My Loyal Heart;-)

Hey Family,

Happy Summer Solstice. It's a hot one today and I love it!.the Summer is one of my favorite seasons;Outdoor concerts, beach fun, lots of free events for the family, fruits galore, carnivals, craft fairs...oh yeah!





Oh, what's up with the groovy chick in the tie dye?? LOL, that's me shipping orders last week. Hey, I have to look good doing it! Can you believe I am down to a size 14 now from 2x!! I've lost 15 pounds and 3inches over the past 4 months.woo hoo;-)

I haven't posted anything in so long regarding Etsy Project Embrace or HeartsFor Haiti and I have been feeling kinda bad about that. But don't think for a sec I have phased out of either cause. I feel as passionate now as I did in October of 2009 and January 2010 and have been putting in more footwork and volunteer help offline than on is all.

I made these cute Pink Heart Earrings for Breast Cancer Awareness and in honor of TeamEtsyProjectEmbrace as we strive for awareness and continued research and support for families and loved ones who are fighting and recovering from ANY form of cancer.I made a pair in sterling silver posts that I listed today in my Nyblaque shop.

Here is the sensitive ears version with anodized niobium earwires.In pink of course;-)


I do miss interacting with the team so much but I see from TeamEPE's Facebook and our Team blog they are going on strong! Go EPE;-) As far as Heart for Haiti, sadly Hearts For Haiti is no longer accepting donations, and will close when the last unsold item expires. Here is a quote from the HFH Etsy shop announcement:

"We thank all of our donors & buyers for their generous support, & we hope that the buying support will continue.As of 6/12/10 we have raised $33,525.73 (after fees) for Doctors Without Borders" Click on this hyperlink from an April post from the HFH blog with more information regarding the shop.
Please follow HeartsForHaiti's Blog, Facebook, Twitter, and Discussion Thread on Etsy as well as HFH donation recipients DoctorsWithoutBorders Website and Twitter for continued awareness and support.

I have decided to continue making free bags for families in Haiti and donating them to the American Red Cross. If I can contribute by making something to carry the basic needs as well as personal effect while traveling to and fro trying to get the help they still so desperately need, I am more than thrilled. Every chance I get I participate in the free BagsforthePeople events for bag making as well as a few projects on my own.

May the sun always shine in your hearts and the spirit of humanity inspire you every day.

The Hearts behind Etsy's HeartsforHaiti

Hey Family, I just wanted to share with you all the currently listed Etsians who have made the HFH possible and going strong.

The Dedicated Volunteers

Main Shopkeep

Victoria van der Laan of exlibrishandmade

Other Shop Volunteers

Andria of shagpile
Vicki of Lilley
Nora of transienttreasures
Lucinda of DesignedByLucinda
Colleen of FiveSparrows
Andrea of andreadesigns
Astrid of Runzwithscissors
Linda of mamapainter
Angie of timesandchimes
Molly of SimplyPictures
Cindy of cindylouwho2
Jessie of jbguess
Sandy of Midnightcreations
Marilyn of TheRoyalist
Caroline of graycat26
Dee of 4GetMeNotTreasures
Andrea of Nyblaque

You can learn all about us at our amazing blog: http://etsyforhaiti.blogspot.com/

Donations to Haiti Part II - Hearts4Haiti

I was commenting on a few TeamEpE Treasuries when I came across one created by Loveartworks that featured items from an Etsy collective shop called HeartsforHaiti.

"HeartsforHaiti is an Etsy collective of donated items from hundreds of Etsy shops to raise money to rebuild Haiti. 100% of the proceeds from this shop (minus Etsy fees and Paypal fees) go directly to DoctorsWithoutBorders (http://doctorswithoutborders.org ). This shop has permission to use the DoctorsWithoutBorders name and a separate bank account and Paypal account have been opened to maintain the integrity of this shop"

And the response is HUGE..HeartsForHaiti.etsy.com Currently raised for Doctors Without Borders (after fees): $10,037.37 (as of 8:30 EST 1/21/10)  since it's opening January 14th, 2010 with currently 688 donated items and 888 sales- and more items pouring in everyday!- it's a wonderful thing to see.

