Two Little Ways to Make a Big Difference

Did you know that it takes 1,800 gallons of water to grow the cotton to make one pair of jeans? And then, in the manufacturing process, something like an additional 11 gallons are used. This interesting interactive page goes into detail about the whole process (it's by Levi Strauss, who are making strides to green up the blue jeans manufacturing process). By going to Levis.com and entering WaterLess in the search engine you can find jeans that have been manufactured using less water.

OR, you could go to a thrift store and buy a used pair of jeans. You are placing no burden on the planet, probably spending about $80 less than you would on a good pair of Levis (and you could just find a great pair of Levis, or Sevens, or whatever), and getting jeans that could just be perfectly worn in.

How's this for irony? That plastic bottle that holds your bottled water used 1.85 gallons of water in its manufacturing process. The solution here is simple: great reusable water bottles are everywhere and tap water is just as good as bottled in many cases.

These cute personalized water bottles are $24 on etsy

Sponsor Love and Thanks!

I'd like to thank my two new sponsors. Make sure you check out their wonderful blogs

Kendra Kantor is an art journalist who does amazing work. My favorite posts are the Color Inspirations, where she takes gorgeous photos and pulls the predominate colors out of them; great for artists, quilters, knitters, home decor, and the list goes on. When I saw her page initially, I told her that we have similar aesthetic tastes, so if you like this blog, you're going to find a new one to like in Like A Bird.

Kamika Krafts is one of the coolest fashion blogs I've run into in a long time (come on, look at her button - she's cool!). She is starting her own journal project (but it's a bit different than Sandra's!) and has many other art journal projects from the past, gives some great styling advice(love), features cool music (love), photography (which is great and fun), and tutorials (yes, tutorials!). She's also got a great Flickr photostream and fun Tweets, but to read those, you have to check out her cool page!

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Thanks, Jenna for including my Linus the Cat card in your newest etsy treasury, For Ohio, By Ohio, From Ohio! I've talked about Jenna's cool jewelry on here before - we actually own a guitar string bracelet that rotates between my daughter and teenage guitar playing son (it is really so beautiful!). You aren't going to have to sell a kidney to afford her pieces, so please, help out a friend of mine and check out her etsy store!

And that reminds me! I have some new cards in the store including a really cool snowman and snowy garden angel - Christmas is around the bend - think about it!

Here's to Good Etsy Days!

So, with this being the first day of September and it being back to posting as usual, I probably should be writing about something wonderfully deep and spiritual for my readers who have patiently waited through my August Break (which was wonderful, by the way). But I'm just having the best etsy day, I had to share my happiness!

Yesterday I wrote about my new note cards. I woke up this morning to see that I had sold two. Just overnight, just like that! I certainly wasn't expecting such a quick response!

Then I listed two of my pretty crocheted pillows that it seems I've been trying to get posted forever. The Pink Granny Crocheted Pillow and the Sunburst Granny Square Crocheted Pillow have been listed with more to come.

Last, but certainly not least (and so freakin' cool) is that Lulu Loves Gifts has listed my "Serving Lunch" photograph in her beautiful Food For Thought Etsy Treasury. Lulu wanted me to pass on to you that all Dropped Stitches readers who say they found her here will receive 20% off of her shop items. Her items are very nice, so check out her shop!

To celebrate (and cuz my birthday is coming up), I'm offering 20% off of all photos for all of my readers during the month of September. Just mention the discount and I'll give you your new price.

Promise it'll be back to usual tomorrow - going to do a "They Make Me Happy List" and am going to try to continue posting a photo a day. Hopefully I'll get a better camera for my birthday (if my mom can find a good deal!). I'm so happy to be writing again, I've missed it.

Notecards for Sale

So I've found a good source for note cards and I'll be listing individual notecards on my etsy store for $3.oo a piece ($1.50 shipping) and combinations of 6 cards for $17.00 ($3.00). The cards measure 5x7 inches and will be printed on 111 lb. weight card stock. The front has a soft matte white finish and your order will include white envelopes. If you'd like a combination of cards, you can choose which cards you want, the number of each (to total 6) to come up with your own custom package. The etsy listing for the combination of 6 cards will direct you back to this post so that you can see all of the photos you can choose from; I will add new ones as they become available.

