Happy Site Friday: ETSY favorites.

So for Happy Site Friday, I thought it was about time I put up a collection of some of my ETSY favorites. I am goo-goo-crazy about ETSY...there are so many amazing shops and so much talent that inspires me. Here is my Friday inspiration:

I am completely smitten by Taeeun Yoo's illustrations. Completely inspiring. I could fill an entire blog post with her illustrations and book titles.

Shop here and website here.

Bonne Nouvelle: My cousin just opened a brand new ETSY shop with the goods to equip you with staging the perfect party.

And her shop name?the train stop nearest their flat in Paris. Just darling.

Shop here.

Twig and Thistle has been impressing me with their fantastic DIY designs and stationery. And the packaging is just as cute!

Shop here and AMAZING blog here.

I have had these owls from Fruit Fly on my wish list forever it seems. This owl just makes me happy.

Shop here.

Under the stairs Studio makes adorable paper cards that you can cut out and put together into these amazing carousels and mini theaters. I heart paper creations...and these are amazing!

Shop here.

Vlas Store: I heart this notebook. She has dozens more in her shop with THE greatest designs. Very Shinzi Katoh. Love Love Love.

Shop here.

Happy Friday everyone!

the great things.

"There are no great things, only small things with great love. Happy are those."

Mother Teresa

Leaving you with good thoughts and sights this morning.

Happy Thursday!

xo

sarah jane

**Thanks for all your love and compliments on the new items in the shop. I have loved hearing from you all! Two more days for big 'thank you so much sale' going on!**

New spring items and a massive sale.

Well, This is a huge shop update, and I am super excited! The design above has been in my head for months now. I have always loved Family Trees, and have been wanting to have something in my children's room for a while now, but most designs are super boring and drab and don't have the LIFE that a family tree should have..nor would they be fitting for a child's room. My grandmother has a beautiful illustrated photo family tree in her home, and inspired me to make one perfect for children. No scary dead people here!

These are 3 generation charts: room for your children to see their parents, their grandparents and their great grandparents.

Pink and brown version.

Vintage summer version.

This is a tricky project for me, since I really can't do much personalization of my products...but I am going to offer personalized Pedigree charts for a limited time, and see how that goes. As well as two sizes...8x10 and 11x14. All this is a trial for the next month, and depending on how they do in the shop, I keep things simple and not have as many options.

I also have a huge amount of new stationery...with some products so many of you have suggested! I now have cards of my calendar set that turned out really nice. I have them in sets of 24...2 for each month.

In addition, new thank you cards, invitations, announcements and happy birthday cards.

This is just a taste...there is more in my shop!

But the best news of ALL is

The 2 for one sale I am having at the same time! Yahoo! I have to say thank you to all of you friends who come and visit and have supported my work here. I am just really so thankful for this journey I have been on, and have been able to share with all of you. Thank you so much!

HOW IT WORKS: any two products you buy from my shop, you need to *MENTION* the third product of EQUAL or lesser value (in the 'message to seller box at the time of purchase'), and I will send all three to you straight away!

Sale ends Friday April 10th.

All items will be in the shop by this evening!

Thanks again for all your wonderful comments, and emails and support. Honestly, I can't thank you enough!

Cheers,

sarah jane

SHOP HERE.

Happy Site Friday: A bit of SOULE.

Happy Friday everyone! Today's inspiration comes from a blog I am sure most of you are familiar with: Soule Mama.

I daily ask myself the question: is it possible to balance gentle, creative family living with my own creative work and still mother my children in a very active way without being distracted by my own personal demands?

I don't have the answer, and I don't think there is one. I think the answer can be found in glimpses of our own family living. When we choose to look back, we see where our time is being spent. Amanda Soule blogs about her daily creative living with her 4 children is southern coastal Maine and frankly...inspires me to believe that I can do it too.

Amanda is also a wonderful writer and photographer and has written a book that I keep on hand during the day when I need inspiration: The Creative Family. She has just written another book that will soon be out on the shelves: The Handmade Home. I can't wait to get my hands on that one.

Inspiration is vital for me: as an artist I am constantly gleaning fresh inspiration to make my home, my business and my life a more beautiful place...which is why I love the blog world: a place where we can inspire each other to live our best lives. I love Amanda's blog because she gives honest glimpses and writes about REAL life: like this post and this post.

Her photos inspire me:

Real life spaces.

Real beauty found in the details.

Real life with children.

Real life at home.

Real color.

Seeing children for what they see.

Cozy living spaces.

Real work.

Life with children is hard work. Life with children and with my own work is even more challenging. But I firmly believe that the two can be welded together: a lifestyle I am constantly striving to combine. And Soule Mama's blog has become a friend to me, encouraging me a long the way. We all need support!

I leave you today with a place I hope you find inspiring: A place where I remember that children are children; the world is a place to see, touch and experience; and that pursuing our personal craft is possible while striving for creative living. Thanks, Mama.

Groups and such.

Good morning friends! I wanted to fill you in on another place to come and visit:

Join my group here for great ideas on framing and decorating with the art from my shop.

And if you have photos to share, please do! The more the merrier.

And come be my FLICKR friend here and keep in touch with my photos.

Are you a FLICKR junkie? Me too. No dieting here folks. Just love.

Happy Day to you all!

Dreaming of summer play.

I get a lot of inspiration from children's clothing, and I have a few favorite places to check out. What gets me though, is WHY in the world do these dresses have to be $175 and $138???

(OK, OK. They are made by hand in Ethiopia, but really. Come on people!)

I think I will just be DRAWING these into my designs instead of modeling them on my little miss. Hopefully that will satisfy my cravings to doll her up in these adorable frocks!

Found here via a room somewhere