Thursday 4 October 2012

Mouse Illustration is Now on Felt!

If you love handmade and haven't heard of Felt.co.nz then you should have!  It's a great site for New Zealand artists to showcase and sell their artwork.  And the best part is...... Mouse Illustration is now on it!


I only have one of each item available on Felt unlike my own Website Shop.  This means I will be able to list one-off designs from Mouse Illustration and sell them via Felt.  So keep popping back to see what is available as you might just grab yourself a Unique piece of jewellery.



I will soon have some arts prints to sell which I am just a little big bit excited about.  I will announce when they are available from my Facebook Page so make sure to 'like' Mouse Illustration to receive all the latest updates.

x

Thursday 17 May 2012

Flirty Pastels

This week I have been playing around with some new colour palettes.   The result has been my new range of Flirty Pastel Necklaces.  I have to say that I absolutely love them!


They are now available to purchase from my New Facebook Shop.

I thought I would have a bit of fun and create a Handmade look using a few Etsy Items


Clutch from ItSoClutch on Etsy
Purple Wedges from iLANDbali on Etsy
Lace Dress from keeboutique on Etsy
Pastel Necklaces from Mouse Illustration


x

Sunday 6 May 2012

Nature Walk

I have been a busy little bumble bee (or mouse) over the last few weeks trying to catch up on things.  The Wine Shop has a new order of Wine Charms and the Design Gallery will have a new range of Jewellery next week. 

Since today was such a beautiful day here in Queenstown we decided to go for a hike through what the tourists would like to call Lords of the Rings territory.  I have to say since I am probably about the same height as Frodo I would probably fit in quite well :-)

We walked along a trail that took us up through the forest, down across a river and back up through the forest again before hitting civilisation on the other side.  It was pretty breathtaking and just what I needed.



I forget sometimes how great it is for your soul to get amongst nature and really take the time to switch off from your busy life.  I have to say that I did not think about work the entire time which for me is pretty good going!  I feel refreshed and ready to get started on what the week ahead will bring.


For those of you who aren't Mouse Illustration followers on Facebook (firstly why not? :-) secondly you can now shop for Mouse Illustration Jewellery directly from my Facebook page.  It will be worth your while checking it out and liking my page for updates as soon all my Facebook friends will be receiving special offers and discounts on my Jewellery!  Check out the New Shop Here.



I hope you have all had a wonderful weekend!

The Mouse x

Monday 23 April 2012

Im back.....

I am back creating my jewellery again, all be it very slowly, after my tendon issues with my hand.  I have to say I am very happy, but will be happier when I can run at full speed again. Apologies for the lack of posts over the last few weeks but I have been making sure not to re-damage it by working.

I had a re-order of my Kiwiana range of wine charms for a Wine Tasting shop in Queenstown over the weekend and I just completed the order today.  It did take me a little longer than usual but that's OK since I had a lot of fun ;-)



I also need to get some more jewellery into the gallery so I have to get creating some new designs to hand over this week.  I am very pleased to tell you that I have been absolutely slammed at my markets over the last few weeks so I have an awful lot of catching up to do getting my stock levels back up.  If anyone out there would like to donate a left hand to me then it would be gratefully received! :-)


All the treats I have to catch up on


Also for those of you on Pinterest come connect with the Mouse Illustration boards........ and share with me what you have been pinning :-)


The Mouse x

Saturday 7 April 2012

And the Winner is..........

The Winner of the Over the Rainbow Necklace Giveaway is.............




Congratulations Portia........ you are the lucky winner!!! :-)  Please contact me at  mouseillustration@yahoo.com with your contact details and address so I can post out your new Necklace.  Congratulations again and Happy Easter Everyone!

Friday 6 April 2012

Easter Weekend

I have a full schedule of Markets over the Easter Weekend.  Today was a great day in Queenstown NZ at the Arts and Crafts Market selling lots of goodies, including one of my Over the Rainbow Necklaces which is featured in my latest Giveaway.  Charm bracelets were the favourite of the day so a big thank you to all my wonderful customers and I hope you enjoy your new jewellery.

The sun was shining and there were lots of new stall holders selling all their handmade goodies.  I love it when I get a chance to browse new market stalls and meet other creative people. 


Handmade Crafts Stalls in Queenstown



New Wire Bracelets from Mouse Illustration


The Earnslaw Steam Boat on Lake Wakatipu


Well I am off to bed as I have another early rise for Market number 2.......

