Weekly Treasury

This week's treasury comes from Laugh Rabbit Designs.  Check out some of these awesome products and Buy Idaho!

Check back next Wednesday for another great Idaho Treasury!

Recipe: GF Chewy Surprise Cookies

Hi guys, it’s Karen from Plushoodles. How’s your Tuesday going? Awesome, mine too!

I can’t begin to tell you how happy I am that spring is finally here! I’m incredibly ready for lots of sunny, warm weather days! Spring also ushers in a season filled with fun times to get together with friends for potlucks, dinners, and parties…and all of these events usually require some sort of dish you have to bring along.

So today I’m really excited to share one of my favorite recipes for just these times! Hold onto your hats, and plan to sign up to bring dessert next time, because I’m about to share with you the most amazing trifecta of cookie awesomeness!!! Seriously, what other cookie combines chocolate, caramel, AND peanut butter in such a simple and delicious way?!

Sound good? Are you ready? Me too! But before we can start baking, I have to put on my beautiful new apron!

Do you like it? Thanks, I made it myself! Want to look this cute while baking in your kitchen too? Where’d I get such a gorgeous apron pattern? Hey, I’m glad you asked! Because it turns out that my awesome friend, Mary Kay, of Geneva Designs, has this really cool etsy shop where she sells these amazing apron patterns.

So this year for Christmas, I bought Mary Kay’s patterns and made fun new aprons for myself, my mom, and my little sis. Aren’t we all so cute in our new aprons?!

Mary Kay’s pattern instructions are very easy to follow and once you make one apron, you’ll fall in love with the pattern and want to make a dozen more!

Wait,…what’s that? You don’t know how to sew? Or don’t have the time? No problem! Mary Kay sews the most amazing aprons, offers a variety of styles and sizes, and she’ll even do custom orders! So, hit the pause button, and swing on over to her shop and check out all the fun items she has for sale!

Wasn’t that fun? Okay, now back to baking! Why is this cookie recipe so great for potlucks? Because just 1 batch makes a total of 8 dozen cookies!

Yep,…E-I-G-H-T!!! Yeah, it was designed for sharing!

Looks pretty soft and yummy, huh? But wait, these cookies have an awesome surprise hiding inside! There’s a delicious Milk Dud hiding in the middle! Mmmmmm!

Okay, let's gather all our ingredients and get started!

Chewy Surprise Cookies

1 1/2 cups butter-flavored shortening
1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
2 cups sugar, divided
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
4 eggs
3-3/4 cups GF flour blend***
1 1/2 tsp. xanthan gum (for GF version only, see note)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 package (10 ounces) Milk Duds

NOTE: our family has gluten intolerance, so this recipe is provided gluten free. For the regular version, just substitute all purpose flour and omit the xanthan gum.

***GF flour blend: 2 parts white rice flour + 1 part tapioca flour + 1 part potato starch. Mix all 3 ingredients together to create an all purpose GF flour.


Directions:

1. In a large bowl, cream the shortening, peanut butter, 1 1/2 cups sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy.

2. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Hmmm…red wall, red mixer, and red apron…betcha can’t guess my favorite color?

3. Combine dry ingredients; gradually add to the creamed mixture and mix well. Chill for at least 1 hour.

4. Shape 4 teaspoons of dough around each Milk Dud so it is completely covered. Roll balls in remaining sugar.

5. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350° for 8-9 minutes or until set. Cool for 5 minutes before removing to wire racks. Yield: about 8 dozen.

You can make this dough ahead of time and freeze it. Perfect for gift giving a dozen or two wrapped up in special packages for birthdays, holidays, or saying thanks. Wrap up a dozen for your child’s favorite teacher, give them to friends, or share with the neighbors.

When the cookies cool the milk duds will become chewy again, or you can slip these in the microwave for a few seconds to melt the chocolate & caramel centers. Mmmmm!!!!!

Thanks for baking along with me today! Did you have fun? Cool beans, me too. Give this recipe a try and be sure to come back here and post how it turned out.

Hope you all have an awesome week! I’ll be working hard to get my shop ready for an exciting BIG sale that starts on Friday (4/01) where you can shop for Plushoodles items at awesome sales prices! You can read more about it here.

Thanks for hanging out with me friend, I had fun. We should do it again soon.

Karen


For more info. on my shop you can check out my monsters here:

Plushoodles on etsy

Supporting Other Etsians While Growing your Shop

The Idaho Etsy Team started just about 6 weeks ago. We have over 175 team members. Some of us are just starting and others are full swing and working full time on their shops.

Here are some items that could help any shop owner while supporting other team members!

We all carry (or should carry in my case) business cards to hand out at every opportunity we have. This bright colored card holder won't get lost when thrown in your purse.



Business Card Holder by Grace Baby

 This beautiful Tie Front Tote bag  (comes in many different colors and styles) is perfect for carrying your items to the post office, to craft fairs or delivering your merchandise for those local purchases.



