Thursday, July 31, 2008

Discoveries!

Well, I was wrong about selling my very last Mocha Java sachet...I went to my workshop to start the new batch, and discovered 2 more large ones and 3 small ones! One of them even had a keychain charm on it, so I will be photographing that one and listing it ASAP! I still started the new batch, because I'm really excited about adding the red color to it. I know there are alot of fans of the "just brown" batch too though, so now I can have something for everyone! Feel free to leave me a comment with your personal opinion here if you want :)

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

And The Winner Is....

You!!
July 31st is my "official" 6 month Etsy anniversary! I also just made my 20th sale on Etsy, by selling my very last Mocha Java sachet...but never fear! Another customer suggested that I create Mocha Java using a dark red color mixed in. Since some of the ingredients I used in my last batch are unavailable right now, I have decided to substitute some of them with some dark red rose petals, and perhaps another dark red flower, and call it Mocha Java Rouge! I also received an exciting Alchemy request...another first! But I will save that to blog about when the order is done :)
ANYHOO...To celebrate, I am having Free Shipping on anything in my store through August 15th, which is the actual 6 month anniversary of my store opening! This sale will include any alchemy requests...so convo me!
Finally, I am going to create the winning scents from my Party Potpourri Poll...Margarita, Mango, and the runner up, Cold Relief Bath Tea!

Monday, July 28, 2008

Yet Another Treasury West!

Wow, Treasury West was wide open this morning...down to 134 lists! I really didn't have a good plan, but when Megzy called whilst I was contemplating this and informed me that she was making a list of her own, I couldn't resist! This time I decided on jewelery, but a few other items crept in which are very jewel-like...see for yourself!
http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=20222

Here's a link to Megzy's list, it's so gorgeous, I love the colors!
http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=20190

New Adventures!

It's that hectic time of year once again for getting the kids ready for Back to School....Of course it's a bittersweet time, since part of me can't wait for the relative freedom of having the house to myself all day, and part of me is dreading having to be up at an unholy hour every morning to catch the bus! Crazier still is the fact that I will have to find out if I am smarter than a 5th grader, since we have decided to take the homeschooling plunge this year for our middle son. We are going through an online public school, so hopefully that will mean I don't have to learn all of the things that have become necessary to learn at that age which inconceivably were unbeknownst to my generation in 5th grade!
"Inconceivable!" "You keep using that word...I do not think it means what you think it means." Vizzini and Inigo Montoya, The Princess Bride

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Super Etsians!!!

Today I happened to look at Treasury West on Etsy.com today, and the number of lists was at 224. For those of you who have haunted the Treasury and Treasury West in hopes of creating your own list, you will know the thrill that goes up your spine when you realize it Just Might Happen! And yes, about 11 minutes later the little magic box popped up asking me the name of my treasury! I had my Favorites all ready in another Window, so all I had to do was type in my title and then put my chosen item #'s in. What could my treasury be about? You may ask...
Well, in a previous post I think I mentioned my kids' addiction to watching Lois and Clark on DVD. I shall now add that all of us in our family have been addicted to Smallville also, since it first started. All things Superman are a preferred topic at any given time! Except the recent Superman:Doomsday, which we found problems with on many levels....but I digress!
Without further ado....here is a link to my very first Etsy treasury, "Somebody Save Me!" Stop by and drop me a line (I did include other Superheroes too!) http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=17312

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Add A Little Sparkle!




About 2 years ago my Etsy sista Megzy had a great idea for a craft fair project to add to our then-planned booth...artistic jewelery keychains! We had a great time creating them and so did several of our friends who just had to get in on the fun! The keychains did very well when combined with my potpourri sachets, so I have continued to offer them here and there in various places I have sold potpourri. I enjoy making jewelery, but I don't have great confidence in my abilities beyond keychains, or possibly a quirky bracelet!



Megzy has several family members who have battled breast cancer, and other cancers. We knew that there were many people out there who have bravely fought this grave disease, or have supported someone who has. So we created some of our lovely keychain charms to honor our family and friends with a small and sparkly show of support (Did I get enough "s's" in there?) Here are two of them: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=13428308 and http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=11526623.



Of course, strangely enough, some people like colors other than pink...so I am working on posting some more styles soon! I do have a Gorgeous red and gold one with this gift set: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=11778955 (Sorry I haven't updated the photos on that one yet!) And if you have a color scheme you would like to see, let me know and I will see what I can do just for you! :)

Sunday, July 13, 2008

On Shoes, Closets, and Husbandly Help!

Yesterday my husband went to help his dad with a big project. He came home from Home Depot announcing that he got something for me....shoe racks! I was less than thrilled, to be honest. My shoes already had a rack but really needed to be sorted through, and I hated that idea. However, today after our Bible meeting, he slyly put the new shelves together and began the daunting task of closet organization! It wasn't as bad as I thought, and it is always liberating to move on from things that, lets face it, just don't look good on us anymore!
After that, I guess my dear hubby just felt so good about that little task being finished that he got busy in the kitchen unloading the dishwasher and sweeping the kitchen....I love that man!!!
Sometimes we don't realize that small tasks are piling up on us, and suddenly they all become overwhelming! For myself, I know that I don't always ask for help, or insist that my kids help (most of the little things are their messes anyway!) when I should. I am determined to do better in all of these areas!! Now, on to the bathroom cabinets....UGH!

