20% OFF EVERYTHING SALE NOW ON!!!!

We're having a 20% OFF EVERYTHING SALE in our Madeit shop at the moment.  It will be on for a short time only, so don't miss out on some of our crazy handemade bargains!  

Need something for Christmas - pick it up now!  

Present for a new born - check out our hand knitted teddies!!

All prices are already reduced, so just pop them in your cart and check them out :0)

We need lots of space for new items chock full of handmade goodness!!

Have fun!!!

MooBeeTees Destash - Our new Craftumi Store

It's been a little while between posts, but a lot has been going on in the world of MooBeeTees!  One of the developments is that we have opened a Craftumi store to help us destash - our craft spaces need a little bit of clearing out.  Here's a taste of what is currently starring in store:

So if you are wanting to add to your own supplies or are looking to try something new, you might be able to grab yourself a bargain at MooBeeTees Destash :0)

Bluebirds of Happiness...

triesteprusso | cherylasmith |  blackbaroque | crazyfoxstudio | freshline | asherjasper | chetanddot | grammieshats

You may have noticed that I have a bit of a fondness for Bluebirds (You hadn't?  Check out my logo!).  So I decided to devote this weeks 'must haves' to some crafters who share my love of the blue winged bird and have created little crafty tributes to them.  I hope you like them as much as I do :0)

Father's Day is Coming...

 
I know it's still a little way off, but how cool is this gift box!  I think it would be great for the kids to make (with a bit of adult help) and Dad can continue to use it after Father's Day has gone by!

You have to love a simple, eco, kid friendly, use again gift box!
 

Pedal Power...

 the smallest forrest | polkadotrabbit | sweet simplicitee | luckyduct | potatopotato | opart | freebirdvelo | galstudio 

Like most of the world (well, I'm sure most of the world is watching), I am absolutely glued to the TV watching Le Tour de France.  Whilst it means I do look a little bleary eyed in the morning (on average 10pm - 1am), I'm loving cycling around France from my lounge, looking at the country side.  It's like a dynamic postcard that keeps surprising me everytime we turn a corner.

So keeping in tune with le tour, today's crafting wonders are inspired by all things franco-cycle!

It's GIVEAWAY Time...

This Giveaway is now Closed :0)
Giveaway!!

Did I mention that we're having a giveaway??

Thank you to everyone who took part in the poll that was held on our Facebook page.  Although the Octopus was a one vote winner, we have decided to go with response number two which was a gift voucher (but if you want an octopus we'll make one available!!)

It's easy and open to all MooBeeTees followers world-wide.

All you need to do is this:

1. Visit MooBeeTees and tell us what you want to see us make more of,

and

2. What you want us to stop making :0)

That's it - two entries into the giveaway right there.

If you would like more entries you can also do the following:

3. Follow our Blog (although that might encourage us to write more!)

4. Follow us on Twitter (moobeetees - it's not tricky!)

5. Retweet/Tweet about our giveaway on twitter (it's only one extra entry, but it will mean great karma points for helping us out!)

 Tweet

There's another three entries!

Make sure you post each of your entries seperately in the comments below and don't to forget to include your email address at least once.

The winner will be selected randomly using www.random.org.

The giveaway will finish at 5:00pm, 30 May 2011 AEST.

Good Luck!

Easter Lovlies - Top 5 Easter Picks

I find that the major holidays are an opportunity to really let crafty people play their 'A' game.  

If you have a look through MadeIt or Etsy, you are surrounded by themed holiday items; some traditional, others way out there!  However all of them are great fun!!  

Thanks to the talented crafters on MadeIt, here are my Top 5 Easter Picks for this year :0)

gorgieporgie

Chantal Vincent Art

erin dove accessories

plushka

Little Spunky Monkey

A Little Bit of Cuteness to Brighten Your Day!

Nothing makes me smile more than a little bit of 'cute'.  So here are some quick cuties to give your day a bit of fun and happinesss :0)

Enjoy!

matouenpeluche

SweetieBird

pocketcarnival

Ihearttosew

littlemoandfriends

Why it's Important to Support Handmade

How did you spend your Saturday?

I spent mine in the Oakleigh RSL, at a wonderful indoor boutique art and craft market called The Handmade Show.  Of all the markets in the world this one means the most to me.

Why,  I hear you ask?

It means a lot because it is coordinated by stallholders for stallholders - in particular Creations by Bobbie Mac (Bobbie), EP Designs (Elena), Vintage Sew & So (Kerri), Red Letter Studio (Samone) and moi.  Our aim is to create a small, sustainable market that stallholders enjoy being a part of and that brings the collective talents of the art/craft world to the suburban public.  

It is a great market to dip your toe in the craft market waters - give it a go, as they say - and have an opportunity to talk to other stallholders and increase your confidence.  It's also a lovely market for more experienced stallholders to share their talents.  We try to keep our stall fees very low to make it as worthwhile as possible for everyone involved.  We also want our stallholders to make sales and increase their exposure - of course ;0)

But we can't do it without your help.  Whether you be a stallholder or a shopper WE NEED YOU!  

