way everyone gets to have fun. The Donna Dewberry method is supposed to be the easiest method to learn. I still not convinced of that, lol! I am obsessed with learning to make the perfect rose.

I have been working on different ways of advertising my store and blogs. I love Pinterest, and have been pinning Team FEST items for some time now. I try to do it everyday, but sometimes I just don't get it done. If you have Pinterest, you can follow my Etsy board, and if you share your link I will follow yours. If you don't have Pinterest, I highly recommend it. It is really nice for not only sharing things you love, but for storing and cataloging sites and products you might want in the future. It saves space on your computer if you want to share pictures as well.

As far as sales, how has everyone been doing in this very slow economy? I did have two sales so far this month, but I average about one a month. I have lots of stuff to list, just need to get time to do it. Is anyone using FB as a way of selling your items? What I mean is do you list your stuff straight out on FB and let buyers purchase from there? I know some people who do this, but I am leary of it. If you do, have you had success, and what about issues of non payment, or things like that?

I guess I have blabbed enough for one post. Please take a minute and share one of your sites or pages that you would like to promote. I will do a blog post on my Gemstone and Jewelry blog in a few days, highlighting each link shared. Have a great weekend, and happy crafting.

What Is Your Birthstone?

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Hello fellow FEST members. It is me Melissa again, and that must mean it is Wednesday. Last week I shared the beautiful Kunzite with you all. Did you check it out? Please do if you didn't. This week I am asking the question, do you know your birthstone? If you do, do you know the meaning of your birthstone? For example I am a Peridot, and it means Dignity. Years ago, when I was ahem much younger, Peridot was not found in good quality and I thought it was oh so ugly. Now that I make my own jewelry, and have found that there is some of the finest most beautiful qualities of Peridot, I wear it with great pride and dignity, LOL! The ring pictured is one I have in my store. I would love to own it for myself, but since the setting is rhodium plated it can not be resized, and I wear a five, this is a seven. So of course I am hoping someone who will love it, will buy it. Watch the video below to learn your birthstone and meaning, then be sure to comment and share with all of us. Happy Wednesday, have an awesome day! It is kind of rainy and icky today.

My First FEST Post

Tweet Hello Team FEST, this is Melissa. This is my first post on the team FEST blog. I thought I would say hello, and tell a little about myself. I live in Gilchrist County, but moved from upstate NY six years ago. I started collecting gemstones as a hobby about eight years ago. After I collected so many I decided I better learn how to make some jewelry. While I enjoy making traditional types of jewelry, I am beginning to learn beading, wire wrapping and other forms of jewelry making. I actually have three blogs, and one I moderate for my son. We homeschool, and I am a part time nurse, so my days are quite busy. I will be posting on Wednesdays, and I will try to pick topics that will be interesting to everyone, not just jewelry makers. I know one topic that is a thorn in my side, is getting good photos of my jewelry. If you have a hard time too, this video will hopefully be helpful to us all. If you have any tips or tricks that work for you, please share with all of us. Happy Wednesday to all!

SEPTEMBER CHALLENGE WINNER!

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Congratulations to Audreygardenlady! She is the winner of the challenge with her Blue Belles Earrings! Audrey gets to choose her prize - either a FEST Blog interview, or her etsy mini posted on the blog for a month!

And now it's October - time for a New Challenge! This months' themes are Opal (October's Birthstone) or Symmetry/Asymmetry. Hmmm, a very interesting theme - can't wait to see the entries! Here's the link to post your entries:

http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=6642436A