Jewelry by NaLa

Last Updated on Wednesday, 10 March 2010 09:33 Written by JewelrybyNaLa Tuesday, 9 March 2010 10:51

The artistic/creative side of my brain is dominant, and I have the math skills to back me up on that! I’m just a natural born crafter. Jewelry making is not my first venture into the world of crafting, but it is definitely my favorite. I think my customers want their jewelry to make a unique statement about themselves and enhance their own personal sense of style. My jewelry is designed with that in mind. Aside from my ready made collection, I also love the challenge of creating jewelry specific to individual tastes, and I’ve been known to “tweak” existing pieces in my collection into custom ordered designs. All someone has to do is tell me what they have in mind, and I will work together with them to see if we can come up with exactly what they’re looking for. I love making people happy like that. Here are a few examples of my work. If you’d like to see more, please consider visiting my Etsy shop: http://jewerlybyNaLa.etsy.com

The Artists Community

Last Updated on Thursday, 11 March 2010 08:18 Written by dreamriverdesigns Monday, 1 March 2010 04:03

The Handmade Artist Forum as a community

Community defined,

 a unified body of individuals:  b : the people with common interests 

 Since the advent of the Internet, the concept of Community no longer has geographical limitations, as people can now virtually gather in an online community and share common interests regardless of physical location.

Handmade artist forum http://handmadeartistsforum.com/forum/index.php is an ever growing community of individuals getting together to support, inspire, teach and learn from other handmade artist.  The community has grown and spread to include: an etsy team, facebook page http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/HAFteam/411011475367?ref=ts, artfire guild, this blog, the handmade artist shop www.handmadeartistshop.com and a few others.

The forum is a community to exchange hints,links, helps and also features a weekly chat for real time communications.  Members come from all over the world to join together in this community.  The group is open to anyone that creates handcrafted works or those that appreciate handcrafted.  Many different types of work are represented in a multitude of mediums from; textiles, glass, metal, crystals the list goes on. 

I believe Sheran Simo sums it up well,

http://www.facebook.com/smsimo#/pages/Indianapolis-IN/Sheran-M-Simo-Co/86434976361? 

“I am so impressed with the way Handmade Artists Forum members support and encourage each other! Over and over I see people going the extra step to explain something they’ve done, and encourage the use of their ideas! I often see artists trying something new, just because the person doing the original work is so willing to present it in a way that is easy to understand, or photographed in a way that it’s easy to determine how it was done, and then willing for others to “copy” it. I can say, that up to this point there seems to be an equal balance of those posting and those learning and I cannot see evidence that the forum is being abused. What a wonderful environment to be a part of!!! ”

Handmade Artists Forum Etsy Street Team Sale!!

Last Updated on Wednesday, 3 March 2010 10:53 Written by zurdesigns Thursday, 25 February 2010 08:11

We have exciting news!! Selected members of our Handmade Artists Forum Etsy Street Team are coming together to have a sale!  Some will be offering Free Shipping, others will be taking a percentage off their items and all will be showing you their fabulous handmade designs just in time for spring!!  The sale starts Monday, March 1st and goes through Monday, March 15th!!

Take a look at what these wonderful handmade artisans are offering:

Ambient Girl Designs–specializes in custom cards, invitations, gift tags and much more! For the HAF Sale Ambient Girl Designs will offer FREE SHIPPING on all items in her shop! Stop by and see all the wonderful things this shop has to offer!

Dreambubbles–featuring unique jewelry designs using beads and chainmaille. In the artist’s own words: “Recently I started debuting my original one of a kind (OOAK) handmade spiders. They are presently stealing the show from my chainmaille and crystal/pearl jewelry creations.”  For the HAF Sale, Dreambubbles is offering 10% off all items in her shop and up to $5.00 in Free Shipping!! Have a look at these wonderful designs today!!

Jewelry by NaLa–unique, handmade jewelry featuring sterling silver, Czech glass, Crystallized Swarovski Elements, semiprecious stones, freshwater pearls and other fine jewelry materials.  For the HAF Sale Jewelry by Nala will be offering FREE US SHIPPING off selected items in her shop!! Stop by and visit  Nala’s beautiful shop today!!

Lisianblue–featuring wonderful stained glass objects, ornaments, and chimes! In the artist’s own words: “have been a fan of stained glass for many years and truly enjoy making stained glass items. There seems to be something about glass that just draws me to it – maybe it’s the shine, the way it captures the light and even the shadows.”  For the HAF Sale, Lisianblue will be offering 10% off all items in her shop!! Stop by for a visit, relax, put your feet up and browse!  You’ll be glad you did!

