Watercolor

Did some water colors today. Nothing amazing, just thought I should put all that paint to work.

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So...

I got an android the other day. Expect more posts since not only does android have a nifty ap for Etsy, but one for blogger as well. Plus I can add pics right from my phone! Got to love smart phones!

Willow Tree

Browsing around Etsy today I discovered a shop that has done something that I have been trying to do for a while... and so simply too.

Willow Tree Minerals has a theme, and they stick to it. And since they sell hand made makeup that isn't as easy as you would think. How many ways are there to show a tube of chap stick or a bottle of foundation?

Their theme is nature. They took four things from nature: leaves, bugs, trees, flowers) and used them to create visually interesting setting to show their product. It is a great lesson in using abstract displays for your product.

It really is an amazing way to show off your work. I love it.

What's your theme?

Keep the Creativity Alive

Some great tips by Pikaland about keeping your artistic creativity going.
Some of my favorites from her (paraphrased):

• Fuel it with something new.
• Get a pattern going.
• Get some organization going.
• Keep lots of sketch/notebooks around for random thoughts.
• Pick something to focus on.
• Practice, practice, practice.

A couple of my own:

• Look at other peoples work to get fresh perspectives and ideas.
• Look at your old work and see how you can improve it now.
• Go for a walk down to the local shops and find something you can improve.

Go check out the whole article for more great ideas.

Blog Away

I've been so busy with school that Etsy has fallen by the wayside. Which is kind of terrible since I've actually had more ideas, more sketches/drawings, and more orders.

I have finished several more designs. I will need to post some items tonight.

Right now I'll give a teaser: squid, octipi, starfish.... think ocean!

Etsy Interview

Cookalas House Of Cards is filled with beautiful jewelry, and collage artwork. I wanted to get an idea of how she gets her inspiration and how she works.

What inspires you?
Color. Nature. A field of flowers, the salt scented air of the ocean, icicles glinting in the sunlight. Anything beautiful or colorful speaks to me, and makes me want to capture its essence.

Where do you work?
In a small, 6x6 alcove in my bedroom. It’s difficult, and always an awful mess! But I make do. I have 2 walls and a window wall – one wall is stacked floor to ceiling with my art supplies, my worktable is against the opposite wall, more stuff is piled under the window wall. It’s hard for me to just create when the whim strikes. If I’m making jewelry, the table and floor is piled with supplies I need, which I keep in gallon zip baggies and content labeled boxes. If I want to switch to art, I have to put all the jewelry stuff away and then take out all the art supplies I need. The setup is definitely conducive to creating when the whim strikes, but it is what it is and I work around it as best I can.

How do you find time for your crafting?
Well, honestly, I haven’t been making art for some time because I can’t find the time. I do make jewelry often, though, to keep my shop filled so my customers have lots to choose from. Jewelry gets made faster than art – it’s just a question of putting together the different beads and findings, and then stinging them together.

Metalsmithing is a different ball of wax – I do that outside on a large wooden table on the patio when the weather is warm enough because of the noise it makes and because it involved fire and chemicals. (I’m upstairs, so it’s really annoying to the downstairs people.)

The artwork is harder to sit down and make because promoting my Etsy shop chews up a large part of my free time, though that is going to change. I am an artist before all else, and that part of my nature must out if I’m to have any peace. I have a deep need to always be creating something of beauty. Jewelry fulfills that need to an extent, but my heart really lies with my mixed media and assemblage creations. So I’ve just recently come to the decision that I am going to put the jewelry away, limit my time on-line promoting my shop, and make time to make art because I have neglected that part of my nature for far too long now – almost 6 months. It’s time to get back to it!

What’s your day job?
I retired in 2009 after 38 years as a public servant. When I retired I was a Network Administrator but did so much more than just that. I kept the servers running, supervised the help desk, did the major software and hardware troubleshooting and also created data base applications for my agency. You could say I was a Jill of all trades.

Best marketing tip?
Create a shop blog, and use the social media such as Twitter and Facebook to promote, promote, promote. Also, make it your business to have excellent quality photographs of what you’re selling.

Would you like to be interviewed?

I'm curious how others get their artwork bought, sold, and marketed. I am really, REALLY curious how other people get noticed. So, to that end, I want to start doing a weekly interview with fellow crafters/artists/etsyians and anyone else who sells their own work.

I have a list of questions I'll be asking, and sending them via email. Maybe even a phone conversation or two. It really depends how things go.

This is new for me so I am sure it will be a learning experience also.

Blog-o-ramma

I heart paper posted a very interesting question in the forums of etsy the other day.

