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On Tuesday I participated in the first of an eight session crash course for small business owners.My friend Stephanie took it this spring and recommended it to me. Each class is from 5-9pm, so I fortified myself beforehand with a giant Frappuccino, which kept me alert until about the last twenty minutes when I entered an open-eyed trance.

No longer able to write, I took a picture of our “Action Steps” (homework). Here it is:

And I am now engaging in some HIGHLY evolved procrastinating: packing for our move, assembling pieces for BMAC.

I even called my insurance company to check on a claim. And now I’m writing a blog post.

Alright – time to crack that book!

I’ll admit to not knowing his name until seeing him on the Google home page this morning, but I’ve long admired his work even without that minor detail.  Looking at his work this morning has given me a little extra inspiration to tackle the day’s work: packing for our upcoming move and prepping for my first ever wholesale show!

This one is my favorite:

Yesterday Kathy of Brooklyn Indie Market helped me kick off my summer of learning by giving me a lesson on my sewing machine. About seven years ago I took lessons at a fabric store in Park Slope, but I did not learn on my own machine and I found the lessons did not translate for me. Kathy very patiently taught me the particulars of my own little machine, and I sewed happily until – snap!- I broke the needle.

Eagerly awaiting the arrival of of replacements and already scheming up some fabric-enhanced jewelry.

The three randomly chosen lucky winners of a Cobalt and Copper Necklace are:

Jennifer Mielke

Michelle Kennedy

Ray Hemachandra

Congratulations and Happy New Year!

This picture is from last year’s Holiday Handmade Cavalcade; this year’s promises to be even better! It will be tomorrow, December 5 from 11am-8pm at the Openhouse Gallery at 201 Mulberry Street in NoLiTa.

Sunday will be my third time at the BUST Craftacular, at the Metropolitan Pavilion on 18th Street between 6th and 7th Avenue from 10am-7:30pm.

And both days, there will be a Wabisabi Brooklyn table at my favorite local craft hawking venue, Brooklyn Indie Market on Smith Street near Union in Carroll Gardens.

Wabisabi Brooklyn is a member of the craft colelctive NYCraft and we debuted this weekend at Mad Sq Mk’t.  It’s my first time doing anything on this scale, and the whole undertaking has been unnerving and exciting.

There are six other members of NYCraft, so we split the booth space (quite nicely, I think) and we are dividing booth hours. Since I work as a teacher, I made a nice dent in my hours this past holiday weekend.

Dressing for outdoor selling is always a challenge. Let’s just say I’m glad I wore my snow boots yesterday.

Our neighbors on both sides are really sweet and generous. One of them also does the Union Square Holiday Market and was doing a good job persuading me that NYCraft should do it too.

We shall see… In the meantime, stop on by NYCraft at Mad Sq Mark’t! It’s open through Sunday November 1, seven days a week from 11-8.  If you’d like to come when I’m there, go here to see my hours.

What: NYCraft at Mad Sq Mark’t

When: 11am-8pm, seven days a week, now through November 1

Where: Fifth Avenue between 24 and 25 Streets

Directions: Subway: R, W or 6 train to 23rd Street. On weekends only you can also take the N train to 23rd street.

Calm, Cool, and Casual- just what the doctor ordered on this stifling August day! Thanks to Anne from Felt It for including me in this lovely treasury.

How can you resist? I think this looks surprisingly like me. Go to madmenyourself.com to do it to yourself.

Blueberry Cherry Sangria

Combine in a pitcher:

3/4 C blueberries

10 cherries, pitted and quartered

16 oz cheap red wine

zest of 1 lemon

2 tsp Luxardo Maraschino Cherry syrup (not that clown nose-red liquid. If you don’t have Luxardo, substitute simple syrup).

seltzer

ice

Fill 4 glasses with ice.

Pour the liquid and scoop in the fruit.

Top with seltzer.

Makes 4 servings.

While leaps and bounds ahead of the early days, I’m still perfecting my booth display. Thanks to Nathan at The Market at the OA Can Facotory for working with my motley assortment of backgrounds and creating a more cohesive look.

