Friday, October 17, 2008

Friday Feature No. 30! -- Featuring Smile Moon



WOW! This is our 30th Friday Feature! That's pretty exciting! Thanks for all the wonderful comments and giveaways to all who have participated. We're not done...we're going to keep going as long as there are people who are willing to give something away, and people who are willing to enter to win those giveaways.

Congratulations to Crystal, who won her choice of block print from Little Sparrow's Nest. Thank you to Michaela Dawn for such a great giveaway!

Today, we are featuring something that is near and dear to me. I know I've gushed about this before, but I just LOVE woodworking! I took shop class as a 7th grader, and actually made a cutting board (woo-woo!), a set of salt and pepper shakers, and something that resembled a shelf, but never got hung up. I was pretty good at it, and even made a cute bear toothbrush holder when I was an adult. If I could, I would probably have a little woodshop, where hubby and I could work at it together, but I don't think our apartment managers would let us set up shop.


Anyway, today we are featuring Jeffrey, from Smile Moon on Etsy. Jeffrey is a guy with a great sense of humor, who doesn't mind last minute communications from people like me! He has been woodworking for....well, let me get on with the interview, and you'll find out more about Jeffrey...
TDB: When did you first get into woodworking, and who taught you?
Jeffrey: I first got interested in woodworking about 20 years ago, just before my oldest daughter was born. My record collection (remember LP records?) had outgrown the plywood boxes I'd slapped together when I was a kid, and I thought it'd be nice to build my own stereo cabinet. Of course, before tackling a piece like that, I decided it'd be wise to make a few "practice projects" to learn my way through. Over the next several years, I ventured to make a blanket chest, a cradle, several different artist's easels, kitchen & bathroom cabinets, bookcases, and plenty of smaller crafty things. To this day, however, I still have not made my stereo cabinet.

Most of what I've learned has been through experience (read: mistakes), but I've picked up a fair bit from reading books, watching Norm Abrams on TV, and sometimes taking the advice of a host of more experienced woodworkers along the way. I wish I'd taken high school woodshop classes when I'd had the chance. At least I've still got all 10 fingers!


TDB: I'm curious...how many children DO you have? (If you read Jeffrey's Profile in his Etsy shop, you'll understand why I asked this question.) Do you plan on teaching them woodworking?
Jeffrey: I've got six kids, ranging in age from 5 to 18. [This past summer saw us attending orientations for college and kindergarten in the same week.] They've each got their own pair of safety glasses for when I'm running tools, and they all know they're welcome to join me anytime I'm in the workshop. Some of them show more interest than others, but I rarely turn any of them away if they want to build, say, an airplane from scraps of wood and a few nails (there's a small fleet of planes in there already). I want to make them feel welcome without the pressure of forcing them to learn if they're not up for it.




TDB: What is your best selling item?
Jeffrey: At this point, it's a toss-up between the balancing wine bottle holders and the toy swords. I've only been selling on Etsy for a little more than 6 months now, but I'm definitely noticing that some items have a 'season'.

TDB: If you could teach ANYthing, what would you teach?
Jeffrey: Anything? Probably, I'd like to teach geometry and trigonometry. I'm such a math geek, but I couldn't do my woodworking without at least a basic understanding of it, and so much of what we depend on (computers, transportation) relies very heavily on math-related studies.


TDB: What is the best piece of advice you ever received (any subject)?
Jeffrey: I believe it was my father who told me that everybody's got something to teach you.

TDB: What are three of your life dreams, and have you accomplished any of them?
Jeffrey: This is tricky, because for the most part, I'm a go-with-the-flow kind of person. That said, I always wanted to fly an airship. More realistically though, I've always wanted to marry someone I love and who loves me back, and I'm glad to say I've been able to accomplish that. Beyond that, every day our kids stay healthy and out of trouble is another good one for me!


TDB: Please share three random facts about yourself.
Jeffrey: I dance like a spastic with his arms caught in the ceiling fan. I eat ice cream combinations that make my poor wife ill to think about. I have a unibrow - they're all the rage.

