Spiral Garden: 2010

Thursday, 16 December 2010

Sale Time!

It's early, I know. Stores don't usually start their sales until after Christmas... But we are seriously overstocked! Check out the bargains here.

PS - We can't guarantee delivery, but will try to get orders to you before December 24th (Australia only).

Thursday, 9 December 2010

I often pledge to make each Christmas a handmade one. More often than not, mid-December rolls around and EEEEEEEEEEK - I haven't made everyone's gifts. These days, I figure that if what I'm buying is fair trade or locally handmade, that's still a lot better than ordinary store-bought gifts!

If you love to give handmade too, here are some ideas...

Breastfeeding Mother Doll and Baby $82.00 (I actually have one in stock, which is unusual for this time of year!)

Itsy Bitsy Lou Lou reduced to $30.00 - a fantastic price for a handmade cloth doll of this size with such beautiful clothing - her siblings Molly and Oliver are also up for adoption!

Bamboo Face & Body Wash Cloths $10.00 each

All of the Beguile Soaps and Lip Balms are handmade here in Australia!

Jasminka's Silk Angel Mobiles are just perfect and only $40.00 each.

We love our Hand-felted Garden Flags - a very versatile gift.

Eco Clay is handmade and certainly hand tested around here!

The very popular Sandwich Wraps are just $15.00 each. Our last stock sold out quickly, so order soon.

Juggling Balls are great fun for all ages! Check out these felt ones!

Of course we have many more dolls, gnomes, animals, bags, dress-ups, jewelery and craft items which are made by hand within Australia. Come and browse our online store today. Almost all of our products are actually handmade or handcrafted, but the ones above are some which are made by people I know, with their own hands!

Tuesday, 7 December 2010

Thank You!

Thank you to all of our regular customers for your support over the past couple of weeks (and before then of course!) Welcome to our many new customers as well! Please contact me if there's something specific I can order for you, if you have any questions or suggestions.

For overseas Christmas orders, please order by Monday 13th December, Air Mail generally takes 7-10 days from Australia. Within Australia, please order and pay for your Christmas gift orders by Friday 17th December (Direct Deposit), or Sunday 19th December (PayPal), for posting within Australia. If you live in Tassie or Western Australia, it's a good idea to allow a little extra time at this time of year, as mail can be delayed during busy periods. Spiral Garden is located near Tarzali, which is a village in rural Far North Queensland.

Express Post can be arrange for a small extra fee (for any parcels over 500g). Please contact me if you require Express Post.

We will not be closed over the Christmas and New Year period. Parcels will be delayed due to public holidays, but we are available to send your orders as quickly as usual.

Do you need specific items for back-to-school? Most art supplies are in stock, but if there's something else you need, let me know soon as I need to order Main Lesson Books and other goodies from Mercurius. I also plan to stock a lot more homeschooling, unschooling and Steiner education books from January 2011 - please let me know of titles you're after!

My office is still overflowing with tea sets, craft kits, soaps, lip balms, games and toys... Crayon Rocks are still available in both sizes. I look forward to receiving your orders and packing them with care, and taking a bit of stress out of the shopping event of the year!

Seasonal Blessings from our family to yours...

Friday, 3 December 2010

Last New Stock for 2010

What a busy time of year it is! Summer is here for us in the Southern Hemisphere, and with it comes the busy-ness of the celebration season, a general end-of-year flurry and an increase in activity because of the warmer weather... I know our customers in the Northern Hemisphere are also busy right about now, but I wonder if you feel like buzzing bees too, without the sunshine and warm days?

We've finally received the last of our New Products and restocked items for 2010.

Crayon Rocks Standard $10.00
Crayon Rocks Happy Holidays $5.00
Branch Wood Blocks $30.00
Branch Wood Rattle $16.00
... and don't forget our gorgeous Enamel Tea Set and Cookware range, delightful Beguile products (yum), the three Tree Branch Sets (different to the German Branch Wood products) and of course the popular Coconut Wood tea set items and accessories.

Thanks again for your enthusiastic support of Spiral Garden. We delight in finding perfect gifts and everyday items for you and yours. What a joy to offer items which have an impressive impact on the recipient, but a low impact on our planet...