The Market at the OA Can Factory will be back in action Sunday July 26. I’ll be attending my sister’s wedding and then travelling for much of the rest of the summer, but I’ll be back there about once a month starting September 13.

It’s around the corner from where we live now in Carroll Gardens.

Here I am gazing wistfully out the window, thinking of the day MORE THAN A YEAR FROM NOW (long story) when we’ll get to move in.

We DO however get to start paying the mortgage a lot sooner than that.

You can get one too if you go here.

I met Celia and Ian of Lighthouse Leather this weekend at Brooklyn Indie Market. They reminded me I’ve been meaning to make belt buckles for a while now. They generously gave me a spare buckle to play with. Not bad for a first try, I think.

This requires further investigation…

ONE DAY SALE! I opened my Etsy shop two years ago today. Help me celebrate by enjoying a buy one get one free sale – today only! Buy any item and receive another item of equal or lesser value for FREE! Please do not submit your payment until I send you an updated invoice.

I’ll be at BIM April 18 and 25 from 11-7, selling baubles and trying not to eat all the cupcakes.

Smith Street near Union in Carroll Gardens. F or G to Carroll Street.

Go here for instructions.

Brooklyn Indie Market turns three this weekend. I will be there to celebrate Saturday from 11-7 and Sunday from 11-6. Smith Street near President, Carroll Gardens. (F or G train to Carroll Street).

Come for the 10% off sale, stay for the cupcakes.

You can read it here.

Many of my {NewNew} teammates had much cooler nametags than I did at our party. I’m already for our January meeting with this little baby!

I try to hold out on the hot chocolate consumption until I’m really really really cold. I’d say today would count. Since I have it so rarely, I like it to be good when I do have it. Thus usually involves making it myself. I have indulged in fancy shmancy hot chocolate mixes in the past, but you probably have everything you need to make it right on hand.

Spicy Vegan Hot Chocolate

serves 1

dry ingredients:
1 tbs brown sugar
2 tbs cocoa powder
pinch of salt
pinch of white pepper
pinch of cinnamon

wet ingredients:
1 cup vanilla soy milk

Mix the dry ingredients together; set aside.

Microwave the soy milk for two minutes. Gradually add the hot soy milk to the dry ingredients, stirring vigorously (or, ideally, using a hand-held milk frother). (If you used regular milk, add 1/4 tsp of vanilla extract to the hot chocolate at this point).

When fully combined, enjoy! The spiciness will melt through the most deeply chilled bones.

185 calories, 3 grams of fat, 3 grams of fiber, if you’re interested in such things.

one of these helps it get frothy, which enhances its deliciousness

Yum!

Even tastier in a Leonard Lopate mug.

I got new boots. Wish I’d had them this past fall and winter when I was selling at Brooklyn Indie Market.

Thanks to craftzine for pointing it out!

before:

Yes, I used my childhood dollhouse to store many of my non-jewelry craft supplies. While certainly a creative and whimsical storage solution, this did not completely delight my husband.

So off we went to Ikea (ugh).

after:

Way boringer. But it does fit more stuff. And Dalton twitches much less when he walks by it now.

I’m worn out. Barely the energy to wash my hair.

Good thing I’ve got a handy pantyhose waistband lying around to wear as a headband.

Lips get dry in the winter. Pantyhose are ever so slightly abrasive, but still gentle enough to bring some life back to your kisser.

Slather on your favorite lip balm and gently rub a bit of pantyhose on them until you’ve rubbed the balm all off.

Finish with another coat of your fave lip balm.

To test effectiveness, find someone to kiss.

Okay, we’ve had some easy ones the last couple of days. Here’s a more involved project. It’s Saturday, after all. In winter. You’ve got the time.

You will need: A chunky beaded necklace you’re tired of (preferably one of those that you tie on with a ribbon that were so popular a couple of years ago); two pantyhose legs with the feet cut off.

1.   Line your materials up next to each other, and snip off the extra pantyhose, allowing an extra two inches for the pantyhose.

