Get to Know at Etsy Artist, devancarol

I've previously posted about the One a Day Challengers, and want to introduce you to Devan, the owner of the etsy shop, Chasing Lilies, which you can find at devancarol.etsy.com. She gets the name of her shop from the names of her 2 children, Chase, 4 and Lily, 7 months. The combination is a perfect shop name!

Devan is originally from a small town in Virginia named Wise, but she and her family currently live in Knoxville, Tennessee. Besides her etsy shop, she has a very important job as a stay at home mom. Sometimes she does find it challenging to get things created around the kids' schedules, and she also finds the marketing that a new etsian encounters challenging.

About her crafting, Devan says, "I've been crafting about half my life. I learned to sew sitting on my Grandmother's lap and watching her enjoy what she did gave me the passion to create." She is also motivated to keep on going when someone says, "I love that".


I love Devan's shop because of the unique items that you find there, from jewelry to gifts to upcycled items. One of her favorites is the Scrabble Memo Board. It is unique and clever, and she tells me, fun to make. I love her Multicolor Teardrop Twist Bracelet, and her Upcycled CD Clock, as well! She loves creating and making things that she thinks others will enjoy. After the sale, the best part to Devan is imagining the buyer wearing her jewelry or using her memo board.


She enjoys being around her family when she isn't creating, and loves how they make her a better person. When she has time, she also loves to read and watch movies. As if that isn't enough, she recently added one more thing to do, a blog, Sleepy Mama Times. Check it out!

Finally, Devan is the easiest person in the world to talk to, and if you have any questions for her, or want her to make something just for you, just ask!

Some Yart Offerings from the Challengettes

The Challengettes? That would be the One a Day Challengers listed to the left. If you like any of these items, click on their shop in the list! Note: just looked at this... I know the picture is too small, but the items are from me, dmriceart, cricketscreations, jjmckillip, coryelldesign, meagansdesigns, lolabear (this one may have sold already), and devancarol. Check them all out!

Who are the One A Day Challengers?

I've featured one of the One A Day Challengers, but what is the whole group. Others have blogged about us as well, including one of my previous posts, but here's my current take...

Started on April 15 by Chrissy of Bittersweets, the basic premise is to make an item and list it every day. The original goal was to do this for one month, but, hey, we bonded and couldn't let go. So on we go. Life does get in the way, so the rules are not strict. Sometimes we can list every day, and sometimes we can't, but we all just do the best we can.

I'll expand on some of these characteristics in future posts, but here's a profile of us:
There are approximately 20 of us, and of those, there are 15 jewelry makers, 3 who knit or crochet, 3 who sew, 1 paper artist, 1 graphic designer, 1 bath and body guru, and 2 who sell vintage. You can see those numbers don't add up to 20... lots of us are multi-talented and at least 4 of us have more than one shop.

Lolabear has been selling on etsy the longest. She joined on January 22, 2006. Devancarol is the newest member, joining on March 28, 2008.

We have 2 Canadians, 2 Aussies, and represent 14 different states, clustered in the northeast, the southeast, the midwest, and 2 western states. And one day, we'd love to all get together and meet in person!

That's enough to digest for now. But rest assured, we are all kindred spirits, and in some weird, crazy way, in a short time, we've become good friends.

Reflections on May 2008

It may have been noticed by some that I have not posted an entry in this little blog for almost a month. I'm sure it has happened to many bloggers... the good intentions to blog every day, then once a week, and then, well, it just doesn't seem worth the trouble. Well, I know it can be worth the trouble for a whole host of reasons, and it's time once again, for me to include blogging as one of those things that I do.

The main reason I did not blog much in May was the graduation of Kyle, my second and youngest child, from high school. There's the whole family in the picture: me, Kyle, Roland and Laura (who will be entering her final year at the University of Georgia in the fall). This process is a whirlwind of activities and parties, culminating, for him and the majority, I think, of his classmates, in a beach trip to Hilton Head, South Carolina. For those of us seemingly left behind in the dust of what was, I offer up this letter from Leonard Pitts, columnist for the Miami Herald, A father's letter to his daughter on her graduation. Did you cry? I did.