Tweet's from Twitterers

Today I'm featuring some lovely bird themed goods from Twitter users. Twitter is a great way to meet other artisans and I have found lots of fabulous handmade goods through using the service. You also get to chat to some amazing people. If you want to follow me on there, I'm CapnSkulduggery.

Vintage Violets Buttons creates beautiful felt brooches and Frankie the owl is one of those gorgeous creations. As you can see from this close up photo attention to detail is what makes these brooches so special.

Swirlyarts has a shop full of bird related goodies. I love her chicken door stops but I chose to share these labels with you because they are just so cute and colourful. A myriad of feathered friends.

The lovely Tizzalicious makes a range of colourful goods, from Jewellery to plushies. The Retro feel of her shop will appeal to so many people. I think any little girl would be very excited to receive this chick necklace.

Tea anyone? Vintage Town has created this birdie cosy to keep your teapot lovely and warm so that you can spend a long Sunday morning reading the paper and sipping at a cupper whilst you find out what's going on in the world and read the funnies. It will even keep your pot warm whilst you finish off the crossword too!

Artistico collage art print made me chuckle. The Owl is so patterned, he really stands out. I'm not sure with all those bright jazzy feathers he would be able to sneak up on that many mouse dinners.

If you are looking for new people to chat to about the handmade movement or just want to see lots of gorgeous handmade goods, get over to twitter and do a search for people that have tagged themselves as "handmade". You'll find lots of people to chat to and follow and you will hear all the latest updates to shops and news about what people are working on. See you there!

Written by Lynne of PiratePixieCrew and Hyperloop Hoops

Staging a home for sale.

Jon and I live in a partially renovated turn of the last century house and for a very long time nothing has been done to the house and we have been living in it around all the half finished splendour. The time has come to get it finished so we can sell it and move on. With this in mind I have been trying to plan out exactly what we will do in each room and what the over all look of the house should be, hence my search through the handmade market for beautiful goods to fit the job.

Now this beautiful Cushion from Susie Stokoe may not fit in with the beige look, but it will add some colour to a room and I will be able to take it with me when I go and it fits perfectly with my love of colours.

Chuck E Byrd Wall Art is sadly something I won't be using to sell this house, but it may well feature in a house I build later on. I love this little Chimp! It's a great way to personalise a child's bedroom door.

Oops a Daisy's pretty toile de jouy decoupage side table is a great piece of staging a house for sale. Due to the black and white colour scheme it will fit into most rooms and add a bit of detail to an otherwise very plain coloured room.

This beautiful wooden bowl from Beach and Cabin would look great on a dining table with some brightly coloured fruit. I love the pattern of the grain of the spalted sycamore wood. It's not a wood I'm familiar with but I think I might search out more pieces made from it now.

Stover Tile and Design created this fabulous granite serving stand and it would look great in any kitchen. We have dark black granite work surfaces in our kitchen and this would add a lovely lighter touch in the middle of the expanse of black.

I'm a huge lover of bright colours and the thought of painting everything a bland white or off white is filling me with dread, but it is what other people want that's important when trying to sell a property. Oh well, I guess a vat of off white paint, metres of beige carpets and cream coloured drapes is the way forward. Goodbye 'Smoking Jacket' Red, 'Turtle cay' green, 'Peacock' blue, and 'Passionate Purple' sigh. At least I know after taking a look around that there are lots of beautiful handmade goods out there that I can use to stage my house to get a sale and those pieces can come with me when we do move and I can use them in my next multi coloured bright and bold home.

Where did I put those dust sheets and my paint brushes?

Written by Lynne of PiratePixieCrew and Hyperloop Hoops

It’s spring!

I know this may have occurred to everyone else, but I seemed to have entirely missed the arrival of spring, until today. It’s warm and breezy and I feel like cleaning. That’s got to mean something – I never feel like cleaning! So in celebration of my delayed reaction, I’ve chosen some things that make me excited about the arrival of this new season.

This amazing garden bag by is handmade by ohgosh. It just oozes quality and style, and is delightful to look at. It even has a double frame so you’ve got already got a purse inside. This shop will definitely be on my list when I’m looking for presents this season!

Just the thing to make treat yourself too after that spring clean – it would add a simple freshness to any room in the house. This beautiful natural wooden clock is made by Knottyburr Wood Crafts, from reclaimed oak.

I might be jumping the gun here slightly, but if you’re brave enough to actually go outside for lunch, this eco-friendly flatware set for 2 is perfect for a picnic. The maker Pony up also stocks toddler flatware sets, so you could get the whole family out in the fresh air!

Aha, I just had to add a cleaning related item. It’s very unfair on Robin101 to label these items as simply cleaning related! These four cards are beautiful. I came across some of Robin’s lovely cards in a gallery in Brighton a couple of weeks ago and was thrilled when I found these and a range of other amazing cards from Robin on folksy and etsy.

I love these little vintage style earrings, they are bright, delicate and cute! They are by MD sparks. Would be perfect with to compliment a bright, light summer dress – if you dare!

Better go start cleaning the house!

Written by Rose of Felt Giraffe

Watch the Birdie!

This week I brought a lovely bag from a shop on folksy called Notes. As you can see from the photo of me holding it, it’s gorgeous!

