Aren't siblings amazing? I'm so proud of my little sister. Read below for the story, plus a great deal for Simple Makes readers!
My younger sister, Mary (who's not so little anymore!), has been making jewelry since she could crawl, and has been refining her skills ever since. Around 10 years old, Mary opened a tiny 'shop' in our house: "Mary's Beads and Accessories." She sold bracelets, necklaces, and other cute items she'd made from wire and beads. I remember the Christmas gifts we got for her each year: beads, bead organizers, bead supplies. Mary just couldn't get enough of beads :-)
Since the time I went off to college, Mary's gotten even better at beading! Now, she uses more advanced tools: pliers, wire cutters, and little parts I don't know what they are :-) Beginning the freshman year of college herself, Mary's caught the entrepreneurial bug and opened her very own etsy shop!! I love that she named it Mary's Beads and Accessories; the same name she had for her shop as a kid.
Though Mary's been selling her jewelry to our family and friends for years, she's new to Etsy, so I wanted to share about her new shop here on my blog to help get her name out. When I suggested the idea to her (via skype, since we live across the world from each other), she offered a discount to all Simple Makes readers for the whole month of January! You can get 10% off anything in her shop. Here's how it works:
1. First add an item(s) from her shop to your cart and start the check-out process.
2. Enter the code "simplemakes" in the 'notes to seller' and the email address where the revised invoice should be sent.
3. Complete the order but do NOT go to Paypal to pay.
4. You will receive a revised invoice, and a link to complete payment, via email reflecting the discount.
That's it! I hope you can treat yourself to a post-holiday gift, or just bookmark the shop for a future purchase. Enjoy!
...and you?
Post in the comments what you think of her stuff, like those gorgeous earrings in the photo above (almost enough to make me get my ears pierced... but just almost).
If you have an etsy store you'd like featured on SimpleMakes, contact me. I'm looking for a shop to give away an item to a reader each month in 2009, which would get your shop's name and link out as I mentioned the contest in each post that month.
This week, I've been reading, crafting, shopping, watching, learning, bookmarking, and printing. Here's the highlights I'd like to share: videos, sales, downloads, and tutorials from around the blogosphere and the wider world wide web.
Family
* Babywearing is the norm among the minority people where I live in rural China, so I loved the BabyCenter video!
* As the temps drop outside and in, I'm excited that it's time to bundle up in comfy winter wear. For some clothes-shopping deals, check out Amazon's $20 off Outerwear sale.
.Home
* I like Almost Frugal's posts on taking care of your clothes and your appliances so they'll last longer.
* Check out Amazon's Holiday Sales for Kitchen & Home ... a lot of it is random, but they do have good deals on a George Foreman Removable-Plate Grill (great for quick, healthy meal prep), a 2 1/2 quart crockpot, and a money-saving yogurt maker.
, and a money-saving 
.Green
* From the online buzz, I can tell I'm not the only one fascinated by what I've read about "freeganism." What do you think?
* Reading Lighter Footstep's post on kitchen appliances reminded me of my post on implementing sustainable living. I wrote it before the actual launch of SimpleMakes, so it's one of those archived, comment-less posts. Why don't you check it out and give it a comment? :-)
Crafty
* As my husband and I finalized Thanksgiving travel plans, it was good to stop and enjoy some new crafty, meaningful holiday traditions.
* Bookmarking UK lass in US's "lazy" crayon roll tutorial, to try later for colored pencils.
That's it for this week! If you have a link I might like to feature in the future, tag it for:simplyla on delicious. If you're delicious-less, try email: send your idea to me here.
Thanks to some talented and creative chefs, my husband's desire for great taste and mine for simple prep & clean-up don't have to clash when we go to our cookbooks. Check out our "top 5" and share your own recommendations.
Our Cooking Story
My husband loves to cook: he grows herbs and knows the difference between various seasonings and spices; he scours Allrecipes.com, Recipezaar, and subscribes to Taste of Home in his reader. Whatever it is, he's willing to cook it so long as it produces delicious results.
As for me, I stick to baking, which I find relaxing; homemade rice-a-roni-like mixes, which are ready in just minutes; and recipes which call for dumping a few ingredients in the crockpot and eating it several hours later.
Here are the only 5 cookbooks we have; our "must-haves" when it comes to simple ingredients, simple prep, and even simple clean-up! Though we have delicious cookbooks, we reference these paper copies constantly and highly recommend at least the first 4 on the list for every simple chef (don't worry, the resulting dishes & flavors are anything but simple). Share your favorite cookbooks in the comments.
