Wine Country

Last weekend we drove south to Santa Cruz, which is famous for its many wineries.  Our cute little bed & breakfast was just on the outskirts of town.  On Friday we drove to a little nearby town, Lolol to visit a small craft museum featuring each region of Chile with the handicrafts from there.  Next stop, lunch at one of the local wineries.  Our friend and her husband own a beautiful restaurant in Santa Cruz, so we wined and dined there for the two nights. The beet ravioli was delicious! We didn't get to do everything, but it is worthy of another trip or two back.

Our B & B Posada Colchagua

An embroidered tapestry - winery scene - from the museum

Viu Manent Winery

Vino Bella Cafe, Bar, Ristorante

Horses at Viu Manent

Etsy has a wide selection of wine related items - check these out!  

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BESTteam Feature of the Week - Ardent Reverie!

Check out Ardent Reverie, a cool shop owned by "two crazy sisters who work like crazy" to see some totally awesome and unique accessories! This shop is full of accessories, necklaces, hats, scarves, and solid perfume. 

I am crazy about scarves - these are my favorites:

I also love necklaces and these are so darling! The Garden Mosaic is so different, pretty, and feminine!  I love the medley of pearls, stones, Czech glass and other ornaments that are artistically places onto a square pendent!

  

These solid perfume necklaces are too adorable!  The handmade solid perfume is contained in a decorated tin and hangs on a gunmetal chain. The removable sliding cover allows you to easily change the color/design if you own multiple necklaces.

The scents available include Jasmine, Sweet Pea, Honeysuckle, Meadow, and Vanilla. Refills are available as well.

These "crazy sisters" are also very clever!

This is just a little peek at all the items in this etsy shop - so click here and have a look around! 

BESTteam Feature of the Week - Your Daily Jewels

Your Daily Jewels has a glamorous collection of handcrafted sterling silver and gold filled jewelry with colorful semi precious gemstones. Norah is offering a 15% discount today and free shipping within the US always. Also, during the month of April, 10% of sales proceeds will be donated to the Autism Society of America in support of National Autism Awareness month. Everyone loves to support a cause and who doesn’t love a sale?

Norah became a serious designer when she discovered that her young patients loved her jewelry and the little stories behind each piece. 

Blue handmade boro lampwork bead organic shaped faceted aquamarine nugget beads!

Gold, red, and Winter white Lampwork beads, Czech glass beads, hand blown glass, Italian hand made Aventurina beads play off each other as they are suspended from a beautiful gold plate chain.

Ivory, bronze, and taupe freshwater pearls of all shapes and sized are accented with crystals and Bali silver accents to result in a detailed pendant full of motion.

Balls of color-enhanced mother of pearl-shell earrings are capped in Bali Silver.

Marquise Shape Sparkling Blue Goldstone Dangle Earrings

Lampwork beads are combined with Creamy Czech glass beads in these really unique earrings.

I love how bright and colorful her pieces are! There is a vast variety of styles of bracelets, earrings, and necklaces to choose from. Each piece is so unique and different.   You will find numerous colorful semi precious stones, lampwork, Czech glass, Swarovski crystal, pearls, made into stunning, artistic jewelry perfect for day and/or night! You can also read more about Norah at her blog.

BESTteam Feature of the Week - Cerlandia

Cerlandia (Serh land de a ) or the Land of Sarah is where you will find crafter Sarah’s etsy shop!  Sarah has been knitting, crocheting , and sewing for many years. Her shop features handmade totes, bags, purses, hats, cuffs, and other accessories.  She recently began working with Charles Taylor – together they are creating some awesome silkscreen items to include in her shop.

 

I love this silk screened cameraman bag – I have had an obsession for cameras for a while now and this is just too cool!  It is a sturdy canvas making its uses unlimited! Think eco-friendly!

What a great hat – an aviator made with a wool blend yarn!  This would keep you warm during the cold winter!

A colorful set of crocheted dish cloths might brighten the dreary chore! 

You can also stop by Sarah’s blog.

