I recently bought a new purse, and I didn't like the zipper pull it came with so I decided to make myself one.

Don't Panic! - the perfect little reminder to take to work with me everyday. I used Venetian glass, Swarovski crystal, antiqued pewter, and gunmetal.

I love black and green. The combination is so retro and modern at the same time...it's electric.

It's really important to not be too serious all of the time. There is some sort of magical energy about this zipper pull. I feel quirky and happy when it is in my line of sight.

Just thought I would share and to also pass along a friendly reminder - Don't Panic!

Thank you so much for reading,

-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

You can also find _1337 Art on:

Twitter / Myspace / Deviant Art / Etsy / Artfire

I am currently working on adding these lovely rose stud post earrings back into my Etsy and Artfire shops. Not only will I be adding the red, dusty pink, and silver, but also look for champagne and jet black. I anticipate them being available within the next two weeks.

They are a very popular item, and I cannot wait to bring them back.


If you would like to place a special order for them please feel free to contact me at 1337art@gmail.com to make the reservation.

I make them with beautiful aluminum roses and surgical steel, which is great for people with common jewelry allergies.

On another note I am currently working on bringing in a lot of new items to restock my shops. This includes jewelry items for men and more bookmarks. I am currently accepting custom orders as well. Please feel free to contact me with your serious inquiry.



-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

You can also find _1337 Art on:

Twitter / Myspace / Deviant Art / Etsy / Artfire

My Paua (the unique Abalone of New Zealand) shell rings are here and available in both my Etsy and Artfire





-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

You can also find _1337 Art on:

Twitter / Myspace / Deviant Art / Etsy / Artfire

It is important to show the world the charms of handcrafted items, and I plan to do this one artist at a time. Today I feature TamarHammer from Eugene, Oregon.

Below you will find Tamar's interview:

1. What is the first memory of crafting that you can recall?

I remember my self painting from ever. My first “piece” that I was really proud of was a shoe from clay – it was pretty abstract but for me it looked amazing (I was 7……)

2. What are some of your favorite past times?

Playing and making art with my son, writing, reading

3. What do you specialize in?

Painting, illustration and graphic design.
All the cards and magnets in my store are based on my original designs, painting and illustrations.

4. What made you decide to open up a shop on Etsy?

Oh - try to find a better way to sell my stuff other than marketing myself to stores – which means being in competition with Hallmark …which is of course ridiculous……
I like Etsy – there is such a positive and kind environment for both customers and sellers. I also found it to be a very inspiring place.

5. How did you choose your shop name?

…Just after my name – it felt authentic to me…I still remember my disappointment when I found that there is no real Sarah lee beyond the corporation …

6. What are your hopes for the future?

To enlarge my store and get to know more people that do crafts.

7. How do you feel about custom orders?

I’m sure open to that.

8. Try to sum up your workspace in as few words as possible.

My interests are quite diverse. That’s why at times I create whimsical paintings, greeting cards and magnets that are suitable for every occasion – ancient mosaics, flowers and my original comics and collages, while in other times I find my self drawn to special events - birthdays, Valentine’s Day and Jewish holidays.

9. Is there anything else you would like to add?

I’m having a lot of fun writing my blog. I write about issues connected to my designs and every day life thoughts and stories.

You can read there also my list about the mosaics and flowers card:
http://tamarhammer.blogspot.com/2009/01/locate-yourself-mentally.html

Featured Items:

Kites at the Coast, Fun Collage Painting Card

SO, WHAT, SAY IT'S POSSIBLE, THINK SUMMER, NOT AGAIN, I'M NOT SO SURE - Original Comics Magnets (Set of 6)

Owl Love ,one of a kind hand-painted owl magnets (Set of 2)

Thank you so much for reading,

-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

You can also find _1337 Art on:

Twitter / Myspace / Deviant Art / Etsy / Artfire

I wanted to share a few of the items I will be working on next week:

Paua Shell Cabochon Rings.
Earring studs in Gemstone and Paua Shell.
Hair Pins in Gemstone, Paua Shell, and Glass.
Paua Shell Brooches. (Limited Edition)
Rose Stud Earrings.

I also have a couple of chokers, lots of earrings, and other items that have not been photographed yet. It's going to be a busy week! I'm excited to get my shops stocked again:

http://1337art.etsy.com
http://1337art.artfire.com

Thank you so much for reading, and please stay tuned as I will update when I list the new items for sale.

