blog-a-thon

happy friday, cutiepies!

 

and it's time for another celebration of all of you fabulous bloggers out there!  
no better-a-time then to thank you all for coming by & playing here every monday, wednesday & friday!

so leave us a link to your own blog {and/or perhaps another link to one your favourite blogs!} + it'll be a superfun way to meet new folks + share your writings with everyone!

it'll be a permanent, up-date-able feature on my sidebar here, so we all can visit your lovely blogs!

can't wait to visit all of YOUR beautiful writings!

have a great day, sweeties!

{ps: have a gorgeous online handmade shop. too? add your link to *my talented, talented friends* page here for all to see, too! } 

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bloggers day of silence

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please help spread the quiet word if you can.

donate here if you can.

& add your own handmade thoughts here to this list.

hugs & hugs.

together we can help.

k. Pin It

brilliant blogger: char hamilton

it's a fun new series on the blog, nicies! a fill-in-the-blank interview with some of our favourite super-bloggers from around the blogosphere that inspire each of us everyday with their writings! we all know that brilliant bloggers spend so much of their precious time crafting the perfect posts. so  i thought we'd give our fave wordsmiths a little break: i sent each nicey a page full of fill-in-the-blanks questions { my words in blue } ...  & they filled them in with their insights { their words in grey/gray! } . hope you'll enjoy fill-in-the-blanks with today's brilliant blogger: the inspiring handmaking-cheerleader, artist  & nicey char of we blog artists. 

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HOLA-Hello-Ciao-Hej_!
I'm Char.

I am a Mum of 2 beautiful young girls & a wife to an awesome husband & an artist.

I blog about everyday projects here in Canada and my good friend in the Uk (Tam) shares this venture with me.We also blog about our family & what we love about Life over here: at WE Blog ARTISTS.

{You might be surprised to hear that I can speak a few languages...having been brought up with Scandinavian folks in the UK and then having lived in Mallorca (Spain) for 7 years, where Spanish,Italian and German helps you get by...and now I'm back in an English speaking Country...Canada. Languages as well as Art are a passion of mine...being able to communicate with many people from different parts of the World is VERY PRECIOUS to me.}

Beyond blogging, my  perfect Day would be : to wake up to 18 hours where I could paint and cook all day long, with my family and friends from all around the World, eating delicious tapas, talking all 5 languages, listening to a live band, and playing hide and seek with all the kiddies. I'm in LOVE with my Husband + my girls.

Here's one of my favourite photos of myself. 

I love this photo because my Mum is in it...she is my inspiration...my rock...my critique...when I think of her,so far away in England...my heart warms...my eyes well up and then I know and feel I am on the right path in my Life...she gave us SO much love,THANK you Mama!

I just finished another commission of a Family portrait and just started illustrating another Children's book. I'm in the middle of prepping everything for our Mamas and Chicks show I host with a friend.

I love making my girls giggle & making our house feel warm inside...when the girls are crafting,I am baking...and my husband is renovating (my studio to be).

Winter makes me appreciate Summer & amp; Spring makes me love ALL the seasons here in Canada.

A word I love to say is precious.

And I may have made up the word beautilicious!

I thrive off blogging!

The immense creativity and the endless inspiration I get from it makes blogging daily part of me!

I began blogging to push myself back into creating art and crafts daily and now I blog with pleasure, not always showing something i have made...but I enjoy being able to document our daily happenings.

It amazes about blogging that I have met some wonderful and very talented ladies who also blog and create daily!

My 3 tips to a great blog would be: be honest, great photos & don't forget to visit your readers in their Worlds.

Gosh! It's challenging blogging when you get brain freeze!
but fear not, I just get my Earl Grey Tea and OatCakes...and browse my faves....et voila...a post is born.

One of my favourite blog posts I've ever written is this one on my Mother.
I will always remember how the whole posting of it made me feel, she deserves the WORLD.

I REALLY ENJOY reading other blogs.

I love TRULA.KIDS blog because it's written by a Mum who has 2 kids...and is always crafting with them or for them.

and I  ADORE the SLEEPY TIME GAL blog because it too is run by a Mum of 4...who creates wonderful handmade goodnesses and posts some awesome recipes.

and of course Esti's PINTAMELDIA blog is one of my favourite places to visit daily because it's also another Spanish blog(written in english too) but it's also special because she is a self taught Artist and has such a calm about her...painting and photos.