I hope you all have a wonderful Easter Weekend and remember it's a great excuse to eat lots of Chocolate!!!! :-) x

Tuesday 20 March 2012

Jewellery Style

A bit more fun with Handmade Style........

Keep reading for a special offer for Creative Nibble readers only!

Mouse Illustration Teams up with Etsy Fashion

Where to shop for the above items:

Charm Bracelet from Mouse Illustration $40 nzd

French Style Navy Dress from Fleet Collection on Etsy $48 usd *see below for special discount code*

Light Green Wide Leg Pants from Sophie Zhang on Etsy $54.99 usd

Flirty Pleasure Necklace from Mouse Illustration $35 nzd

Special Offer for Creative Nibble Readers only!!! Fleet collection are offering a 15% off discount to my readers on their website, www.FleetCollection.com with coupon code NIBBLE15. Offer expires on 03/31/2012, 11:59 PST.  Happy Shopping!!!

Remember to Enter the Creative Nibble GIVEAWAY competition to win a Handmade Rainbow Necklace from Mouse Illustration.

x



Sunday 18 March 2012

What's New This Week.....

I hope you all had a great week and celebrated St Patricks Day on Saturday with a nice pint of Guinness!

I just wanted to show you a couple of new designs I have made this week.




I am going to do a tutorial next time I make the above Kiwi Fruit beads and share my tips on how to create them.  If there are any other tutorials you would like me to feature then just drop me a line below :-)

Just a Reminder to Enter the Rainbow Necklace Giveaway.......winner being drawn on the 31st March :-)

The Mouse x

Wednesday 7 March 2012

Giveaway!

To celebrate the launch of my new jewellery range and to say a big Thank You for all your support I have decided to host an Amazing Giveaway. Yey!



I you haven't had a peek at my New Range of Necklaces yet then you can do that Here......But now to the exciting part........... 


This GIVEAWAY is now Closed!

I will be giving away one of my Over the Rainbow Necklaces (valued at $45nz dollars) to one lucky reader! The Giveaway is open to all Countries so everyone can enter!

To Enter Simply do one or all of the following:

1st Entry: Leave a comment below on this post telling me what your favourite piece of jewellery from the Mouse Illustration Online Shop is :-)

2nd Entry: Visit my Facebook Page and Click the Like button :-)

3rd Entry: Follow me on Twitter and say Hello if you are feeling friendly :-)


Just remember to come back and leave a comment on this blog post for Each Entry to let me know you have done all or any of the above!

And for an extra special entry share this giveaway with your friends on Twitter and or Facebook.
To make it easy just copy and paste this link :

http://bit.ly/xmko6B

Or hit the Share and Tweet buttons below.

This Competition Winner will be announced on Friday 6th April! 

Good Luck Everyone! x

Tuesday 6 March 2012

Banana Muffins

For those of you who don't know already I decided to go Vegan about 5 months ago after being Vegetarian for 16 years.  This was something that I have always wanted to do but thought it would be a big disruption to my life cutting out dairy completely.  To be honest it isn't easy, especially when I look at delicious cupcakes and all the vegetarian options available which always contain cheese.  However the more I explore with different recipes the more excited I get about eating.  Food has never really interested me much.....bit of a self proclaimed pasta and cheeseaholic!   Since cheese is now a big No No I have found myself experimenting a lot more with crazy things I should always have been eating anyway like......grains...nuts....and seeds! 

I have not gone all hippy (the usual stereotype with vegans) but I am now very aware of the nutrition that my body needs and try and eat a varied healthy diet.  One thing I have found extremely difficult is not being able to go for a coffee and a muffin at my favourite coffee shop!  Now, I am no master chef or baker, which unfortunately I have found out since trying to bake without eggs and milk!  I hear you all saying......whats the point?  Well.........I was beginning to think the same thing since I have tried at least 6 times to make muffins that either looked like pancakes or tasted entirely like soy!

However, today I cracked it and baked some Delicious Banana Muffins that even my dairy eating friends enjoyed!  I swear you can't tell that they are dairy free and they are super moist and tasty! 

Since I am a very happy mouse (and am also full from eating muffins today) I thought I would share the recipe with you and I urge you to give it a try and see what you think.


This is after I ate (well im not going to tell you how many but it was too many :-)





  • 3 very ripe bananas
  • 1/4 cup oil or vegan margarine, softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp baking soda


  • Pre-heat oven to 360 degrees.

    In a large bowl, mash the bananas with a fork till soft. Add the oil or vegan margarine and sugar and cream together.

