Yes, I am Baking a Pie.

Monthly giveaways

2008-08-03T15:54:00.002-04:00

I'm considering doing a monthly giveaway here on my blog. What do you think? Would you want to participate? I'm testing the waters over at the etsy forum as well to see if people want to contribute some samples and business cards to help promote their businesses.

It has certainly been a while.

2008-08-03T05:49:00.003-04:00

I apologize to everyone who reads my blog. There haven't been many updates because I fell ill for a while, but I'm recovering and getting everything back together. I just purchased some new tools and supplies so I'll be hardcore crafting, so there will be photos of new products to come. Also, I'm catching up on my features, so those will be coming soon, and as soon as those are finished, I'll be searching for more people to feature. Thats all for now, but there will be more to come!

I had another feature!

2008-07-23T02:29:00.001-04:00

I was just getting through some emails, and realized that I had been featured on another blog. Follow the link to have a look.

http://childishthoughts-childishthoughts.blogspot.com/2008/07/featured-artist.html

Two sales in one day!

2008-07-23T01:56:00.002-04:00

Well, I have reached the milestone of ten sales. I've been renewing my items regularly, and I ended up selling off the last of my ivory rose earrings. Also, I got a convo back from the owner of a consignment shop letting me know that my items were received and are on display. Hopefully they'll be selling soon. I have more features to post, and its been a while since I put one up, got lost in the crush of life, I guess, but I will finish up all my features by the end of this month!

My showcase was July 18 and I don't know if it helped to impact my sales at all, but I did get a bunch more views on all my items, a few hearts on items, and a few hearts to my store. I think the secret to getting boatloads of exposure is being in a treasury, though. I would love to snag one sometime, but it seems to be pretty hard. I made a treasury in Treasury West a little while ago and it seems to be easier to get one of those spots, but who knows. In any case, more coming soon.

My Jewelry Showcase is Today!

2008-07-18T01:14:00.003-04:00

So, my jewelry showcase is today and I have eight items lined up in it. I really hope that it helps me gain visibility and get some sales. I will keep you all posted on how it goes, and even started a post on the Etsy boards about it, so, if you have anything to contribute to the discussion, please, by all means! Here's the link to my post: http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=5717744

Got some new items up for sale.

2008-07-15T15:00:00.006-04:00

I've got two new items up in my store, ladies and gents! These earrings are really lovely. Highly detailed, and pealized, which I adore. I made a bunch to send out as samples to some places, but I have one pair up for grabs in my shop. Also, I have a ring up to match my star shaped earrings. Its pretty simple, just an adjustable ring. I have more coming, though.

I snagged my first treasury!

2008-07-14T18:43:00.002-04:00

I don't have a screen cap of it yet, but I will soon. You guys should check it out, its pretty nice, but thats just my opinion. Its not a main treasury though, its Treasury West. Oh, I guess I should specify that I made it, not that I'm featured in it. I'd love to get featured in a treasury someday...

My first feature on another blog!

2008-07-14T05:29:00.004-04:00

As far as I know, I'm getting my first feature today on another blog, Blossoming Tree. I hope that it helps me get more customers. I have decided to start making something that I love, and feel I can't get enough of: charm necklaces! I have to go and find some supplies though, so I'll be scouring ebay, etsy and Fire Mountain for charms, jump rings and various other findings.

Also, I put a new item up in my store, and I'll have more to come. For now, though, I have a pair of these, but I'm only selling one at the moment, to see what the reaction is. Thoughts?

They are two blue birds sitting in a nest attached to steel barrettes. I think they're really cute, but I wonder if they might be too "out there" for the etsy crowd.

Etsy Feature: OMGLia

2008-07-10T16:27:00.000-04:00

Today's feature is OMGLia. She's amazingly creative and super talented. When I checked out her store I practically drooled over her adorable jewelry and chic wallets. If I didn't have to save my money to buy stash, I'd go broke buying up all her stuff. Well, I guess that means my loss will be my reader's gain!

How long have you been crafting?
As long as I can remember! When I was 5 I sold braided yarn bracelets with pony beads to my mom's friends for $1.

What inspired you to craft?
I've just always had to be creative in some way, as far back as I can remember. I experimented with just about every craft, from friendship bracelets to collages to those crafty kits, like make your own soap and whatnot that I'd always get for Christmas. It took me a while to find something I was really good at!

