Dear Gov. Palin....

I AM NOT JOE SIX-PACK. I AM NOT A HOCKEY MOM.
I AM NOT JOE SIX-PACK. I AM NOT A HOCKEY MOM.
I AM NOT JOE SIX-PACK. I AM NOT A HOCKEY MOM.
I AM NOT JOE SIX-PACK. I AM NOT A HOCKEY MOM.
I AM NOT JOE SIX-PACK. I AM NOT A HOCKEY MOM.
I AM NOT JOE SIX-PACK. I AM NOT A HOCKEY MOM.

...AND I VOTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Spirited Autumn Event starts on the Equinox!

The EAST team presents The Spirited Autumn Event, which will begin on September 22nd, 2008 (the Fall Equinox), and run thru October 6, 2008. Search Etsy with the tag, TSAE, and you will find promotions throughout the participating member shops!

All my incense blends are 20% off for the event! To get your discount, make sure to put "TSAE" in the notes to seller section when you make your purchase. I'll send you a revised invoice! These tins make great gifts for Samhain and Yule, too!
You can find all my incense blends and other goodies at my Etsy shop, Summer Sea Herbs.

I'm Having A Sale!!!!

I'm having a sale in both of my Etsy shops!

Take 10% off everything in AvalonAdornments,


and 20% off everything in SummerSea! Just wait for an adjusted invoice, before you pay.


Thanks for looking!
~tracyw

Hancock Shaker Village Day Trip

Last weekend, I visited Hancock Shaker Village, in the Berkshire Mountains. It's a museum , but was an actual Shaker Village Homestead until the 1950's when it was sold to a group of trustees for preservation. The most stunning feature of the campus is the round stone barn! It's amazing, inside and out!

I also enjoyed the huge medicinal herb garden and the cut flower garden. The Shakers were very well-known for their herbal knowledge.
I also found out that the Shakers really embraced new technologies. At the village, they kept several cars, and always traded them in every two years or so. This way, they had the latest automotive innovations. They also built a water turbine for their laundry system.

It was a really nice day, spent exploring the village, and learning about this amazing local culture. If you ever get to New England, it's worth a trip!

W is for Witch! ~ new item in my shop

Most of you know me more from my herb shop, but I do have a more creative side that likes to play with glitter, and silks and paint and glue.
I thought you might like to see my newest creation in my Avalon Adornments shop. It's a mixed media assemblage. You can see more about it here.

New Celestial Magnets in my shop!

This is not your average magnet set! This would make a great gift! In misty tones of teal, purple, and pinky-red, the celestial symbols of the Sun, Moon, and a Star shine. These jumbo 1.25" glass gems and the metal tin have been hand-colored using alcohol inks, then rubber stamped. The designs for the magnets were rubber stamped on paper and adhered using sparkle glue. the back of the magnet is sealed iwth sparkle adhesive so even that is pretty when turned over. I then sealed everything with several coats of sealer.

The tin is all wrapped up in coordinating fibers, ready for gift giving! This would make the perfect gift for your hostess, a housewarming or birthday!

I left the interior of the tin uncoated so it can be used for any manner of things after you take out the magnets.

The magnets are super strong neodymium, and will hold 6-7 pieces of paper.
You can find this set for sale at my Etsy shop, Avalon Adornments.

Winners of EAST's Gypsy Design Challenge!

The Gypsy Design challenge voting has ended and we have winners!
Thank you to everyone who voted!

Figgy, of FromtheFigTree won with her beautiful Gypsy skirt

Congratulations!!!



Liz, of LizStaley, came in second place with her adorable Anime plushie


And Dismissie came in third with her Gypsy wagon


Everyone who participated was so creative, I'm just blown away! Thank you so much!

Tonka Beans for Magick and Money Draw

I now have Tonka Beans for sale in my shop!
Also known as Coumaria Nut and Lucky Bean, Tonka has a long history of use in both the perfume industry, and for it's associations with Luck, Money, and Love.
Tonka beans have a vanilla-like scent when tinctured, and are sometimes used as an ingredient in fragrances.