This was extremely HARD to choose, as I have SO many favourites...but you can visit the others from the links of our Blog.

One thing I wish I had learned sooner in bloggyville is that Life goes on.

and don't worry: if one day you don't make the post you wanted to then no one will hold it against you...you're your own Boss in Blogville.

My favourite part of blogging is reading the awesome comments and knowing that I have real friends out there who care to just say a little hello...it means a lot, THANK YOU.
However, I could do without the headaches Blogger sometimes gives me...although it has been pretty good recently...hope I haven't jinxed it now!

Something new happening on my blog these days is "Tuesdays Tastings"...each Tuesday if I am not interviewing an artist for our Tell ALL Tuesdays I try and post about a recipe which I have tweeked a little. Recently I wrote about Oatcakes as I think I have an intolerence for wheat. Check it out here.

You can find me here at our BLOG "We blog Artists" and you can browse my ETSY SHOP and you can become a FAN and get updates on my Facebook Page.

char hamilton

blog | shop | twitter | facebook

 

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yay!

thanks so much, sandy, for your inspiring words, char. 

such wisdom & thoughtfulness here and always your beautiful, wonderful blog.

{we blog artists features amazing artists, fabulous ideas, has the best giveaways, and is filled with char & tam's beautiful heartfelt wit & wisdom!}

be sure to visit char around the web.. she's such an amazing superwoman! 

& please leave her a hello here, too!

happy blogging, nicies!

 

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the handmade olympics { event 8 }

 

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update! feb. 5, 2011
thanks so much to everyone who has entered!
what an amazing & talented bunch you are!
nominations are now CLOSED.
your nominations have been sent to the judges, and we look forward to the revealing of their short lists (on feb. 14th!) , after which everyone (that's YOU!) will have a chance to vote on who will WIN! yay!
thanks again,
k.

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yay!
please see the MAIN handmade olympics post for all of the fun-filled details & rules on the events!

now.. welcome to event 8: please leave a comment here nominating:
your favourite BLOG with a handmaking focus!

for this event think lovely blogs.
think handmaking nicies who share with us by blogging.
think creative blogs that inspire you every day!  

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thanks so much to our fabulous judge for this event, the wonderful textile artist, designer & beloved blogger,

anna maria horner.

find out more about this nicey here.

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please read the RULES here.

remember, you can nominate yourself + another in EACH event! PLUS get bonus ballots for twittering, blogging + facebooking about the handmadeolympics! yay!

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the amazing PRIZES
valued at OVER $2000.00 USD, the handmade olympics prize packs are just gosh-darn fantastical!

this EVENT will award the following prizes!

:: a GOLD prize pack
including $150.00 worth of handmade goodness! 

a $50 gift certificate to Block Party Press
a $50 gift certificate to Strand ReDesign
a $50 gift certificate to Amy May Design

+ an *i WON* the handmade olympics banner/button image to use on your site/blog/shop
+ an artist/crafter feature on the rikrak studio blog!

:: a SILVER prize pack with $100.00 worth of handmade goodness:
a $50 gift certificate to SHAbang
2 months of advertising {march & april} on the rikrak studio blog : value $50

:: a BRONZE prize pack
of one FREE month of March 2011 advertising on the rikrak studio blog! yay!

and of course, there will be ONE overall random nomination selected from all handmade olympics to WIN the FAN PRIZE PACK (a $50.00 shopping spree in the rikrak shop!)

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now check out the other events + nominate more fun folks!

{ event 1 } :: our favourite handmade goodie with an innovative design

{ event 2 } :: our favourite handmade goodie for kids

{ event 3 } :: our favourite handmade eco friendly goodie

{ event 4 } :: our favourite handmade item that inspires loveliness + wellness (in our homes, for ourselves, etc.)

{ event 5 } :: our favourite handmade personality/group forwarding kindness thru handmaking

{ event 6 } :: our favourite thrifty-forward, vintage or sustainably-minded blog, shop or site.

{ event 7 } :: our favourite FUN-FILLED handmade OR vintage goodie

{event 8} :: our favourite handmaking-focus blog

just click on the links above.

happy handmaking, nicies!