In order to keep the interest up, we need you to help support our show and ultimately support the handmade community.  That means visiting us on market days, letting friends know that we are on, maybe even buying an item or two.  It is hard work bringing handmade to the community and many markets find it hard to sustain the momentum needed to do it - we are all mums, workers, crafters, artists, domestic goddesses, girlfriends, etc - so we do what we do because we love it.

But, we do need your help.  The next time you see an ad for a craft market, take a couple of hours out of your day and go and visit it.  Whether it be at a school, a church hall or a large town hall, someone has put the effort in to share this with you, so support Handmade and  help us all.

For more information on The Handmade Show click here.

Pincushions - Works Of Art You Can Stick Pins In!

By now, many of you will know that I recently purchased a wonderful handmade, felt pincushion from a fellow Etsy seller That Pincushion Place.  I have been waiting with bated breath for my parcel to arrive from the UK and today it did!  I was greeted by a lovely box on the doorstep just waiting for me to open it up and examine it's contents.  So scissors at the ready I held my breath and carefully opened the box.

I was not dissappointed!

There it was in all of it's 8" glory.  My pincushion.  Yay!!  I am completely gobsmacked by the amount of time and work that has obviously gone into creating this little masterpiece.  It got me thinking though.  What other pincushions are out there defined purely by utalitarian ideals.  What other little works of art are lurking in the functional sections of all craft/auction sites under 'sewing paraphenalia'?

So I went on a search and this is what I found - true pieces of art!!

L to R Top: 1) yifatiii, 2) minibytes, 3) detailsbydes, 4) yoorika

L to R Bottom: 1) BayColonyDesigns, 2) FatCatCrafts, 3) Dollydrip, 4) Sairaku

The Handmade Show - Our Baby is Now Walking :0)

After obsessing about it for the past three weeks, I'm proud to say that our baby is no longer crawling, and is now walking :0)

We're still a little tentative - it's step-by-step, but we've got our pre-walkers on and we're giving it a darn good shot.  Despite the rain that threatened to wash us out in the morning, we all made it to The Handmade Show and we set up lots of fabulous stalls.  I was so proud to see all of the hard work that had gone into producing something that got lots of lovely compliments on the day.  There's still a lot of work ahead of us, but I think we did a great job today.

A big thank-you to all of our stall holders and my thanks to the committee lovlies: Elena, Samone, Bobbie, Jade and Kerri  - muah xxxx

And now for some photos!!

MooBeeTees (that's me!!)

Ladybugs and Daisychains and Red Letter Studio

Mignonne

Ladies who Lunch (at the best markets!)

We all hope to see you all at the next market on the
20 November 2010!!

The Handmade Show - Blood Sweat and, hopefully not, Tears!!

For those of you who may have been down a mineshaft with 34 Chilean miners over the last couple of months, you may have missed the fact the The Handmade Show is expericencing a rebirth.  The original concept of the wonderful Celeste Wong, The Handmade Show is a boutique crafters' and artisans' market which is now being lovingly looked after by a group of creative, hardworking 'nuts' including my good self.

(Note: Calling us 'Nuts' is, of course, a term of endearment!)

We are excited to be holding the first of these rebirthed Shows this coming Saturday, 16 October - at the Oakleigh-Carnegie RSL (Dummond St, Oakleigh, 3166).

As mentioned earlier, we are a boutique market so we are able to bring you some amazing items in a very intimate environment - no walking for hours to get from one end to the other - it's all in one spot AND it's INDOORS!!!  Particularly good since this weekends forecast is a little wet!

Some of the fantastic stallholders coming to the market include:

• Rosa May Creations
• Mignonne
• Ladybugs & Daisychains
• Spikey Rose jewellery design
• Jooce Bath n Body
• Found n Bound
• Vintage Sew and Sew
• EP Designs
• Holi Goddess
• Creations by Bobbie Mac
• Red Letter Studio

And did I mention there is a GIVEAWAY?  Just turn up and we give you the chance to win a Gift Voucher to spend at the November market.  Purchase something and we give you bonus entries in the draw for the Gift Voucher - how good is that???

I hope that we see some of you on Saturday - please come up and say hello - or I hope we see you as a stallholder in the future! 

Cheers!!

 

Does this remind you of anything?

Come on, we've all been there :0)

This just made me laugh.  And then want to go tidy!!

HOW TO: Make a Collage

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

 A collage is a technique of composing work of art by pasting on one surface numerous materials not usually associated with each other. Making a collage is fun, easy, and creative!  You are going to make a collage to represent who you are.  What kind of things do you like?  What are  my hobbies, favorite colors, and favorite singers? You can put anything that you love into your collage! Be creative! It's about things that interest you!

