Fairy Tales and art toys

I am a big fan of children literature, I even have a degree in it. Every time a see a colorful book I will open it to refresh my memory.

 

White rabbit felt brooch by TaniaFelt

My favorites are classics like Alice in Wonderland, Mother's Goose Tales, nursery rhymes, Mary Poppins, mysterious Harry Porter and so much more!

 Tiny black wool sheep felt by LaFiabaRussa

I also love small Fairy Tales figurines and home decor items. I am shopping for vintage items weekly and was so lucky to find some pretty, old books, Wade figurines and old resin toys from the 1960s. Some of them are older then I am!

 

Little Red Riding Hood Wade figurine by agardencottage

There are so many beautiful handmade toys, accessories and  sculptures inspired by children's literature and made by our team members. There are also lots of great vintage finds which will bring back memories. See for yourself, maybe there is something for you there! 

Cross stitch pattern, Mary Poppins by TinyNeedle 

Mini crochet umbrella by FancyKnittles

Teapot felt purse by galafilc

 

Tooth fairy pillow by CherryGardenDolls

 

Felt reindeer by TwoSadDonkeys

Crochet art doll, Red Riding Hood by Creativhook

Little Mermaid art doll brooch by miopupazzo

Vinnie The Pooh Piglet crochet pattern by PetsLair

Forest animals quiet busy book by PopelineCo

Story by Tanya (agardencottage)

OOAK handmade Christmas balls

This Christmas ornament look so good on a tree. The bonus is it is made with mostly recycled materials which you might easily find in almost every household.

 

The idea came from our team member, Yulia from bysiki shop on Etsy. Yulia lives and works in Moscow, Russia and her shop is filled with wonderful products for a baby. 

To make a ball like this you will need:

a plastic grocery store bag for each ball (a great way to give them a second life!)

sequins and beads

threads of your choice:

#1 - thread of any color you don't need for other projects  for securing the ball shape

# 2 - pretty thread you want to see you ball decorated with

ribbon

fabric glue

needle

Form an even shaped ball from the plastic bag and secure it with the thread #1. Add some glue to the surface to make sure it will stay in place. Let it dry.

Wrap the thread #2 around your ball in one direction, either, horizontal or vertical. Sew the sequins and beads on top of your ball, while securing your threads from unwrapping. Do not use too many beads to prevent your ball from being too heavy!

Make a ribbon loop and you are done! Your new one of a kind Christmas ball is ready to be hung on your Christmas tree!

Have a wonderful Holidays and fun decorating!

Interview with a Star, Kimuka shop on Etsy

 

If you are looking for a cute unique gift for a friend, family member or yourself take a look at Kimuka shop. You will find very special handmade toys, jewelry, passport covers and so much more. All the items are made by two sisters who own a shop and all the items are made with a lot of love.

Please tell us a little bit about yourself
We are two sisters, Ira and Lena, and we are originally from Ukraine, Lviv.

Ira: I came to Israel first, in 1998. At first I took a totally different direction in life and went to study Mechanical Engineering. I graduated in 2005 with first degree (B.Sc.). I tried my luck in the field but very soon I understood that it wasn’t the right path for me. I re-qualified to QA, as something that provides food on the table. It also cleared some more time for my hobbies, photography and making handcrafted items. I’m happily married to Stas and we have two cute dogs.

Lena:  I graduated with MA in Graphic Design in Ukraine and moved to Israel in 2008. Here I work as a graphic designer at a photography business. I’m happily married to Evgene and we also have two great dogs.

How long have you been creating? How did your journey in art and creativity begin?
Ira: My mom taught me to knit as a child so I knitted when I lived in Ukraine. I started making toys and all the other things after graduating the University.

Lena: While living in Ukraine I took a great interest in photography and when I came to Israel, I joined Ira’s hobby of handcraft. After a period of time we both created many toys, accessories and handbags just for ourselves and for our close friends. Soon we realized that our hobbies required a lot of money and space so if we want to continue with it we had to do something that would return the investment and free up space for the new creations.

We started our joint business "Simsisters" in Israel and  "Kimuka" shop on Etsy.

What items do you carry in your shop?
We have many different styles and sizes of toys, handbags, passport covers, jewelry and fashion accessories.

What would you say makes your shop unique?
All our creations are invented from our own imaginations and with our own graphic design. Of course we get a lot of inspiration from other artists but we always insists on doing everything with our touch and twist.

Do you take custom orders?
We love custom orders! We always like to get new ideas and challenges, even if they come from somebody else.

We even encourage people to send us something special to them, like a painting made by their children to get a new idea for the toy. The painting should be an image of something, not a scene. We'll work with that image and create a new toy, tailor-made!

Interview with a Star - Svitlana (VitalTemptation)

Please, welcome our team member Svitlana who runs VitalTemptation shop on Etsy.


Please tell us a little bit about yourself
Hi everyone! My name is Svitlana. I live in New York, but I was born in Ukraine. My home town is Simferopol located in the peninsula of Crimea. Crimea is well-known for its spectacular landscapes, beautiful Black sea, and many historical places.
Now I live in the Big Apple with my family, my husband and my son, and two very important members of my family Chubby and Buster, my dogs.


How long have you been creating? How did your journey in art and creativity begin?
I was creating since I was a toddler. I used to annoy my parents, this week I wanted to learn how to make pots, next I wanted them to buy me wood curving instruments, the week after I wanted to do embroidery. I always had thousands of hobbies. Even now my parents in Ukraine have many of my creations around the house. I remember how I was fascinated by watching shows about glass-blowing and pottery.

I always had that unexplained draft to fiber art. A few years ago I was browsing the Internet and one felted piece caught my eye. Wow, I said to myself, I want to know how it’s made. That was a start of lifelong romance. I realized there is nothing more unexpected, intriguing, magical than felt!
Besides felting I always liked to knit and to make crocheted pieces.