Note: Unlike some lists I write, these ARE ranked in order of how useful they are / how often I reference them. My husband would rank # 5 as # 1, but I don't consider it truly simple or worth buying unless you know (or are!) a serious chef.
1. Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day - I could write a whole post on this one, but let me just say this: a) I love baking, b) I even love kneading, but c) I don't have a lot of time for doing so. Enter Artisan Bread in 5, flour, yeast, water, and salt, and I get to give my husband the french, wheat, and even flatbreads he misses from back home without having to wash anything but a glass measuring cup, a plastic bowl, and a spoon. And it really does take just minutes. Simple.
2. The Ultimate Rice Cooker Cookbook - As the book's subtitle says, it's not just white, brown, and wild rices; pilafs, risottos, polenta, chilis, soups, porridges, puddings, and more all come from simple recipes in this great buy. Of course, you'll need a rice cooker for this one, but if you use it for this book's recipes plus those you can find online, a rice cooker's really a bargain home appliance.
for this one, but if you use it for this book's recipes plus those you can find 3. Top Secret Recipes books - We have the out-of-print "Classics," but I hear the others are just as good. Often called "copycat" recipes, we're often looking these up online: how do I make french fries like my favorite fast food chain? How about "The Soup Nazi"'s famous soups? Todd Wilbur, who authors the Top Secret Recipes books, puts out very complete collections of well-done imitation recipes, many of which allow us to make our favorites with 'normal' ingredients we can get here.
4. George Foreman Grill recipes - I haven't actually bought the cookbook, but the paper booklet that came with our grill has several tasty, simple, healthy recipes I cook again and again. We have the smaller grill, though with the popular removable plate grill currently $50 off on amazon (comes with a grill, griddle, waffle iron, sandwich maker, and baking plate), I'd sure like to upgrade!
, but the paper booklet that came with our grill has several tasty, simple, healthy recipes I cook again and again. We have the 
, though with the popular 
currently $50 off on amazon (comes with a grill, griddle, waffle iron, sandwich maker, and baking plate), I'd sure like to upgrade!5. On Cooking - Literally a textbook. 1440 pages. On sale for $80. It's linked if you're interested, but truly, this is the cookbook for the serious chef hobbyist. Nonetheless, my husband uses the book all the time, so I couldn't leave it out (plus, who's ever heard of a "top 4" list?). It is simple in its own way - diagrams and tutorials carefully explain how to use each cut of meat, herb, and piece of produce, so you won't be stuck with a "1 can of this, 2 packages of that" type recipe. If you want to understand the significance of each item you put in a dish and make recipes of your own, this may be your book. I have to admit to having read the baking chapter to get a better grasp on what goes on with the yeasts and leavenings and to troubleshoot some problems I had at our new high-altitude home. But let me repeat again... you'd better be serious about cooking for this one to be a good investment!
- Literally a textbook. 1440 pages. On 6, 7, 8, 9, 10? Your Turn!
What "simple" (in whatever way you define that word) cookbook do you reference all the time? Don't keep the secrets to yourself; let us know what we may be missing out on! Links to reviews of cookbooks on your blog are welcome as well. Just please, share!
Oscar the Pig goes to China! Ooops, that's not right, but since I live in China, I do love that part... before I give away the rest of the book, here's my review.
Who's it For?
Megan wrote Oscar the Pig for both kids and parents. Kids whose Moms are returning to work will identify with Oscar, and kids and parents alike will giggle at the cute artwork, including "piggy kisses" shared by Oscar and his Mommy pig. It's also good for people like me who love China, thanks to a special visit and introduction to a Chinese Panda whom Oscar befriends (I'm only partly joking)!
What's it Teach?
Oscar's panda friend, Chow Chow, reminds Oscar and your kids that even though Mommy's gone at work, she'll always come home and always loves her little piggy (or, kiddie :-D). Megan also wants the book to give moms practical techniques to help ease the transition, but I think a supplemental page in the book or online would better help us make the jump from 'what Oscar's mom did in the book' to 'what I should do every day.'
Is it Simple?
I love to see kids' books that are just that: kids'. Oscar the Pig teaches and comforts kids without any jargon (well, except one humorous reference for the parents about "bringing home the bacon"). The illustrations, apparently pencil and watercolor, are colorful but simple, the kind of art you could use to inspire your child to get creative: suggesting, "draw for me what fun things you will do while I'm gone!," could result in a beautiful, magical scene like Oscar experiences with his caretaker.
