Dana Laymon

Dana Laymon is a Wilmington, NC based photographer. She does weddings, belly pics and engagement shots as well as her art photography.
I love this shot of New York City with the FEDEX truck (Well, it looks like a graffiti covered FEDEX truck anyways!) For about 5 years I did wholesale trade shows in New York and always shipped my goods via FEDEX. Did you know that you can ship directly to a FEDEX location, then go and pick it up there? I started doing this after I shipped my jewellery to the hotel I was staying at ( they said they would secure the box under lock and key) and found it sitting in the lobby when I got there, for anyone to walk away with. That’s some good customer service- NOT!
Oh how I miss New York. sigh...
Click on the post title to check out her shop!

Studio Beerhorst

Studio Beehorst is an artist family of eight living in downtown Grand Rapids MI. They are a family who collectively supports themselves off of their art. They offer classes in woodcut printing, and have their Etsy shop where they sell their wood cut prints, original art, textile arts, and soft sculptures.
They live a simple life with a chicken coop in the backyard and bicycles for transportation. They’ve been with out a car for 5 years now. This is a quote from their blog which I thought was rather brilliant... “In not owning our own car we are forced to cooperate with our friends and neighbours for the times we just need a car to get somewhere or haul something back and forth. This helps cultivate our community. Not having a car, we are forced back to a human scale. We don’t shop at the big box store where they have the “big savings” because it is too far away. We shop at our neighbourhood grocery store because we can walk there. Last summer when it was time for a family vacation we went to a camp ground that was close enough to ride our bikes to. We borrowed an extra bike trailer for our gear.”
Isn’t that a fantastic attitude? Talk about turning lemons into lemonade. It seems that this family has gained something precious by losing something that the majority of the western world thinks we can’t live without. I say Kudos to you!
Check out their shop by clicking on the post title!

Girl Savage

Kate is a Chicago based artist who has created the only kind of taxidermy I can get behind... Feltidermy! A very clever and cute idea indeed! Her little creatures look happy to be on the wall, whereas most mounted animal heads I’ve seen look kind of scared and/or scary... I have relatives In Alberta, Canada who are hunters and have a taxidermy workshop. Trust me, it’s not a pretty sight!
I love this quote from her Etsy profile... “Hand stitching allows me to connect and bond with my work and makes me feel as if I'm molding and breathing life into my animals while I'm creating. Kinda like Geppetto!”
Well, Pinnochio happens to be one of my all time favourite Disney films, and Kate definitely makes her little guys with love! Each one is one of a kind and made by her, and her alone.
Click on the post title to check out her creations!

Rob Bridges

Rob Bridges is a Kentucky based illustrator and fine artist who also works as a graphic designer. Originally from Los Angeles, he did his studies in Seattle at the Cornish College of the Arts where he got his BFA.
According to his profile he got his start in drawing as a child by not liking to read. His dad thought it would be a good idea to let him draw in the inside flaps of all of his books to boost his interest in reading but all it did was create a kid who liked to doodle. Hey, if it weren’t for that maybe Rob would have become a clown or a plumber or a steel worker...thankfully doodling saved him from that. Not that there’s anything wrong with these professions – actually yes there is when it comes to the clown, I have a clown phobia, I must admit!
He has Giclee Prints, Limited Edition Giclees, some Original Paintings and a very cute One of a Kind sculpture.
Click on the post title to see his shop!

Cathy Nichols

Cathy Nichols is a New York based painter. Her sense of colour is absolutely fabulous, and I love her use of shape and form. Her pieces take me to another world... There’s a fantastic children’s book called The Secret World of Og by Pierre Berton, an author who normally writes about Canadian history. He wrote this book for his 5 children, and his daughter did the illustrations for the book. Cathy’s work reminds me of the type of illustration I’d like to see if they were to do a new version of the story, since her images have such whimsy and a touch of fantasy about them.
Her Etsy shop has an awesome selection of prints, but if you check out her website (www.cathynichols.com) you’ll see that she has original paintings as well as prints on wood, which is a nice alternative, because its ready to hang and looks more like an original!
Click on the post title to view her Etsy shop!

Suspect Shoppe

I love Mati Rose McDonough’s shop because she does what I’ve been striving to do ever since I was 5, which is to be able to get back that freedom to draw and paint as I did as a child. In theory it seems like it would be an easy thing to do (just scribble with some crayons, right?) but it’s exceptionally hard to get back to the point where you’re making art for fun, from the gut and without pretensions or preconceived notions on “how it should look.” According to her, It has taken 32 years, 2 schools, and approximately 486 paintings to get to this point. I can so relate!
Living and working in SanFrancisco, Mati has had numerous shows and has published some of her illustrations, along with having a successful Etsy shop!

Click on the post title to check it out!
Her blog is great too, look for the link on the sidebar...

Opulent Oddities

Jordan is the talented designer behind Opulent Oddities. She spends her weekends scouring the local flea markets and antique stores with her family and little chihuahua Harvey. She must have some better flea markets in her neighbourhood than mine does, because she has some really cool things in her shop! I love how she breathes new life into found objects and transforms them into something fantastic and wearable. You would not go unnoticed wearing one of these bad boys!
She loves to paint as well, but has been focusing her energy on creating her successful jewellery business. As a jeweller myself, I know how hard it can be to switch gears from one endeavour to the next... I’m always trying to fit in time for other art!
Click on the post title to view her Etsy shop!

Teka and Zoe

Michelle Geoffrion-Mahler is one busy mama. She has 3 kids under the age of 5 and Teka and Zoe, her 2 Chihuahua's. She’s been running www.minidolls.com for the past 10years and started the jewellery about 2 years ago for a bit of a change.
She uses mixed metals with the focus on enamelling. When I was in jewellery school I loved doing enamelling as well, so I totally get her obsession. There IS something fun about melting things – on purpose!
The great thing about enamel is the colour. It’s so vibrant and fun. I love her more subtle pieces as well, they have a very organic natural feel about them.
Click on the post title to see her entire collection!

