Snoop Lion's Girlfriend Listen to Punk Rock on Spring Break Treasury

My vintage blank cassette tapes listing was featured in the Snoop Lion's Girlfriend Listens to Punk Rock on Spring Break treasury curated by samandchris. The treasury reminds me why I like my music underground!

Don't forget to visit Silverblayze Supplies and Vintage for more fun listings!

Gypsa Darkest Pretty Blue Quilt

I love blankets. I love afghans, coverlets, throws, and comforters. I believe that you can never have too many of them. But most of all I love quilts.

The quilts in etsy shop gypsa are hand-dyed, hand-sewn, and one-of-a-kind. I want to cuddle under the beautiful Darkest Pretty Blue Queen Quilt on a cold winter's night.

Gypsa's lovely goods are created by several artistic families. The shop have been featured in Anthropologie and Apartment Therapy.

A twin version of the quilt is also available.

Corey Marie's Watercolor Techniques

Although I do not consider myself an artist, if I was one I am sure I would choose watercolors. The moment that the paint touches the paper is pure magic. A couple of years ago I bought Water Paper Paint: Exploring Creativity with Watercolor and Mixed Media with plans to learn techniques, but I have not been able to put much time into it.

via

When I visited my friend Corey Marie's website yesterday I found that she recently posted a watercolor tutorial, 12 DIY Watercolor Techniques for art journals. Not only does her tutorial explain how to use common household items to create watercolor effects, it also features unique pictures of the techniques.

image by Corey Marie

Corey Marie and I went high school together. We were both in band (don't forget we were a big deal in our small town), and she produced the first 'zine I encountered. Corey recently moved back to our hometown, Eaton Rapids, where she makes her living as an illustrator. She is pretty rad, and you should take the time to check out the rest of her blog and shop.

Now that I have more time I hope to explore watercolors (and perhaps enroll in a beginner's class at the Ella Sharp Museum of Art and History).

Etsy Finds: Vintage in Retrospect

My college friend Amanda of Vintage in Retrospect was featured in the Forbes article Transforming License Plates into Pieces of Art in the Motor City.

Her accessories are made out of recycled license plates. For as long as I have known Amanda she has been into thrifting and Detroit, and her combination of these loves is unique and perfect.

Less Than Three Belt Buckle

Piano Key Belt Buckle

 Lucky Number Seven Key Chain

Cassette Tape Belt Buckle

I am honored that Amanda mentioned that I encouraged her to look into selling on Etsy! I am so excited she is doing well; I love her talent and diy aesthetic.

It is wonderful to see a friend doing well.

Etsy Finds: Dyed Muslin Yarn

When I experimented with tea and coffee dying this spring, I found the process of hand dyeing fibers fascinating. 

Bess Hudson of Subtle Arts sells amazing yarn in her etsy, LadyRSanti. Not only does Bess hand dye wool, she also dyes muslin with natural ingredients such as indigo, walnuts and cochineal.

Summer Haze Muslin Yarn

Hot Chocolate Muslin Yarn

Phlox Muslin Yarn

Bess' dyeing takes ordinary rag yarn to a must-have luxury. Each dye lot is unique. The beauty of such yarn comes from the imperfections, the variations of color. I hope to splurge on this lovely yarn one day.

Plarn Feature

I recently did a Google search for my Etsy shops. I was unaware of this blog feature, Yearn Worthy Yarn: Plarn by Kelly Rand, on Crafting a Green World. The feature was done in 2008, before I split my shop into With Eyes Lifted and Silverblayze Supplies and Vintage.

I will be restocking my shop with plarn in the next month, so it was neat to find the feature.