When you’re in the mood to send a romantic gesture, what better way to profess your love than with a message in a bottle? This is what Mystic Messages aims to do, plus put a smile on the faces of all your other friends and loved ones. Specializing in small tubes of joy, Mystic Messages offers a memorable keepsake contained in a vial filled with authentic Hollywood Beach, California sand.

The small glass bottles also offer a thoughtful charm, tiny seashell, and scroll that include a message that you create and is printed out for you. A cork holds all of the contents together. You can opt for a necklace or keychain for your bottled message. Your bottle comes in a gift box – wrapped with a bow and packaged in a complimentary handmade drawstring pouch. Shown below is my favorite out of all the bottles – the Antiquated Key style.

Is it just me or have aprons been making a serious fashionable comeback? I first noticed with Flirty Aprons and now, I’ve found Emily’s Apron Creations, where you can express yourself in the kitchen in more ways than one. While Flirty Aprons consists of a lot of sassy (and even seductive) aprons, Apron Creations has a great deal of imaginatively unique options to consider. For example, I’ve never seen an Outer Space Apron before. I absolutely love the blue colors in this apron.

Most Apron Creations are made from 100% cotton with ties at the neck and waist. The prints are very eye-catching. Bike lovers may choose I Heart Bicycles. The Magic Unicorn apron is perfect for a daydreamer who loves to cook. The Bumblebee Polka Dot apron is a lively treat. There is also a line of 100% organic barkeep aprons in red and navy.

Emily also accepts custom requests.

In Britain, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, and the United Kingdom, scones make a delightful accompaniment to a steaming cup of fresh tea or coffee. In Britain, the treat is known as a quick bread, but when sugar is added –scones become a cake-like treat.

If you’re interested in making your own scones, there’s a giveaway going on at I Fly Like a Bird that provides one lucky reader with their choice of scone mix from Lindy’s Delight Etsy shop. There are a plenty of unique options to consider, including Coconut Chocolate Chip, Apricot Crème, Wildberry, and Lemon Poppyseed.

This giveaway ends on May 15, 2010 at midnight. Act fast to enter.

From customized initial charms to colorful earrings, JustJaynes is a delightful Etsy shop that offers handmade creations centered on subjects, such as trees, flowers, animals, insects, faith, peace, and birds – including birdcages, birdhouses, and symbolic feathered friends.

The detailed flower earrings (shown below) are what first caught my eye, and after browsing more of JustJayne’s selection, I found a wide-ranging collection of sterling silver charms – from hedgehogs to chili peppers. I actually just bought the Raspberry Rose Earrings and White Flower Ring pictured below…with free shipping – woohoo!

I like how JustJayne inserts interesting background information in the description of her pieces. For example, her Tree of Life necklace description states “The Tree of Life is a universal symbol found in many spiritual traditions. It symbolizes many things, including wisdom, protection, strength, bounty, beauty, and redemption.” For the Honey Bee Earrings, you learn that “in many religions, honeybees are commonly depicted as messengers for the spirits, and are closely associated with the sun. In ancient Egypt, they’re the tears of the sun-god Ra.”

I’ve decided to list a handful of short-term goals for the summer and rest of the year. Hopefully, by seeing them on paper (or I should say, screen), I’ll have a better chance of sticking to them.  Plus, I will take pictures of my progress. They are:

1. Compete against my father to see who can grow the better garden. So far, I’ve done my research, and bought Brussels sprout and cilantro seedlings for $1 each. I’m aiming for an organic garden using eco-friendly products.

2. Grow a bonsai tree indoors –a species that curls up whenever you touch it – kinda like a Venus flytrap only it doesn’t eat bugs.  So far, I’ve bought the seeds and looked at them a million times.

3. Build a light box to take better pictures for my website because I’d like to avoid the wasted time of using Photoshop to remove shadows out of the images I take. A friend sent me this tutorial.

4. Make a baby quilt. @Killerella has motivated me to explore sewing and I want to create one from scratch. I want to cut out or make my own animal decorations. So far, I have brainstormed a theme and attempted to buy supplies this weekend, but was not successful in coming home with any.

5. Launch my Etsy (or Artfire) shop – depending on which one I believe will benefit me the most, although I absolutely love Etsy. So far, I have purchased a ton of supplies, have a journal with a million ideas and sketches, purchased my mailing labels, and have a name for the shop.

6. I completely forgot one of the most important goals. Get a driver’s license, which makes all of the above so much easier to accomplish. So far, I’m on my third learner’s permit and can take the written test with my eyes closed.

Question:What are your short-term goals for the summer or the year?  I’d love to hear them!

***If you answer this question, you’ll receive 3 extra entries to any of my current giveaways. Just leave 3 separate comments telling me that you answered the question. This offer lasts until July 31, 2010, so keep it in mind for future giveaways!

There’s a Mother’s Day giveaway going on at 2 Lil Muffins and all you have to do to enter is share your favorite mother-daughter memory or story. You could elaborate on words of wisdom given to you by your mother or a funny moment that’s stuck with you over the years. The Grand Prize is a beautiful necklace and earring set – the winner is chosen randomly. Plus, two other lucky winners will nab a surprise – based on their shared story or memory!

For Extra Entries

If you participate (or have participated) in the Mother’s Day Giveaway at 2 Lil Muffins – you will receive 2 extra entries for all my current giveaways that end on or before April 30^th.

Don’t forget to leave 2 separate  “I Entered the Mom Giveaway at 2 Lil Muffins” comments in the comment section of the giveaways you enter for it to count.

Good luck all around the board!

For Male Readers…

If you are a male reader…leave a memory or story about the mommy in your life in the comment’s section of this post, and then leave “I Shared a Mom Memory” in the comment section of the giveaways you enter for it to count.