Please,please,please stop by and support or donate- or promote HeartsForHaiti.etsy.com on your Twitter, Facebook, blogs or however you can;-)If you Twitter you can follow Doctors Without Borders' updates from Haiti at @MSF_USA. If you have an Etsy shop, Etsy buyer account or your own website, you can go to Heartsforhaiti's Profile Page and scroll down to the bottom to cut and paste the HeartsforHaiti Etsy shop mini html code to put on your blog or website and spread the word.

"I'm gonna make a change, for once in my life. Gonna feel real good, gonna make a difference , gonna make it right" -Man in the Mirror- Michael Jackson

Be Well, Stay Strong

Ny

Sewing 4 A Cause- Formerly Staying Active Post- Feb 09

A year ago I posted a "Staying active during downtime post when I was having a very slow period in my shop. I am updating it cause well, I'm too sick to take new photos

This is our sewing machine my daughter and I received as a gift from my Aunt last year.

It's a great machine..a bit complicated though..Auntie bought one for a more intermediate level of sewing and didn't know I never learned how to use one before. I am a more proficient hand sew. But my teenage daughter breezes through this machine as if she were sewing for decades...so I am learning from her LOL! It was a pain to get the bobbin to stop slipping out, causing the stitch to "skip" but it's all fixed now.

These are  pcitures from the earlier post, Of course, I know you don't EVER position your hands that way while sewing lol! I did finish this jean pocket wristlet I was working on....the bottom  one was the zipper close pillow I finished too. My daughter stole it from me tee hee;-) When I open my new shop SwanRiverStone, you will see alot of the new sewn creations I've made.


I wished The EtsyLabs was closer so I could have lugged this heavy sucker over to Craft Night when Bagsforthepeople was there. But I have learned the basics at least to get me started and invested in some sewing books and videos as visual aids.

I have a bag of materials I opened up and started making drawstring and strapped bags with. I want so much to have a bag making party to donate the repurposed bags to Haiti. I have the women and children in mind for their sanitary supplies, baby needs, bottled water, medical supples..etc.  I don't know how long it's going to take but I won't finish until every scrap is made into something.

If you live in the New York City area and would like to help me- email me at nyblaque@yahoo.com i'll bring my machine too. Thanks

Be Well,

Ny

Freetime Frenzy..Weekend Work

Hey Family,,, Pass me a tissue please.............

My eldest child came home with a brilliant cold..and guess who it was passed to..unintentionally of course. Yup, yours truly..now I am fighting to get rid of it fast so my toddler doesn't get it.


My best friend gave me a break today and took my baby to the Children's Museum while the big one spent time with best friends all day...So I had the whole afternoon to myself...wooo hoo! Though I feel kinda bummed because I wanted to go to the Red Cross today;-(

You would think I'd crawl under the covers and pass out but nooooooooooooooooo, I went bonkers and started crafting lol! I grabbed whatever bead or bauble that caught my eye and made a bunch of earrings and necklaces.at least 50 pieces! Something I never get to do with the children here without staying up half the night LOL! This post would be insanely long if I listed then all so here are the pieces I was able to photograph with the lighting that was available.

Earthy

Spring

Spice

and I finished two custom orders

That's just SOME of the simplier pieces I worked on. All the earrings I made will be donated to the Handmade4haiti section of my shop.


Coming up Monday:.. My idea to make bags for Haiti Relief....stay tuned;-) Ok, I am going to pass out now;-) Night.

be Well, stay strong

Ny

Donations to Haiti Part I

Hey Family,

Just wanted to share with you what I did as part of my efforts to help the victims of the disasterous earthquake in Haiti. I donated all these items yesterday. I will be making some care packets later on tonight.
I also opened a section of simple, conservative earrings in my shop named Handmade4Haiti- In this section $5.00 of every item sold will be donated to the America Red Cross.


I hope what I am sending will help at least one family in need. I really pray it.does
Ny