Heartful Handmade Blog

sweet vintage buttons you can eat

These lovely vintage buttons are not made of plastic . . . or glass . . .or bakelite.  They're not made of any such tasteless materials.  They're made of sugar.  That's right, sugar.  They're completely edible (but probably not much good for keeping your clothes fastened).  Andie's Specialty Sweets in Los Angeles makes them, along with beautiful roses, butterflies, fall leaves, toadstools and mushrooms.  They're all handmade to order, and you can specify color and sizes on some orders. These are the kind of specialty items that transform a table setting -- and an event -- into something really special.  But you need to plan ahead because each order is made fresh and they take a bit of time to prepare.  Click on over to Andie's Specialty Sweets to check out all the lovely edibles. These sweet buttons are 50 for $37.50, 100 for $75, and there's a sample order of 15 for $12.

***

Andie's Specialty Sweets is also in Handmade Lookup.

5% percent off summer sale at chocolate.com

Chocolate.com is doing its share to provide a bit of summertime decadence.  They're offering a a 5% off coupon, good through August, on whatever your little chocolate loving heart desires. I've picked a couple of yummies to get you started:

This box of six large dark chocolate brownies made my list because (1) I love brownies, (2) I love dark chocolate, and (3) the packaging is pretty.  They're made by Chokola'j, in Moriches, NJ, who say the brownies should be enjoyed within one week of receiving.  Now that shouldn't be too hard. 

I picked this tin of 21 bite sized Everyday Truffles Chocolate Chai Spice because (1) I love truffles, (2) they're bite sized, (3) they're fair trade, (4) they're organic, (5) they sound like something you'd find in a health food store, and (6) this picture is really pretty.  They're from Coco-Zen, in Pacifica, California.

But you can browse the Chocolate.com website and make your own picks.

Use coupon code SUMMER5 to get the savings.

This sale has ended.  Check out the current sales and specials.

sweet money for dad

Chocolate.com is doing a Father's Day promotion and offering 10% off your entire order.  I like this Financial Crunch Tin of 11 milk chocolate coins because it reminds me of the chocolate money my Mom would sometimes bring home when I was a kid.  We lived in L.A. and I think she got them from the downtown May Co. They were silver dollar sized, wrapped in coin embossed gold foil, and packaged in cool little money bags.  I haven't seen them in years and might find them too sweet for my tastes today, but back then I loved 'em to pieces.

Anyway, use Coupon Code GIFT4DAD to get the savings.

Browse Chocolate.com now.

This sale has ended.  Check out the current sales and specials.

nunu chocolates: artisan success story

I grabbed this great video from FoodCurated.  It gives the back story on Brooklyn-based artisan chocolate company Nunu Chocolates.  The company was founded and nurtured to success by a self-taught chocolatier and her husband, providing yet another example of how people doing what they love (and doing it well) are fueling the growing handmade revolution.

NuNu Chocolates is also in Handmade Lookup.