    In a separate bowl, combine together the flour, salt, and baking soda. Combine with the banana mixture, stirring gently just to combine.

    Grease or line a muffin pan, and fill each muffin about 2/3 full with batter. Bake for about 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

    I used the vegan margarine (Olivani)  My disaster results before always contained oil so I would say avoid it if possible.

    Next time I am going to half the sugar and add some dairy free chocolate or maybe some raspberries....or both Yum!

    I have also read Alicia Silverstones book The Kind Diet which is a good read if you are thinking about dabbling in a vegan or vegetarian diet, or just looking for some super nutritious meals.

    My next vegan read is going to be Chef Chloe Coscarelli and her New Cookbook Chloe's Kitchen!  She was the winner of the TV show Cupcake Wars in the US and I can't wait to try and make all of her delicious suggestions.

    I will let you know when it arrives and what my favourite recipes are :-) Yum!

    This post is taking part in Get Your Craft on Tuesdays

    Sunday 4 March 2012

    Handmade Fashion

    I watched Crazy Stupid Love last night and I have to admit I have a bit of a girl crush on Emma Stone.  I love the way she looks feminine but with an edge of boyishness about her.  I thought I would have a bit of fun and try and recreate her look in the handmade marketplace!

    So here is how to dress like Emma Stone Handmade Style!


    Get this Look: Top Left - Yellow Dress from rshone on Etsy , Top Right - Necklace from IIQII Etsy
    Bottom Right - Yellow Dress from MyHackneyBoutique on Etsy


    Get this Look: Top Left Tutu Stripes Dress from Ouma on Etsy, Top Right Shoes from LaPlumeEthere on Etsy, Middle Right Tutu Dress also from Ouma on Etsy, Bottom Right Ring from Mayahelena on Etsy


     I hope you have a look at all the Handmade shops featured above and have fun shopping!

    P.s Giveaway from Mouse Illustration coming up this week so remember to come back for a peek :-)

    x

    Thursday 23 February 2012

    New Jewellery Range!

    First off I would like to apologise for the lack of Posts on my Blog lately.  I am glad to say I have been busy working but thats no excuse so I will be posting more regularly from now on.

    The good news is...........I have a whole new page of goodies to buy from my website Mouse Illustration dot com.  I am just so very excited to share my new Handmade creations with you.  I have to say that I am just a little bit in Love with them.......especially with three new special little friends!

    I wont hold you in suspence any longer.  Meet my Matryoshka Dolls, Alyona, Natalya and Olesya:


    Aren't they super cute? I hope you think so.

    They are exclusive to my online shop so they can't be purchases anywhere else.

    I also have another New exciting Range of Necklaces that are great for jazzing up your neckline for that special occasion.  I particularly love the Over the Rainbow Necklace.
    All my New Products are online and Ready to buy so please have a peek and enjoy shopping!


    P.s. Pop back soon for my Latest GIVEAWAY to celebrate my new Jewellery Designs!




    Monday 13 February 2012

    Happy Valentine's Day


    Here is my "Must be Love" Board from Pinterest for some Valentine Inspiration.  Enjoy.




    I hope you all get a nice treat from someone special :-)

    Monday 6 February 2012

    Valentine's Day

    Love it or Hate it Valentine's Day is nearly upon us.  I was trying to get into the spirit of it all so I made a little display at my stall over the weekend for all you romantics out there!

    This little guy has to be my favourite so I thought I would share him with you.

    Sweet Valentine


    I have to say I really enjoyed myself at the Arts and Crafts Market over the weekend.  It was a holiday weekend in New Zealand so I had three markets in a row.  The weather was beautiful....I even had to cool off in the lake afterwards (its a hard life)!


    Here is a little peek at my New Display.












    I am trying to upload more Goodies for you all to buy on my website so keep checking back for the latest news! You can also get more regular updates on my Facebook Page :-)
    
    
    

    Friday 20 January 2012

    I've Gone All Fruity!

    Since I have been back from my Holiday in the Scottish winter I have to say I am fully appreciating the summer here in New Zealand.  I have been munching on fresh Strawberries and Cherries and eating dinner in the Garden most nights. 

    While eating some delicious Strawberries yesterday I came up with a cute idea for a bracelet..........

     My Fruity Beads before I baked them!



    This is the Tutti Frutti bracelet that was the end result!

    I have to say it just screams summer and juicy deliciousness :-) Yum!

    I will have it for sale at my Arts and Crafts Market Stall tomorrow but it will also be available to buy from my website soon!