If At First You Don't Suceed - Try - Try - Try

Somethings go quickly,  other things take time.  This piece is taking me longer than most and it's not because it is so complicated or intricate but because I keep stopping and reevaluating what I want to do with it and how to do it.

Several weeks ago I braided the Kumihimo cord using silk threads in pale sage green, pretty lilac and just a touch of deep, amethyst purple.  Then it sat while I pondered what it would become.  I decided to only use about half of the finished cord, making it into a center section of a necklace.  The other half may end up becoming a bracelet but that's not decided yet.

Next I found a Rainbow Fluorite flower, it was pretty but a little bland, much like a piece of clear quartz with very pale bands of lavender and milky waves running through it.  To enhance it I applied alcohol ink in vivid "Wild Plum" to the backside of the pendant and then applied a sealer - then to be doubly sure the ink would not come off I applied a coat of epoxy resin to the flower's backside.  Now it really pops.

 Next step was deciding how I would attach the flower to my necklace and decided a beaded bail would be in order.  Believe or not the pearl embellish bail in photo above is my fourth attempt at making this bail.  The first bail I used beads in the same 3 colors used in the cord (even went out and bought the beads - tiny little  Delica  #11's ) but found the three colors together were too much, too busy along side of the striped fluorite flower.  So I beaded another in just two colors, sage and lavender and still it was wrong.  Third bail was done using only the pale sage yet still it was not quite right.   Finally, on the fourth bail, I used the darker amethyst beads with a rainbow finish and, like Goldilocks, found it was just right. 

Of course the bail would have to be embellished and what is prettier than natural mauve, freshwater pearls?  How about mauve pearls with just a hint of real amethyst beads tossed in just for a dash of spice?

The ends of my hand braided cord have been tightly wound with a matching thread,  Nymo - for those familiar.  ( For those unfamiliar, Nymo is a nylon beading thread that many seed beaders use and comes in many lovely colors).
I speared the cord ends with super long headpins and then capped them with Bali style, pewter cones.  However I began to worry that maybe that wasn't going to hold it all together so I mixed up some epoxy resin and attached the ends permanently to the inside of the cones.   Sounded like a good idea at the time but once the resin dried I noticed that, just slightly under the cones, I could see that the resin had cause the threads to darken.  It  wasn't all that noticable but I could see it and at times I'm OCD , so more time was spent on trying to decide upon a solution and finally I settled upon covering that part of the braided cord with beads . . . amethyst and lovely, dark garnet beads.

 

 

Now this is as far as I've gotten on this project and already it's taken approximately 4 weeks - most of which were spent in decision making. 

I do think when it is finished it is going to be a lovely piece.  Just hope it won't take me another 4 weeks to decided upon how to make the sides of this necklace.

Box Top Fanatic

Okay I am ecstatic over  Kleenex's new design.

Strange?  Certainly !  But we all have those funny quirks that others might find, well . . .  odd or strange.  For me it was discovering the new Kleenex tissue boxes.  Maybe many of you have already discovered them and wonder why it's taken me so long to have noticed.  My explanation is merely that my hubby and I purchase our paper goods in bulk at Sam's Club or BJ's so we're not often found wandering down the paper isle of our local supermarket.   

My family saves Box Tops for Education coupons, doesn't everybody?, and Kleenex used to place these coupons on the bottom of their boxes.

Not a big problem but it made cutting the coupon out a bit challenging.   Normally I would undo all of the overlapped box seams and then cut the coupon out with a pair of scissors, the remainder of the box went into the recycling bin for paper and cardboard.  But now some genius said; "Hey why don't we put the Box Tops for Education on the top of the box, incorporate it into the tear away panel that protects the tissues? Wouldn't this make it easier for our customers to cut out and collect them?"

Photo above - New box top design with Box Top for Education coupon on top of box.

Photo below - What is now the bottom of the new Kleenex box design

 

 Right on Packaging Design Genius!  Whomsoever thought of the idea deserves a big merit raise as now it will be much easier to clip and save these wonderful coupons.

I have included links to General Mills' Coupon site and to General Mills Box Top for Education site should anyone care to check out their sites or browse for store coupons.

 ;)

Out of Africa

Out of Africa

4 strands at rest and not twisted together.

Not too long ago I created this multi strand necklace and have debated about exactly what to do with it. It is a beautiful piece created around a precious strand of African tribal beads. These beads had been purchased by someone I knew who had lived a few years in Angola, Africa and it was there that she came across these lovely, handmade beads.

