So Um, What's This All About?

Okay, so I started this blog about my Etsy shop a while back before I sat down and thought "so um, what's this all about anyway?" No one really wants to hear about how many pairs of earrings I made today, how it took me 2 hours to list one measly ring (really, it did). I didn't want to make it too personal, 'cause heaven KNOWS I complain about things way too much. I want to make it readable, useful, and fun.

So here are some ideas:

*Recipes: I'm on a gluten-free diet thanks to Celiac Disease, and I want to share with you some of the awesome recipes I've tried to show you how easy it is to cook from scratch (and to show you how awesome I am!)

*Great Etsy Finds: I don't just sell on Etsy, I trade (and sometimes talk hubby into buying) on Etsy. And a lot of times, I get stuff that REALLY excites me. I need to share it with all of you.

*How-Tos: Okay, I'm still not too sure about this yet. I'm not much of a tutorial person. Plus, I don't have anyone to film me. But if I can get it going, we'll see.

*Featured Seller: This is 'cause I love a lot of my fellow Etsians, I want to help them in their endeavours as well. I'm not just talking my little widget off to the side (which has been the same seller for uh, a month +), I'll do a little interview thing and post some of my favorite items.

*Giveaways!: 'Cause who doesn't like FREE STUFF?

So starting tomorrow (since I'm sick as a dog, tired, and a little brain-fried) I will be trying to blog a few times a week about the stuff that keeps me on Etsy.

Got anything you want to see? Leave me a comment and I'll do what I can to make it happen.

Thanks for reading!

Took a Little Vacay

Everyone needs a little R&R, but now it's time to get back to business! I'm still unpacking and doing vacation laundry, so I haven't had time to hit the studio yet, but hopefully I'll be back down there soon making more stuff to list!

I did find something cool in Idaho--evidently in a little place called Spencer, you can pay to dig for opals. It's a ways north of Idaho Falls, so maybe I'll check out Google maps to see how far it is from me. I think it'd be pretty rockin' to sell jewelry w/ opals I made myself!

I'm also trying to look for some silversmithing classes in the Salt Lake Metro area, so if you have any ideas where I could find some, PLEASE leave a comment or convo me on Etsy!

New In The Shop: Magnets!

I've been wondering what else I could put in my shop besides my jewelry. I have a host of other hobbies, but none seemed good enough to try and put in my shop, except for these--tile magnets.

Thanks to trip to Lowe's, a little alcohol (ink, that is), some Future Floor Wax, I can now help you decorate your fridge as well as your neck and ears!

How can you forget your child's permission slip is on the fridge when it's being held up by a colorful piece of artwork!

Magnets will sell for $2.50/each for now, until I can find the uber-strong rare earth magnets that can practically hold your phone book on your fridge. These will make great neighbor gifts!

The holidays will be upon us all too fast, so start your shopping now to keep me from having to go to the post office every hour to mail packages off!!

For LeRoi Moore

Anyone who knows me knows my undying love for the Dave Matthews Band. And those who know me WELL know that I cried over the recent loss of one of the founding members, their saxophonist LeRoi Moore. Such talent doesn't come around often, and when you lose it way too soon it's tragic.

The Dave Matthews Band has set up a memorial fund in his honor, and because I support the band I've decided to donate what I can to support their cause. For the entire month of September, $1 of your purchase will go to LeRoi's memorial fund for the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation.

Even though I don't live in Charlottesville and there are plenty of charities in my area, I want to give to a town that helped give me music I love.

And with that, I'll dispense with the mushy cheesy stuff and go to bed.

Want to be Featured?

Fellow Etsians, I know we're always looking for way to promote ourselves and get our names & products out there, and here's a great (albeit rather meager right now) way to do it! I will be featuring a different artist's Etsy shop for 1 week, no charge!

If you're interested in being a featured shop, please convo me with your Etsy mini javascript. Please try to format it in the 2 columns, 4 rows like mine. I'm not gonna have a seller on my blog show me up! :P :)

New In the Shop: RINGS!

I'm excited to say that I now have a limited selection of RINGS in my shop! I've been wanting to offer rings for some time, but haven't had the stuff to make them. I wish they were the really awesome wire-wrapped ones, but they're cabochons mounted into adjustable ring blanks. Either way, they're neat stuff! Get 'em while they last! Get 'em so I can get more stuff to make more rings!!

My favorites by far are my vintage settings with the painted cabs. One is rhodium-plated with a darling daisy & blue flower cab (see yesterday's post), the other is gold-plated brass with a daisy & orange flower cab. Throughout today I will be listing my last 3 rings, so check 'em out!

Welcome to the New Blog!

Well, everyone's telling me that putting up a blog for the shop is a good idea, so here I am! Let me tell you a little about me and how I came to Etsy.

I started designing jewelry about a year ago with no experience whatsoever. I ordered a bunch of beads and some tools online and sat down and figured most of it out myself. It was really dumb, if you think about it, 'cause there are SO many books out there on the basics. Of course, buying books meant I had less money for beads, so I did it the hard way.

Before long I had quite a collection of finished pieces--way more than I would possibly wear, and some stuff I knew I'd never wear. I hadn't heard of Etsy, but I knew there had to be a way to get rid of all this stuff! I knew I wasn't about to try and sell my goods by doing a yard sale or on EBay.

I learned about Etsy from some friends and decided to check it out. They said it was really hard to see there, but I decided to take the leap and went for it. I listed my first pieces on April 30th and am still plugging away almost 4 months and 26 sales later.

It's been a fun adventure, starting my own "business." I'm really aiming to make back the money that I spent (correction, am still spending), but it'd be nice to bring in a little extra more ;) Keep checking my blog and my shop often!