Ok, so this post is inspired by a forum post I made just a few hours ago. Someone was asking about how craft fairs compared to selling things on Etsy. I made the following analogy:
"Craft shows are kind of like hitting your target with a cannon and Etsy is kind of like hitting your target with a sniper rifle. You can take your time with the sniper rifle and get 'em at a distance. Sniper rifles are easy to load, and a one-man job most of the time. Cannons are cumbersome to move, difficult to load, more expensive to bear, and require a little help maneuvering. But, if you're on-target with your cannon, you can do a lot more "damage" with just one shot."
In every war, many weapons are used. I say, when it comes to crafting, use them all!
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Monday, December 1, 2008
It's been a while :)
Hello Blog. It's been a while. Time to start using you again. Much has changed... much has not.
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=17769232
I'm a sucker for well-done upcycled items. Especially if it's something I NEVER in a million years would have thought of myself. Advent calendars are difficult to find... especially if you're looking for a classy one. Check this amazing advent calendar out by keepsakesbykristi... That's right folks, it's a muffin tin! Truly brilliant... and a great price!
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=sr_list_10&listing_id=18037580
I think the best Christmas stuff doesn't scream "Christmas!", you know? It's the kind of stuff that still gives you that warm fuzzy feeling of the holiday season, yet could still sit on your shelf or whatever throughout the year. Like, for instance this great upcycled bottle lamp from missdaisyw.
Here are some cool Christmas-related Etsy finds to look at:
MissButler makes these adorable fabric pillow ornaments. Some of which are religiously themed (I'm a sucker for historic-looking religious paraphenalia). These here would be cute year-round.
MissButler makes these adorable fabric pillow ornaments. Some of which are religiously themed (I'm a sucker for historic-looking religious paraphenalia). These here would be cute year-round.
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=17769232What a genius idea these are! Totally adorable, modern pincushions from carolinasquirrel. I think they are Christmassy because they would make a great stocking stuffer for a seamstress... like me! :)
I'm a sucker for well-done upcycled items. Especially if it's something I NEVER in a million years would have thought of myself. Advent calendars are difficult to find... especially if you're looking for a classy one. Check this amazing advent calendar out by keepsakesbykristi... That's right folks, it's a muffin tin! Truly brilliant... and a great price!
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=sr_list_10&listing_id=18037580
I think the best Christmas stuff doesn't scream "Christmas!", you know? It's the kind of stuff that still gives you that warm fuzzy feeling of the holiday season, yet could still sit on your shelf or whatever throughout the year. Like, for instance this great upcycled bottle lamp from missdaisyw.
Sunday, June 8, 2008
boy oh boy
I have found myself lately sharing my thoughts with lots of different people on dating, love, responsibility and respect within relationships, and the difference between boys and girls. I find it slightly ironic that someone who hasn't even really dated someone for like 4 years has suddenly become an informant. It's funny how distance from something gives you a broader and yet somehow more informed perspective.
Tonight a friend of mine said he thinks that a boy and a girl having dinner together (especially if he is paying for the dinner) should be considered a date. He said he thinks that it is considered a date. I had a lot of things to say about that, as you can probably imagine.
He says, "Well, what would make it a date then?" I said, "Oh you know, the statement of intent making it an official 'date', holding hands, the exchange of mutual or verbal affection for one another, kissing, and most importantly: that the sole purpose of the encounter is to 'get to know' the other person so as to progress the romantic nature of the relationship."
And I added, "Cuz, you know I've had several boys 'hang out' with me... and even pay for the food: as favors or as pay-back of some sort, and I would never presume to conclude that there were romantic intentions involved."
Of course, anyone who knows me knows that this is false. I should have said "I would hope not to presume that there were romantic intentions involved."
Therein lies the female demise. The mortal fate of my kind, the bleeding heart of the lonely friend, the "motherly" figure, the soft shoulder, the hopelessly devoted kindness and the self-less advice.
Sigh. Oh how my heart longs for days forgotten. Oh how I pang and pray for the gentlemanly nature of sturdy intentions, uninhibited honesty, unabashed passion and meek consideration for a soft heart.
I am consoled in knowing that these things that possibly bring out intimidation may some day be a blessing and a God-send to some deserving man.
Monday, May 19, 2008
Why are you looking at me like I'm a piece of meat?
Saturday night I had this costumed event for my day job to attend. My friend David was kind enough to be my date. He went as a California Raisin, and I endeavored to make this costume completely from scratch so that I could go as a "piece of meat".