Lucky her, she managed to obtain several strands from the village chieftain.

 

This particular village was primitive and did not have resources such as fancy, electric kilns, or even work tables upon which the bead artisans could craft their beads. Instead of a well equipped studio, these crafters either sat outside on the ground or they sat on the earthen floors of their huts while they worked creating their beads. Their kilns were crude brick ovens fueled by wood fires.

Making beads or a number of other handcrafted items provided an income for the villagers and afforded them a standard of living that provided them with life's basics;  food, clothing and shelter and perhaps not a whole lot more.

Holy - Moly there's a lot of 14 k gold filled saucers beads !

When my friend offered to sell me a strand or two of these marvelous beads, I jumped at the opportunity even though I had not the slightest idea just what I would do with them.  It was months later that I happen to mix them up with some lovely ivory colored freshwater pearls and some 14 k gold filled beads that I realized it was a winning combination.   So if one strand of this combination would be a winner, what would 4 strands be?  A  Jackpot !

Above photo shows the 4 strands twisted together.

 Since the African beads are a lovely rusty red, I decided what better to compliment them than rich, Red Jasper.  And so it was that I used red jasper to create links at the back of the necklace and fashioned an "S" hook clasp using a large Red Jasper bead and  gold filled wire.

Photo above shows the 6 and 8 mm Red Jasper beads and my handmade "S" clasp.

Okay, so what's the problem?  Well, I was more involved with creating a piece of art than something that would fit into my  usual line of jewelry and went out of my ball park on price points.  

The "Out of Africa" necklace contains:

·         2 strands freshwater ivory pearls 

·         1  1/2 strands  of those precious African beads

·         6 feet  of 49 strand, super flexible, beading cable 

·          2  gem grade, Red Jasper 6 mm beads

·          3  gem grade, Red Jasper 8mm beads

·         18  gauge 12 k gold filled wire

·         20 gauge 14 k gold filled wire

·         8 crimp tube beads in 14 k gold fill

·         8   jumprings in 14 k gold fill

And an incredible 162 ,  14 k gold filled 4.7 mm saucer beads. !!!   These beads cost a small fortune and if you look them up you'll find:

·         Fire Mt. Gems' best price (the 200+ level) is 62 cents apiece (.62 x 162 = $100.44 without the $5 S and H fees)

·         Artbead's best price  (for 40+ beads) is 72 cents each (72 x 162 = $121.50)

And so there is my problem.  With so much vested in materials I'm really hesitant to list it on etsy where many shoppers are looking for handcrafted bargains instead of handcrafted future heirlooms.  A part of me says; "Forget it, you'll be wasting your time and 20 cents".  However a big part of me says; "Hey, what the heck!  For 20 cents go ahead and list it, the worse that can happen is that nobody buys it".

I really like the way the choker looks with the clasp worn at the side of the neck.



I would love to hear any experience that you may have had listing something that you thought might frighten a customer away from it. . . or perhaps having something sell that you thought would never stand a chance. . .or how about those things you thought were fantastic but for some reason just never attracted the right person.   Or have you ever made something and then figured out the cost (like I did) and was floored by how much went into materials ?

 

Curse of the Past

Sometimes I find myself dwelling on the past too much.  We all have memories of events that have happened, some of them happy and cherished memories, others not so happy. Memories that we'd just as soon forget but for some reason the brain retains them and taunts us with them. 

One night, all alone with a mind full of memories that should have long been dead and buried, I  stood up and spoke aloud.  As the words hung on the air I thought them strange as though I had not spoken them but that someone else had uttered this incantation.  Quickly I scribbled it down and as I reread the words I vowed to make them my new mantra:

 

Curse of the past, be gone. 

Let me focus on today and forget  about yesterday's misfortunes.  The past is past and cannot be changed.  Let me live one day at a time,  to live today and not dwell over yesterday.  Let me remember and hold dear what is important in life - my family, my friends my health - and let me release the thoughts of bygone days for, like the word, those days gone by are gone forever.

Give me the wisdom to cherish the happy and blessed memories of the past and the courage to let go of the memories that torment me and cause me pain and anguish.  I cannot see what tomorrow will bring and the past is now history, but today is the here and the now. With every breath I take let me live today and make it the best day of my life. 

 

And to you my cherished blogging buddies, may today, and tomorrow and every day after, be the best day of your lives.

Summer Time - Summer Rhyme

 

Finally the end of the week

And pleasure is all that I seek

Please let it be sunny

And spent with my Honey

So come Monday I'll be at my peak.

