EtsyKids Design Challenge for March: Vote now!

Oh my, this is going to be a tough decision! Check out all the fantastic entries below, then scroll all the way to the bottom to vote for your favorite Spring themed item. Voting will be open through Friday, March 27th, and the winner will be announced on Saturday.

1. Step Stool (handpainted . daisies . flowers)

from bobsandbits

2. Spring in Paris--Custom Etsykids Handmade Pink Aline Jumper w/ Pretty Poodle size 4

from RagsNRibbons

3. LilyBug Boutique Bright Pink White Polka Dotted Butterfly Hair Clippie Ribbon Art SPRING

from LilyBugBoutique

4. Adorable Easter Egg Boutique Hairbow

from alisagalooziso3

5. New Green Pinafore Wrap Dress, Sizes 12m, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

from littlegirlPearl

6. Amy Butler Swing top -capris-skirt -3 pc Set- Size 2,3,4,5

from togs4tots

7. Quack

from FlutterBrush

8. The Green Delight Shoe - 0-18 months - Girl shoes - Easter - Spring

from barretzz

9. Applique Tote Bag or Easter Basket Pink and Green

from themonogrammarket

10. Goldilocks and the Three Bears Hair Clips

from punkynmunky

11. Custom Boutique Applique Cherry Jumper Capri Set

from ApronsByPunkyFae

12. EASTER BUNNIES......................2 BUTTON CLIPPIES

from CuckooBoo

13. Garden Bunny - 5x7 Inch - Original Children's Art

from pholkartblessings

14. CSL Boutique Cherry Blossom Play Set Choose your Size

from CandyStickLane

15. spring trio - hand sewn felt hair clips - tulip, daffodil, crocus

from thecleverkitty

16. Tiered Skirt Sizes 12M-8

from ThreeDesigns

17. Tossed Cherries Sweet Knot Dress - Custom Size

from ChewChewsCloset

18. Spring Enchantment Reversible Jumper 12M - 4T

from AmyRoseDesigns

19. CUSTOM Happy Honu Tutus - Size Newborn to 11 years Cutie Patootie short short cute cute PERFECT over jeans

from tikitales

20. Lavender Flowered Booties

from BurryBabies

21. Benny the vegan Easter Bunny

from ptitebaloue

22. April Showers Bring Love Tank

from planetpudge

23. WING AROUND THE ROSIE BUTTERFLY DRESS 12mos - 4T

from thetrendytot

24. Spring Is In The Air....Set of 3 Mini Felt Hair Clips...Tulip...Baby Chick... Butterfly

from LittleBitShabby

25. Here Comes Peter Cottontail Hairclip

from happygrandma402905

26. Rain, Rain - Short sleeve creeper or t-shirt

from roseprintsonline

27. Sophie Dress - pink, plum, or sky blue

from emuenfant

28. Yellow and Mint Green - braided ribbon barrettes

from retro80s

29. RASPBERRY BANDANA RIBBON PILLOWCASE DRESS TUNIC SWING TOP 18 MO. TO 8 YRS.OLD

from PRINCESSDESIGNS

30. Colors of Spring Custom Personalized Boutique Picture Frame Choose Your Colors And Designs

from preciousdesigns4kids

31. THINK SPRING - Set of 3 Spring Clippies - No Slip

from AllThingsGirly












32. SweetBirdie Preview Maggie for Infant and Toddler

from sweetbirdie












33. Orange Green Yellow and White Loopy Bow

from KatieBeanKids

34. Funky Punk Pink Retro Fabric Flower Ponytail Holder Set

from carriagetownkids

35. Sea and Sand Halter

from ninkey

36. 1960s Sophisticate Dress Size 3 or 4

from msliesenfelder

37. Boutique Halter Top/Dress and Capri Set 6 mo - 6T

from ThatsSewCute

38. M2MG Social Butterfly Boutique Hair bow

from bbsbowtique

39. SpringTea CUSTOM Fabric 12m to 2T Twirl Skirt, Peasant Top and Corset - FREE Matching Newsboy Hat

from stitchnlove

40. Garden Party

from lilbooandco

41. Very Hungry Caterpillar and Leaf Felt Hair Clip Set by THE LITTLE LOVE BUG

from thelittleLOVEbug

42. Sweet House Illustration Bead - Glass Lampwork Focal Bead

from lissa

43. Lion and Lamb Note Holders Kid Kit

from AndThen

44. Lime Flowers Personalized Bag Tag-Luggage, Diaper Bag, Sports Bag, Stroller, Stadium Chair

from Sunnydaytags

45. Toddler and Baby PlayTime With Rack Um Stackum Ring Toy - FREE SPIRIT - SIZE LARGE 5 Rings

from GoldtoneDesigns

46. Peep Peep Washcloth Bib

from prontipandco

47. Barnyard Layla Legs Moo Cow

from outoftheboxx

48. Super Cute Initial Girl Tshirt in Pink... Ameican Apparel long sleeved or short sleeved, You Choose the Size

from lisagorno

49. Raggedy Ann and Andy