The inside is lined with navy blue and white polka dot fabric with a handy pocket – it’s just the right size to keep all my stuff in. I shall be proudly wearing everyday to work! So, in celebration of such a lovely purchase, this week I’ll be choosing lovely stuff with birds on.

First up is this hand felted red cushion by Olofsdaughter. It’s bold design makes it a perfect piece to brighten up any room. It’s made from 100% Australian merino wool, which must be why it looks so lovely and soft.

I love this bird parade mobile by Gifts Define – it’s so cute! Two of my friends are expecting children this month, so I think I’m going a bit soft around the edges for children’s items, and children in general! This decorative item includes four colourful wool felt birds and a happy sad cloud who is oh, so sweet! This shop offers a variety of other types of mobile, including a funky safari mobile which is equally as cute.

I’ve chosen some lovely hand printed birdie gift tags from Paperleaf. These 5 gift tags are printed on recycled manilla card. Perfect for jazzing up your gifts! Paperleaf produces a wide range of lovely gocco printed materials, including custom made wedding invitations, as well as some very funky earrings.

I love prints of any sort, but I especially love this print from Lapwing Printworks. This wonderful cockerel print is made using wood block print. His six different colours really make him so pretty. My parents used to keep chicken when I was a child (in London!), so I’m especially fond of them. Once I have a house of my own, I’d love to have this print on one of my walls. I don’t think I’ll be quite ready for real chickens yet!

Last but not least – the cutest corduroy purse by Needles and Buttons. The little paisley fabric birdie on the front really caught my eye. You can’t tell from the photo, but the back of the purse has embroidered with yellow flowers – this little touch really makes this purse extra special.

Written by Rose P of Felt Giraffe

Home sweet home

My boyfriend and I are thinking of buying ourselves a house this year. Even though we haven’t found the right place yet, it’s already been quite stressful and taken over our lives! We spend evenings in lively debate about where do we want to live, what type of place do we want, which mortgage should we get, what’s the market going to do, boring, boring, boring. To prevent myself from becoming the dullest person ever I’ve tried to turn my attention to thinking about what I’ll put in the lovely house that we buy.

So, firstly this funky flamingo cushion cover by cheeky boo. It is made from gorgeous Japanese fabric, with a very cute yellow mini pom-pom trim. It would look ace on any sofa, bed or if you’re lucky enough, on a lovely bay window seat. Currently I can only dream!

My favourite little felt pots - I like these so much! They look so soft but pleasingly functional. Papaververt makes a wide range of high quality bowls, vases, trays and plant cosies all of which are equally tempting. I’m so in love with these - good job my birthday is coming up soon!

This amazing Topoware set for two includes 2 salad bowls, 2 serving plates and 2 dinner plates. They are all beautifully designed, taking inspiration from topographic maps, making eating both classy and fun!

This little pin cushion by Picciolo is an incredibly stylish way to store all those pins you crafty people have got lying around. The blue felt and the red and white polkadot fabric makes the cutest crafting accessory.

Aha! Another bird themed item, but possibly the cutest bird I’ve ever seen! Rachel Mcbird has been created by cookoorikoo. Not only is Miss Mcbird cute, she’s also made from recycled material, making everyone happy, especially me!

Hopefully not long until we (and all these lovely items) find our way into a nice new house all of our own. Keep your fingers cross for me!

Written by Rose P of Felt Giraffe

Folksy, the new kid on the block.

Folksy is a new on-line venue to sell your handmade good. So far it is limited to UK sellers but once they have ironed out the teething problems that all new sites have, I believe it will allow sellers from around the world to join and sell. I've signed up and opened my Pirate Pixie Crew shop to try out the site and see how it grows. I'm hoping that it will end up a long and fruitful arrangement for both me and Folksy. There are already a number of sellers signed up and filling their shops full of gorgeous handmade goodies, so I thought I'd share some with you.

This beautiful sterling silver, citrine and carnelian ring had been made by Ali Bali Jewellery. Her shop is chock full of so many pretty items it was hard to choose which to feature. If you are base in Edinburgh you can see this ladies work in person at many craft fairs in the coming weeks. Check her profile to see where.

Cloud Hopping's shop is very stylish. Working mainly in fabric and yarn, Lin has created a variety of goods that have perfect shapes, textures and colour combinations. This brooch caught my eye because of it's simplicity and perfect combination of textures. Lin obviously has a passion for fibre!

This little cutie super model has a smile that makes your heart melt and she is wearing a pretty top made by Kitschy Coo with grinning skulls that also made me smile. This shop stock is made up of handmade high quality young children's clothing and booties. There are so many colourful items in this shop it's well worth a look!

Linen and Roses is a shop filled with homewares and gifts. These pretty hearts are advertised Christmas decorations but I think they would look lovely hanging all year around on a country kitchen cupboard door handle. All the goods are made by Fiona and she has a very distinctive rustic look to her high quality work. Perfect items to dot around you house to make it feel more homely.

Annica Jewellery made this stunning piece. As this close up shot shows this bracelet is made of Turquoise and sterling silver beads. Turquoise is such a beautiful stone. The celebrity, Libbi Gorr has worn Annica's creations. Annica has also worked with The National Gallery of Australian to create a range of jewellery to compliment one of their exhibitions. Take a look and see her work.

Go along and check out these sellers and the rest of the Folksy site. You're sure to find something you'd love to own and you will be able to buy knowing that each piece you do will be lovingly hand made.