Sunday, June 30, 2013

Bye Bye Google Reader, Take Action to Save Your Reading List

Google is retiring Google Reader tomorrow!  That means if you've been following blogs such as mine on blogspot.com by hitting the 'join this site' button, you will lose your reading list of these blogs.

I have just added a Bloglovin button to my site as an alternative. (See it over there on the right, under my Etsy mini, lookin' like this:)
 In fact, you can import all the blogs you follow from Google Reader to bloglovin super easily and it only takes a minute. I'm not sure if this will be a possibility once Google Reader is retired tomorrow, so best do it straight away. It really does only take a minute. Otherwise you might never find your favourite blogs again :-(  Just hit the button and sign up then follow the simple instructions to transfer all your favourite blogs across.

You can of course, still follow my blog by email should you wish or by the RSS feed button (both also found on the right hand column of my blog.  I also tweet my posts so find me here @handmadebyAMOR
 
However, it's not all about me and if you want to keep all your fave blogs best import them all over via bloglovin or alternatives such as Feedly.com. But hurry before midnight or we all turn into pumpkins!
 
 
As a by the way, if you love handcraft, Esty and reading blogs, here is a thread from the Etsy Ireland Team with lots of blogs to dip into:
BLOG POSTS FROM IRISH ETSY SHOP OWNERS



Saturday, June 29, 2013

Caught My Eye 18. The Hills Have Eyes

Caught My Eye  is a series of blog posts showing scenes I found interesting, odd, curious or beautiful. I am not a photographer, so please do not expect top quality photography :-). But please enjoy a glimpse of the world through my eyes.......or in this case, perhaps someone else's.....
The Hills Have Eyes (own photo)
Who's looking at you? Seems the hills really do have eyes.  Yesterday I walked the cliff path from Greystones to Bray and took a pic of one of my favourite sights along this route, the train tunnel 'eyes' watching from below. Spooky, eh?

Greystones to Bray Cliff path view of Train Tunnels (own photo)
The outer 'eye' is the old coastline train tunnel which was in use up until a tragic accident occurred in the 19th century. A new tunnel was built after that, but you can read the story for yourself here:
photo of the sign along the route

old photo on the sign along the path
I will be back with more information and scenes from this cliff walk to add it to my blog section Inspiring Walks.


Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Rare, Dense Black Sea Glass

On a recent beach combing expedition I came across a big, thick lump of, black sea glass. It is reeeally dense, and you'd be forgiven for thinking it was a simple stone but I am 100% sure it is glass. (My photography has not captured it well.) It is much more obvious to the naked eye, especially when you look into the crevices and flaws.
Not too far away I found a smaller piece, just as dense. I actually thought at first it was a stone and almost threw it back.
But once I washed and dried it I could tell it is definitely glass. However it too is extremely thick and dense.  Even held up to the light, very little light gets through.

When I ramp up the colour on these pieces of 'black' sea glass, I can almost see a green 'aura'. I'd been told all black sea glass is actually dark green.


               
 I do have other pieces that are extremely dark green, but you can still easily tell they are green, especially when held to the light. The piece above is a very dark forest green that in some lights looks black. The minute you let light through it you can clearly see its true shade (ref the pic on the right)

I've done a bit of research and learned that 'black' sea glass is extremely rare, up there in the rarest category with peach, pink, red, deep yellow and deep purple. So I'd found a true piece of treasure reclaimed from the sea. Though this type of sea glass appears black, it is in fact much older, dark olive green. The pieces I found are also quite thick and  dense. I suspect they are from the heel of a heavy bottle or vessel of some sort.

 
Both these pieces are highly frosted and leeched, further evidence that they are very very old. It can take well over 100 years for a piece of glass to get to this level of frosting and it can only happen in the sea. It cant be faked in a tumbler.

Dense, black sea glass in this condition can be a few hundred years old...apparently pieces dating to the 17th century have been found.  I wonder just how old these pieces are, what they were in their previous life and did they originate here in Dublin, or fall from a merchant ship perhaps? If glass like this were found in the US it would quite possibly be from illicit rum bottles dating back to prohibition days. Here in Ireland, who knows... as a former employee of Guinness I'd love to say they were from ancient bottles of Guinness, but unfortunately, I have no way of knowing at present.


To Learn How to Clean Sea glass CLICK HERE

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Summer Treasury Features

A big thank you for the recent features in Etsy treasuries

I am always so grateful to be included in these lists made by fellow Etsy people. They are an art form in themselves.

''Medianoche.'..midnight in summertime...' by linenartisan

Enjoy Ireland Team !


