Remember the cupcake cookies and chocolate turtles?

Karma is alive and well in Leeds - writing about how wonderful sweeties are and then wondering if they would make it through the post might sound like begging, but I really didn't expect to get two lovely parcels of treats.

I feel I'm doing the chocolate turtle lady a disservice as I didn't get any photos - this is because I ate them all before I even thought about it. They were too delicious. Luckily I remembered this, and took photos of the cupcake cookies before I ate more than one.

Adorable Cupcake Cookies by TabbyCat13





They're just as beautiful in real life (even if I'm not, sheesh look at my eye bags...) - soft and buttery shortbread, not too sweet icing, and they lasted all of, oh two minutes?

Chewy Vanilla Caramel Pretzel Twisted Turtles by BlissCandies



Not my photo of the turtles obviously, but they did stay intact through the post. American chocolate isn't quite as sweet as ours, so on its own I'm not a huge fan - but stick something salty in it and it's perfect. Why don't they make chocolate pretzels in England? The combination of the caramel and the pretzel with the chocolate is really like nothing else you can get in the UK, and has caused me to think about experimenting with my usual peanut butter recipe.

Etsy Yart Sale

I love this idea! Until June 14th on Etsy, if you search for 'yart' you get a whole host of special offers!

YARD SALE + ART = YART SALE!

Every seller involved in the Yart Sale offers special offers like free shipping, freebies or buy one get one free etc - I've made a sale already, and my shop has had lots more views. Some people have got into the spirit of the Yart sale, while I feel some people are just using the tag/title to get more views, and offering little in value (usually by hiking up their shipping). I'll only be featuring those who are offering considerable savings on regular prices, or who offer free shipping on things which are expensive to post.

Click here to search on Etsy, with the results sorted from low price to high

I've been looking at what is on offer this morning, and here are my five favourite things, as well as one of mine.



Obviously first up is my vintage shoe - it's free shipping in the UK, and reduced shipping overseas. I painted this a while ago, and I really like it, I can't understand why it hasn't been snapped up yet!

Loving you by LUIZAVIZOLI



Ok, so this isn't cheap, but it's beautiful. I love the swirls in this lady's work, they look like buttons! I nearly didn't feature this, as she doesn't ship outside the US, but I couldn't resist the colours.

Handmade red plaid owl friend by JennyTheArtist



This little owl friend is 50% off, at a very reasonable $2, with decent priced shipping. He's really cute, so I hope he finds a new home.

Roll the Dice soap by sunbasilgarden



It's not often I get excited about handmade soap. I have tons of lush soap we haven't used, because I love liquid soap. However, these are amazing, so perfectly made, and they're vegan, AND they smell of liquorice. At a very reasonable $2 with international shipping, they get my vote.

Amigurumi Banana by davenevanxaviour



Ah,knitted food. The reason I found Etsy in the first place. Can't really say anything more, except they're adorable!

Upcycled Bottle Caps Candy Notebook by AprilAdriance



I'd never heard the term upcycling before Etsy, but I really love the idea of taking something which would otherwise be thrown away/recycled and using it for a new purpose. There are lots of upcycled journals on Etsy, but this is the cheapest in the Yart sale, so congrats!

Cupcakes - the nation's favourite

Cupcakes are the perfect food design. I've discussed it before with my friend Cakey, who originally made me see the light. Cherries are beautiful, but atop a cupcake, they are divine.

Cupcakes abound all over Etsy, and I don't just mean in my shop. Here are my favourite picks of Etsy finds which I wish I had the money and space for.

Obviously I'm starting with my own, or there would be little point in having this promotional blog really. Also it's the only one which is part sea creature.

Octopus Cupcake



Cupcake Quilt by QuiltingDiva



This adorable quilt hanging reminds me of something my Mum would make. It has cupcakes, cherries and sweets, the best designed food you can hope to draw.

Cupcake Card by Modernradar

I really love the way this cupcake is drawn, with the retro style simple black lines. It's kooky and nothing like I've seen elsewhere.

Cupcake Scarf by Twinkiechan

I talked about this the other day, but I just can't talk about cupcakes on Etsy without drooling over this again.

Cupcake Kitty shirt by JesterFunnyBooks

Whilst I don't really want this t-shirt, I love the design. Anyone who mixes animals/people with cakes is ok by me.

