The last few weeks, I've been reading through the forums/teams on Etsy and I've noticed several topics about trades.  Well, I trade quite a bit on Etsy and love it! (I would love to always have cold - hard cash, but trading has allowed me to get so many amazing products and meet some truly wonderful people, that I feel I've gain way more trading.)
Now, I don't really want to get into the pros and cons of trading...
Honestly, it works for me, but I know it might not work for another Etsy seller.  I usually only participate in a couple trade events throughout the year, so I don't short myself too much on shipping costs.
What I really wanted to start talking about, are some of the terrific things I've gotten through my trades and the fabulous shops I have found!

One of the very first trades I did, was with the shop Torch and Hammer, which is owned by Amanda...
Now I'll be honest, I LOVE jewelry, especially necklaces! (Unfortunately, I can't wear earrings and I don't like to wear a lot of rings or bracelets, so necklaces are my one piece of statement jewelry that I can wear on a regular basis.)  I had a lot of fun looking through Amanda's shop.
The most difficult part of the trade was narrowing down exactly what I wanted. (There were so many wonderful things I wanted, it was really hard to choose.)  I finally made my decision and chose a lovely copper necklace.  The pendant was hand stamped with a mountain and stars design and it hung from a lovely, 18 inch ball chain. (I actually picked the necklace out as a Christmas gift for my niece, but I just fell in love with it.  Don't worry, I found a different lovely necklace for her.)
Anyway, I've worn the necklace quite a bit and it has held up beautifully!  It goes wonderful with pretty much everything I wear, which is mainly jeans and a sweater or T-Shirt.
A few months later, I traded with Amanda again, this time for my birthday. (My husband actually handled most of the trade.  He even set up an Etsy account, so he could trade for the necklace he found.)  It was really great of Amanda to trade with us again!
Anyway, I got another gorgeous necklace!  In this necklace, the focal piece was made from polymer clay, which was set in copper bezel, then stamped, baked, painted and polished.  The chain is copper - colored and closes with a toggle clasp. (The pendant says HOPE and has a lovely copper - colored flower.)
This necklace is breathtaking!  I was so happy when I received it, I couldn't have asked for a better birthday present!  I wear it a lot and it has held up very well.  Again, it is a piece that goes with pretty much anything I wear. (It looks really nice with casual clothes or dressy clothes.)
Amanda is really great about trading, but honestly, everything in her shop is so beautiful, I would gladly purchase any item!
So, if you haven't checked out her shop, you definitely should: http://www.etsy.com/shop/torchandhammer
You will not be disappointed!

For the last couple weeks, I've been working really hard getting a new section in my shop ready for listing. (It's actually been a bit more difficult then I expected.)
I had originally planned on opening a second Etsy shop, but after talking with my hubby and fellow Etsy shop owners, I decided making a new shop section would work better.  I am really excited about this new section and new product line, that I just had to share something with someone...
And what better place, then here!

The new section will be called "The Vanilla Shack" and this section is going to be dedicated to the wonderful scent of vanilla!  Vanilla is my absolute favorite fragrance and I am super excited to share this love with all my customers.
In "The Vanilla Shack" section, all candles made will be dye free and of course, high quality fragrance oils will be used!
I have a few pictures of one of the first candles that will be posted:

Anyone that knows me, knows I love my cats and I just adore finding new things to keep them entertained...
Well, we have one cat, Cooper, that is almost 2 years old and absolutely loves to play.  Unfortunately, my other cats DO NOT enjoy playing with him. (Who could blame them, though, Cooper is about 14 pounds of fluff, claws and teeth and he doesn't seem to realize just how big he is or how rough he is playing.)
So, we've tried to find other things for Cooper to play with...
He destroys most toys, though.  He LOVES feathers (and birds), well, he actually loves to KILL feathers!  He eats them. (I don't like him eating them, because of the end results.)
He loves to play with balls, but he always bats them under our couch, where they are never to be seen again.
So, we've bought several different "chase toys" for him. (You know, the plastic disk with a ball in it or around it that the cats bat with their paws.)
He loves those toys!

This past weekend, we were doing our weekly shopping and found a "chase toy" that has 2 balls for the cats to bat at and one of the balls makes BIRD noises! 
We had to get it, since Cooper loves the birds so very much! (I knew he would go bonkers for it!)
He loves it and so do my other, older cats. (The bird noises really draw them in.)
You can find the toy here: Birdie Chase Toy
This is seriously one of the best toys we've gotten! (Of course, we couldn't put the feathers in the middle, well we tried, they lasted a whole 2 minutes before Cooper pulled them out and started eating them.)

With the end of January today, February and Valentine's Day are coming closer...
Honestly, my husband and I don't usually do a lot for V-Day, because he is usually at work and we don't really get to spend the day together.  That's no different this year, but I still thought I would try to do something special for my hubby this year.
I have recently started making soap (and I'm enjoying it quite a bit), but my hubby doesn't like bar soap. (Even though I bought fish shaped soap just for him...oh well...)  Well, I came across liquid soap base and I thought that would be a perfect gift for him.  I could make him special soap, with a scent that I know he'll love.
Still not sure if it is a good idea, so I thought I would post about it here...
What type of V-Day gifts are you planning on giving?  Think a special handmade gift would be a good idea?

Today, a past customer of mine contacted me, to find out my method for cleaning out soy wax jar candles...
So, I figured I would post my method on here, too. (In case anyone else wanted to know how to clean their jar candles.)
(Please note, this method has only be tested on soy and palm wax candles in glass jars.)

How I clean my soy wax mason jar candles?
-I get an old pot (nothing huge, but big enough to hold water and the candle) and place about a 1 - 3 cups of water in the pot. (The amount of water depends on the size of the pot and the size of the candle, but the water should just cover the amount of wax that is left in the jar.)
-Then start boiling the water. (I leave my jar in the pot, so it gets used to the temperature increase.)
-Let the water boil. I use a fork to check on the wax remaining to see if it is turning to liquid.
-Once the wax has started to melt, I pull my garbage can to me and start to dump out the wax. (I use my husband's tongs that he uses for grilling, to lift out the jar and pour the wax.) Be careful when you're dumping the wax, the jar and wax will be very hot.
(If there is a still a chunk of wax, I'll break it up with the fork and either lift it right out, or put it back in the boiling pot to melt down.)
-To get the wick tab out, I use the fork to move it around, while it is in the boiling water. It will usually come right up and I just throw the tab in the garbage. (Use the fork to pull the tab out of the jar, because it too, will be very hot.)
-Once all the wax is out of the jar (or most of it is out), I put the jar in the sink and run hot water and soap into it. (I just use whatever dish soap I have on hand.) I let it sit for a few minute to cool off and then I scrub it with a scrubby pad, hot water and soap.
-Let it dry and scrub it again if there is any residue left.


**Just please remember to be careful during this entire process, the water will be boiling and the wax will be very hot!  Make sure to use hot pads and tongs (and a fork) to keep yourself from getting burned.