from BooRoosBowtique

50. Daydreaming in Pink Knot Dress

from tickledpinkgirls

51. Bunny Rabbit T shirt Onesie

from maryhanks

52. Vintage Style Baby Bonnet

from oncottageway

53. Cherry Blossom Custom Name with Large Wooden Letters - set of 4 letters

from LittleElephantCo

54. Polka Dot Frenzy tee shirt

from jencdesigns

55. chelsea

from mette

56. CHOCOLATE BUNNY Baby Dots Onesie or T-shirt

from thenook

57. Constellation Baby Mobile, medium, in Spring

from thewonderlandstudio

58. V Neck Dress/Top with Double Ruffle Pants in size 6 mos. to 8

from triogirls

59. Toddler Girl dress or top

from treatsforyoursweets

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EtsyKids Meet & Greet: Wednesday, March 18th at 9:00pm EST

Want to get to know some of the makers of all the fantastic items for babies, toddlers, and children on Etsy? Now's your chance! All are welcome to come to the first EtsyKids Meet & Greet, for a friendly chat with members of the EtsyKids Team.

When: Wednesday, March 18th at 9:00pm Eastern

Where: the Gallery room of Etsy's Virtual Labs

Hosted by: The Clever Kitty

Hope to see you there!

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EtsyKids Design Challenge for March: Spring!

Each month the EtsyKids Team will be challenging our members to create some fantastic new items within a chosen theme. With spring just around the corner, what better time to do a Spring theme? The entries are already starting to roll in, and I must say, there's some super cute and springy stuff! EtsyKids members will have until March 20th to submit their entries, and voting will take place from Saturday, March 21st - Friday, March 27th. So be sure to come back to the EtsyKids blog for a new post on the 21st to see all of the entries and to vote! In the meantime, click here to get a sneak peek at some of the entries so far!

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EtsyKids Atlantic Southeast Featured Member: CandyStickLane

1) What is your shop name?
CandyStickLane

2) What is your name?
Renee Eggleston

3) How did you first get started in your craft?
I started sewing when my daughter was born, 16 years ago.

4) What inspires you?
Beautiful Fabric and Art

5) What are your favorite color combination?
My favorite color hands down is Pink - and I personally love it paired with any other color :)

6) If you have children, do they craft with you? What do they do?
My daughter Krystal loves to craft, she makes lots of collages. She has her own etsy shop. TheModishGirl. My 8 year old son Roman is quite the artist also. Sterling, who is 9 is just into video games.

7) Did you craft as a child? If so, what were your favorite crafting activities?
I did craft, I loved collages as a teenager, my mother taught me to crochet and my favorite was cross stitch. In elementary school I would take clothing tags and make book marks and sell them for 25 cents and I would also take cleaned uses soda cans and glue brochures around the outside, pop the tab up and sell them as ash trays - LOL! Then in middle school i made 'airbrushed' drawings of peoples names using black construction paper and colored chalk, finished with hairspray so it would dust away.

8) What is your favorite time of day to work?
I work full time, so the only choice I have is at night, but I would prefer to work in the morning, I'm much more productive then.

9) What is your favorite item from your shop?
The little Matinee jacket made from a vintage tariana table cloth. The fabric is gorgeous.

10) Where can we find you? (website, blog, etc.)
candysticklane.blogspot.com
myspace.com/candysticklane

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Take The Kids to the Library (While You Still Can!)

It boggles the mind: here we are less than 2 weeks away from the February 10th implementation of the CPSIA, and libraries still don't know whether or not they will be able to continue serving children 12 and under. Common sense (and the interpretation of the ALA) concludes that children's books should not be subject to the testing requirements of the CPSIA.

