*Confections*, at Collins Gifts...

A lovely group of bears and 'keepers have recently left the nest--and they are all to be found in New Hampshire, at Collins Gifts!

And, you are all cordially invited to the web show which begins one hour after the artists signing...

The web show will go "live" at 11am EDT on Sunday, August 3rd--

***************************************************************************

*Aunt Tutty*

One of a Kind, 12"

CARE AND FEEDING:

Aunt Tutty is especially proud of her dress she's made to wear to Wendy's party!! It reminds her of coconut cream pie...and everyone knows that is Aunt Tutty's favorite lunch...breakfast...dinner, er, tea--snack! (In fact, that's all she really eats. You'll want to make two and freeze one...)

When Aunt Tutty's not eating pie, she likes to Jitterbug and take naps.

****************************************************************************

Cousin Johnny

One of a Kind, 14"

CARE & FEEDING:

Cousin Johnny is used to being quite spoiled by all of his auntie bears--he will expect--and sometimes, demand--a sweet treat made especially for him at about 10 o'clock each Tuesday.

NOTE: Cousin Johnny is most comfortable at bedtime with a feather pillow and night light--otherwise, he'll wait until the household is asleep and eat all of the Cheerios!!

***********************************************************************

Aunt Lemmy Pie

14", One of a Kind

CARE & FEEDING:

Aunt Lemmy Pie is known for exactly that!--her most excellent lemon pie...and, as you can see, she also enjoys dressing up. Lemmy is quite fond of her little paper shoes, & she will NOT take them off, under any circumstance. Strangely, Aunt Lemmy does not eat the pies she makes...she prefers green beans and cantaloupe.

NOTE: Very partial to Katharine Hepburn movies...

********************************************************************

And, finally, a party of pinkeepers!!

*Sunny the Sewing Bear*

*Oma's Pinkeeper*

*Pink Ele' Blossom*

*Blossom Duck--Ellie*

*Angel Bun'*

*Chickie's First Tea!*

Thank you all for your consideration--...now, you are sooooo disappointed aren't you??? I mean, a whole, entire, blog entry without one bit of looniness!! What's up with that?

Alright. I relent. And i'll share with you my very favorite dog haiku:

Dig under fence -- why?

Because it's there. Because it's

There. Because it's there.

Or is it this one....???

I sound the alarm!

Mailman Fiend -- come to kill all --

Look! Look! Look! Look! Look!

Or is it...okay. g'night gracie.

blessings,

meg

It was the best of times...

...it was the best of times.

We have just returned from our annual foray to Grand Lake Colorado--the 2008 expedition topped 'em all!! Were it not for my ripening tomatoes, my spot on the couch 'neath a fancy ol' lamp, my favorite jeans that i couldn't-possibly- wear-one-more-time without washing, were it not for ice cream and old epsiodes of "law & order"--were it not for those little "homey" things you don't miss before you're away from them--were it not for all that, i'd be yearnin' for a dirt nap due to geographical depression. Simply put, we had a blast. This was the view from the "back porch":

Our first evening, gathered around the table, I excitedly told 6 other people who really didn't care that our house on the lake reminded me of Stephen King's BEST story EVER--Bag of Bones. And sure enough....look what was right outside our little veranda/deck thing??!!



That's right, sister. An owl decoy!!!

Do I remember anything about the owl decoys in the book? Nope. Could i find a reference on wikipedia to explain the spine-tingling penny-in-yer-mouth-taste fear that rippled up my twacked spine? Not at all. Could i be mistaken? sure....i'll have to read up on it. But, i knew we were in for a good time! I mean, any house that reminds you of your favorite Stephen King is just a sure bet for entertainment!!

We stayed at ____________. Now, i could tell you where it was, but the thing is...we might be felons. We are not "fishermen"...not even "fisherwomyns", or "fisherpersons". No, no. We are fishkillers. My children tell everyone: We killed a FISH!!! (sigh) Our lake was "catch and release"--which meant any and all of us could fish, without a license, but we couldn't keep our...quarry? I dunno. Upon reflection, maybe there's a reason people have to have a license for all that. Instead of catch-and-release, it was...catch-and.....and....this was kind of how it went...

