January Challenge: NEW!

New year, new challenge, therefore the theme for this month was NEW!  Check out these awesome new listings from the Queer Team...


Rabbit Needlefelted Bunny
from VeeStitches


Twitter Button Decal
from aSignofSuccess


Large Scale SALE % signage vinyl letters
from aSignofSuccess


Felted Soap- Rosemary Mint Green Blue Stone
from OneTrueMango


Felted Soap- Pink Cherry Blossom
from OneTrueMango


Eowyn Blue Quartz Art Nouveau Necklace
from Livingatnight


Carved Turquoise Sterling Silver Bracelet
from Livingatnight


Japanese Linen Bird Clip-on Bow Tie
from whippersnapped


Valentine's Day Red and Pink Heart Dangles with Vintage Book Page Beads
from CheeryBirdStudio


Lampwork glass three peas missing a pod pea green happy bead set
from CrowbirdieBeads


Lucy, Daughter of the Devil Inspired 3D Resin Jewelry Pendant Featuring Handmade Flying Heart Component
from steamshady


Dollhouse Inspired 3D Steampunk Sci Fi Resin Pendant Featuring The Very Sexy Echo
from steamshady

Holiday Challenge: Count Your Blessings

The holidays are an über busy time for us entrepreneurs, so this challenge will cover November AND December.  And at this time when the media seems to hype us all up about what we want, when we really need to be thinking about what we already have, the theme of this challenge is COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS.  I think everyone did a great job interpreting the theme...

Our first two items come from Jen at FallCode.  She says, "With the fingers free, you can count your blessings much easier. :)"


Womens Wrist Warmers Fingerless Mittens - Vegan Friendly - Really Red (Made To Order)


Womens Wrist Warmers Fingerless Mittens - Vegan Friendly - Electric Neon Blue (Made To Order)

Our next comes from Dennis at PridefulThings who explains, "My entry to the Count Your Blessings relates to the most recent "Spirit Day". I was thinking about how grateful I am to have had the support from friends and family as I embraced who I am as a human being. I wanted to create something that would offer support to those who have been bullied for their LGBTQ identity and for those who want to show their support of those who have been bullied. Spirit Day's name and color scheme are drawn from the purple stripe of the iconic gay-pride Rainbow Flag where purple represent "spirit"."


A Celebration of Spirit - Paracord Bracelet
He adds that you can get free shipping during November with the coupon code: FREELOVE.


The next item is from OneTrueMango who shares, "Every year my family and family friends get together for Beachikah (aka Hannukah at the Beach when the Rates are Low For The Off Season). It is the most peaceful and happy time of the year. I am grateful for this time with loved ones, and that there are still places of natural beauty to enjoy."


Starfish apothecary jar aquarium felted

Giani from Galleria di Giani made me cry when he posted this: "The biggest blessing any of us ever gets is time.  Time to live, time to love, time to share, time to exist.  So what better ways to signify that concept than with a timepiece.  This is the first of my wristwatch/bracelet sets."


Wristwatch and Bracelet Set - White Crystal Pearls and Clear Crystals

Lisa from ellepaisley says, "As I am a steampunk artist, naturally the theme resonates with me as time. I love that in steampunk culture time can stand still and move backwards and forwards as it pleases."


Steampunk mermaid earrings


Steampunk bracelet
She adds, "I will be having a surprise sale during black friday through cyber monday for fans and followers! (EllePaisley on fb) <3" Mariana from Livingatnight explained her entry: "Our blessings as the light of day in Winter Solstice. Even if we can't see the light, we feel it, and as much as we need the gift of darkness we also clamor for daylight. In these totally messed up times I wish for an end to bombing and destruction. We need more heart, not bombs <3."
Count Your Blessings Blue Apatite and Moonstone Vermeil Necklace Free Shipping

And our last (but not least!) two beautiful pieces from Vee at vee41dmb, who says, "I am thankful for all those I love and whom love me."


Mixed Metal Cherish Necklace


Swarovski Heart Red Crimson Siam Earrings CIJ
She also wants to let you know that until Monday you can get HALF OFF EVERYTHING in BOTH her shops! (VeryVee & VeeStitches) with the COUPON CODE: SHOPNOW


Best wishes to all our readers for a very happy Thanksgiving and a warm & prosperous holiday season.  ♥♥♥

LGBT History Month: Society for Human Rights

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The Society for Human Rights was the first gay rights organization in the United States.  It was established in 1924 in Chicago by Henry Gerber who was inspired to create it by German Doctor Magnus Hirschfeld's work with the Scientific-Humanitarian Committee.