#1 - Azelea

#2 - Small Pansy


#3 - Large Pansy


#4 - Saint Francis


#5 - Light Filled


#6 - White Butterfly


#7 - Grass Seed Head


#8 - Holey Hollyhocks


#9 - Green Hollyhocks


#10 - Lily Bud


#11 - Immaculate Heart


#12 - Lichen


#13 - Paper Daffodil


#14 - Sleeping Iris


#15 - Puff Balls


#16 - Linus the Cat


#17 - Sweet Corn


#18 - Lovely Rose


#19 - Hanging Rose

#20 - Pink Rose


#21 - Queen Anne

#22 - Brown Eyed


#23 - Dahlia


#24 - Peony


#25 - Pink Clematis


#26 - Purple Daisy

#27 - Snowman

#28 - Architectural Column

#29 - Serving Lunch

#30 - Hollyhock

#31 - Snowy Angel

All photos property of Erin Wallace

I Love: Grey

I don't think I've ever talked about how much I really love grey. I used to wear it all the time. It feels like a soft color to me when it is light and sophisticated when it's dark. And it is the color of mourning doves and my first born cat, Stanley, still kickin' (though a little slower) at 16 (84 in human years!!). And paired with teal, it's about as perfect as a color can get.

Rockin' Mama

1. LOVE WINS Dress Asphalt by eleflint designs, $24.00
2. Dark turquoise cuff bracelet by theshagbag, $16.00
3. Painted peackock feather boots by Scholarly Articles , $85.00
4. Women's fine ribbed ultra soft daily leggings by lamixx, $25.00

Pretty Mama

1. the grey dress by mia blaz, $58.00
2. Eco-chic Ballerina flats by Chinese Arithmetic, $25.00
3. EZ Canvas bag in Dark Teal by Kinies, $45.00
4. Mystic Droplet by Kenton Beadworks, $32.00

Glamour Mama

1. Shirred tube dress by Lirola, $165.00
2. ANNA milky turquoise rough cut crystal earrings (gold) by Bride Blu, $16.00
3. Peacock Satin Shoes by Paris xox, $122.00
4. Silver Tree Branch Clutch by Shakuyaku, $42.00

All of these items are from Etsy. So lest you think that Etsy is all tea cozies and yarn, think again! Support your independent artist! Shop Etsy.

Strawberry Sunday

I love etsy (which is a good thing, since I sell there!). Anyhow, you never know the wonderful things that you will find when you look around. I've been inspired by all of my bloggy friends' strawberry crops and decided to see what cool strawberry items I could find on etsy.

1. Strawberry Field Medium Frame purse, Toon Design, $12.00
2. Teasel and Lace Strawberry Floral Throw Pillow Cover, ModDiva, on sale for $15.95
3. Strawberry Blank Note Cards, smith letterpress, $26.00
4. Fraise Vintaj Drop Earrings, Sea Shore Glass, $15.00
5. Vintage Plaid Strawberry Blouse, Size Medium, Lynn's Rags, $14.00
6. Turquoise and red round ring, Baronika Handcrafted Artisan Jewelry, $21.00

1. Peasant Dress, Size 2T, For The Love of Smocking, $24.00
2. Strawberry Gummy Bear Necklace, Baby Loves Pink, $15.00
3. Strawberry Fields Shirred Smocked Jumper, sizes 12m - 8 years, Spoiled Cotton, $49.00
4. Red and Blue Strawberry Dishtowels, Curry Kay Designs, $17.00
5. The Modern Baby Quilt, Strawberry Fields, Second Sanctuary, $225.00
6. Fruit Art Strawberry, LaBerge: Fine Art prints, limited editions, and originals, $17.50

I hope you enjoy my strawberry finds as much as I've enjoyed sharing with you. Remember to support artisan made pieces. In a faltering economy, many people are looking to their wares as income makers. And what could be better than having that one-of-a-kind, where did you get that piece?

Are you a Boho girl?

The giveaway is here. Go enter, then read some more!

As per my magazine-o-holic ways, I picked up the magazine Boho simply for the name. Then the love story began. Boho is a top-flight fashion magazine with an eco-friendly mission. This isn't The Clothing Utne Reader , it's Vogue gone carbon negative.

Boho is printed on 100% post-consumer recycled paper. It has a rating system for how green each of the products or services it covers are. And the products are beautiful. There is an emphasis on hand crafted goods (etsians are prominantly featured). The ads are for companies like Oxfam Africa and Earth Watch (and even they are pleasant on the eyes).

The fashion pictorials are amazing. Boho proves that eco-friendly, sustainable clothing isn't just about upcycling and scratchy linen. It is haute, chic, amazing stuff.

This issue of Boho was dedicated to Paris. Oui, svp. There are two (yes, two) articles about the macaron. Carol Gillott would be pleased. There was also a beautiful article on eco-luxury spas, and stories about Alexandra Cousteau and designer Bahar Shahpar.

Boho comes out 4 times a year. A subscription is $21.99, news stand price is $5.99. Go spend a few bucks. And fall in love.