25 Deals til Christmas Specials!

I realized I have exactly three weeks before I get to go to Hawaii to see my side of the family for Christmas!  Which is incredibly exciting for me but that also means time is ticking away at all of the things that I have been wanting to get done also.  So this post will be to catch you all up on some of the big things that are going to be happening for me and Sense and Sensibility during the month of December.

1: Introducing a New Collection

For those of you who pay very close attention to what is going on in my Etsy, you may have noticed a new section in the store this past week.  That is because I finally found a name that I liked for it!  So I am now introducing (drumroll please!): "California Breezes"!
There is a section set aside for these items in my shop so take a look and let me know what you think!  More color combinations and items will be added through the next few days.  I would appreciate the feed back.  =)  

2: 25 Deals til Christmas Specials
I am introducing what I hope will become a holiday tradition of mine in my business.  =)  For each day of the month up to (and including Christmas Day), I will be featuring a different sale or special deal on Sense and Sensibility!
For the first day (December 1st), I am celebrating my new collection with 25% off City Lights Bracelets (prices will be adjusted already)!  There is a limited supply so get them while you can and spread the word around!  And then keep checking back for a new deal each day!

3: A few other surprises up my sleeve.  =)
There will be more little surprises in the coming days also so I hope to see you back here soon!

Have a beautiful day!

Thanksgiving Day Recap!

After a rather busy day, I am now sitting at home again, quietly reading news from the day (and reading everyone's beautiful Thanksgiving day blogposts!), catching up on Facebooking friends around the country, and enjoying a once-in-a-blue-moon quiet evening at home with the hubby.  It is lovely!

I had a very blessed Thanksgiving "day" because I feel like I had was able to celebrate for two days!  One of my college roommates (whom you have seen before because she has modeled my jewelry before: like this item!) was in town to see family for the weekend and I was able to steal her away from her family for one night!  It was an occasion to celebrate and talk and eat.  We ate a lot.  =)  Whenever she comes in town, we have begun a tradition of going to one of our favorite restaurants and I had an amazing drink - a chocolate wine.  "Chocolate Amore" is its name and I had to take some pictures of it:

Words cannot even describe quite how good it was.  It is a rich red wine with strong cherry tones and an amazingly smooth dark chocolate finish.  If you are a chocolate lover, you have to try finding this wine!  (I did find a list of online stores you can order it from here.)  

And then, for Thanksgiving day, I talked to my family in Hawaii on the phone and spent the afternoon/evening in a combination of eating, recovering from eating, and enjoying general family time.    Now that I'm awake on Black Friday, I have to get myself in gear and do some shopping!  I was really hoping to finish my family Christmas shopping today so you may very well be seeing many more posts from me this weekend completing my Operation Family Chrismas Shopping saga!!!

Have fun out there (or at home - however you do your shopping) and check out some of these blogs for great helps for online deals this weekend!

muchloveilly

wild and precious

Selling Myself

Every once in a while, I take the plunge and troll through the endless sources of wisdom and information that Etsy has made available to its users.  Whether you are a buyer, seller, or just interested, there is a ridiculously large amount of reading material in their forums and community areas.  To make matters worse, once I start reading, I feel like I have to keep reading because I might miss something really valuable!  And then I look up at the clock and two hours have gone by... Sadly, this is from more than one experience...  =)

The one piece of advice I keep seeing on Etsy is to be unique, to have something that separates you from the competition.  I guess I have been feeling a little less than unique recently.  Sometimes selling handmade goods is an uphill battle in a seasonal Gucci, Chanel, and Prada world.  But Etsy is constant proof to me that people do actually like buying handmade and vintage items - things that will be treasured for a long time to come or have already seen a lot of loving!

So this post is my brainstorm "outloud" to you, my blog readers, to see if you think I am on the right track. Here goes:

Hi!  Welcome to Sense and Sensibility Designs - the home of "sensible" jewelry!  

Every piece is made by hand and many of them are completely one of a kind.  

I like to think that I have jewelry for every woman!  I have long and dangly earrings for the trendsetter or shorter and stylish for someone who likes the classics.  Necklaces are long and layerable or petite and pretty!  But my favorite thing of all is making something special - just for you!  So if you have a special request, that's what I love to make happen.  Your idea can become reality!

All the metal I use is sterling silver.  I have sensitive skin and ears so I make it at that high quality so no one else has to worry about what it will do to their skin!  Not only do I only use sterling silver but I endeavor to use the highest quality shells, pearls, and gems that I can find.  You want your jewelry to last you a long time and so do I - I will do everything I can to make that reality.

Every piece of jewelry I make ends up feeling like an old friend.  When you decide you want to give my pieces a home and a future, it makes me very excited!  I always love seeing pictures of my creations "in action."  I am also a little weird like that and give inanimate objects personalities.  =P

That is Sense and Sensibility in a very small nutshell.  =)  

What do you think?  Am I on the right track?  