What inspires your designs?
I'm inspired by the items I craft with! I have a huge stash and I'm always excited to use it all up so I can buy more. When I want to make a piece of jewelry, I look at my entire stash and pick out a bunch of beads that match well together, and then start mixing and matching until I get something that hangs perfectly and is bright, funky and eye catching. The more variety I have in my stash, the better.

Why did you decide to start selling your crafts?
When I was 16 I got my ears pierced. I bought a bunch of jewelry supplies to turn all of my clip-ons into pierced earrings. I had never made jewelry before, but I did have some beads lying around at the time, and while I was changing all the clip-on backs I started rearranging and adding onto my earrings to improve them. Then I went through all of my necklaces and turned THEM into earrings. By the time I'd turned almost all of my jewelry into pretty awesome earrings, I decided people would be willing to buy them and I listed them (and, at the time, some knitted items) in my new etsy shop!

What brought you to etsy?
I came first as a buyer, which proved to be a problem because my shop name was a lame buyers name and I had to recently switch over everything which was a hassle.

Are you a full time seller at Etsy?
I'm not as of yet, but I do plan to make my business my career, both on etsy and off. My major in college at Indiana University is Apparel Merchandising and business, which I hope to use to expand my business by the time I graduate!

Have you been featured in a Treasury on etsy?
Oh, many I believe.... mostly ones that involve colorful things!

Have you received any honors because of your store or products?
I've been featured on a few blogs, but nothing important yet. Though BITCH did publish a letter of mine when I first started selling wallets made from their magazine!

Have you participated in any craft or fashion shows?
I just started doing craft shows this year and I love them! I've been writing about my experiences on my blog. Here are some of my favorite tips: http://omglia.blogspot.com/2008/06/craft-fair-tips.html

Do you sell anywhere besides etsy?
I sell at http://omglia.com !

Do you find that people in your life are supportive of your choice to be an indie seller?
My friends are all of my best customers, and my father is a never ending fountain of business tips and support - he comes to craft fairs with me and runs to the post office whenever I need him to! Overall I've gotten nothing but support.

What are your long term goals for your etsy store?
I want to expand my business to be full-time soon after I graduate college, and eventually I'd like to open up a brick and mortar store in my hometown of Louisvlle, KY to sell my own merchandise and other funky DIY stuff from all over Etsy!

Do you have any bits of wisdom to share with your fellow etsy sellers?
Advertise! Target your advertising to your demographic! And then advertise to it all the time! ;)

Etsy Feature: LilyCobWeb

2008-07-08T20:36:00.000-04:00

My second feature, and final for today is, lilycobweb. She's a fiber artist and her work is amazing. She makes me want to learn how to crochet! You can also find LilyCobWeb's etsy mini featured on http://dzfantasy.blogspot.com for the month of July.

I'm LilyCobWeb (aka Rena). I live in Northern Ireland near lovely Carlingford Lough. I've always been creative in some form or another since I was a child. Crochet was the first fibre art I learned. It has a specific Irish history to it, and traditional methods and stitches. Now, I like to give it a contemporary twist. I like to paint and draw, though I don't find much time for that. I have four children, a husband and a very busy household.

I've been creating and crafting since I was about 9 or 10, making crocheted hats and ponchos! I always was drawn to making, and hit it in spots over the years. I didn't begin to do this seriously until three years ago, when I gave up my job as an Art teacher.

I craft as a means of self-expression. I have a need to create. I find working with shape and colour very therapeutic and relaxing. I love to explore new ways of coming up with the romantic, elegant look I like.

Nature has to be my primary inspiration-especially the organic shapes of leaves and flowers. I'm also inspired by the clean lines of Art Nouveau. Fashion designers like Vivienne Westwood inspire me a lot, in the way they harmonise references to the past in their very contemporary clothing.

I had been selling locally to friends, and making gifts for family. I enjoyed it so much. One or two shops began to stock my items. Then, I began to do the odd craft fair. That's how it all began. It's a way to fund my creative experiments, and actually show people what I do. That's almost as important as the money I make.

