April Challenge Voting Going On Now!

The April challenge voting thread is up in the forums. Stop by, cast your vote and support your team! Voting ends Thursday, May 7th at midnight. We had 37 fabulous entries - check them out here. Thanks to everyone who participated in the April challenge!

Don't forget to Vote and Start Working...

The March Challenge Voting Thread is up in the forums, but you only have till the end of Tuesday to cast your vote. There are lots of great entries this month.

You can see all the entries together in the CCCOEteam Favorites section.


The April Challenge Thread is up too.
It's time to begin working on your entry for the April challenge -- "Mothers Day".

Items will need to be tagged 'CCCOE' and 'aprilchallenge' (one word) so that we can find them and add them to the buyer account favorites and voting thread. Deadline for entry is midnight (Pacific time) April 30. Voting will take place the first week of May.

Renegade Craft Fair

Call for Applications in LA and San Francisco. Deadline is May 1st. Go to the site for more info and the application.

CCCOE Member Studio Tour: Featured Artist: Pacific Paradise Soap Company

Dead Sea Bath Salt Soak Scrub

Custom Order

Tell us a little about yourself and how it all began.

I have been a very creative person my entire life. For fun, I took a soap making class with 2 Chemist friends from a lady on a farm out in the country more than a decade ago. The 3 of us would get together and make soap for Christmas presents over the years. Last year, after 23 years as a Senior Scientist, I experienced a Company wide lay off. A few friends & relatives suggested I should start a Soap Company. I thought working from home would give me more flexibility with my hours & allow our Son to not be in daycare. I’ve always been organized & really motivated to excel at whatever I do. I surely do not miss the hour and a half daily commute! Working from home is really a lifestyle. I really love what I do & it’s a good thing because I’m almost always working. That’s how Pacific Paradise Soap Company was born.Soap Rack and Soapmaker Where do you work? Show us your space please! Anita labeling her soap While vacationing last summer my Brother-in-law asked me “Where in the house do you make your soap?” and my Husband quickly interjected “Everywhere!”. I was shocked! But after I thought about it for a bit I realized he was right. Soap has taken over the house; the office, the spare bedroom, the hallway, the garage, the laundry room, the kitchen…one entire room in the house is filled with drying racks, flowers, lavender my Mom has grown, colored paper, boxes, ribbons, bags, salts, and soaps. I label soaps on the counter in the hallway where you are suppose to fold laundry. When I’m making a batch of soap I take over the kitchen, the laundry room & the garage. My husband can no longer park his truck in our 3 car garage because of the racks of soap. I also keep butters, oils, shipping supplies, molds, essential oils, fragrance oils, wooden bowls, gift crates, colorants, the gazebo & tables for craft fairs & farmers markets. The laundry room also has shelves of fancy molded soaps. 12 soap bar cutter What is your favorite tool? My favorite tool is the log cutter my Dad & I made. He assembled a 3 sided square with smooth wood & drilled 2 holes that I put a guitar string through. This tool makes the first cut that reveals the beautiful end result of my labor of love. I also really like my 12 bar cutter & my edging tool. What time of the day are you the most productive/inspired? I am most productive while my Son is in school for obvious reasons.3 Bar Soap Sets What inspires you? I wake up inspired with so many new ideas pouring out that I now keep paper & pen on my headboard. I am always thinking of new products to add to my store. I am inspired by Mother Nature. Sometimes I am inspired by customers needs or something said in conversation. How do you promote yourself and your shop? I promote myself, my shop & my team by communicating in the forums on etsy, Flickr, Team Blogs & at Craft Fairs. How long have you been on Etsy? I have been selling on etsy since October 2008. What else do you enjoy doing other than creating? I also enjoy gardening, doing yoga, making cards, aqua aerobics & going to the beach. What would you like to see happen/change with CCCOE? I would like to see more people buying from CCCOE. What is your favorite thing about CCCOE? My favorite thing about CCCOE is all the support & camaraderie. I also love the monthly challenges. What is your favorite food? My favorite food is chocolate J I also really enjoy ethnic foods like Thai, Vietnamese, Mexican & Italian. Favorite book or movie? My favorite book is The Complete Book of Essential Oils & Aromatherapy by Valerie Ann Worwood. My favorite movies are The Thomas Crown Affair & National Treasure. One thing you absolutely cannot live without? I absolutely cannot live without happiness Lastly what piece that you have created is your favorite and why? My favorite piece is a Fancy molded soap that says “Love” in a wooden dish. My Dad turns wooden bowls & platters on a lathe & I use them for my fancy molded soaps. I think Love says it all. Thanks so much to Anita of Pacific Paradise Soap for sharing her space and her work with us! Be sure to stop by her shop to treat yourself.

