Vampy Vampire Woman

http://www.etsy.com/listing/82599157/vampire-woman-towel

Sexy vampire woman, perfect for your halloween decorating. Soft, cotton towel.

Halloween Towels set of 2 black and orange by mustlovehomedecor

Halloween Towels set of 2 black and orange by mustlovehomedecor

SALE - Limited Time Only

Hello Everyone!
I am in a generous mood today so decided to add more things to my SALE section in my mustlovehomedecor etsy shop.

Come take a peek. This will be a limited time offer on some of the products. Happy Shopping!
http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5987544&section_id=6331473

Online Selling Venues

I am spreading my love around. Well my products anyway. I am not only on Etsy but also 1000 markets, artfire, and silkfair. I am finding this very time consuming and leaving little time for actually making items. I need to be able to find a balance between computering (is that a word),
sewing, working my day job and taking care of a household oh yeah and sleep. Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated. By the way, a cleaning person is out unless I can find a volunteer that works for home decor rather than money :)

Here are my new links
Visit my etsy.com shops for your home decor needs and fun items for yourself and gift ideas.

http://craftsfromtheheart.etsy.com
http://mustlovehomedecor.etsy.com

my silkfair shop

http://craftsfromtheheart.silkfair.com

and my artfire shop

http://craftsfromtheheart.artfire.com

and my 1000markets shop

http://lindaparedesigns.1000markets.com

and of course my website

http://lindapare.com

New Dish towels added

I have been working hard to get these towels ready for the autumn and winter season. They make wonderful hostess gifts. You can always use a brand new dish towel to brighten up the kitchen.
They are also great for lining baskets and apple barrels.
check them out in my etsy shop or artfire shop.

My blog is being ignored.

I have been very rude to my blog, I must admit. Now that face book and twitter have grown so large, I have been using them to save time. Today I have decided it is time to catch up on my first means of communication online.

I have purchased an embroidery machine. The salesperson could sell ice to eskimos. I bought a used Husqvarna Designer SE for about $2000, I guess they retail for $5000. Well the learning curve has been pretty huge for me but each day I make progress. I know I need to go for lessons to learn about digitizing and more complex features, but for now I am enjoying downloading designs from the net and making cute items from them.

You can see some in my etsy shops
http://www.craftsfromtheart.etsy.com
http://www.mustlovehomedecor.etsy.com

What I did not anticipate was the amount of time it takes for one design to be created. Designs with lots of stitches can easily take over an hour. That would be fine if I could walk away and get other stuff done in the meantime, but you really have to stay close in case the bobbin runs out, it's time to change colors, needle breakage, etc.

I love the look of the finished products and I hope it all pays off in the end but for know it is all about learning, learning, learning :)

Linda

Father's Day

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=26596400


Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there. Especially for those of you that are the mom and dad. You have a difficult job and aren't always thanked for all you do.

boys need tote bags too

Boys need to tote things also so I made a few that are boy-friendly

PIRATES
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=6300972
BLACK GLOBE
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=15476838
RACE CARS
http://en.dawanda.com/product/902038-Racing-Care-tote-bag-good-for-school

Bags and purses for Christmas

Tote bags are great items for gift giving. Teachers, babysitters, gym members often carry around lots of "stuff" and could always use a new bag.
Check out this showcase today for great bags.
also more at
craftsfromtheheart

Roses are Red

As part of the etsybloggers we were asked to share our favorite colors and how we use them in our work.
My favorite color is red. The shade of red depends on; how it is being used. For clothing, I favor the more bluish reds but for home decor in my own home I prefer the orange reds. I find the color warm and soothing.
By visiting my ship at craftsfromtheheart.etsy.com you will find lots of red items.
When I walk into a fabric shop, I am drawn to red fabric like a moth to light. With my love of red you may think I am a bit showy and outrageous but I am actually quiet and introspective. It must be a wild side trying to show itself. :)

underwhelmed by sales

Online selling, much like brick and mortar selling, has come to a screaming halt. I guess it is the lack of gift giving events in the summer. Because of this I propose August 1 to be give one person a gift day (preferably one from etsy.com). We craftspeople cannot spend our summers only to prepare for the Christmas season. I do not want to handle Christmas fabric in July. Give us a break.

There are fewer birthdays, graduations, weddings etc. in the heat of the summer. We need one gift giving holiday to get us through until Christmas.

I am looking for names for this new special day. Please comment with a good name for this new international holiday. :)

P.S.
Whichever Presidential Candidate supports this plan, Obama or McCain, gets my vote.

Http://craftsfromtheheart.etsy.com
http://mustlovehomedecor.com

Animal Print with Red Fringe Skirt for Girls

I just finished this great one of a kind skirt for a little girl. I think it is just precious. It has an animal print with a flirty little red fringe.
I love sewing items for girls because I have two grown boys and never had that chance to buy the pretty fabric and notions that girls adore.
I hope you take a look in my shop. If you would like me to make something for your little princess just let me know.

