GiveAway Winners!!

Winners of my First Ever Giveaway:

$25 gift certificate for Pampered Beardies: Laura Smith
$25 gift certificate for Pampered Snakes: Karyn Mountain

Emergency Warming Blanket with 2 Uniheat packs: Stacey N Clark

2 Uniheat packs: Lauren Alexandra, Amy McNair, Stephany B Rogers


Message me at Pamperedsnakes(at)gmail(dot)com for info. I will ask you to verify your name & info for me too.

THANKS!!

Adding More to Pampered Snakes

Check out some of the latest listings in my NEW Etsy Shop Pampered Snakes! 

While you're there, be sure to "Like" the page!

Official Rules for my Two Giveaways running May 16, 2017 through midnight on May 28, 2017

Now that I have a second Etsy shop going, I want to promote both of them along with my Instagram and Facebook pages. I do have Twitter.... but that's too much! ;) 


OFFICIAL RULES TO WIN (Prizes listed below): 

1- Visit this blog. Shazam! I just gave that to you! (you're welcome)

2- Follow me on Instagram. Click HERE.

3- Favorite my Pampered Snakes Etsy Shop HERE.

4- Follow my Rescue Page on Facebook. Click HERE.

       BUT! Before you leave, Complete Step #4 BELOW!

5- Go to the PINNED POST at the top of my Rescue Page on Facebook and Comment "DONE" when you have done all 4 steps above and you'll be entered to win. Comments on the Blog won't count! You have to comment on Facebook!! :)

ALL "DONE" ENTRIES MUST BE POSTED **BEFORE** Midnight Mtn Standard Time on Sunday, May 28, 2017. Winners will be announced on Blogger, Facebook, & Instagram on Monday, May 29, 2017. Winners will be contacted before the announcements through Facebook & Instagram.


PRIZES:

TWO Grand Prizes (2 winners)
 -a $25 Etsy gift card to Pampered Beardies 
 -a $25 Etsy gift card to Pampered Snakes

ONE 1st Place Prize (1 winner)
 -an Emergency Warming Blanket with two heating packs 

THREE 2nd Place Prizes (3 winners)
 -two Uni-Heat Warming packs for shipping or emergencies


Disclaimers:
- My mom & my rescue brother & sister can't win; my real siblings wouldn't even care! ;) I'll use a random name picker website online called Random.org to pick the 5 winners. Winners will be announced on Blogger, Facebook, & Instagram on Monday, May 29th, 2017. Winners will be contacted before the announcements through Facebook & Instagram.
- If you have any questions, message me through Facebook or Instagram. If you're in doubt about something, message me.
-Winners will be posted on Monday, May 29, 2017. They will have until Monday June 12, 2017 at midnight to message me about their prize. Any unclaimed prizes will be forfeited.
-I'm sure there are other issues that will come up that I haven't thought of yet, but I'll add them here as necessary. Be patient. This is my first Giveaway and I'm still running a rescue, raising a family, and am now providing emergency substituting. I'll do my best.

2 Fabulous Giveaways Coming Right Up!

In order to promote my new Pampered Snakes Etsy shop and to promote my other rescue resources, I've got 2 exciting giveaways planned-- each for a $25 to both my Etsy shop.

Details to come!

A NEW Etsy Adventure

I've expanded my Etsy career by creating a new shop!

Pampered Snakes 

This is where I will sell snake hats, snake bedding, snake emergency warming blankies, snake sacks, etc. I'm just getting it started, but I will continually be adding things. 

CLICK HERE to go to the shop!

A New Etsy Addition-- Beardie Bags

The other day, I felt a strong need to create something new. So I started cutting and sewing and came up with an adorable purse/bag/phone holder that looks like a bearded dragon.

It got a lot of love on my Instagram & Facebook page so I decided to start making more.

Today I cut out enough felt for 12 purses. Kreature wasn't impressed. He just wanted to be left alone in the sunshine. 

I got all the parts laid out for all 12 purses. I took me about two hours to cut out all the felt.

Each purse (minus the strap) takes about 20 minutes to sew, and each one is unique. 

I like painting toe nails on the backside of the hands & feet when I'm done. 

I still need to figure out a strap that works and is long enough for each purse. Gotta head back to the fabric store.

The "First Series" of Beardie Bags will be for sale on Etsy soon, but there will only be 12 of them. I'm sending my pattern to my mom who will automate the parts so her embroidery machine will start sewing & cutting them. Her machine is amazing! Once she starts producing them, they will be less unique, but it will take less time to make them.