2. Pull the necklace through the pantyhose tube.

3. Snip several loops off of the other pantyhose leg; one for each bead, plus an extra two.

4. Snip each loop open.

5. Beginning at one end, tightly tie the space between each bead with a snipped-open loop. Be sure to tie a double knot.

6. Continue along the length of the necklace.

7. Rock it.

Hopefully your Friday night means you’re heading out for fun at some irregularly heated club or bar. To maintain homeostasis in such an erratic clime, I suggested using two pantyhose legs – sans feet, of course – as arm warmers.

Thursdays are recycling days where I live, which inspired this use for the waistband of your pantyhose:

Easier than twine!

For today’s project your will need four pantyhose legs with the feet snipped off. It’s more fun if you’ve got at least two different colors.

1. Line them up next to each other. If they’re uneven, snip off the extra.

2. Use this extra bit to tie all four legs together.

3. Begin braiding, alternating colors as you go.

4. Continue braiding along the entire length.

5. When you come to the end, snip off any unevenness.

6. Use this to tie them together.

7. Wear as a scarf-y necklace….

8. Or Rhoda-esque headband.

Tuesdays have always been the bane of my existence. Give me a nice blurry Monday any day; Tuesday everything is all business and way too high stress for me.

That said, here’s a super-easy project that has the built-in bonus of keeping you organized. Every little bit helps on a Tuesday.

You will need one pantyhose leg, complete with foot. Just slide it onto your wrapping paper (you can roll together those sad little post-holiday odds and ends for this and make one super-roll.)

Now tuck it away, nice and neat!

As in my two earlier posts, I’ve cooked up a short series of projects that rely on pantyhose as the primary medium.

Today’s project is suitably simple for the Monday of the first full week of the new year. In addition to pantyhose, it requires only that you have an empty wine bottle lying around, never a problem at our house.

I like a nice negro amaro or nero d’avola, but any grape will do.

1. Cut the leg and foot off of a pair of pantyhose. Stick your hand in the leg, grab hold of the bottom, and pull it through so you have a double-thick, half-length leg.

2.  Slip this over the bottle.

3. Fold the collar over like a loose turtleneck.

5. Drop in a bud.

The second entry in the “10 Uses for Pantyhose” series (see the first one here) uses little bitty scraps to make some lightweight yet heavy impact fan shaped earrings.

You will need:

22 gauge copper wire

wire cutters

flat-nosed pliers

1 pair simple ear wires

2 4-inchX 8 inch rectanglish shapes cut from a pair of pantyhose

1. Begin with one of the fabric shapes, and fan-fold the entire piece.

2. Pinching the fan shape to maintain its shape, place it on top of the copper wire.

3. Wrap the wire around the top of the fan three times, then create a small loop at the top; continue to wrap the copper wire around, securing the loop in place. Snip off the end of the wire, and flatten any scary/pointy/sticking-out part with the flat nosed pliers.

4. Use the pliers to bend the ear wire open.

5.  Place the loop of the earring on the open ear wire; use the pliers to re-close the ear wire.

6. Repeat steps 1-5 to create the second ear. Put them on and bask in the warm glow of creative reuse.

One of the by-products of organizing is that I come up against my resistance to throwing anything out. Even, for example, three pairs of pantyhose that have long since passed their prime.

Rather than banish them to the dustbin, I decided to figure out what I could turn them into. A warning: if you Google “what to do with used pantyhose,” instead of “uses for pantyhose,” you will end up in a dark and scary part of the internet.

After eventually tearing myself away from that particular cyberhood, I did come across several lists on different sites that offered variations on the theme “put it over your vacuum cleaner to suck up a tiny valuable you might have lost.”

I’m not familiar with the aforementioned “vacuum cleaner,” device, so that particular tip is of no use to me. I did have fun spending the better part of a day playing around with pantyhose and seeing what I could come up with on my own.

I ended up with about ten different projects or ideas, and have decided to post them here on the off chance that there is someone else with my inability-to-part-with-anything disorder.

Today: Sachets.

You will need:

• scissors
• pleasantly scented tea bags (unused)
• pantyhose
• ribbon

1. Snip the feet off of a pair of pantyhose.

2. Place a teabag inside each foot.

3. Tie each sachet closed with a bit of ribbon.

4. Voilá! You’ve got some lovely sachets for your drawers.

Soon to be necklaces….