************************************************************

Alright, what little boy (or big boy for that matter!!!) wouldn't LOVE a pair of wooden swords??? Need some great Christmas gifts for some adventurous little boys? What better thing to stimulate a wonderful imagination in this world obsessed with Wii? So here's your chance to win this pair of swords AND one of Jeffrey's wooden puzzles.

To Enter:

Please visit Smile Moon and let us know what your favorite item is, OR let us know your favorite childhood toy that did NOT require batteries, but made for HOURS of fun.

For an extra entry, you can become a "Follower" of The Downtown Boutique blog. Just click on the right where it says "Follow This Blog". Please leave a separate comment to let us know you are now following our blog.

Deadline to enter is Thursday, October 23rd at Midnight PST. Giveaway is open worldwide. Please make sure you leave a VALID email address. If there is no visible email address, you will not be entered into the giveaway.

Have a great weekend, and if you get a chance, go rake up a pile of leaves and jump in it, or visit a pumpkin patch, or go pick some apples! Enjoy the Fall weather, no matter what you do. If you're in the southern hemisphere, have a gorgeous Spring day!

Angie

121 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love the 3d wooden puzzle cube. That brings back fond childhood memories of solving something like this. I love it!
doot65{at}comcast[dot]net
Elizabeth

Jill said...

I used to play with Little People. Not the kind they have out today that have batteries and make all sorts of sounds, but the old kind. And you know what, my kids still play with them and love the.

jilllear at hotmail dot com

pamelarm said...

I played with My Little Ponies. Same as above, no batteries or anything, but you used your imagination. Thanks for the giveaway!

AmandaK said...

When I was little, my sister and I would play Barbies until the sun went down and it was time for bed. That was our escape!!

orchestratenoise0726[at]yahoo[dot]com

Stephanie said...

I used to love boggle -- still do. lol
tvollowitz at aol dot com

Unknown said...

I like the 3d puzzle.

chromiumman said...

my fave toy that didn't need batteries was my yo-yo

mverno said...

i had a dump truck and so did my brother

Anonymous said...

I loved my stuffed animals and hots wheels. I like the wooden swords for the boys. Thank you.

Annie1 said...

I adored my slinky! My slinky and I played for hours and hours together!

Thanks

nancyrobster@gmail.com

MOMFOREVERANDEVER said...

dominos and lincoln logs mrs.mommyyatgmail.com

Anonymous said...

fantastic interview! Smilemoon is a great shop, I buy gifts for my family there and have a wish list from his shop ;)

great artist selection Angie!

ky2here said...

Jacks. I imagine they're considered child abuse now since they can be swallowed. When did children get so unintelligent? We knew better than to swallow them.

Unknown said...

I looove the swords and the puzzles, especially the 3d ones..I always loved our wood classroom with desk and board that my mom and dad made us. thanks for the contest.

Unknown said...

I am following you :)

409cope said...

I loved etch-a-sketch as a kid.

Anonymous said...

Those balancing wine bottle holders are pretty cool!

Anonymous said...

Hi Smile great interview.

Mia J. said...

I used to love to play jacks when I was a kid.

Anonymous said...

I like the wooden puzzle cube.

galeogirl(at)comcast(dot)net

Paige said...

When I was little I loved to play with my kitchen set. Play Kitchens at that time didn't have any electrical components.

JACLYN said...

I loved puzzles and blocks while growing up. Especially taking the blocks outside and building a little town on my driveway. :)
firstrosegrrl@yahoo.com

Anonymous said...

The wooden puzzle cube is my favorite

Anonymous said...

My sons would enjoy playing with the swords. My favorite item is the Cedar Slab One-Piece Photo Frame for 4 x 6 Picture.
-Terra
partymix25(at)hotmail(dot)com

Twincere said...

3-D Wooden Puzzle Cube is my fav.

Zoly said...

Two tin cans and a long string made a fine phone. But that must really date me.

Abby said...

My favorite toy growing up was my Cabbage Patch kid that I still have shhhhh!

ajcmeyer AT go DOT com

danosor said...

I loved dolls from Barbie to Cabbage Patch kids.

JulieMoe said...

My favorite toy was a book (nerdy, wasn't it?

Anonymous said...

