It Can't Rain All the Time...

My current corner of California has been relentlessly washed with rain over the last week, with little end in sight...actually I've read there will be an even more soggy storm a' coming.


While I watch the drops fall and my muddy, country driveway become less, and less passable I searched out some rain inspired creations on Etsy...take a look at this gallery that celebrates the drama and beauty of the Spring Shower...It Can't Rain All The Time.

Waiting in the Rain-Original Acrylic and Metallic ink on stretched canvas

18 x 18 inches (45.72 x 45.72 cm)

About 37

Etsy will be featuring collections on the home page from their newly designed gallery forum "Treasury East" all day Tuesday, April 27th. When the announcement reached TeamT International the wonderfully creative Amanda from Dawn Correspondence and Doilies & Daises excitedly said "Yesss I'm going to make about 37 T-Easts this weekend!!"...I just couldn't let that go so I challenged Amanda and all of TeamT International to see who could curate "about 37" galleries by Midnight, Monday. These collections must have a theme or color or something, no willy-nilly thrown together lists of randomness and they must include at least 6 teammates.

 
While many of the team members have curated some gorgeous and inspiring galleries, the contest for the “about 37” is clearly between Amanda and me.

Updated May 16th, 2010-Many of the “about 37” galleries have sold out and been deleted. If you are interested in viewing my current Treasury East galleries click here; for Amanda’s current galleries click here.

My Galleries-
1 Logically Circular
2 Blue Jean Baby
3 White Hot
4 Let's Go!
5 Haaaaaavvvvve ya met....
6 Falling in Love with a Black Bunny in a Vineyard
7 Counting Cats
8 Poppy Fields Forever
9 Peace and Quiet
10 Take a hike...
11 Refreshingly Delicate
12 Don't Wake Me...
13 Birds and Roses
14 Fruit Salad
15 Beautiful Blooms
16 "A" is for...
17 I spy....
18 Thinking Inside the Box
19 Patina
20 For Moms that Rock!
21 I LOVE my iPhone
22 Flutterbies
23 What cha gonna make?"
24 Pretty in Pink
25 Pucker Up
26 On a Mission
27 Your Special Day
28 I WANNA ROCK
29 Ooo, La, La
30 Pomegranate Mojito
31 So Many Green Thumbs
32 Al would be Proud
33 Twitchy Little Noses
34 After the rain the show begins
35 Tasty Treats
36 Starry Night
37 With a Cherry on Top

Amanda’s Galleries-
1 In Nature
2 Land and Sea
3 Game ON!
4 At the Cotton Candy Stand
5 Love at First Sight
6 Would You Like Cream and Sugar with That?
7 Knock Knock!
8 At the Train Station
9 Lazy Day
10 Cornflower
11 I Do
12 S is for....
13 Little Pinkie Running through the Field with Llamas Standing By
14 Take Note
15 I Can Read You Like a Newspaper
16 Somewhere Over the Rainbow...
17 Lovely Bones
18 Entertaining in Style
19 Handle with Care
20 Whiskers, Bandit, and a Game of Hockey
21 Golden Glamour
22 Under the Sea
23 Bite Me
24 Let’s Fly Away
25 Walk on the Wild Side
26 Queen Bee
27 Toadstool Home
28 Butterfly Kisses
29 Peaches n Cream
30 Chasing Midnight
31 Camp TeamT
32 A Moment in Time
33 Lemonade Stand
34 Pin a Rose on Your Nose
35 ROY G BIV

More creative galleries from the team-
Natural blue by AnnyMay
Promises by CatherineReece 
treasures by CatherineReece
Spring Greens by EdensWake
Dreamy by FiveForty
Pepper Jelly on Toast by FiveForty
the teamt blues by FiveForty 
Abstract Frame of Mind! by GlassEtc.
Emerald meets Pink! by GlassEtc.
How about yellow and fuchsia? by GlassEtc.
I'm so into Color! by GlassEtc.
It could be blue and yellow!^_^ by Handamade
Let's Make it Mint Aqua Green by Handamade
Into the blue by Ixela
Will you please be mine? by Ixela
Mother Earth by JennyNDesign
Bright and Beautiful by JulieGarland
Metallic Tones by JulieGarland
Minty Blue by JulieGarland 
A walk in the garden with Mom by nancywallisdesigns
Her Royal Highness by PipingHotPapers
blossoms and buds by SmallEarthVintage
Green Everywhere! by Trendyknitting
My favourite Etsians :) by Trendyknitting
Sunny Sunday... by Trendyknitting

Hippity Hoppity

Team T International is hosting an Easter Egg Hunt full of fun spring finds from various handmade and vintage shops found on Etsy. Hop on over to see all the collections.

