Someone You Should Meet

Today I would like to share an brand new etsy shop for my "Someone You Should Meet" series that I started and will continue at least twice a month. Ok back to who you should meet, her name is Elizabeth and the more I get to know her the more I like her . She is real and down to earth, two qualities that I really like in a person and a sweetheart on top of that. I love when I meet someone like that and they are TALENTED too!
So without anymore from me...


Name~ Elizabeth M. Duquette of Elizabeth M Designs
etsy shop~ Elizabeth M.D.
blog website~ Elizabeth M. Designs Treasure Trove

1. What kind of handmade items do you sell in your etsy shop?
I sell 100% all unique, all handmade, all Canadian jewelry suited to any one's pallet.

2. Explain your craft/art for people who may not be familiar with it?
My jewelry has mostly consisted of basic bead and chain designs, however I have recently started learning metal and wire work.

3. What is your favorite part of the creative process?
The whole process is so much fun for me. I get an idea in my head and I search through my supplies (which kind of feels like shopping) then finding just the right pieces and working on the design. tweaking to make it work is sometimes a challenge and I don't know a single craftsperson who doesn't like a challenge, but the end result is truly what makes me happy.

4. If you have to pick one item in your shop as your Favorite which one would it be? Amos this would be my favorite

5. Where do you hope to see your etsy shop in 1 yr?
In one year I hope that people will know about me and my shop. I hope that I will have more knowledge of different styles of jewelry to bring to my shop as well

6. Is etsy the only place people can find you online?
No I also sell these places~ Art Fire and my own site ~ a work in progress Elizabeth M Designs

Y'all be sure to go check Elizabeth's new etsy shop and give her a heart and maybe you will fall in love with one of her pieces- I tell you it won't be hard!

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Updates & Surprises

I am super busy but I really wanted to take a minute to catch y'all up in all the SUPER exciting and really cool things that are going on here at craftyGAgal Creations. I am really proud to announce that there is now a Facebook Page for craftyGAgal Creations where people can become "fans" and can keep up with me on HERE on Facebook. I am planning on doing some FUN things with this page, including showcasing an ITEM of the day that will be on sale, sneak previews of items before they are listed and maybe even a contest or giveaway. Please if you are not already a "fan" which I also like to refer to as Friends... on Facebook then please go here to do so. I was proud to announce I had it BUT I am HUMBLED to say that in just about 24 hours, when I last checked, I had 206 FANS/Friends!! I am so touched by the constant support I get from my friends. Anyone who knows my knows that I love saying... "The reason I love my computer IS because my friends LIVE in it"...and I never felt this more than recently with the some of the GREAT friends I have made online.
Second I was surprised and absolutely delighted to get an e-mail from an etsy seller named CantaloupeCorner letting me know that she featured a pair of my stained glass earrings in her "My Etsy Faves!" as #2! These are the earrings and you can find them listed here. Thanks Cataloupe Corner...y'all head on over and check out her shop and her blog. Thanks again for that, it made my day!
We have made our FIRST sale at Dylan Blue. It was a beautiful pendant that we are planning on making more of...you can see it here.

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Opening New Shop

I am so excited to share with y'all my latest creative adventure..... I have teamed up with John Madsen to open Dylan Blue on etsy. I am not going to tell you too much about it since I am not going to release the products until this evening, but I know y'all are gonna love it. John and I are full of ideas and are ready to carve out our little corner of etsy and continue to do what we love to do best- MAKE PEOPLE SMILE.
I have also started a blog to accompany the shop- will run very similar to this one.....Gorgeous Product, other cool etsy sellers and Sweet finds! I am also excited because John is also a great writer and we are going to be featuring some of his written pieces- so head on over to Dylan Blue Blog and sign up to follow- promise you will not be disappointed! Grand Opening Tonight!

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The Process of Making Stained Glass Jewelry

What Goes Into Making Stained Glass Jewelry?
I love making stained glass jewelry. There is something about the process with its many many steps done in a certain order that I find comforting. I usually make a "batch" a setting. A "batch" usually consist of 20-30 pieces. I try to finish the batch in one day...but sometimes I break it into two days. I would love to share the steps with y'all.

The Process of Making Stained Glass Jewelry

1. I pick my glass, hold it up to the light to see what piece I want to cut.
2. I clean the glass (this in one of tons of cleanings the glass gets).
3. I score the glass with a glass cutter that has a carbide wheel.
4. I break the glass running pliers (sometime I use a grozier, which are flat nosed, soft metal pliers).
5. I grind the glass with a diamond bit on a grinder that grinds at a high speed. Grinding does two things, it take the sharp edge off and it is used to obtain the desired shape.
6. Clean glass which is covered in residue and glass bits.
7. Wrap the edges of the glass with copper foil.
8. Apply flux (which is what makes the solder stick to the foil).
9. Apply the lead free solder on one side.
10. I let cool, that is why working in a batch is good because I can continue to work while they cool
11. Repeat process to other side, including appling more flux
12. Solder the bail/ hoop on
13. Clean
14. I polish with silver polish to remove flux residue and make it shiny and pretty
15. I clean it Yet Again.

