Where have I been?  Well, our beautiful Miss 2 is allergic to most things in our world, including all household cleaning products, food products, moulds, etc, etc and is also anaphylactic to Dairy and Eggs.  So alot of my time is spent with allergists, specialists, doctors and me just plain trawling the internet….so I can help her with her eczema and food intolerences.

So today I wanted to do a post about a more natural product for your laundry….and I came across Scrub Naturally on Etsy. This lady sells only fully natural cleaning product without all the nasty’s for your washing machine.  She ships all over the world and it’s so worth it, to help you and your little people be as healthy as possible!

Felt is New Zealand’s Etsy – an ‘online marketplace for handmade goodies’, but really well edited.   My favourite thing is the magnetic alphabet in all it’s bright happy colours.  Go take a look and you may find something for yourself or a friend.

Alphabet NZ$69 – Tinch Design Studio

Cupcake Pin Cushion NZ$15.00 – Adornmentz

Fantail Art Block NZ$19 – Dudo Design

Crane Necklace NZ12.50 – One Trick Pony

Christmas will be here soon and if you have some folks in your family that are hard to buy for, then how about a set of these?  You can purchase some lovely paper, the PDF file from one of the great Etsy stores below, and you’re good to go.  They are in NZ$ left to right as follows:

2011 Calendar of Polish Art – Bialakura – $7.50

2011 Childrens Calendar Safari Fun – Pearenthetical Press – $9.50

2011 Italy Photos – Bubbo – $6.20

2011 Blank Make Your Own Calendar – A Little Huts Shop – $5.20

2011 Microbacteria Calendar – The Rasilisk – $6.20

2011 Calendar Write On With Stickers – The Art Of Joy – $8.80

Can you believe you can geek out with fabric!  That’s right….these great covers are handmade using felt and cover original and 4g iPhones.  I really want one for my phone to protect the screen in my handbag.  Take a look at her etsy shop L´atelier de Luluu for other felt creations that can cover other mp3 players and phones.  The iPhone cover starts at about NZ$54 dollars plus shipping from Spain, which is so worth it for all that geeky detail.

For those folks out there who are lucky enough to own the iPhone 4 – even if there’s a bit of a glitch, here’s the fix for it.  Antenn-aid sells cool looking bandaids that attach to the edge of the phone to stop it dropping your call.  Get them right here at Etsy  - a multi-colored 6pk for only US$4.99 plus shipping, or you can buy a bulk lot and umm, sell them to your mates!  Or get the software update apparently, but that’s not fun looking!

via [Not-Cot]

Today’s adventure wasn’t mine….I went for a bikeride with the family instead.  But Design Is Mine discovered this great poster, called Origami Love Poster.  It costs US$15 + $5 postage (NZ$27) – take a look over at Amy’s Etsy store Field Trip for more great posters.  I want to actually give this a try at folding as origami is something I really enjoy…until I can’t do it!

Water colour is beautiful.  I have tried my hand at watercolor before with a disastrous outcome, so I stick with acrylic.  While bouncing around on Etsy I popped up on this shop. Irene is an Italian artist and she has a large and gorgeous assortment of watercolour creatures to choose from.  They would make a great collection for a sewing room, or a child’s bedroom.  Each piece is about NZ$35, plus NZ$8 shipping.  Go take a look right here.

Only the other day my dear friend was watching Miss 9mths put things in and out of her shape sorter.  She said that Miss would probably like a mail box….so I went hunting and discovered this one.

It would make a great DIY, but if you aren’t into building then you can buy one at How Now Design‘s Etsy shop for US$30 (about NZ$68) plus shipping.  It would last for quite some time with all the games kids play, and this one is clever in that it can hang on any door.

The large wheel clock is cool!  I love a great big clock in the house as it can be seen from a distance and we don’t have to run over to the oven and check the time. The images above show some other cool bike clocks over at Etsy.  The second and third clocks are from 1 By Liz, and the other two by Pixel This.  Both stores have a great range of clocks and they can be shipped worldwide.  Mr Bohaute; being a mountain biker, would probably like one of these in the ‘man cave’.

Mum loves owls;  she always notices them in books, on cards or fabric and so I have caught that same bug.  Decoylab has a great range of clocks to choose from, but of course this mod bamboo owl is my choice.  A little soft light mounted just out of sight behind the eyes would also light up a little one’s room as their night light.  They do two sizes – large 10″ x 8″ is NZ$94 and the smaller 5″ x 7″ version is NZ$66, plus only NZ$10 shipping.

Something I had always meant to get for our son’s room was a mobile, and it just didn’t happen.  However I found the 8 Planets which would suit him more now…and even better, each planet glows in the dark.  Julie Firth is the lady who designed it and you can buy it through her website or her Etsy shop with paypal for US$120 (NZ$185).  She ships anywhere in the world – just email for a price.  Click here for more of her Calder inspired mobiles.  

These are like a hip modern version of Matryoshka Dolls – except they don’t stack.  You can paint them yourself with their starter kit, or buy them already done.  They start at about NZ$15 and ship anywhere so go check out the great selection at Michelle and Kelly’s etsy store Goose Grease.  I would love a family of four all painted up….perhaps for Mothers Day!

via [Bloesem Kids]

Here is a great skirt for little girls that I found over at The Long Thread.  It is reversible, and you could make it with different fabric on the inside.  If they spill anything on one side – whip in inside out and voila! – they have a clean skirt for the rest of the day!  You can buy the pattern over at their Etsy store; it downloads as a PDF pattern with all the instructions.  Sizes range from 4 through 6 yrs and it costs only NZ$12.  

Now if only they had a reversible pants pattern for boys, I would sure find them handy for those hot chocolates at the cafe.

Orange Beautiful has this print for sale for US$10 in their etsy shop. I would love it on the wall where I practice my yoga, and I think it would make a great gift for a yogi or yogini.

Decals are so popular these days to decorate a kids room, so I went hunting on etsy and found Mae’s store. It has decals full of colour, lines, spots, dots and flowers.  They are quite exey if buying in NZ$, but they ship anywhere in the world.  My fave are the dress up dolls.

Aren’t these the cutest little bloomers ever –  I love the frills and colourful fabric.  Made in Australia, they cost about AU$20 and shipping is cheap at between $1 and $3 depending where in the world they are going. You can get them in sizes from newborn to 2 years.  Go have a look at the pretty range right here.

Great pillows really can give a tired room some much needed pizazz, and it’s such a small change.  Better yet, how about winning some! Matte Stephens is the artist behind these great pieces of fabric art.  My fave pillow I think has to be the line-up of buildings – it reminds me of my trip to London….wandering through Primrose Hill looking at all the joined together mansions.  Enter right here for your chance and if you are unlucky, then take a look at the groovy prints and paintings at his etsy shop.  Something for the wall might be even better for a little makeover!

image [Braniac]

Had to show you this today.  I find the bonnet sooo cute, but can imagine the humiliation the dog is feeling….unless of course he’s about to go out in the NY snow.  Anyway, you can also get the far more useful collars that are so pretty all girl dogs should have one – she calls them neck warmers; or the jackets. Starting at about $US25 (NZ$48) they are something special for your canine, and she can make them any size, not just for Boston Terriers – (how cute is Bean).

Valentina Design has a large collection of pretty birds all shapes, designs and colours.  There’s notecards, and prints, and desk calendars….plus lots more to purchase right here at her Etsy shop.  I am a sucker for embellished birds done up all pretty….perhaps something that could go into my late Xmas stocking!  They start at about NZ$20 and it’s free shipping within the US or only NZ$11 to ship internationally.