I had to add an extra inner pocket, of course! This totebag will be given away on Saturday December 6 at the Holiday Handmade Cavalcade. Be there or be square!

I’ll be at Brooklyn Indie Market this Sunday. Also at the market this weekend:

Saturday

wonderthreads

kimmchi

lovelyday designs

waisze designs

dirtylovesclean

teeshirt gnome

Rebecca Shepherd

Alaina Scarano (photographer)

brooklynjunior

morana

warpedesign

ninecakes

fofolle

rocksandsalt design

Sunday

lovelyday designs

rocksandsalt design

teeshirtgnome

Spratters and Jayne

Chocolate Covered Diamonds (kidswear)

anotherworkinprogress

Edeline B Designs

Deborah Schiffman (candles)

butter by keba

Carolina Jewelry

ninecakes

fofolle

Every morning Dalton wakes up much earlier than he needs to in order to make me a delicious latte. I assuage my occasional pangs of guilt about this by periodically baking a fresh batch of these biscotti, which he has with his coffee.

5 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup slivered almonds
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 eggs

Preheat oven to 325°.
Combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Combine sugar, vanilla and eggs; add to flour mixture, stirring until well-blended (dough will be dry).Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead. Shape dough into four long rolls. Place two rolls on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Place the other two rolls on another baking sheet covered with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

Bake at 325° for 30 minutes. Remove rolls from baking sheets to a wire rack, and let cool 10 minutes. Cut rolls diagonally into 1/2-inch slices, and place, cut sides down, on baking sheets. Bake 13 minutes. Turn cookies over, and bake an additional 13 minutes (cookies will be slightly soft in center but will harden as they cool). Remove from baking sheets; let cool completely on wire rack.

Yield: 10 dozen

Notes: Recipe is easily halved. The biscotti will keep, stored in tupperware or ziploc bags, for about four weeks

I’ll be joining about 19 of my fellow members of the {New New} Team this Sunday November 16 at Brooklyn Indie Market.

We’ll be there from 11am-6pm. Come on by!

DIRECTIONS:
Under the red and white striped tent on Smith and Union Street, Carroll Gardens,Brooklyn. Via subway: take the F or G train to Carroll street. Exit at the President Street exit of the station. You will see the the tent! Via car from NYC: you can take the Brooklyn Bridge. Turn RIGHT onto Atlantic ave. Turn LEFT onto Court street. Turn LEFT onto Carroll street. Turn LEFT onto Smith street.

Laryngitis is a total drag.

I splurged on some GORGEOUS chiyogami paper and am in the midst of making some penny and dime earrings with it. Stay tuned!

I was inspired to make this little ofrenda out of a fruit box, a wooden ice cream spoon, some tiny tissue paper flowers, hand colored stickers, and hand cut and colored paper.

Crafter extraordinaire and fellow {New New} member Kayte Terry is on the latest episode of Craft Sanity. I am psyched to listen to it on the way to work today!

Check out Kate’s book Complete Embellishing:

I’ve long admired Pulp Sushi’s lovely Octopus Necklaces and now I have the chance to win one in the {NewNew} Monday giveaway!

I think poet Jack Prelutsky says it best:

I’m Wrestling with an Octopus

I’m wrestling with an octopus
and faring less than well,
one peek at my predicament
should be enough to tell.
It held me in a hammerlock,
then swept me off my feet,
I’m getting the impression
that I simply can’t compete.

I’d hoped that I could hold my own,
but after just a while,
I ascertained I couldn’t match
an octopus’s style.
It flipped me by a shoulder,
and it latched onto a hip,
essentially that octopus
has got me in its grip.

I tried assorted armlocks,
but invariably missed,
and now I’m in a headlock,
and it’s clinging to my wrist.
It’s wound around my ankles,
and it’s wrapped around my chest—
when grappling with an octopus,
I come out second best.

from A Pizza the Size of the Sun

And that is why I want the necklace.

