A week in review...

Oi! Sorry I haven't been posting more frequently folks! This past week was very rough on me. Too much to do and a yucky cold on top of it to boot! Made getting things accomplished VERY difficult. Today thankfully I feel almost 100%. I'm so happy to be free of those darn sinus headaches and annoying ear pops. Now I just got to get caught up again... sigh*

Aside from being sick and working way too much at my "real" job last week I actually accomplished quite a lot of things. First off, as I mentioned before I started writing again for Consequence of Sound. I've been having a lot of fun so far, but am still getting back into the groove with it. This week I reviewed Gogol Bordello's epic new record Pura Vida Conspiracy. Seriously, if you haven't listened to it yet you need to! I wanted to give it 4 1/2 stars... but they wouldn't let it run with that. I wish they would have, but perhaps they just don't get the genius of the album yet. Give 'em time. I know they will come around. :)
You can check out my review here: Pura Vida Conspiracy album review

Another feature I worked on this week was a Top 20 for Madonna. This consisted of listening to nothing, but Madonna for a week straight. It was a lot of fun and I forgot how many songs I just LOVE by Madonna. And maybe it was the cough medicine... but Madonna was the perfect fix for my sickly state. Kept me in a constant state of happiness. Feel free to check out my list here: Top 20 Madonna Songs

In my defense, I will say that while this is my original list of songs... the site kind of took control and re-ordered a lot of them without my knowledge for the final draft. I suppose I agree with most of them... however if I had things my way "Lucky Star" would have been #2 and "True Blue" would have been #3. That's how I feel so deal with it! Oh and I originally put "Jump" on there in place of "Hung Up", but due to the songs popularity we replaced it. BOO! "Jump" is totally the better song..

Other than writing, I found myself catching a grungy 80s action flick in Austin last night called "Kick or Die". I gotta say going into it I was expecting something practically unwatchable. However, in the end "Kick or Die" proved to be pretty entertaining. The film is totally cheesy and ultra ridiculous, but still loveable despite its flaws. Plus, it's a movie about a series of vicious rape attacks and one man kicking his way to justice. How can you not want to watch that? If you happen to find it on VHS I strongly suggest picking it up along with a 6 pack. ;)

Due to my recent sickly state.. I haven't been so productive creatively. Just been keeping up with orders and stuff. I do hope to make lots of new items soon though! And as far as my toy shop goes... I'll be adding new items like crazy so keep an eye out. Actually, one of the things I did this week included a massive clean up around the house which led to finding lots of toys and other random vintage doo dads for the shop that will be listed starting as soon as tomorrow! ;)

I also managed to squeeze in another trade event this weekend for Wear if you Dare. And you know what? I may not have done as many trades as I normally do during these events, but I had a blast! I'm very excited for my new goodies. I got all kinds of things coming in the mail including zombie brain soaps, ghost scented perfume and more! Promise to share them all with you soon.

Anyways, that's all for now. Hope you guys had a great week! Wish me luck getting caught up on everything! I sure need it.

Saturday Shout Outs: Barbie Bonanza & On Secret Wings

Hey everybody! Hope you all have been doing well. I've been busy, busy, busy so I apologize for not posting more often. I promise to change that soon. ;)

Today I've got two lovely etsy shops I'd like to share with you.

First up is... Barbie Bonanza!

Barbie Bonanza is a darling little vintage toy shop. It's run by the super sweet Amber Neal and features mainly toys from the 80s and 90s. So you know... my childhood! She has all kinds of cute stuff in there honestly. Some I remember having when I was younger and she even has a few things in there I always hoped to have some day. Amber is also one of my fellow teammates in the etsy team I help manage called Vintage Toy Fun. That's how we met actually. ;)

Any-who, I wanted to send some love and support her way so recently I stocked up on several super cute toy items in her shop that I plan to re-invent as jewelry for my shop. Actually, I already made a few of them into necklaces. And boy are they cute! Can't wait to list them on etsy.

Here's a cute little lamb chop toy that I got and have now turned into a really cute lolita style necklace:

Before...

 

After!!

 

 And here's some cute little Bambi toys I got to make necklaces with:

I already transformed Flower into a pretty lolita style necklace and can't wait to create something cute with Thumper. ;)

She also had some cute Miss Piggy toys so I had to nab those up as well. I couldn't resist!

Last but not least... I got this darling plush Lamb chop toy just for funzies. I figured with all the other cute items being "investments" for the business and all I might as well get one cute thing for myself. Always wanted one of these as a kid and am now proud to say I finally am! ;)

So yeah. If you love toys even half as much as I do then you definitely need to check out Barbie Bonanza! It's guaranteed to please.

