Friday Finds - Inspiration is Everywhere!

These wonderful little totems from Donald Corey are designed to create a visual reminder of our goals.

The cricket represents 'Luck', the spider 'Power' and the lightning bug, 'Creativity'."

These pieces have me thinking of all the ways we can tell stories with our own work.

So, instead of calling that blue necklace we've been working on 'blue necklace' maybe a name like .. 'clarity' would allow our buyer to see how wearing our work can bring the ideals of our intention into their own life when wearing it.


Could these clothes hangers by Anna Thomas be any more perfect?
The simplicity and brilliance just takes my breathe away!

How can our own work shout something so amazing, so simply?

Damn that is a great intention to work on.

And how brilliant is this Red Bull "airdrop" freebie marketing campaign on this college campus?


This project was developed as an interactive experience.

The objective was to break the passiveness of the experience of free product samples and involve the students in an interactive experience where they would become a part of the campaign itself.

How can we make our own customers part of our campaign? This one has really got me thinking!

Have a wonderful weekend everyone and remember that inspiration is everywhere!

Recycled Book Book-Rack DIY Upcycled Tutorial

By now I am sure you are thinking that I am obsessed with drilling into books, but I really do love my books and hate to put holes in them ....

(maybe I need a 12 step)

Here an old book easily makes a great little bookrack that you are going to love!

This also allows you to stand up some books on a shelf that may be a bit too narrow for them.

what you need:

a hard cover book that you have already read
2 hardware handles (not sure what these are called, I got them in the hardware store near the drawer pulls and hinges)
4 bolts
drill, drill bit that is larger than your handle hardware

1. measure your hardware and mark your drilling holes
2. drill slowly and firmly
3. drop in your handle hardware
4. bolt underneath and on top
5. add some books



And some amazing Etsy finds for you bibliophiles:


1. Leather Journal by Julie Boyles
2. Great Rules of Writing Wood Notepad by Quotes and Notes
3. Unblocked Tee by Citrus Tree
4. Keep Calm and Read On by KeepCalm Shop
5. Eco-friendly Chalkboard by HalfpintSalvage

Take 10 Tuesday - the lazy girl summer version where we get to 7 this week

1. Carmen drops a love bomb (we are totally doing this!)

2. More Than Lemonade Part I and Part II- Sherry Truitt gets real on advertising - excellent

3. Why Entrepreneurs Need Community by Glen Stansberry for Awake at the Wheel.

4. step away from the karma, choosing not to get involved at Danielle LaPorte (this is a little older, but I just saw it - if you are not reading Danielle, you probably will be).

I had jury duty a couple years ago after getting out of it a few times

(a very hard thing to do here in New Jersey)

and I got to be the jury foreman - because I was sitting in seat #1 and the judge asked me a couple questions and determined I was not a total idiot (just a couple questions, so it was easy for me to fool him). It was nothing life or death, very cut and dry and only lasted a couple days and I loved it - a very interesting experience.

5. The cool kids and why that's a flawed idea by Sister Diane at CraftyPod

6. Sheena Iengar podcast on the art of choosing at TED

7. The Law of Anti-Attraction by Sonia Simone.

choose photograph by anwaar on flickr

Why The World Wants Needs Our Passion - the why of our business ...

"don’t ask what the world needs. ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. because what the world needs is people who have come alive." - howard thurman

So, I truly, truly believe that it is the passion in people that draws us to them and draws us to the things they have created - our energy seeking out energy that makes us feel good - that makes us feel more alive -

the law of attraction thing that doesn't involve diamonds and maseratis.

As I get ready for my first wholesale shows I had gotten myself a bit stressed out about the sales part of all of this (and all the other parts, but this particular part at this particular moment).

I am not any kind of "sales" person in the sense that I can flatter, cajole or close the sale.

Ever notice how hard it is at a craft show to just say the words -"can I wrap this up for you?" ... ugh ... I used to be better at that when I sold things I didn't create.

I think the more personal the work we sell gets, the harder this gets for some of us.

As I am saying "can I wrap this up for you?" - I am hearing "do you like me?" - damn this stuff is hard)

Anyhoo, I realized just this morning that I have actually been looking at this entire situation backwards. The question isn't what am I losing by not having a salesperson and how do I bring that to the table - well, that question does need to be addressed and I will get to that one, but the bigger question is what advantage do I have as the maker that the salesperson in the booth next to me does not have?

Well ... I have the why of this whole thing because I am the why. I have the passion!

Now, how I translate this passion into actual words that will reach the other person - because I can't just jump around and act all ... well ... passionate ...

(this would probably get rather exhausting and might even earn me a quick trip to one of those famous Las Vegas institutions for people who are a little too passionate - like those prophetizing the end of the world on street corners or selling other things on street corners)

so I am thinking the key to all of this goes back to my why and connecting that why to those store owners who have their own whys for their own businesses.

For example I think that most people (when given the choice and the story - the why - the passion - of the maker providing that passion is about more than making money) want to buy handmade.

(and I should note I am not saying there is anything wrong with the maker wanting to make money too, of course, if we are selling our makings we want to make money, but a higher calling does create a higher energy)

And I think that most people want to buy sustainable, eco friendly goods provided that 1. they do not have to go to any incredibly heroic lengths to do so, 2. that you do not make them feel bad about not doing so - no green-guilt please, I just hate that and I'm sure others do, too and 3. that the items are truly cool and beautiful and not just "green". It isn't enough to be made from something already out there or something organic or something "green". It has to stand on its own two feet. My work does. So this is the kind of stuff I will be talking about with these store owners - why their customers will want to buy my stuff from them!

Oh, and I will be saying "can I write up an order for you?" or even better, if I am feeling very brave (please, please let me be feeling very brave) "did you want the show special or to choose your own selection?"

As a side note, well 2 side notes actually: I went to the chiropractor and he did an ultrasound treatment on my forearm/elbow area for tendonitis and it totally cured my posion ivy which just happened to be in exactly the same place on my arm for almost a month (in less than 5 minutes) so you may be reading about this in medical journals oneday.

(if there is anyone out there who reads medical journals and Olive Bites blog)

I should add that a friend had also given me Louise Hays book, "You Can Heal Your Life" . The book's suggested cause for poison ivy is “feeling defenseless and open to attack.” Her suggestion for a new thought pattern to cure this is: “I am powerful, safe, and secure. All is well.”

So, maybe the combination of ultrasound and ultrasound thinking has finally cured this thing.

Also has anyone seen an eggplant like this one - we have 3 of these growing in the garden - what the hell is going on with our eggplant?? (I added the rootbeer for a size comparison)

They look like some kind of genetic engineering experiment gone wrong- I wonder what Louise Hays would say about this?



mad, passionate love print by theloveshop and learn it print by iamserious both are available in their etsy shops