Its goals as outlined on their application for charter as a non-profit organization in Illinois, were:

[T]o promote and protect the interests of people who by reasons of mental and physical abnormalities are abused and hindered in the legal pursuit of happiness which is guaranteed them by the Declaration of Independence and to combat the public prejudices against them by dissemination of factors according to modern science among intellectuals of mature age. The Society stands only for law and order; it is in harmony with any and all general laws insofar as they protect the rights of others, and does in no manner recommend any acts in violation of present laws nor advocate any manner inimical to the public welfare. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Society_for_Human_Rights)

The Society's newsletter, Friendship and Freedom, was the first LGBT publication in the US although few members wanted it mailed to them as they were considered obscene materials and illegal to mail until 1958 when the Supreme Court ruled that homosexual content did not automatically imply obscene materials.  Only two issues were ever produced.

A few months after being chartered, the group dismantled when several members were arrested.  Despite its small numbers and short existence, the Society for Human Rights was the precursor to today's LGBT Rights Movement.

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Also this month:

~ October is also National Bullying Prevention Month.

~ October 10th was Unity Day; wear orange to show your support and remind others about the importance of bullying prevention.

~ October 11th was National Coming Out Day when we celebrate coming out as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or as an ally. See the Human Rights Campaign website for resources on coming out.

~ October 19th is Spirit Day; wear purple on this day to support LGBT youth & stand up against bullying.

LGBT History Month: Kyrsten Sinema

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Kyrsten Sinema was born born July 12, 1976 in Tuscon, Arizona.  She earned her bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University, a masters from Arizona State University in social work, a Juris Doctorate from Arizona State University College of Law, and most recently a Ph. D. in Justice Studies.  She worked as a social worker for an Arizona elementary school district before becoming a criminal defense lawyer.  She is also an adjunct professor in the School of Social Work at Arizona State University.

Sinema is a former member of both the Senate and House of Representatives for the Arizona State Legislature and in August 2012 she won the Democratic primary for Congress in Arizona's 9th congressional district.  If elected, she will be the first openly bisexual member of Congress.

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Also this month:

~ October is also National Bullying Prevention Month.

~ October 10th was Unity Day; wear orange to show your support and remind others about the importance of bullying prevention.

~ October 11th was National Coming Out Day when we celebrate coming out as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or as an ally. See the Human Rights Campaign website for resources on coming out.

~ October 19th is Spirit Day; wear purple on this day to support LGBT youth & stand up against bullying.

LGBT History Month: Patrick Harvie

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Patrick Harvie was born March 18, 1973 in Vale of Leven, Dunbartonshine, Scotland where he went to Dumbarton Academy and then attended Manchester Metropolitan University.  From 1997 to 2003 he worked within the Gay Men's Project at PHACE Scotland first as a youth worked then as a Development Worker for the Lanarkshire Health Board.

In 2003 Harvie was elected as a Member of the Scottish Parliament for the Glasgow region and was re-elected in 2007 and 2011.  He is the first openly bisexual party leader in Scotland and the UK, and has worked on many committees and is a member of many civil and human rights groups, covering issues such as same-sex relationships, homelessness, transportation, the environment, and more.

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Also this month:

~ October is also National Bullying Prevention Month.

~ October 10th was Unity Day; wear orange to show your support and remind others about the importance of bullying prevention.

~ October 11th was National Coming Out Day when we celebrate coming out as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or as an ally. See the Human Rights Campaign website for resources on coming out.

~ October 19th is Spirit Day; wear purple on this day to support LGBT youth & stand up against bullying.

LGBT History Month: Noreen Stevens

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Noreen Stevens was born in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada in 1962. She graduated in 1985 with a degree in interior design from the University of Manitoba and started a comic strip called Local Access Only, "as an outlet, she says, to express the exasperation she felt as a recently uncloseted bull dyke trying to get a straight job. As her life unfolded so did her strip, which morphed into The Chosen Family." (http://archives.xtra.ca/Story.aspx?s=15221859)

The comic was originally published in Winnipeg's LGBT magazine, Swerve, and was eventually syndicated to many other LGBT publications.  In 2004, Stevens retired the comic strip.

Stevens also used to own and manage Winona's Café, the first gay & lesbian café in Winnipeg.  She and her partner, Jill Town were the first same-sex couple in Manitoba to be allowed to legally adopt, and have two children.

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Also this month:

~ October is also National Bullying Prevention Month.

~ October 10th was Unity Day; wear orange to show your support and remind others about the importance of bullying prevention.

~ October 11th was National Coming Out Day when we celebrate coming out as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or as an ally. See the Human Rights Campaign website for resources on coming out.

~ October 19th is Spirit Day; wear purple on this day to support LGBT youth & stand up against bullying.

LGBT History Month: Uzi Even

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Uzi Even was born in Haifa, Israel on October 18, 1940.  He received a a B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Physics from the Technion, and a Ph.D at Tel Aviv University, where he is currently a professor of physical chemistry.  He specializes in spectroscopy of super cold molecules, molecular clusters and cluster impact chemistry, as well as the quantum properties of helium clusters.

