Today’s fabulous craft room is located in beautiful Butte, Montana!  Jean from The Backyard Bungalow decorated her creative workspace with vintage finds from yard sales and thrift stores.  She has a great sense of style and created a perfect spot for herself in their 1920 Craftsman home.

I love the look of stacked linens…LOVE!  Jean added a little screen door to these shelves for a great vintage feel.   

I know you would like to hang out with Jean in this room and talk about her latest finds.  Here’s the next best thing… 

Hop on over to The Backyard Bungalow and see all the details of this beautiful workspace.  I’m sure you’ll feel right at home! 

Do you enjoy treasure hunting for your home decor?  Any cool finds lately?

~Kim 

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Don’t let the Starbucks full of laptops, iPads, and smartphones fool you. Things really haven’t changed all that much. At least not the important things.

Family, friends, community, faith, and the all-important Venti Iced Coffee all remain pretty much the same. As does the 100 degree/100 percent humidity Florida summer I’ve lovingly endured for the past 30-ish years.

Well, maybe things have changed a little. I’ll give you that. But when it comes to doing business online, I think it helps to be reminded that the important things aren’t all that different than they were ten, twenty, or fifty years ago.

Success Still Requires Customers

No matter what corner of the online world you call home, the success of your business will require customers. (if you’ve found a business that doesn’t, please do tell)

Customers are people and have always been driven by the same things.

• Needs (new shoes)
• Wants (PRETTY new shoes)
• Social Triggers (THOSE new shoes)
• Emotions (MORE new shoes)
• Deals (BOGO new shoes!!!)
• Scarcity (what if they stop making new shoes… gasp!)

I’m no psychology of buying expert, but you get the idea. The things that make people buy haven’t changed, like ever.

The Tools Have Changed – And They Can Mess You Up

What has changed is the where and how of commerce. Rather than talking in-person with customers, we talk online. Rather than giving people the opportunity to pick-up, hold, and touch our products, we give them pictures and written descriptions.

The “where” is now the Internet and the “how” is by use of new tools.

• Social Media
• eMail
• Etsy
• Websites
• Mobile
• etc.

When you see all these new tools and everything happening in a new place, it’s easy to make the mistake of thinking that everything is new.

That can be a big huge mistake. Everything is not new. The most important things in business have not changed at all and remembering that is a key to successful selling online.

Imagine Your Shop Circa 1950

Try this quick trick to start your week focused on the right things. Do a little mental yoga and stretch your imagination a bit. Imagine your business as a real brick-and-mortar shop on Main Street in 1950.

How do you get customers in the door?

What do you have to offer for sale?

Is your store empty or full (of products)?

Is it bright and beautiful or drab and dark?

What is your sales pitch? What do you say to the customers who come in?

How will you maintain a relationship with your customer after they leave?

I do this pretty often myself and it never fails to help me figure out what to do next. What can cause confusion, on the other hand, are those new tools.

Too many emails, too much time reading forums or blogs, too much looking at stats… it’s all just too much and it takes me away from what I ought to be doing and sometimes leaves my mind so jumbled I can’t figure out what to do even after I walk away.

So be careful of the new tools and the new venue. Don’t let them fool you into thinking everything has changed, and don’t let them steal your valuable working time.

The Good News

The awesome news is that you have some wonderful advantages over that 1950′s version of yourself so when you focus on the right things, your results might be better than you would have ever dreamed of selling on Main Street.

If you answer those questions again and again until you get the entire experience just right, you aren’t limited by the number of people who happen to be on Main Street at the moment. In fact, you’re not limited by much at all. The world is open to you thanks to the Internet.

So I’m hoping for a great week and a great summer of growth, only partially fueled by Venti Iced Coffees. I hope the same happens for you!

~ Kim

Image source: Wikimedia Commons

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Make Your Own Craft Supplies!