Flores de la Medianoche 2. -...
$10

Labradorite Pendant. Starfis...
$40

Snowflake Coral fossil Penda...
$45

Dark green Agate gem stone p...
$45

Bracelet, paper beads - deep...
$14

Wensleydale Wool Locks in Br...
$8

JUNE SALE 10% OFF Guitar pic...
$4.73

A Pair of Tea Candle Holders...
$20

Irish Traditional Music Sess...
$18

Fabric covered notebook, gre...
$15.5

Womens T - Shirt Feather Pri...
$20

Orange Organza Hair-Shoe Cli...
$14

chunky red necklace with cer...
$22.5

Felt brooch Celtic design - ...
$12.5

Indian red mother of pearl n...
$68

Top of the World - art print...
$29
Thank you Marga of Linen Artisan for including my labradorite and starfish pendant, 'Sea Maiden' in this eclectic mix.

'light green' by karoliasokulska

relax :)


Lime Green and White Nesting...
$98

Crochet Bracelet Cuff - Wris...
$12

SALE-Nursing Necklace/Teethi...
$20

STUDIO Clean-Up SALE - Skinn...
$16

Green Frog 7.08" - Fini...
$21.5

Hand painted heels - Lemon a...
$66

Felted flower brooch - lime ...
$21

Bohemian Princess Earrings, ...
$22

Hanging Fabric Heart, Any oc...
$8

Green Bracelet- Flower Jewel...
$30

6 Crochet Fruit & Vegetables...
$23

Connemara Marble Pendant. I...
$41

Set of 3 Eco Friendly Cotton...
$8.5

Wooden clock green Olde Arro...
$45

Set of Three Woodland Moss B...
$24

Scarf. Green crochet infini...
$40
Thank you Kala of The Rainbow Crafts for this beautiful, calm green treasury. I'm thrilled to see you included my Connemara marble heart pendant 'Fidelity'.

'Amuse-bouche' by lynncorr

My grandmother always said, "Good things come in small packages!"


Real Eggshell Candle Yellow ...
$3

Toys/food/knitted. Playfood,...
$12.8

La Pucelle d'Orléans ea...
$6.99

Felted tiny vase with 3 cra...
$19.9

Bunny and Heart Hanging Mini...
$7.5

pendant hollow beads glass l...
$15

Blue Flash Labradorite Penda...
$38

Unique Barefoot sandals, cro...
$19

Handknitted Cute Baby Bootie...
$8.5

Josef Originals Cat Family F...
$24.95

Key Chain, White Jade and Re...
$16

Teachers Gift
$9

Purple Gold Oval Shank Butto...
$5.5

Mini Stained Glass Suncatche...
$12

Black stone gold ring. Birth...
$112

ACEO Tree Of Life Silhouette...
$10
And thanks as always to Lynn who never forgets to include me every week. For me, you embody the  spirit of Etsy, you have such goodwill. I really appreciate that you included my labradorite teardrop pendant in this cute wee collection.

Lynn has featured me in several treasuries this month so I'm just going to show one more stunning list from her:

'Dreaming in Red' by lynncorr

I borrowed the sleeping baby from Margaret's shop to introduce some of my favorite red finds - handmade and vintage - from some very special shops.Shhh don't wake her:-)


Knitting pattern bundle ...b...
$12

Royal Crown Crochet Lace Doi...
$8.5

Red Jasper Earrings, Sterlin...
$12

Valentines Day,mother day,Re...
$95

cherry glass bracelet red la...
$22

Red Orange Yellow Felted Flo...
$19.9

Vintage, Amberina Footed Bow...
$16

Red royal octopus - ORIGINAL...
$8.97

Candle Votive Holder Birdhou...
$20

SALE Butterfly Button Pendan...
$11

Tatted Red box .
$40

Cashmere, Cotton and Angora ...
$209

Merlot Wine Scented Candles ...
$55

Cotton Scarf - Cowl Scarf -S...
$11

Crochet Shrug Red Bolero Han...
$67

Havana Spice with Shea butte...
$5.5
thanks so much Lynn for including my red butterfly button pendant!! This list is stunning.

'grünes im Juni' by Maja48

Grün ist schön;-)


Sea Glass Suncatcher from Ir...
$12

Handknitted big warm bright ...
$50

Large Teal Cloisonne Butterf...
$2

Envelope handbag in linen , ...
$18

Blank note card set irish wi...
$10

Irish Sea Glass Shards (7)Ob...
$12.5

Green Garden Single Bed Quil...
$240

Tiny Teapot and T-bag with r...
$14

German Machine Age Necklace ...
$240

Silver plated cuff with Eme...
$29.9

Clutch in green felt, felt b...
$39.9

Hoop earrings with dark gree...
$7.5

Limited collection plate Sel...
$49

Linden Green Hat decorated w...
$150

Messenger Bag Plaid, green
$74.9

Leather bracelet 4-row green
$15
Thank you Marion of  Majas Wollstubchen for including my Irish sea glass sun catcher in this fresh treasury., Grunes im Juni