I also need to find large Googly eyes that can be sewn on. These ones are simply glued on.

Each bag is just big enough to hold a phone or some snacks or a small lizard. :)

I plan to post the listing for the first 12 on Monday morning when I start filling my Etsy orders from the weekend. I'll make the remaining 9 as they are ordered and then list the second series when I have at least a dozen to sell. I'm sure these will end up be copied by others-- you'd be surprised how many "knock off" costumes of mine I find on Etsy! Crazy, huh? It's flattering and frustrating that people are copying my patterns and selling them for themselves (insert eye roll).

Stay tuned on Monday. I'll post a link to the listing once it's up & going.

My Chaotic Craft Room

My craft room is where my Etsy shop magic happens. Mostly. It also happens at my desk in the kitchen with my laptop, printer, and postage machine.

But the front room, turned craft room, called Etsy room is where I "work."

And it's pretty much a disaster currently. And by "Currently" I mean, this year.

You walk in my front door and find 4 tanks. To the right is my craft room/Etsy shop/library/whatever. You have to walk buy 3 large beardies, a 6 pound snake, and a 20 pound lizard to get into my living room and the rest of the house. It's like a Courage Test. Or it's like that one weird part on the movie "The Neverending Story" where the main guy had to walk past the big angel statue thingies that shot lasers from their eyes. If you're not brave, you can't come in. Ha!

This is the view from just inside the front door. Chaos? Yes. ;) But I did finally put away all the extra Christmas supplies!

I have lots and lots and lots of supplies & stuff. Lots. And I actually know where most of it is! ... sorta.... Give me a few minutes and I can find it. 

I have a tegu in my craft room. Kreature's box is about to be upgraded and I haven't found the time to clean this one and upgrade it to the bigger one. This one spills dirt and bark all over the floor and the top of it becomes a resting spot for homeless items in my house. 

I'm still retraining Kreature on how to poop on the tile, or in his box, or on the pee pads (which is what he did when I first had him). He's not learning very quickly and that's why I have a couple poop stains on my carpet. Thank goodness we have a carpet cleaner in the garage! 

I have a plan for cleaning this room but it's similar to that great kids' book "If you give a Mouse a Cookie." I need to switch the tegu cage, but then I'd have to move the empty blue tongue skink cage, which will require me to make room in the garage which will require.... And so it goes. 

My life is sort of an organized chaos. I can find and get most everything I need to keep functioning. Sometimes things get really lost-- like the 3rd pair of feeding tongs I cannot find. And what on earth did I do with those syringes I got from the vet yesterday? I put them in a drawer, but I can't remember *which* drawer. 

When you live in a zoo, you gotta expect some amount of chaos and a healthy dose of poop. People ask me all the time what it's like running a rescue. This is my frequent response: "It's about Poop, lots and lots of poop." :) 

Thanks to all you who read my blog and buy from my Etsy shop. You are helping me pay my credit card bill off after the most recent trip to the vet. In this business, trust me, there is ALWAYS a recent trip to the vet (like yesterday). 

Being an Etsy Shop Owner

Honestly, there are some days when the worst thing about owning an Etsy shop is dealing with the customers. But, honestly, most days the best thing about the Etsy shop is the customers! ;) For every nasty email I get that the post office lost/ripped a package, I get fun emails from customers thanking me for what I do.

Those happy emails make my day!

At the end of December, I actually got a handwritten note in the mail. An actual note! Written by the young owner of Peaches( a new Instagram celebrity beardie), the note told me how much fun they were having with the costumes they had bought from me. It was ADORABLE!

What's the point of being an Etsy shop owner if you can't do Super Fun Surprise things sometimes?

The other day, I wrote back to Peaches and her owner and thanked them for thanking me. I also confided that I had it on good authority ;) that Instagram celebrity beardies are wearing new Spring fashions and I just had to help with that. I put together a fun package for them, sending three outfits that I knew they didn't have.

I used my favorite scented markers and colored the package front and back so it would be extra fun to get in the mail. I even wrote "SURPRISE" on the front of the envelope. I had SO much fun putting it together and addressing it specifically to "Peaches, of Instagram Fame" and her owner (leaving her name off on purpose).

Yeah, I sometimes get nasty emails from people how I ruined X,Y, & Z for them because I'm an Etsy shop owner and not a magician, but emails & letters from sweet people like Peaches' owner makes it all better.