JOE: where's that thing??? MEGAN: what thing???JOE: in-the-box-in-the-box-in-the-box!!!! MEGAN: Where's the CAMERA!!! It's her first FISH!!! (like this is any sort of "rite of passage" for Wommacks???)JOE:...did my mug go in the lake?MEGAN: (muttering) ooooohhhh! hope-hope!!!
SUSAN: Put those dogs AWAY!!!
MAGGIE: AAA-eeeeee!!!! aaaa-EEEEEEE!!! (Maggie made this strange high keening sound...the whole time there was a fish out of the water....it was a "happy" sound...just very, very, weird...)
CHLOE: Get MY picture!!! MOM!! Here...here's my fish picture...(with enormous toothless smile...)
SUSAN: JOHN! WILL YOU COME HERE?????
DANIEL: wow. you caught (read: killed) another one. great. (he was the fish-cleaner...)JOHN: (sotto voice) I think we should STOP FISHING!!

But we couldn't. It was a compulsion...a slimy scaled addiction we could not "kick". We could not admit we were powerless in the face of such mad, crazy, fun...poles came apart, worms pooped, lines tangled, dogs snorted lake water and ate weird stuff...and we all screamed with glee at each slip-slapping trout we stealthily landed. Except me. I can't catch poop-for-applesauce in the trout dept. So, I rescued the fish...catch-and-release-and-a-little-fishy-CPR. I would canoe or pontoon (sort of...it's hard to describe what i did...)...float out to the fish we'd nearly killed, and gently run them through the water...I revived 3 in this compassionate, floating, manner. I am a trout-whisperer.




And what else did we do??? hmmmmmmmmmm....let me seeeee....Made pancakes:




One of us lost another tooth!!









Saw "nature stuff":


















And every now and then....when we absolutely had to...we finally.....slept. :)

We were chatting in the garden with our neighbors today...and i said, "Maggie...can you tell them what happened when we were camping?" (because i'm just sure she'll proudly brag about her 14" trout she caught....)

MAGGIE: CHLOE THREW UP IN THE CAR.

Until next time...remember:

"God doesn't close a door without throwing you out the window."

E.P., 2000

Blessings,

Meg

PS--owl decoys really are creepy...SK or no.

PPS--Guess what Maggie says before she plants zucchini seeds?

"Alllllriiight, ladies. Hold onto yer' hats!"

?

Primitive Rug Hooking...

...a fine old tradition, that's as "old as the hills"~~but new to me! My buddy, Sherry Kristoff, can tell you that I've been longing to hook a primitive style rug for years now...several attempts didn't pan out~~wrong supplies, a possible wool allergy (not the case, thank goodness!!)...a little bit o' operator error...(sigh)

A little over a year ago my friends on the PRHG chat board were discussing Magdalena Briner...and it was diagnosable/official. I had been bit by the bug! I made this dollie~~"Maggie"~~who'd holding a Magdalena design...i needle punched the dollie's rug...

("Maggie" lives with Rochelle Fugate these days...be sure to check out her dollies! Rochelle is one of my favoritest doll artisans...she makes "the list" with the likes of Scott Radke & Akira Blount~~)

But, i digress....(maybe i'm feeling a bit dolly-making-ish???? hmmmmmmmmmm....)

Anywho. I am hooked. and whenever i come across something new (to me), i devour anything and everything i can find on the subject...books, sites, and other artist's knowledge...

My first completed rug is here, on the Primitive Rug Hooker's Group blog...a gift, for my husband, for father's day...a daddy robin with 2 little eggs. It is nice to have something in our home that i have made, myself (a rarity...). As some of you know, these past few weeks~~heck, even months!~~have been stressful, sad...it's a season, i know, and will pass in time...and i must tell you. Pulling strips of wool up through a linen burlap backing is the best therapy i have found thus far! Easy on the hands, lovely on the eyes...and Maggie, who is 4, is enchanted with the wool "worms". (which does not bode well for my stash, I can tell you!) She was at my side for most of this rugs creation (you may visit it on eBay June 15th-21st 6pm MST):

This rug is included in a pattern book that my daughter Chloe and i have created together~~i can tell you, her folk designs are MUCH better than mine. They are primitive and whimsical in the purest sense of both words...nothing contrived, everything honest. She's quite the little artist!! We both have little poems in the book, along with 16 charts to hook or punch...this poem is companion to the above hooked rug:

*Ain't a 'Fraidy Cat!*

I ain't afraid o' Halloween,
not skeered o' haint or witch~~
I ain't afraid o' Hallow's Eve,
it's just a merry stitch!!

I ain't afraid o' Halloween~~
I'll wrastle boo or bat!I ain't afraid o' twelve o'clock,
I ain't a 'fraidy cat!

