a new look for nature’s my friend

I am so thrilled to finally be sharing this very exciting news with all of you lovelies! It has been almost 2 months that I have been toying with the idea of re-vamping both my etsy shop and my blog, and it has finally come to fruition after a lot of planning, drawing, collecting, photographing and editing (and many other -ings in between like imagining, sourcing, smiling, stressing, worrying, etc). Perhaps you already noticed the change with the new blog header above! The online shop has had the most work done to it though, with new, natural and creative photos for almost all of my 100+ products. My hope is to generate more traffic, be included in more treasuries and have a boost in sales by shedding a fun and creative light on all of my animal art. I finally feel like my inspiration and my personality are not just demonstrated in my artwork, but are also now included in the photograph’s scene and ambiance. My shop and my creations just look so much more alive now; I couldn’t be more proud of all of this hard work. Along with the shop make-over, I have been quaking in my boots to post some of the new products I’ve created. The most awesome of which are my new round stickers / letter seals. These 20 beauties feature a plethora of animal portraits created in a variety of media including etching, silkscreen, painting, drawing and more. Animals included are: foxes, wolves, owls, deer and passerine birds. Stickers are available as a large group set of 20 or as animal groups in sets of 4. Take a peek:I have also rounded out my large rectangular sticker packs, and my glossy postcard packs, up to collections of 10 which include a couple of new designs like the proud hawk portrait and a graceful flying tree swallow. My rectangular stickers are now available individually like postcards, so get your favorite postcard and write to a far away friend or scoop up your favourite sticker and slap some nature wherever it’s needed! In celebration of the shop make-over and the new treats in there, I wanted to offer you sweethearts 15% OFF all orders made May 31st – June 3rd. Just pick out the nature inspired creations you’d love to own and during the checkout type in the coupon “NEWLOOK2012″ to have your goodies discounted! And for those of you who are always looking for a good bargain, I recently lowered prices on some items and moved them to a new SALE section in my shop. Thank you SO MUCH for taking a look at all of the adorable new product shots in the shop and please do spread the word if you like what you see! Also wanted to say a big thank you in advance for any favorite hearts or potential sales you may be responsible for. Much love to you all and feel free to share your thoughts and reactions to all of the exciting new products and visual changes, I’d love to hear them!

sending and opening special snail mail

As always, I have some lovely snail mail treats to share with you this week: 5 outgoing packages and 6 incoming envelopes. I must say, now that it’s finally spring, I’ve really been enjoying the short bike rides in the sunshine to the postbox and back to drop off and pick up letters… my neighbours should be jealous when they see me riding back with the loveliest postal loot!

sent with love to: Nick Oostyen and Olivia Delorme (@o_delorme)

sent with love to: Justice Bicycle (@justicebicycle)

sent with love to: Jane Murray

sent with love to: Jenny Cutnam

sent with love to: Jeannine Saylor (@saylor_made)

with love from: Jillian Griffin (@jillgriffinart)

with love from: Charlotte Vallance (@charlsvallance)

with love from: Beverly Ealdama (@beverly_e)

with love from: Julia Webb

with love from: Pagrum Boom aka Miss Lemon

with love from: Sarah Churchill (@scjammycustard)

a happy walk in the woods

Went for a nice long walk in the woods this morning with the sunshine. I meandered down near the creek and smiled at all of the little green buds poking up everywhere. The quiet babbling chatter of the moving water and several melodic birds calling to their feathered friends were the perfect soundtrack. It was great to start the day getting lost in both nature and my thoughts.  Coming to the end of the trail, I couldn’t believe what I saw: one of the “Half Full” tags I had hung back in January when I did a little art installation out in the forest using TheSecondMagpie’s mini positivity pieces. Nearly three months later the little guy is still there; although he is slightly rippled with a tear in his upper right corner, twirled string and the loss of part of his U, his bright and cheerful message still speaks loud and clear. Funny that even though I’m the one who hung that tag out there, its presence almost 100 days later surprised me and made me grin. What a lovely start to the day.