As you can see
it is a time consuming and very detailed process. In the future I will photograph the steps to maybe break it down for those of you who might want to know more.
Thanks for leting me share part of my passion with you.

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Someone You Should Meet

I am fortunate enough to have met and become friends with a very sweet and kind hearted woman named Ana. Not only is she sweet and kind hearted and all that special stuff BUT she is an artist who absolutely amazes me with her skills. She makes gorgeous doll hats...okay I will be honest, when we first met I knew she was talented because her doll hats are pretty beyond words, but I thought she was a decorating genius. I pictured a box of hats coming to Ana's house and her decorating each one lovingly....WELL....I was right , she is a decorating genius, but when talking to Ana one day, I sat there in Amazement as she described the process of how she makes the hats from SCRATCH, rolling the genuine horsehair, using a mold.... I knew then I had to share her with y'all.

Name~ Ana Llechu
shop website~50's Doll Designs
blog website~Ana's Doll Designs Blog

1. What kind of handmade items do you sell in your etsy shop?

Dolls Hats & Accessories for a Large variety of Vintage Dolls and some new ones.

2. Explain your craft/art for people who may not be familiar with it?
First I start with very vintage straw from Switzerland, then I choose the style of the hat, then the creation starts, making a hat takes me anywhere from one to two hours and after I finish creating the hat with the straw you have to let it sit for 24 hours to dry, then I start with the decoration process which also takes me an hour or two, that also requires another 6 to 8 hours to settle and dry.

3. What is your favorite part of the creative process?
The decorating creativity, I love mixing flowers & ribbons to create a unique look.

4. If you have to pick one item in your shop as your Favorite which one would it be? This is a hard one, I love all my items, lot's of Love and creation is put into every single detail, but I choose as my favorite

5. Where do you hope to see your etsy shop in 1 yr?
With lot's of happy and satisfied customers

6. Is etsy the only place people can find you online?
I also sell on eBay
& Bonanzle

Thanks Ana for letting us have a little peek into your creative process! Hope everyone heads and checks out Ana's Sites- PROMISE you will not be disappointed!

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I'm Excited...

Happy anniversary to me....I am so excited. NO it is not my wedding anniversary, and since one day my husband may actually turn a computer on and read this, no where near as spacial. But it is exciting... craftyGAgal Creations has been open ONE WHOLE MONTH! I know, I know may not seem like a big deal, but well IT IS! I am so happy on etsy, not only that things are actually selling but with the people I have met and many that I now call friends. AS of the exact day of being open one month I had 22 sales, which I am so excited about.

This weekend besides the 4th of July and fireworks the big thing for me was CUSTOM Orders. I had two that I would like to share with y'all...
The 1st one is a necklace and earring set that I made for what is one of my best customers and since her first purchase has become a dear friend...
Shell & Amethyst Necklace w/ Mother of Pearl Pendant ~Metaphysical Healing Properties ~Energy




Also a little side note...I love to learn about gemstones and am fascinated with gemstone lore and metaphysical healing properties associated with certain gemstone. I like to include this information in my listings for those who are interested- and not all are & that is fine too, it is still a GORGEOUS Set regardless!
Here is the info about he two stones/shell used in this set

" ^^^^^^Metaphysical Healing Properties according to Gemstone Lore^^^^^
See Store Policies page (this should NOT be used in the place of medical advice or treatment); if you are a believer ~Great, if not it is still a gorgeous piece ~AND WHO KNOWS!

Mother of Pearl is known for mental clarity, intuition, sensitivity, imagination, adaptability, & cooperation

Amethyst: Contentment, spirituality, dreams, healing, peace, happiness, love, intuition. Amethyst is also know as the sobriety stone. Crushed amethyst was used by the Ancient Romans as a way to ward off intoxication. They word amethyst comes from the Greek word "amethystus" meaning not drunken, or intoxicated.

The 2nd was an Alchemy (custom) request from a sweet lady who is expecting her second baby this month and wanted a white crocheted baby hat with a white rose. This hat is gonna make such cute pictures! I love the way is turned out and she did too!


I also have some new listings in my shop and work on stuff to list or list everyday!

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I Was Featured

I have had this post ready but was waiting for my new look...speaking of which, what cha think? My etsy shop has a new look too and a new name too.....my shop had been renamed craftyGAgal Creations. Please stop by and take a peak...I am really please at the way it came out.
I was honored when a Facebook friend asked if she could feature me on her blog. I may have been honored when she asked but I was TOUCHED when I read it. Please take a minute to go read CraftyGAgal Succeeds Through Pain on my sweet friend Connie's blog My Chronic Life. While you are there go ahead and follow or friend her for this is a great blog by Connie sharing a piece of her life and spotlighting others...as she best states it her blog is a "A Health Blog by Someone Who Knows".
After that post I was super delighted and surprised that one of Connie's readers did a post which featured me and my shop. Savey Spender is a great blog and I am honored by her post "Handmade Jewelry and Crafts".
Please take a minute to stop by both the ladies blogs, read, enjoy, follow and comment if the desire hits ya!
Everyone Have a Happy and Safe 4th of July!

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