Facebook Giveaway Alert!!!

Are you a facebook fan of mine yet? If not, head on over to my page and check out my giveaway in celebration of gaining over TWO THOUSAND fans! Well, it was in anticipation of 2,000 fans, but in just a few hours that number has grown and I've reached my goal. YAY!!

Much love to all of you who have followed me over the years. This calls for a giveaway for sure!! So, I'm thinking not one, but TWO $25 gift certificates toward anything from either my etsy or artfire shops or from my facebook page.

That said, my shops are on vacation thru the end of the week so nothing to see right now, but the GC's will be good for 6 months. The rules are posted on my facebook page at this link so head on over! Will run this through next Sunday, October 6th. Thanks everyone & good luck!!!

Ready for Summer?

I know I am! Well, after spring of course. :-) Winter really takes it's toll on me. I'm for sure more of a warm weather person, which is reflected in a lot of my work. I try not to plaster my designs here on my blog, but this style bead is one of my favorites to create. It reminds me of the ocean and ocean waves. It's available now on Etsy. Grab it up if interested. They don't tend to last long. :-)

Bead Soup Blog Party!

YAY me! I finally remembered to apply to participate in the Bead Soup Blog Party this time around run by Lori Anderson. It's a fun event where artisans are assigned random partners. Each person then selects a focal bead, a special clasp & a collection of other fun beads to send, from which each person will then create a fun necklace, bracelet or anything else their creative minds can come up with.

My bead soup partner is Kristie of Artisan Clay on Etsy. She's a potter & creates such fun designs! I love her work & can't wait to see what she sends. And, no, the beads in the bowl are not what I'm sending. That remains a secret until they're out the door. :-)

Nothing better!

Nothing better than making beads! Well, there is 1 thing! It's seeing them used in creations by talented jewelry artisans such as Ileana Munteanu. I'm truly honored to see my beads used in such a work of beauty!

Etsy Treasury!

I am honored to be included in this beautiful treasury created by Mikki Ferrugiaro of MFDBeadworkOriginals on Etsy. Am honored to be included amongst these super talented beadmakers.

International Shipping

I know that some balk at sending out their beads to those in other countries, but I have to say, that it always puts a smile on my face when I send orders out overseas, especially Europe.

I've been there before (to a few countries at least) and I loved every minute of my travels. So, if I can't go there personally, at least my beads get to travel and I get to live vicariously through them.

Here are a few of my bead creations on their way to new faraway homes:

3rd Month Free With New ArtFire Pro Account!!

ArtFire has done it again! They've rolled out a new program. Go pro for $9.95/month and get your 3rd month free!

For just $9.95 per month you'll get unlimited free listings, zero sales commission, automatic product feeds, industry leading optimization, a full suite of management and promotional tools, a customizable store, and more!

There are no contracts. You can cancel at any time with no cancellation fee or penalty. Read the Sellers Choice 2011 publication to see how ArtFire has surpassed Etsy overall this past year.

Become an ArtFire Pro with this link and get your 3rd month free!

Bead Trends

OMG! I have been so bad about blogging, but had to share my good news. One of my skeleton key bead necklaces made it into the December issue of Bead Trends magazine. I've been reading this wonderful magazine since it's inception. I'm in love with their photography and am thrilled and honored that they chose to feature this piece.

I've been holding off saying anything until the issue was published, but I got my necklace back in the mail this week with 2 copies of the magazine so can now share the good news. Pick up a copy and let me know what you think.

Check out my new banners!!!

I am SO challenged when it comes to banners, but thanks to a good friend, Scott Bjorge, an amazing graphic designer and jewelry artist, I finally have banners for my Etsy shop, my ArtFire bead shop and my ArtFire Destash shop. I won't bore you with them all here, but feel free to click on my links to see his work.

Scott was amazing to work with. I gave him a general idea of what I wanted and he was able to hone in on the look that I was going for. Actually his banners give such a professional look to my shops that I'm not sure my beads will live to them. And did I mention that he also designed new business cards for me??

You can contact Scott on Facebook or message me here, on Facebook or any of my shops if you want more info.

Scott, thank you, thank you, thank you! You're an amazing artist and friend!

EtsyTwitter Shop of the Week - Crochetgal

ETT's shop of the week is crochetgal who offers crocheted wearable art and specialty yarns, as well as display mannequins. Valerie, the crochet talent and proprietor, also sells handcrafted soap dishes made in her family's woodshop!

Valerie is the sole designer and creator of crochetgal's crocheted offerings. She crochets each item with meticulous detail and is equally committed to customer service. She is inspired by "almost anything" she says, "from an interesting piece of material to a shape to a color". Valerie loves the flexibility and change possible with her craft as she explores various methods in detail. She says, "Right now I'm in my 'exploded lace' period with the crochet and have been there for about 3 years, but I see that direction changing within the next 2 years."