If there’s one thing I’ve learned about crafty people it’s that they can make just about anything!  You can save money by making supplies yourself, get exactly the color you want, or just be able to whip up some baker’s twine without having to run to the store.

Making your own craft supplies rocks!  Try some of these cool DIY tutorials…

You know you want some of this beautiful tape…well, make it!  Cathe Holden {one of my favorite bloggers} shares how she created this fabulous decorative tape.  It all starts with pretty wrapping paper and double-side mounting adhesive.  Easy Peasy!

Cathe also designed these cool printable handmade labels that you can download right here on Everything Etsy.  Stick one on everything you create!!!!

Recycle and old t-shirt and learn how to cut continuous t-shirt yarn at Releve Design.

Laura Beth from A Step in the Journey made her own baker’s twine…get out of town…it’s so cool!

Make Geo Clay Beads and design your own jewelry.  That’s what I call HANDMADE!

What a pretty and useful sewing tool caddy!  You can find all the details at Flamingo Toes…you’ll love this super creative blog.

This is a fun project…DIY pencils from Scissors.Paper.Wok – I could use a bunch of these on my desk.

Everyone loves pom poms!  Learn how to make Mini Pom Poms from twine with Meet Me At Mikes and The Baker’s Twine.  You can’t have too many.

Storybook Paper Flower Tutorial are perfect for wreaths, bouquets and so much more.  You’ll find easy instructions at 100 Layer Cake.  I would love to add a few of these to a hanging lantern we have…the possibilities are endless.

Create chalkboard paint in any color {A Beautiful Mess} in no time at all!  Ya gotta love that.

One more…DIY Mod Podge for your crafty projects {Do It Yourself Divas}.

I hope you found a few new ideas and maybe you can save yourself a little time and trouble the next time you need some craft supplies.

Do you make any of your own craft supplies???  I’d love to hear about them in the comments!

~Kim

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Congratulations to Sylvia Lewis who won the first of three Kindle Fires we’re giving away!

Thank you to Red River Paper for sponsoring such a great giveaway! Red River is also giving away four additional prize packages of exceptional Red River Paper products.

Those four additional winners are:

1. Jewel (comment #219)
2. Susan (comment #343)
3. Heather (comment #392)
4. Barbara (primary email entry)

Congratulations to all the winners! We’ll be contacting you by email soon!

5 Prizes Down – 10 to Go!

We’re giving away two more Kindle Fires and eight more Red River Paper prizes. It’s easy as pie to enter.

Just enter your information in the box below to get your first entry. You’ll be signed-up to the Everything Etsy Newsletter and the Red River Paper Newsletter.

If you already entered last month, you don’t have to enter your email again, you’re already eligible to win for the next two months.

Please do not leave a comment for entering the email list. Comments are for extra entries only.

Kindle Fire Giveaway -- Primary Entry

Enter your name and email below to subscribe to the EverythingEtsy email newsletter and the Red River Paper email newsletter. Required to win.

(note: If you entered to win a Kindle Fire last month, please don't enter again here... you may enter additional entries in the comments of this post)

• Name
  FirstLast
• Email

Additional Chances to Win This Month!

You can also share this post via your blog or social media using the links below and leave a comment here. Make sure you leave the link to your blog post, facebook, twitter, etc. (whichever you choose).

In order to get as many chances as possible, leave a comment for each thing you do. If you write a blog post linking to the giveaway, tweet about it, and share it on Facebook, you need to leave three comments. If you tell about all three in one comment, you only get one extra chance. The comment number is how we draw winners.

Up to FOUR additional entries per person. Additional entries count for this month only.

I seriously take my Kindle Fire with me EVERYWHERE! So, don’t miss out on your chance to win! Good luck!

~Kim

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Wow! That was so much fun! We need to do that again.

Those are the things we were saying at the end of the night last night. We had just finished enjoying an entirely new experience. We watched a movie on a huge screen in our own backyard.

