Quote journals are amazing. Some people draw pictures on the pages and decoupage the covers with vintage ads, but I just have some index cards held together with rings. Some may say, why not buy a quote book? It's more expensive and you get boring quotes like "Too blessed to be depressed" or something instead of awesome quotes like "Never again the foamy times" or "There's no time limit on dancing like Michael Jackson".

You can also make little kids do this as an art project. Just have them fold lined paper and give them some markers and crayons and have them go. I bet it would keep them busy for at least half an hour. Quote journals are for everyone from teens that are writing their first in joke journal to senior citizens collecting dirty jokes to share with their friends.

I find that if I start with a quote I remember and change it a little- I call this remixing- I will end up with a quote that is very personally meaningful for me. So try it.

It's tough to not renew when there's a new etsybead theme of the (two) weeks as people search the theme for items for treasuries. However, it's just one month of not renewing, and I'll tough it out.

I'm having a tough time. The google base store connector isn't working with my etsy store, it's been rainy all week, which has been affecting my photos, and I am a bit slow on the listing front. I was able to ship out a big ebay sale within 12 hours of payment, which was good, though. I bought some big mailers for my ebay items. It's tough to use boxes because they always increase the weight of your package by several ounces, which is especially bad as shipping costs will probably increase again.

I didn't know the donutlounge was bailing out of etsy. She only has one item left.

I think a nice handmade item is a good donation for children for christmas. Handmade items actually are a bit more high toned and less supportive of the idea that the poor don't deserve nice things than a dollar store Barbie is. A well made toy that will stand the test of time is a really nice thing, especially compared to some of the things people give poor children. So if you make toys, give them this season. You can even give through etsy. And all year round- please donate yummy food to the food drive. Does anyone even eat pickled beets?