Purplmyst

I'm very crafty & love making stuff. I will usually try to "make" just about anything & I often personalize store-bought items. My favorite part about Swap-Bot is that it helps me have all kinds of creative artsy fun with new inspiration from an awesome variety of personalities. Most swaps that I send out are personalized to the recipient even if it is not specifically a "profile based" swap. I do tend to try out new art mediums/crafts for the first time here, so please let me know if something you received from me isn't right & I'll try again.

I always strive to send my swaps out on time. If for any reason I'll be sending a day late I will message my partner to let them know. I always message my partner with tracking info for larger packages on the day it is sent. If you didn't get tracking from me & haven't received a (USA destination) swap by a week after the send deadline, please let me know!

Camping is a frequent weekend pastime; I have a pop-up tent trailer. I often take funky solar lighting, always eat well, enjoy long walks in the woods, and love to enjoy an adult beverage around the campfire.

Gardening is another hobby of mine. I love growing roses and generally puttering around my backyard garden on weekends. I totally dig crafts & stationary with a flower/garden theme.

I'm a hobby photographer. Mostly I take pictures of animals at zoos/sanctuaries or plants in my garden. But I'm always looking for opportunities to to expand my skills.

I'm all for recycling & re-use. When possible I try to purchase items with limited packaging & I try to always re-use shipping materials. I always try to wrap gifts with re-useable wrapping or use gift bags/boxes/containers.

I love animals; especially cats! I'm currently sharing my house with 9(!!) kitties. They're all rescues of one type or another, and one was even born in our backyard. Our oldest just turned 19 and the youngest just turned 5. They're all different personalities, and they get along for the most part. Somehow I seem to draw in the black ones; we have 3 that are all black and 3 that are tuxedos.

I also like big cats (lions, tigers, leopards, cheetahs) and often visit zoos & sanctuaries. Sometimes I also volunteer at my local SPCA

I sew a LOT! Lots clothes for myself & my husband. I also sew coats, costumes, bags, and sometimes funky accessories. No kids stuff though. I've even started putting my own "purple tiger" tag on my creations.

I really enjoy beading; mostly with seed beads. My favorite projects have been snowflakes, flowers, and bracelets. I've recently branched out into other forms of jewelry making including bangle charms, wire wrapping, and leather knotting.

I keep finding new things to make with FIMO clay! Pendants, beads, magnets, zipper pulls...

I have a Cricut machine & use it for just about everything but papercrafting! Usually I cut out iron-ons that I apply to the garments I make. I also have made some funky vinyl stickers, and quite a few stencils for my glass etching projects.

I go in spurts of making various crafts with paracord. I've done 100's of bracelets but also dabble in zipper pulls, necklaces, and random funky bits of knotted cord.

Crafty things that I've dabbled in but need more practice at: wood scorching, crochet, chainmaille, needle felting

The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan

A Song if Ice and Fire series by George R R Martin

The Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher

The Mayfair Witches series by Anne Rice

Little Fuzzy by H Beam Piper

If it glows in the dark, sparkles, is highly reflective, metallic, or lights up; I'll love it.

Favorite color is any shade of purple from plum to lavender, and my 2nd favorite is grey or silver. I also like blues, dark forest or emerald greens, aqua/teal/turquoise, and deep rich reds.

The more funky/weird/unique, the better and I love hand-made items.

*I adore little plushy/stuffy/crochet animals; either handmade or store bought. I LOVE beanie babies!

*Stickers - cats, safari animals, pawprints, flowers/roses, deco swirls/scrolls, butterflies, ladybugs, alphabet

*funky effect pens/markers/paints (please no scented ones)

*5x7 or larger solid colored (even white) card stock (any size), glitter/sparkly/metallic is good too

*Notepads/memo pads - totally plain/blank or any with flower or cat borders. Please no "to-do" or inspirational quotes.

*Necklace pendants (with or without chain/cord) or small jewelry charms

*Bracelets

*Jewelry findings - bits of chain, clasps, jump rings (silver, pewter, colored)

*metal clasps, clips, clamps (jewelry or keychain sized)

*zippers; any size, any color. Used is fine, as long as it still works!

*Patches/appliques

*FQ or larger pieces of heavy duty fabric: duck cloth, nylon, canvas, leather (real or fake), etc.

*Any glow-in-the-dark craft medium - stickers, beads, string, fabric, vinyl, foam, etc

*bags -everything from coin purse to shoulder bag to tote bag

*gardening stuff - metal or glass decor, tools, seeds/bulbs

*Fantasy elements like dragons, witches/sorcerers, fairies/fae

*Safari themed items - things with animal prints, or things with lions, leopards, cheetahs, elephants, or rhinos

*rubber duckies - I have a shelf of themed duckies in my bathroom & can always add more! Some neat additions would be purple, disco/glitter, cat, mohawk, dragon, wine/cocktail...

*cat stuff - kitchen items, towels/washcloths, bandanas, shirts, stationary, washi, stickers, pens, etc. Just about anything with a cat on it! I totally dig all the wild/big cats too, but my favorite is the tiger

*other cute critters - foxes, otters, raccoons, bears, rabbits, meerkats, lemurs,

*butterflies

*animal prints / faux fur

*funky drinking cups/glasses/bottles

*If the swap specifically calls for tea - Black tea/Earl Gray, or green tea.

*if the swap specifically calls for candy - dark chocolate, chocolate+caramel are my favorites. Citrus flavored candy (orange, lemon, lime) is OK too.

I really don't do much papercrafting so please NO PAPER SCRAPS. I don't have any use for die cuts, picture cutouts, flakes, magazine/book cutouts, or any kind of ephermera.

I'm not a big fan of pink, orange, neon colors, or gold

I don't really like camouflage, calico, or paisley patterns

Although I do like lots of "toys", I prefer generic things. So please no Disney, cartoon, or character themed items.

Please no plastic ribbons or small/thin strings; it's bad for all the curious kitties in my home.

*Food/candy/tea unless the swap specifically calls for it.

*ATCs (unless it is specifically an ATC swap. I think they're fun to make every once in a while, but I don't really collect them.

*Recipes

*Candles or anything with a strong scent/perfumed/potpourri

*makeup, lipgloss/chapstick, perfume

*Religious themed items

*small (less than FQ) Fabric or ribbon scraps (I already have too much)

*adult coloring books/pages; I already have too many

My two favorite holidays are Halloween and Christmas. I go crazy and celebrate for the entire month!

I go to as many costume parties as I can, and wear a different (usually home made) costume for each. My record so far is 6 costumes in 1 year! Even some of my kitties get costumes. I love spooky/scary decorations for my home; lots of skulls, spiders, potions, black cats, cobwebs, glow-in-the-dark, and gothic themed items. I usually have a witchy/wizard bar setup, so I love little spooky potion bottles & jars, spell ingredient bottle labels, and any Halloween themed barware. Also like little costume extras; ears, tails, purple/glitter/glow makeup or nail polish, flashing necklaces, theme socks. However after a small fire a few years ago, no open flame candles!

My house is fully decorated for all of December. The entire front of the house is covered in lights that are syncronized to music. Inside I have an amazing fiber-optic tree that goes up every year. Nearly every doorway, window, and flat surface gets decorations; and even our kitties get a stocking. I concentrate on seasonal decorations as opposed to religious. Can always use more purple/lavender ornaments, cat themed decorations or ornaments, holly+berry themed garland/deco/ornaments, clear window suction hooks, silver ornament hooks, stickers, washi tapes, and holiday theme casual jewelry (especially light-up stuff!).