Just added! Valentine's Day Blankies!

I love Valentine's Day decorations! I love the pink & red & white & love & roses & bears and ALL of it! I love that it's my Mom's birthday (shh! don't tell her I told! ;) )

What could be better for your beardie than a Valentine's blankie??

Nothing!


So here's a new item just listed HERE:

Fewer Posts

My Etsy shop is going crazy!!!!!! It's keeping me super busy.  I'm getting 20 to 30 orders a day. 

It's great because I've been able to pay off my rescue credit card and help a few others with their rescues. It just means my blog posts slow down. 

Just wanted to let you know. My house is still a zoo and I still have a ton of crazy moments everyday. I'll catch up later. 

Until then, enjoy this picture of my dog wearing a sweater vest that looks like a dress. ;) 

Emotional Support Vest on Etsy

I've had several requests to make "Emotional Support"vests for bearded dragons through my Etsy shop, and I finally decided to just offer them as a standard item. CLICK HERE. 

These are a very simple felt design so they are lightweight and inexpensive to make.

NOTE- a vest alone will NOT legally allow you to have a beardie (or any other animal) as an Emotional Support animal. It MUST be accompanied by a letter from a licensed doctor or psychologist stating you need one. There is a lot of grey area regarding Emotional Support animals right now as people are attaching themselves to more animals than just dogs. Read your local laws and consult with a doctor before you do anything please.

Two Super Soft New Etsy Items

A Mermaid Tail Snuggle Sack-- CLICK HERE

These will come in three sizes and three solid colors.

And a super soft minky fabric hammock with adjustable suction cups. These are one size but in three prints. CLICK HERE!

I loved shopping for this fabric! So soft! It made me want to take a nap! 

These will be up in my Etsy shop later today and then I'll post a link. 

An Upcoming Costume

When I ask my mom (who works with me  and has the embroidery machine) if we can do a pirate costume..... 

SO excited about this one!! Hope to list it soon and in time for Halloween. 

For the Sports Fan at your House...

We get SO many requests for team jerseys in our Etsy shop that we finally just made it a standard listing!

My mom makes these, and, I must say, she does a FANTASTIC job! Once she even made a little matching baseball cap to go with the jersey for a classroom pet whose teacher LOVED the Cardinals. It was awesome.

CLICK HERE TO ORDER!!!

Personalized Crowns

We all know who rules our lives! ;) Now our beardies can have their very own crown to show off their royalty!

Three styles-- pink Princess, white Princess, and yellow Prince/unisex.

CLICK HERE FOR LISTING! 

Memorial Ornaments

I've been wanting to create a way we can remember our beloved beardies and pets that have died and crossed the "Rainbow Bridge." I'm very happy to offer these beautiful ornaments for sale in my Etsy shop. (CLICK HERE FOR LISTING)

In either a snowflake or a pair of Angel wings, your beloved pet's name is professionally embroidered in shiny gold thread. These can be used on a Christmas tree or as a wall hanging.

Each ornament has a nice, reversed backing: 

You can create a whole wall grouping if you wish.

I have tried to keep the cost on these as low as possible while still being able to buy a durable fabric and nice looking thread for the machine. Each one is $8 plus only $1.50 shipping. You can send one as a gift to a loved one who has just lost their pet or buy some for your display.

Please let me know if you have any questions!

 (CLICK HERE FOR LISTING)

Adding in More Personalized Items on Etsy

The personalized blankies have sold SO well in the past year that I'm expanding the selection in my shop to include a bath towel and a Christmas blankie. I'll keep adding more things on too.

The towel set is HERE. 

Comes with a free rubber duck! 

The Christmas set is HERE.

Blankie & ornament

Coming soon is a set of white glitter wings with a name embroidered in the middle as a memorial for beardies who have passed away. Nice enough to be hung on the wall or as a Christmas ornament.

New Etsy Items

Dragon Bracelet Fundraiser-- 

Sunflower Bed- 

Link to my Etsy shop HERE

A Teaser.....

A vacation in LA means a buying trip to the craft district downtown. 

I scored!!!! 

Here's a little teaser pic of an upcoming costume-- 

Plus I'm going to start selling the dragon bracelet that I'm wearing. And I have a clown and a unicorn and a treasure box and...... 

Stay tuned on Etsy for new costumes. 

May the 4th be with You!

Click HERE to go to Facebook so you can share the pics!