My favorite toys was my tea set for serving my dolls, and my holster and guns that I wore while serving tea.

Anonymous said...

The 3d wood puzzle is pretty cool. Thanks for the chance, ecfreitas579@hotmail.com

Beth said...

I just love the wood swords..my sons and husbend love to sword fight..me and my daughter HAVE to leave the room it gets dangerous. I'm with ya on the video game take over in this world. My favorite toy was Barbie.

kdkdkd said...

those swords are wonderful. I also like the 3-D Wooden Puzzle Star. I have also always been fascinated by the Balancing Wooden Wine Bottle Holders

Anonymous said...

So clever: I like the Balancing Wooden Wine Bottle Holder (750 ml).

cathirushing said...

pick up sticks

silverbele said...

I used to spend hours playing games with a ball

Prek Noey said...

this sounds great, thanks! I loved to play with paper dolls and barbies.

windycindy said...

I adore the oak mailbox topper with 6 letters. It would look great on our mailbox. Please enter me in your drawing. Many thanks, Cindi
jchoppes[at]hotmail[dot]com

destee said...

Almost everything I played with had no batteries...and I believe that taught me to be creative. We didn't have money for a lot growing up so we'd play for hours with things like sleds, dolls, bikes even trucks. My favorite toy without batteries was my doll, Galinda.

taxchyk said...

My brother's Legos. Fun for all ages, we'd get our folks in on the action...

souldolphindream said...

I loved to play pick up sticks,flower power where I would pick some of grandma's flowers and each one would have a different special power. I loved playing in the sand pit with my brother and cousins that grandpa made for us. It had over 2 tons of sand.
I try to teach my children this also. It does not need to have batteries to be fun

Anonymous said...

i like the balancing wine bottle holders.

as a kid my favorite non battery toy was a little fish game that i won in cracker. it curled up and told people their fortunes, i took it everywhere !

Mandy said...

I loved playing with my mom's pots, a green bucket, and any tools my dad had laying around. My favorite though was my Pound Puppy! Ahh, the good ol' days!

judybrittle said...

I really like the Initials in wood. This would be a great gift for my
son-in-laws desk. Thank you!
judybrittle at aol dot com

Anonymous said...

Christina - xristya@rock.com - When I was little I fancied a dollhouse from the largest department store in town, but my father made me a large wooden dollhouse that he spent many weeks making, telling me that someday I would come to cherish it more than I would a commercial one. I didn't think that he was right at the time, but he certainly WAS, and now I'll never forget (especially since he's died) the loving care he put into making me the large wooden dollhouse that I played with for years and years of my childhood.

DONM703 said...

As a child, we always had the most fun when someone in the nieghborhood got a new appliance so we could have the box. We could use the box for days as a house, fort or for rolling over the hill. Great for imaginations, kids today miss that with everything ready made or electronic.

Christina said...

I enjoyed my Slinky when I was little.

valerie2350 said...

the frames are beautiful - think I like the red oak the best

Hetal said...

3-D Wooden Puzzle Cube would be my choice.
herry123_us@live.com

Bunny B said...

I love playing with Legos! They provided so many fun hours!

bunnybx at gmail . com

littlelatina said...

I like the personalized name design

Melissa B. said...

I had a handmade baby doll. My mom would take me to thrift stores to by used baby clothes for it.

Anonymous said...

The wooden swords are toys that my son would never put down and most probably sleep with. He is a LEGO player and spends hours in play dress pretending to be a warrior/knight/hero/wizard....no batteries required!

Marie said...

I loved my little people and my model horses as a kid :-)

justicecw said...

My son would go crazy for a wooden sword so that is my favorite! I really liked pick up sticks when I was young and we still play a version of it today. thanks, justicecw@hotmail.com

llinda29 said...

I played kick the can

Valerie Taylor Mabrey said...

my favorite toy was a bunch of mind games like two nails hooked together that you tried to unhook and four colored blocks you tried to get all diffrent colors on each side.

vboackle said...

i liked monopoly and sorry.

Unknown said...

I like the Cedar Slab One-Piece Photo Frame for 4 x 6 Picture.

