ARTISANS' GIFT FAIR Dec 12th & 13th

One down! Next I'll at the Artisans' Gift Fair at the Tranzac, this weekend on the 12th and 13th.

SAT. DEC. 12, 2009

SUN. DEC. 13, 2009

12-6pm

TRANZAC

292 Brunswick Ave. 

Toronto, ON.

Every year during the holiday season, The Artisans' Gift Fair hosts a fine collection of one-of-a-kind gift products. Vendors gather at the Tranzac, located in the Annex at Bloor and Brunswick, displaying quality handcrafted gifts that range from funky contemporary to a sophisticated classic style.

Whether you're buying for a friend or loved one, or buying for yourself, you're guaranteed to find a treasure.

FREE ADMISSION!!

The season is upon us

Oh my gosh, I have been so busy preparing for an artisan gift show this weekend. I'll report back on how it goes and on some other happenings once I catch my breath!

For those of you in Toronto this weekend, it promises to be a good one

These days have been thick with chores, duties, work and creation. I huddle over my desk making little boxes and take short breaks to sip soy milkshake. Does anyone like how soy milk tastes? It took me about a week to get used to it, now it just tastes like milk. This leads me to believe that if I drank murky pondwater for a week it would end up tasting like milk.

There's another giveaway ending today

What, another giveaway? So soon? Yes indeed, by an accident of fate a fellow blogger is hosting a giveaway for one of my Alice in Wonderland music box pendants this week. If you've been curious about them here's your chance to check one out with no obligato. She also hosted a nice little interview with me. It's my first interview ever :-)

The giveaway ends tonight at 11PM EST I believe

You can enter here: interview and giveaway

I hope you're all well and feeling good :-)

How to Install a Music Box Mechanism quick tutorial

~swan lake~

Some people forget that I sell music box supplies as well as making musical gifts. I was explaining my weird music box hobby/habit to someone recently and she didn't run or slowly back away so I guess the frayed edges of my obsession are still tucked in neatly enough, even though not many people seem to share it. And as for supplies, I found out (the hard way) how tough it is to find a really good and affordable selection of tunes so I had little choice but to open a shop for people trying to pursue this hobby and art.

When it comes to creative work, there is so much that people can do with music boxes, but they are old fashioned and only on the radar of a very few people, so no one thinks to use them. To be fair, sometimes music box craft gets a treacly rep, but it doesn't have to be that way! With a little bit of creativity and attention to detail a hand created music box can have both the moxie and the charm .

The most basic question I get from people who visit my supply shop is "how do I install my movement?"

Well, if you aren't interested in making your own music box, the next bit is going to be BORING. Sorry!

Wild at Heart Mermaid Musical Locket

A new locket is just about ready to be added to myjewellery store. And I just love this one. It's a very old musical locket with a lot of wear. It's vintage 60's and I think the previous owner was a bit of a wild one. It just needs some finishing touches I think before making its way to someone new.

A giveaway winner is announced

We have a winner! Lucky number 6 was picked as an eligible entry using the True Random Number Generator. Ashley wins her choice of Daisy Chain pendants. Congratulations Ashley!

 

Don't worry - there's still hope for everyone else - no sad faces here :O) News about sales, giveaways and FIRST dibs on the newest items will always be listed on the music box blog.

Giveaway

There is one day left to enter a special giveaway - the gift is a Daisy Chain miniature music box pendant from my Garden Collection (the winner gets to choose his or her favourite one below)

The giveaway is being hosted by my friend over at Chez Chani. There are a few steps necessary to enter the contest, but it's pretty easy.

1:Take a look over at Clockwork Fantastica, and then

2: Leave a comment on Chez Chani's post about an item in the shop that caught your fancy.

If you're a reader here, you can also leave a 2nd comment letting me know what type of content you would like to see on my blog, and that will count as a separate entry for you in the draw.

The winner will be chosen by the magical random number generator and announced on Thursday. Good Luck to you!

40 Years of Sunny Days: Happy Birthday Sesame Street :-)

A headline in the Globe & Mail reminded me that tomorrow is Sesame Street's 40th birthday. 40 years, kids!

I think Grover was my favourite even though he was a bit neurotic. Seriously, does anyone remember The Monster At The End Of This Book? Poor little guy. I found an online version of that classic here --> Oh, Grover just when I'd given up ever finding it again.

My little sister was on Sesame Street in the 80's with a dozen other children in her kindergarten class. It was a french clip where all the little kids ran around one of the circa 1970's log sculptures that adorned our playground. She was wearing a pink dress and long braided pig tails; all of the kids were a little bit dressed up since being on tee vee was a _really big_ deal then. I think the clip taught us all the difference between "Aller!" (Go) and "Arrêt!" (Stop) by using freeze-frame camera-work, which was perhaps the only way they could make running, dancing 5 year olds in front of a camera stop moving.

Sunny Days. I have a vintage Sesame Street music box movement that plays the ORIGINAL Sunny Days not that new-fangled version. For anyone with a creative spirit, this is perfect to put inside your own handmade Sesame Street character or music box. If you're not a music box maker, you can still hear what it sounds like here -- Sesame Street Music Box Sounds ; I dare you not to smile when you hear it.