My mother is an ace at sewing and I’ve always wanted that particular talent to trickle down to me, but it didn’t, so I greatly admire people who create handmade goods with a sewing machine or simple needle and thread. I’ve been following the Etsy shop, SewMuchDetail (don’t you just love the name?) for awhile now and I think it’s time to share with you the talents of Sandee – the mind behind the magical keychain wristlets.

With a love for fabrics (both modern and vintage), Sandee creates the most striking, unique wristlet keychain key fobs. I’ve been meaning to purchase one, but seriously, choosing just one is quite a dilemma. The different colors and designs alone encourage you to buy one for every day of the week and to celebrate holidays in style. The wristlets are sturdy, made with durable 100% cotton webbing and comes with a generous 1-1/4″ split ring that holds a lot of keys.

I’ve selected a few of my favorite designs below, but trust me, the variety at the SewMuchDetail shop includes so much more, such as baseballs, owls, frogs, four-leaf clovers, and flowers.

The keylettes make really nice gifts and delightful conversation pieces at work. Give them to family and friends, or better yet – make it much harder for your kids to lose their keys. Other products sold at SewMuchDetail include colorful ID holders for badges and decorative coasters.

You can also keep up with the latest products by following @SewMuchDetail on Twitter.

Ever since childhood, Krystle of Dkjewels, has been crafting works of art – inspired by “vintage items, oriental artwork, southwestern fashion, and nature“. According to her profile, she’s a real jack-of-all-trades – painting, revamping old furniture found in flea markets, making soap, and designing hair bows.

The Etsy shop Dkjewels mainly offers necklaces, bracelets, and an assortment of earrings, including striking gemstone and pearl creations. It is the earrings that I like the most – especially the ones shaped like blossoms. Earrings by Dkjewels are perfect for wedding and prom attire. Give as gifts to bridesmaids and best friends. Wrap up for a delightful Mother’s Day present. Wear Dkjewels when you want to feel special. The possibilities are endless.

A few standouts include:

Limited Edition Mauve Blossoms: Matte or frosted mauve bell flowers are capped with a silver plated leaf cap. Other features include a solid sterling bali daisy spacer bead and a 4mm rose alabaster swarovski crystal.

Pumpkin Spice Earrings: Handcrafted lucite flowers offer an attractive orange frosted watercolor flower with a frosted orange flower nestled inside. Other accents include a crystal copper swarovski crystal and decorative copper bead cap.

Limited Edition Golden Crest Lily Earrings: Offering a matte golden finish, this lily bead shimmers with a delicate white bell flower and swarovski jonquil crystal.

Jonquil Blossoms: Matte or frosted soft yellow bell flowers capped with a silver plated leaf cap, solid sterling bali daisy spacer bead, and a 4mm matte jonquil swarovski bicone bead.

Little Teal Planets: Imagine matching a dress of the same color with these bright teal frosted glass beads that hang with bali spacers on sterling silver earwires.

Blue Montana Bracelet: A mixture of genuine sodalite 8mm rounds, 6mm swarovski Montana bicone crystals, and 3mm sterling silver beads are held together with a sterling silver lobster clasp.

To stay updated with new Dkjewels creations, follow along on Twitter: @dkjewels

Ever since I was a child, I’ve appreciated the female figure and found it one of the most intriguing things to draw – just ask my father who grimaced every time he flipped though his Time Life Photography books or Better Homes & Garden cookbooks. As a youngster, I was and still am a prolific doodler. Designs By Leah Best speaks to me because many of her alluring pendants celebrate the female body. As stated in her profile, “Each piece of jewelry is handmade with attention to detail.” I’m extremely impressed with the metal work features, which truly add to the overall appeal of the pendants.

Designs By Leah Best pendants offer something for everyone including monogram initials, sketched body parts, and notable historical figures, such as Amelia Earhart and Edgar Allen Poe (smile). One-of-a-kind pieces that have caught my eye include:

The Mucha Dance soldered glass pendant necklace hangs on an 18″ antiqued bronze brass chain with a lobster clasp that is easy to remove. The handmade Vintage Paris Burlesque French Nude Dancer pendant measures 1×3 and is crafted with lead-free silver solder and transparency glass. Pay homage to one of the most popular childhood tales in history with this Alice in Wonderland pendant – perfect for children and adults. Fans of Art Deco will swoon at the Vintage Life Ad Peacock Art and Vintage Life Ad Peacock Bird. The Mermaid and the Sirens is another standout for me – perfect for the Pisces woman in your life.

To purchase any of the listed pendants in this post, visit the shop of Designs By Leah Best or keep up with her latest designs by becoming a Twitter friend: @leahbestdesigns

CurlyBirdie truly captures the delicate nature of babies with striking crocheted baby shoes. My absolute favorite is the OLIVIA Mary Jane Crochet Boutique Baby Shoes – rose-colored with a flower crocheted in a vanilla cotton blend yarn. Green felt leaves cap off the creation. Another CurlyBirdie standout is the CECILLE Mary Jane Crochet Shoes for newborns (vanilla with an off-white sole). Crocheted flowers display a fuchsia acrylic blend yarn with a terracota cotton color.

CurlyBirdie also honors special requests in the size (between 3 and 4 ½ inches wide) and colors of your choice (Celery Green, Vanilla, Terracota, Seaspray (Blue), Taupe (Brown), and Rose). Simply state your preferred colors for the body, sole and trim to create a memorable, functional keepsake. Adding a flower to a special request only costs $2 extra.

CurlyBirdie creations also include crocheted headbands, hair bows, and beret beanies.

Shop or stay connected with @CurlyBirdie