And don't forget that I am accepting custom orders again - just in time for the upcoming Mother's Day.

-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.]
Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

You can also find _1337 Art on:
Twitter / Myspace / Deviant Art / Etsy / Artfire

__1337 Art is taking custom order requests again! If you are interested in a custom piece of jewelry, bookmark, or accessory please look no further. I have a lot of new items currently in the creative process including rings, hair clips, bobby pins, bookmarks, chokers, masculine jewelry, and so much more.

You can email me with your serious inquiry/request at 1337art@gmail.com In the meantime please feel free to visit my online shops:

http://1337art.etsy.com
http://1337art.artfire.com

I look forward to working with you in the near future.

-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

You can also find _1337 Art on:

Twitter / Myspace / Deviant Art / Etsy / Artfire

I've decided to start offering a weekly sales section in my Etsy Shop. Each each I will feature three items with some sort of special discount!

This week I have chosen to offer free global shipping for my Coffee Addiction mini swirl bookmark.













I am offering $5 off of this beautiful Creative Process in Pink necklace.

And the third item, the Rainbow Wine Charms set, I am offering $3.95 off!
















You can view these sales by clicking on the links below:

Coffee Addiction Bookmark

The Creative Process - in Pink Necklace

Rainbow Wine Charms

Thank you so much for reading!

-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

You can also find _1337 Art on:

Twitter / Myspace / Deviant Art / Etsy / Artfire

It is important to show the world the charms of handcrafted items, and I plan to do this one artist at a time. Today I feature ptitebaloue of Quebec, Canada. She has an amazing shop full of handcrafted plush animal toys.


Below you can read her interview:

1. What is the first memory of crafting that you can recall?

I remember threading ribbon across two heart-shaped pieces of cardboard to make a Valentine's day card... ...when I was still in day-care, so probably not even 4 years old! :) Plus numerous memories of myself learning to knit with my grandmother... I started really young!

2. What are some of your favorite past times?

...I often think I have too many and not enough time ;) I love to knit (of course!), but also to draw, play guitar, write fiction, learn and practice foreign languages... I actually spent two of the last summers in Tunisia learning arabic!

3. What do you specialize in?

Although I recently finished a bachelor's degree in international studies and modern languages, job search has not been very successful until now so I've taken out my needles and re-started knitting... soft toys, since I've always loved them :) I also recently taught myself how to spin yarn so my latest creations are made entirely from 100% handspun, natural fibers :)

4. What made you decide to open up a shop on Etsy?

I discovered the site very randomly, reading a newspaper article about home-made, and just fell in love with it... I spent 2-3 weeks just browsing Etsy for hours and finding new favourites... Then I decided I absolutly had to try it too! :)

5. How did you choose your shop name?

I called it A-knit-thing since my "things" - plushies, creatures ;) - are both knit and... neat ;)

6. What are your hopes for the future?

I'm currently trying to work out a governmental subvention that would allow me to buy more supplies, offer my products to "real" (physical) shops and maybe even build my own website to sell them on... If it works I should get it within a month or two... I'm keeping my fingers crossed, I really, really wish this could become a full-time job!

7. How do you feel about custom orders?

I haven't got that many sales yet but I've already done two custom orders and love that!! :) I'm always open to any request, either a reproduction of something that has sold or any variation of an existing model... or a whole new one, why not! Bring it on! ;)

8. Try to sum up your workspace in as few words as possible.

It doesn't take many words to describe ;) Basically it's the left side of the sofa (the right one being occupied by my boyfriend to watch TV) and a mountain of supplies boxes piled up around a little table in my bedroom... I really wish I'll have my own room for crafting eventually, when we'll buy a house :)

9. Is there anything else you would like to add?

As I've written on my Etsy page, some toys may appear expensive but they reflect the cost of supplies (natural fibers are expensive, as is shipping!!) and the time spent spinning and knitting - often 5, 6, 7 hours on the smallest toys and even more on bigger ones... but it's an investment you'll probably keep for life, and even transmit to the next generation! :)

How can people get in contact with you?

Please contact me through Etsy - I love to receive comments on my work!! :)

www.ptitebaloue.etsy.com

You can find the pictured soft toys by following the links below:

Leo the handspun - all natural - alpaca polar bear

Marley the wooly -pure wool- lion

Tweet, the itsy bitsy penguin

Thank you so much for reading. I hope that you enjoyed ptitebaloue's soft toys, and please feel free to forward this feature on to your friends and family.

