Clutches, Scarves & Wallets...Oh, My!

New stuff I've been making lately (well, finished a couple of weeks ago, anyway):
Earth friendly spring clutches handmade from repurposed & vintage materials

Yellow Clutch made from repurposed georgette ribbon (Darn Good Yarn, Inc), vintage art deco button, vintage cotton fabric lining, hand crocheted, hand stitched Available Samsstuff Etsy

Pink Silk Clutch: Repurpose pulled silk yarn (Darn Good Yarn, Inc.), vintage cloth button, vintage cotton fabric lining, hand crocheted, hand stitched Available samsstuff Etsy

Some cute little wallets

Teal Blue Wallet: Locally sourced Alpaca yarn, repurposed silk ribbon (Darn Good Yarn, Inc), vintage flower button, cotton fabric lining, hand crocheted, hand stitched Available samsstuff Etsy

Mint, Chocolate & White Wallet: US grown cotton yarn, vintage button, cotton fabric lining, hand crocheted, hand stitched Available soon

Some fun skinny scarves

Radiant Orchid Skinny Scarf: 100% wool yarn, vintage lace, hand crocheted, hand stitched Available Samsstuff Etsy

Plus, a bracelet or two

Snake Bracelet: Repurposed silk chiffon fabric (Darn Good Yarn, Inc), metallic teal embroidery thread, snake toggle clasp, hand crocheted Available Samsstuff Etsy

Can't wait to get back to making things (My wrist is recovering from surgery)...
How about you, have you been making things lately or discovered any great vintage finds? These are great ways to get ready for Earth Day (April 22, since 1970) & celebrate every day...SAM

Congratulations!

So, the first thing that I would like to do today is say congratulations to Debbie of Shanasshop for winning my first ever give away & to thank her for her awesome blog entry.! I had a great time packaging her winnings. If you get a chance, stop by her shop & take a look at all the cool stuff!
I've been busy, mostly with work & haven't had much time for anything fun or interesting.
I have added some fun things to ArtFire:
An Alien Monster Contemplates the Surf A framed, original drawing.
Peace Dots Keepsake Box A tiny embroidery.
Alien Flowers A tiny, framed embroidery.
The King & Queen of Hearts A tiny framed embroidery set.
And some to Etsy:
Vintage Mod Earrings
Feeling Green Bag A hand crocheted, hand stitched bag.
Vintage Fishing Design Cuff Links
I have also added items to "This Next?" Many of them are from Etsy or ArtFire shops, so stop by & take a look! One of your items may be there & while you're there take a look at the awesome finds from site users throughout. It's a great resource for shoppers & trend spotters!
I hope to have a new give away soon, so watch for it & watch for more mentions of other great shops & sites!
Take care,
SAM

"You should be happy..."

Hi again!
How's everyone doing?
I wanted to start off this time by talking about a phrase that I've been hearing a lot lately: "These days (in these economic times, right now...), you should just be happy you have a job, any job." On the surface, it looks like this is meant to encourage us to look on the bright side of things, be happy for what we have, not worry about striving or struggling over how we could be better off. Generally, this is probably how it's meant, by those who utter these types of catch phrases in a well intentioned attempt to make others feel good about themselves. What does this phrase really say to us, though & how does it often end up being used by the not so well intentioned? I have been finding, that all too often, this is a way to keep us from striving for something more. That we shouldn't look beyond where we are & try for something better suited. It is often used by those in charge as a way to keep employees in check. Don't step out of bounds, don't believe yourself worthy of that promotion (or better position elsewhere), don't question the questionable. There are too many others waiting to take your place (seemingly better suited, possibly friends, relatives or acquaintances, that those in charge would rather see succeed) to take the chance. It's too risky for you. Workplace abuse seems to be on the rise & economic fear is used to perpetuate & justify the practice. Employers don't have to be on their best behavior to attract or keep staff members, employees are too abundant. This is a sad & disheartening state of affairs, to me. Like I said above, I don't believe the everyone is this heartless only that this is a too huge of an opportunity for those that are.
So, that is that.
On to happier things...

This week I finished several new items for my shop:
1. a new framed embroidery featuring a dragon, peace symbol & yin yang symbol
2. a hand embroidered 3 button set featuring floral designs on a hand drawn card
3. a new headband featuring a dragon & a heart
4. the softie that I've been working on

I also started on a new messenger bag featuring a new embroidered character, along with the 'aliens' from 2 of my other bags!

The samsstuff sale continues through the end of March, check it out for one of a kinds gifts for yourself (!), friends, family or the home!
Mother's Day is fast approaching...Why not try samsstuff?
http://samsstuff.etsy.com