CRUSTPUP DIY Etsy Shop Review

Today I'd like to talk to you about this RAD punk rock shop called CRUSTPUP DIY! I met Aly thanks to the Wear if You Dare Team. Gosh that team rules! Seriously, I've met so many cool peeps since I joined. Anyways, we both signed up for a trade event at the beginning of the year and then decided to trade! I really dig CRUSTPUP DIY. It's filled with cool punk rock inspired stenciled stray paint art. Some of it is band related and some of it is just plain cool!

I scored this rad eyeball monster painting during our trade:

How cool is that?! I was amazed when it arrived too because it was much bigger than expected. I figured from the very low price tag that this would be really tiny. But I love it's massive size! Certainly a bang for your buck! And it looks great in the craft room too. ;)

I talked with Aly for a long time afterwards about pricing and inspiration. Aly expressed to me that she really just wants to share her art with the world. It's not about money or fame for her which I think is very important for an artist. Too many people forget that and turn their shops into money making rip off machines. CRUSTPUP DIY started out at as a strictly street art operation, but Aly recently decide to give etsy a go. I'm so glad she did and really hope her shop gets her lots of attention.

Here's a few other items in her shop right now that have me drooling. :)

Upcycled Crass Converse Shoes:

Jurassic Punk! Painting:

Busy Little Bee

This week has been zooming by! Between working like mad at my new job and recovering from the MASSIVE trading event on etsy last weekend I've been rather pooped! But I've managed to get a lot done considering. I thank the new Bowie album "Next Day" and Daft Punk's "Random Access Memories" for keeping me awake and sane. Seriously, if you haven't heard them yet there must be something wrong with you.

Anyways, over the last few days I've had some time to FINALLY list some new items in my etsy shop. Holy shit right! I know. I do apologize. It has been QUITE awhile since I've done so, but between all the art shows and work it's been hard.

Definitely check out the shop for more items, but here's a sneak peak. Stay tuned for more to come. ;)

Spooky Beetlejuice Spider Necklace:

Dr. Who Time Traveler Hair Bow:

Rhinestone Pterodactyl Dinosaur Earrings:

Cute Lolita Kewpie Doll Hair Bow:

Evil Dead 2 Horror Necklace:

Let the wild rumpus begin!!

The spring Needful Things Dark Team Trading Event is finally here!! The event starts today at 6PM and lasts until Sunday night. Oh I'm just SO excited!! I love these events. I always score some great goodies and have a lot of fun chatting and getting to know some of my other teammates. :)

I've been particularly pumped for this one too. We just got so many cool participating shops! I gotta promise to not get TOO carried away though. I've already got several trades lined up for the weekend and the walk of shame to the post office is never fun...

But look at all the cool stuff I'm getting so far!! And the event hasn't even started yet!! EEK!!

Candace the Baby Centaur via Whitefoxx

Eyeball Bracelet via Slink Skull Studios

Zombie Girl Framed 3D Painting via Horror Femme

Heart Shaped Ring with Rhinestones & Spikes via Beauty Scars

Mira Day of the Dead Crochet Skull Bracelet via Spider Mambo

Sounds like fun right?? Then you should check us out and get involved in the next event! We do at least 2 a year and anyone can participate! Oh! I'm so excited!! Dark Traders Etsy Team

Thrifty Thursday #2

Guess what guys! I got a job!! Which means... I had to hit the thrift stores this week to find a boring white button down shirt. Plain clothes scare me so I don't keep them in the house. (haha) Seriously! I don't think I own a plain shirt aside from the one I bought today...

Anyways, aside from one boring white shirt I found A LOT of really awesome goodies again and thought I'd show you guys. I spent about $15 this time around... but considering all the stuff I got that's a steal!!

I'm most proud of this amazing 1970 Ideal doll I found! Her name is "Velvet" and she came in her original box, with all her original clothes/accessories, AND her hair still grows! AHH! I didn't even know this doll existed, but as soon as I saw her I knew I just had to save her. She kind of reminds me of Talking Tina (from The Twilight Zone) too! Her hair is a bit frazzled and the box is quite worn... but I'm hoping to clean her up and re-sell her soon. She's worth quite a pretty penny you know! And I only got her for $5!! Man I really can't stress how excited I am about this.

