Have you joined the Flickr group yet?

Come add yourself to the list of wonderful crafter's and get featured in a Friday post! http://flickr.com/groups/sweetfigments I want to see all of your St. Patrick's Day items in the pool next week!

1. Minty Vintage Buttons, 2. New rings, 3. Marriage, 4. Staci's Frog, 5. checkbook cover, 6. Untitled, 7. bluedonationskull, 8. Double Weeko Bag, 9. Rosa (to the back)

♥
Connie

Alchemic Muse Soap

One day I stumbled upon an interesting soap shop on Etsy, Alchemic Muse. I am a bona-fide soap stalker. I love reading about it, smelling it, using it and of course, buying it! I find it hard to choose scented items online without ever taking a whiff, but Alchemic Muse solves that problem by offering a super awesome Soap Sampler.



You can choose up to four different scents from a selection of sixteen choices for 6 dollars. This is a great deal for those that do not want to fully commit to one bar without ever testing it. My four soaps arrived extremely fast. Each mini bar lasted a few showers. After using them I found my favorites: Honey Balsalm and Arctic Black Tea. I ordered two full bars right away.





The Honey Balsalm has the softest smell. The scent lingers in the bathroom after a shower, and I find this to be an added bonus. There is a golden glimmer to the soap as well which makes it shimmer. The Arctic Black Tea is crisp, and has the most beautiful blue color. The tiny pieces of black tea act as an exfoliant which I find helpful for those rough spots. If you're looking for some lush new soap without spending a lot of money - I would suggest the Soap Sampler for its great value and quality.

Happy Bathing!

XOXO,
Brandy

*All images provided by Alchemic Muse*

It's Raining, It's Pouring

It's the wet season here in Hawaii, and I seem to keep getting myself caught out in the rain. I think it's about time to invest in a cute umbrella. These vintage options are both fun (as in extremely cute) and functional. Perfect.

spiffy green umbrella from Rocky Mountain Retro
vintage bubble umbrella from Lisa's Retro Style
vintage pink umbrella from Jill Ruth & Co.

xo, Caroline

♪Ah, sweet Figstory of life, at last i've found you!

yeah, ok, so i'm a little off. but hey, titles are supposed to grab you, aren't they?
=(>_)>

anyway, hullo. *waves*
this is yobo, and i'm going to be guesting here on wednesdays with my almosteries**.
i'll be featuring crafters and artists from etsy.com, treasury-style (with links of course).
generally there will be some kind of theme, but not always.
sometimes it's just that there's too much coolness abounding not to make an almostery.

speaking of themes, if you haven't guessed from the post title, i chose to do an homage à figue for my first guest-ery. in my (possibly psychotic) state of "omg what should i do for my first guest-ery?" wonderment, i thought, well bloody he#, it's called Sweet Figments, isn't it? show off some figs! and so the almostery was born.

incidentally, do you know how many pages of things you get if you search on etsy with a term as innocuous as "fig"? 29 pages, if you do "All items: tags, titles''.
i didn't want to exclude vintage or, well, anything, really. you never know if you'll find the coolest vintage fig-leaf-adorned statue of michaelangelo's david (for the record, i didn't find one of those, but you can bet that i sure was lookin' for one. ;p)....... yeah, uhm.....^^;
(if you're wondering when i'm going to stop talking and get to the almostery, that time is now.)


from top left to bottom right:
bullfinch barbury, Jet James, love n' fresh, bonghi natura (alt)
Drip Stick, sweet anthem, valcox, photogencia (alt)
leaves of glass, photos 4 pandas, alicia lynn, photoish (alt)
wiggle perfume, Brownies Photos, ophelias apothecary, gigi gibson (alt)

so are you all figged out yet?
have you been figged to death?
are you craving some figgy-pudding?
have you found yourself singing 'oh sweet FIG-story of life, at last i've fouuuuund yooooooooooou'? are you now?
was it really a fig-for-all?
can i possibly make any more fig jokes?
.....

.....