Saturday, July 12, 2008

Aaaahhhhh...There's Nothing Like a Soothing Bath!!!


As a busy mom, homemaker, Etsy Artisan, and all that other stuff person, I don't get much time to myself. I have a huge bathtub which has substituted as a storage area in our main bathroom for waaaay too long now. (don't worry, we also have a separate shower, LOL!) Yesterday I dug out all of the unnecessary clutter and put some of my Sensational Soothing Bath Tea to the test! It definitely lived up to its name, and my husband was most impressed with the lovely scent and soft skin that resulted from my "me time". I used the method most often recommended for the bath tea...steep the sachet in about 4 cups boiling water for 10 minutes, and then add it to the bath water. The sachet makes a wonderful body scrubber, exfoliating and washing more of the herbal blend onto fresh, clean skin! If you haven't experienced herbal Bath Tea yet, you are in for a treat! Here is a link to Sensational Soothing Bath Tea from Paradise Potpourri: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=11664372 and if you love Lavender, here is our Stress Relief Bath Tea! http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=12323952

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Working on New Things...



Whew! I decided to take advantage of the overcast day and clean out my workroom (aka storage shed) this morning. It also helped that my boys decided to put on their Superman costumes and have a Lois and Clark marathon...don'tcha love DVD boxed sets of TV shows? :) Anyway, I found several little gift containers that I had forgotten about, intending to use them for presents at one time or another. It seems such a waste to let them just sit in there not being used, so I began experimenting with gift sets for the store. I am thinking of grouping them in scent themes, such as Lavender, Rose, etc. in a re-useable container. Please feel free to leave a comment if you have any suggestions on what you would like to see!

Monday, July 7, 2008

Wow, I listed something brand new today!


Check out this upcycled vintage sachet, made from a vintage hand embroidered kitchen towel, and embellished with beautiful beads! Here is the link for a full description: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=13168006

Friday, July 4, 2008

I'm getting the hang of the photo thing!

I mostly cleaned house today, but I did so well that I rewarded myself with some long overdue photo-shoots of my potpourris. When I started my shop in February, I took all my photos in front of a dark green curtain that I had been using for photographing my ebay items. I got lots of compliments, and liked them really well, but I finally decided to try the all white background which is more Etsy-ish! :) As a result, I updated a couple of currently listed small ones, and re-listed Victorian Bride (http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=9919296) and Healing Lavender (http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=9874176). I had been using extremely antiquated photos of both, so now they are fresh and lovely, to match their scent!
Now if only Etsy could invent a scratch-and-sniff feature!!!!
Until then, check out my Sampler Pack...three scents of your choice in any color sachets for just $2.00 each!! http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=12839584 You can even choose bath tea!

Thursday, July 3, 2008

Stop and Smell the Honeysuckle!

I listed 2 fragrance oils today, Rainforest and Honeysuckle. I didn't get much else done except some organizing (which is always a good thing!) and of course, updating my blog. I'm still not sure exactly how I want it to look, so if you check often, it may keep changing color like Sleeping Beauty's dress ("Make it pink!) or even changing styles! :)

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

It was a scorcher today!!

Whew! If you have never been to Arizona in July, you haven't cooked! I'm talking HOT!! Of course we have it good here compared to places like Yuma and Gila Bend, or even Phoenix - which is usually a good 8-10 degrees hotter than here. The kids and I ventured out this morning to participate in our Bible teaching work, and lasted a couple of hours with help from a water and doughnut break at Bashas'!

After lunch we went to hunt for our friends the Looneys (names have been changed to protect the insane...err, innocent!). They have been waiting for their house to be done for almost a year, and finally got to move yesterday, yay! They admirably survived 3 previous moves in the last year, including having to live with us for 5 months...I don't know how they put up with us for that long, lol! Anyway they finally got their place, and it's sooooo nice! :) While they were finishing up at their old house, I took their boys and my boys to the bowling alley. We met up with another friend of ours who had her grandson with her so a good time was had by all (except perhaps the staff at the bowling alley who had to listen to their shrieks and fix the machine a few times - they did a wonderful job of pretending they didn't mind!).

Fortunately, July in Arizona also means "Monsoon Season"! So, on the way home we were pelted with high winds and buckets of rain. We didn't mind since the temperature cooled off dramatically and we came home to race inside and watch the plants as they doubtless were saying "Yeeeeeesssss!"

Needless to say, my Etsying went by the wayside today. But tomorrow I will be photographing some wonderful unique sachets which Megzy, who is the better seamstress, helped me out with. They are made from upcycled fabrics, with buttons and beads added for flair! I'm very excited and I hope they will get some good attention in my store. If you haven't voted in my poll yet, please let me know your Potpourri Preferences so I will have even more of an idea what people use and would like to see. Leave me a comment too!

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Welcome to my Etsy Potpourri Blog!

Hi! Thanks for visiting my little corner of cyberspace ;) I started this blog to tell everyone about my Etsy store, Paradise Potpourri. You can check it out by clicking here - http://paradisepotpourri.etsy.com I create scents to bring cheer and delight to any room in your home, your office, or even your car! I also have a plethora of other ideas, so I will post here regularly for the latest!
Please take a moment to vote in my poll, and if you have something you'd like to see in my shop, or a comment to share, feel free to drop me a line here!