I designed the costume on paper first. Using a female body template, I drew out the shape of a steak from the breast line down, and included basic shoulder straps. The basic framework looks like a thick, wavy A-line dress. On paper I could tell that just the dress was not going to be enough to get the message across. I needed something more... a hat! I drew out what looked like the top of a bone to sit atop my head. So far so good. I also wanted to include a small interior pocket on one side of the dress so that I could carry around individually wrapped pieces of beef jerky and tell people to "eat me".
I constructed the framework of the steak/dress out of flame-retardant foam rubber. I used spray adhesive to fuse all the seams of the foam... which was suprisingly easy but not completely sturdy. I purchased several yards of a bright yellow spandex to create the outer and inner "shell" of the dress because I knew that the raw foam would probably absorb the paint or not paint very well. FYI- when you spray paint synthetic foam, the chemicals in the spray paint (similar to acetone in nail polish remover) tend to break down the plastic in the foam, making it crunchy and hard to the touch. I didn't want that so I resolved to cover my steak/dress with the spandex first.
Now, ideally, it would have been much more professional for me to sew all the pieces of fabric together first, fit them snuggly around the framework of foam, and stitch around the edges to finish the piece off before painting. But, I was limited on time, and knew that if I got the fit of the spandex wrong, I would not have enough spandex or time left for a second chance at it. So, what I did was cut loose pieces of spandex and use the spray adhesive to simply glue the fabric to the foam. In my tiny, closed off apartment, I'm pretty sure I got a little high off the fumes... but that's neither here nor there. After securing all the fabric to both the inside and outside of the shell of the dress, I was ready to paint.
On the next day, I took the dress outside with a tarp to begin spray painting. As soon as I started, I realized I'd made a huge mistake. Remember my little FYI about acetone? Well, the spray paint began to affect the spray adhesive I had used to fuse the fabric to the foam. the edges of the fabric began to lift off and become "unglued". I did my best to press down the edges as i painted, but resolved to just have a really sloppy finished product.
I layed down two colors. One was a muted brown primer to cover the bright yellow color of the spandex. Next was a brighter red for highlights. After the spray paint dried, I took the project inside and used some gesso and acrylic paint to add the finishing touches. White was used to create the look of fat around the edge of the steak. I used a blue paint pen to make little veins in the fat. I am totally not an artist... but I did my best.
Next, I needed to create the hat. I used an old phone book and cut a bunch of little strips of paper. I had just inherited a manequin head (thank you Cat!). I covered the mannequin head with a plastic bag to protect it and made a little paper mache hat. For the paper mache, I simply mixed some flour with water, dipped the strips of paper in the mixture and went to town. After creating the cap, I inflated two small round balloons and taped them together, side by side. I affixed them on top of the cap and also covered them in paper mache. Next, alls I had to do was wait for the paper mache to dry.
The next day was Saturday and the paper mache hat was dry. I painted it a flat white with gesso, and added some shadowing with a brown acrylic paint. It kinda looked like the top of a bone, and totally "made" the costume.
An elastic band was stapled to the hat so that it would stay on my head.
But, I realized all too late that I had forgotten to add the pocket for the beef jerky! I just stapled a small strap to the Slim Jim can, and made a little purse to carry them.
The end result was:
Not very many people could tell at first what exactly I was supposed to be. I don't know if that's because it really just looks like a poofy dress, or if it's my artistic skills not adding up to par.
Also, not too many people were impressed by the beef jerky joke. Maybe in a parade or a large crowd it would go off a little better.
The shortcomings of the costume really annoyed me. I KNOW I am better than this. I was disappointed I did not have enough time to make sure all the edges of the fabric were secured before I wore this thing out. I am going to keep it and will make improvements before I wear it again. I will hand-stitch all the edges in the future and maybe even get someone who can actually paint to help me create the "look" I really want.
I was so worried that the elastic on the hat was going to cut off circulation to my head that I did not make it tight enough. I ended up having to check it and keep it from falling off all night. I will adjust that next time.
Also, I completely forgot my camera all night... so I don't have pictures... but I think I'd rather post them when I have a better-looking finished product!
I designed the costume on paper first. Using a female body template, I drew out the shape of a steak from the breast line down, and included basic shoulder straps. The basic framework looks like a thick, wavy A-line dress. On paper I could tell that just the dress was not going to be enough to get the message across. I needed something more... a hat! I drew out what looked like the top of a bone to sit atop my head. So far so good. I also wanted to include a small interior pocket on one side of the dress so that I could carry around individually wrapped pieces of beef jerky and tell people to "eat me".
