A gorgeous Pottery Gallery

Hello my friends!!!

One of the things I do enjoy a lot is visiting galleries and especially those with creations of artists that are not professional. It reminds me that every single person can create something unique. And it is not necessary for everyone to like it, but it is important for the artist since this is a beautiful way to express himself/herself.

Last week I had the chance to visit a pottery gallery where a friend of mine also participated. I was speechless… I couldn’t imagine that all of them were crafted by people that were into pottery just for a few months or a couple of years. I admired unique formations, with different artistic designs and views but all of them were so beautiful .

I am sure that my pictures cannot give you a really clear idea of the pottery gallery, but again you can check them out and I am sure you will admire them as I did. Enjoy!

      mats mouts

This Week's Finds - Travel me away....

Hello my friends!!!

I am really happy for three reasons this week... the first one, it is really hot and Summer is already here! I am in love with Summer! I do love the sea, summer vacation, going out with friends and family, beach parties and the sunset this time of the year!

The second one is because I have changed my blog! I finally did!  I make it more bright, more playful, with the colors I love. At last I do feel it like "my" blog... :)

 And last but not least, I will be co-host to a beautiful blog party or else blog hop, in a beautiful blog of a lady that can cook really good...especially cakes! The party will be active tomorrow, Thursday, and anyone can participate and meet more bloggers, have more new friends and have the opportunity to read other ideas, thoughts, dreams, experiences. I will be honored if you participate on that.

So what is the best for this week;s finds from posts from a few of my favorite bloggers that will definitely travel you away....

Akamatras blog : The real world

Creative Tsouf blog : Simplicity ● Art journal page

A few pretty things blog : Outdoor decor ideas

Nafsika's blog : Sailing Weekend

HunkiiDorii blog : Veneers and canes

Star of the East : Marmaris 

And last but not least, the giveaway and the featured talented artist in Ef Zin Creations blog...she will travel you for sure!

Ef Zin Creations blog : GIVEAWAY - Triada... the Spring Lady!!!

Have a wonderful day! Hope you will join tomorrow's party!!!

       

 mats mouts

Giveaway Winner - Akamatra... the Bow Lady!!!!

Good Morning my friends!

Saturday today and my mode is really high… I will see a few beloved friends in a while and at the same time Akamatra’s giveaway ended and I am really curious for the lucky lady!

But before use Rafflecopter to choose the winner…let me introduce you my precious young artist…my daughter. A few days ago we bought her first water-colors and the first experience was a really messy one! But she was laughing all the time and she was really happy. So get messy, will make you feel good!

So are you ready for the result? Let’s see…..

Happy Birthday Akamatra!!!!!!! We wish you many more moments full of creativity!


And now let's pick the winner......

Congratulations Rab Pom!!! We will contact you soon!!!

Thank you Maro for being in my blog! It was an honor!

Just stay in touch with my blog for the next amazing posts and our next Giveaway on May.... another amazing artist will be here.... a young lady who loves colors! It will be a surprise!!!!

Monday Moodboard - Coffee Lover!

Good Morning and Happy New week my friends!

This is the last Monday Moodboard, as Estella already mentioned in her blog, so I would like to create something memorable…about friendship, yourself,your joy.

Last night I had a really great time with a few new friends and we discussed, laughed, drank… it was super. Since I am a coffee lover and since most of the Greeks have a cup of coffee when they want to see their friends, I created a moodboard full of coffee! Ok… I also have a sweet tooth…and I never drink my coffee without at least a tiny biscuit!

1.DigiMarthe  2.BiscuitCuit 3.antiquissimo  4.HugsKissesMINI

5.DivineDecadance  6.PieceOfCakeHJ

So fill up a cup, grab a biscuit or a tsoureki or donut or whatever and enjoy it. It will definitely calm your nerves and it will definitely make you smile!

Thank you Estella for this awesome game. It was really great to meet other shops and having them in small moodboard collections. Let’s move to the next game :)
Have a wonderful, full of smiles and happiness week!

Mats mouts!

GIVEAWAY - Akamatra... the Bow Lady!!!!

What a beautiful and sunny day today in Greece. It really makes me happy…. But on the other hand my mood is really high since I am honored to have in my blog a great friend, a very talented crafter and a unique lady… the bow lady!

I first met Akamatra in etsy  and I fell in love with her creations! Soon, as a lucky lady I am (ha! are you jealous?), I had the chance to meet her in real life too. I do consider her as a friend, a valuable one actually, that I can discuss my problems, having a coffee and share craft ideas or even push her to help me with my blog or etsy shop (ok..I know she is not smiling right now…)… and my next “step” is to convince her to baby sit my daughter!

beige leather bow barrette

Her work is just amazing, romantic, for young girls and unique ladies. But most of all what I like in Maro's work is that you can "understand" and "meet" her by just observing her creations. Every single one is like telling you something about her. Every bow, every jewel or cup cozy just hiding a small and cute story. Her shop is like the Wonderland to me... too many stories, too many dreams, too many feelings!  

Οκ...I have to stop talking.... Please let me introduce you Maro from Akamatra!

neon spike earrings

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I come from a family of makers. My parents made furniture, clothes, toys, food, love and most of all they made homes for us. I grew up in a house where recycling, reusing and repurposing was our everyday fun. I guess I couldn't escape my DNA so you can blame my parents for everything you see in my shop!

Akamatra was born on 2011, when my boyfriend (now my husband) and my cousin convinced me that it would be a good idea to start selling all the jewelry I've been making. As it turns out, they were right!

I love my etsy shop! Having Akamatra has been a life saver. Making jewelry, has kept me sane. Networking inside etsy has also been a wonderful experience! I've "met" many amazing people here and I appreciate everyone who has helped me during these last years!

beaded black ring

I honestly believe that a handmade item carries within the love and feelings of its maker and still has space for the love and the feelings of the person who buys it. In a way, buying handmade helps keep the love flow from one person to another and that's the feeling I am having each time someone honours me with a buy.