I used to spend hours playing with these block that my Aunt and Uncle made. They decorating them with drawings of places that were around town and of people I knew. I still have them, too.

Colengal said...

The 3-D wooden puzzles.

I loved building card houses. I could spend hours on the elabrite construction. Unfourtunately, my "building site" was also the dinner table

JLYNNF76 said...

When my brother and I were kids we would take all the pillows and some sheets in the house and make forts. We would have fun for hours.

petteytiffany@yahoo.com said...

the 3d wooden puzzle cube
petteytiffany@yahoo.com

Sheila said...

My favorite childhood toy was Lincoln logs. My brothers and I would play with them for hours and hours making houses, castles, forts and everything under the sun !
stymi85515(at)aol(dot)com

tatertot374 said...

Thank you for having this! I would love to win this for my 3 little ones. I also like the Cedar Slab One-Piece Photo Frame for 4 x 6 Picture. We like to make forts with our kids as it is something i loved to do as a child. Thank you!
tatertot374@sbcglobal.net

kygirl said...

Cedar Slab One-Piece Photo Frame for 4 x 6 Picture

bison61 said...

we played with Legos and lincoln logs

tiramisu392 (at) yahoo.com

Smooshy said...

the bigwheel!

Kristyn Martin said...

My favorite toy was the Etch-a-sketch!

mogrill said...

Loved Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake dolls!

Jinxy and Me said...

I loved playing with Tinker Toys as a kid.

Estelle said...

Legos and my Mr. Potato Head were my favorite childhood toys. My brothers and I had contests to see who could make the most outrageous Lego buildings. It was fun.

Storm, The Psychotic Housewife said...

I really like the personalized name display for the mailbox! That's a neat idea.

And my favorite non battery toy was my Spiderman bike - I spent hours on it.

stormraven at gmail dot com

Anonymous said...

I loved my slinky.
erma.hurtt@sbcglobal.net

kaylee8 said...

I loved Rubric's Cube!

aumissal said...

loved to play jax

aumissal@gmail.com

Anonymous said...

When I was little I had a drum with a strap and I would march around like a marching band and i loved it

pitaharmon said...

Wish I drank, because that wine bottle holder thing is fantastic. Maybe I'll start to! But I love the swords. My hubby was just widdling wood today, he says he is going to carve a wooden chain link. (yeah, ok). I will show him this fantastic stuff.
harmonden[at]wowway.com

LINDALSHOT said...

Lincoln logs.

Michelle said...

We didn't have much money when I was a little girl so my dad made a lot of our toys. One of my favorites was stilts made out of coffee cans with strings attached that we could hold onto.

Casey Becher said...

My favorite toy was my little shopping cart.

jennem said...

I loved this toy called Bristle Blocks. Wish they still made those!
Jennifer, jennem22 at yahoo dot com

Donna C. said...

I loved Lincoln Logs. Hours of fun.

Buki Family said...

we called it a wheelbarrow but it was a large wooden spool... hours of fun trying to balance ourselves

Jodi said...

My bike and my barbies, I could spend hours playing with both of those items.

purehrt555(at)yahoo(dot)com

djgroz said...

I loved to dress paper dolls

momaloney said...

My favorite toy, not requiring batteries, were Playmobile items. I'm actually quite jealous of the items they have today. So many more worlds to visit.

Anonymous said...

I love the swords! I know a very deserving kid (and myself!) who would put these to good use. When I was small, batteries and battery-operated toys were few and far between, and anything remotely artistic, like Play Doh or crayons and a coloring book, kept me entertained after school. Thanks!

c81280 at hotmail dot com

Helen said...

I think the Cedar Slab One-Piece Photo Frame for 4 x 6 Picture is beautiful!

yellowlabs said...

Yo-yo was a great toy I really liked.

Anonymous said...

I would play Barbies. Thanks!!!

Stampnsark@aol.com

Middy98 said...

My family didn't have a lot of money so we always ended up with toys that weren't fancy enough to have batteries. I loved my jumprope the most. Simpler times, simpler times, how I long for simpler times.

Anonymous said...