I constructed the framework of the steak/dress out of flame-retardant foam rubber. I used spray adhesive to fuse all the seams of the foam... which was suprisingly easy but not completely sturdy. I purchased several yards of a bright yellow spandex to create the outer and inner "shell" of the dress because I knew that the raw foam would probably absorb the paint or not paint very well. FYI- when you spray paint synthetic foam, the chemicals in the spray paint (similar to acetone in nail polish remover) tend to break down the plastic in the foam, making it crunchy and hard to the touch. I didn't want that so I resolved to cover my steak/dress with the spandex first.
Now, ideally, it would have been much more professional for me to sew all the pieces of fabric together first, fit them snuggly around the framework of foam, and stitch around the edges to finish the piece off before painting. But, I was limited on time, and knew that if I got the fit of the spandex wrong, I would not have enough spandex or time left for a second chance at it. So, what I did was cut loose pieces of spandex and use the spray adhesive to simply glue the fabric to the foam. In my tiny, closed off apartment, I'm pretty sure I got a little high off the fumes... but that's neither here nor there. After securing all the fabric to both the inside and outside of the shell of the dress, I was ready to paint.
On the next day, I took the dress outside with a tarp to begin spray painting. As soon as I started, I realized I'd made a huge mistake. Remember my little FYI about acetone? Well, the spray paint began to affect the spray adhesive I had used to fuse the fabric to the foam. the edges of the fabric began to lift off and become "unglued". I did my best to press down the edges as i painted, but resolved to just have a really sloppy finished product.
I layed down two colors. One was a muted brown primer to cover the bright yellow color of the spandex. Next was a brighter red for highlights. After the spray paint dried, I took the project inside and used some gesso and acrylic paint to add the finishing touches. White was used to create the look of fat around the edge of the steak. I used a blue paint pen to make little veins in the fat. I am totally not an artist... but I did my best.
Next, I needed to create the hat. I used an old phone book and cut a bunch of little strips of paper. I had just inherited a manequin head (thank you Cat!). I covered the mannequin head with a plastic bag to protect it and made a little paper mache hat. For the paper mache, I simply mixed some flour with water, dipped the strips of paper in the mixture and went to town. After creating the cap, I inflated two small round balloons and taped them together, side by side. I affixed them on top of the cap and also covered them in paper mache. Next, alls I had to do was wait for the paper mache to dry.
The next day was Saturday and the paper mache hat was dry. I painted it a flat white with gesso, and added some shadowing with a brown acrylic paint. It kinda looked like the top of a bone, and totally "made" the costume.
An elastic band was stapled to the hat so that it would stay on my head.
But, I realized all too late that I had forgotten to add the pocket for the beef jerky! I just stapled a small strap to the Slim Jim can, and made a little purse to carry them.
The end result was:
Not very many people could tell at first what exactly I was supposed to be. I don't know if that's because it really just looks like a poofy dress, or if it's my artistic skills not adding up to par.
Also, not too many people were impressed by the beef jerky joke. Maybe in a parade or a large crowd it would go off a little better.
The shortcomings of the costume really annoyed me. I KNOW I am better than this. I was disappointed I did not have enough time to make sure all the edges of the fabric were secured before I wore this thing out. I am going to keep it and will make improvements before I wear it again. I will hand-stitch all the edges in the future and maybe even get someone who can actually paint to help me create the "look" I really want.
I was so worried that the elastic on the hat was going to cut off circulation to my head that I did not make it tight enough. I ended up having to check it and keep it from falling off all night. I will adjust that next time.
Also, I completely forgot my camera all night... so I don't have pictures... but I think I'd rather post them when I have a better-looking finished product!
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
trying to get serious
Today I was inspired to focus more on the items which have sold the most often in my shop.. which are the wallets. From my research, it seems I have the market cornered for this specific method of fusing plastic to make these wallets. They're small and cute and easy for me to market... I'm going for it!
Like my brother always says, "Keep it short and stupid."
I have decided to try this new style of plastic wallet which is more like a velcro change purse. I have made just two so far and they turned out perfect. These two were samples/gifts for friends so as soon as I make some sellable ones, I will list some pictures here!
Like my brother always says, "Keep it short and stupid."
I have decided to try this new style of plastic wallet which is more like a velcro change purse. I have made just two so far and they turned out perfect. These two were samples/gifts for friends so as soon as I make some sellable ones, I will list some pictures here!