Megan Wommack ©2008

Until next time~~

blessings,

Meg

"Nothing gold can stay..."

Nothing Gold Can Stay

Nature's first green is gold,

Her hardest hue to hold.

Her early leaf's a flower;

But only so an hour.

Then leaf subsides to leaf.

So Eden sank to grief,

So dawn goes down to day.

Nothing gold can stay.

Robert Frost~~

Frances May Arnold

May 1st 1927 ~ June 4th 2008

Banned from most K-Marts in Weld County...wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, aunt...and friend. Such a wonderful list of credentials to carry away with you!

Grampa Francie will be so missed~~

...and her memory lives on in the sparkling eyes of her grandchildren~~

Frances was a firecracker. Absolutely. Her strength, character, and personality were exactly like the beautiful flashes of flower shaped sparks that light up summer skies in early July--I'm sure she's still that way. I am certain.

Now, the little gal in the green sweater (above left) is Maggie and she is 4. She is Francie's great-granddaughter. While Frances was passing, beginning her journey, Maggie was blocks away at a play date with her buddies...and one little fella she didn't quite "take to". She would sweetly tell the little boy,

"okay...that's enough....

OKAY...THAT'S ENOUGH!

OKAY!!! THAT'S. ENOUGH!!"

Francie lives on...in so many ways. :)

I could be a complete milk-toast, and still raise strong, beautiful, daughters. It’s genetically destined.

It rained here all day yesterday. It's still raining...it's grey and cold and dismal outside....but when Frances passed, it was in a room filled with light, with peace. A room filled with love as she was surrounded by her family...

It was airy, the light seemed a very pure, pale, blue...the back-drop for a rainbow's promise.

A few moments after, I found my husband and his uncle in a small coffee-kitchen in our hospice. The three of us just stood there, looking out a picture window at the grey and stormy sky....Uncle Gino noted that this was not the sky that Grandma Francie was seeing...her sky is blue and full of beautiful white clouds...no more storms of pain, no more grey. We stood looking at the sky....and then, there was this vibrant, powerful flash of lightening...the kind that's pure light...the sort of lightening that illuminates the entire world...

...at that moment, I knew all was well and as it should be. I turned to Joe and said:

"She just got there."

I have only known Francie for about 9 years--while I admired her strength, her humor, her spirit, I did not know her as well as I would have wished. My sorrow is, mostly, for her wonderful family. A family that is becoming my own, over the years, as we share in the joy of birth and celebration--and now, share the grief of death. The emotions in my "heart" today are a perfect mixture of grief and joy. Francie is cutting a rug on a carpet of clouds, while we all sit here--quite blue--on a cold and lonely earth. How well we know~~nothing gold can stay.

The one thing, a memory, I have gone over and over again these past few weeks, is when Francie and Duane came to see our new little house, years ago. I had planted "just a bit" of mint in the flower beds. Francie told me that I'd better dig it up, pot it, and re-plant it in the pots...otherwise it would spread everywhere. I was 20-something, so what did she know? A lot, as it turns out. That freakitin' mint is everywhere. And now, it's wonderful nuisance-of-a-memory....Francie was right, she always is...

With the single exception of the song, “yellow bird”, which Harry Belafonte did not record…but I know Harry did sing that song...somewhere, somehow—my abundant mint is proof.

You can probably tell what she thought of me:

goodbye, "Grampa Francie"~~

your are loved and missed, quite dearly.

Blessings,

Meg

The scariest fun I ever had...

...that I remember. I went through this phase in the mid to late 90s where I absolutely had to climb on buildings, high roofs, etc... and I'm sure I must of had fun if I kept doing it, I just don't particularly remember... but a few weeks back, we had the most scary fun ever, and it has been emblazoned upon my inner noggin, for all time....i went...4-wheeling...with my husband and kids!... that's "Pa", in his jeep, ahead of ours as we drove into "Carnage" (big red flag!!) in Left Hand Canyon near Boulder Colorado.

As some of you know, I did not have a driver's license until I was 25 years old. I only got one then because we were months away from Chloe, our first daughter. (I am only 4"11" and was soooo pregnant I looked like an alien pod when I went to the exam. Oh yeah, baby, I played the pregnant-girl card...at one point, Joe could see the test guy yelling at me and waving his arms as we drove by the DMV.) Anyway. I don't drive well, I don't really enjoy driving (not much creative license), and I fail to understand why you would make your journey more "interesting" by driving over big rocks to get to your destination. However, I'm quite certain that my husband doesn't understand my newest fascination--rug hooking, my latest thing I want to know everything about--perma-culture, or why I really must wear red shoes. But he's so swell, he does a passable job of feigning interest!! So...I thought that a family outing, a foray into all things jeep, would be a lovely gesture of returned, feigned, interest.