Is giving free products to bloggers a worth it?

I have never asked for a product because I feel like it's asking for a bribe. If I were a larger blog with lots of readers I would possibly buy some products to judge the quality of items, but right now I am just showing people who I find to be incredible talents, cute, interesting, or vastly under appreciated.

On that venue, here is something from "I love paper" that I have had on my hearts list for a long time, since I absolutely found it WONDERFUL, and if I had a kids birthday party, I would so get it!

School Vs Etsy

I've been quite busy with school lately. Three classes, several papers already, lots of reading, and lots of time in front of a computer.

The biggest problem I've had with my etsy shop, however, has nothing to do with school, and everything to do with technology, the evil thing that it is. My scanner, the most important of all of my tools, decided that it no longer wanted to scan my images. How EVIL!

So I have a back log of ideas that are on paper, and no way of getting them into the computer to edit, and use in my different creations. Frustrating.

However, I am using some of my work from the last few months to put up new listings, thus the set of mini magnets in a wide variety of different designs. So check them out!

Some Thoughts on School

I am taking three classes at Cascadia College this semester. Biology of the Human Body, English 102, and Environmental Sustainability.

The theme for my English class is food and ag, and basically the environmental sustainability of it all. The Enviro. course is also discussing this, and today in the Bio class we discussed water, its sustainability, availability... etc. etc.

Do we see a pattern here?

I have already been slowly shifting my ideas on food, consumer products, grocery stores and the like. In fact one of the things I loved about Seattle is that Pikes Market is just filled with natural products, small business and such.

Here is a simple fact: our economy is in flux. The big business model has one fatal flaw. It makes money by having fewer workers who do more work for less money, assembly lines, etc etc.

When you buy directly from the person who makes your item, handmade online or off, then you are giving business to that particular person. If you do so at, say, farmers markets or boutiques then you are cutting out all that oil based processing and transport (trucks, robots, assembly lines) and what you are getting truly has less of an environmental impact then what you would get at, say Walmart or QFC.

If you buy local products, or even semi local products, then your personal carbon footprint will be smaller, and you will vote with your dollars to tell big corporations to bring industry to your neck of the woods, not shipping it out, and shipping back the product, because frankly the shipping of things overseas is a HUGE waste of oil reserves, and another oil spill disaster waiting to happen.

And if you think about it so much can be done via the web now, transfer data from one country to another and produce the finished product in that country, cutting costs of transport, and being more environmentally conscious.

Anyway, that is my rant for the day.

Party!

Since my artwork is so apealing to little ones I thought it was time to do something bigger with them...

Thus the party pack came into motion. Little items to put in gift bags at birthday parties. Come to think of it, a teacher or anyone else working with children could use them as incentives, rewards and other things.

So, along the lines of children here is something I turned up in Etsy today that I'd really like to share.

One of the more interesting aspects of etsy are all the self publishers out there. Some indy, some how-to, patterns, and here... children's lit.

Here is The Boy Who Had Moldy Cheese Pizza Under His Bed by Rynski. Cute book, interesting title, sure to make kids giggle at the thought of it.

Etsy really makes it possible to do things you couldn't normally do, like showing your hand made books and selling them. Even with Lulu and amazon marketplace... Etsy lets you have real books made by hand be real people, and for children that is showing them something important even at a young age.

Another interesting aspect is that a lot of sellers will sell digital versions of their books for you to print yourself. No shipping, you don't have to print it so you can save trees. It really is the pioneer of e-book trading.

Marketing 101

I got this today:
"I wanted to invite you to stop by my Pixiekids facebook page.

You can keep tabs on new products that I design and make, as well as sale announcements and giveaways. I just did a hedgehog giveaway, and there is a link on my page to an eco-felt owl giveaway on a blog that I'm sponsoring :)"

So I thought I'd share it here. A good idea, actually, inviting people to your facebook page. Here is mine.

Of course the trouble with facebook, and all the other social media and advertising venues out there is that you really have to work at it, and I don't always follow through on that part. Working on it though.

By the way, Pixiekids makes the cutest felt food items great for little kids.

Mini Magnets

It's been a while since I've posted, but I've been putting together some new products, as you can see in the picture.

Several paintings and drawings later I decided that miniature magnets were a great way to go, not only the magnets but a great packaging to go with them. They are posted on my etsy, at least one set so far.

I've also been looking at all the promotional reading lately.

Honestly, it is giving me an idea that I will probably talk about later, but for now here is some great reading from the Etsy team that might just help you with your shop.

Etsy Success Reading List which has some articles about promotions through social media, and new years resolutions.