It was so much fun! We lounged in Adirondack chairs (made by Tim), snacked on Kettle Corn (made by me) and enjoyed peanut M&M’s (clearly sent from above). All the while we enjoyed a wonderful springtime seabreeze and had an incredible view of the starry night sky.

Oh, and the movie was great too! We watched Seven Days in Utopia on NetFlix. It’s a great movie and had nothing at all to offend the family nature of the night.

All Made Possible by the 3M™ Mobile Projector

This tiny projector, about the size of a walkie-talkie, has a (removable) rechargeable battery and plugs into your iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch.

If we didn’t insist on a louder external speaker (plugged in through a headphone jack on the projector), we could have run the whole thing completely “unplugged” because the projector has its own built-in speaker.

The Screen and Picture

We hung a huge white sheet up under the market umbrella that lives permanently on our back deck. A few strategically placed metal clips and bungee cords and the “screen” was really pretty great. We didn’t notice the few wrinkles at all and the little bit of motion from blowing in the wind actually added to the ambiance!

We set the projector, the iPad and the speaker on a barstool about 9″ from the screen. The result was a HUGE picture almost 6′ wide. Larger than an 80″ TV.

The picture clarity was surprisingly great, especially after it got really dark out. I guess you can’t call it HD on a sheet blowing in the wind, but even the text in the credits was clear and legible.

You know what was really cool? The beam of light shining from the projector. Little dust particles and bugs would get lit-up flying through it and it made the whole thing so “vintage” movie-like. Reminded me of the projectors we had in elementary school.

Other Uses and Ideas

You can buy an optional cord for this projector that allows you to project anything from your computer screen. That pretty much opens up a whole world of options. But we didn’t have that cord.

Without it, the projector only works for your Apple device. iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch. And it doesn’t simply reflect what’s on your iPad screen. It displays the following (that I know of):

• Photo slide shows from your photo gallery
• Videos from YouTube
• Videos from the NetFlix app including TV shows and movies
• Movies in iTunes

But believe me, that’s enough to make it one great little gadget. Here are a few ideas we’ve had:

• Use it at craft shows or trade shows to display images of your work in a slideshow
• Set it up in your creative space with a slideshow of inspiring photos
• Bring it to the beach and have a movie night on the beach! Hang a sheet on your car for a screen.
• Take it camping and watch videos in your tent!

The possibilities are endless.

The speaker isn’t very loud and you can’t project a picture very far (or large) in bright surroundings. The more space between the projector and the screen surface (which can be anything white-ish) the darker it has to be in the room/outside.

The sound issue is easily solved through the headphone jack connected to external speakers or headphones. (get a headphone y-splitter and two people can use headphones together). The brightness/dark-room issue is pretty just much the way it is with projectors.

Overall, for a package so small and so simple, I’m pretty impressed.

And boy did we have fun. We’ll be doing that again very soon!

Win a $150 Target Gift Card

You can win a $150 Target Gift Card. Leave a comment below telling me how you do family movie nights.

Rules:

No duplicate comments.

You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:

a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post.
b) Tweet about this promotion and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post.
c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post.
d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.

This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.

The Official Rules are available here.

This sweepstakes runs from 5/21/12 – 6/29/12.

Be sure to visit the 3M Mobile Projector brand page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win!

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Do you use Instagram?  I’m pretty new to it, but I already know I love it!  You can share your life, work, whatever through photos with great little filters that make everything look better…like my Mother’s Day cup of coffee.

Here’s a bit of my life in photos…

The harbor…view from lunch at The Crab Shack.

My Vespa…love it!

One of my many chalkboards!

Waiting to go to the beach…

That’s a little glimpse into the world around me {minus the sink full of dishes…ha}.  Come join me on Instagram!  I’d love to see your photos! You can look me up… everythingetsy {of course}.

Do you have any special plans this weekend?  We have a Hibiscus Festival going on in town this weekend…love it!

Have an awesome weekend!