In 1993 he testified to being discharged from the Israel Defense Forces when they discovered he was gay which led to changes in the laws allowing homosexuals to serve in the army.  In 1995 he fought for, and won, spousal rights for his partner from his employer, Tel Aviv University.  In 2002 he became the first openly homosexual member of the Knesset.

In 2009, he and his then partner, Amit Kama, became the first same-sex couple in Israel to have their right of adoption legally acknowledged when the Tel Aviv family court ruled they could legally adopt their 30-year-old foster son.  They are currently applying for divorce through the rabbinical courts, having been refused by the state for an official divorce.

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Also this month:

~ October is also National Bullying Prevention Month.

~ October 10th was Unity Day; wear orange to show your support and remind others about the importance of bullying prevention.

~ October 11th was National Coming Out Day when we celebrate coming out as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or as an ally. See the Human Rights Campaign website for resources on coming out.

~ October 19th is Spirit Day; wear purple on this day to support LGBT youth & stand up against bullying.

LGBT History Month: Wendy Carlos

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Born Walter Carlos on November 14, 1939 in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, she learned to play the piano when she was six and was composing at ten. In 1953, when Carlos was 14, she won a scholarship for building a computer at home, long before computers were in homes. She went on to earn a BA in music and physics from Brown University and a master's from Columbia in composition.

Carlos worked with Dr. Robert Moog to help develop the Moog synthesizer, and became famous for her recording called Switched-On Bach, released in 1968, which was painstakingly assembled, piece by piece, on the Moog synthesizer. She later began releasing original compositions and created soundtracks for such films as A Clockwork Orange, The Shining, and Tron.

Carlos experienced gender dysphoria from a young age but didn't know about transgenderism until she attended Columbia in 1962. In 1967, she started hormone treatments and began living as a woman. After the success of Switched-On Bach, Carlos was able to complete a sex-change operation.

~••••••▼••••••~
Also this month:

~ October is also National Bullying Prevention Month.

~ October 10th was Unity Day; wear orange to show your support and remind others about the importance of bullying prevention.

~ October 11th was National Coming Out Day when we celebrate coming out as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or as an ally. See the Human Rights Campaign website for resources on coming out.

~ October 19th is Spirit Day; wear purple on this day to support LGBT youth & stand up against bullying.

LGBT History Month: Billy Tipton

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Billy Tipton was born on December 29, 1914 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma as Dorothy Lucille Tipton.  In high school he became interested in jazz music and after graduating began to perform as a man, using his father's nickname, Billy.

By 1940 he was living as a man in his private life as well.  Very few people in his life knew that he was born a woman, including his lovers.  He invented a story of a terrible car accident that badly damaged his genitals and broke some ribs, so he had to bind them to protect them.

In 1960 Tipton settled down with Kitty Kelly, a nightclub dancer, with whom he adopted and raised three sons, John, Scott, and William.  However due to differing opinions, and constant arguing, over how to raise the boys, they separated, and he moved to a mobile home with the boys.

In 1989, Tipton fell ill but refused to call a doctor.  While paramedics were trying to save his life, with his son present, they learned that he had female anatomy.  Kitty tried to keep it secret, by arranging for cremation, but his son went public with the story.

~••••••▼••••••~
Also this month:

~ October is also National Bullying Prevention Month.

~ October 10th was Unity Day; wear orange to show your support and remind others about the importance of bullying prevention.

~ October 11th was National Coming Out Day when we celebrate coming out as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or as an ally. See the Human Rights Campaign website for resources on coming out.

~ October 19th is Spirit Day; wear purple on this day to support LGBT youth & stand up against bullying.

LGBT History Month: Angelina Jolie

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Angelina Jolie was born in Los Angeles, California on June 4, 1975.  She began acting as at the age of 7, but didn't become widely famous until the release of Lara Croft: Tomb Raider in 2001.  She has won many awards both for her acting as well as for her humanitarian work.

She became aware of humanitarian crises around the world while filming Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and started working with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to find long-term solutions for refugees displaced by large-scale crises, like the Afghanistan wars in 2008 and 2011, and the Libyan revolution in 2011.  Jolie has been a Goodwill Ambassador for the UNHCR and was promoted to Special Envoy of High Commissioner António Guterres this past April.

Jolie has openly discussed her bisexuality in the media and has had relationships with both men and women.  She is currently married to Brad Pitt and has six children, three of whom have been adopted from other countries.

~••••••▼••••••~
Also this month:

~ October is also National Bullying Prevention Month.

~ October 10th was Unity Day; wear orange to show your support and remind others about the importance of bullying prevention.

~ October 11th was National Coming Out Day when we celebrate coming out as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or as an ally. See the Human Rights Campaign website for resources on coming out.

~ October 19th is Spirit Day; wear purple on this day to support LGBT youth & stand up against bullying.