Feature Friday - Sarah Regan Snavely of Sarah Regan Snavely Studios

For this Feature Friday, it's hard to know where to begin!  It's the main reason Sarah Regan Snavely of the Studio by the same name was not the very first Feature Friday post- her work is so immensly amazing that it can be intimidating to find the words to describe her work!

I first found Sarah's work by searching for greyhound artwork on the interwebs shortly after getting Ana in October of '06.  At the time, there really wasn't much available (and there still isn't a great deal now) in the way of Sighthound work.  Once I found her site, I was entranced by not only Sarah's portfolio of work, but also by her study of the greyhound!  What sets her apart from other artists who feature greyhounds in their work is that Sarah is the proud owner of a pack of greyhounds, herself, so she has had ample opportunity to study their lithe, elegant, muscular bodies and use them as models for her work.  She lives in the Southwestern corner of North Dakota and has a studio there where she works mostly in clay making sculptures and tiles, and occasionally working in sterling silver for jewelry.

Here are a variety of small sculptures made by Sarah and featured on her homepage- you can see the amazing detail and how she captures every expression and pose of the greyhound so flawlessly!

She creates memory boxes like this one pictured below as well...having not yet experienced the pain of losing one of my greys, I hope it is a very long time before I have to think about purchasing one for my own, but they are still beautiful works of art I can enjoy now!

And here are some of the types of tiles that she creates- so beautiful!  She has been able to capture expression and motion even in the tiles!

Sarah is also a fellow Etsy seller- you can find her shop here, but she's currently away for an event.  You can, however, click a button on her shop to be emailed when she returns.  Her items move fast, so if you are looking for a particular item, you may need to stalk her shop for a while (or convo to see if she'll do a custom piece).

You can stay in the know by joining her Facebook page- she posts lots of photos of pieces she's currently working on, and you can also shop her Etsy page from there.  Enjoy!

Second Time's the Charm

We've been featured on another Treasury!  Just as exciting as the first time, and so happy that they happened within days of each other.  I've been walking around with a smile plastered on my face the last couple of days!  The second Treasury we've been featured on is called Animal Magnetism and was created by BlueMoonBlossom.  The collection showcases the "must-haves for all dapper dogs and cats", and one of our newly-listed Sighthound Snoods in a rich fig/heather purple with grey stripes was one of the featured items!

We just released our Snood collection a couple of days ago and can't believe one has already been picked up for a Treasury.  Here is a snapshot of it- our snood is on the second row, first item on the left!

Thanks so much to BlueMoonBlossom for including us in her "posh pups" Treasury!  It's been a greyt week!

Snood Debut at Greyhound Threads!

We are so excited to announce that we have added yet another section to the shop!  Today we debuted our sighthound snoods- the perfect way to keep your needlenose's delicate ears warm in the cooler (or down-right cold!) months that are fast approaching.  Our snoods are versatile, too!  They can be worn as neckwarmers for those greyhounds that prefer their ears to fly free!  So far, we've released two of the snoods that we'll have available.

The first is this charming snood in a rich fig/heather purple, accented by two grey stripes:

The second is this chunky red and black striped number that is as visually striking as it is warm!

Each snood is approximately 12 inches in length, 15 inches diameter at the base of the neck and tapers to 14 inches around the ears.  We intentionally designed the snoods so they remained snug even while cold-weather romping was taking place!  We have a few more color combinations up our sleeves that we are very excited to release soon, so stay tuned!

Over the Moo-n for Mini-Moos!

Perhaps this story is best begun at the very beginning- when Greyhound Threads was just a twinkle in my eye, and I was just a fashion-conscious greyhound adopter.  My husband and I adopted our first retired racer in October of 2006.  Ana sprinted into our lives at full speed- she is a very discerning girl who knows exactly what she likes, what she doesn't and when she wants it, and we were (and still are) eager to please.  We purchased a coat through our adoption group, Virginia Greyhound Adoption (VAGA), that was just lovely, but because it was made out of windbreaker material, we knew Ana really needed something thicker to keep her warm during those cold winter months that were soon to come.  I've always been a crafty person and have never shied away from the challenge of figuring out how something is made.  Using the coat we purchased as a basic template to get some of the measurements down, I created my own pattern for Ana's first greyhound coat!  I made a double-fleeced coat with blue & pink plaid on once side and a solid pink on the inside, and it kept her so warm through that winter!

Here is what that coat looked like on Ana- it was (and still is) a great romping around the yard coat:

  

Of course, I couldn't stop there for my fashionista greyhound, and I created many, many more coats for her (and her brother).  From play coats in double-fleece to more fashion coats in black and white toille and red accents, I just couldn't stop the creative juices from flowing.

Flash forward a few years and many answers to "where did you purchase that coat?!" later, and Greyhound Threads was born!  There were so many "grass roots" people who were interested in the coats I was making for my two greyhounds, that I felt that I should do something to make them available to everyone.  Enter Etsy, which is just an amazing hand-made marketplace, and everything I needed was right at my fingertips...except I still needed a way to respond to that same old question of "where did you purchase that coat?!".  Now, at least, I could point them in the direction of the Etsy shop, but I still felt that I had missed such an opportunity to hand them a card or something that would help them remember.  And, as the Etsy shop became more visible to Greyhound and other Sighthound adoption and advocacy groups, requests started pouring in for donations for their silent auctions and other events.  Always happy to help, but also wanting some way of communicating with everyone at the event, I needed to find a solution and quickly.

I debated for a while about exactly what I wanted that something to be- something I made? something pre-fab that I just needed to print?  Then, Moo had the answer- mini-moo business cards!  The shape is unique, I could customize the images and overall design on both the front and the back, and they, very importantly, were affordable (only $19.99 for 100)!  Here at Greyhound Threads, we like to save money wherever we can, because that means we can pass the savings on to you, our customers and readers!