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Go team go!
Ok... so I've looked up so me pretty exciting ventures having to do with local open aired craft markets. Some of them have a reasonable investment with what seems to be a high potential for turn around. I am excited.
On the work front, this means I need to get crackin'. Crack a lackin.
So... aside from ironing just 3 sheets of plastic materials for new wallets, what else did I do today?
1. I had coffee and a scone with Stephanie in the weee hours.
2. I donated my old car to charity... wooo hooo tax writeoffs for the self-employed!
3. I walked with Stephanie and Cat to Urban Outfitters and suprisingly didn't buy anything.
4. I came home with earnest intentions...
... but ended up catching up on the episodes of Scrubs and the Office that I've been missing.
Sigh.
Oh Zach...zachary... my little Braffy Braff.
When will you ever learn?
On the work front, this means I need to get crackin'. Crack a lackin.
So... aside from ironing just 3 sheets of plastic materials for new wallets, what else did I do today?
1. I had coffee and a scone with Stephanie in the weee hours.
2. I donated my old car to charity... wooo hooo tax writeoffs for the self-employed!
3. I walked with Stephanie and Cat to Urban Outfitters and suprisingly didn't buy anything.
4. I came home with earnest intentions...
... but ended up catching up on the episodes of Scrubs and the Office that I've been missing.
Sigh.
Oh Zach...zachary... my little Braffy Braff.
When will you ever learn?
Monday, April 28, 2008
I could think of nothing finer...
More dresses...
and wallets!....
I have been sewing, creating, and listing a lot of items lately. My sales have improved a lot because of it too! I was listed in the Gift Guides section and so my views have gone up dramatically. I had nearly four sales in just one week... I am all for keeping the momentum going, for sure!
and wallets!....
I have been sewing, creating, and listing a lot of items lately. My sales have improved a lot because of it too! I was listed in the Gift Guides section and so my views have gone up dramatically. I had nearly four sales in just one week... I am all for keeping the momentum going, for sure!
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Yippee Skipee
Well lately I've been making all these awesome dresses...
Here is my BFF Alisha modeling them a few of them for me. She was gracious enough to put aside a little time this past weekend (with her hands full with twin babies no less!) to pose for me and my Etsy store. Having a model made things so much easier, it seems. I was able to line up the shot the exact way that I wanted, and Alisha was so awesome- she was natural and beautiful through the lens. I just don't think that I am very photogenic!
Needless to say, though, an item of mine was just picked this morning for inclusion in one of Etsy's Gift Guides. I am truly excited about this...
...because it means that my store will be getting lots more traffic. Already, I had two items sell this morning and have nearly two dozen hearts added to my profile. Amazingness.
On a personal note, life has been really great. I think that my Easter celebrating has been fairly fruitful. Today I sat out on a coffee-shop patio for nearly two hours just reading. It was a pleasure book that I had selected last fall and had yet to even crack open. I would have sat longer and possibly even finished the book, but my butt got numb.
I also bought a bike and have been riding it all over. It's a pretty decent little road bike. I got it off of ebay for way cheap because I wanted a brand new one. I've not ever had a brand new bike before... I've only ever had fixer-uppers with lots of problems. I figured I owed it to myself. Especially what with the weather being so awesome!!!
Here is my BFF Alisha modeling them a few of them for me. She was gracious enough to put aside a little time this past weekend (with her hands full with twin babies no less!) to pose for me and my Etsy store. Having a model made things so much easier, it seems. I was able to line up the shot the exact way that I wanted, and Alisha was so awesome- she was natural and beautiful through the lens. I just don't think that I am very photogenic!
Needless to say, though, an item of mine was just picked this morning for inclusion in one of Etsy's Gift Guides. I am truly excited about this...
...because it means that my store will be getting lots more traffic. Already, I had two items sell this morning and have nearly two dozen hearts added to my profile. Amazingness.
On a personal note, life has been really great. I think that my Easter celebrating has been fairly fruitful. Today I sat out on a coffee-shop patio for nearly two hours just reading. It was a pleasure book that I had selected last fall and had yet to even crack open. I would have sat longer and possibly even finished the book, but my butt got numb.
I also bought a bike and have been riding it all over. It's a pretty decent little road bike. I got it off of ebay for way cheap because I wanted a brand new one. I've not ever had a brand new bike before... I've only ever had fixer-uppers with lots of problems. I figured I owed it to myself. Especially what with the weather being so awesome!!!
