yo anthro...

If I opened a women's boutique I would carry all of these things. And I would call it anthropologie. Oops, someone already did that. And I love them for it.

Yo, anthro, Happy Thanksgiving!

the big "O"

Oh, Oprah. Why must you do this to me? First you announce that you're retiring and then you go and publish the loveliest little gift guide ever. I almost love you more than Etsy. Almost. And you didn't even include zuzu girl handmade in the gift guide. Nor do I ever really watch your show. Go figure. You're just THAT cool.

The "FOR HER" gift finder contains 513 items and yes, I just combed through all of them to find these fab few. Do you know how hard that was? I advise that you take a peek at all 26 pages yourself if you can find the time. But if you can't, here's a little info about the lovely little items pictured above...

1. Belart Tagua necklace
2. Hallmark adhesive gift wrap
3. Bambu nesting baskets
4. Baekgaard checkbook cover
5. Bumble and Bumble ponytail holder ball
6. Pralus Pyramide des 10 Tropiques Dark Chocolate Sampler
7. Bodum Bistro toaster
8. Chan Luu Leather wrapped bracelets
9. Rollei Rolleiflex digital camera

i love ballet

1.ribbon wands 2.white ruffle leggings 3.fuchsia petticoat 4.cupcake toppers 5.ballet shoe necklace 6.dancer wall art 7.messenger bag 8.pink ruffle tights

Zuzu and I have ballet on the brain today and had such a fun time putting together this fabulous assortment of ballet inspired Etsy goodies. We just returned from her super sweet ballet school where they are currently studying The Nutcraker. Like her mom when she was little, Zuzu loves to dance. But her very favorite part of the class is the warm up when all the girls lay on their bellies in a circle with their hands on their chins and chant together "I love ballet". They get progressively louder and louder until they are screaming so loud they must dramatically hold their ears. It's just about the cutest thing you've ever seen.

bossy e

I made these sweet ponies for Little Miss Emma tonight. Emma is not bossy in the least, it just happened to be the first title name that came into my head. I'm going to have her test them out in her sassy blond locks. If those shiny bossy E's hold up after enough use they might just become available for your sweet one too. Even if her name isn't Emma.

i heart Etsy

Have you peeked at my Etsy favorites lately?
They are all here ...

thankful wednesday

I've been quite literally stumbling over stuffing mix & Christmas decorations in multiple stores all week. Don't get me wrong, I worked in retail for 20 years, so this shouldn't surprise me in the least. But ever year, inevitably, it does. And I'm never quite prepared.

I suppose it's because I'm somewhat of a scrooge. Yup. I said it. I like to give thanks and the best thing in the world is my family...hands down. But I prefer to celebrate that every day. And not just when the calendar (and the retail stores) tells me it's time. With that said, I can still enjoy the beauty in the holidays, even if I do not decorate my house as such. This morning I searched Etsy for "Thanksgiving" items and it returned over 750 pages of handmade goodness. These were just a few of my favorites. And I'm thankful for all of them...

1.pom poms 2.felt acorns 3.dish cloths 4.winter tree dishes 5.mercury glass centerpiece 6.pumpkin soy candle 7.happy indian & thankful pilgrim 8.pumpkin spice soap

contain me

I'm a virgo. I like to organize. I love baskets. I love THESE baskets. And once I decide where they are going and what they will hold I will own these baskets. You can find the entire assortment at the Sewing Momma via Etsy.

oh deer!

Products by Etsy.
Styling by Zuzu.
The fabulous, custom & hand made poncho is courtesy of The Trendy Tot. I'm so in love with this cozy, hooded goodness, and fortunately Zuzu is too. It's the perfect weight for our chilly California mornings and it doesn't hurt that it's one of a kind which makes it super special. The leg warmers were a spontaneous but wise purchase from Fate Goddess. The black and white stripes go with everything. I love the ease in which they go on and the way they stay up just about all day and Zuzu loves that she can still wear a skirt (or tutu) when it's cold out. Guess what else I love? Etsy. Truly.

small print: I paid full price for both of these items. No one asked me to write this blog post. I just did. I'm endorsing them only because they deserve it. And Zuzu looks cute. Check them out...

paint it yourself

Daisy Creek Designs offers a super cool collection of rhinestone tees & accessories or as the shop deservedly boasts, "unique, sassy, and fun clothing and gift items for kids and adults alike!" The owner, Liz, is a Kindergarten teacher, devoted mom and all around neat lady. And she just recently she added these PIY tees (paint it yourself) to her line. The moment I saw one I was hooked. Fortunately for me, I've got connections and only a few hundred miles between me and the tee.

I held off painting for a few days because the mood had to be right. I wanted to make sure we were well fed, napped & genuinely excited to create. And we were! Zuzu had a blast painting and I took 90+ photos of the process. (A quick scroll down will leave you relieved to know that I'm only going to share about a dozen or so with you). View the photos clockwise for the full effect and apologies for the missing shirt on my little artist. We tend to remove articles of clothing when we paint...
(if you click on the collage it gets MUCH bigger)



Zuzu can't wait to wear her creation tomorrow and she will remember the afternoon painting experience with mom every time she does. At $18.00 plus minimal shipping these make fabulous birthday gifts or stocking stuffers for any budding artist! The link once again? Sure! Click HERE.

everything's coming up roses...

