December 21, 2007

Cinnamon scents fill my Happy House


1 cup cinnamon
3/4 cup apple sauce
1T ground cloves
1T ground nutmeg
2 T school glue

stir dough till moist, knead dough till smooth, roll out (not too thin) and cut shapes, poke hole for hanging...dry on news print for several days. Once dry paint or apply glitter glue or other creative decorations.

Happy Holidays!

December 19, 2007

Handmade Holidays at Happy House Quilts


Perfect for a Princess!
These are going to the little one I babysit for...oh, I hope she likes them...a tutu for a too too cutie pie and a perfect size pillow for a big girl's bed.

December 17, 2007

NY Times and Etsy!

The New York Times published an article yesterday about the handmade pledge and a bit about Etsy.

Find the article here.

Most interesting is this snippet

"On July 29, Etsy registered its one-millionth sale and is expecting to hit two million items sold by mid-December. Shoppers spent $4.3 million buying 300,000 items from the site’s sellers in November alone — a 43 percent increase over the previous month. Thus far in December, the site has had record-breaking sales every day."

Very cool!

December 14, 2007

Things to share from Happy House Quilts's google reader

Happy House Quilts Shared Items at Google Reader

Special Wool Pouch Tutorial from HHQ

These little pockets have been a huge hit in my local market. So I thought I'd share the simple recipe to make them!

Cut one 3x6 inch rectangle of wool felt.
Design the front with simple designs and embellish with beads, buttons, pretty pearl cottons. (kit available inquire at Happy House Quilts)
Cut ribbon about 5 inches.
Loop ribbon they way you like and attach with button to match.
Fold rectangle in half and sew up the sides, give yourself room to cut away any uneven sides.
Cut away the very top edge with pinking shears to make it look neat. You can cut away the side edges with the shears too or trim to be even with straight shears.

Fill a 2x3 inch plastic bag with potpourrie, I choose cedar and fill the pocket with the bag.

Type the info:
This pocket is made with wool felt by HappyHouseQuilts.com. Use it for an ornament, in your closet or with a gift card to give away. To activate cedar, punch pin holes in bag. Place in desired drawers, closets, chests, etc. Add to the pocket.
Obviously you will replace my shop name with your own.This one is my favorite!

You can also stuff the pocket with a gift card, or a special note to a loved one, hershey's hugs or kisses would be great too! If you like making these we can post pictures of them to a flickr group...let me know!
Create from within!

December 11, 2007

Need Grows this Holiday Season for Toys Made in the USA: Happy House Quilts Craft Kits fit the profile!

Happy House Quilts offers no lead paint and no overseas production. Actually the production of the Craft kits are processed on the kitchen table of a little home in NH. All the cutting and assembly is done in NH. All the drafting and writing was done in NH.

Any wool felt used has been manufactured in Massachusetts at National Nonwovens

I am even a Yankee...with a pedigree dating back to 1060!!!!!

What's Yankee? Well, I'm an adoptee, but upon my search a few years ago, I figured out this very perplexing question. It means my ancestors came over to America during or before the Revolutionary War. Pretty cool. I'm not a DAR (Daughters of the Revolution) or anything...not sure if they would accept me...being an adoptee...but it's still cool to have a past....

But I digress...craftiness is in the tradition of being a Yankee...ingenuity and resourcefulness. So all that put together has created me and my Happy House Quilts, made in the USA, always quilt inspired, always practical and fashionable.

Create from within! Go get crafty!
Thanks for reading!

New Hampshire's Union Leader gives attention to Etsy.com

New Hampshire Sunday News (Manchester, NH)

December 9, 2007 Etsy.com gives the artsy an outlet
Author: NANCY BEAN FOSTER Union Leader Correspondent Edition: State
Section: Lifestyles
Page: F1
Article Text:

Finding the amazing variety of products made by New Hampshire artisans used to require visiting craft shows and specialty shops, but a Web site devoted to high-quality crafts has become a gathering place for artists and craftspeople across the state and around the world.

Etsy.com is an online store that only sells handmade products. With more than 60,000 sellers from around the world, the site is dedicated to the mission of "enabling people to make a living making things, and to reconnect makers with buyers."

The Brooklyn-based company was founded by artist Rob Kalin after he became frustrated with his inability to find an online marketplace for his creations. With the help of Chris Maguire and Haim Scoppik, the site was launched in 2005, and now employs 45 people in New York and San Francisco. The site boasts a membership of more than half a million people and 60,000 sellers, including more than 50 from the Granite State.

The way in which Etsy was founded makes the Web site special, according to John Rowe, a woodworker and seller from Raymond. "(Etsy was) started by a group of young people without any money, (even scrounged their own furniture to sit in) in an apartment in NYC," said Rowe. "That means the 'greed breed' can take no credit for its success."

"I found Etsy only by accident just over two months ago, and it has to be the single best online shopping experience I've ever encountered as a seller and as a buyer," said Lorraine Ferrari of Londonderry, who specializes in handmade soaps and candy.

For Rowe, who always dreamed of working with wood after he retired, Etsy.com has provided a unique place to sell his work without the hassles of other online shopping venues like eBay.
"EBay is basically a huge flea market, and does not provide much exposure for real craftpeople or artists," said Rowe, 71, who worked in high-tech and publishing before retiring. "Etsy does make an effort to be sure people are selling what they say they are selling, and the sellers can self-police this by reporting fake products."

Don Drew, a woodworker from Raymond who specializes in handmade pens, said the site allows shoppers to find unique, New Hampshire-made gifts and products without having to visit craft fairs or specialty shops. "It's a high-class way of getting your work on the net," he said. "It's like an online mall for craftspeople and artisans. It's a fascinating outlet." Drew said he joined the site because creating a secure independent retail site required a lot of expense and experience. Rowe found the site by reading an article in Business Week.

Now the sellers and the founders of Etsy are hoping that people around the world will discover the site and find that buying local, homemade crafts doesn't require a trip to a church basement or hours surfing through the millions of products on eBay or other sites. "The people you encounter on there not only make some of the most wonderful, high quality and unique handmade creations," said Ferrari, "but they are friendly and helpful and the personal touch you receive when making a purchase beats hands down any generic experience you could get from any other online retailer or at the mall."

To discover the work of more than 50 New Hampshire artisans who use Etsy, visit www.etsy.com and type "New Hampshire" into the search line, or use the Web site's geolocator on the left-hand side of the home page.

The artisans from New Hampshire also have a blog at www.nhstreetteam.blogspot.com that can provide quick links to unique gifts and merchandise.

Copyright 2007 Union Leader Corp.
Record Number: 11D76836AB94EFC8

December 8, 2007

Affirm Water - Leach free water bottles found at a Craft Fair Today!!!

Take a look at what I found, Affirm Water! Come visit this great web site.

You can view this site at:
http://affirmwater.com/

Leach free water bottle because it's made of light weight stainless steel!!!
Totally worth a peek!

December 4, 2007

Snow day!

all hats provided by Deedaloos.com
Look at the unique way she added the tassels...those are flowers on the ends!
This came with matching mittens!
More flowers on the ears! And it hangs down long in the back, so old fashion! So cute! This came with matching mittens too!
Daisy didn't get one this year!
Hydrangeas are equally pretty in the winter...don't you think?

December 3, 2007

Green Bean: Flannel Board

Green Bean: Flannel Board

What a great idea Cara has at her blog...definitely check it out!

oh I'm picturing a garden with rows to sow and fairy princesses...and trees and water and mountains...We need to do one too!!! Will have the older girls help, it can be a holiday gift to their baby sister! Thanks so much for sharing and inspiring me Cara!