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Resolutions
Well, for Lent this year I gave up smoking. Only, I really just used Lent to give me that extra little push I needed to quit for good.
But, an interesting topic was brought up at church last week and I just thought I'd share it with you all. It was this thought that if the pre-crucifixion and resurrection period known as Lent is supposed to represent our devotion to Christ in making small sacrifices, then the season post-Easter should be considered a 40 day feast of sorts. Our pastor urged us to "add" things into our life in this season whereas in the Lenten season we have removed things. I thought long and hard all week about this and I think I've come up with a few good things I need to "add"... if not add more of.
I've been getting into really healthy eating lately and have been doing a lot of my shopping at the Dekalb Farmer's Market. I am including in my diet a healthy dose of fruit (those that have known me in the past could possibly hardly recall me ever picking up an orange, but honestly, I have been downing navel oranges like they're going out of style). Eating healthy is not just going to be a watered-down low-cal no-substance boring brigade, though. I intend to include as many whole grains as I possibly can, while at the same time eliminating bleached flours and white starches. Fruits, fresh meats and lots of spices will be the staples of my diet. I realized just this year that God has placed food here for our enjoyment, and that doesn't mean that I have to "enjoy" ice cream with every meal. But, it does mean that I should explore and expand my cooking and tasting pallette.
The other night while babysitting for some friends, I had a good amount of time with nothing better to do than read. It has bemoaned me for some time how I don't seem to read as much as some people I know, and how I've always seemed to wish I read more. I do intend now to put aside time for pleasure reading.
And this brings me to the most important part of all. My time with God. Me and the Big Man have had (for the most part) what I like to picture in my head as a "caption blurb" relationship. It's almost like I picture God constantly watching me like a floating camera or one of those caption blurbs that floats above the character's head in a comic book. God is inside the blurb and so he can also read all my subtext that's going on, too. The biggest problem with this bit of imagery (altho it might be close to the truth perhaps) is that it causes me to not desire more intentional time with Him because I feel that He has already listened to my prayers as I pondered them all day long. I can imagine if I were dating or married to someone who became so comfortable with me that after an amount of time they stopped putting aside intentional time for me or stopped saying "I love you," because it was supposed to be "understood" that I already knew the way that they felt for me. Puh-leazy. That junk would never fly with me and so why should I treat my Lord any differently from how I would like to be treated myself. My utmost resolution is therefore to spend daily intentional time with the Lord in outloud communication or in visible worship and praise. For all that He has done, even for me, it is the least that I could do.
But, an interesting topic was brought up at church last week and I just thought I'd share it with you all. It was this thought that if the pre-crucifixion and resurrection period known as Lent is supposed to represent our devotion to Christ in making small sacrifices, then the season post-Easter should be considered a 40 day feast of sorts. Our pastor urged us to "add" things into our life in this season whereas in the Lenten season we have removed things. I thought long and hard all week about this and I think I've come up with a few good things I need to "add"... if not add more of.
I've been getting into really healthy eating lately and have been doing a lot of my shopping at the Dekalb Farmer's Market. I am including in my diet a healthy dose of fruit (those that have known me in the past could possibly hardly recall me ever picking up an orange, but honestly, I have been downing navel oranges like they're going out of style). Eating healthy is not just going to be a watered-down low-cal no-substance boring brigade, though. I intend to include as many whole grains as I possibly can, while at the same time eliminating bleached flours and white starches. Fruits, fresh meats and lots of spices will be the staples of my diet. I realized just this year that God has placed food here for our enjoyment, and that doesn't mean that I have to "enjoy" ice cream with every meal. But, it does mean that I should explore and expand my cooking and tasting pallette.
The other night while babysitting for some friends, I had a good amount of time with nothing better to do than read. It has bemoaned me for some time how I don't seem to read as much as some people I know, and how I've always seemed to wish I read more. I do intend now to put aside time for pleasure reading.