Surely the folks who put together this legislation didn't intend to shut down children's libraries, right? Too bad they wrote the law in such a sweeping manner that it may do exactly that.

I've always been a fan of libraries. I'm a book lover, so it goes almost without saying! Now that I have kids, I am even more passionate about the public library system. Every time I go in with the kids and come out with an armload of books -- for free! -- I am filled with gratitude. (OK, except for that one time that BB ended up wrenching her elbow in the library parking lot because I was carrying too many books while trying to hold hands with both kids; driving to the ER with a wailing child, I have to say I wasn't feeling all that grateful for the public library system. But I digress.) The mere existence of our public libraries says something wonderful about our country and our culture. And their focus on kids and families is truly extraordinary: the children's areas in the local libraries are just lovely. It makes a mama proud.

And makes me furious to think that legislators would be careless enough to put all this in jeopardy. If they had been careful and thoughtful when they wrote the CPSIA in the first place, so much heartache could have been prevented (don't even get me started on the effects it might have on handmade goods or thrift stores!) but NO. Now it's up to the CPSC to deal with this mess.

Thankfully, librarians are a pretty tough crowd and have the organizational power to fight back. The ALA has been marshalling its forces, protesting the law through the official channels, and calling for congressional support. Just yesterday Congressman Chris Lee from New York called for a meeting with the CPSC to try to get this all taken care of.

But as of now, as far as I know, nothing has officially changed. The CPSC says they hope to have a ruling next week (golly, just a week before the law goes into effect!) and they are currently telling libraries to take a "wait and see" approach. But that ruling has not yet been made.

"Under the current opinion issued by the General Counsel of the CPSC, the law would apply to books for children under the age of 12; therefore, public, school, academic and museum libraries would be required to either remove all their children’s books or ban all children under 12 from visiting the facilities as of February 10." (Quoted from the ALA District Dispatch.)

So I'm taking the kids to the library while I still can -- and praying that the lobbying of the ALA will have enough of an effect (and soon enough) to avert this disaster. I just can't imagine having to explain to my kids that they aren't allowed to go to the library, aren't allowed to check out any more of their beloved books.

What can we do about this? Right now, the ALA suggests: Please call the Acting Commissioner, Nancy Nord, at (301) 504-7901. When you call this number, wait for the automated directory to give you directions to reach Nancy Nord’s office. Explain to the Commission that it is simply impossible for libraries to remove all children’s books from the shelves and/or ban children under 12 from the library and still provide the level of service that is needed.

And while you're at it, you can tell her the law shouldn't apply to handmade goods, either!

----
Written by Jen of BFbeads & Mama's Magic Studio

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International CPSIA Blog-In: Awareness & Action!

In an effort to help bring awareness to the unintended effects of the CPSIA, bloggers from all over the world are uniting for an International Blog-In today. You can see a list of participating blogs here:
International CPSIA Blog-In Participants

If you have a blog of your own, we encourage you to join us today in sharing the the effects of this well-intentioned but poorly thought-out law. Two members of the EtsyKids Team, Holly of Winklepots & Gretchen of Chichiboulie, put together the following post for people to use for the Blog-In. Everyone is welcome to post all of it, part of it, or just use it for inspiration:

"As parents and concerned citizens I’m sure most of us at one time or another have been confronted with the question of lead poisoning. But have you asked yourself what your government is doing to protect your children from lead contained in toys? The answer? They're banning toys, taking books from schools and libraries, hurting low income families, killing entrepreneurial spirit and risking putting the economy in an even greater depression than we've seen in decades. I'd like to introduce you to their solution: the CPSIA.

Do you know about the CPSIA? No? Then I ask you to take a few minutes to find out about it.
The CPSIA stands for Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, a new set of laws that will come into effect on 10 February, 2009 and will impact many, many people in a negative way. Make no mistake, this is very real. View it for yourself. If Forbes, the American Library Association and numerous other media are paying attention, perhaps you should too. How will these new laws affect you? Well, here are a few examples:

To the Parents of Young Students: Due to the new law, expect to see the cost of school supplies sky rocket. While those paper clips weren't originally intended for your student to use, they will need to be tested now that your 11-year-old needs them for his school project. This law applies to any and all school supplies (textbooks, pencils, crayons, paper, etc.) being used by children under 12.

