Shop of the Week: Tamdoll (SILVER Mountain Originals)

Tammy Gross, of Tamdoll.etsy.com, also known as SILVER Mountain Originals, creates “an eclectic mix of unique fabric jewelry, the occasional art doll (and a couple of original sewing patterns for those), purses, totes and wallets – many of those 'upcycled' from repurposed fabrics.” She also has a few woven ribbons for sale that are quite unique.

“Everything I make comes from a creative burst of energy and is one-of-a-kind. If I’m inspired enough to make a handful of items that are similar, no two will ever really be the same. Sometimes I wish I could be more consistent, but that hasn’t happened yet and I’ve been creating art for 20 years. I love to try new things and experiment – not everything comes out as planned and it’s back to the drawing board until I get it right, which can sometimes mean weeks until I get things just the way I want them to be.

Why ‘Tamdoll’? In the 90’s, when I learned to sew, I started making fantasy art dolls - tamdoll.home.comcast.net – and did that for quite a while selling them in local boutiques. Beading dragon wings led me to experiment with beading and jewelry making, but my passion was with the fabric and soon enough, I figured out how to blend the two into fabric jewelry!”

What inspires you to create? “So many things inspire me to create - a color, a scrap of fabric, a funny story even - there isn’t anything that doesn’t inspire me, my brain never rests, and I can’t predict what I’ll come up with next. Seriously, sometimes it’s almost a disadvantage. I have scribbled ideas EVERYWHERE. My purse is filled with ideas written on scraps of paper along with the notepad that I always carry. My desk has piles of half-filled notebooks. Even when my mind is winding down, right before I fall asleep... I’ll see a color combination or shape in my mind and remember it for the next day. The problem begins when I start all these projects. I start so many, get inspired again and begin another before the first is finished. The excitement of something new keeps me going and going. And keeps my workroom a mess. This explains also, why my shop is updated with new, completed, items so sporadically!”

What are your Twitter tricks of the trade? "I joined Twitter to connect with other crafters – and for a while I tried to stick with just keeping things all ‘business’. But I just couldn’t. Connecting with the people that are behind the avatars is so much more rewarding than just announcing when I have a new item listed, or a new blog post – I certainly don’t want to follow someone impersonal like that! I love to chime in on interesting Twitter topics and tweet when I find something unique or useful that other creative people may enjoy. (Ok, when I’m up at 3am you may find a silly tweet or two.) It’s pretty satisfying to hear ‘Where do you find this stuff?’ – then you get known as a resource for creativity. Oh, and Twitter would be useless for me without TweetDeck. With following so many, I’m able to categorize my interests and see updates clearly.”

She shares many of her works-in-progress on her blog tamdoll.blogspot.com and at flickr.com/photos/tamdoll and invites everyone to stop by and say hello. Follow her at Twitter @tamdoll!

Special for the Week: Free domestic shipping on non-ribbon items. You will receive a PayPal refund for items not already specially marked as part of the sale. There are some items sprinkled about the shop that have SALE in the title and are specially priced through the springtime.

Etsy: Your place to buy & sell all things handmade tamdoll.etsy.com

All photos copyright to Tamdoll/Tammy Gross and are used with permission

Shop of the Week: Bellflower Textiles

I love bright cheerful colors. Always have and always will. So when I opened up Megan Zalkan’s shop, Bellflower Textiles, my eyes popped open and I felt happy! So much color and cuteness everywhere!!

Megan makes bright and cheerful fabric products for you, your home, and your children. She combines quilting techniques and a love of vibrant color to create modern and quirky children’s tees, crayon and pencil rolls, reusable coffee sleeves, tooth fairy pillows, and hair accessories. She works out of her home in Seattle, Washington, where she also tends to her two year-old daughter. Selling on Etsy since August 2008 has garnered her close to 300 sales.

“Each of my products is lovingly hand created by me, in a smoke free environment, and packaged with great care. Unless otherwise listed, everything in my shop is pre-made and will ship immediately. Oh, and I LOVE custom orders. See something you like but want in a different color or size? Please convo me – I’d love to talk with you! [Editor’s note: Convos or conversations are the way you send private messages on Etsy.com]

I’m inspired by everything around me, but most especially by my two year-old daughter and her friends, and by the natural world. I try to include a botanical element in each item I create, whether that’s a flower, a butterfly, or even just a lovely piece of fabric the exact shade of a leaf I just saw. And of course, I love love LOVE fabric! I have a huge collection of fabric built up over years of quilting, and there’s nothing I love more than to dig through a pile of gorgeous cottons and mix and match patterns to see what pops. Lately I’m loving linen and ribbon too… my collection just grows and grows!”

About her Twitter habits: “I’m a Twitter addict! I try to spend time every morning and evening on Twitter, and often find myself back at other points in the day, too. I’ve recently discovered TweetDeck, which is making a huge difference for me in keeping up with more of my followers’ tweets, and I love the ability to create and follow specific groups of people whose comments I don’t want to miss! I try to just talk and connect about 90% of the time with an occasional link to my shop or a new product.”

Bellflower Textiles ships internationally.

Read her blog at Growing Notes and follow her on Twitter @megzseattle.

Special for the Week: Free Shipping!! Mention “Twitter” in your Notes to Seller and she will send an updated invoice with free shipping or refund your shipping price if you’ve already paid. 


Etsy: Your place to buy & sell all things handmade BellflowerTextiles.etsy.com

All photos copyright to Megan Zalkan/Bellflower Textiles

Handy Twitter Tools: TweetDeck

On Twitter, I started out with a few followers and following a few people. It was manageable. But it eventually got to the point where I am now following over 1000 people and close to 1000 are following me. I couldn’t keep up with all the tweets!

I heard about TweetDeck when I started twittering and thought, “Oh, I don’t need that. I’ll never have that many people to keep track of.” But I do now, and TweetDeck has made it possible.

TweetDeck is a tool that allows you to break Twitter down into bite-sized chunks. It has columns you can see at all times… your @ replies and your Direct Messages are two examples of columns you can have open, all at the same time as watching the tweets refresh in real time. So I don’t miss replies or Direct Messages anymore.

I also have two more columns open. You can create “groups” columns as well. One of my groups is “People I Like” and I added people whose tweets I do not want to miss to this group. This breaks down the whole stream into a smaller stream where I can keep up with my friends more easily. Just the tweets from this group of people I have selected show up in this column. This allows me to reply more often to people I have built relationships with. It’s also useful for building new relationships as I add more people to this group.

My last column is comprised of all the members of the Etsy Twitter Team. So now I don’t miss out on what my team is doing, and I can help promote them better.

So if your Twitter is starting to feel out of control with keeping up with certain people or groups of people, try TweetDeck. It is easy to use, customizable, and fun!