Even the box is cool!!

I also got this wicked Spiderman wall scroll!! I haven't read this particular issue but I love pretty much everything McFarlane has ever drawn and for the price I couldn't say no. ;)

I also found this very large and very strange looking angry baby doll! When I first saw her she was laying in this white frilly baby bed, but I couldn't make out her face. And then I got close to her and saw that angry mean mug of hers and thought "You will now be my Rosemary's Baby!" So yeah... that's going to happen. ;)

I also got a bunch of tiny toys including some My Little Pony's, (for jewelry makings!), an odd vintage TMNT Raphael toy, some wooden letters and a few other things. Aren't they cute??

Anyways, that's it for today! Hope you guys enjoyed it. I know I'm happy! I mean when you go looking for a shitty shirt and hit gold? That's pretty lucky!

Vintage Toy Fun Etsy Shop Review

Today I'd like to share with you my friend Vanessa's adorable etsy shop: Vintage Toy Fun

Vintage Toy Fun is a really cute shop! It's filled with all kinds of super cute toys, vintage findings and handmade items. I first got to know Vanessa as a repeat customer of my etsy shop. She really liked my jewelry items and that got us to talking. And I'm so glad it did! She's really such a sweet girl. We've had plenty of fun chats online and I hope some day I can actually meet her in person. ;)

And if you are a blogger you should check out her funky little blog: Vintage Toy Fun Blog
She's always posting about her latest thrift store & flea markets finds. She has quite the collection going! I'm actually a little jealous. But it's always fun to read about the toys she finds. We are actually both active members of the Vintage Toy Addiction etsy team together too! She is the creator/captain and I recently got bumped up as a team leader! Yahoo!!

Anyways, let's talk about her shop shall we? I had the pleasure of buying a few childhood favorites of mine from her on VHS awhile back. These are actually very hard to find nowadays so I'm glad I have a copy of them now.

My Little Pony: The Movie 1986 (my birth year!)

And Kiki's Delivery Service!!

Man do I LOVE these movies!! They just never get old. ;)
And if you think these are good finds... just wait till you see what other types of treasures she's got hidden in her shop. Gosh! I kind of want them all.

Here's a few of my favorites:

Vintage Edward Mobley Squeak Dog:

Hand-sewn Bunny Rabbits!! Oh my goodness these are SO cute!!

Vintage Monchichi Plush:

Saturday Shout Outs: Dark Beauty Boutique & Haunted Hair Candy

Hey everyone!! I'd like to talk to you all about some more awesome etsy shops today. I actually found out about these two shops thanks to the etsy trade teams Wear if You Dare & Dark Traders. Gosh, I just love those teams! And I've met/traded with so many cool people since I joined. ;)

So first up is...

Dark Beauty Boutique specializes in home-made beauty products such as lip balm, fragrance oils, solid perfumes, and soap. I'm actually very picky about the products I use because I tend to hate really potent smelling items. It's funny, but I'm usually that person in the aisle sniffing everything for 30 minutes before I find the right scent for me. And since that tends to get me some funny looks... I usually end up sticking to the same select few products until they are discontinued. That being said, I highly recommend this shop to anyone! Picky or not I think you'll really enjoy these items as much as I have.

A few months back we traded for a few items and of course since I was a little skeptical about everything I tried to pick out very basic sounding scents. However, she carries all kinds of wacky scents I'm curious to try out now. I think it's especially intriguing that she has both an Astrology collection and a Lovers collection (which includes the likes of Cleopatra and Eurydice).

I went with the basic yet yummy sounding Dreamsicle:

I've never tried a solid perfume before so I really didn't know what to expect. It smells heavenly though! A nice mix of vanilla and creamy orange. And it's not overpowering either! Just a nice little accent for your skin that is both long lasting and creamy smooth on the skin. And she makes these using natural beeswax which she gets straight from the hive! How cool is that??

I also had to try out some of her lip gloss. I'm kind of addicted to the stuff after all... They are quite inexpensive too so I picked out a couple flavors.

