Tiger Lilly Shop

At Baltimore's Pile of Craft, I probably spent the most time talking to the artist behind Tiger Lilly. She is really excited about her work and enjoys scavenging for different products that she can turn into jewelry. She will also be featured in July's issue of Baltimore Magazine and has received some local awards for her work. I was most drawn to her bright little button rings. Most of them are made from damaged kimono fabric.


Her button bracelets are cute, too. And if I wore earrings, I certainly would have picked up a pair of these copper beauties!

T-Shirt Fun

There were two silk-screened apparel booths that really stood out at Pile of Craft last week.


Red Prairie Press has beautiful dresses, T-shirts, scarves and onesies. And all their items were sooooo soft!I really like Spaghetti Kiss, too (although I don't have any pics). I have been eyeing the Robot Blues tee, because it makes me think of my son. Everything of their's was nice and soft, also!

the littlest bean

Love this shop of cute little things. I love the little barrettes and also the color study necklaces. They are all gorgeous in person, too! I remember the days I used to stick pencils or chopsticks in my hair to get it up. These hair sticks would have been awesome.

Buncombe Buckles

Love these buckles from Buncombe Buckles Metalworks. In person they truly are amazing, and you can't help looking at the detail of each piece. Each buckle is handcrafted from metal found at scrapyards, thrift or antique stores. (Now if only I had a nice skinny little waist where one could be displayed!)

JennyJen 42

After visiting Baltimore's Pile of Craft festival last week, I want to share some of my favorites I saw that day. I spent the most time at JennyJen 42's booth. She has the cutest little bags and aprons. Almost everything has a bird on it, too. You are in luck, because she does have her own etsy shop.

Unfortunately one of my favorite items of hers, her sun hats are not in her etsy shop. My friend bought one, so I'll see if I can get a picture from her to put up here. Hmmm...

db clay

Father's Day brought a little one of these goodies to my husband. DB Clay is a Portland based team that makes wallets from their own art, or other designs that they love. Each wallet design has an interesting story. I purchased "Orange Hallway" a couple of months ago with a nice discount (not sure it still works, but I used kyle50 for a 50% discount... I've also seen dmom30x for a 30% discount).

These wallets are made of tope, a synthetic PVC free material you can read about here. And you should really read the design stories with each wallet. I especially liked Adult Chores, Childhood Chores, and Cat Carpet. It just shows that inspiration can be found anywhere!

Baby Legs

I can't help but write about these amazing things that are helping me (and my daughter) survive the cold winter. I love, love, love Baby Legs!


First of all, aren't they just so cute? I always feel so bad when I have to take off all of my baby's layers to change her diaper. With these footless/waistless "legs", she can still stay warm while I take care of her. Wind chill is an evil thing that can rip through almost any clothes, so the warmth of these little legwarmers are great for my girl when we are outside. And did I mention how cute they are?

How Retro!

This Etsy shop sells jewelry and accessories made from vintage buttons. The designs are a lot of fun and whimsical. Makes me want to run my hand through a button jar!

pinkdixie

I've been lacking some inspiration lately. To help with my desire to find pretty (sometimes cute or fun) things, I decided to have an Etsy week. I love, love, love the philosophy behind Etsy. As their motto says, "Your place to buy and sell all things handmade." It ends up that many of the "shops" are run by mothers who have a talent for creating beautiful things!

I was quickly perusing Etsy, while waiting for the water to boil (our computer is in the kitchen), when I stumbled upon pinkdixie (really fun clothes for really fun kids). What actually drew me to the shop was this cute little smock with pears and apples all over it.


I love that the design of the dress, along with many of the fabrics the seamstress uses, is something that I could have worn when I was little (yes, a child of the 70's). She began making these smocks for her daughter to wear during meals once her daughter was pulling off the bib. It could also be used for messy activities, or even as is on a hot day!

Pinkdixie also has little baby outfits, bib sets, car seat strap covers, and lounge wear. Look at this cute lounge outfit!

Darlybird

I love this little shop. In fact, my husband got me a couple of things from here for my birthday! (Like this rose carved bracelet in the plum color.)


Their jewelry is fun, but one of the first things I noticed were these simple girls' ribbon headbands!


These salad servers are beautiful, too.


You could spend a lot of time looking at the unique items sold at Darlybird, and trust me, I have.

Crystalyn Kae

This summer I spotted these handbags online, and I was so impressed. They come from a designer named Crystalyn Kokorowski, whose business is based in Seattle. Aren't they beautiful? She has made some special edition items out of leather, but most of her designs are made of glaze-coated fabric, which is suitable for vegans or those that don't like leather products.

Crystalyn Kae handbags looked so great online, I had to see them in person. When I was in Portland I made sure to visit a boutique that stocked these bags. And guess what? They are so soft, and so pretty. I loved the way it rested on my shoulder and the beautiful stitching. The vintage fabric that peeks out from some of the designs is so cute! Seeing the bags in front of me affirmed that they not only look great, but feel great too.

My two favorites are the Soiree Drawstring (seen above) and the Troubadour Tote.

Although I keep looking at the hobo and clutch bags, too!

Now I'm the first to admit that my budget is still recovering from 7 years of grad-school and the choice to stay home with the kids instead of work full-time, so most of my purses are roughly valued at less than $20. BUT, when I do buy my first "nice" bag, I definitely want it to be one of these! We'll see what the next year brings!

Little Details

This last fall my friend, who happens to be part of a very fashionable mommy network, introduced me to the most adorable Trumpette socks.


Of course my daughter never kept her baby socks on, so buying cute little socks that would end up on the floor of the car was never an idea I entertained. And once she started wearing shoes, I knew I couldn't cover up those stylish socks with her practical shoes. But now I can dress up her little feet in something that would be seen by everyone. These maryjane rainboots are irresistible!