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fill-in-the-blanks with brilliant blogger: melissa blake

it's a fun new series on the blog, nicies! a fill-in-the-blank interview with some of our favourite super-bloggers from around the blogosphere that inspire each of us everyday with their writings! we all know that brilliant bloggers spend so much of their precious time crafting the perfect posts. so  i thought we'd give our fave wordsmiths a little break: i sent each nicey a page full of fill-in-the-blanks questions { my words in blue } ...  & they filled them in with their insights { their words in grey/gray! } . hope you'll enjoy fill-in-the-blanks with today's brilliant blogger: the inspiring melissa blake of *so about what i said*

Hello, friends!

I'm Melissa. I am a writer, columnist and blogger.

I blog about my physical disability, art, style, shopping and photography over here: So about what I said 

{You might be surprised to hear that I can be shy at times.}

Beyond blogging, my  perfect day would be a sunny day, with my family, eating, talking, about Frasier, listening to Taylor Swift, playing Yahtzee.


I'm short (really short!) with natural red hair + green eyes.

Here's my favourite photo of myself.

I love this photo because I'm smiling, which I love to do.

I just finished a newspaper column and just started an article for ShelterPop. I'm in the middle of always working on my blog.

I love making cookies with my mom & writing lyrics.


My favorite shows make me smile & my cats make me happy and calm.
A word I love to use is apparently.

I LOVE blogging!

The community and the fun of it amaze me!

I began blogging to tell my story and now I blog to share the gems I love

It amazes about blogging that so many lovely people read what I write!

 
My 3 tips to a great blog would be: 

Consistency 

being friendly
& being honest

 

Gosh! It's challenging blogging when there's too much to post and not enough time.
But fear not, I just try to go at my own pace.

One of my favorite blog post series I've ever written are these ones on my future husband .

I  like how the story is evolving.

I  always love reading other blogs.

I love the Cupcakes and Cashmere blog because it's very well-rounded.

and I love The Musings of a Wannabe Star  blog because it's real and honest.

and of course A Diary of Lovely  blog is amazing because it's beautiful.

One thing I wish I had learned sooner in bloggyville is that it takes awhile to build an audience.

and don't worry: if not everyone likes you then they don't matter anyway.
My favourite part of blogging is the community.

However, I could do without the mean girl mentality.

Something awesome happening on my blog these days is my branching out on the topics I cover. Check it out here.

melissa blake

blog | twitter | her psychology today blog |   glamour

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yay!

thanks so much, melissa,  for your inspiring words!

i'm a great fan of melissa's wonderful openness, articulate writing, and motivating ideas, so it's a real pleasure to have you here today, nicey.

be sure to visit her around the web... she's such an amazing wonderwoman!

& please leave her a hello here, too!

happy blogging, nicies!

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blog-a-thon!

happy thursday, cutiepies!

thought we'd start a fun new tradition here on the blog today - it's the end of a wonderful month & i 'd just love love love to thank you all for coming by & playing!

so leave us a link to your own blog + it'll be a superfun way to meet new folks + share your writings with everyone!

can't wait to visit all of YOUR beautiful blogs!

have a great day, sweeties!

{ps: have a gorgeous online shop? add your link to *my talented, talented friends* page here for all to see, too! } 

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fill-in-the-blanks interview with brilliant blogger: sandy a la mode!

it's a fun new series on the blog, nicies! a fill-in-the-blank interview with some of our favourite super-bloggers from around the blogosphere that inspire each of us everyday with their writings! we all know that brilliant bloggers spend so much of their precious time crafting the perfect posts. so  i thought we'd give our fave wordsmiths a little break: i sent each nicey a page full of fill-in-the-blanks questions { my words in pink } ...  & they filled them in with their insights { their words in grey/gray! }  hope you'll enjoy fill-in-the-blanks with our next brilliant blogger: the lovely sandy of sandy a la mode!

Hi all!  I’m super excited to be featured here on the fabulous rikrak studio blog! {editor's note: thanks, cutie! so honoured to have you! }

I'm Sandy from Sandy a la Mode, a blog and more recently, an etsy shop!

I love cupcakes & traveling & shopping for dresses.

I blog about my photography, baking, sewing adventures as well as inspirational finds over here: http://www.sandyalamode.com/.