For the 100 cards, you can even choose up to 100 different images!  I decided to go with three of my favorite photos of Blue and Ana- these make up the front of the cards and the back of the card has our shop name, Etsy shop address, and Blog information:

I also wanted a way to carry the cards with me so that they would always be handy- enter the colourful acrylic mini-moo holder- only $4.95!

And so, we really are just "over the moo-n" about our new mini-moo business cards- so much so, that we just had to share the details with you, and we can't wait to start handing them out!

A Surprise Addition to Featured Friday - Greyhound Threads' First Treasury Feature!

Exciting news to share!  Greyhound Threads has been featured on an Etsy treasury by a lovely lady over at Look On My Treasures!  The chosen item from our shop is the Boutique Greyhound Silhouette in Sunshine Yellow which is a perfect fit for the treasury theme "Walking on Sunshine".  Mixed in among other sunshine yellows, oranges, and umbers, it's a fantastic nod to the summer sun as we head toward Autumn.  Here is the treasury- the silhouette is tucked nicely into the middle of the top row!

To be honest, I'm having a hard time keeping from running around the house high-fiving myself!  Sure, it seems like such a simple thing, but to this craft-ster with a passion for greyhounds, it means so much more!  It's a little bud of hope, excitement, inspiration, encouragement, and recognition for the work that's been done in the shop so far, and it has my mind racing toward the new possibilities.  Who knew that such a simple little nod could turn into such a big inspiration?  So this post is a big shout-out to Look On My Treasures...thank you for so innocently encouraging a renewed flash of enthusiasm in this greyhound shop!

Featured Friday - Elle J. Wilson of Almost an Angel

Every Friday, I would like to show appreciation for my fellow artists and crafters by showcasing them here in a segment I'm calling "Feature Friday".  I hope these posts will not only raise awareness for these amazingly skillful artists, but also illustrate the vast variety of greyhound-inspired work available!  And now, with no further ado, I would like to announce our very first featured artist- Elle J. Wilson from Almost an Angel.

I was first exposed to the amazing work of Elle J. Wilson through GreytArt, which is a fantastic resource for finding greyhound-themed art featuring a variety of artists.  Elle began painting greyhounds in 2005, when she received her first commission, and was inspired and enchanted by their mystique.  She captures them in watercolor/ink pen, oil, or acrylic, and each one has a magical quality to it!  Elle has a fantastic talent for capturing the expressiveness of the greyhound face- soulful, timid, haughty, adoring...the list goes on!  If you purchase a print, it is hand-signed, titled and numbered by Elle, personally, and comes with a Signed Certificate of Authenticity.

I own a watercolor/pen ink print entitled "A Little Attentive" which has become a cherished addition to our art collection.  The print seems to be no longer available- I can't even find more than a thumbnail image of it, but Elle has an extensive variety of greyhound (and other breed/animals) work to choose from.  It also makes the print we have feel even more special knowing that it is a limited edition!

Here is a thumbnail of the print we purchased through GreytArt:

Another example of a Watercolor/Ink Pen print - "In the Doldrums" by Elle J. Wilson

An example of her Oil painting titled "The Simple Life" by Elle J. Wilson

 There are a few ways to purchase some of Elle's greyt work to call your own:

1. Through her Etsy shop - prints and cards of Elle's work are available
2. Through her website - you can purchase prints of her artwork, or you can commission your own custom piece!
3. Through GreytArt - a site that "strives to provide high quality art work that promotes Greyhounds as loving pets and great athletes."  They also support rescue and adoption efforts by contributing a portion of all proceeds to organizations that promote greyhound rescue and adoption efforts.

I have already scoped out my next purchase from the amazing selection available- it's going to be "A Little Tired"available on Elle's Etsy shop.

New Etsy Shop Preview!

Exciting news, everyone!  I was able to get a sneak-peak of the new Greyhound Threads shop format on Etsy to share with you!  The new format includes the option to view the shop in the standard one-item-per-row format, or you can toggle to the new four-items-per-row format.  Personally, I love the change and think it will make all shops easier to navigate.  The navigation bar was moved from the right side to the left side, and I think that will take some time to get used to, but all the same functionality is there.  From a shop owner's perspective, I would prefer an increased Announcement area (not necessarily as big as the old style, but more than three lines!).  What are your thoughts on the new shop?

In the Works!

Lots of new things are in the works here at Greyhound Threads!

Etsy Shop Updates
We are anxiously awaiting the new wide-format Etsy shop pages to be visible to all customers!  As of yesterday, the roll-out had started but only to a small number of customers at first.  Etsy is being very cautious as they want the change to be seamless for our customers!  We here at Greyhound Threads are very excited about this new page format- it's going to be greyt!

New Items in the Shop
We started releasing the new Boutique Greyhound Silhouettes this week!  So far, two new patterns are available, including one classic ivory and black silhouette.  We will continue to add new silhouettes over the next two weeks, and we have a very exciting launch to prepare you and your hound for the cooler weather that is fast approaching- stay tuned!

New Blog
Ever since we adopted our first greyhound, Ana, in October of 2006, we have tried to chronicle our greyhound experiences through our blog, Greyhound Fairytales.  We have loved every minute (even the challenging ones!) of it and have decided that there are so many topics that we feel fit a more crafting-oriented blog.  So, what better way to celebrate our Etsy shop than starting a greyhound-crafting focused blog!  We're very excited to announce (with this first post) that we have a lot in store for our readers and can't wait to share!

Check back with us soon!