Absolutely Kismet On Zibbet

I found this charming shop on Zibbet - Absolutely Kismet !

This lovely shop offers unique, hand crafted wine glass charms, stitch markers and jewelry.

Here is a tiny selection of what you will find at Absolutely Kismet but you must visit this shop to see all the wonderful items!

Light Pink Stitch Markers - a must for your knitting projects or a fantastic gift for the knitter in your life! You will find more stitch markers in this shop, different styles and colors.

Blue and Black Striped Heart Pendant On Braided Hemp Necklace
The hemp pieces offered in Absolutely Kismet are AMAZING!!! She is such a talented hemp artist!




Tiger Striped Heart Pendant On Hemp Choker
See what I mean???

Hemp Necklace Or Wrap Bracelet

How wonderful is this !?! You can wear this awesome piece as a necklace or a bracelet!

Bracelet - Petite Black And Blue Slip Knot

I love the colors!

Absolutely Kismet also offers beautifully hand crafted beaded jewelry.

White Cat's Eye Glass With Black Cut Glass Dangles Necklace

Feminine and Elegant!

Earrings - Teal

The best thing about these earrings is they would look cute with jeans and t shirt and FABULOUS with evening wear!

Brown Glass Dangle Earrings

Beautiful on their own but...they have a matching necklace - shown below!

Brown Beaded Necklace

The holidays will be here before you know it! This next earring and necklace set are the perfect holiday gift!

Red Dangle Earrings

Red Glass Beaded Bracelet

Absolutely Kismet offers a unique selection of wine glass charms. I know wine glass charms are such a necessity at parties, especially holiday parties but...I can't help but think of all the other uses for these super cute charms!

I think they would be adorable on purse and tote straps, cell phones, journals, place cards, etc!

This has been a fun feature!

Absolutely Kismet is an absolutely charming, unique and OOAK Zibbet shop!

Visit today and get all your holiday shopping done!

Little Green Things

Little Green Things on Etsy is a shop filled with unique, one of a kind belt buckles.
The buckles are tiny works of art that inspire imagination and fun.

You must read this shop's wonderful profile. It is as unique and whimsical as the shop itself, giving you insight on the artist behind the shop. Also, it must be noted, this artist displays a great concern for our environment and uses an eco resin on all the buckles!

I want to share a few items from Little Green Things but you really have to visit the shop yourself to enjoy all it has to offer!

Deer Dream Belt Buckle brings to mind ELEGANT! So unique and lovely! The image hints of a Victorian flavor and is has an ethereal feel.

Overland Journey Belt Buckle - If you know the story behind my shop name, you know the Bare in Bare Moose is a play on the word "Bear". Naturally I absolutely LOVE this buckle! I believe this buckle would look great on a man or woman, especially when paired with your favorite jeans.

Mr. Red Fox and Mrs. Bunny Belt Buckle - So sweet and charming!

Little Red Riding Hood Belt Buckle - I love Little Red Riding Hood and I especially love the uniqueness of this buckle. No doubt it would look great with any outfit but paired with your favorite faded jeans and a red long sleeve tee - perfection!

Deer In Winter Wonderland Belt Buckle - Artistic and beautiful!

You Choose Belt Buckle - While every buckle in this shop would be an awesome gift, this buckle would make the gift even more special. Everyone loves personalized gifts and you could use this opportunity to match the buckle to the personality of the recipient.

Writable Chalkboard Surface Belt Buckle - Fun, Fun, Fun!!!!

This buckle was featured on the front page of Etsy as it should be! Just think of what you can write on this wearable art! Match you buckle to your mood!

Vintage Leather Belt Brown White Flowers - So...you have found the perfect belt buckle but do not have a belt? Here is a wonderful, pretty belt to couple with your new buckle!

Vintage Brown Leather Floral Western Belt - Or...how about this belt!

This was just a small sample of what Little Green Things has to offer. You must visit this shop and when you do, I challenge you to use your imagination!

When I entered Little Green Things for the first time, my mind ran wild with ideas such as:

*Journals* - I love making journals and I can envision using one of these fabulous buckles to decorate one of my journals. Perhaps I would run a wide piece of satin ribbon through the buckle and attach it to the journal. Or...perhaps I could incorporate the buckle as a way of closing the journal. Hmmm....

*Boxes* - These buckles would make an awesome decoration on a wooden box that you purchase or make yourself. I see these buckles attached to either the top or front of the box.

*Purses and Totes* - I have several bags that have detachable handles. How wonderful would one of these lovely buckles look on the handle?? Just remove one side of the bag handle and slide the buckle on!

*Handmade Cards* - Why not use a belt buckle as the gift in a card/gift combo? Just attach the buckle on the front or inside of the card and write a note and decorate the card to match the buckle.

Now it's your turn! Visit Little Green Things and let your imagination go!!

Riverboat On The Potomac / Colonial Beach, Va.

Dad, Cynthia and I went to Colonial Beach today to have breakfast at the Riverboat On The Potomac. They have a great breakfast bar and an amazing view of the Potomac River. It was chilly out so we didn't spend a lot of time at the riverside but we managed to explore a little. The restaurant: I took some pictures from the back dinning area of the restaurant:

This is the breakfast buffet:

Also part of the buffet:

Dad and Cynthia:

The Tiki Bar at the other end of the restaurant:

Cynthia in the Gaming room:

The Fortune Teller:

My fortune: My after breakfast swing:

Super cute gift shop located next to the restaurant. I bought a pink Colonial Beach hoodie:

Hunting for treasures:

I found one!

Dad waiting patiently while I treasure hunt:

Cynthia's beautiful wildlife photos:

I will show you the treasures I found in another post. I think I will make a tutorial with them :)

Buy Some Love

If you enjoy truly elegant and unique jewelry, you must visit Buy Some Love !