And don't forget!  There will be a Black Friday through Cyber Monday sale @ Sense and Sensibility!  Click on the sale button on the right to see some other great vendors doing the same!  

Have a beautiful day!

Operation Christmas Shopping for Family: Seventh Status Report

A quick status report on my Christmas shopping endeavors!

Objective: Gifts for all on this list

• Hubby  
• My mother
• My father
• My brother   Check!  
• My sister
• Mother-in-law  Check!
• Father-in-law  Check!
• Brother-in-law 1
• Brother-in-law 2
• My brother's girlfriend  Check!
• Brother-in-law's girlfriend  Check!

So I am just under half way done with my family.  But there is still a lot of work to be done in a short amount of time!  Today, I am working on my sister.  =)

So I know she loves this one designer on Etsy who makes these adorable retro re-inventions.  I have seriously considered getting her one for Christmas.  

xiaolizi.etsy.com

So that is one option.  But she is a wonderful dancer as well and when I saw this little knick-knack, I thought it would be rather perfect too.

riskybeads.etsy.com

Suffice to say, I am starting to quickly get overwhelmed by so many adorable choices for my favorite baby sister.  =)  And this notecards are beautiful!

madebyswirlygirl.etsy.com

AND since I moved out of the house, she has had a room all to herself that she is slowly redoing to her taste and style.  So maybe I will contribute to her efforts with this.

asuniqueasyou.etsy.com

 I think it would be cute in her room.  It will match her curtains perfectly.  =)  Along the same lines of helping decorate her room was this adorable item.

LulieChic.etsy.com

You are able to personalize pretty nearly everything with this frame too.  I have my choice of saying, paper, and frame style!  I'm pretty sold.  =)  

But now the problem is which of these items do I get for her and how to stop myself from keeping looking around Etsy for even more beautiful finds.  =)  And I have to make up mind to check another person off my list!

Have a beautiful day!

Thankfulness Is What I Long For

Yesterday was a "normal" Thursday.  I woke up a little later than normal (around 8 a.m. versus my normal 7 a.m.), I did my morning blog reading, and got a post of my own pumped out.  (This is really pre-mature but I believe that one of my New Year's resolutions will be to attempt to get a blogging schedule established and implemented.)  After all of the aforementioned activities, I babysit/nanny for a family of four children, one of whom has a disability.  For their privacy, I will call them the "Browns".  The Browns are a wonderful family with children ranging from 6 to just under 1 year old.  I love these kids - we have an amazing time!  Today, we played with lots and lots of wooden trains (a personal favorite of mine from my childhood!) and played outside on the swings that they have in their enormous tree.  I had to share these pictures from yesterday with you all!

These are Browns #2 & #3.  =)  Suffice to say, I sincerely wished I was small enough to use their swings too!  Swings were always my favorite playground equipment but today was a beautiful, mild, clear autumn day and they looked so care free and happy!  They both loudly and emphatically declared to me that "they were flying!"  My life isn't difficult or oppressive by any means but this just made me take a breath, pray, and realize that God has blessed me so very much in ALL and EVERY way.  I am His and I am content with that today.  

Forget Thanksgiving Day being on November 25th.  It is every day.

Operation Christmas Shopping for Family: Sixth Status Report

So I have been working on Christmas shopping for a lot of people and I actually took the plunge and started purchasing things today!  A large part of the reason is that I realized that it is only one week away from Thanksgiving and once that day is gone, things go from busy to CRAZY busy.  But at least I have started.  And I actually started by buying some gifts that you have not yet seen in my Operation Christmas Shopping series yet!

Today, I am working on my father-in-law.  He has been so great and welcoming to me since the hubby and I have been married but he is like a lot of dads - potentially hard to shop for.  Now, thanks to our marvelous and wonderful Etsy, I have found a few things that I think he will like.

Gourmet Popcorn Spices!!!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/62204015/gourmet-popcorn-spice-kit

He is such a popcorn nut!  Sometimes, we will just have finished dinner and he is already in the kitchen making a big bowl of amazingly buttery and salty goodness.  And he insists on melting and drizzling real butter.  It's the only way to do it he says. =)

Man Bowl

http://www.etsy.com/shop/ClayMystique?ref=seller_info

And then I saw this.  The tag, literally says, "Man Bowl".  How perfect!  My father-in-law loves snacks and things generally considered "junk food".  Amoung them is ice cream.  This will be a great new ice cream bowl for him!  


Yummy!