.....
(well, probably on that last one, but i'll spare you all my figged-in-the-head humour....[yeah, couldn't resist that one. sorry])


**what's an almostery, you ask?
well, you know the treasuries on etsy.com right? how they always seem to pop when you aren't looking? gets on your nerves, doesn't it? especially when you have a good idea, right? well, almosteries are my answer. more infos here: [link]


ok, i think i've shamelessly murdered enough of you with my terrible attempts at puns. see you next week!
--yobo

I heart you: emilyryan

It's not really a secret that I am insanely jealous of anyone who has the ability to design clothing. I would kill to have such an incredible skill but unfortunately, I don't have the patience to learn all the theory that goes with it. I'm only interested in the hands on part.

I discovered emilyryan's shop a few weeks ago while browsing through the clothing sections of Etsy. What caught my eye about her work was the way she incorporated ruffles and pleats into her pieces. I've never seen anyone be so creative with it. Plus having a great model sure doesn't hurt! Everything in the shop has such a warm and cozy feel to it that I wish I had discovered her earlier in the winter season so I could have picked up a few pieces for myself! I'm hoping for some lighter spring pieces soon :)

Here are my favs:

Tutorial Tuesday: Soft Baby Cube from London Mummy

Hey Everyone,

It's Connie! I have decided to add a new column to the blog called "Tutorial Tuesday's". Every Tuesday I will post a new tutorial featuring a different and popular types of crafts. If you've got a tutorial you love or one you've written and want to share feel free to email me a link to it at sweetfigments@hotmail.com

This week's tute for a "Soft Baby Cube" is brought to you by Esther of London Mummy to view the full tutorial click here. It's a great project for any beginner at sewing. You can visit her blog for more great tutorials.





--------------------------
Happy sewing!
♥
Connie

Good Morning!

You may have noticed that Sweet Figments got a makeover during the weekend! I've been meaning to do it for a while now but I have been both sick and busy with my shops. I have added navigation to the top banner which literally took me 3 hours to figure out. haha I hope you like it!

Something else you may or may not have noticed, I have purchased a domain name for the blog at http://sweetfigments.com so it's easier for everyone to access and remember!

Joining us later this week will be some new guest writers. Please welcome them and say hello!

♥
Connie

Ipod fever!

Seems like these days absolutely everyone has an iPod! It's kind of crazy how popular it's gotten over the years. I'm kind of wishing for them to come out with a purple one so I can get it but I already have a first generation nano in black which I hardly ever use since I stopped going to the gym. Anyways, I thought it would be fitting with the blog makeover to feature some iPod accessories :)

Berry red iPod pocket by NataJane

iPod earphone tidy wrap winder rabbit by nothingelegant


Taka ninja iPhone leather case by leatherprince


Alice - iPod nano Case AN06 by maryjmaalouf

Kitty cat iPhone iPod iTouch cozy by VintageCoquette

I'm late posting!

Seems like a pattern with me lately. I'll have to work on that!


1. Bunny Hop Bracelet, 2. Afternoon Snack Bracelet, fimo polymer clay, 3. hel_no2_5, 4. Petite Enchated Forest - Women Scarflette, scarf, fiber arts, unique jewelry in Pink Mist, 5. Sealed With a Kiss, 6. Primitive Bunnies in a Vegetable Garden, 7. Owl Love You Forever - love - anniversary - wedding, 8. 3in1 Organizer Purse (Breeze Blossom Buds), 9. The Green Leaves Clutch

Collected by Tas-ka

I already posted about this favorite web shop on my own personal blog, but it is just too good to not share here as well. The Dutch based, Collected by Tas-ka carries an adorable (and affordable) selection of new and vintage merchandise. The vintage offerings are always beautiful and desirable, and I cannot stop dropping in to see what new (old) gems have been added most recently. 

Furthermore, the styling and photos are always worth a look for the inspiration alone. More good news: they ship worldwide. I insist you stop in for a look post haste!

vintage children's chairs

vintage car with wooden blocks

vintage spice rack

xo, Caroline

I'm looking for a few guest writers.

I hope it's okay... by michelemaule
I'd like to cover some new areas on the blog like eco-friendly living, men's products, fashion, cooking, crafty tutorials, shop reviews, etc... If you've got an idea for a series of articles and would like to guest write on Sweet Figments once a week then pitch it to me at sweetfigments@hotmail.com I will trade your hard work for permanent ad space.

