First Friday Giveaway featuring Peaches Products

UPDATE:  Winner has been announced in the comments section!  Stay tuned next month for another great giveaway!

Welcome to the March First Friday Giveaway featuring Casey from Peaches Products.  During the monthly giveaway you'll get a personal view of the shop, get to know the artist, and get a chance to win something awesome!

Meet the Artist:

RNEST: Tell us a little about yourself.  

Casey: I started felting 6 years ago this May, and I'm entirely self taught.  It's a really enjoyable medium for me, I've always been a hands on creative type so the felting suits me.  Aside from the crafting, I currently also work a full time desk job, volunteer with Braddock Bay Raptor Research, and co-organize Mayday! Underground.

RNEST: What's your favorite part of being an artist?  

Casey: I definitely get the greatest satisfaction when I'm sitting at a show and I get to see the look on someone's face when they see my work for the first time, and I tell it's making them happy.  To know that I created something which brings joy to someone else is so gratifying.  High pitched sounds and arm flails are not uncommon at my table, and bonus cool points go to any shopper who picks up a critter and dances it around, or gives a little voice like "oh look at me I'm a cute little owl!"

RNEST:  Tell us about your creations or techniques. 

Casey: The majority of my work, both felted and stuffed, features a nature theme.  Loads of owls, birds, oddball animals like kiwi, albatross, platypus, bigfoots, ninjas, robots...really anything that catches my fancy.  Sometimes I'm compelled to try to make something more realistic, like the life sized Saw Whet, sometimes I see something cute-I watch a TON of national geographic shows-or interesting, and I wonder, what does that animal look like in Peachville?  Basically, I'm making these little critters that I can visualize in my head, and putting them out in the world.

RNEST: You've been at this for a while.  Any advice for someone just starting out?  

Casey: I think the most important thing I learned, and you can see this if you go back to my earliest pages of sales on etsy (PLEASE don't...it's embarrassing at this point!) is that you need to know and understand your style.  Until I really knew what I wanted my stuff to look like, it was very basic and clunky, compared to what I'm doing now.  It will make you a better artist, because proficiency in art is about repetition and mastering your medium in a way that's true to your vision. Also, take the time to learn basic photography principles, and figure out what works for YOUR product.  I can tell you not just as an artist, but as a curator for Mayday, bad photos and hodgepodge entries ("I do some jewelry, some painting, some cards...etc") make it hard for a jury to understand what you're going for, what your booth will look like, and can give the impression that you don't know what you want to sell.

RNEST: Any coupons or promotions at your Etsy shop? 

Casey: I do! For the entire month of March, if you like Peaches Products on Facebook, you could win one of two $20 gift certificates.

RNEST: How about shows coming up? Where can we find you locally?  

Casey: I'll have a small selection of items at the March First Friday show Bugzilla, at Cat Clay studio in the Hungerford Building.  Then Mayday! Underground is May 3rd.  I have product in three shops locally as well, Soulstice Artisan market on Winton Road, and also Dichotomy and Shop Peppermint, both on Park Ave.

RNEST: So, tell us about your giveaway item.  

Casey: In honor of it being March, I'll be giving away a green owl.  Winner shall have their choice of small felted or 7" stuffed animal owl.

The Giveaway:  Winner's Choice - Small Green Felted Owl

OR

Winner's 2nd Choice - 7" stuffed owl

To enter (US and Canada Only please):

MANDATORY ENTRIES:

1. Follow this blog.

2. Stop by Peaches Products and give it a heart.  If you are already hearted Peaches Products, just say so in the comments.

ADDITIONAL ENTRIES:

1. Like Peaches Products on Facebook.

2. Pick a favorite piece on Peaches Products and:

Like it using the Facebook button on the listing (one entry)

Tweet it using the Twitter button on the listing. (another entry)

Pin it using the Pinterest button on the listing. (yet another entry)

[List each one in the comments below separately for more chances to win]

3. Share or tweet this contest on Facebook or Twitter (do both for two entries!).

4. Like the RNEST Facebook Page.

Please post each of your entries separately in the comments below stating what you did.  The winner will be selected using a random number generator so anyone can win!  Good Luck!

Contest will run until March 17th (***extended deadline!)

Winner will be announced on this blog and on the RNEST Facebook page, so stay tuned!

Jack's Pick: Peach Product's Great White Shark

Each Friday I select an item created by a member of the Rochester NY Etsy Street Team(RNEST). What criteria do I use? I look for great looking items that I think are well made offered for a great price!

Da dum. Da Dum. Da dum.

It's not safe to go back on Etsy this week with Peach

Product's version of a needle felted great white shark!

What is not to like about this shark? He's handmade. He's wool. He's Big. And these photos are just hilarious!

I would put this next to anything on my desk at work that I didn't want anyone to touch.

Wednesday Wellspring: Peaches Products

Bubbling up from the newly-repaired well for this week's giveaway is Peaches Products with an absolutely adorable hand felted owl! This needle felted owl, Big Tufts Needle Felted Purple Owl, is handmade by Casey (the Peaches) stands about 4" tall. Just in case you're not sure what needle felting is, Casey has provided us with a short description of her process:

Needle felting is a soft sculpture process that starts with loose fluffy roving wool. Using special barbed needles, the wool fibers are poked by hand hundreds-sometimes thousands!-of times to weave the wool into a finished product. I don't use a pattern for any of my felters, so each one is unique and has it's own personality.

Now, for the rules (This giveaway is open to US only):

MANDATORY ENTRY #1: Go to Casey's Etsy store, Peaches Products, heart her shop, and then leave a comment here telling me your favorite item.

MANDATORY ENTRY #2: Become a follower of this blog and leave a comment letting me know- or if you are already, leave a comment saying you're a loyal follower.

BONUS ENTRIES (leave a separate comment for each):

1. Follow the Peaches Products' blog.

2. Tweet and blog about this giveaway and leave a comment here with the link.

The winner will be chosen using the random number generator on Tuesday, March 2 and will be announced in the next Wednesday Wellspring.