See this is what I mean. Do you see those 2 areas on either side of the jeep where you could just drive on through, slick as a whistle??? (sigh)

Now, I searched My Playlist for that song...is it "Sugar High"? From Empire Records...because on the way to Carnage, Pa gave Chloe and Maggie one whole dollar each to spend at the gas station!!! And lo and behold, they had bags of candy...2 for $1!!! (yeah...can't post that song on this family blog...not nearly as bad as the Italian Leather Sofa blog entry...but it was a close call.)

So that set the, uh, "physiological tone" for the day.

Maggie road in the jeep for a few...yards...and then it was "scary!" (no kidding!!!)

The key to understanding the experience is to note the scale of the picture. That little guy driving over that big rock is my husband. And that tiny woman in the passenger seat is me...the wee tots in the back, our precious children.

I really like Maggie's HUGE eyeball in this pic.! LOL (she's right behind her Dad...)

The girls and I got out and walked.

Chloe the Fearless was fine, of course--the kid has no sense of mortality...but I think us girls were all missing the little river spot where the boys had done "stuff" to their jeeps before we started into the canyon...

It was the sweetest little mountain nook...a tiny river, picnic table, pretty river rocks and this beautiful little tuft of moss... the girls got to sit on a rock in the river! That was pretty cool, of course.

Doesn't the moss look like a little faerie seat? It had these tiny little yellow star shapes...

...the girls and I walked up the canyon to the side of the line of jeeps going up with, and behind, our jeep...a few moments later, Joe got stuck on 2 really big rocks. It was absolutely dreadful and amazing, all at the same time. And I did not get a picture!...the moment I raised the camera and zeroed in was exactly when he crashed to the earth, un-scathed of course...

Those jeep fellas (and gals too!) are an interesting community...you end up in a sort of caravan, and if the ride behind you is stuck, you don't go forward until they're free, out of courtesy. They do the same for you. When Joe was on the 2 big rocks, we ended up with a whole group of people standing around watching, taking pictures and video. Now, you'd think that seeing my husband do that would discourage others from taking "that line"...but oh no. Pa did the exact same thing, on purpose, a few days later. Just to see. It ends up being this whole geometry thing, with figuring out the angles, etc. etc. Which I do find fascinating--it's the same with drafting a new bear pattern--I am just much more invested in the "math" of it if I am safely observing. Who knew I'd grow up to be such a sissy??? It's true, I am no longer "Megan the Fearless"--and no need to be, as I have Chloe. :)

And speaking of drafting patterns--another, flawless, segue! Look what I made!!!

This 7" mushroom is sewn from wool felt, with needle felted details...it's a little pinkeeper that will be home to a couple of owlies I'm working on. But I just might offer this as an ePattern, with a 5" and 3.5" version too...that is, if I can brave the 40mph winds to go borrow a scanner! I needed something to show the scale of it...because it seems larger to me than 7", but it really does measure to that. Now, I told you last post that Joe's helping run the biz now...and so, we arrived at his first helpful task:

Please don't mind the blackness on the wall behind his head...it's really not a big squashed spider--it's Maggie's art...she hasn't decided on a specific medium yet--it's between murals or tattoos, at present. (sigh)

What a guy, huh? And guess what? I've had a crush on him for 10 years. :)

New work in a few days...a new bear design--1930s style, a Mother's Day pinkeeper, and my FIRST Halloween offering of 2008!! I can't wait! Be sure to vote on our new poll...

Blessings,

Meg

"You are NOT flighty...

...you're just learning to fly."


That was only one of the incredibly sweet things said to me this past week...thank you all so much for your support, surprise goodies in the mail, and the many good thoughts and prayers that have been heading my way...





I guess this blog post could also be entitled: "Entirely toooo much information" (that's your hint, turn back now!) As most of you know, I have MS and have kind of "taken a turn" in the last few years--the last few months have been incredibly difficult, trying to figure out different medications and realizing that I am not responding quite as well as I'd hoped to different treatments... Things were looking up--just a bit--only to come down with a hideous cold that moved to my chest and turned into a sinus infection...and I get intensely grouchy when there's anything wrong with me, aside from my usual diseases.