;)

 



I'm keeping it short and sweet - love you all and may your week-end be a glorious one.

 :)

Here's a New Place to Help You with Promotions

So just found out my world isn't all chocolate chip cookies and ice cold milk - whoever made the dStash site has probems that need fixing. Thanks to a comment by Jan of Jan4insight , I have learned that my link goes nowhere. The listing looks great but if people cannot access the link to one's website, what good is it ? :( Maybe someday somebody will fix the glitch but I've a feeling that when they do they'll start charging a fee to list there. lol :D
 

Photo above was the item I had tried to list - listing looked great but the link didn't take me to it or my shop.

Hey there - I have some great information to share with those who are looking for places to promote your handmade items or whatever you're trying to sell. It's a site called dStash and they call themselves a Classified Ads site. It's free and there isn't a lot of information on "how to" but if I can blunder around and figure it out then just about anybody can. :D

You start off on the front page  of dStash and over to the right side there's a bar that says: Publish A New Ad - by clicking that bar it takes you to their listings page where you can choose your category and type in a listings title and a description.  You can add the URL to your product and even a UTube video if you want.  And best part of all is that it is Free.  

Something New and Different -

Had to share these with you.  Hope I don't turn anyone off because I'm hyping my jewelry, but  . . .  well I am just so tickled with these that I had to show them to you all.

I made these hoops using 20 gauge sterling silver wire and lots of Bali sterling silver coiled spacer beads plus sterling silver round beads.  They turned out amazing and I am usually not one to toot my own horn.

 

I just listed them in my etsy shop AlmostPrecious and these, being all sterling are more than almost precious they are totally precious. :)

photo above and below are taken on my broken display bust.  No she's still not fixed, but I wanted to show how nicely these earrings hang so I cropped off the part of the photos where the cracks show.   It works - for now.

  I know it's a bit different from what I usually create and I would love your critique and feedback.  What do you think ?

A Sort Of Cynic - Kind Of . . .

Photo - late afternoon sun shining through the clouds.

Life is filled with ups and down and no one ever said it would be easy or fair . . . this I've learned after many years of wishful thinking. 

I'm sure that some time in every one's life they've been duped or mislead.  And, come on admit it,  at one time we all believed in Santa Clause, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy. 

There is nothing wrong with having a bit of fantasy in our lives so I certainly understand those who strongly believe in aliens from outer space, ghosts, vampires, werewolves and even mermaids.  Imagination is a wonderful thing as long as it isn't carried to extremes, it gives us a respite from the mundane tediousness of everyday life.

photo- dark afternoon clouds part enough for brilliant sun to shine through like a beacon.

I recall a friend of my mother's, mom always said that Eleanor was off her rocker. Eleanor believed wholeheartedly in aliens and that she herself was a descendant of them.  Was I one to scoff and try to burst her fantasy bubble?  No way.  The woman was in her early 80's let her have her fantasies, as long as they made her happy and didn't hurt anyone.

As for myself, I'm afraid I'm a bit of a cynic.  I've gotten to the point that if I don't see it with my own eyes I tend to dismiss it.  However I always leave just a tiny space for doubt. 

UFOs ?  Never saw one . . . though I have seen airplanes, helicopters , balloons and even those paper sacks with a candle under them called "Sky Lanterns" (often used for ethnic celebrations like Cinco de Mayo or a Quinceañera) .  Yet I cannot believe that we are alone and unique in this vast, infinate space that we know as our universe.

 I also have not seen ghosts . . . though I have heard our house ominously creak, crack, snap and pop late at night (could the spirits be trying to tell me something?).  As for a world of magic and make-believe?  Well, there I'm like Fox Mulder;  I Want To Believe . . . but...

Photo - Every cloud has a silver lining.

May all your fantasies be pleasant and happy ones.  Dream on my dear friends, dream on. :)

Copy Cat - You Dirty Rat - You Stole Your Mama's Baseball Bat

Oh the pitfalls and hazards of selling online. 

Photo above from - https://www.etsy.com/shop/ThreeFiveEightyFive

 

Maybe it was 2 years ago that I opened my emails and saw a message from a site that I had purchased a couple of supplies from.  They offered a number of ready-made wholesale jewelry but also offered strands of beads and some jewelry making supplies.  Granted they were not on my favorites list as I had once purchased a supply of sterling silver headpins from them.  The headpins were the pretty ones with the fancy ball heads and were 2 inches long and of 20 gauge sterling wire. . . the price made them look like a bargain and would have been if only ....

