etsy friday

I've always loved the mailbox. Waiting for the mailman, the thrill of having something addressed to me, tearing into something like a present-- all of it. At six years old, it didn't matter that it was from Ed McMahon (and on those lean days, mail addressed to "resident"). It's rubbed off on my son, the head turning at the sound of the mailman's keys in our box, the jump and joy when he brings the big packages in the door. He even insists on holding at least one package when we make our way to the post office, dropping off orders for my store.

So it was with that thought that I bought this for him...


Surprise Ball from LadyBugCircus.etsy.com

I know, what's a surprise ball? So, LadyBugCircus takes a hollow, handmade papier-mâché ball and fills it with trinkets and foil confetti, and wraps and wraps and WRAPS the entire thing with paper ribbon (tucking little stickers in the wraps) and finishes it off with a sticker and embellishments to hold the entire thing together. She packages it super carefully in a poly bag nestled in crinkle cut paper, and sends it off in a whimsical gold box that fits into your mailbox.

My son LOVED this. Seriously, it took him a good ten minutes unwrapping it, and he played with the trinkets for HOURS afterwards. It's a combination of newness, the thrill of having something special sent with love just for you just because... The toys inside were simple, the kind you'd find in a kid's party goody bag, and they've been played with a lot over the last two days (still going). This might be the best $6 I've ever spent, and it certainly is the best $6 ever spent on my son.

I bought one that was described as "something a boy may enjoy," but honestly found the contents unisex. I suppose a girl-themed one may have something less gender-gapping, but eh. :)

Are tissue holders unisex?


Tissue holder from dreamrains.etsy.com

Probably not. Kawaii probably isn't either though...



As they may or may not say in my backwoods hometown, business in the front, party in the back! I'm trying to be one of those prepared moms with a maw on their shoulder they can reach into to solve toddler crises, and tissue is one of those things my grandmother and mother could always have been counted on in having on their person at all times. Admittedly this just slips into my loobylou purse when I use it to carry knitting, so I'm not *always* prepared... but cute when I am :)

I actually had purchased before from dreamrains before when she was still in Japan-- I bought the fugu and shinkansen fabrics for my JapaneseHandmadeEtc knitting box/toddler toy bags before her stateside relocation. I didn't realize she was the same seller til much later though (she has an etsy "sister store" in Japan selling kawaii fabrics too... tg I don't sew!)

A sewing maniac turned me onto this...


"floating shift" vintage typewriter key pendant and necklace, from KeysAndMemories.etsy.com

Jen regularly blogs some of her etsy finds* and I really liked the look of the vintage typewriter key jewelry from Keys And Memories that she had featured. They do a lot of custom work (you can choose your key and type of jewelry, etc), but I fell for this one already listed in their store for sale. The only drawback (for me) was that it was paired with a heavier chain than I like-- but K&M switched out the chain to the thinner one pictured and I'm happy as a clam :)

Another above and beyond the listing etsy seller...


Handstamped postcards from threedogparty.etsy.com
(My photo's dark; these look better in person)

I've liked ThreeDogParty's hand stamped postcards for a while now, but was put off from buying because they were all packaged in sets of 4 and I don't buy duplicates of cards. On a whim I convo'd TDB and asked if they'd package and sell me a mixed set of their 4 cards, "of course!" was the quick reply :) So now I have an anxious set of 4 postcards waiting to be licked and stamped... we'll see if I hear back on the "loves me, loves me not, undecided" one ;)

Don't quite know what response I expect from the "kotex: special delivery" card, but again... til next week, stay tuned :)



* do you have a feature or blog post featuring etsy sellers that float your boat you'd like to share? i'm *way* behind on blog searching for blogs praising etsy sellers (brobdingnagian project underway, soon-soon debut... you'll flip!) but i was thinking about maybe next or next-next etsy friday putting together a list of links of other blogs doing something similar to what i'm trying here on fridays... not so much etsy store blogs, but posts about stores you've admired or have had a great purchase from. (an already-existing super time killer is the etsy sellers who blog ring, process and product!) if you switch teams like me and do both that's cool though, you know what i mean :)

you can leave me a link in the comments or email to the address at the waaay bottom of the page; i'd love to take a look and link them up with your permission! if i get enough or a consistent supply of links i could do it every week even; may be a fun idea for a blog ring as well.

just a late nite thought, along with the others :)