bring on the weekend

ok, so i made it through last weekend, all three shows, and the snow. whew. i'll be heading to pittsburgh this weekend for the wonderful handmade arcade, and my work will also be at

squidfire, thanks to shannon of sweetpepita. if you're in pittsburgh, please stop by and see me, or come visit shannon and my BEST buddies down in canton.

exactly two week until christmas. gulp.

buy handmade and help others

It has been a difficult year for many Marylanders because of the tough economy. Many are without jobs and without food. In an effort to help those in need this holiday season, several BEST members will be donating a percentage of money from the the sales of their handmade items from December 1-14. Buyers will have a unique opportunity to support handmade and help feed hungry Marylanders.

The Maryland Food Bank provides nearly 14 million pounds of food annually to 1,000 Network Partners - including food pantries, soup kitchens, emergency shelters, low-income day care centers, after-school programs, senior centers, rehabilitation centers, and other feeding programs. They supply food for over 50,000 Marylanders each week who otherwise would go hungry or not eat enough, including families with children, the elderly, the homeless, the homebound, low-income workers, the recently unemployed, and people with AIDS and other health problems. For every $1 contributed to the Maryland Food Bank, they are able to provide 3 meals to Maryland’s needy families and individuals.

From December 1st through 14th, the following participating BEST members will be donating a percentage of their sales:

blockpartypress- 10% of Etsy sales
sweetpepita- 10% of all Etsy sales
jenmenkhaus- 10% of all Etsy sales
glowgirl - 10% of all Etsy sales
yummyandcompany- 10% of all Etsy sales
atelieradornments - 10% of all Etsy sales
lanabella - 10% of all Etsy sales
lolamiren - 10% of all Etsy sales
thebrokenplate - 10% of all Etsy sales
tigerlillyshop - 10% of all Etsy ring sales
greenstarstudio - 10% of all Etsy sales

Take some time to visit these Etsy shops, support handmade and know that when you make a purchase between Dec. 1 - 14, you will be helping to provide food and services to someone in need this holiday season. Here are some other ways to support the MD Food Bank:

* Make a direct monetary donation

* Purchase and donate food through the Food Bank's “Virtual Food Drive”

* Deliver the food directly to the Maryland Food Bank at 2200 Halethorpe Farms Road. Please call 410-737-8282 to arrange your delivery.

* Volunteer Opportunities

(Thanks Tamara, of BlockPartyPress, for organizing this drive & writing this lovely post).