That said, and though I realize that books take a lot of work to produce and materials to prepare for publishing, I feel that this, like most new children's books, carries a bit of a high price tag for a 32-page story. It's still a great idea for families who are about to go through Oscar's situation, but I personally (who am not in that situation) would wait to buy it until some more books come out in the series; as a set, Oscar could become a child's favorite character.
Mom's Perspective
Pamela Kramer, whose little one is struggling with separation anxiety right now, wrote about the book on BabyCenter and shared that it's exactly what her family needed. Read her review here and draw your own conclusions!
...and you?
A few questions:
1) what's your favorite educational childrens' book?
2) what topic do you wish you could find a book on to help your kids?
3) is it just me, or are children's books really expensive!?
If you do purchase Oscar the Pig: Mommy Goes to Work, buy from Amazon through one of my links, and you'll be helping support Simple Makes while you're at it!
. It's the first in an upcoming series and is full of cute piggy illustrations like the one above.Reading, doodling, embroidering, and sewing. It's been a crafty, inspired, month!
Just before I left, I finished reading The Creative Family (SUPER book, even for no-kids-yet families like mine!), and completed my first project by hanging the Inspiration Line above. I hope it becomes more "inspiring" as time goes on!
This blue fabric from the left side of the inspiration line is now an almost-complete cell phone holder: I used the pattern from Doodle Stitching (which is FULL of cute patterns and ideas, most of which I actually want to make!) and plan to modify it (different design) for an iPod case to make my husband next week.
This brights-on-muslin embroidery from the right side of the inspiration line is my new sampler: I tried out sorts of stitches taught in Doodle Stitching, some of them which I already knew but also lots that were new to me. The book is FULL of beautifully illustrated photographs to teach a great assortment of stitches, both decorative and practical.
...and you?
What's your crafty side been up to this last month? Any Christmas-gift projects you're beginning? Share about 'em here, and post photos in our flickr group!
I'm back! Only until Sunday, though, so keep asking questions (about ANYthing!) for me to answer when I return.
Simple Pleasures
We saw the sites, ate the food, spent the money. My favorite moment, though, was a simple one... on a letterboxing hike, we found this beach and were the only ones there. We played in the sand, sorted through the seashells, climbed the rocks, and got our toes wet. Check out my flickr account for more trip highlights.
Coming Soon
Stay tuned for an upcoming post on packing efficiently (packing light!), in answer to Whitney's comment on the "Ask me!" post.
I'm also researching for a good cartooning how-to resource. I'd like to answer 's question, plus, inspired by reading The Creative Family, I might like to learn this creative art form myself!
Since I mentioned letterboxing, I'll go ahead and let you know that a series of posts is in the works and will be featured this November.
Other News
I checked my site stats this morning and was excited to see I'd been featured at ecoTumble, the Tumblr site from Lighter Footstep, a blog I subscribe to. (To quote: We think there’s a strong connection between “green” and simple living. So we love Lori Ann’s Simple Makes blog...) Thank you so much!
, I might like to learn this creative art form myself!For the first of the Simple Makes "weekly top 10," I'm focusing on crafting tutorials: not techniques, not a specific craft, but all-out, any-craft, fully-explained, well-written-and-illustrated tutorials!
1. Paper Weaving from Folding Trees
2. The Perfect Tea Towel from Sew Take a Hike
3. Making a Box from Revolution Board Game
4. Embroidery on Knitting from Pimp Stitch
5. Ribbon Labels from Silly Gilly
6. Photo Journal from five and a half
7. Undercover Crate from Paint in My Hair
8. Crochet Hook Roll-Up from CraftStylish
9. 5-minute Skirt from Angry Chicken
10. Cards and Tags with Stripes and Dots from CraftStylish
Enjoy!
...and you?
Have a link I might consider for a future top 10? Comment here or tag it to my delicious network with "top10". I'm also looking for a tutorial or pattern to make a simple case for my (new, as of yesterday!) cell phone... please share if you know of one!
Teach yourself to knit with the best beginner’s guide I’ve ever seen - and help some beautiful babies while you’re at it!
Save the Children’s Knit Kit gives you everything to get started in 5 free, full-color, printable, PDF pages: simplified knitting terms, a beginner’s guide with clear photographs for every step of knitting, and a pattern for your first project. Besides learning a new craft, the pattern is for a hat which, as explained in the Knit Kit, can save a newborn from dying of pneumonia.
...and you?
I’m heading to my local yarn store to find some nice wool. Want to join in? Post pictures of your hat-in-progress at our the Simple Makes flickr group. I’d like to feature some fellow hat-knitters in a future article; if you’re interested, post the photos with Creative Commons licensing and comment on this post with a link. Knitting questions & tips welcome in the comment section too. Enjoy!
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