Ancient Oils - A Besteam Feature

Ancient Oils’ shop on Etsy has a wonderful collection of handmade products – representing aspects of a variety of goddesses: Artemis for strength, Gala for grounding, Coventina for purification, plus others. Some of my favorites are Bast, Egyptian Cat Goddess, which nourishes and restores your nails – this is a necessity for the cold, dry winter weather. I also like the Dead Sea Mud Mask for hydrating and exfoliating the skin. There are four different scented pure therapeutic grade essential oils, which are known for their healing and spiritual properties. According to the shop owner, “The blends are uniquely design to enhance the Goddess principals within you, remove blockages in energy centers, and lift your spirits.”

All About Cats - A BESTeam Feature

Cat lovers!!  This shop is a must-see!  All About Cat's owner, Linda, is a cat lover who has three rescued cats to keep her company. She has a such a great variety of colorful toys to entertain and spoil your felines for hours! Her handmade catnip toys are organic. If you prefer toys without catnip, just let her know.







There are some great gifts for family and friends who are crazy about these critters! How about a cat print wallet, or coasters, or tissue holders, or magnets, or plastic bag holders? Such colorful and cute items!

 
  All these cats are making me miss my Calvin and Lucy - who I had to leave behind in Thailand when we moved to Chile. :(





You can find Linda's blog here: http://allaboutcatsetsy.blogspot.com  
Her blog has great cat quotes such as "Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax and get used to the idea."
- Unknown
as well as poetry and lovely pictures of her growing up and her cats.
And her Facebook page is here:
 http://www.facebook.com/pages/All-About-Cats/178751288826475?v=wall

Ms Formaldehyde

Ms Formaldehyde's shop is an oasis of an eclectic collection of fun, fashionable jewelry and hair accessories!  This clever handicrafter specializes in make carved skulls, sugar skulls, gothic, voodoo, glitter fashion, lowbrow, lolita pin up and dita burlesque accessories. There is a huge variety of skulls- earrings, hair pins, barrettes, and necklaces!
    These hair flowers are so beautiful!  Lots of colors and styles! Check out the hand painted butterfly hair clip (or hairpin).

 Ms Formaldehyde is happy to help with weddings - these gorgeous hair flowers would look lovely on the bridesmaids!
Wholesale orders are welcome. 
 You can also check out Ms F's blog.

Elle's Beads

      

This week's BESteam feature is Elle's Beads. This talented jewelry creator loves combining recycled pieces, donated and discarded items, and lovely beads to mold into modern fashion accessories. The colorful earrings will add pizazz to any outfit!

 Get ready for the party season with these rings !  The cluster rings are great for evening, but could  even be fun to wear to jazz up your daytime wardrobe! The button rings are really fun!    

They're adjustable in order to fit everyone. 






      
 
The lovely vintage jewelry makes a classy and sophisticated  statement.  
Elle's beads also has brooches n pins, barrettes, bookmarks, and cell phone charms. Not only are Elle's beads funky and modern, they are also eco-friendly!  There's a little something for everyone as well as great gifts!

Creativity Bugs from Etsy

 

Meet the Creativity Bugs - also known as Sandy and Sue.  These two sisters inherited their mother's love for crafting at a young age. They have learned how to make treasures out of found things. Their passion for crafting began as gift making for friends and relatives - then it turned into a business with their Etsy shop opening its doors in January. You will find a wonderful variety of handcrafted  cards.

Visit their blog to check out some of their favorite things and discover some delicious recipes!

Just Peachy - Jewelry and Accessories

 Looking for something cute, charming, and whimsical?  "Just Peachy" at etsy has a great selection of hand crafted earrings, necklaces,  bracelets, and hair accessories!  Her collection of  earrings would be perfect to wear with cute spring dresses. The bold jewel-toned color combinations of her jewelry and hair accessories would compliment a summery white top or sundress. These pieces would brighten up any outfit - regardless of the season.

Sports Fans!

One of the first places we went to when we arrived in Santiago was Mall Sport - this place is amazing - all sports! Every sport you can imagine has a shop with equipment and clothing. Not only that the mall has a wave pool, skateboard park, climbing wall, skating rink, and an air walk.

 

For those of you who are sports fanatics or who know some one who is - stop by these Etsy shops and check out their unique sports related items!  Great gifts for anytime of the year!