New Year, New Stuff!

Rex and I have some predictions for the New Year. Some things that I feel that everyone should see as new "it" things of 2010. We're here to share these with you!

The first is Mercury Glass. This term is common for "silvered" glass. It's a technique of adding a liquid silvering solution between two blown walls of glass that creates an antiqued silver glass item. Rex and I have had so much fun finding mercury glass items across the internet. It is a nice addition to any decor, especially if one's decor has blues and greens in it. The items that I have come across are votive holders, candlesticks, urns and even a set of mushrooms! Here are some of these items below. Click the pictures to be taken to that items sale site.

Even Martha Stewart finds Mercury Glass cool. So not only does Rex approve but Martha does too! See the article here.

Now on to the second must have item for 2010. Hot air balloon accessories, what is that you say? Well, it could be wall art, decor or jewelry. I'm serious, jewelry! It gives you a vintage look and whimsical appeal. Here are some items that I have found:

How do you find more items like these? I'm a big proponent of Google, Yahoo and Amazon. Really most of your favorite online stores have keyword searches built into the sites, so search away! Don't forget to get your items now that way people will say, "How did you get ahead of the trend." Then you can say, "I thank Rex for that!"

I mentioned, Etsy.

Some of you may wonder what this Etsy thing is. Etsy is a site that started in 2005. It was started by the same developers of GetCrafty.com which is a forum for crafters. Anyway, as these crafters shared pictures of their crafts they lamented how hard it was to sell them on ebay. Why couldn't there be an easier site to use? Well the developers heard their complaints and started Etsy. According to the FAQ on the website the term Etsy rhymes with the girls name Betsy and there is no specific meaning to the word.

Etsy is not just for crafts. It's for anything Handmade or Vintage. There a rating system for each seller and buyer, just like Ebay. You can pay with Paypal, which is very easy and safe for online shopping. Do you want to search items by color, Etsy let you do this with Shop by Color. Click on this and you will follow color dots with your cursor. They even have Pounce which allows you to search for items by sites with recent sells and sites who haven't had their 1st sell, yet. Etsy also puts together gift guides that help you search by categories.

Ultimately I'm amazed at what people can make: leather purses, crystal jewelry, vintage dresses from the 60's. The list goes on and on. Rex and I could spend hours searching this site. HOURS!! With new items uploaded daily, Etsy.com makes the perfect site for Christmas shopping. Want to know some of my favorite items? See my favorites here!

One thing that I'm not to sure of about the site is how to sell items. I'm sure that it's easy to figure out.

The Owl is the new Sparrow!

Have you noticed the new (or relatively new) trend in jewelry lately? Rex and I have! The sparrow used to be the "it" bird for your accessorizing needs. Within the past 6 months to a year, the sparrow has given away to the more intellectual Owl!

The owl was considered a protector from evil spirits in some Native American cultures. Greek culture associated the owl with Athena, who was the goddess of foresight and wisdom.

Why do I give you some abridged background on the owl? I'm thinking that maybe the new owl jewelry can be seen as a protective talisman, wisdom bringer. Or it can just be a really great looking necklace!!

Check out these great owl products that I've found. Who knows, maybe a special person in your life will want one for a certain holiday season that's approaching?

Here's a couple of Owl products from Etsy.com.

Here's another couple of

cool items from Urbanoutfitters.com.

Here's a couple of items from Modcloth.com. Lovely!

Click on all the pics above to go to the actual item. You can search yourself on your favorite shopping site by using the sites search feature. Also, google it, Rex approves!!