Steps

1. Collect materials for your collage, and find inspiration in them.
   • Traditional collage materials include scraps of paper and other flat materials: newspaper and magazine clippings, shopping bags, photographs (or photocopies of photographs), wallpaper, and foil.
   • Objects such as string, beads, feathers, and fabric.
   • Collage may encompass images, text, solid colors, or a mixture of these.  You may want a recognizable image or word, or simply a suggestion, feel, color, or texture.
   • Use what you have.  Start from available materials and work out from there.
   • Create what you don't have.  Since collage is an assemblage or blend of elements, it lends itself well to mixed media.  You could paint, draw, stamp, or stencil in between the elements you find, or cover over them.
   • Don't rule out unusual materials, like sandpaper, blurry photographs, etc.
2. Choose a base for your collage. The base is usually flat paper or poster board because these are easiest to work with.
   • The background does not have to be white, and it does not have to be plain. The background could be a page from a magazine or book, a large photograph, or a page of text.  Paint or draw on it, or cover over it with anything that glue will stick to.
3. Prepare the base by cutting the base to the desired size and shape.  Add any decorations or embellishments you want to the background.
4. Use scissors. to cut out pieces for your collage. Try cutting your scraps into unusual shapes, cutting out words or letters from a variety of sources to make phrases on your collage.
   • Cut out a whole picture, an identifiable part, or just enough to evoke texture, colour or feeling.
   • Cut different shapes for both words and images.
5. Try tearing materials too.  The rough, random edges give parts of your collage a different character than cutouts.
6. Arrange the items on your background.
   • Play with the different elements and don't be afraid to make this part a messy process.  Serendipity may hand you something interesting that you hadn't thought of.
7. Apply glue to each item.
   • You don’t have to cover the whole surface if you don’t want to, and not every piece has to be glued flat on the collage.  You can fold or crumple pieces of paper, for example, to get interesting textures.
8. Let the finished collage dry completely.  Depending on the glue(s) you used, you may need to let the collage dry for a few hours or more than a day.

 Tips

• Take your time.  Be patient and carefully choose and arrange your materials.
• A collage is a great opportunity to experiment.  Experiment with color, space, texture, arrangement, juxtaposition, and message.
• If you enjoy image editing, try an electronic collage.  You have the ability to change scale, transparency, clarity, tone color, and many other qualities of images you manipulate electronically.  You can also combine digital and paper image editing by printing edited images to include in a paper collage.
• If the materials on your collage do not stick perfectly after gluing, you can brush a diluted glue mixture (about 3 parts water to 1 part glue) over the whole collage once it is finished.  You can also use this technique to seal the collage.
• You can try mixing your glue with water to make it easier to work with.  Try applying it with a brush.  You may find it helps with the handling.
• Only use glues that are right for the materials you are pasting.  Some glues simply won’t hold certain materials, and some very strong glues may quickly damage your collage pieces.  Rubber cement is great because it doesn't wrinkle paper and is very strong.
• If you want to plan out your collage, you can lay the pieces down on the surface without glue, rearranging them until you have it just right.  Then take a picture of the collage so you will know how to assemble it.
• Make your collage however you want it, and don't be afraid to experiment with different techniques, images, etc.
• A three-dimensional art piece created by combining found materials may be called an assemblage.
• Let your mind run free.  Take pictures and put them all together.  Express yourself!
• Be random.  Do not paste items in a straight line.

 Be careful!

• Take appropriate precautions with scissors and glue.
• Put down newspaper or plastic, especially if you are working with liquid glue or paint.Make sure you don't waste it!

 

Things You'll Need

• Glue/paste.
• Materials
• Scissors or a craft knife
• A base, such as a piece of stiff paper or newspaper

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Make a Collage.  All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

What comes First - Family or Craft?

Now this might seem a fairly simple, if not odd, question to ask.  Of course, we say, family comes first.  Who could possible answer otherwise.

Hmm.  I'm starting to suspect me.

MY FAMILY TREE : BragAboutIt

Am I the only one who finds themselves saying just one more minute as the kids look for homework help?

Am I the only one who quietly fumes when hubby/partner/girlfriend/boyfriend asks what's for tea, assuming that you are the one who is supposed to drop everything (crafty) and go and make it?

Am I the only one who would rather go to jail than go on a family drive - especially when I have a market the following weekend and stock levels are low?

Has my 'hobby' started to mean more to me than my loved ones? 

custom family tree : cozyblue

Does this make me a bad person (I suspect not, but it does add to the drama)?

That's five questions in a row - none of them easily answered.  What do you think?  Do you put off family in order to finish craft?

How sneaky are you in order to do this?

Family or Craft - what do you think????

MooBeeView #10 - Coming Soon!!

I'm pleased to announce that MooBeeView #10 will feature Topaz Turtle - there may even be a little giveaway in it for you!  Keep your eyes peeled...

January 2010 Blog Post Wordle

As promised here are my January Blog Posts as a Wordle - just love it!  See if you can find yourself in the midst of all the words - the bigger you are the more you have been mentioned!

If you want to appear 'BIG' on my wordle, let me know and I'll do a MooBeeView with you - it's always great fun to share what we do with others.

Thanks to Wordle for allowing me to have some fun with my words!  For your own fun access Wordle via: http://www.wordle.net/.