Ain't He Cute?!

Crafty Bastards Seminar

So, last night, I went to the second in a series of seminars that the folks from Crafty Bastards of the City Paper are putting on to help those trying to break into the world of selling their crafts. Last night's focus was on selling crafts online. The presenter, Caitlin Phillips, was fabulous! She had a great sense of humor and really told it like it was. I really appreciated the fact that she didn't pretend to know all the answers or to have tried everything that one is "supposed" to do. Her site and craft are pretty cool too -- http://www.rebound-designs.com/ She makes purses out of books! How neat is that?!

Anyway, I will write more about the seminars as they happen and as I try out some of the tips (I'm still not ready to get on Facebook, but I know it's just going to have to happen!)

Today's Thought: Sleep is just so critical, I highly recommend it!

Duckie!

The duckie came out pretty good if I do say so myself! I think I might try to make a rabbit and a fish also (my attempt at a frog didn't work out so well :-(

The axolotl is almost done as well. Who knew it would be so hard to find doll eyes?! I could order from the internet, but I figured with postage and handling, I'd be better off trying to find locally. Not so easy.

Ok, so today's assignment is to work on my Ravelry account. It's a really cool site for just knitters and crocheters -- all the ins and outs, I have not figured out, so that's all I can tell you for right now!

Today's Thought: Remember that great orange gel suntan lotion by Bain de Soleil that we all loved years ago?! Well, drugstore.com has it! Just got it in the mail and slathered it on today to bake in the sun, whoo hoooooooo!

Ebates

Now, this isn't one of my paid blogs, but I did get an email today from www.ebates.com, who will give both you and me $10 if you sign up and make use of their services. I've been a member for probably about 5 years now, and it's been great. Basically, before you shop online, you go to the ebates site. You either search for the product you're looking for, or you can go to a particular retail website through the ebates site. If you purchase something, ebates keeps track and every three months, they send you a rebate of a percentage of your purchases (the percentages vary depending on the stores). They've got some great retailers (Bloomingdale's, BestBuy, drugstore.com for example), so check it out through this link: http://www.ebates.com/referral/0708promosuod.htm?referrerid=7yfeysqz4%2FY%3D

Today's Thought: Did you know that you are supposed to eat at least 2 cups of fruit a day (roughly, about 2 pieces) and 2 1/2 cups of vegetables?!

Alas...

My four-day weekend has come to an end :-( Well, at least I got a lot done (I can actually see the top of my desk now, and the bill collectors will be kept at bay another month ;-)

The duck is now looking like a duckie (pictures soon!), and the axolotl has gills! Oh, and I haven't even told you about the squid yet...

Oh, and then there's the aromatherapy course I've been taking for a while (did I say it's a correspondence course through a school in England?! I know, I know, there's no smell-o-vision yet, but somehow, it's worked). Anyway, it's time for the final exam, so signing out for a couple of days!

Today's Thought: If you're in the DC area, G Street Fabrics is having a huge sale -- 30% off until July 13th!

Go Green

Well, of course, it's good to reduce your carbon footprint, but in this case, I'm really talking about plants. We went to the home and garden store last weekend and bought some great stuff. It took us an hour and a half to get everything repotted on the balcony, but I think it was worth it. We got parsley, mint, green peppers, jalapenos, and some flowers too. Did you know that the jalapeno plant is known to keep away the bugs, especially those tiny white flies that infest tomato plants?! Last year I discovered that by accident, but then read it in the newspaper. This time, we got perennials so that hopefully, they'll come back again next year.

Oh, and I got an article published by Triond! Like Associated Content, it allows you to submit articles for publication, but Triond will place it on a topic-related website. My article's about "How Yarn is Made" here.

Today's Thought: Happy 4th of July!!

Pay Per Post

Now, don't call me a sell-out, but I did decide to sign up with http://www.payperpost.com/.
payperpost is a website where you register your blog and then you can sign up for opportunities to write reviews in your blog and get paid! I also signed up for PPP Direct, which allows advertisers to contact me directly and offer me opportunities through my blog. So far, the PPP folks have been very nice and responsive to contacts that I've made. It took a while to get the blog approved, but that was partially due to my misunderstanding some of the requirements. Also, I discovered that certain functions on the site don’t really work when you log on through Internet Explorer, but if you use Firefox, it works like a charm! I still working my way around the website, getting familiar with all of the different things it has to offer. I still don't quite understand what an "RSS feed" is, but I'm sure learning a lot about the blogosphere! I guess a lot of people are trying it out these days, but I think it's really important to try to stick to a consistent rate of posting.

Please check back to see what I'm up to! I hope you know by now that I only tell you about products and services that I think are worthwhile, so we'll see what opportunities become available for me to pass along to you!