Vanilla Smoothie:

Blackberry Brandy:

I gotta say HANDS DOWN blackberry brandy is the shit! OMG it smells so awesome!! And it has a light purple tint to it which I like also. The vanilla smoothie one is nice too. But it smells a lot better than it tastes. I can't place it honestly, but whatever that is I'm not too crazy about it. The blackberry brandy one though smells, looks and tastes fantastic! I'm totally going to have to stockpile those soon. I've tried a lot of lip gloss in my day, but there's something about this one that makes me crazy. I think it's because it last so long and actually helps soothe chapped lips unlike most nice smelling glosses. Anyways, if you have the chance you should totally check out Dark Beauty Boutique. It's full of all kinds of lovely smelling treasuries!


I'd also like to talk to you today about...

Haunted Hair Candy is filled with super cute clay creations. You can tell she's also obsessed with Halloween, Dia de los Muertos and Rockabilly fashion like me! Her specialty is hair bows, barrettes and clips. However, she's also carrying earrings, necklaces and other fun stuff now too. And it's all so crazy affordable! I don't think there's a single thing over $20 in there.

I honestly really like all of her items. Thanks to our recent trade though, I am now the proud owner of two tiny little pretties. ;)

Nautical Hair Clips:

Strawberry Skulls:

Aren't they cute?? I really like the earrings. They are so very detailed and super funky! I mean strawberry skulls? Where does she come up with this stuff! ;) The clips are really awesome too. I bought them because I'd like to start growing out my bangs soon and I don't really have any cute clips. I've yet to undertake this venture yet, but when the time comes I know they'll come in handy. They are just so me!

And if you like these, then you gotta check out the rest of her stuff. She's got little Frankenstein's, zombies, sugar skulls and so much more. Plus her new line of products is really cute too!

These two are definitely next up on my never ending wish list....

Coffin Hair Bow:

Rib Cage Necklace:

Thrifty Thursday #1

Hey everybody! This is the first installment of "Thrifty Thursdays" a new feature idea I came up with today while I was out perusing the town. These posts won't necessarily be a weekly thing because well... I don't always have money to spend! (haha) But also because a successful thifting adventure is really all left up to chance. Today however I got really lucky!! I found all kinds of crazy goodies that I'm very excited to craft/play with. And I even found a few vintage treasures too. And the best part is I only spent $4!

Honestly, with the success I had today I kind of wish I'd gotten an earlier start because then I could have gone to a few more. Who knows what other goodies I could have found! But then again... I really don't need to be spending those duckets right now. ;)

Ok.. so I gotta admit I kind of shrieked a little bit when I found these. I mean unborn fetus babies?!? You don't get much cooler than that. And they have little penis' and oddly placed holes that I assume are butt holes. tee hee!! I have no clue what I'll do with them yet... but whatever it is I'm sure it'll be awesome. They are just SO crazy!

And I know when my friend Vanessa reads this she's going to be super jealous of my new cup! It actually talks too! There's a little button on the handle that makes Cartman say 3 funny phrases. OMG I love it. :)

I also got a whole bunch of random tiny treasures including sleeping babies, cute little wooden figurines and this funky worm keychain!

But the best treasures I found were these! OMG I finally found a pose-able spider!! You have no clue how long I've been searching for one of these. I've had this idea in my brain for YEARS but needed one to complete it. And now I finally can! Excitement! Plus I found these weird monster cookie cutters from the 80s, an old Pochacco carrying case and this really cute red riding hood dolly from the early 70s! She's really cute and in very good shape. Just needs to be cleaned up a little.

The best part about her is that you can open her tummy and read the entire story of Little Red Riding Hood! How neat is that! Now I gotta go look and see how much she is worth. ;)

13 Crows Studio Etsy Shop Review

Hey everybody! Today I'd like to talk to you about the amazing Sara Ellis! She recently changed her shop name from "Ghastly A Go-Go" to 13 Crows Studio so it seemed fitting to review her shop next. The new name has a nice ring to it right??

