300 Posts! And, A Giveaway!

300 Posts, Holy COW! I can't believe it's been over a year and 300 posts since we started this blog. I am listening to every comment and suggestion I am getting from you to make this blog bigger and better, so please keep the suggestions coming! I am still asking for suggestions to make my blog and business better for you - you could even win a ring from my Etsy store, so please see THIS post for details on how to win - INTERNATIONAL BLOGGERS WELCOME!!

To thank you all for being here on this incredible journey and making every step so enjoyable, Arwen has put on her party hat and we have decided to do ANOTHER giveaway in addition to the contest that started yesterday (see Tuesday's post for details on that one)!

Here's what you have to do: Go to my Etsy store and pick out your favorite item for $30 or less. The winner will be chosen at random and will win their favorite item! INTERNATIONAL BLOGGERS WELCOME! This is for ONE DAY ONLY so make sure you comment today to get into this giveaway.

Good luck everyone, have a great day, I know we sure will :)

and Arwen

Giant Bead Giveaway at Silver Parrot Blog!

Silver Parrot Blog is giving away a GINORMOUS box of beads! All sorts of gorgeous fixin's for beautiful jewelry designs are up for grabs in this box, and though I really, REALLY want to win this (my bead budget is at 0$ until I make some mega sales), I will post this for all of you to try and win too! The deadline is tomorrow so hurry! Here's an excerpt from the blog:
"Okay, so the contest ends on Friday, June 12th, and so far, I've been a little
disappointed in the level of interest (no offense to those of you who HAVE been nice
enough to cross-post on your blogs). I was just hoping to generate a little more action.
So, I thought maybe what was missing was some concrete evidence of what a LARGE
pile of beads this is and what a great opportunity it will be for someone."

Now, if I win this, I plan on making some pieces to sell to raise serious money for charity so if I win, I'll keep you posted!

And the Winner Is....

Congratulations to Annette from Dragon House of Yuen for correctly guessing yesterday's contest! I will be mailing you a surprise piece of handmade jewelry in a Celtic style!

The answer was "Torc". The Celts used these beautiful "U" shaped pieces of jewelry to denote status, wealth, and may have been used in religious ceremonies also. Mostly made of gold, they have also been found in silver and other metals. Here is an example, from the UK's NEN Gallery: Click on the image above to go to the site!

Thanks to all who participated in the giveaway, don't be discouraged, I'll have more to come!

Fabulous Friday - Contest Winners and a Blog Feature!

Well, as I said, the first two people to respond to my mini-contest would win a secret surprise:
Jennifer from GypsyMareStudios won a 5x7 of my photo, "Exquisite Beauty" for answering first!
Aaaaaand BeadedTail won a 5x7 of my photo, "Gaillardia Sunrise" for answering second!
Thanks to everyone else who tried to win also - keep checking back, I kind of like this format for giveaways, so I think I'll have to do some more like this in the future :)

Also, I was mentioned on a wonderful blog, DragonHouseofYuen! Annette did a wonderfully nice feature on my Etsy store so I do hope you'll hop on over there and check out her blog. She also makes the most amazing soft sculptures of rabbits and swans, not to mention gorgeous bags too! Check out her Etsy shop and you'll be delighted and amazed :)
That's all for now, check back soon for more interesting finds, new pieces and maybe even a surprise giveaway!

Fabulous Friday - You Could win a blog Makeover from Graphic Pretties!

Looking at a few of the blogs I follow, I noticed this one in particular, as the flower painting immediately jumped out at me. Turns out graphic extraordinaire Graphic Pretties is having a contest and the winner gets a custom blog! Here are some of the details:
You can enter up to 4 times.
1. send an email to enter at graphicpretties@gmail.com
2. post a comment on her blog here: http://graphicpretties.blogspot.com/2009/01/2009-custom-blog-giveaway.html
3. become a follower of her blog (look to the right) if you are a follower you get a automatic entry
4. post the giveaway on your blog along with the image above (click the image to enlarge and save) and let her know so I can add your name again.
The rest of the nitty gritty details are here: http://graphicpretties.blogspot.com/2009/01/2009-custom-blog-giveaway.html
Good luck!