Shoshona Snow

Shoshona Snow is a Kingston, NY based ceramic artist.
With a BFA in ceramics in hand, she started her own ceramics studio,and does a little bit of teaching on the side.
Most of her items are thrown on the potter’s wheel. She uses fine grolleg porcelain (oh how I love porcelain!) and uses a black slip which she then carves to let the beautiful white of the porcelain show through. The work is so tactile and textured, it must feel so nice to the touch!
I am a confirmed clay addict. It’s one medium that I am pretty hopeless at, so I really admire potters who do such beautiful and inventive work!
See her shop by clicking on the post title!

Sarah Ogren

Sarah Ogren is a Steger, IL artist who has stories to tell. She has a background in Professional Counseling and uses her art to explore the relationship between an individual’s past and present lives and outer and inner personas.
Through her counselling work she has discovered just how complex a person’s inner life is. Often she has found that there is this secret life within each person and it is this secret life that she explores through her artwork.
While looking at her shop, I was most intrigued by the images of the women with a tree growing out of their neck. I guess we can all come to our own conclusion about the meaning behind that, but it is definitely thought provoking!
Her shop is as eclectic as her art. She has everything from pendants and ornaments to screen prints and original collage. I love what she says in her Etsy profile about collage representing the layers of human personality and experience. I couldn’t agree more.

Click on the post title to visit this most interesting shop!

Harold and Jane

Theresa is a Seattle based artist who creates these lovely vintage and vintage inspired pieces. She names each design with a clip of song lyrics that she thinks suits the piece to give it a little extra personality (I knew I recognized a Postal Service song in there!)
She mixes gemstones with vintage elements, and every one is one of a kind, so you won’t see other people wearing the exact same thing out there in the world!
She has a background in visual communications and a fabulously creative husband who did all of the beautiful photography for her site. Good job!
You certainly wouldn’t feel dreary on a rainy Seattle day (yup, just like Vancouver!) wearing one of her lemony yellow necklaces!
Check out her shop by clicking on the post title!

Bake it Pretty

Amanda Krueger is the baking maven behind Bake it Pretty. I was so delighted when I found her Etsy shop late one night, and just had to buy some of the cutest cupcake cups I've ever seen in my entire life!(see top photo)
Her DIY kits are just adorable too, I'm now coveting the cake toppers (again, see photo!) The way I see it, if you can do something like make cupcakes a little more stylish and sweet, why wouldn't you? White cupcake cups are so passé!
She has everything from candy jimmies to decorating nibs and packaging supplies. I now have enough baking cups to last me 5 years, why do I still want more?
I also really dig her blogs. Look under blog links on the sidebar for Every Little Thing and the Bake it Pretty Blog.
See her shop by clicking on the post title!

Kimberly Rose

Kimberly Rose is a San Diego based photographer who uses the rather new medium of digital photo manipulation to her advantage. She's a self-taught photographer who does a lot of experimentation to get the look and feel that she's looking for in her prints. Some of her images are surreal, and some are beautifully simple. I love the image with the butterflies, there's just something so haunting and innocent about it!
Click on the post title to view her shop!

Autumn&Eve Illustration

Christian Breitkreutz is the mastermind behind these fabulous graphic prints. So different and interesting, with many artist's and icons represented that I love. Christian is a self-taught artist living and working in Pittsburg. He runs the illustration business with his gal Hallie (I don't want to leave her out!)
The prints are done in a limited run, and they gladly accept custom orders. How cool would something like this be for your wedding invitation?
Morrissey is one of my all time faves, and who doesn't love Audrey Tatou? I chose Malcolm McDowell as well because he brought one of the most frightening characters to life on the big screen. Chills!
Click on the post title to check out the shop!

kittybblove

Sara and Ben are the Oakland, California duo behind Kittybblove and are expecting their first baby in May. Congratulations!
They must be inspired by their three furbaby kitties, as their entire shop is pretty cat happy!
They've had a long time love of all things handmade as well as holistic and aspire to becoming full-time work at home parents.
Ben is the one behind all of the illustration and imagery in the shop and Sara is the crafty girl who does the sewn items. Ben has a wealth of degrees that range from graphic design to fine art and Sara has a degree in fashion design.
Their shop has a lovely array of things in it, from kitty crayons to stress dolls to cards and candles.
To visit their lovely shop click on the post title!

Mary J Maalouf

Mary is a Miami designer with a great knack for colour and form. After doing her schooling at the New World School of the Arts in Miami she honed her techniques while working at a high-end clothing shop, where she developed her skills in pattern drafting, garment cutting, clothing construction, fittings and alterations.
I'm not surprised I'm so drawn to her work, as she shares my love for Japanese fabric (paper for me!) design and combining colour patterns to create new and visually exciting works.
They say necessity is the mother of invention, and that is true with the origins of her business. She couldn't find the purse of her dreams, so she created it, and thankfully hasn't stopped! Every one of her purses are one of a kind, so you know you have something totally unique!
Click on the post title to see her beautiful shop!

mary's granddaughter

This great shop is an homage to Mary Steiler, the artist's great-grandmother. She taught her to crochet and sew and to appreciate things made by hand.
The artist hails from Gainsville, Florida and has worked as a set and costume designer and scenic artist for the stage. In her shop you'll find hand painted embroidered art. I'm quite partial to Greta the bear...
In this shop you'll find wall hangings, jewellery, art dolls and prints. She also has a French bulldog who provides inspiration for her work...
Click on the post title to see her shop!