Go Light Your World

"I hope you like your present this year. It's really not much." So said a dear friend of mine this past Christmas. Seems many of us find ourselves on a budget these days.

I assured my friend that in fact I loved the candle. It was green. It was vegan. It smelled good ... like " fir, pine, and an earthy smokiness from the fireplace" according to the description. So I kept my Christmas Hearth candle from AuntieDis Etsy shop right by the computer along with a lighter.

Good thing. The power went out this past Sunday night just after I'd taken dinner out of the oven, and my flashlight batteries didn't work. Ah, the simple pleasure of enjoying chicken, rice, and rosé wine by comforting candlelight rather than in the unsettling pitch darkness of a blackened apartment complex.

Better to light one candle than curse the darkness. And even better to give light and joy to a friend.

This candle came from an Etsy shop called AuntieDis, which you can visit at the following link:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/AuntieDis

The photo below was taken by AuntieDis and shows the listing for the Christmas Hearth Candle:

Wizard of Oz Coincidence Alert -- Emerald City Socks

Several weeks ago, I went shopping on Etsy for handmade wool socks. I figured that rather than spend the money on several cheap pair at Walmart, I'd prefer to treat myself to one good pair that were high quality and made with loving care by a real person right here in America rather than by some big impersonal corporation.

Came across Mumma's Comfy Socks in a shop called BellaBlueKnits. Here's a link to her shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/BellaBlueKnits (The photos in this blog entry come from the BellaBlueKnits Etsy shop.)

The name of the socks sounded a bit strange, but the important thing is they were just what I was looking for. Or so I thought. Actually, they turned out to be even MORE than what I was looking for. Part of the description read: "This pair was knit with a color called Emerald City; a lovely shade of brilliant green."

Well, that settled that! With all the crazy Wizard of Oz coincidences going on in my life, I just HAD to have these socks!

But that's not the end of the story. I wrote the shop owner a little note telling her how the socks were personally meant for me. She wrote back telling me that indeed they were, because she had just gotten through knitting them and had listed them as available in her shop right that very day.

Wow.

Let It Snow!

You are invited in this photo to walk the path of silent, majestic fresh-fallen snow leading to a realm of winter wonder. Enjoy the peacefulness of fresh-fallen snow at Tinkers Creek Gorge Scenic Overlook in the Cleveland Metroparks of Northeast Ohio. This photo, called "Snowfall Symmetry," was on display this past December 2008 at the Market Street Art Center in Lockport, NY as part of their "Off the Walls" exhibit.

I, Queen of Narnia, do hereby decree that winter is once again back in session!

At least in the realm surrounding Cleveland, Ohio. It's snowing, and I'm loving it!

Last night I drifted off to sleep happily to the sound of hail, for that meant ice. Today I awoke even more pleasantly to actual snowflakes drifting down, and the longer the day wore on, the heavier the snowfall became and the stormier it got. Beautiful bracing invigorating weather, cold and refreshing ...

In honor of the weather, I decided to feature some winter photos today in my Etsy shop. While many no doubt are all intent on spring and flowers, there had to be SOMEONE else out there who appreciates the finer points of glorious white winter, regardless of whatever the calendar may say. In any case, I knew I would enjoy seeing snow-laden images again.

And the good news is, one of my winter wonderland photos sold today.

Here's hoping for more snow tomorrow. And the next day ...

Etsy Artisan Product Feature: Adelaides and Her Soap Extraordinaire

Link to Adelaides’s Etsy shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6129950

My very first purchase on Etsy consisted of two Black Coffee kitchen soaps from Adelaides’s shop. The chance to do housework with bars of soap “made with real brewed coffee, coffee grinds and scented with coffee fragrance oil” sounded like a lot of fun. Especially since I’ve been joking for years about how somebody should invent a line of caffeine-inspired perfumes like chocolate and coffee.

(Sample photo taken by Adelaides of her attractive Jasmine soaps.)



After using the Black Coffee kitchen soap, I can say that it really does make washing the dishes a more special and unique experience verging on a treat. As you might expect from my name “CountryDreaming,” I am not the kind of person who uses a dishwasher … even though my apartment does in fact have one. I prefer hand washing my dishes, so I found using handmade Etsy soap made with natural ingredients really cool.

Adelaides would agree. In her words, “I only use homemade natural products at home too. Vinegar, lemon juice, baking soda, salt and old fashioned soap can clean anything. I make my own liquid laundry soap and have a great recipe we use on our wood...let me know if you want the recipes, I'll gladly pass them on. My thoughts are that the more people going back to basics and using non toxic cleaners, the better we will all be. What can I tell you...I'm a tree hugger at heart!”

One thing I should mention is that shipping from Canada to the US does take time (it took me about two weeks to receive the Black Coffee kitchen soap), but that the soap is definitely worth waiting for.

Bottom line, I plan on being a return customer.