To use for magickal purposes, they are carried in your pocket, placed in a sachet, or used in spells for to draw money to you. If I'm doing a prosperity spell designed specifically for money, and not just general abundance, I'll always have a few tonka beans on my altar.
It is not recommended to burn tonka beans, which is why I don't include them in my incense formulas.

Sale at Summer Sea Herbs!

**************I'm having a sale thru July 18th!*************
Take 25% off all items in my herb shop! Just place your order and wait for an adjusted invoice. It's that easy!

EarthPath Artisans Street Team's Gypsy Challenge Begins! Come Vote!

The EarthPath Artisans Street Team (EAST) is having a Gypsy Design Challenge! Team members have taken their interpretation of what the word "Gypsy" conjures up for them, and created new pieces in a variety of media.

The purpose of this challenge is not to win prizes or compete with each other; rather, it's a way to build team camaraderie and inspire us to explore new themes and stretch our creative muscles. And for the winner, it means a little extra attention from an adoring public! Winners will be posted on the blog and on Etsy.

So stop by the EAST Challenge page on Flickr http://www.flickr.com/groups/earthpathchallenge
To see pictures of the entries, and then go vote at the EAST blog
http://earthpathartisans.blogspot.com
You can also see many of the entries on Etsy by visiting the team shop's favorite items page.
http://earthpathartisans.etsy.com

Voting ends July 21st.
We'll see you there!

Today is my ETSY-versary! Sale in my shop!

Today is my two year Etsy-versary! Yay!
To celebrate, I'm going to offer 20% off everything in Summer Sea Herbs. If there's anything you want, just wait for an adjusted invoice after you make your purchases, before you pay.

It's been a great two years here, I'm so happy to have found Etsy, and of course, especially happy about our EarthPath Artisans family! You all rock my world!

Have a wonderful day!
Blessed be,
tracyw

Check out the new items in my shop!

Love your Mother!

Happy Earth Day!
Go organic!
Reduce, Re-use, Recycle as much as you possibly can!

Spring has Sprung! Finally...

While it seemed that Spring would never get here, the calendar has moved steadily on from Winter and officially become Spring. and not a minute too soon, either. I don't know a single person who hasn't felt just totally beaten down by the weather here so far this year.

So, to celebrate the fact that there are Spring flowers blooming somewhere, I've posted some of my pics from the annual New England Flower Show held in Boston. There's also a few of my other pics here that make me think of Spring.
Enjoy!

Winter Wonderland Challenge ~ Vote & Win!

The voting for our Winter Wonderland Challenge is still going on, so you STILL have a chance to VOTE and be put in for a FREE chance to WIN a WONDERFUL PRIZE PACK!

Registered Etsy members get FOUR votes each (not each shop). It's so easy to register, you just need an email address!

Each of the 4 top-hearted items have one of their voters chosen randomly to win a FANTASTIC prize pack put together by the members of EAST (which includes soap, earrings, ornaments, and a lot more!),


So get your votes in before the contest ends on January 7th! You can see all 22 of our entries by visiting our Team Shop's favorites: Here's the link to our team Favorites

Just click on the piece you want to vote for and "Add Item to Favorites". See how easy?

And all thru the Blog, not a new thing stirred...

I'm making amends here, on Christmas day, to you, my poor readers who have had nothing new from me in a very long time. For some reason, blogging has seemed a bit overwhelming lately. There have not been too many personal things that I could share, and business has been quiet. I felt stuck trying to come up with something useful, or funny, to say. I haven't had too many new pretty pictures, either.

I want to get back to blogging regularly, in the manner to which you have become accustomed. Know that there will be the usual mix of magick and medicine, business and pleasure. There will be, for awhile anyway, probably more business things. I owe ALOT of people posts about their shops for the Etsy 90/90 day challenge. It's now more like the 90/180 day challenge. Sorry about that! If you blogged about Summer Sea Herbs, know that I will blog you back~really.

Speaking of Summer Sea Herbs, I have been very busy getting some new products up in the Etsy shop, new packaging, and tending to EarthPath Artisan Street Team business.
I also tried my hand at a new mixed media piece for a promotion that the EAST team is currently running.

Personally, I wanted to let you know that I'm doing ok. Sometimes lately, Life has been challenging, but I'm hanging in there. I'll try to keep you up to date, and try to get some pics from the past season up here for you.