When I received my order I found many headpins had lost their decorative little ball and I was left with several 2" long pieces of plain silver wire.  Other headpins in the package had the ball placed off center and were therefore useless to me. When I calculated the net price of the usable headpins that were left, I found I could have purchased them more economically through several other sources. After that I shied away from doing business with them.  However on this day, in that email of theirs, I spied the most beautiful string art earrings and it piqued my curiosity . . . I HAD to learn more about them.

I googled Peruvian string earrings and found a plethora of information.  There were tons of "How To" sites, from blogs, to craft-sites, to videos.  My search took me on an interesting journey.  An enlightening journey.

Once upon a time, back in 2006, two young ladies opened an etsy shop and their speciality was making lovey Peruvian String Art Earrings.  They were quite successful and their business was thriving. So it only follows that others began copying them.  Between the spread of crafters making and selling these earrings there was  also all those "how to" sites.  This helped perpetuate an avalanche and soon the Internet had a vast supply of  copy-cats selling their versions of these attractive earrings.

Photo above from - https://www.etsy.com/shop/ThreeFiveEightyFive

When I visited the original shop a couple of years ago, the shop was hurting, their flow of customers had dried up and they were no longer even offering their gorgeous handmade Peruvian String Art earrings for purchase.  It looked to be a very  sad state of affairs.  However they had determination and began making other ethnic types of beadwork jewelry.  Recently I revisited their shop and was happy to see they are still in business and have bounced back quite nicely.  Though they offer a number of ethnic type of beadwork pieces they also take custom orders for their famous Peruvian String Art Earrings.  And it's good to see that there are still people around who appreciate purchasing handmade rather that buying cheap, mass produced knock-offs. 
Oh and by-the-way, those earrings that I saw in that email ?  The site was selling them for 99 cents a pair . . . and , no I did not buy any from them.  :D  

A Tree Grows in Bradenton -

Looking back.   This is a photo I posted in a previous blog post.  It is a picture of  one of our young oak trees and in the photo above, it had been recently planted.  We had almost lost this little oak because the crew that planted it had left a large hole by it's root ball.  Without soil packed around it, the root system began to dry out and the tree leaves started to turn brown and die. Fortunately we discovered the cavernous hole, filled it in with soil and watered the tree well for several weeks.

 

Photo below was also in an older blog post of mine, showing how much the same little tree had grown. 

Photos below are again of the same little oak tree, taken just a few days ago.  It has grown several feet taller and much more around.  It even had its first bird nest this year - a nest of mocking birds.  John is not at all happy with them as momma mocking bird sings lullabies to her babies at 2 or 3 in the morning.

Photo below is of the same tree, only this time it is from the house looking  back at the backyard rather than from the backyard looking towards the house.

Photo below is of a baby oak tree planted about a year ago.  It was one that grew from an acorn that a squirrel had buried in one of our flower beds.  John pulled it up and it came out with a nice long tap root so we planted it at the far back of  our yard.  It may not look very big but it is now about 6 feet tall.  Guess I should have gotten John to stand beside it when I took its picture.  Yeah, like that's going to happen, John does not like my taking pictures of him for my blog.  Come to think of it I don't really relish having my picture taken either.  Perhaps if I were more photogenic. :)

 

In Memory -

In Appreciation for all their Service and Grateful for all their Sacrifices,  Memorial Day is one day in which we bow our heads and give thanks and prayers to all the many brave men and women that have given their lives for our country and for our freedom.  God Bless Them  All.

Wishing each of you and your lovely families a wonderful Memorial Day.

The Day of the Damned part two -

Yesterday I recounted my morning of a rather bad day. Now at this time I'd like to mention that about a month prior, I invested in a small display bust to photograph hanging earrings on. 

The bust was not exactly what I had wanted, the one I desired was lovely but at $60 (not including S and H) I could not justify the expense (especially since I have not sold anything in my etsy shop in what seems like an eternity) but it was what I could afford, $17.00.

When I ordered the display bust I knew she was a profile and would only have one ear but I thought the head  would be life size. When she arrived I realized she was life sized -  if she had been a primordial dwarf.

(As you can see, this smaller than life size bust measures 8 1/2 inches tall from table top to the tip of her ear.)

Though  she didn't have two ears and  she wasn't life size and  she hadn't been my first choice, or for that matter my second choice either,  she was okay.  She would work for what I needed and I actually used her in a couple of photo shoots.