I just sent in my application. I had a fantastic time selling there last year, so my fingers will be crossed until the acceptances are announced.

Not that he needs a plug from me, but my husband Dalton Rooney has put some limited edition prints from our trip to Sicily in his Etsy shop. They’re almost all gone, so get there quick if you want one. My fave is below.

What’s your Palin Name?  http://politsk.blogspot.com/2008/09/sarah_13.html

Debuting today at the Handmade Cavalcade!

…is planning outfits to wear to work. Thanks to Omiru for inspiring an hour of entertainment this morning. Click here to see more!

The little-known pre-show to cats-lying-with-dogs, frogs-falling-from-the-heavens, yadda yadda…

Wild Dolphins Tail-Walk on Water

Dalton and I have been looking for a gate leg table to replace our wonky one for about a year now. We don’t have room in our apartment for a dining rom table, but we do sometimes like to have friends over for cards.

This weekend in Baltimore, Dalton spotted this beauty:

With a roll-top compartment that hides four chairs!

It is being delivered to us next week.

And as if that weren’t enough in the compact table department, my new aluminum roll-top collapsible table was waiting for me when we got home:

Handmade Cavalcade, here I come!

Head over to the {New New} York Etsy Street Team(where I am Blog Admin) and read the great series of interviews with Indie Style Bloggers. Crafty lady Danielle L. Green of Collective Elements is the author of the interviews, which provide insight into, among other things, how the bloggers choose to feature a particular artist.

See more here.

I made it all by myself!

…and at Brooklyn Indie Market tomorrow 11-7.

My commute to work usually includes a walk over the bridge, and for the past few weeks the walkway entrance has been slightly diverted by some mysterious work being done along the usual path.

This morning I finally got to see what they’d been cooking up: some of those sidewalk inlays that least nearby locations and the distance to them:

There is a five day celebration planned that starts on May 22. Get your Brooklyn Bridge Bling!

Lately I’ve been obsessed with packing light for my upcoming trip to Sicily. We will be traveling all around the island, and while much of Sicily can get brutally hot in the middle of a summer day, the early and late hours, as well as the mountainous regions, have a chill about them, and I want to be prepared. But if I stop and think about it, I realize that when I get ready for a day of selling I am essentially preparing for weather vagaries in much the same way as I would for a longer trip.

My recent experience at the Hoboken Arts & Music Festival proved that just because a day starts off blustery doesn’t mean you won’t find yourself buying pink sunglasses and coconut-scented sunscreen from a corner shop before your last sale is made. But I digress. My point is that over the past year I have participated in many outdoor selling events, and I have developed something of an expertise in dressing for them. I now have something akin to a selling uniform, the elements of which remain essentially the same with some slight variations. The key is L-A-Y-E-R-I-N-G. This will keep you warm when the icy wet wind blows and, if you make sure the base layers are cute enough to wear out on their own, will help you beat the heat if things get toasty.

I went browsing on Etsy and found many of the essential elements of my uniform available there. For example, I like to start with underwear, like these cute ones from deardiary:

and this sexy bra from Queen B Lingerie

You gotta have socks, and I like these from Captaincrochet

Then I add leggings worthy of the light of day, like these striped ones from edel vak

and an equally sassy tank top from Ahpeele

Like the headless girl pictured above, I wear jeans over the leggings, and a shirt like this one from KimmChi over the tank

Then over the jeans I wear one of fofolle’s genius skirt ponchos

I add to that another great creation: betterthanjam’s Apron Bag, which helps keep me looking and feeling organized when transacting cash

Then I add a hoodie – this one from red boots design rocks

And I top it off with a hooded raincoat, for I firmly believe there is no better way to ensure sun than to prepare for rain. The folks at Hacker agree

And while I believe raincoat=sunny day, I do NOT think a sun hat brings rain. Especially when it’s this adorable topper from Rocks and Salt

Two last chill-chasing touches: the Sandy Scarflette by bshorr handmadedesigns

and these wrist warmers from shutterkate

As for shoes, please wear comfortable ones. I like sneakers, but any comfy ones will do. You will be on your feet a lot and it is sheer madness to opt for style over comfort. Your sales will be better if you’re properly shod and clothed, because it’s bound to brighten your mood!

