At long last, I have decided upon an opening day for my brand new Etsy shop.
 
will open it's doors.....Saturday, May 1st!!


Short notice, I know, but it looks like the weather may just cooperate in time for me to do some product photo re-shoots. We've been getting absolutely DRENCHED the last week. 




So, as a hearty { thank you } to all my lovely blog followers, I will be offering a special gift with purchase, for any purchases made during my opening week! All you have to do is follow me here on the bloggity blog, and include the message "Blog Follower" in the notes to seller section. This offer will run May 1st - May 8th.

As for what the special gift is, well I think surprises are always more fun, don't you? :P  I promise it will be worth your while....

{ hip hip hooray! }




(thanks for all your technological halp, tsuki!)



Now you can follow me on Twitter --> bugmiscellany




{ tweet, tweet. }



On this dreary Wednesday, I'm inspired to try out a new weekly blog feature. Welcome to the very first edition of "crave + rave" ! During these sessions, I'll be posting Etsy finds that I'm currently lusting after. 

And away we go! (no turning back now, just tell your checkbook to accept it):



 MinatureRhino's constellation embroidery makes me long for campfires and wide open spaces. What is it about the stars that makes me think of summer?




Speaking of summer, there's nothing I love more than a good fair or fesitval. There is something a little 'Royal Tennebaums-y' about Opart 'Street Party' photograph. I just want to climb inside it and join the fun!




Ever since I started reading her blog, I've been in love with this "super pleated tote," made from 'fleather.' I'm sure the hubbers will thank you, Bungaloe, for giving me yet another bag to drool over...; )



I pretty much want one of everything in Dollybirddesign's shop, but I am particularly in awe of this item -- that's a REAL spiderweb preserved inside the pendant! I'm no spider lover, but the intricacy and beauty of these natural creations is simply amazing.




And last, but not least, is this hilarious wallet collaboration by Tinymeat and Chris Bishop. I mostly love it because it reminds me of the hubbers' repeated assurances that he could "take a bear."


{ goodbye, paycheck }




My dear friend Panda has created the most lovely treasury today.  Please click the link to view.
 
 




for preservation:


You just KNOW this girl will have the loveliest of weddings, one day.

{ dum, dum, da dum... }




Since Saturday went a little something like this:

           rain,                            sun,                     drenching rain,


I decided to stay indoors and do a little of this:


and a little of that.:


It was so nice to be able to devote an entire day to making things, and getting ready for my Etsy shop's Grand Opening. Stay tuned, because this week I will announce the date my shop will open it's doors. Oh, and be sure to keep your eyes peeled for a special offer for Blog Reader's Only...

{ Can't wait! }



Yesterday was the hubbers' birthday (or b(earth)day, as I like to think of it). We played it pretty low key, as he wished. I made him a homemade birthday cake and burritos, of which he stuffed himself silly. 


Not much to look at, but knowing that he was perfectly content with his handmade birthday made me very happy.


Gotta blow those candles out fast -- the letters only lasted about 30 seconds! Also, like the oh-so-picturesque positioning of the cake on our stovetop? We have a crazy sensitive fire alarm, and we needed the oven fan to suck the smoke away before we set it off....again.


One of his gifts was an adorable "Mr Mustachio" plush, made by graphic designer Emi Tanji. I bought it at my favorite local outlet for handmade gifts Happy Delusions, located in downtown Renton, WA. If you live in the area you should definitely pop in for a visit. I promise you won't be disappointed. : )

Overall, we had a nice afternoon, and managed to avoid any meltdowns over turning the big 3-0. 

{ crisis averted. }


One of the things I love best about Etsy is the Pounce feature. For those of you unfamiliar with Etsy, Pounce allows you to jump (or 'pounce' like a kitteh hee hee) to randomly selected shops that feature one of 2 criteria: shops with a recently sold item OR shops awaiting their first sale.
It is from 'pouncing' through the Undiscovered shops that I've been introduced to some truly amazing emerging artists. I thought, since I will be a 'noob' again soon, I'd feature some of these talented folks here.

So without further ado, here is my first round up of brilliant new Etsians:



1.  "Don't Make My Belly Mad" (so silly, and so true!) by studiollamallama
2. the uber yummy looking  "Red Velvet Cake" by RSullivanArt
3. "Small Yellow Pinhead Pincushion" makes me lol by Gloomstopper

{ enjoy!}


On Sunday the hubbers and I decided to continue our adventures in the woods near our new home. Since we've moved back to wa-wa land, we've been determined to become "outdoor people." This is not something that comes naturally (to me at least), having grown up smack dab in the middle of suburbia, and then moving to the big, bad City for college. Nonetheless, serious hiking boots were purchased, various jerkied meats were packed, and in March, we began.

Our first few hikes went surprisingly well, with no recorded injuries and trails properly followed. We saw the beautiful, if hideously overcrowded, Twin Falls and Rattlesnake Ridge (where I seem to have developed an entirely new condition I have since dubbed "trail rage"). We even saw two big, healthy bald eagles near Tiger Mountain (actually viewed from inside the 'unwanted accelerator' on Highway 18, before we even parked at the trail head).

It was with confidence in our new found abilities that we headed east on I-90, and into Snoqualmie National Forest, in search of the Iron Horse Trail. Miles and miles of bumpy, flooded "road" later, we determined that we had no idea where the heck fire we were, and opted instead to back track a couple exits and try the well-marked Olallie State Park instead. It turns out we had hiked very close to this point our first trip out, when we decided to go beyond the waterfalls, to escape some of the crowds.

What followed was a lackadaisical meander through a gorgeous and unpopulated stretch. We periodically ducked in and out of little offshoot paths, stumbling across waterfall, after waterfall, and then into one of the most beautiful little secret spots I've seen. I couldn't help but shoot photo after photo, mindlessly trying to capture this FEELING that I was having. Suffice it to say, I ended up with mentally bookmarking this location to revisit many, many times, and with a dozen or so really pretty shots.

I guess sometimes the very best finds, are the things you were never searching for in the first place.






Oh, and if it looks like it's covered in either sap, tar, or creosote:

{ don't sit on it. }




Hello all and welcome to the wonderfully odd little world of { bug miscellany }.

In a very short while,  I will be opening my brand new Etsy shop. These past months have been spent crafting, plotting, hypothesizing, experimenting, and treating glue gun related injuries (it's created quite a mess, I assure you). I couldn't be more excited to share it all with you.

Stay tuned for my Grand Opening announcement, as well as special offers for you, dear readers!
In the meantime, I'd love to share some of the little amusements, curiosities, and inspirations that have kept me up and running.

{ enjoy! }

- kelli