Friday, December 31, 2010

Happy New Year!!

Looks like I'll be ringing in the New Year with Dick! I'm still sick, but on the mend, so thanks for the well wishes! And, since I'm feeling a little better, my creativity is creeping back in:I made these gorgeous earrings today with some beautiful foil-lined glass beads. I love the "vintage" look they have about them. I guess I'm on a "vintage" kick [of sorts]...being inspired by all of these vintage images I've been perusing on this website. I'm addicted!! I even used a small collaboration of a few images to make my new Etsy banner:I love it!! So, if you're looking for a great throat soother..."Gypsy Cold Care" tea, with a dollop of local honey will do the trick! It's soooo good!

Welp, off to find something to fix for dinner, since we'll be staying in tonight. I hope you all have a very safe & a very Happy New Year!! See you in 2011!!!

♥ & peace always ~ Kathy

"One resolution I have made, and try always to keep, is this: To rise above the little things." ~ John Burroughs

Thursday, December 30, 2010

The crud...

...makes me a miserable old crab. I hate being sick! I woke up Monday morning with a sore throat and then a steady downhill slide into crudville. I started a "Z" pack yesterday, so I hope I feel good enough to go to the New Year's Eve party tomorrow night [of which, I've been soooo looking forward to]. If not, it'll be another New Year's Eve of making coffee at 10pm, just so I can stay awake long enough to watch Dick Clark wish us all a "Happy New Year"! But I am excited about this! It's an awesome "Bokeh Kit" that helps you create those beautiful little patterned light effects, like this:I can't wait to try it out!! But looking at this photo makes me think...yummmm ~ I need to go fix me a big cup of hot tea to sooth my aching throat! Happy New Year's Eve Eve!!

♥ & peace always ~ Kathy

“New Year's Resolution: To tolerate fools more gladly, provided this does not encourage them to take up more of my time.” ~ James Agate

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Can you guess it?

I had a great idea for a new little game for all of my awesome peeps! It's a guessing game and I'll be posting something new every Tuesday! The photo above is this week's "guess it". All you have to do is post your comment on my facebook page and the first person to guess correctly will win a pair of these:
beautiful "Tiny Dancer" earrings! Good Luck!! And remember, you must post your comment on the facebook link, not here on the blog. And then, next Tuesday, you can check on my facebook page for the new "guess it" photo! How fun!!! And, if you haven't become a fan of my page, please do. You'll be glad you did! And please feel free to share with your friends!

Thanks for always being so awesome!! Good luck guessing!!

♥ & peace always ~ Kathy

"Don't keep a man guessing too long - he's sure to find the answer somewhere else." ~ Mae West

Sunday, December 26, 2010

Merry Christmas!

Hope you received everything you wished for! Wayne got a giant beanbag chair, so he could sit by the fire, but Ozzy quickly decided that it was was more comfy than his bed, so guess who go the last laugh! Hee hee ~ Life is good!!

Merry Christmas All!! ♥ & peace always ~ Kathy

"If I held you any closer I would be on the other side of you." ~ Groucho Marx

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Christmastime is here...

...our holiday card for 2010, which also included a newsletter which was written by Ozzy. I love all things about Christmas, except the hustle and bustle. The best day is Christmas day, when it's all over and you can relax and enjoy the day. this is one of my favorite ornaments from childhood. I love it!I just love "vintage" images, cards and postcards from years gone by. I recently signed up for this website, which gives you unlimited downloads for a whole year! I've been enjoying perusing the old Christmas cards, especially. This one was cracking me up! I love the fact that there is a little devil riding atop all the toys in the sack! So cute! And while most of the images are very beautiful, there are some that are downright scary...like this:
and check out that tree - really?!but most of them are truly beautiful and express the real meaning of Christmas...hope yours is Merry and bright! Happy Holidays!!

♥ & peace always ~ Kathy

"From Home to home, and heart to heart, from one place to another. The warmth and joy of Christmas, brings us closer to each other." ~ Emily Matthews

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

just keep on smiling...

hee hee ~ we've been cleaning out closets around here and going through old books, etc., boxing up things for charity before December 31st, so we can take our annual "charitable contribution" on our taxes next year. I kept most of my books, but Wayne got rid of lots of his [mostly books from college] about how to build a nuclear reactor, etc....I mean does anybody really need that! Lol - I hope they don't fall into the wrong hands, but they are from like 1972, so I'm sure much advancement has been made since then [I hope]. Anyway, I did my major book purge about a year ago, so I'm keeping the ones I have left now [even my "Brownie handbook" from when I was a little girl] ~ you never know when you'll need to whip out that pledge and recite it:

"I promise to do my best
to love God and my Country,
to help other people every day,
especially those at home." ~ The Brownie Girl Scout Promise

And then we came across this hilarious little book...it was given to Broc by my grandmother when he was a little boy. She loved to tell jokes and they would sit together and laugh for hours. She got the biggest kick out of him and he loved it! So here's a random "Little Willie Rhyme" from it...hope it makes you giggle:

Willie sawed a man in two.
Couldn't put him back with glue.
Said Mother as she mopped the floors,
"Can't you play these games outdoors?"

hee hee ~ and these were written for 9 year olds! Hilarious! Down right!!