Valerie takes her business very seriously by setting both short and long-term goals. Initially, she defined a 5-year plan to make the business 'work' and provide an income. Her next 2-year plan was to double the size of the business. Her current 2-year plan is to double the volume of each year's business over the previous year. "It's ambitious, but without a goal in mind, a business cannot flourish."

A great deal of energy is spent during the Winter shows. She spends her summer planning her strategy...and relaxing while she can! In her spare moments she likes to tweet. Her emphasis is to interact with other people using Twitter, rather than posting continuous links.



crochetgal is celebrating
Christmas in July with
20% off all shawls
20% off a wide range of yarns,
(some yarns are net 65% off reg retail price!)
~~~~~~~
Etsy shop - crochetgal.etsy.com
Confessions of a Yarnaholic Blog - crochetgals.blogspot.com
Twitter - twitter.com/crochetgal

Are You Feeling Lucky?

I am! I just joined a new etsy team (new for me that is), EtsyTwitter and am very excited! It's a big, fun group made up of many talented etsyans. This week's Shop of the Week is SalonDArte. It's their 1 year anniversary and they are celebrating by offering Christmas in July specials all month long.

Tuesday's Treasures - Lune Artisan Jewelry

This week I'm featuring a fabulous jewelry artisan, Keirsten Giles. Keirsten has some beautiful pieces for sale in her shops on etsy and artfire including these:

Let's get to know Keirsten better....

1. If there’s one thing that defines you, what is it?
Well, of course there isn't just one thing, but what pops into my mind right away today is that I usually "march to my own drummer", i.e., I pay the most attention to my own "inner voice" (or I try to) for every decision I make, and this is becoming more and more the case as I get older. If something doesn't feel right, or I think it will divert me from a direction I am wanting to go, I don't do it. (Or at least I don't do it for very long!) Oddly enough this has always been something I've had to work at; my inner voice is often kind of quiet and hard to distinguish from other influences.

2. What role does your family play in your art?
My boyfriend is my best cheerleader--he lets me know regularly that he's proud of my work and what I'm doing to market and sell it, and he's willing to help with whatever I need. My mom is one of my best customers, and she and my stepdad let me know all the time that they believe in me and love my work. It's a great confidence booster to know they're behind me. They even bought me my first Dremel!

3. Where do you live and what is it like?
I live in a small resort town in northwest Montana called Whitefish; it's surrounded by towering mountains, glacial lakes and endless green. The lifestyle is pretty laid back, and most people come here for the lifestyle and scenery. Our summer playground is Flathead Lake, which is about an hour south of Whitefish by car. We try to spend as many weekends there on our boat as we can. We live extremely simply, in a very small house that keeps us from accumulating a bunch of useless crap, and we like that. I love small houses.

4. Where did you learn to craft or are you self taught?
Couple years ago I was frustrated that I couldn't find the kind of jewelry I wanted to wear. It seemed that everything I found was characterless and mass produced. I started making some pieces for myself and quickly realized I didn't know what I was doing. I signed up for Tammy Powley's email "Crash Course" in jewelry making on about.com, and started practicing those techniques. I found other instructions here and there online too. I found I really liked it, and had a lot of ideas. Too many ideas for just me to wear, so I decided to give it a go selling it and took the plunge in December of 2008, designing a little collection of pieces and opening shops on Etsy and ArtFire. Every technique I use I have learned either from online instructions, looking at other people's jewelry, or occasionally video tutorials.

5. How long have you been working at your craft?
Well, I'd been dabbling in jewelry making for about a year before I decided to get serious at the end of 2008. So I guess it's been about two and-a-half years.

6. Where do you receive your inspiration, in general?
Oh, everywhere. Nature of course--that's really plentiful around here. But sometimes I'll see somebody wearing an outfit and I'll love the color palette; or a plateful of colorful food will inspire me; or a building, or an oily puddle, or a photograph, or even a feeling I want to capture. I once designed a necklace around the carpet at the gym where I work out.

7. What is the best piece of advice you can give other artists?
Well, I'm kind of a practical sort with an analytical bent, so my advice would be to research the crap out of the practical aspects of whatever you want to do. If you are hoping to make money at it, or at least practice your art without it being a financial drain, figure out how you're going to make it work. Is there a market for your art? Where is it? How much does your art cost to make? Can you get your money back out of it? How long will that take? Do you have the cash to invest in it? Can you afford to spend that cash right now? How much time can you give it right now (not just the creating part, but the selling/business part too) based on your other commitments? Scale it appropriately to where you are in life; starting small is OK--just get your bearings, and don't put too much pressure on yourself. Treat it as reconnaissance! A little intelligence gathering sortie--and if it snowballs into a full-fledged business, well, right on!! Talk to other artists, find out what this kind of commitment entails. Choose a selling venue that suits your personality, and when you're confident with that, start pushing your boundaries. "Follow your heart" and all that is fine advice, definitely do that, but frankly your heart is going to need help with things like pricing, marketing and record keeping.