Quite by accident, I found Etsy while browsing the net two or three years ago. It's not well known in Ireland or the UK. even now. I was amazed by it, by the constant element of surprise as you browse the shops. It was a visual treat for me. Though I actually opened an account on Etsy in 2007, I didn't start to sell until April of this year. So far, so good! Another great aspect of it is that crochet is a very neglected and uncool craft in Ireland now, despite its great history here. To find so much of it, and such well-designed pieces, on Etsy was pure inspiration for me. Not to mention validation! There were other sculptural-crochet enthusiasts like me out there!

I guess I'm still part-time. Special family circumstances mean I can't spend all my time being an Etsy seller, but I'm working on that.

Treasury? Not as far as I know. I live in hope!

I've been featured in DaWanda Shopping Directory.
http://dawandashopdirectory.blogspot.com/2008/03/introducing-lilycobweb.html

I've been interviewed about my work on BBC Radio Ulster 'Your Place and Mine'

I was the first Etsy seller to have her work critiqued in the Saturday Writing Critique on 'In the Night Kitchen' blog.
(Is that a good thing?)
http://inthenightkitchen.wordpress.com/2008/05/31/saturday-writing-critique-5/#comment-483

'DesignSpotter' online magazine featured my leather flower choker on its products page. http://www.designspotter.com/product/2008/06/leather-flower-choker-mellow-yellow.html

I've been doing local craft fairs for the past year. I did a marvellous Yuletide fair in Warrenpoint Park last December and made a killing in hats and scarves because it was so frosty and cold. A local organic shop (also in Warrenpoint) called Fresh Fields,(www.freshfieldsfarmshop.eu)
holds a once-a-month Craft Fair that I love doing. We've become a club or support network as well. The owners don't charge us for the use of their great premises and the staff there are wonderful, too! I have a couple of big fairs coming up soon. Next one is in an historic mansion called The Argory, near Armagh on 25th. August.

I have a shop on DaWanda, a European version of Etsy.
http://en.dawanda.com/shop/lilycobweb
Lovely site with great talent from all over Europe.

My family are generally supportive, especially my eldest daughter Parisa, herself a great knitter/singer/songwriter (www.myspace.com/parisar)
She understands the artist's struggle. My husband is great, but can't stand the chaos when I'm up all night before a craft fair. I have some great craft buddies, especially Laura whose website will soon be up and running (www.goodthingsonline.org). We have weekly meetings to keep each other motivated. Some people think I'm wasting my time, and tell me that, but I don't get discouraged easily!

My long-term goal for my Etsy shop would be to have one sale per day at least, and to be able to make items to the same high standard I've set for myself. That would require more input of time and planning, sourcing more cost-efficient materials and generally improve my professionalism all round. I'm determined to get there:)

I'm very grateful for the wisdom Etsy sellers have shared with me since I've started. Etsy is a very supportive environment. Make the most of it. Enjoy what your art/craft brings in all kinds of ways, not just in terms of sales.

My First Feature!

2008-07-08T14:55:00.000-04:00

Just as a small note, my features are posted in no particular order, everyone gets the same amount of care from me. And now without further ado, I'd like to introduce you all to Rose Anne Fazio. I think she does excellent work and deserves our patronage. I hope that she won't mind me saying that I (and I'm sure very many other etsiers feel the same way) appreciate the mentorship of older etsy members. I'm sure we can learn quite a lot from her time spent crafting and selling her amazing work.

I am Rose Anne Fazio. I am a 63 year old, married, mother of two and grandmother of three. I love everything and am concerned that I will not be able to pack enough life into the years I have left on this earth. I have had many hobbies over the years. I raised tropical fish for over 20 years, breeding many species and writing articles for local and national aquatic-related publications. I also enjoyed gardening, house plants, painting, etc. Dogs have always been an integral part of my life.

I have enjoyed crafting, even before we had a name for it! My maternal grandmother taught me to crochet when I was around 6 years old. I taught myself to knit as a preteen. I colored, drew and did paint-by-numbers, played with clay, beads, etc. as long as I can remember. Even today, I feel I have to try it all at least once. I painted river rocks for around two years, did counted cross-stitch for over 10 years, and still dabble a little with my sewing machine.

Beads are a relatively new pursuit for me - only at it around six years. Beading, stringing, designing, weaving - I love it all. Seed beads, so many sizes, shapes, colors and finishes! Natural gemstones, vintage crystal.... I could go on forever. There is something about natural stone - coming from the earth - realizing how it is formed, that makes it so special to me. Sterling silver is a favorite of mine too.