And so...the winner of those awesome earrings from Monday's drawing was lucky #3 [which is Ellen]!! Yay Ellen!!!! E-mail me your address: Kathy@dornickdesigns.com and I'll have them on their way to you in two shakes of a lamb's tail! I hope you enjoy them!!

Happy Wednesday!! Stay Warm!!

♥ & peace always ~ Kathy

"Row, row, row your goat, gently down the stream. Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, Life is just a scream." ~ Stephanie Calmenson

Saturday, December 4, 2010

Sharing & A Freebie!!

I really enjoy it when someone on Etsy asks for my advice/expertise, critiques, ideas, etc., when it comes to selling goods on the internet. I hope I always give them good advice and help them on their way to having a great little business! So yesterday, I got a message from this lady [who makes darling dolls and doll cloths, by the way], asking for any advice I had in order to help her with her shop...and this is what I said:

"Okay, here goes my 2cents…hope it’s worth more than that. First of all, here’s a link to the “Sellers Handbook” on Etsy ~ as you can see, it is chocker block full of any and all information you could possibly need to sell yourself on the internet. And that’s the most important thing to remember, you are selling “yourself” first and foremost…your “stuff” is secondary. Once you have wrapped yourself up in a tidy little package, your “stuff” will basically sell itself. In other words “branding”…find something to make yourself stand out above the rest and stick to it. The Internet is flooded with stuff just like yours, so make yours the best it can possibly be and that’s where shoppers will go. Offering a “free gift” is not going to make people buy your things, I promise. You can certainly include a “freebie” in their package when they purchase something and that will be a nice little surprise, but I wouldn’t advertise it up front. Next, right up there with selling yourself, the most important thing is photographs. If you are serious about selling your wares on cyberspace, you need to invest in a decent camera and learn how to use it. These days, you can buy a great point and shoot with macro capabilities for about $200. Worth itself in gold in the long run. Try a Canon Powershot, they take some awesome photos. Next, take advantage of all 5 slots Etsy gives you to post your photos. Nobody is going to click on a blurry photo. Once you get the hang of taking great pictures, then you need to start working on writing great descriptions. Give color examples, exact size dimensions, exactly what type[s] of materials were used, etc. In other words, make the potential buyer feel like they are “holding” the item, by just seeing it in a picture…like when you read a good book, you can picture the scene just by reading about it…that’s what I mean. Like this for instance ~ what type of material is it? Cotton? Knit? Jersey? What colors are in the Butterfly Applique? Is the applique hand-stitched? What does the mask even look like? I can’t tell from the picture…stuff like that. Maybe try reading doll clothing descriptions from other sellers to get some ideas. And Ron is right, the clothes should be displayed on dolls, even if it’s dolls you aren’t selling. I would invest in a “popular” doll, or dolls and then use them for models. Taking photographs outside, in natural light, is the best way to photograph most items, especially clothing. Take the dolls to a park, put them on swings, have them playing in a flower garden, etc., get creative. Start working on these things and then, when you have everything perfect, start advertising. Right now, I’m afraid you’ll be wasting your money and time advertising. Another great little handbook to have handy is this one ~ it’s so worth the investment. I wish all of this information was available to me when I first started out. It’s much easier for people starting out these days.

So, I hope this helps, somewhat. I’m certainly willing to help out any way I can. Good Luck!!"

Gosh, I hope I gave her some good advice :)And, since I'm "feeling the love", I'm giving away a pair of these awesome "Irish Coffee" earrings! All you have to do is comment on this post and Ozzy will be picking the winner on Monday! That's it!! Good Luck!!

I feel in love with this today:appropriately named "who loves you" and, if you just feel in love with it, too...it's for sale right here! And, there will only be 1 of these...he's a one of a kind. So cute!!

brrrrrr....I'm going downstairs to hang out by the fire a bit ~ it's getting wintery out there!

♥ & peace always ~ Kathy

"If I had my life to live over, I would start barefoot earlier in the spring and stay that way later in the fall. I would go to more dances. I would ride more merry-go-rounds. I would pick more daisies.” -- Nadine Stair

Thursday, December 2, 2010

Story telling through images...

Looking Glass falls...after 10 inches of rain!Kayaker...brave, or just plain crazy? You decide.

Happy Thursday!!

♥ & peace always ~ Kathy

“Curiosity will conquer fear even more than bravery will.” ~ James Stephens