I met Sara awhile back thanks to both the Wear If You Dare & Dark Traders Etsy teams. She's actually the team captain of the Dark Traders team too! Anyways, I'm very glad we met. I'd been ogling her shop for sometime before this so I was really happy when she approached me about joining the team/trading with her. I'd never done a trade before! So I guess you could say she "popped" my traders cherry! (teehee) And now I'm freakin' addicted! Trading is just LOADS of fun you guys. Seriously. :)

Anyways so this was what we traded for...

I mean just look at that face! How could I say no! I just loved how frumpy she was. Too cute! Here's a picture of the two of us being frumpy together. Oh what fun we have! ;)

And that's not all I've gotten from her either! A long time after our trade for the super cute flower hair clip (which I often use as a brooch/purse clip) I actually saved up some money so I could get a few more things. It took me awhile, but I'm SO happy that they were still available when the time came. Sara actually makes quite a lot of things! She's got everything from jewelry to art in her little rockabilly shop, but my favorite stuff of hers is doll themed. But that's not surprising is it?

Check out this AMAZING wall hanging I got from her:

And what's crazy is the photo really doesn't do it justice!! It's covered with real nails, tiny birds, pretty blue flowers and the doll itself is very nicely painted too! I just love knowing that it's all mine. Totally worth every penny! And now it happily rests within my office domain and continues to provide me with daily inspiration and joy. ;)

I also got this really gorgeous doll necklace from her too:

Oh I just have so much fun wearing it! Once again the arms are very well painted and even have a unique texture to them. It can get a little tangled at times... but it's a lot of fun to wear around. Plus, who else can say they've got tiny hands on their boobies all day! That what I thought. :)

Here's me with all my awesome 13 Crows Studio items:

Anyways, her shop is really awesome if you can't tell. I can't wait to see what else she creates. And maybe someday if I'm really lucky I can snag this awesome hair piece too. I don't know when I'd wear it (if ever) but I just adore it! And that's another thing I really like about this shop. She doesn't make your normal jewelry or headgear. No, it's much more than that. Each piece she creates is like a little piece of art to me. Makes you wanna treasure if forever, huh.

Double Whammy! Art in the Park & Hawk's Market Day Art Shows in Review

Alright! So I'm sure you've been wondering how the other two art shows I attended last month went.... so let me tell you all about them! ;)

As you know, last month I bit off a little more than I could chew and decided to go crazy pants on everybody and attend 5 art shows! We've already talked about 3 of those... but what happened at the other 2?

After the RAW event on April 18th, I attended a VERY small little art fair just a few days later on April 20th called "Art in the Park". I actually attended this last year (my VERY first show ever!!) and did really well so was hoping for the same luck. Sadly, things didn't turn out that way. This year it was really small. I was one of 5 vendors! I thought last year was small with 10! Guess not. (haha) And what was even worse was that the crowd count was a good 50% less than the previous year. And nobody really seemed interested in shopping either! It was kind of sad. I can't complain too much though. The event was free, nicely shaded, I got FREE food, & still made a few sales. It just wasn't a really profitable event.

I'm glad I got to make this guy super happy with my Mario charm bracelet though! He FREAKED out when he saw it. It was kind of adorable. I love it when guys want my stuff too!

One week later, I attended another small art event called Hawk's Market Day out in Canyon Lake, TX. I was really worried that morning that we would get rained out, but thankfully the clouds cleared up early on and it got nice and sunny. Maybe a little too sunny actually! I got CRAZY burnt! It was not fun! But the show was great. I made lots of sales, met some really nice people and found some really cool stuff for myself for retarded cheap! I'm not kidding either. I got a nice & comfy rolling office chair for $1!! I'm totally addicted to it. And now I don't get as many neck aches while I'm crafting! You really don't want to know what I was sitting in before... ;)

I also scored a crazy amount of dolls & miniature toys to make art with for only $2! And they even let me keep the cute little bags! I was bursting with joy.

A well spent $3:

Overall, the show was a success. Certainly not the best show of the month, but I had a lot of fun. Check out my booth set up! Did I mention that I have TWO tables now?? Heck yeah! I finally was able to afford another one. I think this will help my set up a lot, plus I can display more items! I also enjoy being able to spread out more too. So yay for me!