Window treatments

I have just added some great new valances to my etsy shop. I would love to make some in your color palette. Just visit my shop and click contact under my username and we can discuss details.
Linda

The Race for the Presidency

The race for the presidency.
Current mood: contemplative

How closely do you watch these races? Do you really know the messages the candidates want us to understand? Does it really matter who the President of the United States is? These are items I have been pondering lately.
The United States does not seem to be the all-powerful supreme nation it used to be. Other countries are much more prosperous and our light years ahead of the United States when it comes to technology and health care for the elderly. Does the United States still influence the ways others live?
I don't see the big rush for Levis and Nikes we once had from tourists. I am not sure if it is because we are becoming homogeneous or because it is not that important anymore to emulate Americans.
I think 9/11 contributed to much of this. The United States is now seen as vulnerable as other countries. We are no longer the teflon country. We are more likely to kill ourselves with guns on the streets than worrying about violence elsewhere. How did we get to this point? I blame part of it on egos of politicians and how the media contributes to this ego. It is more important how a politician looks and speaks than if they are qualified for the most important position in our land.
There are so many brilliant men and women in our country but they want nothing to do with politics. They don't want the past to be scrutinized. Who cares what one did in high school? Does it really contribute to what one can do for the country when he or she is middle-aged?
The media contributes by repeatedly showing what are considered faux pas like Hillary laughing a bit too hard or one of the men wearing the wrong type of tie. Unfortunately with the advent of the internet these issues are played over and over again on sites such as you tube.
I feel the only way we can gain respect for the position of the President of the United States is too take seriously qualification, including experience, character, and leadership. Let's leave the four hundred dollar haircuts to the celebrities. Let us encourage the best and brightest to run not the one with fewest gray hairs or nicest suit.

Music to my eyes clothespin and gift card set

I thought it would be cute to honor those music lovers in our lives. Do you remember that special vocal coach that helped you or your child's first piano teacher? Would it not have been great to give them a special set like this? They can use the clips to hold their sheet music together or to mark a special song they are working on.
Show your child you appreciate the hours they put into practicing and every little squeak their instrument may make.
Surprise them with this on Valentine's day or just a whenever gift.

Landline vs. Cell Phones

So evidently today's youth do not realize that using a landline phone is not the same as a cell phone. Case in point, my average landline phone bill runs around $45. Since my son starting dating a girl who lives in another state my phone bill has been over $200. He says, "Don't we have free nights and weekends?" Um no! That is on cell phones where we already pay over $100 per month for service.

Now who should be responsible for this bill? My almost 20 year old for just not thinking or knowing such things or me for not educating him. Mind you, these calls are all placed after midnight and were over 3 hours long. If I had known this was happening I would have put an end to it immediately. I guess for this one time I will have to cover it but he better have learned from his mistakes.

Each generation is growing up with such different technology it is hard to keep up and make sure both the youth and the "elders" are educated on how each works and the finances involved.
I am now in the process of switching to a service that provides unlimited long distance calling. I hope this helps the pocketbook or as the younger generation would say the ATM card.

Brothers and Sisters

How romantic was that wedding last night? When they were exchanging their vows, they just seemed so genuine the way they had tears in their eyes. And I love the way they left the wedding early. I just really enjoyed last night's episode and hope the quality continues throughout the season.

For your shopping needs
http://craftsfromtheheart.etsy.com

Etsy on the Today Show

Etsy.com is a website filled to the brim with wonderful handmade creations by artists and craftspeople. It is a global site so you can buy items from around the world and have them delivered to your doorstep. What can be better?

The Today Show had a piece about buying from etsy.com on their show today and we couldn't be prouder! Etsy is an established site and is here for the long term. If you are a crafter you can buy your supplies here and there is even a vintage section for you collectors. So come shop today from the comfort of your own home.

While at Etsy.com visit my shop http://craftsfromtheheart.etsy.com and support a craftsperson rather than a large retailer that will not provide the quality and service that we can.
Linda
Crafts from the Heart.

Fall is here

Time to start pulling out the pants and long sleeve shirts. Ain't fall grand. Football games, soccer games, basketball, fall has it all. Let us not forget Halloween which is becoming bigger than Christmas as far as decorating the home goes. People love to deck out their houses and will spend lots doing it.

The little ghosts and goblins will appear at our doors, with the occasional teenager - just dressed as themselves looking for candy.

I have some capes that I am selling in my etsy shop that have glow in the dark trim to help keep them safe on those dark halloween nights and some cute totes for them to carry.

Come take a peek

http://craftsfromtheheart.etsy.com

Back to school

My son starts school tomorrow. He is a sophomore in high school so this is not a new phenomenon but I will miss our summer together. I like the lack of schedules, the lack of watches on wrists and just knowing he is safe.

Tomorrow things change. He is out of the home and into school. Parents used to await this eagerly. Let the teachers watch them for a while. Today things are different. We worry about shooting in schools, drugs, teachers having sex with students. School is no longer a safe haven for our children. I am sure perception is much worse than reality but does that really make one feel better?

Tomorrow I will see him off and I hope his teachers, admin., coaches and other students treat him with respect and care as I expect him to treat them. If you fell your child is a danger to himself or others please get him/her help. Do not send them to school and rely on professional there to help them. They are overburdened as it is.

Tomorrow I will have a smile on my face and wish my son a great day at school but inside I will worry. That’s okay that’s what moms do.