My Grandpa’s Pen–featuring handmade cards, albums, and supplies.  In the artist’s own words: “For as long as I can remember my Grandpa would give me a pen at Christmas. I think this helped inspire my love of all things crafty and artistic. As I create my works I find myself using, among other things, stamp sets from when I was a child, paper that I can’t stop collecting and of course, my Grandpa’s pen.”  For the HAF Sale, My Grandpa’s Pen is offering 20% off all items.  Refund will be through PayPal!! Stop by and browse through this delightful shop…and SAVE!!

Penny Farrow Designs–beautiful handmade leather and accessories designed by Penny herself.  In the artist’s own words: “My goal for the design and construction of my products is to be consistent and fresh and original. I take inspiration from every aspect of my life: a distillation of roads traveled, places visited and people who have inspired me.”  For the HAF Sale Penny Farrow Designs will be taking 10%–20% off selected items in her shop!! Take a look at these wonderful handbags, purses, journal covers, and more!!

Pleasant Peasantry–a husband and wife team who experiment with their designs and try to put a unique twist on ceramics and macrame. All  items are sold the way you see them. However, they LOVE taking requests! Convo them with your ideas!  For the HAF Sale Pleasant Peasantry will be taking 10% off all macrame items, and 20% off all ceramics! Be sure to stop by this wonderful shop!!

Rachel Elliott Glassworks–All the item listed here are handmade by Rachel in her studio in Scotland!  She uses a variety of different glass techniques to create unique designs and custom orders are always welcome.  For the HAF Sale, she is offering 28% off all her beads, to celebrate her 28th birthday on March 15th!!! Rachel Elliott Glassworks is a must see shop!!  Stop by today!

Speranza Jewelry–Lisa, the owner of Speranza Jewelry, is a firm believer that jewelry is both art and self-expression disguised as a fashion accessory.  The goal of Speranza is to create quality, affordable jewelry in gemstones and metal, utilizing the various techniques of stringing, metal fusing, and wire wrapping.  For the HAF Sale Speranza Jewelry will offer 10% off all items in her shop!! This wonderful shop needs to be on your list to visit today!

T. Rusk 4 U–featuring handcrafted jewelry for every woman! This shop has handcrafted and affordable jewelry made by T. Rusk…4 U! For the HAF Sale T.Rusk4U will be offering FREE SHIPPING and a gift with every purchase!! Stop by this lovely shop and take advantage of the savings!

Twas Brillig–a wonderland of unique hand-crafted jewelry, handmade bags and totes, original artwork and unusual gifts for you to cherish or share.  For the HAF Sale Twas Brillig will be offering 10% off all items in their shop!! Stop by soon…there’s always something new happening there!

Zur Designs–handcrafted jewelry made from high quality materials such as sterling silver, semi precious gemstones, swarovski crystals, and pearls.  Designs are inspired by life, love, and the beauty of the Berkshire Mountains that surround her.  For the HAF Team Sale, Zur Designs will be featuring 10% off all items in her shop! Take a peek at Zur Designs…you’ll be glad you did!

Click on the links to learn more about the Handmade Artists Forum (HAF) or the HAF Etsy Street Team! Have fun shopping at all these wonderful shops!!  Remember, the sale starts March 1st and goes through March 15th!!

Kitzbitz Art Glass – Talent Beyond Compare

Last Updated on Thursday, 4 February 2010 05:08 Written by MakinTheBestOfIt Tuesday, 26 January 2010 11:54

Glass working is an amazing art The idea of taking glass bits, pieces and rods and creating beautiful, usable pieces of art is a talent that I don’t possess and wouldn’t even know where to begin. Jolene of Kitzbitz Art Glass is one of these talented people! She is a UK based artist and supporting member of the HandmadeArtistsForum as well as the HAFteam. She not only creates beautiful glass beads but also puts together unique pieces of jewelry. In her Etsy shop you will find beads, jewelry and even glass for us craft addicted people that want to try glasswork out for ourselves. Jolene’s blog features her beautiful creations as wll as links to other places on the web that you can oooohhhh and aaaahhhh and drool over her talent.

Etsy HAFteam Challenge is on!

Last Updated on Saturday, 6 February 2010 11:46 Written by Chainmaille By MBOI Saturday, 23 January 2010 09:39

The Frozen Moments Challenge is on! Our wonderful members are competing again to see who has the best piece. So take a couple minutes and pick your favorite. After you vote make sure you leave a comment to be automatically entered to win this gorgeous bead by Rachel Elliot Studios! Go HAFteam!

Rachel Elliot Glassworks!