BlissBrownies.etsy.com

And in addition to the popcorn and ice cream,  sweets are generally his thing.  The nice thing is that it makes a great gift for him because he doesn't always buy them for himself.  So when I saw this wonderful brownie deliciousness, I had a feeling it would be perfect.  =)  I kind of want one for myself now too.  

So there is another family member taken care of!  But don't forget to place your orders early enough to get them processed and shipped in time for Christmas!  Thankfully, Etsy and the artists on it are rather amazing and generally will make it work!

Have a beautiful day!

A crazy weekend and the Giveaway Winner!!!

So I meant to do this giveaway yesterday but ended up having a "great" experience with my poor car.  I named my car "Ruby" and that's what I'm going to call her from now on.  =)  Anyway, the hubby and I were going to visit some friends when we noticed that my headlights were dimming and coming back without me doing anything (I was driving).  Then as we got off the freeway, my gauges were going dead also.  So I'm starting to freak out a little bit but thankfully, super-hubby was doing wonderfully with trying to calm me down.  We did get to our friends' house and then after dinner was over and we tried to get Ruby to turn back on, she didn't work. =(  After that, it was a blur figuring out what to do with my  poor baby.  But when it was all over, I was exhausted and it was late so I just went to bed.  For some reason, this ordeal just drained me and really shook me up.  

BUT!  I have done the giveaway now and the winner is Ty - on Facebook!  So please send me an email, Ty, and we will get you your prize!  (snsandsnsibility{@}gmail{dot}com)  Congratulations!

And so my week begins...or finished.  =P  Car problems to finish up and lots of work coming up but I am optimistic that it will work out. Church was lovely today and I was able to spend time with the in-laws so I am ready for this week.  =)  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

Have a beautiful coming week!

Operation Christmas Shopping for Family: Fifth Status Report

I have been sadly negligent of this project that I am working on so it is being woken up from its little nap and is going to start working for me again.  Part of it has to do with the fact that I realized Christmas is fast approaching and that the mail is sometimes slow so I need to order things sooner rather than later to make sure everything gets here on time.  And if you are thinking of shopping on Etsy, it might be a good thing for you to contemplate also.

Today we are shopping for my brother.  He is in the US Army, loves his country, food, family, and beer.  That pretty much sums him up.  But I love him.  He has always been one of my closest friends - and a huge goof ball.  This is a picture of me and my siblings from my wedding last year.  It gives you a pretty good idea of what he is like.  =P

yeah...like I said...goof ball.  =)

So that all being said, I sometimes have a hard time shopping for the people closest to me.  But Etsy is always wonderful when it comes to surprises and surprise gifts so here are some of the things that came to my eyes in my search.

1) Recycled Glass Tumbler

This one seems particularly appropriate but we will have to see if I can't find a brewery that he likes but I know he will take almost anything.  =)  As long as it holds beer.  

2) Beer Magnets  =P

I know my brother isn't much of a magnet guy but he might be when he sees that they are bottle caps!

3) Target Coasters

Now these will definitely be a good thing!  When he has all his buddies over, they will know exactly what to do!  =)  

4) A Military Mug!

Even though this one is featured as a Marine mug, they can do it with any insignia you request!  I am definitely thinking of getting my brother an Army one!

5) He might hate me for this one but...Teddy Bear is so cute!!!
It is so stinking cute and it just might be that touch of home and little bit of love that he will need every once in a while.

That's about all I've found so far but I am looking now so we will have to see what else comes up!

Have a beautiful day all!

Victory!

As I have mentioned at various times, I have been attempting to work through some of my ideas for my "look" for my business and blog.  I think I have gotten really close, if not decided!  What do you think?!  I get so much inspiration from Hawaii and the beach and the great outdoors that I thought it was only right to put those elements into my design.  So I have ocean and sky and my favorite colors of blue and green.

What do you think?  I would love to have your thoughts!

"Just another manic Monday..."

So after a lovely birthday weekend (thanks for all the birthday greetings!), everything is back to the fast and faster pace of what is seeming to be the normal life.  But!  I have some exciting things going on so I thought to myself, "Aime, you should write some of this down so you don't forget it."  So I am writing it down.  =)  You, my dear readers, get to help keep me accountable and tell me to keep working and stop getting sucked into the glorious world of handmade things on Etsy!  (I admit it...I waste a lot of time admiring and drooling over other artists on Etsy...I will try harder to get work done.)  =)

Cold Hands, Warm Hearts!!!

I am so excited to be a part of this!!!  I love Sandy and Ilene and thought this was a great idea!  I almost didn't end up doing it because I wasn't sure I would be able to commit to the idea but I am so glad i did. The idea of a present before Christmas is making me feel like a little kid again!  =)  

When you read about it on their blogs, think about it as a good way to do office holiday gift exchanges or long distance with your family!  I wish I had been creative enough to do something like this while I was in college!  It would have been great for girls' dorms!  