-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

You can also find _1337 Art on:

Twitter / Myspace / Deviant Art / Etsy / Artfire

__1337 Art was recently featured in Sweet Designs Magazine - a monthly online magazine targeted for young adults! You can view the feature by clicking on the link below:

http://sweetdesignsmagazine.com/200902craftyvdaygifts.php

Sweet Designs Magazine was founded by Stephanie Lynn in January 2007. In her own words: "My goal has been to attract America's best teen writers and give them a venue to express opinions about the world around them. I look for writers with something positive, helpful, fresh, and insightful to say. I also want SDM to be fun to write for and to read. And I want to help teens avoid the traps and pitfalls of youth and become successful, well-adjusted adults."

I have been experimenting with making my own pendants and charms, and these earrings are a result of that experimentation.

Ever want to share to the world your passions, opinions, and perspective through words? Each earring is unique as it includes a randomly selected bit of real newspaper, and the glaze gives them an antiqued look. These one of a kind earrings are perfect for yourself or as a gift to a special journalist or writer you know.

The gunmetal (dark grey) kidney earwires measure approximately 24mm x 11mm - their elongated form is beautiful and striking. (Sterling Silver is also available.)

The antiqued silver pewter settings are approximately 1/2 inch by 1/2 inch.

I had fun making these, and I have plans to make similar items in the near future - collage earrings, pendants, necklaces, and etc. - and the themes will cover journalism, coffee, and so much more. Please feel free to keep checking back for the release of those items.

Thank you so much for reading,

-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

You can also find _1337 Art on:

Twitter / Myspace / Deviant Art / Etsy / Artfire

It is important to show the world the charms of handcrafted items, and I plan to do this one artist at a time. Today I feature Amy with ara133photography. She currently resides in State College, Pennsylvania, and her fine art photography is simply amazing! Her husband also contributes his photography, and he has a nice, stylish edge.

Below you can read the interview:

1. What is the first memory of crafting that you can recall?

I've been drawing since I was little... some of my earliest memories are of drawing horses and other animals - I used to draw unicorns a lot! I remember I would draw on my napkins during meals at home.

2. What do you specialize in?

Photography, but I also have a passion for painting and drawing still!

3. What made you decide to open up a shop on Etsy?

I saw a brief note about Etsy in Lucky Magazine one day, and checked it out - I loved all the awesome things and variety! I'd been considering selling my photography but didn't really have a venue (my grad student schedule doesn't allow me to do things like craft fairs, shows, etc.)... once I saw Etsy I knew it would be perfect!


4. What are your hopes for the future?

I hope to become a professor in Biology at a small college, and for my husband and I to get a house someday soon! :)

5. What are some of your favorite past times?

Photography - my husband and I share that creative passion, so we love to go on photography walks together! Also snowshoeing in winter; painting & drawing; reading; training my cats to do tricks (they know "sit", "footsie" (similar to 'give me your paw') and "lie down" but are stuck on "speak"!)...

6. Try to sum up your workspace in as few words as possible.

I'm a grad student so I have 2 workspaces - one at school and one at home for photography. My school office looks like a tornado hit it, but I know where everything is! My workspace at home is a desk with everything I need for packaging orders (it's lovely, we've just rearranged that area so I don't have to wander around the apartment looking for paper, ribbons, etc.!). I do a lot of my digital collages on the couch, so that is a fluffy brown microfiber workspace.

7. How do you feel about custom orders?

I enjoy custom orders - it's really a lovely feeling to be able to help people find exactly what they're looking for, something they'll enjoy looking at!

8. What can you tell us about the pictures you have selected to be apart of your feature? (in order that they appear.)

Bounce - 5x5 Fine Art Photography by MSM

This is one of my favorites by my husband - he took it in Boston when we were going to my cousin's wedding last year!

At Tara in this Fateful Hour - 5x7 Fine Art Photography Print


I like the way this one came out - It's actually exactly what was in my head! I enjoyed doing that digital collage from various photos I'd taken.

Through These Halls - 5x7 Matted to 8x10 Final Size

This is another digital collage I made with photos I'd taken of a doorway and hall on campus - I used mirroring, layers, black and white with color, and I like the way it came out!