To the Avid Reader: Due to the new law, all children's books will be pulled from library and school shelves, as there is no exemption for them. That’s okay though, there's always television. Our children don’t need to learn the love of reading after all. Article from the American Library Association http://www.wo.ala.org/districtdispatch/?p=1322

Augustine Bookmark by Chichiboulie

To the Lover of All Things Handmade: Due to the new law, you will now be given a cotton ball and an instruction manual so you can make it yourself since that blanket you originally had your eye on for $50 will now cost you around $1,000 after it's passed testing. It won't even be the one-of-a-kind blanket you were hoping for. Items are destroyed in the testing process making one-of-a-kind items virtually impossible. So that gorgeous hand-knit hat you bought your child this past winter won’t be available next winter.

Cherry Blossom Hoodie by Winklepots

To the Environmentalist: Due to the new law, all items in non-compliance will now be dumped into our already overflowing landfills. Imagine not just products from the small business owners, but the Big Box Stores as well. You can't sell it so you must toss it. Or be potentially sued for selling it. You can't even give them away. If you are caught, it is still a violation.

Baby Leather Moks by Scandeez

To the Second-Hand Shopper: Due to the new law, you will now need to spend $20 for that brand new pair of jeans for your 2-year old, rather than shop at the Goodwill for second hand. Many resale shops are eliminating children's items all together to avoid future lawsuits.

To the Entrepreneur: Due to this new law, you will be forced to adhere to strict testing of your unique products or discontinue to make and/or sell them. Small businesses will be likely to be unable to afford the cost of testing and be forced to close up shop. Due to the current economic state, you'll have to hope for the best when it comes to finding a new job in Corporate America.

To the Antique Toy Collector: Due to the new law, you'd better start buying now because it's all going to private collection and will no longer be available to purchase. “Because the new rules apply retroactively, toys and clothes already on the shelf will have to be thrown out if they aren't certified as safe.” http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123189645948879745.html

DINE.n.DOODLE(tm) Chalk Mat by LilBDesigns

To the American Economy: Already struggling under an economy that hasn’t been this weak in decades, the American economy will be hit harder with the inevitable loss of jobs and revenues from suppliers, small businesses and consumers. The required testing is far too costly and restrictive for small businesses or individuals to undertake.

To the Worldwide Economy: Due to this new law, many foreign manufacturers have already pulled out of the US market. You can imagine the impact of this on their businesses.
If you think this is exaggerating, here is a recent article from Forbes http://www.forbes.com/2009/01/16/cpsia-safety-toys-oped-cx_wo_0116olson.html

And for those of you prepared to be stupefied and boggled, The New Law http://www.cpsc.gov/about/cpsia/cpsia.html

Did you know? If this upsets or alarms you, please react."

Etsy recently put together a CPSIA Action Kit, which is packed full of information, and ways you can help. Please see this article:

CPSIA Action Kit and Community Chat

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Stiff Competition for the Cardboard Box

During the long winter months when children are spending a lot more time indoors rather than out, parents around the world are looking for ways to keep their little ones occupied with something other than the television! As the mother of five children under the age of nine, I am constantly looking for toys that will spark my children's imagination, and will get used over and over again in a hundred different ways. I recently found some fellow EtsyKids team members who are providing children with beautifully crafted imaginative play accessories that will rival a large cardboard box in provide your children with hours of independent play.


birchleafdesigns, offers whimsical, natural wood and fabric playthings, like this wooden sword with leather sheath and strap, or wooden shield (right).





The mother/daughter team of worldofwhimm, specialize in beautifully crafted props meant to spark the imagination of kids and adults. The Indian Headdress and Royal Crown, pictured at left, are both from worldofwhimm.



There is something universal about a piece of fabric tied around the shoulders of a young child that instantly transforms boy or girl into an invincible superhero, a brave knight, or a royal prince or princess.



superflykidz expertly crafted "official" looking satin superhero capes (pictured right) complete with embroidered emblems offer little and big kids a versatile cape perfect for use in lots of different imaginary worlds. Masks are also available in a variety of colors, to preserve your little hero's identity as they soar through the kitchen.



babypop's Supreme Superhero Pack (pictured left) will provide die hard superhero's with just what they need ... a matching Tee, Cape, Gloves, and Mask, all in their favorite superheros colors ... to save the world everyday.


So if your little ones need a little help jump starting their imaginations this winter, look to these talented EtsyKids team members and their handmade accessories for some quality handmade help. You won't be disappointed!



* Written by TinyStitches.

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