For me, crucial to a successful Easter Egg Hunt are just a few key details~

Make sure the event can happen Before the Rain.

When out in search of the hidden treats and treasures, don't forget to look In the Tall Grass.
And, maybe most important of all, be thoughtful in the goodies that  are to be found.

 What's an Easter Egg Hunt without the traditional, brightly dyed, hand dipped eggs. One of my family's favorite tricks for creating beautifully swirled and speckled eggs is to add a couple of bits of butter to the coloring cups.

When you are about half way done coloring all the eggs, warm the cups of dye in the microwave just until it's slightly warm to the touch, enough to melt the butter. Then drop small bits of butter on the surface, allow the butter to melt without stirring. Now continue dipping the eggs into the colors, as the eggs go into the dye the butter swirls around and grabs onto the surface of the egg creating a resist against the dye. Unfortunately, after a few different eggs get dropped through the butter it breaks down on the surface and starts to lose its effectiveness, but by that time you should be finishing up.

Pre-Holidays Sale

This weekend, November 13th-15th, shop with TEAMT on Etsy and save 10 to 50% on fabulous holiday gifts.
I will be offering 10% off all handmade scarves available in schemata. In addition I will have 10% off all my note cards, and all framed or unframed prints (including ACEO) and photos available at SarahJohnAfana.etsy.com.

Looking for additional gift items for the holidays, simply search Etsy.com for TEAMT under all items and start saving. Savings do not include shipping and will be refunded via PayPal after purchase. See individual shops for details.

10% Off Everything
ixela-Cowls, Shrugs, Wraps and Crochet Jewelry
CatherineReece-Pottery
JennyNDesign-Handbags
eightfold-Handbags and Accessories
mandag-Scarves, Cards and Home Decor
fiveforty-Jewelry and Rag Rugs
nancywallisdesigns-Jewelry
vintageaimee-Glass Works
PipingHotPapers-Paper Goods, Magnets and Other Goodies
GlassEtc-Plant Stakes and Other Creations
Carvelcountrysoaps-Soaps, Lotions, Lip Balms…

15% Off Everything
JenSanCandles-Candles, Soaps and all things that smell good
organicodysseys-OOAK Organic Art from Organic Botanicals
almostartifacts-Traditional Judaic Art with an Ancient Look
polkadotsandals-Unique Jewelry, Quilts, Vintage and Supplies
StudioARTBEAD-Handmade Beads
BlueNostalgia-Dainty. Feminine. Nostalgic.Jewelry

20% Off Everything
SmallEarthVintage-Mid-Century Vintage Clothing & Shoes

50% Off Everything
juicygraphics-Fresh Designs for Your Fine Crafts & Scrapbook Pages

10% off all ornaments and original art
thenightjar-Original Art and Ornaments

20% off shawls
trendyknitting-Hand Knit Creations

$10 sale thru Monday
VintageConfections-mmm…goodies

Come Shopping With Me!

This weekend only there is a BIG event happening over on Etsy. I’m offering 10% off all framed and unframed prints and photographs, and 10% off all note cards at sarahjohnafana.etsy.com-also find 10% off entire stock of my handmade scarves at schemata. Just enter code "Weekend Deals" in the Message to Seller section of checkout and I will send you a 10% refund off your purchase price (shipping not included) via PayPal.

...and if you’re looking to GET AN EARLY START ON YOUR HOLIDAY SHOPPING, check out all the WEEKEND DEALS offered by my fellow TEAMT members (Etsy group Team Treasury). Simply use Etsy’s search engine using ‘All Items’ for TEAMT and start saving. Each offering 10-25% off specialty items ranging from art, bath and body, knits, jewelry, pottery, clothing, bags, vintage, supplies, and more... See individual shop announcements for special offers.

More About Me and My World

I joined Etsy Team Treasury this last summer and they invited me to be the featured member for the month of September. I enjoyed getting to share some fun stuff from my home and the team has been a great supportive group of my artwork. Take a look at the interview then explore some of the other members shops, there is one representing almost every category on Etsy.