I enjoy custom designing items for members of the Red Hat Society in shades of reds, purples, pinks and lavenders. I like to make vibrantly colored and fashionable magnetic bracelets and anklets. Right now, I especially enjoy peyote beading porcelain and resin faces, giving each a character of their own. I'm currently doing a series of ladies based on the members of my family. Each has a name and different personality.

I started selling my bracelets and earrings at my Red Hat gatherings. There was a lot of jewelry in red and purple, but it was all the same and cheaply made. I wanted our group to have different pieces. Then I did some craft shows and over time, increased my line. I made many things and put them into small shops in our area. Etsy came about after suffering a rainy, cold craft show season. It seemed every show weekend was either raining, snowing or very cold. I quickly tired of that. So here I am, on Etsy.

I am still learning everything I can about beading..... I still consider myself a "beader who hopes to become an artist". There is so much talent on Etsy. It is amazing how many people have so much talent to offer each other. I find Etsy to be a very friendly, helpful venue for crafters. Selling is not my reason for being there, although I do like to find homes for my pieces. I am there because of what Etsy is...... a place for all lovers of the arts and crafts.

I admire all the Treasuries but have not made one yet. I hope to soon. I devote all my efforts to creating, designing, learning and enjoying Etsy!

My husband is very supportive of this adventure of mine. He likes to shop more than I do, so it makes bead hunting very enjoyable. He is my "Business manager / partner". My daughter wears many of my pieces everyday, all day.... She is my "Quality Control" department!

I hope to make a success of my Etsy shop and will continue doing this until it is no longer fun. It will take much work, but with help and exposure from friends like Mallory, I think I will be successful. If you ever doubt your talent or your art, contact me at www.redhatlady.etsy.co and I will do what I can to cheer you up and bolster your self confidence. After all, if you don't believe in yourself, who can?

Features are taking off without a hitch!

2008-07-07T04:24:00.000-04:00

Well, ladies and gents, the features I plan on doing every month are working out swimmingly. As I mentioned before, a little briefly, I'll be doing ten features a month. Since I got the idea sort of late, and started sort of late, we'll see if I can get all ten features done within this month. If not, there might be a little spill over, but I'm gonna put out notices for each month as quickly as possible from now on. I'm thinking the last week or two of the month. I sent out a bunch of questionnaires tonight, there was a delay because my wireless connection can be a little unreliable, but I got them done.

Hopefully, I'll be able to put up features within the next week or so. I also joined blogcatalog tonight, which will hopefully work out and I'll be a member. When sales pick up, I'm thinking of buying the adspace that they offer for a month, but we'll see about that. Tomorrow is going to be a boon in terms of crafting. I'm stopping at the post office to pick up a bunch of things, and send out some business cards and fliers that some lovely sellers have offered to distribute for me at craft fairs.

Also, my parents gave me a lovely steel file box to keep all my important papers in, which translates into me having a neat place to put all my sales records, contracts and receipts. I'm going to see if they'll bring me some file folders so I can keep my system really well put together.

Working for Etsy, or expecting it to work for you?

2008-07-07T03:26:00.000-04:00

I recently read a post on the etsy forums where someone talked about how a lot of people join and post to the forums with the question, "why aren't my items selling"? So, I think I want to spend a little time addressing that on a personal level.

When I came to etsy, I already had the idea in my head that I wanted to start a business. I just spent a while trying to find the most viable place to start my venture. I settled on etsy because I absolutely support the movement away from commercially produced goods and toward handmade things. I have a lot of reasons for that, one, the crappy economy should encourage people to buy handmade because the items are basically guaranteed to last if you purchase them from someone reputable. Cheap, machine made items are more prone to falling apart, becoming threadbare and the like. With things getting tight for all of us, it would be better to spend a little extra on clothing or accessories that are built to last, instead of the instant gratification of something that comes cheap and doesn't really last in the long run. Two, no matter the cost, I think everyone appreciates being unique. I think with the prevalence of subcultures in today's world, uniqueness is a prized quality.

I also picked etsy because of the value placed on community. I love being able to visit the forums, ask for advice, create a blog and have another place to communicate with like minded people.