Keep Calm and have a Cupcake plaque by JennysBakeShop

Retro, red, cupcakes. I want this for my kitchen.

My Glamorous Crafty Girls Centre Spread

I've been planning this piece of art for weeks now, in which I paint my 3 favourite crafty girls. I can't decide whether to give them all a shop, or market stalls, or just have them sitting round a table laughing.

In the meantime, I've decided to use this blog as a sort of Etsy review place. I'm sick of never being able to get a treasury to share my favourite things, so instead, I'll be doing that here.

So in order to combine these two decisions, today we have a centre spread of the three most inspiring ladies I've come across, on flickr, live journal, etsy and blogspot.

1. Sickforcute

Lindsay, who you might know better as Kid Pirate, has been developing Sick For Cute for a while, and finally launched it earlier this year. She sells t-shirts, jewellery, totes and just about everything on here is something I want to own.

I have a few things, mainly through trading with my paintings as I'm lucky enough that she'll agree to do that :) - everything has been good quality, well made, and always gets attention, whether it's the Alice tote bag I used at the wholesalers, or the fantastic 'kokeshi doll' tee. At the minute I'm awaiting my cupcake bag and my next trade will definitely be for something with the Hi Robot on it.

website - http://sickforcute.com/ - for everything Lindsay sells, whether made by her, or other people - it's a treasure trove!

etsy - http://emandsprout.etsy.com/ for cute shoes and accessories

etsy - http://kidpirate.etsy.com/ - for cute tees and tote bags

2. Twinkiechan

I first heard of Twinkiechan on eBay, where her amazing crocheted food scarves often go for a fortune... as well they should! Each one is lovingly crafted with enthusiasm, and with pom poms, sprinkles and whimsy added.

However, there are affordable things from Twinkiechan's etsy shop if you like her scarves but just don't have the spare cash. She's currently having a sale, and this truffle shaped tissue box cover is still available, as well as a lot of cute-itility packs. If you fancy a small piece of goodness, her sugar cookie pin is less than $30. However, I'm still holding out for hope that one day I'll either have enough money, or a good enough trade-worthy object, to get a cupcake scarf

website - http://twinkiechan.com/ - information about the woman herself, her inspiration, and where she likes to shop

etsy - http://twinkiechan.etsy.com/ - regualrly updated with new treats

Argh! I forgot she currently has popcorn themed items on ebay! They're over here, and so cute - http://shop.ebay.com/merchant/twinkiechan

3. Lovelylildeer

Becky is slightly different from the other two ladies here. She's probably best known for her Dollyday jewellery. I still wear my Christmas pudding necklace every Christmas. Now she's more likely to be found blogging about what she's been making or buying on Blogspot.

I've been lucky enough that she's traded with me for some paintings of her cats and dogs. I have necklaces with a gingerbread man and a red/white sweet, as well as brooches which look likea chocolate chip cookie and an oreo with pink icing. My favourite will always be my Jammy dodger necklace (see below)

Blog - http://alovelylittledeer.blogspot.com/ - if you like sweet homely things, want to see what someone else is making and baking, and good clean fun, I'd highly recommend Becky's blog

You might notice these ladies pop up on each other's websites. Twinkiechan and Becky model for Lindsay, and all three of them can be found on each others websites wearing the things they've swapped. This is partly why I find it all so amazing. I wish the real life was more like the crafty circles online!

Treasury

I was told today I was featured in a treasury, so I clicked the link. It's not an Etsy treasury, but I like the idea, as I can NEVER get an Etsy treasury myself, so I fancy trying it!

Have a look - http://roseworkstreasury.blogspot.com/2009/04/dance-in-honor-of-frankie-manning.html

It's this painting that is featured, which is still for sale, despite 2 price decreases

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=byhand.me&listing_id=20323339

Folksy

The wonderful Kim of Finest Imaginary has introduced me to Folksy

Life's Big Canvas now has a shop there, which is awesome because I don't have to keep trying to work out conversions of dollars to sterling.

http://www.folksy.com/shops/pesky33

There's only one on there now, but I'm going to add new paintings there instead of Etsy, and just see how it goes.

I'm having a sale on Etsy at the minute, so feel free to have a look and see if there's anything you've been coveting which is now reduced

http://pesky33.etsy.com

Featured in an Etsy treasury!

First time featured in a treasury, and it's based on owls! I'm in the top row

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=38861

Etsy listings added (and reshuffled)