Birthday Giveaway!!!

I'm afraid I didn't make this very clear in my last post but I am leaving the giveaway open for one week!  So I will do the drawing and announce the winner this coming Saturday, November 13th!  So please feel free to keep spreading the word about it and letting people know to enter! Here are the instructions to enter one more time:

1) check out and heart my Etsy store (snsnsnsibility.etsy.com)

2) tell me what your favorite item is

3) share it with your friends on twitter or facebook

4) comment here on my blog telling me about it!

If you have already done all of the above, then I have your entry and you don't need to worry about doing it again (unless you feel like spreading the word about Sense and Sensibility out of the goodness of your heart!)  =)

Birthday Doings

So I had a lovely, but interesting, birthday weekend.  My hubby took me to Disneyland that day and we were waiting to go on my favorite ride (which is Toy Story Midway Mania) when all of a sudden everyone in this line we were standing in started coughing!  It started with one person and slowly spread through this little room (if you have been to any Disney amusement park, you have a pretty good idea of what I'm talking about).  Throats were burning and it was painful to breath - a unique experience for standing in line.  It felt like coughing was the only way to get rid of it but it wasn't really working.  We finally get out of there and find out after the ride that apparently someone had let loose some pepper spray in these close quarters...not the smartest or kindest thing I've ever had someone do at Disneyland.

But the day got better when my hubby took me on a shopping trip to Anthropologie - probably my all-time favoritest place to shop outside of Etsy.  =D  I get a birthday card with a very nice discount from them every year and that is usually when I go and this year, I got this:

anthropologie.com

Mine is a black stripe but you get the idea.  I LOVE it!  Super comfy and versatile so I can wear it for many occasions and wear it to pieces before the end of winter.  =)

Excitement!

I got a post on my Facebook page today from an old college dorm mate of mine, Kellie.  She was a bridesmaid in August and asked me to custom make her jewelry.  Here is the picture (Kellie is on the right)!  Isn't she beautiful?!

a closer view of Kellie's jewelry!

That is most of what I've had going on recently.  But I really wanted to share some of these things with you - these are the things that keep me excited and motivated to keep creating!  And having said that, now I have jewelry I need to go and make.  =)

Happy Birthday Special!

Hello all!

So I have been promising something all week and here it is!  I am going to celebrate my birthday with all of you!  There is a 15% off everything in my Etsy store offer (good for today only and the discount will be reflected in the price listed online).

And!  (we aren't done yet)  I am also doing my very first giveaway!  Any and everyone is welcome to enter!

1) just take a look at my Etsy shop

2) tell me what you like best

3) share my blog or Facebook page with a friend!  

4) And when you've done that, leave me a comment and you will be added to the drawing!

I am giving away one item from my Etsy shoppe - the winner gets to pick!

I am off to spend the day with my husband who didn't end up having to work!  I'm really excited!  =)

Have a beautiful day!

Announcements, ANouncements, ANOUNCEments!!!

Happy Friday everyone!!!

And an especially Happy Birthday Friday to my good blog/Etsy buddy Moonbeamwishes!  Check out her blog and her Etsy so beautiful, adorable, and handy paper amazingness!  =)  Happy birthday, Megan!!!  Have a wonderful day!

It has been quite the birthday month.  Sandyalamode, Moonbeamwishes, and mine is tomorrow!  So many good times to be had.  =)  Especially if you are in the Southern California area and are able to come and visit me at my jewelry show today!!!  I know it has been late notice (it was for me too) but I would love to have you come and support this little boutique!  Here is the information again if you can join us!

And in honor of my birthday tomorrow, I will have a surprise for my blogging, Facebook, and Twitter friends if you check back tomorrow!  And I won't say more than that yet.  =)  So have a wonderful day, everyone and I hope to see you in person or here online very soon!

Have a beautiful day!

News!

So a little bit of news for my readers!

1)  A new look.  This is just a template I found but it is the color scheme and feel I am looking to create in my own design.  I have been working on a new look for my blog and have obviously not quite gotten it finished enough to post live.

2)  Another craft fair!  Actually, it is a holiday boutique but either way - if you are in the Southern California area, PLEASE come and visit me at this show!  Here is the information for those you able to come!

3)  I have a wonderful addition to my business arsenal: a photo booth for my jewelry!  My husband is amazing and found the instructions for this handy dandy little box.  He made it for me while I was in Hawaii and I now have the profound pleasure of taking my pictures in it.  From here on out, my new items will be photographed on this as a background!

I had to take a picture and share it with all of you...but I obviously didn't take the time to clean my desk...hmm...i am really messy...


But I hope that you will be able to come and visit me at this show!  I will have new items that have not yet made it to Etsy so for a little sneak preview, come and see me!