Happy Weekend :: Sunday 13 May - Happy Mothers Day......

To celebrate this special day, I share with you a very warm, beautiful and love filled video.  Mother and Daughter crocheters from Bolu in Turkey who both realize that not only is there beauty in mistakes, but also opportunities to inspire others. 

Handmade Portraits: Ayşegül & Sebahat 

Happy Mothers Day mama......and to all the Mums I know.

xox

culiculi

Teeny Tiny and Micro Animal friends.....

Are these not the cutest you have seen?

all via their Etsy shop

Su Ami is a group of 5 crafters in a family, living in Vietnam selling their magnificent crochet creations on Etsy.  Each animal is made using embroidery or sewing thread using some super small crochet hooks (0.4mm).  Some of their creations are even made with movable limbs and polyfill stuffed bodies!

Here is one of their micro creations  - a honey bee!

All available via their shop

Freshness from the net - February

A great mix of art, interiors and fashion this month.

A beautiful Apartment in Gothenburg  I am in   L O V E   with via Fresh home

Art work by Taiwan born artist Pei-San. These series of works are made entirely of matches

 Pei San "Passion"- This piece was made of approx 2500 matches taking 24 hours to create. check out her site for more awesome works

When the walls become your canvas.  These 3 pieces are by British artist Charlotte Mann.  All room installations and wall drawings are drawn directly on the wall using black and white marker pens.  The detail and scale are simply stunning.  For more of her work check out her site here

Another gorgeous Scandi apartment- blonde floors, white walls, wall paper and a retro stool - yes please! via Freshhome

Ahhh autumn...you are almost here.  My fave season. Filled with layered fashions and yummy knits. Like this Buttered Rum Cowl by Fringe available from her Etsy shop

And this one.  Love the square cut coconut button detail. Sky blue Cowl available via Phydeaux on Etsy

Olivia and Fifi

Olivia and Fifi owlies.   Softie or cushion. Either way....ready for lots of hugs. Available now in the shop

Craftyclaudes on Etsy

I am thrilled to declare craftyclaudes Etsy shop is now open for business!!  Yay!   This has been a long time coming and it gives me the chance to put a big tick next to one of my goals for 2010. It has taken lots of  sewing, beading, stitching and planning - not to mention endless cups of tea and ok...some biscuits too  ;-) 

Currently listed in the shop are these brooches and bird softies. 

I will be adding more of the same in the next few days as well as my beautiful owlies so stay tuned.


Have a lovely weekend everyone!

Etsy Finds....Sydney artists

With Christmas less than 5 weeks away I thought I would 'Shop Local' on Etsy.   It is a feature that lets you find local artists, which if you are shopping for a last minute gifts, is a great idea.   The following artists are all from Sydney (or surrounding area), making it easier for your purchases to get to you in time.  Whether shopping for your family, friends or work colleagues, choose handmade where possible and support local artists if you can.

Little birds with flowers by Agent Indigo

2011 European Dreams Calendar by Elgarboart

Viva La Scooter coin purse by Seventh Sphere

Green Butterfly garland by Parper Klip Design

Owlies in production....

cutting , sewing and apron wearing a la Martha!

The apartment is filled with owlies  - all in different stages of production.   Eyes over there.....stuffing of wings over here......sewing of bodies by that section.  Its my favourite part of creating, when you can see progress even though to others it may just look like bits and pieces of fabric.  In my heart I can feel the excitement building as these little creatures I so love are coming to life.  They make me smile and when I send them on their way I hope they bring many smiles to others too!

Blogland is not so lonely afterall.....

When I started my blog I wondered if anyone apart from me or Martino would read it. Having read many blogs I know I am not alone in feeling this way. I read that at last count there are well over 125 million active blogs so having someone read and want to follow your blog is a little bit of an honour really, at least that is how I feel.  So you can imagine how excited I got when on my very second post I received some comments from people I didn't know!  People from different parts of the worldly webesphere stopping by this here craftyclaudes ....that was very cool.   One of these lovely blog buddies is Jennifer from my two butterflies.   A few things about Jennifer:

- Loves re  - recycle, re thrift, re purpose, refashion.
- Is a member of a farming co-op
- Recently spent time in Italy
- oh and we both started our blogs on the same date!