{You might be surprised to hear that I travel almost every other week, to cities all over the world, for my full-time job.}

Beyond blogging, my perfect afternoon would be: a picnic, with my husband, eating ice cream, talking about our next vacation (hopefully Australia), listening to Billboard Top 100 songs.

I'm a huge fan of frozen yogurt with mochi + strawberries.

Here's my favourite photo of myself.

I love the photo because that camera strap cover was the first thing I’ve ever sewn and made me realize that I could be a crafty person.  Also, most of the time, you can find me behind my camera.

I just finished sewing a bunch of mini drawstring bags for my etsy shop.  To celebrate my grand opening, I am offering them for FREE with every order.

I love making anything with puff pastry & sugar.
 

The sunshine makes me happy & ice storms make me sad (and really cold).


A word I love to overuse is “amazing”.

And I may have made up the word “dramaful.”

I HEART blogging!

Taking pictures for the blog and meeting new bloggers inspires me to keep on posting!

I began blogging to document my journey in cooking, sewing and photography and now I blog about inspirations, our basement renovation progress and other DIYs as well.

What amazes me about blogging is that there is such a VAST community of encouraging, supportive bloggers out there!

My 3 tips to a great blog would be:

pictures
content
& humor.

Gosh! It's challenging blogging when I have a full-time job, travel all the time, have all this housework,
but fear not, I just try and schedule up posts ahead of time on the weekends so I’m not AS busy on the weekdays trying to blog.  It doesn’t always work out that way, but I try! J

One of my favorite blog posts I've ever written is this one on the baby shower I planned for my friend. 

 
I documented with photos the food we prepared, the decorations we made and the games we played.

I spend a lot of time reading other blogs.

I love the rikrak studio blog because it's fun and has posts about a vast variety of topics. { editor's note: superthanks sweetie! }

and I can’t help but check the bright side project blog because it's got giveaways every Monday, Wednesday and Friday – who doesn’t love giveaways?.

and of course the oh hello friend blog is beautiful because it's always got a daily dose of inspiration.

One thing I wish I had learned sooner in bloggyville is that it is super addicting.

and don't worry: if I can get myself to close my computer lid then I can step away for from blogging for awhile and enjoy the fresh air haha.

My favourite part of blogging is that I have been able to meet so many blogger friends online and even some in person.

However, I could do without spam comments.

Something regular happening on my blog these days is my Friday Flavors to Follow posts.  

sandy a la mode

blog | shop | twitter

Hope you all enjoyed reading a little bit more about me, a fellow blogger and friend.  OK time for me to go, ice cream is calling my name! 

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yay!

thanks so much, sandy, for your inspiring words!

be sure to visit sandy around the web.. she's such an amazing superwoman! 

& please leave her a hello here, too!

happy blogging, nicies!

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the answers: an *inspiring* little game {part 4}: bloggers

what talented match-makers you all are!
thanks so much to everyone who played monday's fun guessing game.
the correct bloggers & their matching inspiration walls are:

wall A + 3 = welcome to summersville
wall B + 5 = clever karen
wall C + 1 = desire to inspire
wall D + 4 = Sea Embraces
wall E + 2 = she.likes.cute
i'm delighted to say that 4 folks got all 5 answers correct! yay! so i'm excited to feature:

the talented karley: who has her own sweet blog, she sews lovely! you'll just love karley's eco friendly, reusable coffee sleeve shop, filled with gorgeous fabrics, lovely colours and beautiful handiwork! she also has a fabulously budget-saavy SALE section in the shop, with deals deals deals!



next up, congrats to donna VW, blogger at "the rock" paper, scissors, a fun new paper projects site! :) check out her current works!






the next congrats goes out to guesser, the empty nest, one of my wonderful sponsors! you'll want to hurry right over to janet's beautiful shop, filled with fiber, fabric & paint creations. i am in dreamland just swooning over her gorgeous handmade scarves..... *sigh!* i LOVE big scarfs! wonderful work, nicey!






and our final congrats goes out to lyn @ the it is what it is blog! lyn has a supercute etsy shop filled with fabric goodies... and if you're a lilly pulitzer fan.... you'll be swoooning!

great guessing, cuties! thanks for playing!

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