ACT Power Up Promotion Starting 1st August

Photo; Karate Mom courtesy from Flickr; chobecajero.

Hello Mommies,

Here is a chance for you to further promote your artfire store!! Its the ACT PowerUp!! We are gathering troops for this free promotional campaign!

If you are a member of our Artfire Cafemom Team Guild AND Artfire Cafemom Team, you are eligible to join us!! If you are a new member of our guild, please complete your application at cafemom.com to become eligible for this.

For further details, check out the forums at cafemom.com!!

*you would need to login..*

Quick!! You need to register, on a first-come-first-served basis!! Last day for joining in the fun is the 7th August!! Everyone gets 4days full of promotion!! Here is your chance to make use of our guild's cooperative efforts!!

Artfire Cafemom Team has lots more promotional ideas for you!

Join us now!! You have 9 more days to register!!

Vote for Your Favorite in ACT's July Summertime Contest

We have some great entries this month, which may make it hard to pick a favorite. But we want your vote and the votes of your friends, so please tweet, digg, plurk, email, post, or pass this link along in whatever way you communicate online.
Voting begins now and will run through July 31. July's winner and August's ACT Contest theme will be announced right here on our ACT Blog at the beginning of August. So, pick your favorite, vote, and may the best summertime creation win...

Fab Fuzzy Flip Flops by Bittersweet Design Studio
Slip them on to go to the pool, the beach, or wherever...

Grass Stain Soap by SubEarthan Cottage

I'm totally in love with the scent!

Morning Buzz Post Earrings by A Bit of Color
Something bright and sunny to wear for summer (or anytime)...

Oh YUM! Ice Cream Tags by Diecutz
Think ice cream sundaes...

Life is a Fantastic Voyage by Face of Contentment
Abalone like and bronze clay beads dangle with great movement...

Hand Crochet Toddler Dress by Jemz
The perfect hand crocheted Toddler Summer Dress...

Emerald Sea Shore Bracelet by Anonymous ACT Team Member
The little star fish just add a little spark!

Zodiac Crab-Cancer by Eddy’s Pressies
He's king of the Summertime castle...

Palm Tree Sunset Sterling Anklet by Creations With Heart
Perfect to wear all summer long!

Ice Pop Finger Savers by Stitch ‘N Love Boutique
These yell SUMMERTIME, even in the winter in my house!

Lemongrass Citrus Loofah Soap by Amy Rose Berlin
A refreshing slice of Lemongrass Citrus Loofah Soap!

Summer Flowers T-Shirt Market Bag by With Our Hands
Summertime=Market; Grab this "green" upcycled shirt Market Bag...

Stretch Japanese Chainmaille Bracelet by Haffina Creations
I love to make chainmaille pieces in bright colours...

Handmade Large Zip Pouch Cherries by Djstoreroom
Abundant Fruits--Cheery Cherries for Summer!

Song of the Sea by SWDesigns
Firepolished Jablonex beads are the sparkling aqua color of the sea...

My sewing studio, aka my sewing corner

Its been sometime since I blogged... Had a little writer's block here..
Anyway, here are some pictures of my sewing area.. :)

Here is my sewing corner.. I feel really comfortable here, as it is in my living room. My daughter can play and even chat while I sew. I use 2 standing lamps and 1 table lamp to lit the area as there are no permanent lighting in this part. On the right, there is my antique safe and our gohonzon. On the left, there is a pillar which holds our pool cues. My ironing board sits folded in front of it. I do my cutting on the pool table. It is just right in front of the chair on the left bottom corner.

My iron sits right on the sleeve board for light sewing jobs. A tall plastic drawer holds my crafty stuff. My fabric are kept in another room as there is no other space for it here. The pink pail? That is my dustbin.. I got it in France for just 1euro.. Love the color!! And, I only have 1 little sewing machine right now.. Now, I mostly work around my sewing machine's capability. Maybe thats why I was able to come up with those sewing patterns which uses short-cut techniques. Hhaha.. So there, the reason why I can think of all those sewing methods is because of my sad little sewing machine which cannot change the width and length of the stitches and has limited sewing foots, with limited type of stitches.... But no, I am not changing it yet... :)

Summertime is This Month's ACT Contest Theme

July marks the beginning of the changes to our ACT contest. We have switched from a weekly theme to a monthly theme, and right now the theme is Summertime.

We began accepting entries on July 1st, and as an ACT member, you have until the 21st of this month to post your entry in our discussion thread on Cafemom. Please post a picture of the item you are entering, as well as the link to the item in your Artfire studio as well as the name of your studio and a link to your studio. One entry per artist please.

By extending the submission window to three (3) weeks, we are hoping more artists will be able to participate. If they didn't already have something in their shop that fit the theme, they have time to create something and get it posted.

Voting will take place the following week on this blog between July 23 and July 30. Beginning August 1, The winner will have their rapid cart displayed in the top right hand corner of our blog for the following month.

August 1st will also be the day we begin accepting entries for August's theme, which will remain a secret for now. We are still working out the details and hoping to be able to open our contest to all Artfire artists by August. More on that later.

So far we have nine (9) entries for July, and we still have 18 days to go. So if you don't have an item that fits the summertime theme, maybe you can create something and enter it.

Oh, I just love summer!!! How about you???