Away - 8x10 Fine Art Photography Print

I took this image in Boston (on the same wedding trip as the Red Ball image) and it really brings back the memories of the moment I first saw this memorial. We were walking to the Old North Church (where the wedding was) and we walked through a little park area behind the Paul Revere statue... we heard a light chiming noise and saw lots of metal sparkling and moving in the breeze - and when we got closer we saw it was rows upon rows of dogtags.

 

How can people get in contact with you?

I can be reached through my Etsy shop http://ara133photography.etsy.com I have plans to develop my own website in conjunction with the shop but that is still in the works.

Thank you so much for reading. I hope that you enjoyed Amy's artwork, and please feel free to forward this feature on to your friends and family.

-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

You can also find _1337 Art on:

Twitter / Myspace / Live Journal / Deviant Art / Etsy / Artfire

We all have secrets we'd love to escape from. Things that we have kept inside for many years, things that we need to admit to in some public anonymous way.

"PostSecret is an ongoing community art project where people
mail in their secrets anonymously on one side of a postcard."

Created by Frank Warren. Thank you very much for this concept. I have just finished the last book of the four book series, and it is amazing to see this side of human emotion...and to discover what other people have had to live with.

There are currently four books that you can find at Amazon.com:

My Secret: A PostSecret Book

PostSecret: Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives

The Secret Lives of Men and Women: A PostSecret Book

A Lifetime of Secrets: A PostSecret Book

You can also check out the PostSecret Blog at: http://postsecret.blogspot.com/

You can submit your own secret postcards to the address below:

PostSecret
13345 Copper Ridge Road
Germantown, MD 20874

Thank you so much for reading,

-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

You can also find _1337 Art on:

Twitter / Myspace / Live Journal / Deviant Art / Etsy / Artfire

It looks like the sun is supposed to say hello this next week, which will give me the opportunity to take and retake a lot of product images. It's not even close to Spring-cleaning and Shop cleaning time, but it feels like summer today - one of those cool evenings where the house is open to a subtle breeze, and all you need is a sheet to keep warm.

It make me wish I had a large covered deck where I could bring my lap top and a mug of coffee to enjoy the evening outdoors. I tend to like the sunlight when it isn't directly touching me.

There are two new item lines I will be working on and hopefully perfecting soon; collage-style earrings and collage-style glass pendants. Please check back often for their arrival!

__1337 Art has some more new items on the way, and I have been adding old Etsy listings to my Artfire Shop. I think I will also be listing some destash and supplies there as well fairly soon. I'm tempted to start a supplies shop; it would be free to list, and it would help me clear out some of my old beads and things.

I feel inspired to get to work. Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend.

Thank you so much for reading,

-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

You can also find _1337 Art on:

Twitter / Myspace / Live Journal / Deviant Art / Etsy / Artfire

I’ve been feeling inspired lately to create darker, dramatic pieces. I am currently filling up a page with different designs and materials – I already have colors and textures figured out! In the coming weeks I will get to work on these pieces and get them up for sale as soon as possible. It’s really exciting to have a specific look/feel call out to you demanding to be created.

You can also expect more wine charm sets, bookmarks, jewelry pieces, brooches, hair accessories, and men’s items in the coming weeks…maybe even a few Valentine’s Day themed items.

Again I am reminded to take it easy with my work. Sometimes I just get so excited I want to do everything and see the results right now. I am going to try to do the daily blogging, as that is one of my goals for 2009. I’ll also try to relax and not work so hard all the time. The trick is to get organized and set/maintain a realistic schedule.

I look forward to connecting with you on a daily basis.

Thank you so much for reading. And thank you to everyone that comments and follows this blog.

-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
http://1337art.etsy.com/
http://1337art.artfire.com
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

It appears that people aren't thinking about Valentine's Day this year due to the economy and uncertainty of our nation's future. It really is just a commercial holiday, but I can't help wanting to get lost in the day of love. I'm sure there are others out there that feel the same way.

Valentine's Day falls on a Saturday this year, and that means my fiance's work/sleep schedule is the opposite of mine. This year we are going to settle on a simple celebration, which can be just as magical (if not moreso) than going out to an expensive restaurant. I'm not sure what we are planning on doing, and I still need conspire what to get/do for him. We do need to save our money.

I think in a future blog post I'll talk about some ways that you can spend the day or evening with your significant other without spending a lot of money. If you have any tips or anything you would want to include please feel free to comment this blog with your suggestion.