Today, with this cold, I kind of look like this:

(If you steal this image, I shall wish warts and wrinkles upon you...general bad luck and crisis of every kind...unless you'd like to pick me up for licensing...then we'll just chat...)

But, I digress--I always do. Thank you, everyone...everything's shipped or shipping tomorrow--now I actually did get some shipping done, but thus far no one's actually received their shipments...I mean, surely someone has received the packages? Just not the folks that actually ordered stuff. So. That's what ya get when the shipping gal has a brain that looks like swiss cheese. Life is so unfair. I am actually quite partial to Havarti...!

You know, I watched Walk the Line the other night (for the second time) and was just incredibly heartened--I mean, who knew? You can pop pills, drink like a fish, not share chili fries with Elvis, smash a perfectly good guitar...all of that can happen to you (or you can plunge right into it!)...all of that life can storm around you and through you...and you can still end up "okay". You can ditch the pills, the booze, meet the love of your life (while married, of course...)--you can somehow make it through all of that and still be able to "make music"...no matter how big the storm is, when the wind finally dies down...you just notice it's blown away the dead leaves that were covering up the beauty of spring's first crocus. The storm took away nothing that was needed. (Unless, of course, the wind snatched yer breezies!)

And I guess I never knew that Johnny passed only 4 short months after June...(so if I pull a Heath Ledger--it was ALL prescribed! Joe, set your watch....). I watched that and just remembered so, so, much...all the grief, all the blessings--it really is a big cycle. And when the wheel comes "back around", it's just that much sweeter...that much finer.

The next few months will bring a lot of changes to our nest--and to the business. The Bears will have their very own digs--new etsy shoppe and new eBay id--as my husband and I begin to run that new business together...so far we've established that he is great at supervising and has a surprising amount of opinions regarding names, etc. (I hope he doesn't get beat up at work over this...) As far as the design resources and patterns--those will all be converted into pdf files and my paper patterns are being retired...so you'll all be able to re-sell them for exorbitant prices on eBay, simply because they are OOP (hmmmmmmmm....where's that snarky eBay id I had????).

I don't anticipate much difficulty during this business transition, as no one's buying poop-for-applesauce anyway (oh yeah, except all of you waiting on orders. SIGH!) Might I add that eBay taking away most of every one's feedback as of May 1st could be wonderful timing?! :) So please...go leave it now!! Anywho--we're finally to the point where we must actively make some changes to de-stress and manage things a bit better. And my ideas are slightly twacked, as you all probably know...there's that completely cheesy "Something Worth Leaving Behind" song--do you know it? Will you admit if you do?? :)

"Hey Monalisa, who was Leonardo?
Was he Andy Warhol?
Were you Marilyn Monroe
Hey Mozart, what kind of name is Amadeus
It's kinda like Elvis
You gotta die to be famous
I may not go down in history
I just want someone to remember me
I'll probably never hold a brush
that paints a masterpiece
Probably never find a pen
that writes a symphony
But if I will love then I will find
That I have touched another life
And that's something
Something worth leaving behind..."
Lee Ann Womack
(one "m")

Thank you all so much--you know I'll keep you posted on the new changes...the next issue of Create and Decorate will continue with Summer's Heart and Home~~and then! THEN...Autumn and Halloween! Yippeee!! :)

Blessings,

Meg

PS..."twacked", "snarky", "breezies", and "etsy" are not in spell-check...and I don't know if I will EVER learn how to spell "recieve". Even if it is "after 'c'"...

How I de-stress and live healthier...

I just threw away a teflon pan instead of washing it.

(And by the way...be very, very, careful if you search for this:

"free vintage photo+housewife"...in fact, just skip it altogether. Seriously. Trust me on this one. Who knew?!)

Also, humor and cheer are always healthful...and so....

Chloe's Favorite knock-knock joke this week:

Chloe: Knock-knock.

Me: Who's there?

Chloe: Interrupting cow.

Me: Interrupting cow who?

Chloe: wait-wait-wait...knock-knock

Me: Who's there? (sigh)

Chloe: Interrupting...............cow.

Me: Interrupting cow wh----

Chloe: MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

Maggie's favorite joke (this week):

Maggie: Why didn't the Christmas tree cross the road?

Me: Why????

Maggie: Because he doesn't have any legs.

What's your favorite knock-knock joke?

blessings,

Meg

Annie & the Nest...

"The robin is the one

That, speechless from her nest,

Submits that home and certainty

And sanctity are best...."

Emily Dickinson

*Annie & the Nest* are currently in my etsy shoppe~~do stop by and pay her a visit!

