Fabulous Friday Finds for October 8

It's about time for another installment of Fabulous Friday Finds, don't you think? Once again, I've been less than diligent about posting my finds, but I've still been finding and keeping track of them so I can share. It's been a hectic couple of weeks - doctor appointments (checkups mostly), physical therapy appointments (husband's torn shoulder ligaments), and some custom orders have been taking up lots of time.

My first Fabulous Friday Find is one for any Etsy sellers who haven't already discovered it: Etsy On Sale. I think the fact that there are currently about 35,000 listings on the site means that it's been pretty well advertised and promoted, but it bears mentioning nonetheless.

If you're an Etsy seller, I'm sure you've been frustrated that there's never been an automated way to put items on sale. Any special deal, whether for a day or a month, required editing each individual listing. What a pain in the neck. My shop has more than 300 items, so the editing process is pretty painful.

Well, Etsy On Sale allows you to put everything in your shop on sale or everything in a particular section (so you could create a Sale section and move items into it). You can apply the sale for a given amount of time, select whether your sale is for a certain dollar amount off the price or a percentage off the price, and select the duration of the sale. It's sooooooo easy! And if you're looking for things to buy, you can even shop there using the same categories you'll find on Etsy.

I'm currently using it to put all my peyote patterns on sale. It works so seamlessly with Etsy that all you have to do is go to the Patterns section of my Etsy shop, and you'll see the sale prices (20% off the regular price).

The next Fabulous Friday Find is the work of an amazingly talented clay artist named Dan Friedlander.

The photo you see to the right is one of his Tower works, this one called Tower Power. He also creates tiles and other sculptures, but I just love the towers.

He uses lots and lots of white clay, and each and every tiny piece you see is created using just his fingers. Can you imagine all that rolling, squishing, squeezing, flattening, and placing?

Make sure you check out his macro photographs so you can see how much detail there is in the pieces.

I'd love to have a whole wall full of his tiles. Of course, the fact that I'm not a big fan of dusting means that's probably not the best idea for me... :-)


Next up is another clay artist. Of a completely different sort. And I'll tell you now that I pretty much want everything she has listed in her Etsy shop, blamethemoon!!!

I really haven't understood the whole cupcake craze that's been going on for the past few months... cupcakes on stationery, cupcake rings, cupcake necklaces, cupcake art.

But now I get it. I am completely in love with this guy. His name is Sprinklez. And he has some major attitude. Just you try to take a bite out of this pink cupcake - I don't think so. :-)

Sprinklez was created by a professional cake decorator named Karly. Talk about bringing your work home with you. If you want to see more of Karly's work, including some "real" cakes, check out her blog. What fun!!!

I don't carry a purse. I think I gave up the whole purse thing when I was still in junior high school, never quite understanding why some people need to carry all kinds of things around with them.

While I don't think I'm going to take up purse carrying again, this Big Fish Handbag just makes me smile. Of course, if I had a purse like this I doubt I'd ever let it leave the house. I think it would become wall art.

The Big Fish Handbag was created by a sculptural artist named Debra Gavant, and her Etsy shop is called RandomIntent. It's filled with all sorts of strange and wonderful creatures and creations.

She claims to be an alien.

I think I believe her.

She may be here to take over our planet.

We could do worse.

:-)


Sticking with the weird and wonderful, my next Fabulous Friday Find is a weird and wonderful ring.

Not a practical ring. Not a ring you could wear for everyday. Not a ring you could wear when you're typing. But what a FUN ring!!

This incredible piece, which is made from oxidized silver, was created by a jewelry designer and gemologist named Maria Goti. I came across this ring on Etsy, but you can find more of her work on flickr and in her blog.

At only 24 years old (according to her Etsy profile), it's obvious that Maria is going to be creating art for many years to come. Her work is varied - everything from the elaborate ring you see here to some very simple, modern designs - and it's all gorgeous.

I am in awe.



I'm also in awe of the clocks created by James Borden. His clocks are called Timeshapes, and they are absolutely totally amazing.

The picture here is a closeup of one of his clocks, a cherry wall clock that's 5 feet high and 3 feet wide!!

From James' biographical statement: Timeshapes are essentially mechanical weight-driven or spring-driven clocks, every part of which has been designed and built by James Borden. The pendulums and escapements are also of the artist’s own design. Timeshapes exhibit a wide, graceful motion and soft, woody, clicking sounds which are mesmerizing and relaxing to watch and hear.

I just know they're incredible, and I wish I had the money to buy one. Of course, I'd probably never get anything done because I'd be sitting and staring at it all the time.












Okay, that's it for this week. It's after 11:00, and I'm determined to get this post published before midnight! Hope you enjoyed this week's finds. :-)