It was like a magnetic yoyo, with a metal frame that you would tip one way (and the wheel would accelerate down the outside of the frame) and back the other way (and the wheel would accelerate down the inside of the frame (or vice versa))... You could get it going sooo fast it would whine, and you could do it in your sleep, or while reading, etc... on gmail, use flaredz0ne (with a zero following the z)

Anonymous said...

We had these toys made out of felt, with clothes, furniture, plants, animals, doll-people, etc -- it was like putting on a play on a stage, with the stage being another big sheet of felt stretched on a frame, that all the story stuff would stick to. We spent a lot of time with that stuff, putting on shows and making up stories...

get back to me with d3addr0p (a zero between the r and p), please!

Whippeteer said...

Wooden building blocks! A million years later my youngest nephews are still playing with them. And I think their father, my little brother still has dents in his skull from them when we were kids. No, I never hit him with any of them, but we used to see how tall we could build a tower before it collapsed...

Anonymous said...

I like the 3-D wooden puzzle cube.

Kari said...

I always loved legos, I had "loc blocks" I guess they were called. Similar to legos, different name. Anyway, this is a great giveaway that my 5 yr old would LOVE

::::Lula Boutique:::: said...

What a great shop and giveaway!!

I like the 3-D Wooden Puzzle Star!! Wooden puzzles are so much fun. My Dad LOVES them too. --Also, one of my favorite toys that I played for HOURS with were Lincoln Logs!! So much fun building villages that took up our entire dining room. :)

kathy55439 said...

Paper dolls were a big hit around our house.... I found a box of paper dolls like the ones my sister and I played with at a resale shop the other day. I bought them and sent them to my sister so loved them

ssmina said...

I loved playing with my Barbies

Anonymous said...

I had a really neat dollhouse and dolls and made up stories for hours.
angela k tisaynababae@yahoo.com

arvard said...

I like the 3-D puzzle.

Unknown said...

barbies, etch a sketch, jacks were faves !! thanks for the giveaway

kerri69 said...

I loved my colors i loved to color and paint those were my fav things to do

Kt said...

oooh i love the 3-d wooden puzzles...we love figuring them out!

i loved to draw as a kid...on everything....hahah

thanks!
kmsst19@ gmail.com

checkers said...

Had a few but I'll say a Slinky. Thank you for the chance. skyskyaa11(at)gmail.com

Tammy said...

My daughter would love to find 3-D Wooden Puzzle Star in her stocking - she loves stuff like that!

Sahm Lee said...

I love the wooden swords! Too cool! Thanks for the contest!
airalynn(@)gmail . com

Audrey B said...

Well I have christmas on the brain so I immediately look at toys and puzzles, the swords are so great, so nice to not see all the plastic toys.

Anonymous said...

The wooden puzzles and swords are so classic and would look great painted.ashlyn@chuparkoff.com

Tempest52 said...

I would love to get each of my grandchildren their name in wood to hang over the door of their room. I'm sure they would treasure such a gift always.

dlcwin[at]gmail[dot]com

Anonymous said...

I love the 3d wooden puzzle cube.

Becca Ann said...

I like the Red Oak Slab photo frame

Unknown said...

My favorite childhood toy was my cap gun and holster set. No batteries but it required a lot of rolls of caps. garrettsambo@aol.com

klp1965 said...

i love the Cedar Slab One-Piece Photo Frame for 4 x 6 Picture

Bakersdozen said...

My sister and I used to play with our tea set in our backyard playhouse. vidomich(at)yahoo(dot)com

cman said...

I love the Personalized Name Display Mailbox Topper - 5 Letters :)

Donna said...

I loved my stuffed bear.
donna444444@yahoo.com

Samantha P said...

i loved playing with Barbies i used to make up the weirdest stories with them! I also loved playing pogs!

masonsgranny59 said...

loved etch-a-sketch as a kid.

Charlene Kuser said...

I love the Hardwood Business Card and Pen Holder for Desktop.It would
look great on my desk.Please enter
me and thanks

CharlieGurl57@aol.com

Anonymous said...

I like the 3-D Wooden Puzzle Cube the best. Thanks for the contest.
Kathy
kathleenyohanna@hotmail.com