Next up is... On Secret Wings!

On Secret Wings is FILLED with ultra cute adorable jewelry. Jamie specializes in lolita and kawaii style jewelry items. She is also a fan of toys (like me) as you can see from her work. Like my shop, hers is filled with lots of color and pizazz too. That's always a plus in my book! Plus, it's got rainbows and ponies and stars! So if you are still a little girl at heart then this shop is just what you've been looking for. ;)

When I saw this darling Pinkie Pie necklace I just KNEW I had to get it. She'd already sold it though... so thankfully she was able to make another one like it just for me! Seriously this necklace is hella adorable and I wear it all the time. ;)

And after I put this cutie in my cart I felt compelled to get these darling rainbow earrings to match. Aren't they cute???

I wanted to buy all the things honestly. But I decided on just one more item. This super duper cute ice cream cone necklace. And you know what the best part is?? It's ALSO a bubble maker! That's right! Ice cream cuteness + mint flavored bubbles?? Now way could I say no to that!

I actually wore this to a recent RX Bandits concert and had SO much fun blowing bubbles during the show. It's A LOT of fun. Or maybe I just really like bubbles... haha

Regardless, On Secret Wings is definitely a shop you should check out. I always feel bad buying jewelry online because I know I could just make it myself.... but I couldn't help myself here. I felt compelled to support this adorable shop and am so happy I did. Check out her shop if you get the chance. You won't regret it!

Stillgoth Etsy Shop Review

Do you like zombies and strange morbid things?? Then you are going to love my friend's etsy shop: Stillgoth! Stillgoth is a gothique boutique featuring everything from bizarre jewelry to spooky clothing. I've had the pleasure of trading with J on several occasions now and each time have been astonished with her work. J puts a lot of love and time into each piece she makes and it really shows. And her prices are insanely reasonable! J is also a member of the Needful Things Trading Team AND the captain of Wear if you Dare (one of my all time favorite etsy teams)!!

So far of the 5 things we've traded for only one of them is NOT a zombie! (haha) I think that's a combination of my love of zombies and her awesome ability to fuck up things is a pretty way. ;)

My all time favorite piece I've gotten from her is this zombie Barbie hair bow:

Isn't it amazing??? She made this just for me and it's so amazingly perfect there's not even words for it! And after seeing how awesome this was I just had to get this matching necklace from her. ;)

It's really an amazing set! I almost always end up wearing them together, but every once in awhile I substitute my zombie Barbie necklace for this super rad zombie pony necklace!! (It also goes PERFECTLY with my zombie pinkie pie earrings - Thanks Lesley!)

Yet another awesome zombie creation is this funky hair bow. The colors actually sync up very nicely with my zombie Barbie one too. I've actually worn them together a few times on those days I'm feeling extra "zazzy". (hehe)

Last but not least I scored this funky skull bow from her. I love that he has a mustache. Seems so out of place for a skull, but in a charming way. Plus there's blood on it. And you can never have enough blood on things in my book!

Overall Stillgoth is an awesome shop! Her dolls, postcards and clothing are really awesome too. If you have the chance please check out her shop and spread the love. ;)

!!!!!

Only a few more hours until...

I'm so serious too! Doesn't this look amazing?? Well tomorrow afternoon as soon as I get off work I'm going into Austin to catch a showing of the bad meets good movie Suburban Commando starring Hulk Hogan! And that's not even the best part! It's got Shelley Duvall and Christopher Lloyd too?! I fuckin' love the Alamo Drafthouse. Seriously, they are always showing cool shit like this. I expect it to be very bad, but in a good way. YES I haven't seen it before... so no spoilers k? Promise to tell you all about it later on. I'm bursting with joy! But now I must sleep....

Hulk Hogan + Lots of Beer =s TOTAL WIN!!

Saturday Shout Outs: Wicked Karma Jewelry & Pink Spiderwebs

It's that time of the week again! Are you ready to hear about some more awesome etsy shops?? I certainly hope so. I've got two lovely jewelry makers to talk to you about today. I always think it's silly that with ALL the jewelry I make myself I still buy/trade for jewelry like a mad person. I just can't get enough of the shit! And even sometimes I hesitate because I think to myself "I could totally make that", but almost always give in eventually because sometimes I don't want to make things and it makes me happy to support fellow etsyians like myself. That makes sense right?

First up we have..