So I might be just an little teeny, tiny bit biased...but aren't these just the sweetest little barrettes you've ever seen? Truly, I was sad when someone snatched them up only hours after listing. Hardly the way a shop owner should feel! But never fear. I've ordered more rose buds and plenty of barrettes so you'll definitely be seeing more of these in zuzu girl's future. And in my hair.

In the meantime, here are a few of my other favorite new items in the shop this week....





Happy Monday!

modern handmade child

The new, winter issue of Modern Handmade Child Magazine launched last night. That's right...we're live! You can access the magazine easily by clicking here. Be sure to check out my stocking stuffer article beginning on page 56 for lots of great handmade finds like those shown above. Happy Shopping!

pins & ponies

We just couldn't resist. We've begun to explode our hair accessory business, adding a small assortment of pony tail holders & bobby pins to the shop this week. (Hopefully this adequately explains the lack of blog posts!) We're working on some fabulous barrettes & rings as well with similar styling. Can't wait to share those with you soon! We'd love to know what you think...

it's official!

Did I forget to tell you that our new website is up?
Yes, I think I did... but it is.
We've still got some more to add but come visit.
We'd love to know what you think!
zuzugirlhandmade.com

coffee or tea?

Happy Friday! It's been a long, rainy week and schools are closed today so we're all hunkered down in our pj's enjoying a leisurely morning. And, for some odd reason, I have coffee on the mind. Surprise! Thanks to the following Etsy artisans for their lovely products and inspiration...
1.columbian supremo 2.knitted coffee cozy 3.mustache set 4.i love you more 5.travel mug 6.no coffee no workee 7.coffee for two 8.mighty mug cozy

got wands?

We do! We're stocking up the shop with our meticulously hand-crafted princess wands. At zuzu girl handmade we use only the best ribbon, tulle & decorative flowers to construct our little lovelies. Our flower wands are perfect for Halloween costumes, Christmas stockings or just plain goofing off. A girl can never have too many. And if you don't believe me, just ask Zuzu.

missy loo-hoo

Meet Lucy. (If you haven't already) Lucy got a new sweater today. Isn't it just divine? Lucy loves it. Well, as far as sweaters go on dogs I'd say she's pretty smitten. My Etsy friend Anne over at Beantown Handmade custom made the sweater just for us. She has a variety of styles available and colors too. It's like making your own sweater...without actually doing any of the work. Can't beat that. So, while I'm not quite ready for Fall, or the 4 month rainy season that is San Francisco, Lucy sure is!

wordless (but very pretty) wednesday

locket with turquoise blue chrysanthemum by feathers and hope



bird in the violet garden & teal bird tassel by miss c alexandria



vintage japanese flower cluster (12) & assorted acrylic rose beads (20) by sweet goods


vintage tin & mugs by found vintage style

vanity

It's all about vanity. See, that's what they called the new personalized URL's that Facebook introduced this summer. Vanity URL's. What that meant was that you could have your very own name in the URL. But there was a catch. A vanity URL for a business page required 100+ fans.

So everyone scrambled to get 100 fans. Well, not me really. I just waited patiently. And when the page hit 100 fans yesterday I applied for my vanity URL. www.facebook.com/zuzugirl. Pretty right? Yeah, not so much. I got the URL I wanted and then I couldn't get into the damn page. Seriously. Turns out it works for some of my fans but not for others. And for the most part, not for me. Now tell me, what good is a vanity URL if it tells you your "page is not found" every time you try to open it? Not so good it turns out.

So I complained...and I cried...and I tried everything to fix it. And then I gave in. And I moved.

You can now find zuzu girl handmade on facebook HERE. And the URL is really, really ugly. And I. Don't. Care.

Come join us. It's beautiful there. Or it will be...I promise.

(oh, and PS, on Twitter you come by your vanity URL naturally but I'm not taking sides or anything)

back in black

Do not adjust your monitor. This is the zuzu girl handmade blog and, while I still adore creating in turquoise and pink, truth be told, I don't often wear it.

I woke up yesterday and realized it was October 1st. Seriously, how did this happen? I honestly have not yet embraced the year 2009 and can't begin to get my arms around the fact that 2010 is just around the corner. Not to mention the fact that it is, yes, it already is, Fall. Wow.

So what's a girl to do when she's in need of consoling? Yup. You got it. She shops. Well, "window" shops at least. On Etsy, of course.

Thanks go to the following shops for their inspiring products & images...
1. bionic unicorn 2. morelle 3. dandy apple 4. larimeloom 5. chocolate cake jewels 6. delirium kredens 7. lulu coco 8. the vintage closet 9. made by hank

dainty blooms

My fabric arrived yesterday...woo-hoo! I've been really excited about making these fab little headbands and I'm thrilled with the way they turned out. There is one pink one in the shop and another in Zuzu's room. She gave it two thumbs up and even agreed to be photographed with no bribe...now that's got to mean something! I'm going to take the camera to tutu school tomorrow and try to get some action shots. The light in there is fabulous.

I've got a couple with brown ribbon in the works for those that prefer something a little more Fall (I'm clearly still in denial) and if I got my fingers off these keys they might actually make it to the shop tonight. I'm also toying with the idea of making some smaller scale flowers into halos and maybe even some simple hair clippies. So much to do...so little time!