Feeling Lucky?

There's still time to enter the buttercupbloom contest on Phydelle!

Click this here link to throw your hat in the ring!

Giveaway Time!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is a First for me, so I am really excited!!

My Etsy friend, Brenda, makes these beautiful things.....


Doesn't that just look like the prettiest blue sky you've ever seen? Brenda's photography and eye for color really inspire me. She has two Etsy shops Phydeaux/knitwear and Phydelle/knitwear for dolls - feel free to take a look, her work is really special! She's also a super nice, very supportive person that I've come to know via Etsy Street Teams (kinda like cyber colleagues) and more recently "IRL" contacts. She's "Good People".

Brenda approached me for an interview a few weeks ago and I asked if we couldn't have a giveaway to make the feature all the more fun. She loved the idea & the spotlight is now LIVE!

I am giving away one of my Blue Skies Hoot Owls - it is one of a kind and just about as squeezable as it gets. See?


There's no purchase necessary, just hit this link and leave a comment about something you like in my etsy shop. You get bonus entries if you do other things - but the basic ballot is suuuuuper simple. And, you might win one of my Hoot Owls! Sweet.

Here's another pic of the prize:


Thanks so much for your support. I'm crossing my fingers that one of my Blogland Buddies wins the PRIZE!!

Click here to get to the Giveaway....hope to see you over there!

xoxoxoxo

A Wee Delay

The super cool surprise that I alluded to the other day...has been postponed.

I'm sorry. What I can share is that the secret treat is my First Ever Giveaway!!!!!!!

An Etsy Pal, Brenda (of Phydelle Fame), asked to interview me and I asked her if we could include a giveaway as part of the fun. Feel free to drop by her blog to visit, but I will also notify the start of the giveaway here on buttercup as well!

Here's to a lovely weekend!

If forced to wait long enough....

Sometimes better gear comes down the pike.

New Ergo Sport!

Awfully Sporty! And, definitely going on the wish list.

Muchas Gracias to everyone that traveled over to etsy.com to vote for my Hoot Owl. That was fun! My plushie won 4th place and a spot in the Americana Gift Guide - a prized position. It has since made the long journey to Mount Vernon - to make a sweet nest with its Forever Family. Mount Vernon being just the right place for a Red, White and Blue Hooter, I believe.

Stay tuned for a super cool opportunity later this week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks again! xo

Vote for my Hoot Owl...if you please

If you love Owls, if you love upcycling, hell....if you just love me. Please consider voting for my entry in this week's etsy contest!

Go here: Vote

Thanks! xo

PS - I'm really close to winning! How cool would that be?

Maker Faire Success!

And, it was so much fun! I really hope that I'll be invited to vend again as the Maker Faire and Bazarre Bizarre were truly the perfect market for me! Lots of families that care about upcycling, value handmade and love plush owls, carrots and rad ass radishes! My people.

Here is a pic of my pre-set up laid out on my dining room table.


Here is my table at the show itself! (I had a bunch of "stock" under the table and I kept filling in as the day went on).


Here is a pic of my table-mate "May" - of OhMay Designs on etsy. She is an amazing knitter and sells her original work as well as patterns at her etsy shop. She also lets me call her Mei Mei (my little sister - haha!).


Buttercupbloom and Ohmay!
Originally uploaded by brenda // phydeaux designs

We make a very good team as she is the calm, cool, collected one and I'm more of the perky salesgirl. Thanks to Brenda/Phydeaux for taking and sharing this photo of May and I.

And, many many many thanks to everyone that came out to support us at the Faire. I am happy to say that well over half of my "inventory" walked out the doors and into some pretty happy homes that day. A few people have actually even come back to my shop for more! One girl was so inspired by my Hoot Owls that she's founded a "Hoot for Owls" club!

Very, very, very cool!

I'll leave you with this vid from the Maker Faire website that will give you a sense of what else was going on at the event as well as the size of the crowds that were there! Pretty amazing!

xo

Stay Tuned!!

Maker Faire was Fantastic!!!!!!

I have some photos to share, but haven't uploaded them yet.

Until then, have a look and a listen to my favorite tune for Summer 2009.

I hope you love it as much as I do!

More later, I swear.

xo

I'm a Maker

Yeah, baby...I'm a Maker.



So this is what I've been really, really up to. Preparing for the Maker Faire, San Mateo 2009.

Woot!

Holla!!

I've always had it in me. A desire to create, to be creative. Didn't always matter about what. Cooking, sculpting, sewing, painting, cutting, sprouting, writing. For me, it was and is all about making something. About putting what I have in my thoughts and heart on the outside. Sharing. Creating.

Making.

So, when one of my bestest friends called me "crafty" and I cringed, I needed to know why. And, when I joined an etsy group and someone called me an artist and I felt like an imposter - I had to take a closer look. Where do I fit in?...I asked myself...and I still do. Where does someone like me without any art school experience or commercial endeavors fit in?


My work and what has come out of me over this past year is more than "crafty" to me. The fact that I have managed to sell and send my creations worldwide is an amazing adventure that tickles me to death. And, an endeavor that I think has kept me sane. For now, I would like to call myself a Maker. It works for me and it feels pretty sweet.


Somehow I feel a wee part of a greater movement that is changing our world. I didn't mean to do that but am happy to have gotten caught in the undertow....

If you are in town, please come by to visit. Reduced price tickets at Radio Shack...and kids under age 3 are FREE!!!!!

I'd LOVE to see you!

xoxoxoxo

Bento Babe

I'll be honest, I haven't been hanging around these parts for a while. A long while. My heart told me that distance from the blog/cyber/adoption world was a good idea. And, I think that has been true.