Wicked Karma Jewelry is run by the very sweet Courtney Harrelson. She specializes in custom photo necklaces and wire wrapped jewelry. We met of course because of awesome etsy teams and did a trade awhile back as part of one of our huge trading events. I scored some very beautiful chunky purple chain which I used to hang one of my larger pendants on. It's lovely!! I promise to take a photo soon... but here's one of the chain itself. ;)

And then... during another one of our team trade events we got selected to be each others secret valentines! I sent her some wicked dinosaur earrings (to match all her other dino goodies she'd recently purchased from me) and she made me this lovely bloody hand print necklace!

Isn't it rad?? I'm glad I was able to get one of her custom photo necklaces. She always chooses very unique images and they are very high quality handmade items. I also really like her wire wrapped items. These bracelets for instance are one of my all time favorites.

If you get the chance you should most definitely check out this shop. She's having a HUGE sale right now too and every penny will go towards her increasing medical bill pile and upcoming surgery fees. Not trying to guilt trip you there... but it is really sad and I hope she starts feeling better soon. :(

Next up we have...

Pink Spiderwebs specializes in creating super cute kawaii jewelry. Her style is quite similar to mine actually. It's quite obvious that we are both in love with kawaii & lolita styles, zombies, bats and cute frilly things. :)
Anyways, at some point I found this amazing Pucca bracelet in her shop and knew it had to be mine. I was so happy to hear she also wanted to trade with me because I like really really wanted it!

Here's my new amazing Pucca bracelet:

I am just SO in love with it! I seriously wear it all the time and LOVE that it's all fun and full of rainbows. Pucca is the shit btw! ;)

Her shop is filled with tons of super cute things like this too. Here's a few of my favorites..

Skull Cameo Ring:

Batty Brain Necklace:

If you like my stuff I know you are going to freak out when you see Pink Spiderwebs. And the best part is her stuff is very affordable too. Creepy cute for the win again! ;)

What What!?!

So! It's been awhile since I've posted about what's going on in MY life and the main reason for that is... I've been crazy busy! First off I started writing again. I used to write for a music website called Consequence of Sound and did so solidly for about 3 years. But then I had to stop because I just had way too many conflicting commitments. It was gay, but seriously running a business, working 2 jobs AND writing on a consistent basis was impossible to manage! Anyways, I've missed it for quite some time and am SO happy to say I'm finally back in the groove of things. And the best part is how I made my comeback. No seriously, I hadn't written anything in over a year and then this AMAZING opportunity came my way to interview JAMIE FUCKING HEWLETT!! I'll admit I kind of gasped, teared up and was in a solid minute of shock when I read the email because I really didn't think that such an amazing thing could or would ever happen to little old me. But it fucking did! And I'm so proud and amazed and excited about it!

You should check out the article here: Jamie Hewlett Interview

And here's a pretty picture of him hanging with the crew of his current project Monkey: Journey to the west; a kick ass Chinese opera about a monkey seeking enlightenment. It's kind of the shit. I was very lucky to catch a showing in London last time I visited and this summer it's finally coming to the states! Better get your plane tickets to New York, New York while you still can! Sigh* If only I had the money to go...

In other news, I've been working on a whole new bunch of super blingin' lolita style necklaces & charm bracelets for the shop. I've always admired this type of jewelry and view them almost as miniature art pieces really. I really don't know why it's taken me so long to get into making them either. (haha) Just expect to see some flava flav massive style cutie items in the shop soon. I'm pretty excited about them and hope you all are too.
Here's a sneak preview:

Wolverine X-Men Blingin Statement Necklace:

Darling Bambi Flower Skunk Necklace:

Lovely Lambchop Necklace:

Raphael's Eyeball Rampage Charm Bracelet:

Pretty bitchin' right?? And that's just the tip of the iceberg! Can't wait to show you all the other cool stuff I've been working on jewelry wise. Anyways, before I go I will say another thing I've been caught up with is updating my other shop Sinsperations with LOADS of items! I still haven't had time to post art up, but there's lots of fun little toys and vintage items in there now. And hopefully I'll be able to finish these clutch bags I've been playing with soon also. Now that's something I'm excited about! I know you saw that cool Sailor Moon fabric up there... and that's just a sliver of cool when it comes to my fabric choices. :)

Happy 4th!!!

Woohoo it's the 4th of July!!! A time for America, Freedom and LOTS of booze! (haha)

FUCK YEAH!!

Hope you all are having a blast today! I've had a nice relaxing day so far, but now I've got to go to work. Let's hope SOMEBODY wants to get schnitzel tonight! Otherwise, I'm going to be one super bored lady. Wish me luck. Hope to make that $$$ so I can buy me some beer later and finally celebrate this awesome holiday that never really meant anything to me until I watched...

The end. ;)