Some ferocious entries for the Cretaceous challenge!

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=56280


The challenge theme for April was the Cretaceous Period, which occurred about 145.5 to 65.5 million years ago. While many think of dinosaurs or the large meteorite impact around the end of the Cretaceous, quite a lot of other things happened during this time. The earliest known fossil of a flowering plant (Archaefructus liaoningensis) is from this time period; other flowers such as orchids also first occurred during the Cretaceous. Insects diversified greatly, and a sort of coevolution between flowering plants and insects such as bees is thought to have occurred.

We had quite the diversity of entries for the challenge as well!

Polymath - Diatom bowl
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=24429268

NorthStarJewelry - Dinosaur Bone Necklace
http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=54897

minouette - Euoplocephalus linocut
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=23632674

gooseEatFox - Baby Dinosaur Purse
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=23490266

AleciaV - Cretaceous Ocean ACEO
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=24323312

jackbear - T-Rex Fail Stamp
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=24392309

inalather - Sweet Honey Magnolia Granola Bar Soap
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=24398421

Ulixis - Cretaceous Bees Brass Necklace
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=24118142

pandphomemades - Ginkgo biloba Leaf Hand Embroidery
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=23471109
and Ginkgo sp. Fossil Hand Embroidery
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=23470315

iWunder - The Dude Scarf
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=24253743


Some really fab entries this month - be sure to vote for your fav just by visiting on poll here on the team blog! And if you haven't yet, check out the team's treasury on Etsy, which will be up until Thursday afternoon!

Scientists Love Art Too!

So, just who are the Mad Scientists of Etsy? For that matter, you may be wondering what in the world Etsy is?

Etsy, http://www.etsy.com, in an online marketplace for handmade arts and crafts, art/craft supplies, and vintage items. Its not only a marketplace, but a great community too! The idea for the site is founded in a grassroots type of idea and movement, to promote hand made goods, rather than mass produced commercial items. Etsy is often mentioned in a variety of magazines, newspapers, and even the Martha Stewart show. Part of the Etsy community are 'teams'. Teams are groups of Etsy members, usually mostly sellers, who share a common interest - whether it be location, type of art/craft, or other interest. These teams then help to promote each other as well as the team, develop goals for the team, and have lots of fun!

The Mad Scientists of Etsy team was an idea brought about to unite scientists who were also artisans/crafters on Etsy. It was started up a few months ago, with a couple members and has since grown to almost 100 members! Scientists of all types are on the team, including geoscientists, biochemists, mathematicians, physiologists, primatologists, ecologists, and more! The team is even more diverse in the art and crafts everyone makes, from photographs to plushes to jewelry and glass work - with a number of items with science themes! To find team items you can use Etsy's search menu and type in "msoe team" to find team member's items.

One of the great things we have fun doing are monthly team challenges. We have a rotating list of themes, and vote on different ideas for the monthly challenges. Our very first one was called the 'Science as Art' challenge, as a way to showcase our individual interpretations of art. Last month we had our team challenge focus on a famous scientist, which was Leonardo Da Vinci and had some great entries! This month the challenge is 'platypus' (yes as in the duck billed variety) and there should be some very fun results! To find the items entered as team challenges, you can use Etsy's search menu and enter "msoeteam challenge" to bring them up.

We're finally to the place where the team is ready to grow an online presence, hence the start of a team blog, soon a website, and hopefully online advertising in the near future! On this blog there are plenty things to be featured here, such as team news and updates, results of team challenge entries, features and more! So please stop in regularly for a very lively and fun (dare I say even educational sometimes?) blog, and be sure to check out team members stores and blogs. Feedback or ideas are always welcome - feel free to leave a comment, we'd love to hear from you!


More info where to find us online:
Team Profile on Etsy: http://team.etsy.com/viewteam.php?id=265
Team Flickr Page: http://www.flickr.com/groups/msoe/