And this brings me to the most important part of all. My time with God. Me and the Big Man have had (for the most part) what I like to picture in my head as a "caption blurb" relationship. It's almost like I picture God constantly watching me like a floating camera or one of those caption blurbs that floats above the character's head in a comic book. God is inside the blurb and so he can also read all my subtext that's going on, too. The biggest problem with this bit of imagery (altho it might be close to the truth perhaps) is that it causes me to not desire more intentional time with Him because I feel that He has already listened to my prayers as I pondered them all day long. I can imagine if I were dating or married to someone who became so comfortable with me that after an amount of time they stopped putting aside intentional time for me or stopped saying "I love you," because it was supposed to be "understood" that I already knew the way that they felt for me. Puh-leazy. That junk would never fly with me and so why should I treat my Lord any differently from how I would like to be treated myself. My utmost resolution is therefore to spend daily intentional time with the Lord in outloud communication or in visible worship and praise. For all that He has done, even for me, it is the least that I could do.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Project Felt
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
oh today!
today I listed about 8 new felted items... it would appear (were it not for my featured stuff) that my whole shop is now almost entirely felted things (which is a huge pun considering my shop is called SoSheSEWS, not SoSheFELTS). But anywho, I'd probably feel a lot better about it if atleast one of these awesome things would sell..then I'd know i was on the right track. I opened up a flickr.com account today.
http://www.flickr.com/people/11260891@N04/
It's pretty neat. I've hooked up with a lot of groups so far and can definitely see the benefit of it.
Can I just say... that I love this guy>
What is it with me a guys with big noses? I just can't get enough...seriously...Owen Wilson, Christian Bale, Jude Law...heck, I even had a thing for Kevin Spacey for a while... sheesh. Do any other girls out there feel my pain?
http://www.flickr.com/people/11260891@N04/
It's pretty neat. I've hooked up with a lot of groups so far and can definitely see the benefit of it.
Can I just say... that I love this guy>
What is it with me a guys with big noses? I just can't get enough...seriously...Owen Wilson, Christian Bale, Jude Law...heck, I even had a thing for Kevin Spacey for a while... sheesh. Do any other girls out there feel my pain?
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Back on the Horse...
Well, I have been off the carousel for a little while... I'm not sure why really... it's not like I'm busy or anything. But a few weeks ago a strange wave of inspiration hit me and I actually began creating things again! I started felting, which is something I've been meaning to start since I basically started this blog. I've made several new things....
The felting is fun and because it's got me in the swing of things again, I am sewing more now as a result. Yesterday I made two new items, a skirt and a sweater. I will list them tomorrow when the sun comes out again.
I have been struggling with this photography thing. Mostly because I like being able to do this from the comfort (and warmth) of my apartment, but the light in here is terrible and the camera I am working with does not take great shots unless there is a flood of good natural light. Photography is super important on Etsy. I am beginning to finally realize that a great photo of all your items will either make you or break you in this thing. It seems that your items don't even have to be all that wonderful if you just take awesome photographs of them.
I finally was able to get a treasury about a week ago, and as soon as that one expired, I grabbed up another one. This is the first time in like a year that I've been able to be online at the right moment to get one. Getting my first one was kind of a nervous experience for me. Seriously, I was like shaking and counting the seconds down until the roster became available! I included one of my felted items on the second treasury, but didn't really see the value in it... I am seeing that unless your item makes it into an article treasure in the storque, or unless it makes it onto the front page, the likelihood of getting more than a handful of clicks is slim. The real key to making it without being featured in a major way is to consistently list items every day when possible. I have been taking advantage of the Promotions Forum, but also that group is mostly people just like me- sellers who are trying to advertise. I don't want to reach the sellers as much as I want to reach the buyers!
| Etsy Buy Handmade SoSheSews |
The felting is fun and because it's got me in the swing of things again, I am sewing more now as a result. Yesterday I made two new items, a skirt and a sweater. I will list them tomorrow when the sun comes out again.
I have been struggling with this photography thing. Mostly because I like being able to do this from the comfort (and warmth) of my apartment, but the light in here is terrible and the camera I am working with does not take great shots unless there is a flood of good natural light. Photography is super important on Etsy. I am beginning to finally realize that a great photo of all your items will either make you or break you in this thing. It seems that your items don't even have to be all that wonderful if you just take awesome photographs of them.
I finally was able to get a treasury about a week ago, and as soon as that one expired, I grabbed up another one. This is the first time in like a year that I've been able to be online at the right moment to get one. Getting my first one was kind of a nervous experience for me. Seriously, I was like shaking and counting the seconds down until the roster became available! I included one of my felted items on the second treasury, but didn't really see the value in it... I am seeing that unless your item makes it into an article treasure in the storque, or unless it makes it onto the front page, the likelihood of getting more than a handful of clicks is slim. The real key to making it without being featured in a major way is to consistently list items every day when possible. I have been taking advantage of the Promotions Forum, but also that group is mostly people just like me- sellers who are trying to advertise. I don't want to reach the sellers as much as I want to reach the buyers!
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