~Kim

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I’ve gathered some creative tutorials, free printables and just plain fabulous ideas to help create awesome handmade gifts for the men in your life.  They can be so hard to shop for and this list will give you enough ideas to cover every birthday, Father’s Day and Christmas for the next few years!

You’ll find a few things for the guys that like to grill, their office and even the garage.  Don’t miss the beautiful leather journal that’s so easy to make and looks like a million bucks! 

1. Composition Notebook iPad Cover – Lil Blue Boo
2. Car Kit – Not Martha
3. Mustache Mug – Tortoise and the Hare 
4. Baseball Lovin’ Bookends – Mod Podge Rocks
5. DIY Cement Coasters – A Daily Something
6. Etched Beer Glasses – Craftzine
7. Bay Rum Aftershave – The Art of Madness
8. Dad Rocks {Printable} – Make It Perfect
9. Necktie Eyeglass Case – A Law Student’s Journal
10. Tie Key Chain – Greenbean’s Crafterole
11. Grillin’ Towel Tutorial – Craft Whatever
12. Father’s Day Party {Printables} – Love Party Printables
13. Photo Cuff Links – Small Fine Print
14. Glass Paperweights – In My Own Style
15. Luggage Tags {Printables} – The Pretty Blog
16. Little Handmade Notebooks – See Kate Sew
17. DIY Leather Cuff – The Red Kitchen
18. Folded-Shirt Card – Martha Stewart
19. Bottle Cap Coasters – Theatre Projects
20. Army Guy Bowl – Make
21. Bike Handlebar Bag – Giver’s Log
22. Father’s Day Tie Print {Printable} – In Between Laundry
23. Handmade Leather Wallet – See Kate Sew 
24. Placemat Laptop Cover – Curbly
25. Computer Lap Desk – Stephanie @ Home
26. Skinny Ties – Design Mom
27. Monogrammed Cuff Links – Purl Bee
28. Firewood Tote – Whip Up
29. Dad’s Subway Art {Printables} – Today’s Fabulous Finds 
30. Tie Pillows – BHG
31. Chalkboard Mug – Wit & Whistle
32. Father’s Day Tie Tag/Banner {Printables} – Amanda’s Parties
33. Bike Lunch Bag – Evil Mad Scientists
34. Fisherman’s Pants – Mediatinker
35. Baseball Team Pillow – Better Homes and Gardens
36. Men’s Socks – The Purl Bee
37. Kindle Cover – Chickpea Sewing
38. Lego Cufflinks – HGTV
39. Geek Coasters – Man Podger David on Mod Podge Rocks  
40. Remote Caddy – Sew4Home
41. Stamped Key Chains – Girl In Air
42. Paperback Book Wallet – Refabulous 
43. Father Subway Art {Printable} – Pink Ink Doodle
44. Car Travel Kit – Martha Stewart
45. License Plate Key Holder – Lemontree Creations on Kojodesigns 
46. Desktop Zen Garden – Curbly
47. Pajama Pants – Sew4Home
48. Camping Stool – Design Sponge
49. Dad’s Token Tin {Printables} – Eighteen25
50. Spice Rub Tins – Creative Maven on Kojodesigns
51. Monogrammed Boxer Shorts – BHG
52. Knit Chunky Sweater – Yarn Forward
53. Dad Frame – Martha Stewart
54. Tread Belt – Instructables
55. Golf Towel – Junie Moon
56. Monogrammed Necktie – Martha Stewart
57. BBQ Hanging Towels – The Silly Pear
58. Monogram Mugs – Design Mom
59. Relaxing Hammock – Etsy
60. Rustic Pencil Holder – Strawberry Chic
61. Chef’s Apron – Martha Stewart
62. Laptop Sleeve – Sew Mama Sew
63. Cork Desk Organizer – Makekind 
64. DIY Suspenders – A Beautiful Mess
65. Golf Club Headcovers – Positively Splendid
66. Bike Brake Disc Clock – Instructables
67. Tool Roll-Up – Craft Stylish
68. Laptop Bed Riser – Man Made
69. Retro Labels for Sauce & More {Printable} – Martha Stewart
70. Pocket Watch Photo Album – The Mother Huddle
71. Wooden Faced Watch – Instructables
72. Laptop Sleeve for Guys – A Beautiful Mess
73. Hand Painted Mouse Pad – Design Sponge
74. Kiss Flip Book – Color Me Katie
75. Father & Son Aprons – TipNut
76. Men’s Grill Apron – I Heart Naptime
77. iPhone App Magnets – Infarrantly Creative
78. Golf Accessory Bag – Joann’s
79. Office Supply Organizer – BHG
80. You Da Man Candy Wrapper {Printable} – Jeanne Winters
81. Photo Clock – Rosy Red Buttons
82. Library Card Bookplate {Printable} – Blah, Blah, Blang
83. Father’s Day Key Chain – Aly & Ash
84. iPad Sleeve With Shoulder Strap – Sew4Home
85. Rustic Leather Sketchbook – Duo Fiberworks
86. Modern Cement Planters – Apartment Therapy
87. Floppy Disks Notebook – Instructables
88. Knit Coffee Cozy – The Sitting Tree
89. Father’s Day Coupon Book {Printable} – Fiskars
90. Skittles Vodka Tutorial – Mix That Drink
91. Book Safe – All Free Crafts
92. Vinyl Record Bowl – Casa Sugar
93. Guinness BBQ Sauce – The Black Peppercorn
94. Mini Toolbox – Positively Splendid
95. Tool Storage Tub – Sew4Home
96. Leather Laptop Sleeve – ThreadBanger
97. Father’s Day Quote {Printables} – Simple as That
98. Custom Checkerboard – Aly & Ash
99. Photo Coffee Sleeve – Spincushion
100. Men’s Fabric Wallet – Cloth, Paper Crafts, and More
101. Leather Journal – mufn inc.