A week or so ago, however, I happened upon one of the "OG" Bloggers MaryMia and her "Salsa in China" blog. It was a take your hat off and stay a while moment. I paged through and hung out reading up on her adventures with her adorable twin girls. I missed her and missed the community.

M3 sure has a lot of fun with mommying, blogging and photographing. She's even been named a winning "Mommy Blogger" by Scholastic - how cool is that? I was particularly taken with her photo journaling of lunchtime around the Salsa Home in the form of Bento Boxes, twin style (click here to see her fantastic flickr collection). Brilliant. And, yes, I wanted a part of that action. Just a little piece of the cuteness.

There just so happens to be a Daiso shop nearly walking distance from where I work. They had a full- on Bento Box section that was easy to navigate but difficult to leave. The colors and the cute wee shapes just pulled me in. Here is my starter pack:


My excuse for buying these toys? Easy. I promised to help my sister entertain/occupy her one year old and nearly 3 year old during their father's lengthy graduation ceremony. I brought crayons and little toys.


But the Bento Boxies definitely stole the show. And, I think, saved us from a simmering and likely meltdown.


My proudest moment? They ate the tofu!

Yay!

Score one more point for Auntie!! (Maybe two?)

Part One in the "Where She At?" Chronicles

Happy Memorial Day Weekend! I've been busy with a large project that I will reveal later this week. Til' then, I thought that I'd revive the buttercup blog a little with some photos and updates about where I've been and what I've been doing.


A friend of mine told me about this very cool collective called the Art House back in December. I thought that I would give myself a Christmas present and sign up for one of their cool projects. The Art House is based in Atlanta, GA. Here is their synopsis of their mission:



ART HOUSE IS ABOUT FAMILY
Art House creates massive, nationwide art projects that tie hundreds of artists together – and anyone can participate.
We started two years ago with the goal of bringing art to the masses. Since we started, we have interacted with thousands of artists from around the world, all brought together with the common goal of creating art and sharing it with each other.

We host many of the exhibitions for our projects at our gallery in Atlanta, Ga. In an attempt to give artists as much recognition as possible, as well as providing the opportunity to see the exhibition that they're a part of in person, we have started taking select projects to guest galleries around the country.



Pretty sweet, huh? I signed up for the Sketchbook Project. I sent them a little money, they sent me a cute little Moleskine sketchbook and a deadline. Very little else was specified by the Art House beyond the theme of the sketchbook show - "everyone we know". My kind of art project.

Here's a bird's eye view of my offering:


You can look at my submission in its entirety here, if you'd like.

It ended up being more of a journal sort of project for me. Filled with family members, colors and things symbolic of what I love and who I am. Here is a pic of the last page of my sketchbook:


My hopes, dreams, friends, family, heart and art - in watercolor and journal form have been having a way better vacation than I. Traveling all over the East coast, shaking hands with curious gallery visitors. Brooklyn, Boston, Chi-Town. Pretty cool. At some point, my sketchbook will come back home to me and I will imagine who has held it, what they thought and hope that someone understood a little about who I am.

I also wanted to blog about this because I thought that it might inspire someone who still comes around to visit this little bit of cyberspace. If you are interested, here is a link to the Art House - there are some more really great projects happening. And, I know that there are (or used to be) a whole lot of creative people that visit my blog.

More later. I've got some fun stuff to share & pictures, too!

xo

Help a Girlfriend Out??

Etsy has a weekly Vote and this week I was included. Or, more
specifically, one of my Hoot Owls were included. The theme for the
vote this week is "Eco Friendly Items for a Better World". I couldn't
be happier to be part of that theme!

Actually, I could be happier - if I were to win!! Haha. Now you know
why I'm emailing and asking for your help. Its really easy & fun!

:::Click Here for the voting link:::

The poll ends on April 20th - and the results should be listed the
following day. Just in Time for Earth Day!!!

Hope this note finds you all doing well.

Happy Earth Day!

xo, WendyZ

Hello Sunshine!

Happiness is a lazy Sunday, a warm beam of sun, cozy slippers and you.

xo

Welcome 2009

I don't know why I feel the urge to blog every time I get carded. But I do.

Today I got carded again. This was at 10 am-ish, at a Whole Foods shop and I was purchasing a Pinot Grigio alongside toasted sesame oil, tofu and sherry vinegar. It was a young woman who was clearly embarrassed after having a look at my license. Odd. The carding also occurred immediately after I'd gotten my annual mammogram. Nothing like a mammogram to make you feel the aging process. Getting carded was a surprising antidote.

I bought this because I was feeling oh-so young & jaunty:

Makes me want to take a long sabbatical and work on my tan somewhere South of the Border. Or pack some warm scarves and head to Paris so jzboy & I can trade homes with a nice French couple that dream of living in California. Or throw all caution to the wind, quit my job and become a full time art student in San Francisco.

Is this what a mid-life crisis looks like? Maybe only if one does such things vs. dreaming about them?

This past week has been great in that I've gotten to congratulate some China Adoption friends (Kelli, Pipo & Holly) on their lovely referrals. What beautiful wee faces! One friend (Shannon) just posted her homecoming photos and Joel/Kim have posted pictures of their family day with Ruby. What happy, sweet times & sights for sore eyes. I truly want to thank all of you for sharing. xoxo!

So.

Is 2009 going to be our year? If referrals continue to trickle in as slow as they did in 2008 (a grand total of 2 months for the entire year)...then, nope. Will there be a speed up in 2009? Ah, the age-old question we've been asking at the top of a New Year for a while now. Who knows?

Girlfriend's gotta think up some new ways to span time because Paris is pretty far, the day-job's gotta stay for now and unless I can find me a kind benefactor - full time art school/extended sabbaticals in exotic locations aren't likely. I'd better get to work on a plan otherwise my closet might fill up with more things like these:


Somebody send help. Or...maybe some watercolors.