Exhibition: "Among Friends" (Ventura, CA)

Red Brick Gallery just opened their newest show! Come out on Saturday Feb. 7th from 6-9pm to meet the Artists and see them create.

"Among Friends" January 26th - March 1st 2009 Red Brick Gallery 328 E. Main St. (at Palm), downtown Ventura 805.643.6400 http://www.redbrickart.com

Hours:

Monday 11 - 6pm

CLOSED  Tuesdays

Wednesday & Thursday 11 - 6pm

Friday & Saturday 11 - 8pm

Sunday 11 - 6pm

Call for Artists: Lark Books - Mixed Metal Jewelry

Mixed Metal Jewelry Author: Mary Hettmansperger Editor: Marthe Le Van Entry deadline: March 16, 2009 http://www.larkbooks.com/submissions/artist-submissions Author Mary Hettmansperger’s newest book, Mixed Metal Jewelry, will be interspersed with beautiful gallery images, and we hope you’ll submit images of your jewelry for consideration! We’re looking for pieces that mix metals—silver, gold, copper, iron, bronze, aluminum, etc.—in interesting and creative ways. Combinations of all forms of metal, such as sheet, wire, clay, and recycled materials, are welcome, as are all techniques. Your work will serve as an example and as inspiration for readers. Mixed Metal Jewelry is due for release in April 2010. Submission to the book is free. Download entry form here.

CCCOE Member Studio Tour: Featured Artist: HideABook

Japanese Plum Blossom Book Cover Tell us a little about yourself and how it all began. My name is Shanna Vaughn and my shop is HideABook (http://hideabook.etsy.com). I make vinyl book covers with attached ribbon bookmarks to hide and protect paperback books. I love to read romance novels but I find many of the covers to be goofy or embarrassing. I also like to take a book with me pretty much everywhere I go so that I can have something to read while waiting in line at the Post Office, doctor's office, etc. I wanted something pretty to cover up my books and to keep them nice while bumping around in my giant purse. I couldn't find anything stylish out there so I decided to make my own covers. Other friends who are readers loved my idea so I figured that random strangers might too. I've been a shopper on Etsy for a few years and I knew that it would be the perfect place to set up my online store. Where do you work? Show us your space please! I share an office in my apartment with my husband who is an IT professional. I'm working on annexing his space :) My dream (and goal) is to eventually have a nice big work space where I can have some elbow room and plenty of space to lay my delicate papers flat. What is your favorite tool? My favorite tool would have to be my super sharp guillotine I use for paper cutting. What time of the day are you the most productive/inspired? Definitely evening, my brain doesn't start cranking until at least noon. What inspires you? I get inspired by gorgeous handmade papers. The Paper Source store is my favorite place; I could spend hours browsing their amazing Japanese and Indian papers. How do you promote yourself and your shop? I have two book blogs that I use to run promotions and ads for Hide-a-Book and I stay involved with communities of romance readers online. They're my peeps but also my customers. How long have you been on Etsy? Since May of 2008 What else do you enjoy doing other than creating? Whenever I get some free time I love to read. Just give me a comfy chair and I can lose myself for hours in the fantasy world of a book. What would you like to see happen/change with CCCOE? I recently got to meet some other OC/LA area Etsy sellers which was really cool. I would love to regularly get together with people who share the same goals, joys and frustrations that I do. I'd like to get advice from sellers who have been doing this for a while and have wisdom to share. What is your favorite thing about CCCOE? Everyone is really friendly and helpful. I couldn't have asked for a better group to join. What is your favorite food? Mexican food for sure. I could eat it every single day. Favorite book or movie? I think my favorite book would change depending on what day you ask me, but right now I'd have to say Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. One thing you absolutely cannot live without? My iPhone. It allows me to compulsively check my sales when I'm away from my computer and to read ebooks. Lastly what piece that you have created is your favorite and why? I love my Japanese bunnies book cover in gold. The bunnies are just so cute and the contrast of the pink and the vintage gold is so pretty. The ribbon I used for the bookmark matches just perfectly. Thanks to Shanna for taking the time out to share her studio and work with us. Be sure to check out her shop on Etsy. And if you are are a CCCOE member and want to be featured simply copy these questions and send your answers along to Heather or I.