Tim & I made Chocolate-dipped pretzels for stocking stuffers this year! Yum!



Take care, and I'll be back really soon!
Merry Christmas & Blessed Yule!
~tracyw

4 of 90 Featured Etsy Shops: Liz Staley's Realm of Nerdiness

I'm a bit of a nerd~ I admit it! Undernearth my hippy,dippy, herbalist exterior is a nerd who loves Star Wars, used to play D&D in college, and watches Adult Swim late at night. I like computer geek stuff, although I'm not very good at it. I no longer game anymore. OK, so I haven't gamed in over 25 years. BUT, I can get my nerd fix just by stopping by Liz Staley's Realm of Nerdiness on Etsy! Liz is one of my favorite people on Etsy, and a member of my EarthPath Artisans Street team.

Currently living in Greenville, NC, Liz makes cool chokers out of PC keyboard keys, crochets fabulous and sexy fingerless gloves, and makes fun buttons! She has also figured out how to make wallets out of keyboard circuitry! Now, you won't find those anywhere else! Liz is not only a Star wars fan, but caters to FireFly/Serenity fans as well. She's got a new line of buttons and magnets with fun quotes from the series.

You can also find Liz blogging about her life here.
Stop by the Realm of Nerdiness to read all the fun buttons, and indulge your inner nerd! She's currently making some new "Geek Paks" for us which will make great stocking stuffers for those geeks or gamers on your list!

Franklin County Fiber Twist Festival

This past weekend, my Mom and I went to the Franklin County (MA) Fiber Twist. It's a county-wide celebration of all things wool and wool-related. The main vendor halls and the demonstrations were held in Old Deerfield Village in Deerfield, MA. Then various farms had open studio hours where you could visit. After spending most of the day at the vendor halls, we set off for the studio tour.

The weather on Saturday was typical of the worst that New England has to offer in October- cold rain and fog, all day. However, being the intrepid souls that we are, we managed to make it to two of the farms to visit. The farms were located on back roads, well off the beaten path. When we got to Springdelle Farm in Shelburne, they were having a shearing demonstration on the sheep. The farm's studio, Foxfire Fiber & Designs had incredibly soft hand-dyed yarn spun into the most beautiful colors!

Springdelle Sheep

After we left Springdelle, we headed to Moonshine Design at Keldaby. Here the focus is on Angora goats. The mohair from these gentle animals is so lush! We got a tour of the barn, and visited the shop there. I covet the hand-dyed Sport socks made at the farm! They were the thickest, softest and most colorfully dyed socks I have seen!

Back at Old Deerfield, we met vendors from all over the Valley. Each booth was full of wool rovings, batts, finished hand-crafted items or related things. We even went to a demonstration of felting. My new obsession is now making felt (wet felting) and needle felting! I'll be sure to post my first piece I finish.

Here's some of the pictures from the hall, with links if available:
Woollies of Shirkshire Farm, Conway,MA (413.625.3236)

Jaeger Farm Icelandics

Sojourner Designs

Journey Wheels

Day 3 of 90 Featured Etsy Shops: Earmark Invitations

Are you obsessed with cards and stationary? Can't resist the racks of gorgeous cards and journals, even when you're late to get someplace? Yeah, me too!

If that's the case, Earmark Invitations's shop on Etsy is a place you should see. These custom stationers have great graphics, clean crisp designs, and a sense of humor. I love that they print all of their designs on recycled paper. Bridgette and Mike will also make a custom birthday card or stationary for you at very reasonable prices. If you're near San Diego, stop by and see them at their weekly booth at the Ocean Beach Farmers Market. Tell them you're from Etsy and get a free card! Free cards for the paper obsessed! What could be better than that?

Day 2 of 90 Featured Etsy Shops: Wanderlust & Pixiedust

I found GLITTER!!!!!!

You all know how much I like pretty, shiny things, right? Today's featured shop in the 90 in 90 Etsy promotion is Wanderlust & Pixiedust. Not only is there have real vintage glass glitter, but also nice supplies for making your own paper arts such as collage. There are pendants and other things ready-made, too. Vintage is her thing, and there's some fun items to choose from!

You can read more about Wanderlust in her blog.