I really enjoy reading all her posts as they are a great mix of everyday life and her creative projects.  Here are some of her recent creations:

Thrift shop skirt gets a make over for a great new look!

Farm  co-op beetroot becomes yummy (and guilt free) cake!

My favourite re-fashion so far - a grey cardi gets a revamp inspired by Anthropologie

Autumn table runner made by Jen

Oh and also don't forget to check out Jennifer's Etsy shop.  She has some pretty revamped jewelry pieces and other handmade goodies.

Etsy Finds......For the home

Check out some of these beautiful designs made by some very talented Etsy folk.  Reminding us to show some love to the space we live in.....

Chenille and Mother of Pearl buttons cushion by Letter Perfect Designs

Fox on a bike? ofcourse!  A door mat by Dark Cycle Clothing

Boston Terriers print by Corella Design

When life hands you lemons tea towel by Dear Colleen

ps - oh and they all also ship to Australia!

Its in the mail......

Isn't it nice to go to the post box and find something other than a bill?  This week I have been waiting with much excitement for the mail to come.  So to pass the days when nothing but a bill is in there,  Ive been fantasizing about what it would be like if all your mail (bills included) came handwritten in scalloped edged paper sealed in a pretty envelopes!    In my pattern/stationery obsessed world I would open my letter box and envelopes in all different sizes and colours would spill out.  Fancy gold envelopes from our bank manager giving us a big star for paying off our credit card on time or a sweet polka dot blue envelope from the water company reminding us that - yes - we owe them some cash for the precious resource they are pumping into our home.  Sure, it wouldn't take away from the fact that these bills need to be paid, tho it would certainly make opening the letter box a much more exciting prospect (not to mention we would all have a killer recycled paper stash!)

So imagine my joy this week when on 3 occasions I open the mailbox and find beautiful little parcels addressed to me postmarked from faraway places as Estonia, Barcelona and Thailand.   It felt like Christmas and I was very very excited :-) These were all little purchases made during a successful evening of online shopping on Etsy and finally they had arrived.


So here I share them with you.   All beautiful and handmade. Just as I like it!

A pretty little leather case for my new phone.  Handmade and sewn in Estonia by a mum and daughter team at EightSeasons

A beautiful leather purse made by Arnont (RN) and his wife Toanoi (TN) from Thailand.  You can check out more of their lovely creations found in their shop RN & TN Studio

A gift for Martino  - a fresh little coin purse with robots on it. sweet! Made in Barcelona by Pension

So with the US Dollar climbing (terrific for us Aussies!)  and Christmas around the corner, why don't you check out what other artists are creating on Etsy.    But be warned....its addictive....just ask my letterbox!

Freshness from the net....September

When not creating, I spend probably more time than I really should on the net. Its my time where I get to indulge in a nice cuppa and also the various design and crafty blogs, websites and online stores I have book marked.   I am a big fan of the Internet.  I love that I can be sitting in our little apartment in Sydney and reading about a great new sustainable home being built in Northern Spain or view photos of the opening night of an art exhibition in Chelsea NYC.   Even more exciting is the fact that once you subscribe to a newsletter of your favourite site, the information comes to you instantly. A great way to keep up to date and inspired.  Art in its many forms is being created all around the world every minute of the day.  With the Internet it all comes to you, whilst you sip your favourite drink!

Here are a couple of interesting finds from my subscriptions:

From Fresh Home.  Artist Mike Stilkey  .  An American artist who with the use of pencils, paint, pens and lacquer creates these beautiful works of art on books.

From Apartment Therapy - a sweet chair before and after - and all for $20!!

A little felted gold fish from Asher Jasper's Etsy shop.

  

From Design* Sponge -  A market bag DIY makeover.  Take one ordinary looking shopping tote.  Add some fabric, buttons and other embellishments and tadaaaa - a funky, one of a kind bag a girl would be proud to show off!