Custom Tie Front Tote by Lazy Monday

Another great idea, especially if you have plans to attend any craft shows or markets, is this custom made market apron. Lazy Monday did this as a special request for another Idaho Etsy shop owner. It turned out great and now she will have everything readily available when the crowds pour in!

Market Apron by Lazy Monday

Aren't these the cutest finds! These adorable gift tags would be so cute to add to your packaging!

Packaging Gift Tags by Serendipitous Sisters

 And finally, we all need Thank You Cards. These are simple and would work for almost all types of business, whether you are sending them out with your merchandise or for any other purpose.



Thank you cards from Third Street Paper Co.

I hope some of these finds are perfect for your business. I know I love to support local Idaho business owners as much as possible and these are all great business solutions!

Weekly Treasury

 This week's gorgeous treasury comes from MySweetPotato3.  Get ready for spring with the Idaho Etsy Team!

Check back next Wednesday for another member treasury!

Lazy Mondays Giveaway!

Lazy Mondays is sponsoring the first week of the Get Fit Challenge on Naptime Crafters!  Sign up to win a Blue Nautical Backpack

Everyone that logs fitness minutes this week will be entered in a raffle to win this little beauty (perfect for a trip to the gym I might add).  So head on over to Naptime Crafters and sign up!

Weekly Treasury

The Idaho Etsy Team is celebrating St. Patrick's Day!  This lovely GREEN treasury comes from MySweetPotato3 and features great festive items from Idaho Etsy Team Members!

Check back next Wednesday for another member treasury!

Essentials for Etsy Selling Success and a Gardening Analogy

This article is a re-post of an article that I wrote for my own personal blog.  Original post can be found on A Vision to Remember

First off before we get to successful selling on Etsy, let me introduce myself.  I am Bobbie the proud owner of A Vision to Remember.  Where I sell sewing patterns, rag quilts, car seat tents, and many other sewing related items.

I also have 2 little girls that keep me pretty busy.  They are the reason I do what I do! 

Enough about me...lets get onto the juicy stuff :)


Selling online for me is like growing a garden: get the seeds (your product, your time that you devote to selling, your links to your shop and other places online, advertising, etc) You don't want to just plant potatoes in your garden, then you won't get a good variety but also what happens if that potato seed is not good. You won't have anything grown.

Then once you have gotten your seeds, you need to plant them. I like to plant my garden in a nice row, with all the different seeds planted in their own row or place. I don't just throw the seeds around and hope they grow. Some seeds need to be planted deep in the ground, others can be barely under the surface. Planting your seeds is like setting up your shop and starting to link to your shop.

Then once your seeds are planted you can't just walk away from the garden and come back in the morning and have a ton of produce for you to enjoy. It takes a lot of work, energy, and care. I have to water my garden several times a week, fertilize it, remove the weeds, protect it from the elements. This can all be likened to continuing adding items to your shop, taking out the items that are not helping your shop, promoting your items so they don't get lost among everyone elses stuff out there.

Then after a ton of work and effort you will start to see the fruits of your labor. I have been working hard on my shop for over a year and am now seeing all that hard work being rewarded. My garden also has tons of produce for me to enjoy. Now I am preserving whatever I can from the garden by canning the tomatoes, making salsa, digging the potatoes and storing them properly, and on and on. That way I can enjoy all that hard work during the next year. Same thing with my shop. I still have to maintain it. I need to preserve the hard work that I have put into it so that all that work does not go to waste.

Remember though, that not all the produce will mature at the same time. I canned beans several months ago, the corn about a month ago, but am now taking care of the onions, tomatoes, and potatoes. Different parts of your shop/garden start to reward you at different times. That has helped me keep going to start seeing my hard work actually produce something.

Here are a few things you might find helpful in growing and being a successful etsyer.

1. Have a product that people want. This is the most important thing in selling anything. You need to have something others want. Maybe it is a piece of jewelry that is very unique, maybe it is something that is for Men (because we all know that the handmade business has not focused on Men).
   
2. Take great pictures of your item. Photos are by far my weakest thing. Blankets/car seat tents are very large and are hard to photograph and get the details without loosing what the item is. I really struggle with the photographs. I do however keep learning and keep trying. I have a point and shoot camera. Nothing fancy. It works. It takes decent photos

Here are a couple of examples of items that I have sold. One was awhile ago and the other more recent. Definitely an improvement

1. Get as many items in your Etsy shop as possible. I found that once I hit 50-60 items sales really started to do better. Then once I hit 100 I did even better. I am nearing 200 and I assure you that more is definitely better.
2. Tag your items correctly. If you don't tag your items with the right keywords then people will not be able to find you. If you are wondering what the best keywords might be search etsy for other similar items, or you can also use this google keyword tool
   