What items in your shop do you most enjoy making and why?
Of course the most enjoyable time for me is when I spend hours while making Nuno Collage pieces. By using Nuno techniques I can achieve very interesting texture and amazing color combinations. Nuno collage in many ways reminds me painting and painting was my obsession when I was a child.

Do you have a favorite item you have made?
You can ask me the same question a week or a month from now and I will have the same answer: “My last item” :)

What are your best marketing tips?
Believe in yourself and never think that achieved is the peak of the mountain!

Why did you decide on VitalTemptation name for your business?
Oh, that name has a little story behind it. Before opening my shop I did a serious research about Etsy. I realized then that the name of your business is just as important as the quality of your items. I remember I had a few sample names for my shop and I went to my husband to ask his opinion on them. It happened that he was watching a TV show with a name Vital Temptation on the History Channel … and he just: this is the perfect name for your shop! That was true the name was sharp and it reflected my vision on what I was going make.

What would you say makes your shop unique?
I think every artist is unique. Our work is not just a bunch of wool, fabric , beads … our work is a reflection of our feelings, emotions, experiences… we all are different, we all are unique in our own way.

Tomorrow is Svitlana's Birthday. We wish her well and we are very happy to have her in our group.

Happy Birthday, Svitlana!

Interview with a star - Natasha (Rumosaic07)

There are so many talented artists are gathered together in our team! Today we'd like to introduce you to Natasha (rumosaic07) whose mosaic works are truly one of a kind.

Please tell us a little bit about yourself
I’m a professional pianist. I perform a lot and that’s why I’m rarely at home. Thus, I don’t really have that much time for my crafting. However, I love to create and to work with my hands. I hand craft my items mostly at night or on weekends. In the summer when day light in Russia stays long enough I have plenty of time for my crafting.
photo at the studio
I usually craft on a balcony which is my major workshop. My family supports me and offers a valuable critic that is extremely helpful!


How long have you been creating? How did your journey in art and creativity begin?
I was born and raised in Ekaterinburg, Russia in a family of true artisians. My great grandfather had a well established company that produced tools and equipment for a bee-keeping. His products were featured at the famous Paris exhibition in early 20th century. He lost everything but his artisan skills during the revolution in Russia. Our family still has one of my grandfather work, a miniature children’s teapot that is only 3 cm tall! He hand made it out of an American tin from canned food during the World War for his grandchildren. My mom and my granny sewed for the whole family during the Soviet era when it was hard to buy clothes. It’s not a surprise that I knitted my first item when I was 6.


What do you sell and what would you say makes your shop unique?
I have two shops on Etsy. In rumosaic07 I sell mosaics (I like to work with American vintage glass and china or porcelain bits and pieces), also macrame and crochet items.


I love to learn new techniques so right now I am also learning how to make an Irish lace. Pretty soon you will be able to find some new nice items in my shop!


In my second shop RUussrvintage I offer rare vintage pieces dated back to the Soviet era. There is a lot of history behind these items so my shop is a real find for collectors of Soviet memorabilia!


How did you choose the names for your shops?
If you’ve noticed both of my shops’ names start with RU which corresponds to the domain of Russia “.ru”. The idea is to inform potential clients and buyers about Russian routs of my business.

Where would you like to go with your business?
I create unique hand made items in macrame, stained glass and mosaic techniques so that all these items could make my clients’ homes beautiful and cozy.


I experiment a lot and always try to learn something new. I’m constantly improving and my main goal today is to succeed in my search for personal style.

Stylish Things: OOAK felted goods at Galafilc

Today, we share a story about Gala who runs great Galafilc shop on Etsy
A fairy called Gala lives in a small town in Poland on the coast of the Baltic sea.

She walks in beautiful surroundings, takes photos of white chamomiles and flamboyant poppies, delicate daffodils and royal sunflowers, autumn leaves and ripe ash berries.

And then Gala creates her magic items.
Gala does not need a magic wand to transform a shapeless piece of wool into a delicate flower, poppy field on a bag or a flexible reptile. Galina’s hands can create anything – seamless clothes, scarves, mittens, slippers, hats, brooches, lamps and amazing panels.


This is what Gala says about her handmade creations herself:

"I have liked creating things with my hands since childhood. In my school and university years I knitted a lot, everything from sweaters and hats to socks and mittens. A new unique item of clothing was gradually evolving from balls of yarn.


In 2007, I discovered a medium new for me - felting.

By pure accident I saw creations made by my university friend Lena online. They were felted scarves. I became interested how amazing woolen flowers were painted on thin chiffon and decided to try making something similar. Having read all instructions and recommendations available online and bought some wool, I felted my first scarf and flower. I really enjoyed the process of creating these simple things and started looking for materials, techniques and explanations.

Lately I became interested in dying wool and made felted items. This allows to make items even more unique".

Gala often participates in regional craft fairs and communicates with other felt artists. These fairs enable her to meet her clients and learn their tastes and likes, hear their wishes. This way she can make creations to order.

Exhibitions-competitions for amateur artists and craftspeople take place in the local chamber of culture on yearly basis. Gala’s creations have won awards in the category "Artistic fabric" in town and council competitions for three years in a row. This year Gala exhibited her felt painting "Birchwood" at the competition.

Today is the 7th of January – Orthodox Christmas. It is accustomed to give presents to relatives and friends on this day. Galina’s creations could be a perfect gift for this occasion – they are bright, optimistic and will bring a lot of joy to you and your beloved ones.


Story by Lana (FineEmbroidery)
Translated by Anastasia (Lightkeeping)

This story also available in Russian there