Handmade gifts rule…Target drools!   I’m sure you can create something that will make them feel extra special.

If you love creative links, please subscribe to Everything Etsy!  New subscribers make my day!

Thanks so much for all your tweets, stumbles, Facebook likes and pins on my Handmade Gift Tutorials, Summer Sewing Tutorials and Free Printables posts…you are the coolest crafty friends!  I hope you find lots of fabulous ideas here for gifts that will make you seem even craftier than you are…ha!

Handmade gifts make people smile extra big, don’t you think?  Do you have a favorite or two…or three?

~Kim

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Calling all fabric lovers! We’ve got an awesome giveaway from an equally awesome fabric shop! Fat Quarter Shop is the perfect online one-stop shop for all your fabric needs! If you like to buy fabric by the yard, the jelly roll or even a whole quilt kit, you can find beautiful designer fabric and have it delivered right to your door…ya gotta love that!!

Who doesn’t love Moda Fabric? Fat Quarter Shop has an super-sized collection of fabric from Moda…I love that! This bundle of fabric is perfect for your Summer projects!

A few good reasons to order from Fat Quarter Shop:

• Same Day Shipping
• Great Customer Service
• All the Newest Collections
• Exclusive Kits and Products
• FREE Shipping on U.S. orders over $200

I love to work with layer cakes and this one stole my heart the moment I saw it. I’m sure I can come up with a few fun ideas for this collection of sweet fabric.

You’ll find beautiful fabric designed by Lily Ashbury available exclusively at Fat Quarter Shop. Great colors!

We all know I could go on and on about the fabric selection available at Fat Quarter Shop, but you really need to check it out for yourself. The fabric is sent out “sew fast” that you will be creating something beautiful in no time flat.

I know many of you are starting on beautiful Summer sewing projects right now. If you need a few more ideas, just check out our list of 101 Sewing Tutorials for Summer…it will keep you busy!

Fat Quarter Shop is giving away 3 $100 gift certificates!! You know you want to win this!