Alison from the Sampler is organizing a special MTV Style Lounge Sampler, and I am participating as part of the {New New} York Etsy Street team. Here are some previews of what I’m sending:

You have two chances to shop wabisabi brooklyn this weekend:

SATURDAY: Brooklyn Indie Market kicks off its second season with Brooklyn Indie Fest this Saturday, May 3, from 11-7. At the red and white tents on Smith and Union Streets in Carroll Gradens. http://brooklynindiemarket.com/
SUNDAY: Hoboken Art and Music Festival. Washington Street, Hoboken.

I’m a twitter-er now: http://twitter.com/wabisabibklyn Go there to read my terse take on the Brooklyn Flea.

The world may never be the same.

I recently joined the Etsy Street Team the {New New} and am now their blog administrator. I’ve written a couple of Earth Day related posts there, which you can read here. I’ll be selling with some fellow {New New} members Sunday, April 27 at the Brooklyn Flea

The Brooklyn Flea is at Lafayette and Vanderbilt Avenue in Fort Greene. Also at the {New New} table will be: Karen’s Monsters, clothing and other sewn goodness from Vyphuisdesigns, stationery by fubabee, and bling from Metal Sugar and Emily Elizabeth Jewelry.

So elusive is the coveted Etsy Treasury – yet after much unsuccessful stalking, I landed one this morning! Want to see it? Go here

UPDATE: It was on the front page last night! Sadly, after I was asleep. Luckily some of my New New Team Members caught a screen shot:

My friend and fabulous frock fabricator Melissa Bell and I decided to try our luck at the Henri Bendel Open See this morning. Essentially the designer’s version of a cattle call, it attracts scores of attendees from far and wide (I mean, dude, Melissa and I schlepped to the Upper East Side all the way from Carroll Gardens!) . Knowing this, we decided to splurge on an Arecibo car service and arrived at 5:30. There was already a line, but not a ghastly one. We took our spots behind Beetle who took pity on my shivering and lent me her leg warmers. The lovely Canadians of Tenielle showed up right after us and graciously shared their chairs.

Definitely the biggest surprise was just how nice the other designers were.

At nine-ish, they brought us into the basement from out of the cold. (I think everyone who was in line by noon got to go in, but I imagine their wait was way longer.) They numbered us, (I was “10,” which was flattering) lined us up, and then we signed in under our category.

After signing in, we got to wait in the break room for the runners to wrestle with the lists of our hard-to-say and illegibly written names and lead us into a third line.

It was at this point in the proceedings that a began to feel I flutter of nervousness: Once in the third line, I stood at the threshold of the buyer-filled room, able to watch as the young lasses (for I saw no buyer who was visibly male) patiently and – for the most part – politely interacted with the designers.

The jewelry buyers were swift and merciful, enthusiastic about my creativity and products, but apparently the typical Henri Bendel shopper is not in the market for decoupage earrings on dimes. Even if they’re on sterling silver!

Anyway, I knew going in that the best case scenario for jewelry is to be invited to do a trunk show, and I wasn’t even expecting that. The most salient feeling I experienced in the immediate aftermath of the rebuff was…relief.

And exhaustion. For some reason I awoke at 2 this morning.

And now, it is time for the traditional post-Henri Bendel Open See nap.

Click here to see more pics on flickr.

If you’re in the city and in the mood to check out our latest jewels, stop by at the Young Designers Market in NoHo on Mulberry, right off of Houston Street. We will be there often in the coming months, but here are some sure dates:

Saturday, February 2nd and Sunday, February 3rd

Saturday, February 9th and Sunday, February 10th

Last month was all about buying gifts for other people. Now you can pick up a little something for yourself. There are just a few items left in our Etsy shop. Go on and take a gander!

Our love of the Sampler is well documented. Well, this month the website Brooklyn Based is coordinating an all Brooklyn Sampler.

Among the six Brooklyn goodies in each Sampler, you might get one of the wabisabi brooklyn pieces we contributed.