Blessings,

Meg

What's in a name???

NOTE: There's a semi-naughty word in the first track of my muzack. I mean, it's kind of naughty. The first half of it is in the Bible. And it belonged to Balaam.... But lots of things are in the Bible that you really shouldn't say/do to one another.... Anywho.





Well. Betty has tagged me! I'm supposed to chat about my biz. name. How, why, etc. Which is mildly interesting as I changed it about a year ago? Anyway. My first name was "Magdalenz Harper Dolls", which I really, really, loved...except...no one could remember how to spell it, knew what it meant, remembered it, and I make a LOT of other things besides dollies...with my needle punch designs "taking off", it seemed time to change it up a bit.





I love Magpies--and "Magpie/Megpie/Pie" was one of my many childhood nick-names. And I love nests. So there you go...Magpies "collect" many things...they are constantly stealing bits of stuff to line their nests--just look at this sweet poem/song!

"...For the magpie's nest

It is a cottage neat and clean

It stands 'longside the Shannon

Where the meadows they are green

But I never met a colleen

With such beauties blest

Like the little Irish fairy

In the magpie's nest

For I have wandered all through Kerry

I have wandered all through Clare

From Dublin down to Galway

From there to God knows where

But I never met a colleen

With such beauties blest

Like the little Irish fairyIn the magpie's nest..."

Can't really determine exactly where that passage is from...but I found it while looking up bits about magpies...and, sweet Jenny of Hearthside Cottage helped me with thinking of it (and I know all about her name...it's really cool, and I will tag her, I think...) As Jenny and I were "Rose" and "Chrissy" in Dancing at Lughnasa, it just seemed sweeter. (The whole irish thing). Anyway. Upon changing my name, I discovered that oh, say, 83 other people had the same name--which I somehow didn't discover until I'd changed. So. I could change again to, "The 84th Magpie", or something like that...I actually like my blog name best--"Magpie Feathers", and I suppose I could use that for everything...but then you reach the point in time when you really don't want to be more of a flighty, fickle, gal than you already are...so i guess it's here to stay? Eh, who knows.

I will tag Jenny to tell us all about her name. Then she'll have to blog!!

Now...for some news. As some of you have surmised, eBay stinks. There's a primitve artist, Holly Tree Primitives, who sums it up best. Beginning May 1st, artists are no longer allowed to use "Primitive" in their auction titles. The new fee structure really does target "the little gal", and any product that is digitally delivered is outlawed, starting May 1st. (I discovered that one after converting 14 of my designs to ePattern!!). So, no eBooks, ePatterns, selling templates....I personally think that they have made this change to gradually break from "self-hosted" auction pictures. That saves me soooo much money--I can't imagine how much eBay "loses" because of this. I have to do this really ridiculous listing thing to sell my ePatterns on eBay. It's just silly--and there are many digital artists who have suffered HUGE losses because they can no longer sell templates (which are delivered in digitial form). It's quite sad. I can't imagine starting out as a Folk Artist on eBay and not being allowed to use "primitive" in my title! The true irony is that several years ago, the primitive doll artists asked eBay for a primitive category!!! Anyway. I said all that to say--

Beginning May 1st a good portion of my business will be moved to etsy. It's just a no-brainer. I know that many of you don't shop on etsy, as we've tried before! :) But that's just the way it must be...etsy opperates with a great deal of integrity, supports "hand-made", and it is sooooo much less expensive!

The Primitive Rug Hookers group is already there, and the Best Loved Early Stytches in Tyme gals will be soon. This is a scarey time for eBay Folk and Prim artists, really ALL eBay artists--the combinations of eBay fees and "Big Brother" mentality, combined with our failing economy, add up to disaster. Sales are horrid and eBay's new rules are crippling our businesses...I think you will see more and more of your favorite folks on etsy.

As life would have it, I'm in the position of being able to work less and actually make things that I want to make...so, once again, I'm trying to turn all of this into a "blessing"--and hoping things will turn out for my friends who rely on their income as artists.

Sooooo...whew! I guess that's it! That was a mighty long post! I hope to post a little bit, helpful links, etc. about buying and selling on etsy in the next few days.

Blessings,

Meg

Hope is the thing with feathers

That perches in the soul,

And sings the tune--without the words,

And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard;

And sore must be the storm

That could abash the little bird

That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chillest land,

And on the strangest sea;

Yet, never, in extremity,

It asked a crumb of me.

~~Emily Dickinson~~