Here’s how to enter:

First Entry (required):

Enter your name and email address in the box just below. You’ll be subscribed to the EverythingEtsy.com email newsletter and the Fat Quarter Shop email newsletter.

Additional Entries:

You can gain additional chances to win by helping us spread the word about the giveaway. Links are provided below for Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook, and Google+. You can gain one entry per social share, up to a maximum of four extra entries per contestant.

Misc. Rules, etc.:

You must leave a comment below for each additional entry and your comment must include the name (username) you use for the social media platform associated with that entry. So if you enter for tweeting something, include your twitter @username so we can verify your entry.

No additional entries are eligible to win without completing the required email entry above.

You can unscubscribe from the email newsletters at any time, but only active subscribers are eligible to win the giveaway.

Good Luck!

~Kim

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We have featured so many beautiful craft spaces on Everything Etsy, but there is always a new one that just make me want to move in.  This fabulous craft room that belongs to Raising Up Rubies is outstanding in every single way possible.  No details are left undone!

It’s super organized and pretty!  You can do any kind of craft in this large space…and invite your friends to join you.

Jamie and her husband created something amazing!  Here’s a little taste of what a dream craft room can look like…

Do you want to move next to Jamie now and bake her cookies so you can play in her craft room?

Vintage pillowcases in a yellow bird cage…just beautiful!

Wow, wow, and wow!  I’m so jealous of the typewriter because I’ve been wanting one for awhile…in that color.  The embroidery hoops with vintage fabric are perfect!  Markers & such are displayed beautifully and ready to use.

I love, love, love all the ruffles here and just wait until you see how Jamie finished the top of her sewing table.  You’ll need to visit Raising Up Rubies to see this cool idea!

There are so many details that you NEED to see!  Trust me on this!  Visit Raising Up Rubies right now.  It will put you in a crafty good mood for sure!

What’s your favorite part?

~Kim

Looking for more craft space inspiration?  Click here for tons of organization ideas for your crafts supplies and just plain pretty craft studios you’ll love!

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Get Organized With Clean Mama Printables!

I’m a total list making person but sometimes I need a little guidance on organizing my out-of-control list of everything all in one spot.  Do you have a giant list of your own?  Maybe it’s not on paper, but I’m sure you never run out of thing that need to get done ASAP!

Clean Mama Printables can help you organize your thoughts and keep you on track.  Staying organized can help you get so much more done without feeling super overwhelmed.  I’m always striving to improve this area of my life since I sell online, homeschool and blog, blog, blog.

Becky has created a printable for every area of your life!!!  Here are a few you might find helpful:

• The Family Information Kit
• Fitness and Healthy Living Kit
• Teacher’s Planning Kit
• Editable Schedules
• Prayer Request Journal Printables
• The Cleaning Kit

There are so many more and you can even chose to buy a single page from a kit.  Having the right printable might be just what you need to start getting things done.

Check out this Blogger’s Kit!  Keep track of you blog posts, ideas, and social media schedule…I love it!  Becky sent me this to try for myself and I know this will really help so many of you with your blogs.  There are 5 different printables included in this kit.

Some of you might need this Work At Home Kit.  Start keeping track of your profits and set goals for the future of your business with these 5 printables designed just for you!

Clean Mama Printables will give all Everything Etsy readers a 20% discount {code – 20EETSY} for the next week.  So go on over there and take a look around!

***We’re also giving away 2 Blogger Kits and 2 Work At Home Kits!

Here’s how to enter…

• Visit Clean Mama Printables and leave me a comment including your favorite item…or two. {1 entry}
• Spread the word of this fun giveaway by Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest or blog post. {1 entry each}
• Follow Clean Mama Printables on Twitter or Facebook to keep up with specials. {1 entry each}
• If you subscribe to Everything Etsy, follow me on Twitter, or Like us on Facebook…you rock! {1 entry each}

**This giveaway has ended…winners will be announced soon right here.

~Kim

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