The Brooklyn Sampler goes on sale this Saturday at 10am on the Sampler site. At $20, it’s a hometown bargain.

We had a fabulous time at the Atlantic Antic, and thank our neighbors the Kane Street Synagogue (seen emerging from the pop-up sukkah) for their willingness to share their tape. I’ve said it before and will say it forever: the Atlantic Antic is my favorite street fair.

Melissa Bell rocks the wabisabi brooklyn bling along with a dress of her own design; we accesorize an all Brooklyn Indie Market ensemble; coin necklaces; coin rings.

Thanks to all who stopped by! See you on 9/30 at the Atlantic Antic.

Lot’s of news today.

First, Diane from CraftyPod interviewed me for the September 21 show. I am a big fan of CraftyPod and was really excited to talk to Diane.

Next, I brought Tom at Mongo more of our cuff links. I asked him for the story behind the shop’s name, and he told me the NYC Sanitation Department refers to the good stuff people throw away as “mongo”. He talked about how finding the beauty and usefulness in what someone else might discard (he pointed out a couple of gorgeous fixtures in the shop that he rescued to illustrate his point) is to him the essence of Brooklyn life. Word.

As if that weren’t enough excitement for one day, I headed over to the fabulous artez’n where Jessica was excited about the cufflinks, the nickel necklaces, and the penny earrings. She remarked about the steep learning curve we’d climbed in just three short months, as evidenced by our finer finishes and more professional looking pieces.

The third Freebie Friday winner has been notified, and as soon as she sends me her mailing address, her new necklace will be on its way to her!If you didn’t win this time, don’t despair – there are still two more chances to win in August!

Thanks to everyone who came and made the wabisabi brooklyn Sultry Summer Soirée a success! It has inspired us to do it again in October. If you’d like to be invited to that one, be sure to sign up for our mailing list.

• This week’s Freebie Friday winner is in Portugal! Stay tuned to see what continent next week’s winner will inhabit.
• The wabisabi brooklyn sultry summer soirée and trunk sale is tomorrow from 6-9. Email us for details if you’d like to attend, and if you’ve already received an invite, please let us know if you plan to come.

The Sampler is just the gift that keeps on giving. Both Diane at CraftyPod and Jen at Indie Fixx gave us a shout on their sites. Hooray!
In other good news, a selection of wabisabi brooklyn jewelry will be available at the new boutique – called MONGO – that just opened at 246 Smith Street near Degraw in Brooklyn.

Hurray!

As I’ve posted previously, wabisabi brooklyn is participating in the August Sampler. We were so delighted with that experience that we went ahead and quadrupled our contribution for the September Sampler. If you’ve never heard of the Sampler, click the link above to find out all about it – it’s awesome.

This is Not a Test decoupaged copper pendant on vintage silver chain. Go here to purchase.

The first Freebie Friday winner has been notified, and as soon as she sends me her mailing address, her new necklace will be on its way to her.

If you didn’t win this time, don’t despair – there are still four more chances to win in August!

I secured a cute coral-colored vintage button to the place where whatever stone that originally lived in this size-7 sterling silver ring once was. Available at the Etsy Trashion Shop.

We went to the Etsy Labs on Friday to support our fellow Trashion Street Team members. I was awed and inspired by the creativity and variety of items for sale, as you might be able to tell in the picture of me looking at Miggypin’s awesome shirts! Also displayed below: dismantled and Enderby Designs.

We at wabisabi brooklyn are participating in the August edition of The Sampler, “an ever-changing monthly collection of samples, goodies, promos and more from indie crafters, record labels and zines – mailed right to your door!” (To quote their site). Go on and have a look in their gallery to see the other August contributions. and maybe sign up.

And so, the last item of the day for July (drumroll):

On pennies with copper lever backs so they won’t fly away.

Double necklace with pennies and wooden pendant on leather.

Up, up and away my beautiful, my beautiful balloon. The world’s a nicer place in my beautiful balloon It wears a nicer face in my beautiful balloon …

Side effects may include increased appetite (for jelly beans-study the picture closely), sauciness, and a well-earned air of superiority. Ask your doctor if wabisabi brooklyn is right for you.