Friday, 26 November 2010

Art Makes Sense

A lot of our art supplies are sourced from Mercurius Australia. They stock the quality European brands Stockmar and Lyra which are best sellers at Spiral Garden.

From an educational, developmental perspective, an environment that is rich in sensory experience is essential. Mercurius is committed to providing a complete and thoroughly tested range of products which are designed to:

• nurture the senses
• stimulate and support creativity and the practise of the 7 arts

For more information on the twelve senses and the seven arts, check out this page.

Wednesday, 24 November 2010

Shopping for Artists

Quality art supplies are such a delight to artists of all ages. They improve results and are a pleasure to use. Here are some gift ideas for your arty loved ones...

Stockmar Colour Circle Paint s
Set of three colours (red, yellow, blue)
Just $26.00 per set.
Try our glass paint jars for storing them in, $1.65 each.
For more information on techniques
for using Stockmar art products, click here.

Kindergarten Paint Brush from Mercurius.
18mm brush of amazing quality, just $14.00.

I get excited by crayons, after years of enduring the average quality ones available in most department stores. The ones above are Crayon Rocks, soy-based crayons from the USA which are vegan-friendly and help prepare little hands for handwriting. They also look great, don't they? More stock (in two sizes) due from the USA in time for your Christmas orders. Stay tuned. Just $10.00 for the pack of 16 vibrant colours.

The delicious-smelling Honey Sticks are so sturdy and yet they deliver smooth, bright colours when in use. Ingredients include beeswax and non-toxic pigments, and the stubby design means that these crayons will last! Just $13.00.

Stockmar Block Crayons - quality you can trust from Germany. These come in a metal tin, in a set of eight bright colours. Ideas for using Stockmar crayons can be found here. Only $16.50 from Spiral Garden, much less than you'd pay elsewhere!

A perfect addition to any gift of crayons are these fabulous hand-made wool felt pencil cases from a Fair Trade supplier through Mercurius Australia. Available in a variety of colours and only $9.50 each!

Once customers discover Mercurius' Main Lesson Books, they always come back for more. These can be used in classrooms, in homeschooling, as journals, for many different art mediums and methods, or just for fun! They include 32 pages of quality paper with onion skin paper in between to help preserve artwork. Just $4.00 per book.

Lyra Pencils are the longest-lasting pencils which
are a delight to hold and use. From $2.60.

Lyra Sharpener - look, it's not plastic!
$3.20 each, suits most sizes of pencil.

We stock dozens of other quality art products at Spiral Garden. Happy Shopping!

Shopping for Babies

Not another teddy bear...

We have some fantastic gift ideas for babies, check out these best sellers - all natural and top quality!

Knot dolls, all-time best seller available in
pink, orange, green, lavender, blue and yellow.
$13.00 each

21cm wide rainbow window star
$10.00

Single felt ball $7.00

Garden Flags $65.00

Bamboo Washcloths $10.00

Dyed Muslin Playcloths $10.00
White Muslin, Silk and Cotton Playcloths also available!

Baby wraps available in
Cheesecloth Jumbo
Cheesecloth Newborn
and Flannel Jumbo
... so versatile, from $15.00!

Wooden Teething Ring $16.00
from Drei Blatter in Germany.

Tuesday, 23 November 2010

Shopping for Boys

Of course, most of our products appeal to both boys and girls, but in my experience, the items below have been especially popular with boys...

Felt Horse, 14cm high and only $18.00

Aussie Anamalz with pouch $34.95.

Debresk Vehicles, from $9.50

Lyra Skin Colour Pencils $18.00 - for painting faces without the mess or skin irritation!

Stockmar Block Crayons - tough but still delightful to use!
$16.50 (pay up to $22 at other Aussie retailers)
Give with a quality blank book!

Solid Wooden Fish Xylophone $27.00

Claves $11.50

Eco Clay $30.00, add a rolling pin.

Animal Tails $12.00.

Juggling Balls - set of 3.
Current stock includes lots of blue, green and brown tones.
Just $20.00 per set.

All-in-one house - a dollhouse and puzzle in one.
Use for little gnomes or other figures.
Made in Germany by Kaefer.
$60.00
Gnomes in stock include Earth Gnomes, Season Gnomes and Gnome Families.