And back into the spirit of this Day of Love, I designed this beautiful Red Rose Cameo Necklace.

It features a lovely resin cameo that resides in an antiqued silver setting attached to an 18.5 inch gun metal curb chain.

You can find this Romantic Flair necklace for sale at my Etsy Shop:

http://1337art.etsy.com

Thank you so much for reading,

-Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
http://1337art.etsy.com/
http://1337art.artfire.com
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

I started a writing prompts blog last year to inspire myself to write again as well as help others with their writing craft. It began with daily posts and now I haven't updated in awhile. One thing I would love to do this year is get back to daily posting. I'm also going to create a notepad file and take action on each writing prompt that is posted on my personal computer. It's important for me to get back into writing, and I hope the blog inspires others to write, to overcome their block, and to enjoy the creativity.

You can view my Elite Writing Prompts blog here:

http://elitewritingprompts.blogspot.com

If you want to submit a writing prompt or two please feel free to email your submission to elitewritingprompts@gmail.com

Thank you so much,

-Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
http://1337art.etsy.com/
http://1337art.artfire.com
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

It is that time when everyone is brooding over the things they can do to change their lives for the better this year. We should be thinking about these things a little everyday instead of rushing it all into one day. I have been musing over some 2009 goals both personally and for __1337 Art.

Here are some of the things I will accomplish by December 31st, 2009:

1. Reach 1,000 contacts on Myspace.
2. Make 100 Artfire Sales.
3. Make it to 250 Etsy Sales.
4. Finish personal website.
5. Research a third online selling venue.
6. Venture into at least two different art mediums (photography and crochet).
7. Blog daily.
8. Keep up on social networking sites.
9. Build a newsletter.
10. Monitor spending for new supplies.
11. Organize workspace.
12. Improve packaging and overall shop appearances.
13. Immediately file and keep track of 2009 expenses.
14. Make more collage/card type items.
15. Read and comment more blogs.
16. Set aside money for savings.
17. Spend less time online.
18. Utilize new planner.
19. Do at least one PIF and giveaway.
20. Have fun and make a lot of new items.

I wish everyone a happy, healthy, and successful New Year!!!

Thank you so much for reading,

-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
http://1337art.etsy.com/
http://1337art.artfire.com
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

I hope everyone had and is having a great and interesting Holiday season!

The wonderful plant decked out in red Christmas lights is my fiance's alternative to a traditional Christmas tree. We have been snowed in for several days so we weren't able to go get a regular tree, but we all liked this Christmas plant quite a lot.

Now the snow is being washed away by the pouring rain, and we regrettably all have to start going back to work.

I'm already starting to think about my New Year's Resolution - it's never too early! There are a lot of new things I want to experiment with and possibly contribute to __1337 Art. I also want to get my workspace cleaned and organized once and for all! Any tips on that would be fantastic!

I have a lot of beads and supplies and piles of things that make it *slightly* hard and/or overwhelming to create new things. I'll definitely post my workspace organization progress if and when I can conquer it!

Blazer, my sleeping kitten, was napping from an exhausting morning of annoying our dog and my older cat, playing in boxes, and getting lost under chairs and wrapping paper. I like that he is sort of photogenic.

I wanted to say a special thank you to dzfantasy for the wonderful blog feature of __1337 Art that she published on her blog! You can view her blog here and my feature here. She offers a wonderful variety of fiber fantasy sculptures. You can follow the link below to view her colorful and fanciful Etsy Shop:

http://dzfantasy.etsy.com

Thank you so much for reading,

-
Christina
CM Designs dba 1337 Art
http://1337art.etsy.com/
http://1337art.artfire.com
[Elite Art for the elite at heart.] Featuring jewelry for men and women, awareness items, bookmarks, brooches, cards, cell phone charms, clip on earrings, cuff links, hair accessories, wine charms, and more!

AFTER CHRISTMAS SALE!!!

*Spend $10 get $2 off!
*Spend $20 get $4 off!
*Spend $30 get $10 off!
*Spend $60 or more save 35%!

Discounts will be refunded to your PayPal account after payment has cleared. Please note that discounts apply to merchandise only (before shipping and any applicable tax.)

Please feel free to visit our shops below to take advantage of these incredible deals!

http://1337art.etsy.com
http://1337art.artfire.com