Going back to knowing that I wanted to start my own business, I already had the building blocks in my head. I knew that I would have to network, promote my products and generally work my butt off. According to the post I read, there are or were more than a few people out there who couldn't figure out why their items weren't selling, and they said that they hadn't done any promoting for them. It doesn't upset me that there are people who think etsy will be super easy. After all, setting up a store is relatively simple, no special skills or knowledge needed. The important stuff comes into play when you want to turn your tiny corner of the internet into a full fledged business.

Generally, I would say that the population of etsy does a lot to get people information on how to develop into super business owners, but, I think that etsy itself needs to do a little more. I haven't been at etsy very long, true, so maybe I'm not the best person to give an opinion on this, but I wish they'd make decisions based on helping the people there get the news out on etsy. To me, that means busting their butts as much as we do. I want to see adverts on television, in magazines, billboards! Banners on other sites, campaigns that support independent retailers. I think that as customers, we deserve the same amount of effort that we're putting in.

So, thats my two cents.

Setting up a plan.

2008-07-06T15:56:00.000-04:00

I keep swinging back and forth between being incredibly discouraged and really excited about the work I'm doing with Brianna Belle, so to stem that flow, I'm going to try to do more fun and less tedious things in terms of promotion. I'm going to be concentrating on my blog for right now and as a result, I've decided to get my name out there and do ten features a month. Ten features of etsians that I really like, or the ten people who request features at the start of the month. I just put a couple of posts up in a few different places, so I can get as many people booked for those spots and keep people in the wings for the following months. This should be really fun, and not only will it help readership of my blog, it will help people who need traffic coming to their stores. I have to admit, it feels really good to help people out in such a way. I really hope it works well for everyone.

Downtrodden, a bit.

2008-07-06T13:00:00.000-04:00

So, I know I have four sales, but I'm feeling particularly downtrodden at this point...I feel like I'm really busting my ass here, and not seeing the results. I've read a lot of posts about waiting games and such, but I guess I'm not used to waiting for things when I feel like I'm putting a lot of hard work in. I guess I'd feel less bad about the situation if I was creating at an equal clip. At the moment, I'm spending about eighty percent of my time promoting, and probably less that that actually making products. I ordered a bunch of ring bases and cabochons for setting, but as I haven't gotten any of that stuff in the mail yet, I can't create. So, its me, being stuck here not doing very much aside from posting, posting, posting and reading about what more I can do.

I guess the problem is, I like to be totally swamped with work. Not in that messy, really frazzled way, but I like to be waist deep in activity. And as it is, I'm so not. Without things flying out of my shop, I don't feel immense pressure to create constantly and list new items like crazy. In spite of this, I'm listing all the supplies that I have, and I had one new item to list that I actually made myself, black crown earrings. I think they're pretty adorable.

Oh man, my fourth sale!

2008-07-03T12:51:00.001-04:00

I made another sale! I'm feeling pretty good about it, and as such, celebrated with ice cream for breakfast. I listed a new item today, more supplies. I think I'll list one more before the day is out and spend the rest of my day doing promotional stuff. Here is a peek at the new item I listed.

Oh, I also have another set of pig pendants up, so be sure to check those out.

The Power of Positive Thinking.

2008-07-03T04:02:00.000-04:00

So, my etsy store has been open officially since June 15 and I've made three sales. Three sales in less than a month...I should be more excited than I am. I guess because I spend most of my time toiling away in front of the computer being active in forums, on livejournal, myspace and facebook so I can get visibility, I'm not super excited. I read something on the etsy forums about the power of positive thinking, and it was sort of funny that right after I repeated to myself over and over, "you will make a sale, you will make a sale"...I did. I'm not sure if that has anything to do with anything...but, I guess it couldn't have hurt.

I've been thinking of adding handcast resin jewelry to my store. I'm shopping around for kits and molds right now. Beyond that, I'm adding a line of rings and pins made from dollhouse miniatures, provided I can find some that are affordable. Well, okay, cheap. Ebay hasn't really hooked me up with anything to my liking yet, but I'll keep trying. I don't have a craft store around in my neighborhood, so, I feel like my resources are cut a little bit because of that. My bottom line suffers every time I have to order something and pay shipping fees.