Those of you that dropped by yesterday and read my first post, may remember how I was having a bad bead day and decided to try photography instead.  You may also recall how that morning dear snippy Mom Nature was not at all cooperative, blowing things off my make shift table and cashing the sun in and out behind the scudding clouds.  Eventually I gave up and went inside, deciding to try again later in the afternoon.

Time passed, the day wore on and the sun had passed its zenith and was now much lower in the western sky.  So once again I lugged out my temporary outdoor "photo studio". 

Setting up the folding wood table on the concrete patio, I began placing all the paraphernalia that my photo session would require: a few sheets of white card stock, a tray of earrings that I wanted to photograph, a ruler to use for size comparison, my camera and the almost virgin jewelry display bust.

Placing the bust first on the table I began unloading the other things. The camera was the last thing down and as soon as it hit the table, one of the table legs suddenly snapped into the lock position, it had moved only a fraction of an inch but that was enough to jostle the table and the top heavy display bust teetered precariously before it took it's fatal plunge to the concrete slab below. 
There was no way I could stop it, no way to reach out and grab it. I was frozen in time watching as everything seemed to be projecting in front of me like a movie being played in slow motion. I believe I may have closed my eyes as the display hit the slab and I heard the sickening sound of plaster shattering against concrete.

For the next 30 to 40 minutes I picked up broken bits and pieces and scoured through the leaves and mulch in the flowerbed looking for remnants of the broken bust.   Some pieces were never recovered.  I tried to fit what pieces I had found together but oddly enough (or maybe not so oddly as this was the Day of the Damned) the pieces just would not fit  neatly, it was like a cardboard jig saw puzzle where some of the pieces had gotten wet and were now swollen, impossible to fit into the puzzle.

 

 

 

Anyway I did the best I could, it stinks I know.  I'm thinking about filling in the cracks at the front of the display (not sure what to do with the mess at the back or that big chunk that is missing at the back of her shoulder)  and then painting her.  I do have some faux stone, spray paint (comes in 2 parts) but I'm not as handy with fixing up display pieces like my idol, Patty of My Life Under the Bus, is (she's incredible). 

 

Whatever solution I come up with, for the time being it will have to do until I've enough funds in my business account to purchase another.   Only the next one will be the one I have coveted, the lifelike mannequin with not one but two ears . . . and is not fabricated of fragile plaster.

 

And I pray that I won't have another Day of the Damned like this one for a very long, long time. :)

Day of the Damned part I

This is the project I was working on. 

We've all had them, those days when nothing we do goes right, those "Days of the Damned". A week ago today I had my day of the damned. It started with a project I wanted to complete but no matter how much I tried it just would not come together in the way that I had envisioned. It was reminiscent of watching a repetitious sports video replay: rewind (take apart) and replay (redo).   Rewind . . . replay . . . rewind . . .  replay.

On my 4th or 5th attempt I decided it was finally starting to work out but I would have to consider the piece I was working on as a prototype or a practice piece and start afresh with a new length of nylon beading thread as the old piece of thread was showing signs of fraying. 

Normally I keep my works in progress stashed on individual trays and usually my work bench will harbor at least two or three stacks of these trays. Without thinking, I lifted a stack of these trays in order to reach my bobbin of thread.

(These were not the trays that I had to move.  The top tray in the stack I moved held several little pots of teeny seed beads - size Delica #10's and  #11's  and Toho #15's - hundreds of seed beads in each little pot.)

 Naturally the top tray slipped off,  came crashing down on the floor and scattered teeny, tiny seed beads throughout my work room.  They probably would have gone much farther than my work room had it not been for the 4 walls that helped confine them, otherwise I sure some of them would be in Cucamonga by now.

 The next hour or two were spent on my hands and knees picking up seed beads. During this endeavor of hunting for wayward beads there were a few pieces of furniture that had to be moved in order to retrieve beads that were hiding behind or beneath them.  One such piece of furniture was a rolling storage unit. 

(Yes, I confess it usually does have that much clutter on top of it.)

I pushed it out as far as possible, which wasn't very far, and then I squeezed in behind the cabinet to collect the handful of beads that had found their way there.  As I attempted to extract myself from behind this cabinet I somehow, someway managed to snag an unfinished necklace that had been laying on top of it. 

Exactly how it happened I'm not sure, perhaps Gremlins, but the necklace shot off the top of the storage unit and most of the beads were propelled like buckshot across the room.  The beading cable, with only a small fraction of the beads left on it, dropped pathetically to the floor at my feet. So, back on my hands and knees to pick up more beads all the while hoping that I could remember the order in which they had been strung.

