Last Minute Preparations...

Today will probably be the last day that I'll post on my blog before going on my trip. Tomorrow will be spent packing, doing those last minute shopping trips, a quick tidying up of the house with a promise to give it a good cleaning when I return (yeah, right ! LOL). This evening I'll put my Etsy shop and Artfire shop on vacation mode. Though with all the traffic my shops receive I wonder if it's really necessary, but guess better safe than sorry, would hate to have someone place an order and end up having to wait 2 weeks before hearing back from me. No, that would be a very bad thing ! Martha Stewart would surely give me demerits for that and, heaven knows, I've chalked up far too many Martha demerits already for my cluttered workroom and untidy home...let's not even talk about the weeds in the flowerbeds.

I have my fingers crossed that I'll be able to take photos and post them as I proceed on my excursion. I am thinking that when I return I would love to have a blog giveaway, have never attempted one so really am not sure what is involved or how to go about it. The item I am contemplating as a prize is a brooch (or broach, if you prefer). It is one that I made not too long ago and is handcrafted from fine 28 gauge, craftwire, tri-cut #9 Czech glass seed beads, Czech firepolished glass beads and a lovely 6mm Swarovski crystal bead. It took me 10 hours to fabricate. Please let me know if you think it is prize worthy.

My 2 Cents...

Photo above: One of my new pieces in my Artfire shop.

Realize this is going to be a little different but I received an inquiry in my last post from a blogger whose pseudonym is Melvin (a blog about Muchois a purebred Himalayan cat born with primordial dwarfism). Melvin asked:

How do you like ArtFire, so far? I just recently made my way over there and haven't been too sure of it, although the Etsy fees are starting to push me away so I had to try it.

(In a previous post I wrote about my opening a new ARTFIRE shop ) At first I was going to reply under the post comments but decided the question is one of general interest, one I would myself be intrigued with. So I've decided to post my reply here:

MELVIN -

As you know, Artfire has 2 accounts; a basic which is free ( doesn't have all the bells and whistles), and a verified which cost $12 a month. I think the basic could be successful if one has all the outside networking in place such as twitter, facebook, myspace, flickr, etc.

Like everything on the web one needs to make outside contacts or pay for advertisement to let people know you're there. This has been my biggest problem. I'm not very adept at social networking sites and seem to end up with a following of spammers trying to sell me their stuff while they have no interest in mine. LOL

But yes I agree 100% about etsy fees. The 20 cent listing fees sounds so cheap but then they encourage you to list and keep relisting so people will see your items and that adds up. Then when something sells etsy collects their commission and if you use PayPal it gets its 30 cents plus their commission. In a short time these "little" fees really add up.

I'd say give Artfire a chance, get the word out on your blogs and any other networking you have. All you have to lose is a bit of your time...shouldn't even have to take new photos for awhile as you'd have them already on file from your etsy shop. Good luck and please keep me posted as to how it eventually works out for you...I'll do likewise.

While I'm at it, I'd like to say a word to CaliforniaBlue.

CALIFORNIA -

I am extremely happy to hear how pleased you are with your purchase of the precious fine silver rose charms from my etsy shop, AlmostPrecious. They are one of my favorite items, as you well know.

You have done a fantastic job of creating a lovely pair of earrings with them and I can't tell you how much I appreciate your sharing pictures of the finished project with me. Both the necklace and the earrings are beautiful. I especially liked the way you used the modern gunmetal finished chain along with the fine silver and crystal, it brought everything together in a very up to date way. A very chic, hip, and fashionable accessory.

above photo shows the lovely salvaged treasure that CaliforniaBlue used to create a truly unique modern piece of jewelry.

California, I also love the fact that you used a salvaged treasure, by taking an older, outdated piece of jewelry and repurposing its components, bringing it into the 21st century. I know of several jewelry artists that frequent thrift shops and second hand consignment shops in search of such usable treasures. Quite often one can make fantastic discoveries in such quaint little shops, find components and beads that are truly one of a kind and unique. I applaud you for your creativity and resourcefulness.

Hope this, my two cents worth, has been of interest to both Melvin and CaliforniaBlue and most hopefully to all my precious blog friends and visitors. May your days be blessed with lots of sunshine, beautiful flowers, wonderful friends and very happy times.

Another Day Another Shop...

Have been working on the layout of a new shop at ArtFire : AlmostPrecious at ArtFire . I have my banner up and my avatar in place, wrote my bio, loaded the shipping info. Basically got the bones in place now I need to flesh it out a bit. At the moment there is only one item listed. Of course with the freebie version of Artfire I can only list a maximum of 12 items and the basic package doesn't have all the bells and whistles that the "verified account" offers. However the premium package is $12 monthly and so for the price of zero down and no listing fees or commission fees, how could I argue over such a limit ?

I decided to do a promotional piece, a gemstone and pearl, princess length necklace (22") with expensive 14 kt gold filled beads and clasp, at least $25 dollars worth of gold filled components all for $21 + S&H !

Six millimeter fancy jasper beads in a lush earthy green are use to accentuate ivory freshwater pearls, of similar size, while smooth, round gold filled beads break up the pattern and add a sparkling note of interest. Center focal bead is an 8 mm corrugated lantern bead flanked by gold filled saucer beads. No, not avante garde, just very classic, very traditional and ultimately very timeless.

I realize that not everyone appreciates timeless classic pieces but I have my hopes up and my fingers crossed. As I mentioned this piece is offered as a promotional piece so I'm actually losing money on it ( have over $25 invested in 14 kt gold filled beads and clasp alone). The promo price is $21 not including S&H (which is less than $3.00 and includes a gift box). Even if you're not interested, please check it out and at least give me a couple of "hits" on my new site.

Now I need to take more photos...and also figure out why ivory pearls come out pink in my photos ! Drat it all !!!