8. If you won a thousand dollar craft shopping spree, what would you spend it on?

Tools. 

Check out Keirsten's work at the links below:

ArtFire

Etsy

Blog

Tuesday's Treasures - Maybeads

This week's feature is Lauren Mazursky. Lauren creates adorable critters out of glass. Here work is amazingly life-like & adorable at the same time. Her critters put a smile on my face every time! :-) I mean, who wouldn't smile when looking at these:

Let's get to know Lauren better.....

 

1. If there’s one thing that defines you, what is it?

In terms of my beads - probably "kid-like".

 

2. What role does your family play in your art?

My kids will give me bead ideas and critiques (they go pretty easy on me, although once my daughter picked up a cat focal I'd made and she made it talk and say "hello, my face is too small for my head."). My girls are all to happy to give the "rejects" homes in their bead collections, though. My younger daughter is a bit of a promoter for me, too - she wears the chokers I make with my beads on them. She also gives them as gifts. In terms of the business part of my art, my husband is my photo sizer and business card maker, so he plays a large role. He's a printer, so he does the graphics for my cards and prints them.

3. Where do you live and what is it like? 

I live in a northwest suburb of Chicago. It's a pretty typical suburb. My kids walk to school. We have great neighbors. It's just right for us.

 

4. Where did you learn to craft or are you self taught? 

I learned lampworking in a beginner class at TLD Design Center in Westmont, IL, about 40 minutes from my house. I have since taken one more class that involved incorporating new things onto beads, like silvered ivory, murrini, copper and wire mesh. My critters are mostly self-taught. I learned a couple from tutorials (penguins and cows), and the rest I just kind of made up on my own. They're always evolving, though.  

5. How long have you been working at your craft?

About 2 1/2 years. 

 

6. Where do you receive your inspiration, in general?

Lately I'm inspired by dogs. I'll see someone walking their dog and I just want to get to my torch to see if I could make it into a bead. 

 

7. What is the best piece of advice you can give other artists?

Keep on practicing your art, and find something that makes it unique. But be sure it's also something you enjoy doing. 

 

8. If you won a thousand dollar craft shopping spree, what would you spend it on?

Wow - I'd love to invest in the set-up for an actual studio. My torching area is pretty basic, and I stand up to torch. I'd love to work it so I can sit and have a larger supply of gas and have everything more organized. And I'd also buy some more exotic types of glass.

You can see more of Lauren's work at:

Etsy

Blog

500 Facebook Fans!!!

WOOHOO!!!! 500 fans! Cause for a celebration! With every purchase from either my etsy or AF shop for the next week, you can select a similar or lesser value item for 50% off! Sale ends a week from today, on Memorial Day, May 31st!!!

Must include "500 fans" in the notes in order to get the discount! Will refund the difference thru paypal!

LA Jewelry Designs on ArtFire
LA Jewelry Designs on Etsy

Tuesday's Treasures - Haffina Creations

I am starting a new weekly blog feature, called Tuesday's Treasures. I am going to be posting some of my favorite handmade artisans each week so please check back often.

I met Haffina, aka Jennifer on Plurk. She's an extremely talented Polymer Clay and Jewelry Artist. The turquoise is NOT real turquoise BTW. It's polymer clay! Can you believe it??

Let's get to know Haffina better!

1. If there’s one thing that defines you, what is it? I dont think there is any one thing that defines me, I'm pretty much an onion - lots of layers :)

2. What role does your family play in your art? They are one of my sources of inspiration, and part of turning this into a business was to build a future for us all.

3. Where do you live and what is it like?I live in South Australia, in a rapidly growing semi-rural area. It is relatively quiet and my kids can walk to school.

4. Where did you learn to craft or are you self taught? I am pretty much completely self-taught, or family member taught. I read a lot and watch youtube videos and experiment.

5. How long have you been working at your craft? In terms of my jewellery design and creation, about 3 years. Chainmaille wise its about 2 years and Polymer clay is about 18 months. But I have always done something creative, including cross stitch, knitting, crochet, mandalas and painting.

6. Where do you receive your inspiration, in general? Everything is, or can be, an inspiration, depending on my frame of mind or what materials I am using.

7. What is the best piece of advice you can give other artists? Be true to yourself. Create what you want to create, the way you want to create it. Don't allow currently fads or trends to dictate to you. And believe in yourself and your abilities and talents.

8. If you won a thousand dollar craft shopping spree, what would you spend it on? Rings for maille, polymer clay, Czech beads, lampwork, Swarovskis, Gemmies, wire, findings, resin, tools, tumbler.... okay..can I have another thousand dollars LOL!

Here's where you can find Haffina's creations:

Haffinacreations
HandmadeArtistsShop/Haffina
HaffinaCreations on ArtFire
BeadsByHaffina on ArtFire
HaffinaAgain on Zibbet
HaffinaAgain on Etsy