Give Away Contest With Pony Chops Blog

I am pleased to announce a fun give away! Shoppe Sugar Cookie is doing a very special give away contest with Pony Chops Blog, one of my favorite blogs! Chantal is an amazing and talented artist, so I am happy to be pairing up with her to offer the winner any item of their choice from Shoppe Sugar Cookie! You can join in the contestright here! The contest ends on April 20. Good luck to all who enter!

Flossy the Pony Feature: In Stitches Etsy Email

Over the weekend my Flossy Bobbins, mainly Flossy the Pony, was featured in the Etsy Finds email newsletter! These were shown in the section called In Stitches that showcases the very best in sewing, embroidery, and supplies that Etsy has to offer. Once again I am so happy to have my handmade goodies shown on Etsy! Thank you Etsy, and you can read the email here.

Share the Love Giveaway Contest via Chestnut Mocha Blog

My friends Katie and Ben write the cutest blog, Chestnut Mocha. They are hosting a giveaway Shoppe Sugar Cookie! You can enter to win some amazing prizes, and also one of my Hedgie Wood Pins! Enter soon! Check out the giveaway right here.

Flossy Bobbins Featured in Cross-Stitch and Needlework Magazine

Please check out the March issue of Cross-stitch and Needlework magazine, especially page eight - my Flossy Bobbins are featured in their Fab Finds!


Here is my Flossy the Dachshund on the contents page. I think it looks great with the pink thread, too!


Here is the Fab Finds article. Check out the cool stuff featured! What an honor to be included in this article!


You can check out this magazine at your local book shop, and you can check out my Flossy Bobbins in my Etsy shop!

New Wood Pins Are Here

I have been busy making, making, making these days - the holidays are so close! Here are some of my new wood pins that I created from my original illustrations. They are inspired by woodland walks, animals, and winter itself. I love how they turned out!






I love this little lamb, what a sweet face!


And this bundled bunny is ready to go sledding! I added a wooly felt scarf for a bit of color on this wood pin.


This snow bunny is ready to build a snowman! These are all ready in my Shoppe Sugar Cookie! Please take a look.

More Flossy Menagerie

I have been organizing my embroidery floss again with the help of my new Flossy Embroidery Floss Bobbins! I just love how the new designs came out. Please have a look at the new animals!


Raoul said he likes the new Flossy the Fox the most.




As usual, all the new Flossy Bobbins are ready for you in Shoppe Sugar Cookie, my Etsy shop. If you act fast, and use this coupon from Of Corgis and Cocktails Blog, you can get a discount from my Shoppe Sugar Cookie! Super!

Midge from Modern Girl Blitz Blog

Please have a look at my pal Midge's blog called Modern Girl Blitz! Her blog is one of my new favorite blogs. I really like Midge's style, it reminds me very much of the movie Ghost World! Plus, she likes lots of the same things I do, such as Halloween, zines, and fashion!


These are pictures that she took wearing some of my handmade goodies that can all be found in Shoppe Sugar Cookie! I just love how the Tiny Record Player Wood Pin looks with the peter pan collar, don't you? I also love seeing my Strawberry Wood Hairpins in her hair! Such style!


And here are some of my many one inch pinback buttons that are in my shop, too. Did you know I offer over 100 button designs in Shoppe Sugar Cookie? Yes, it is true! Please have a look and then read Modern Girl Blitz, too!

Sketchbook Sunday - Let's Make a Button Design

I love making buttons! I make them all the time. Want to see my process from start to finish? Okay, so here goes... I start with my original sketch that I draw in pencil. I usually draw in my sketch book. It looks like this.


Then I ink in my pencil sketch. I like to use different pens for this - so sometimes I draw with a fine tip, sometimes I like to use a heavier tip. For this I think I used a 07 tip.


Next I did some hand lettering. I am making a button to use for my Etsy shop, so I wrote the URL for it Shoppe Sugar Cookie!


Then I scan in my artwork. I like to clean it up in Photoshop. I scan at 600 dpi, and in color. I change to grayscale and fine tune the contrast using Levels, Exposure, and Brightness and Contrast. I convert to RGB next and color in my illustration. I also move the type around to fit my button template, making sure not to place the text too close to the edge of my button design. Once I have this finalized, I put it on another template to print my button design out on nice paper.


This is how they look when I print them out all on one page. I can cut it out to make a button!


And here is the final button badge design to pop in my Shoppe Sugar Cookie Etsy orders!

Lotta Locket Love

I have been really into making lockets lately! I have so much locket love locked up inside...! Here are some of my lovely little treasures I have been making from vintage lockets.


I love to draw, and I love to draw animals. Most of my lockets have incorporated my love of animals and soft colors.




I also am inspired by "woodland getaway" types of images, so I look on Pinterest and magazines for amazing photos and illustrations. Each one of my lockets holds an original one of a kind artwork.


I was testing myself to see how tiny I could draw. This is a really small locket, the images are less than a quarter of an inch. Now that is small!






This last one is one of my favorites! I have always loved deer. I also like the "Smurfy" traditional mushroom with a red cap. I think they look fabulous together and I really love making a bow around the deer's neck.

As always, these tiny treasures can be found at Shoppe Sugar Cookie on Etsy!

Featured on Of Corgis and Cocktails Blog

My new blog friend Katherine writes a great blog called Of Corgis and Cocktails. She recently wrote about some of my goodies from Shoppe Sugar Cookie, and would you look at her cute photos she took? Here she is wearing my Happy Squirrels Hairpins on her trip to Gettysburg, complete with more lovely photos right here.


And check out my little Hedgie Wood Pin worn on her hat! I just love that red bow, too. You can see more photos of Katherine here.


Here is Katherine and her corgi, Teemo! They are so cute together in this post! And if you look closely, you can see my Tiny Acorn Hairpins in her hair! Perfect for autumn!

Constellation Celebration

This weekend I worked on some new lockets to share with you. I am really excited to show my lockets. I made these miniature drawings on black paper special for inside these lockets. So far I have made a few constellations, but I think Cassiopeia is my favorite so far.


I also drew a locket charm with Ursa Major on the inside. Did you know it is also the Big Dipper? When I was at home in Pennsylvania, my younger brother Joe would get out a giant telescope. We used to peer at the stars through the telescope, and sometiems we would even see planets! All from our front yard.


Here is Ursa Minor, or the Little Dipper. I could not forget that one! Each of my Constellation Lockets are one of a kind original miniature illustrations inside! Each one is unique and special, just like the constellation I drew inside. You can check these beauties out on my Shoppe Sugar Cookie!

Etsy Craft Party 2012

Last Friday was the day for Etsy Craft Party! We hosted it here in Athens, Georgia at our favorite local shop, Treehouse Kid and Craft! We had so much fun, too.


This year's theme was "Wish You Were Here." At our party we made postcards, travel journals / zines, and one inch buttons and magnets.




Ruth made these great buttons of her pets, Owen and Jack.


They look great!


Our friend Heather made some pins with some of the designs I provided that you can find in my Shoppe Sugar Cookie. She customized them with her friend's band name. They look awesome!


Here is Josie, me, and Allison! We had a great time hanging out at the Etsy Craft Party!


Sara also came to the party! I love her Etsy shop, too.


Here is Katy and Leslie

Hedgie Wood Pin Worn By Ting

One of my new favorite blogs is called Ben Loves Ting. Have you read it before? Ben and Ting live in Singapore and have the best adventures together!


Ting wore my Hedgie Wood Pin from my Shoppe Sugar Cookie on Etsy! Doesn't she look great? I love that this little hedgehog was their "pet" for the day! ❤