No, not Dennis.

Let the people know: You mess with the (pool toy plastic inflatable) bull, you get the horns.

A suaver man has never hung around your neck.

Purple decoupage, black wooden pendant, black ball chain. Shiny.

You may not be able to afford the real thing, but this piece of Brooklyn real estate is a STEAL!

A vacation for your ear lobes.

Two little kids ride the birdie hither and yon. Decoupaged on a nickel, the pendant is on a 16″ stainless steel ball chain. Email us to purchase.

This is off topic – it’s not decoupage, but antique glass – but I like it anyway.

Shiny, stripy, pretty and blue!

We have just added key chains to our product list, and Antler Trophy Pendant would be happy to be one.

Check out our Etsy Shop, where the Etsy Trashion Street Team is having a team wide 15% OFF SALE to celebrate the upcoming Trunk show at Etsy Labs! If you purchase anything from our shop between July 15th and July 27th, just type in “Trashion” in the notes to seller, then wait for an updated PayPal invoice.

Click here to purchase.

See you at Brooklyn Indie Market today!

To purchase, email us.

This lovely necklace is not for sale.

Like little swimming pools adorning you, these earrings decoupaged on wooden circles are surprisingly light and are guaranteed to cool you down by 10 degrees.*

*Not guaranteed to cool you down by 10 degrees.

Wabisabi brooklyn is now an official member of the Etsy Trashion Street Team. Check out our first item for sale.

Oooh…bottlecaps. Pretty.

On this hot and sticky day, wabisabi brooklyn offers up the recipe for a favorite summer cocktail: the Spriz (pronounced “Spritz,”) first enjoyed in Venice but since consumed to keep the local swelter at bay:

One part prosecco

One part Aperol

Fill a rocks glass with ice and pour in the Aperol, followed by the prosecco. Stir. Add a slice of orange. Drink.

Mmmm…

These earrings have been SOLD.

This item has been SOLD.

After a two-week break, we’ll be back at Brooklyn Indie Market tomorrow from 11-7. Stop by and see the new designs we’ve been coming up with!

Brooklyn Indie Market is on Smith Street near Union Street. Take the F train to Carroll Street and get out at the President Street exit.

This item is no longer available.

Email us if you are interested in purchasing today’s item of the day.

Perfect with yesterday’s Picnic Blanket Necklace, these earrings are decoupaged pennies with copper lever backs. Purchase them here.

Three copper pendants – two decoupaged with a picnic blanket motif – adorn this 22″ long copper necklace. See it on Etsy.

Decoupaged earring in shades of blue on copper lever backs. To purchase, visit our Etsy Shop.

Our first item of the day is available for sale on Etsy. It is a decoupaged wooden pendant on a 16 inch black ball chain.

Next month will be busy busy busy here at wabisabi brooklyn. We will be selling at Brooklyn Indie Market every Saturday in July, and we will feature a design a day both here on our website and in our Etsy shop.

The photo uploader is not working for me today, but here is a picture of us from our first Brooklyn Indie Market Sale.

Click the link at the top of the page, or click here.

The items in the wabisabi brooklyn Etsy shop are currently on sale. Buy now, because prices go back up on Monday!

So we left a couple of hours earlier than planned today because all of our stuff was getting soaked. If you missed us and can’t wait til next weekend, visit artez’n where we have a few pieces for sale.

Go here to see the new pieces for sale on Etsy!

Until we turn this site into a proper shop, please visit our Etsy store here

It was cold and rainy but we were in the tent, so it wasn’t so bad. We also got to meet Liz Shaw, Deb Stein, Denice Nora, and Ami Nyitray.

Saturday, May 19:
We will be back at Brooklyn Indie Market on Smith Street near Union Street. This time we’ll be inside the tent rather than in a kiosk. We’ve both been working on lots of new pieces, so stop by!

More dates coming soon!

Wabisabi prepares for opening day with a display for our wares.

Please visit us at the Brooklyn Indie Market on Smith Street and Union this Sunday, May 6.