By now I realized that fate had not intended me to complete any of the many unfinished projects which cluttered my work bench, at least not today, and therefore I decided to divert my attention to photographing some of my finished pieces of jewelry instead.

Since it was a bright sunny day and my camera records colors more truthfully outside in bright sunlight, I proceeded to set up a temporary photo studio on my back patio. Dragging out a wooden, folding TV table, I began bringing out a few earrings, some props, sheets of different colored paper, a ruler (for size comparison) and of course my camera.

Unfortunately Mother Nature would not comply.  She was in a windy mood and her brisk breezes keep blowing the papers off the TV tray.  When I placed a pair of earrings on the rim of the glass she insisted upon jiggling them about mercilessly. Hard to get a sharply focused photo when the object won't be still. 
Then there was the sunshine, the sun kept playing hide and seek with the clouds. First it would be brilliant sun light, then slowly the light would darken and everything was in shadow. Time and time again the sun taunted me, darting in and out from behind the clouds until I finally admitted defeat and began bringing all the paraphernalia for my photo shoot back inside. 

I vowed I would try again in the late afternoon, perhaps then the wind would die down and maybe there would be less clouds. As I picked up the glass,  I forgot I had a pair of earrings still clinging to its rim and suddenly I heard the heart dropping sound of an earring as it clinked to the floor of the concrete patio. Looking down I expected to see it laying at my feet but it was no where in sight.

 

 

Yes it was one of those days ! I spent at least another 30 to 45 minutes searching for that earring.  It had dropped and taken an impossible bounce, landing under the bushes that bordered the patio. Not only was the little devil under the bushes but it had buried itself under the leaves that covered the ground under those bushes.  So I was shifting through leaves and had almost given up hope of ever finding it when I suddenly caught sight of a faint sparkle.  Gently I brushed aside a few leaves and there it was. Well I had found it so at least one thing had gone right.

I will stop at this point and post part two of this horrid day tomorrow as this post is already far too long.   But if you've ever had one of those days please do leave a comment and share it with us.

I Really Need To Know . . .

Anyone who has made jewelry for the purpose of selling, probably knows just what I am talking about.

You fuss over an idea, fidgeting with components, tweaking things to get it just right and once it's done, it's lovely. . . or so you think. You put it out for the world to see and nobody bothers to take even a glance at it.

It doesn't matter if the piece is displayed in an online shop or loving arranged on a display in an arts and crafts show booth. There are some things that just catch people's eyes and other things that people just ignore. But why?

I'm sure many have asked that question before and I am not the first to have it rattle around in my own little skull.

 

Recently I fabricated these long, swinging dangles.

It would take several paragraphs explaining all my design decisions, so let me just say, the finished product may look easy-peasy,  but looks are deceptive. 

It required more effort and time than I ever imagined; from making the earring hooks by hand, to hand reaming the holes in the "swinging" magnesite beads, plus I used more 14 k gold filled components than I intended to. All you jewelry makers out there know how very cheap 14 k gold filled wire, findings and beads are - right?

 

 

Once finished, I thought they were perfect, so sassy looking and with incredibly smooth movement. Surely they would do exceptionally well on my etsy shop. Wrong !  

 

I've second guessed myself many times on this design. 

Maybe I should not have used the 14 k gold filled components, perhaps that made them too expensive? 

Maybe they are too long? 

Maybe they are too dangly? 

Maybe watermelon red is totally out of fashion? 

Maybe no one appreciates magnesite? 

Maybe gold is out of favor ?

 

After listing them in my etsy shop  I did tout them on facebook, promoted them on Craftori, I Support Handmade, Handmade Saturday,  Handmade's facebook page and even went into all of my teams to post  them as my latest listing.  According to Google stats, in the last 7 days there has not been one single, solitary view on these earrings, they sit there with a big fat zero, zilch, goose egg, 0, nada !!!  Not even one accidental, "Oops, I didn't mean to click on that !" view.  I cannot believe it!

 

I really haven't a clue as to what could be the reason and would be most grateful to hear your comments or feedback as to what I could do to perhaps generate a sale on these or a least some views. I realize my photo's are not spectacular and the pretty watermelon red, which is more pink than red, only shows up in photos that were taken outside under bright sunlight.  Inside, the beads photograph as just plain old red. I tried taking my mannequin outside to take photos on but - well that is another story for any post. :)