Tribal leather necklace

In my shop one will find different styles and diverse types of jewelry since I am a firm believer of change and diversity! So, there are girly and cute jewels and accessories, but there are feminine and chic jewels also. What’s missing are the jewelry that mass production industries and their copycats make! Akamatra is a shop devoted to uniqueness and although modern and in sync with the latest fashion, my creations are unique and cannot be found in the next shop.

 spike bracelet

Having a small business on etsy, is almost a full time job in ways a non seller could not imagine! My time on etsy is on my list of highs during my every day.

I only hope my smile is contagious...

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Akamatra is having her second etsy - birthday this month, so Maro was really nice to offer a great gift to one lucky lady or girl…one of her beautiful bows! Isn't the greatest way to start the new month???




Your choice of an awesome bow



So in order to have the chance to win and choose by yourself your favorite bow, just use the Rafflecopter below and earn more entries. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good Luck!

Etsy Greek Street Team: Items of the week - Tuesday's blues

What a lovely surprise... a bracelet of EfZin creations to be included in the oficial blog of  Etsy Greek Street Team! I am honored!!!!

 1.  Wall decoration by Beh1ndHome

2. Bracelet by EfZinCreations

3. Ring by xeiropoihto

 4. Earrings by DivineDecadance

Just click and visit more fantastic and talented Greek artists!

Have a wonderful day!

Monday MoodBoard - Floral Mood

The past weekend my little girl was sick, so despite the fact that here in Greece today is a religion holiday, unfortunately we could not go the short excursion we have planned. No problem at all, since it is better to stay at home and have my sweet Nefeli feeling better.

So instead of sitting in the house and just drawing or playing with the dolls, I bought a few small plants that my Nefeli helped me to dibble. We do have a great time in our small balcony, full of smiles and laughs and yes our mood improved. So what if we stayed inside? I was with people I love and we had a beautiful moments!

That's why my moodboard today is full of flowers..... 

1.ManniaTitta 2.KalliasWonderland 3.theYarnKitchen 4.MistyAurora

If you want to check more moodboards, please click on Estella's blog! Sorry but I have to go...Nefeli is waiting for me to finish the dibbling!

A!!! Do not forget to participate in the giveaway of my blog with the amazing crafter Eleanna!!

Have a wonderful new week! 

GIVEAWAY - Eleanna... from Jewelry to Sockmonsters!!!!!!

Hello Amazing people!

Have I told you that I am a proud member of Greek etsy team? And you know what is the best? That in the specific team I have the opportunity to meet new amazing people and great artists not only via web but in real life too! Another thing I also love in Etsy community, that you can meet other’s inspirations and you can admire too many different creations with the same materials!

So today I am honored to represent you a great friend and a talented crafter! How I met Eleanna? From her well-written seminal tutorials and her SockMonsters! And it is weird how these sock dolls can be pretty and cute even for monsters! I visited her shop and I was surprised that she also creates amazing full of colors jewels in different styles! Unique minimal geometry necklaces, hippie earrings from polymer perfect for your Spring and Summer appearance, floral beaded necklaces in bohemian style, beautiful romantic cuff bracelets….! To be honest when you visit her shop it is really difficult to leave it without spending at least half an hour admiring her work... you will be happily "lost" in her shop!!!

But let meet her in a few lines….

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Hello there! I' m Eleanna from Athens, Greece :)

I grew up in Athens but I come from Serifos and Pelion, two lovely places in Greece. I have lived in France, Italy, the Netherlands and the UK but I 've never traveled outside Europe. I have studied architecture [AUTH, Greece] and Urbanism [Msc, TUDelft, Netherlands].  

I make many questions, I laugh out loud [really loud] and I love dancing,swimming and biking but mostly eating chocolate :P. I have been making jewelry more than 10 years, but even before that, I 've always been up to something creative: drawing, sewing, crafting in general. I don't know if it is a matter of genes, but certainly a creative environment helps: my dad was a painter, my mum draws and sews greatly and my grandma was a crochet master.

What I love about crafting jewelry and creating sock-creatures is that I can make everything on my own. The creative process in this scale is much faster and I can control all the phases: idea-concept, design and construction. And this is what I think I miss when designing for smaller scales, where the results are more long-term.

While creating, I feel more me. I love the whole process: the moment an idea strucks me and I get completely enthusiastic about it; the procedure of trying to figure out how to realize it; designing the final piece or details; choosing best tools, methods and materials; combining materials and making the synthesis; and my favorite part: having the end product!

I love discovering new materials and trying new techniques. This is why you will notice a big variety in my creations. One material I prefer is wood-clay, that after drying I paint with acrylic color. Another favorite is polymer clay, especially the millefiori technique. I also love fabrics and use them for some projects. Plastic tube is a material I use for the "networks". And of course I am obsessed with socks that I use to create my sock monsters! :)

I am a fan of sharing knowledge and ideas and motivating everyone to get creative. Lately, I write crafting tutorials for  crafttuts+ [http://craft.tutsplus.com/author/eleanna-kotsikou/] , which I really enjoy. I love being a member of the Etsy Greek Street Team, where I met lovely people and made good friends. It is a vibrant fast-growing community that spreads the crafting spirit and I think it is awesome sharing creative enthusiasm with others.

Thank you so much Zina for your sweet hospitality!

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Eleanna was really kind to offer a beautiful minimal geometric necklace from her collection as a gift to one lucky lady!!!!!

So in order to have the chance to win this beautiful necklace, just use the Rafflecopter below and earn more entries. Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thank you Eleanna!!!!! mats mouts!