I am going to share some of the lovely treasures I found at Buy Some Love , but I want to introduce you to the shop owners first.

The owners of this Etsy jewelry shop are a husband and wife team from Canada. They have an interesting and fun profile that you may read here . The profile explains that the husband makes the beaded pieces and the wife makes the earrings and all other pieces.

This fact alone makes the shop unique and interesting but the quality of the product completely draws you in.

Not only is each and every piece of jewelry in Buy Some Love's shop extremely well made but the talent of the creators is stunningly apparent. This duo has a remarkable talent for pairing charms, beads and findings in such a unique way. The outcome is amazing.

Here are a few of the items from Buy Some Love's Etsy shop. It was difficult to select which items to share with you. This shop has 500 (yes, 500) beautiful items for sale. You must visit it to really appreciate what they have to offer!

Buy Some Love offers wonderful sets like these sweet Rose Rings. As the listing states, these rings would be absolutely perfect for bridesmaids gifts. You can coordinate the color to match your wedding because you may select your color!

This Brass Branch Connector Necklace is a perfect example of the talent I was talking about earlier. Such an unusual pairing of a connector and beads. Simply lovely!

This Deployed Soldiers bracelet tugs at your heart strings. Simple, sweet and elegant.

Dolphin and Dream Necklace . Again, pairing 3 items and turning it into something enchanting. The second I saw this charming necklace, I was reminded of all the wonderful days I have spent on the beach. Like I said, Enchanting!

These Heart and Pearl Earrings are so sweetly feminine and lovely. They would be the perfect compliment to any outfit!

Black and ivory are such a lovely color combination. The colors are perfectly combined and expertly crafted in this Black Glass Pearl Bracelet .

This Multiple Layered Glass Pearls Necklace is stunning! This is only one of the many, many elegant items in Buy Some Love's Etsy shop.

This Chalkboard Pendant Necklace is just one of a line of chalkboard pendants. So clever, unique and fun!! You even receive a piece of chalk so that you can change your message!

How sweet are these Light Pink Dangling Rose Earrings !! I think these earrings would be the perfect Mother's Day gift!

This was a very tiny sample of the items Buy Some Love offers in their shop. You will be amazed once you visit this shop yourself!

Easter and Mother's Day are quickly approaching. If you need gifts for these occasions (or any occasion), you are sure to find the perfect gift at Buy Some Love.

*** Buy Some Love is offering a generous discount code for you!! Just enter BAREMOOSE10 as the code and you will receive 10% off your order!!! ***

WIRE HOOK AND LOOP CLASP TUTORIAL

These hook and loop clasps are fun and easy to make.

I use round nose pliers (I have an assortment but just one is fine), wire cutters, wire, an anvil and chasing hammer.

I purchased my chasing hammer , anvil and a pair of round nose pliers from:

matsbeads on Etsy.

I purchase most of my wire from:

lannasjewelry on Etsy. (I love the 26g argentium sterling silver and the 26g 14k gold filled wire for my viking knit projects).

Both are awesome sellers. Fast shipping, great products!!

I used 20g silver plated wire in this first project.
To make the clasp, cut 2 lengths of wire with wire cutters. The length depends on the size clasp you want. I cut the examples approximately 1 1/2", which was actually too long.

Use the round nose pliers to make a small loop at the end of one piece of wire.

Grasp the wire with the round nose pliers 1/4" or so from the loop you made, making sure you grasp it with the fatter part of the pliers. Bend the wire around the pliers in the opposite direction of the loop. Stop when the wire meets the loop.

Now grasp the wire with the round nose pliers just below the loop and bend towards the back of the hook you have made.

Stop here and use the wire cutters to remove the excess wire.

Finish the loop with the round nose pliers.

Use the second piece of wire for the loop section of the clasp.

Grasp the wire with the round nose pliers almost in the middle of the wire. The size of the loop will be determined by the section of the round nose pliers you use.

Wrap the wire around to form a loop.

Turn the wire around and wrap around the round nose pliers to make the second loop. Wrap the wire in the opposite direction of the first loop to form a figure 8.

Trim off the excess wire.

The finished hook and loop clasp.

**Optional**

You may hammer the clasp to give it strength.

Hammering the pieces causes them to spread out and get a little wonky.

Just reshape and close all the openings.

To make your clasp a little fancier, you can simply coil the wire.

Start as usual but continue to wrap the wire in a spiral.

I make these backwards, starting at the part of the clasp that hooks to the chain.

Wrap the wire around the round nose pliers.

Bend in the opposite direction to make the small loop which was the first step in the directions above.

Use the wire cutters to remove the excess wire. Finish the small loop with the round nose pliers.

I also make the loop backwards. Start with a coil.

Turn the wire over and bend around the round nose pliers to finish the figure 8.
Cut off the excess wire.

I used a very soft 18g wire in the example (very cheap craft store wire). If you use a super soft wire, it will become very flat when you hammer it.

Work it back into shape.

Here are some of the pieces I've made using the handcrafted clasp.

I used the clasp as part of the design in this viking knit rose bracelet. I used 2 of the hooks, one on each side of the rose (there is a rose tutorial on my blog). When I wire wrapped the rose and swarovski crystals, I wrapped leaving a loop large enough for the hooks to fit through.

I made the clasp for this viking knit necklace with the spiral ends.

I also used the spiral on this viking knit bracelet.

I used 2 clasps on this viking knit rose bracelet. One hook and loop on each side of the rose.

I used the simple clasp on this bracelet.

I used viking knit pieces to display these clasps because that is what I'm hooked on right now.

Viking knit is extremely addictive!!! Perhaps I should make a viking knit tutorial???

I hope you find this tutorial useful!

Now, go make some clasps!!!!

xoxoxoxo