Win It Wednesday!

We have another winner!  missyt_2000@ is the lucky giveaway winner of a "Baby in a Basket" from Baby Peas & Bees!  Missyt_2000 will be able to let Linda at Baby Peas & Bees know if she'd like a girl, boy or gender neutral baby in a basket!  What a fun win!  Congrats Missyt_2000!

Watch for a review of Baby Peas & Bees products here on Thursday, December 10th!

Win It Wednesday will be a weekly feature here at Gonna Want This-Handmade!  Most Wednesdays I will have a giveaway that I will be hosting on my blog.  But since that won't be able to happen every week, on those weeks when I do not have a giveaway to host and feature here, I will bring the best of the handmade giveaways to you!  I will scour the web to find some great giveaways featuring handmade artists and I will bring them here for YOU to find and enter!

Here are some of the best handmade giveaways of the web this week (in my humble opinion)...

I think these are AWESOME and totally ingenius!  They are lockets made from repurposed auto parts, believe it or not.  YAY RECYCLED!  The options at the Polarity Etsy shop are endless...though my fave is above ("Family").  The Sunshine Studio is hosting a giveaway for a locket of the winners choice!  Head on over by clicking HERE to enter the giveaway!  It is only open until Dec. 6th, so don't waste any time.  Good luck!   

PS - The lockets are very reasonably priced at about $18-$21 each...so if you want to skip taking your chances on the giveaway, you can buy right away at Polarity!

(thanks Polarity & Sunshine Studio!)

These lanterns seem very classic and refined, yet completely unexpected!  I think one hanging solo on a porch or from a front tree would be lovely, but just as lovely would be an entire gathering of them.  Beautiful and original Christmas lighting!  I also think these would be beautiful for an outdoor wedding or dinner party!  These lanterns are "upcycled" (YAY RECYCLING AGAIN!) and can be found at Going Green Lanterns online shop.  However, the GIVEAWAY can be found on Evergreen Moms.  Enter by clicking HERE and following instructions.  Giveaway is open for entries until December 10th.  May the best luckiest (wo)man win! 
PS - If you want to start your shopping now, $20 will buy you your favorite lantern design!

(thanks Evergreen Moms & Going Green Lanterns!)

We have a spot on our living room wall that we have decided is destined for a wall sticker!  We haven't found the just right one yet, so we continue to look.  One place I will be looking is Expressing You, a handmade artisan creating all sorts of wall decals - big and small.  She can customize the size and style of any decal option - and I believe she even has an entire custom create option for those of you who have an idea in your head that you don't see in your store.  Etsy It Up is hosting a Giveaway for a Swirly Bird Wall Decal (winner chooses color/letter combination).  Click HERE to enter the giveaway!  Taking entries through December 9th.  
(Thanks Etsy It Up and Expressing You!) 

Where to Find Handmade Products? (Plus A WINNER!)

Hooray & Congrats to ksizemore@ - the WINNER of our 1st Giveaway - ksizemore you have won a digital card of your choice!  Please reply to the e-mail sent to you in order to get the ball rolling on receiving your giveaway prize!  (winning number selected by www.random.org)

WATCH FOR A REVIEW POST ABOUT MAILBOX BLISS COMING 

UP ON THURSDAY, DECEMBER 3RD!

If you are new to buying handmade...or even just exploring handmade, you may be wondering where you can even begin the venture of buying handmade.  No longer is buying handmade relegated to church basement craft shows.  It has gone high class and high tech!


ETSY
You may have heard of Etsy before - this is probably the most widely recognized online collection of web stores for handmade artisans.  Click HERE to go to Etsy and begin to browse online stores - or utilize the search function to look for specific items.  The rules of Etsy are that in order for an item to be sold online, it must be handmade directly by the seller, be art supplies OR be vintage items that are at least 20 years old or more.


ARTFIRE
Artfire is an equally popular and growing consortium of handmade vendors available online.  Artfire is very similar to Etsy in its focus on handmade products.  Categories for sales on Artfire include: handmade, art, vintage, media & craft supplies.  Click HERE to go to Artfire and explore!

Since beginning Gonna Want This-Handmade! I've learned about several other online venues for buying and selling handmade products.  I am not as familiar with them yet, but they seem to be some more great resources for both buyers and sellers of handmade!  They include:


CRAFTSTER
Craftster is an artisan showcase website that has been around since 2003.  Here is how Craftster describes themselves: "Craftster is an online community where people share hip, off-beat, crafty diy (do it yourself) projects. The term "Craftster" means "crafty hipster" and is also meant to be an homage to the pioneer peer-to-peer sites Napster and Friendster.  Craftster is the largest online community for what is now commonly known as "indie crafts." ("Indie" stands for independent as in indie music, indie art, indie film, etc.) Craftster is regarded by many as one of the cornerstones of the recent renaissance in crafting known as the "indie craft movement."  Click HERE to go to Craftster's Online Store.  However this appears to be more of an informative website for handmade vendors than a shopping venue.  I do love the tutorials and suggested DIY projects for crafty wannabes like me (I'm thinking "Make It Myself Monday"!).

INDIEPUBLIC
A social networking site for indie ("independent") artists, vendors, bloggers, etc.  There is a marketplace link and tons of advertisements that can take you to indie vendor websites.  However Indie Public is more Facebook  style networking than a exclusive shopping venue.  Definitely worth checking out - and if you sign up, look up Gonna Want This-Handmade! 

I SHOP INDIE
I Shop Indie is an online consortium of indie designers, artists and vendors desiring to promote their shops and products.  The site seems pretty easily navigable, and will take interested buyers to the direct websites of the featured indie vendors. 

DON'T FORGET!

Click HERE to enter the Baby Peas & Bees "Baby in a Basket" Giveaway!  (Ends at 11:00 PM CST TONIGHT!)

Click HERE to enter the O2 Designs "Beaded Origami Earrings" Giveaway (Ends at 11:00 PM CST on 12/2/09)

Click HERE to enter the TToz Designs "Baby Loungewear Set" Giveaway (Ends at 11:00 PM CST on 12/3/09)