3. Learn the basics of SEO (search engine optimization). I have searched the Etsy Forums for SEO and have learned a ton. I attribute most of my success to learning the basics of SEO and implementing them. It works. Here is a search of the etsy forums already for you with all the SEO topics
4. NETWORK, NETWORK, NETWORK: I read often in the forums of people that are not having any success and there are a few common denominators: they are not networking, or if they are networking they are not networking appropriately. This topic kinda goes along with the SEO thing. The more links you have out there in the World Wide Web, the more chances you have of Google and other search engines of finding you. So place your links appropriately, don't just throw them haphazardly around.
5. Start a facebook fan page
6. Start a twitter
   
7. Blog
8. Try other networking places (I like theblogfrog.com, martha stewart groups, yahoo groups, etsy teams, and many more)
9. Continue to work on improving your shop. Again it is a work in progress. There will never be a time that you can just sit back and watch the money roll in without much effort. Those stories are to good to be true. Your success will come after a lot of hard work.
10. No time is better than the present to get going on it. Remember that this will all take time. It will not happen overnight so the sooner you put in the time the sooner you will be seeing the rewards come in.

to view the other Essentials for go here

Do you have any essentials for selling or questions on how to make your shop better. Please comment below and I will help you in any way that I can

If you have any ideas or questions for the essentials for series or would like to write your own essentials for on my blog please email me at boblyns at yahoo dot com

Tom the Irishman is offering new discounts!

2 Handcrafted and designed solid wood hutches, 6’ tall by 4’ wide by 17 inches deep, being deeply discounted for quick sale in the southern Idaho or northern Utah area.  

Tom the Irishman has been doing fine carpentry and furniture building for 40 years and prides himself in the quality of work and finish of these china cabinets.

One is alder, stained walnut, and satin finished with high quality oil rubbed bronze hardware, hesitation glides and plate grooves; originally priced at $2900, will sell for $1900.  

 

The other is pine, stained oak, and satin finished, with high quality Swedish iron hardware and dove-tailed joints in the drawers, originally priced at $2500, will sell for $1500.  

These are keepsakes your family will cherish and hand down from generation to generation.  For more information, call Tom at (208) 861-3273 or Merrily at (208) 344-4566

Weekly Treasury

This is the first of many weekly treasuries created by and featuring Idaho Etsy Team members.  This week's treasury comes from Bottled Wonders.  Check out some of these awesome products and Buy Idaho!

Check back next Wednesday for another member treasury!

National Crochet Week!

In honor of National crochet week we are featuring some of our Idaho Etsy Team members items. Check them out! Our state has so much talent and a diverse range of merchandise! You can click on any item and it will take you to their shop so you can view more items that they offer.

A little bit of Trivia according to the Crochet Guild Newsletter:

You and I call it crochet, as do the French, Belgians, Italians and Spanish-speaking people. It is known as haken in Holland, haekling in Denmark, hekling in Norway, virkning in Sweden.

Buzz Planet Giveaway!

Buzz Planet is giving away one bar of "crunchy mama soap" and one 3oz. bottle of "crunchy mama lotion"

Read more and check out the giveaway at 

The Trading Post!

March is National Craft Month!

March is national craft month, and what better way to celebrate that than by crafting!

I am celebrating national craft month this year in a big way.  I have several projects that I have been mulling over for quite some time and what better excuse to get completely lost in various crafts for a whole month!

 This pile of yarn has been steadily growing for years.

 Fabric scraps I have been collecting for my next scrap quilt.  This is a small fraction of the scraps in my collection!

Whenever I feel the urge to start a new project or learn a new craft I start online, hunting for ideas and tutorials.  Then I hit the craft stores with my list in hand... and invariably I end up coming home with something completely different.  In the beginning I have a clear picture in my head of what I want to accomplish and then the project takes on a life of it's own as inspiration strikes and the end result is something more than I ever imagined.   

I often get the urge to craft when I have absolutely no reason to and no use for the end result.  In which case I start looking for charities that are looking for crafting help.  So if you've got that crafting urge and the need to put it to good use check out some of these organizations:

Scarves for Special Olympics - this organization hands out scarves to Special Olympians to promote unity and support the athletes.  My eyes were opened to this project when the Special Olympics were held in Boise in 2009.

Warm Up America - this organization distributes blankets, hats, glove, scarves, etc. to Americans in need.  What a fantastic website!  There are resources to help you establish a team, teach you how to knit or crochet, and LOTS of patterns, among other things.

Operation Quiet Comfort - this organization collects various items for U.S. Military men and women receiving care at medical facilities abroad.  The goal is to brighten their days a bit while they are in recovery.  I have a scrap quilt planned that will be going to this organization as soon as it is finished.

And, of course, if you aren't one for crafting but still want gorgeous hand crafted goodness in your home, look no further than your favorite etsy shops!