♥
Connie

I heart you: elementclaystudio

I am a huge fan of Heather Knight's work found at elementclaystudio. I'm pretty sure I first discovered her work on the front page of Etsy, I don't quite remember but it was love at first sight! I'm superrrrrr jealous of anyone who has the skill to work with clay. I dabbled at it in highschool but it really didn't go so well... Anyways, if you're anything like me, whenever I find something I like I tend to look at it, analyze it and I try to figure out how the artist made it. I guess it helps me appreciate the work more? Well, when I look at Heather's pieces it totally blows my mind away because I just can't figure it out! Her style is so simple yet unique! I hope you fall in love with her work too!


Set of 3 Micro Tiles


Scallop bowl


White Atomic Bowl

Happy Monday!

I hope you all had a lovely Valentine's day! Mine was rather uneventful but it was still nice :) Anyways, the weather up here in Vancouver has been amazing the last few days. The sun is out, the sky is blue, ohhhhhh I love it! I hope it stays like this until spring comes cause I hate when it rains and rains for weeks non-stop. Speaking of spring, I hope it arrives quickly because ever since I saw that skirts treasury on the front page of Etsy I have been crazy about skirts but it's still too cold to wear them (for me at least) :( Well, for now they are still pretty to look at and if you're lucky you're some where warm!


Parodia by squillinan


Blue lily by sohomode


The flirt skirt by Ureshii


Polkadot Betty skirt by blackdaffodil


Felicity skirt by VC2o

Think Pink!

In honor of the Pink Panther 2 I decided to feature all pink items this week :) I haven't seen the movie yet but it looks pretty funny. I use to watch the cartoon every day after school haha I kind of miss the joys of being a kid.


1. paper mache piglet top view Spring Meadow design, 2. Sun Kissed Apple Bloom earrings, 3. DSCF0007, 4. Spool Piggie!, 5. SDC13049, 6. NCR030209-001, 7. Clasp clutch purse in domestic bliss, 8. mitzi the mini french bunny, 9. "Sweet privacy"

go vintage: men's edition

Etsy is practically overflowing with vintage clothing retailers. It seems several new shops open on a daily basis with no signs of slowing soon. I've noticed, however, that almost all these vintage shops cater strictly, or mostly, to women (mine certainly does).

Enter Edward Vintage - this fresh new shop offers a very well curated selection of vintage duds for even the most discerning fellow. And lucky you - you're learning about it just in time to pick up a little something for your valentine.

And for those of you who couldn't give a fig about men's apparel, they have a sister site as well...

xo, Caroline

mug lovers

Since I have had my mug glued to my hand practically all week filled with hot bouillon, ginger ale or whatever so I stay hydrated I figured I should look up some awesome mugs. To my surprise there were A LOT! Okay, maybe I'm not all that surprised at how many there were but what did surprise me was how unique they were! I've never seen mugs like these before have you?! Very clever :)

Pine Hollow Mug I by justmare

Lizard Mug by JustinCroweStudio

Green Swine Cup by allieogg

Skull Mug in Yellow Salt by skeletaldropkick

Piggy Mug by MudFairy

Amsterdam Cats by houseofharriet

Spread the love!

So, after a week of rolling around sick in bed I am at about 75% and should probably start getting back on track with my blogs and my Etsy shop which has been closed since Thursday and will probably remain closed for a few more days while I get myself to 100%. Thanks everyone for the "get well" wishes :) I missed reading all your lovely comments! Heck, I missed being able to get out of bed and so some work my to-do list for February is massive! Anyways, I was browsing on Etsy through the Valentine's items and here are a few that caught my eye.

Love doodles by modernemotive

Heart factory by PearsonMaron

Red love ring by CreaShines

Jar of love No.5 by GollyBard

Speaking Of

You may recall me mentioning in last week's post my sudden desire for a collection of vintage oversized glasses. They seem to be popping up all over the place lately (okay, mostly on the faces of all the coolest girls I know). Not wanting to be left behind I did a little searching. Luckily for me (and for you), I happened to stumble on Chigal - one amazing etsy shop chock full of exactly what I was looking for. Here are just a few of the spoils available right now:

xo, Caroline

be back soon!

i have the flu. be back in a few days. take care!