Another New Item!

This one's been a looonnnngg time coming! I showed a practice ring like this in one of my earlier posts, and that practice ring was one of my first attempts at wire wrapping. So this is the final version of it- I just got this shipment in for coral beads. They are 6mm and are actually reconstituted from recycled coral. But I think they give this ring kind of a funky edge! Or if a customer prefers, I can substitute the coral for any of my other stones/ crystals. I think this tangerine color is going to be really big for the spring/ summer seasons, so I think this ring is a great accessory to have!

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NEW ITEM! Orbital Ring

So if you read my previous post, you know how I have been struggling to add rings to my collection.... Well yesterday all of a sudden I was hit with a strike of inspiration for a new ring which I made and listed shortly after! After all this time and feeling uninspired, it hit me just like that!!

I have decided to call it "Orbital Ring" because it reminds me of little stars and planets "orbiting" around your finger. All the beads still move freely along the wire so it is constantly changing a little which I think is really unique. Click on the picture above if you would like to see the full description.

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Tech Support!

For the past few days I have been trying hard to find different ways for the average shopper out there to find my shop. I've been scouring the forums and decided to post some things I have found out about. Hopefully you can use one of these tips to increase your site traffic too!

1. http://craftgawker.com/ This is a new site that you can submit your work to (a picture and your shop link). It is a good site because they moderate the quality of work that is shown, so make sure your pictures are really good before you submit them! I submitted 2 of my designs yesterday and am waiting to hear if they have been accepted.

2. From what I hear, in the past it was a pain in the neck for sellers to upload their items to Google Base, which essentially lets your products turn up in Google searches. Recently Etsy made some changes and apparently it's much easier to use the RSS feed for Google Base. Apparently in the past you would have to upload each of your items individually, and then redo it every month as it expired. But now you can do it one time, where it updates itself automatically. I still don't really understand how all of it works, but I followed these directions and it was really easy. http://www.etsy.com/storque/etsy-news/tech-updates-feed-enhancements-google-base-and-more-3173/

Maybe in the next day or 2 I will see a difference from adding these sources. I will keep you posted on how it goes!

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In the Works....

Whenever I sit down to design, my ideas always come to me as earrings. I've had a couple of people ask me if I am EVER going to list rings and necklaces. So I am trying to get out of my comfort zone and make rings. These are 2 designs I have been working on using aluminum wire for practice.

For my mother's birthday, she requested for me to make her some earrings with large pink Swarovski crystals. I came up with this hammered hoop earring which I think I will list in my shop. I'm not totally in love with how the crystals are hanging and am toying with different ideas of how to attach the crystals or maybe to add some gold accent beads. Or maybe I just need to add some more crystals....

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BAMBOOzled

So have you become smitten with any of the items I mentioned in my last blog? Well now you can see them all (and more) in my Treasury! It's called "BAMBOOzled" and it features products that are made from bamboo. Here's the link:
http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=53467

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BAMBOOzled

This is a "sneak peek" of some of the items I have been TRYING to feature on Etsy's Treasuries list. It only opens up a limited number of openings every few days and it is very competitive to get a spot.

I have acquired a love of bamboo over the last few years, mainly in landscapes. Recently I have really begun to admire artists and companies that are pushing to use this resource in their products. Bamboo grows so fast, looks great in the garden, and creates fabulous products like the items above! What's not to love?!?

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I'm a Blogger!

I've been tempted to start a blog for a few weeks but haven't really known where to start. So I think the best thing is for me to do is just jump right in!

To let you know a little about myself, my name is Heidi and I'm 25 years old. Growing up I lived in Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Alabama. I decided to go to college at Auburn University (War Eagle!) and graduated with a degree in Architecture in 2006. I absolutely poured myself into my studio and school work and then after completing a year-and-a-half long thesis project that was only supposed to last 9 months (that's another story for another day), I was completely burned out when I entered the "real world". I decided to wait tables for a few months to save up some money and then did something a bit crazy-- I moved to Sydney Australia. I ended up staying for a year and a half and had some of the most unforgettable experiences. I worked in architecture offices and had a blast. I met lots of great people and got to travel to New Zealand and Melbourne. It is an absolutely beautiful region of the world and I encourage any of you to visit if you ever have the chance.

My working rights expired in November and by December it was time for me to come home. I was excited to see my friends and family, but unfortunately I have the worst timing in the world and the construction/ architecture industry has taken a turn for the worse. A lot of my friends and fellow graduates are getting laid off. I worked hard at the job search for a month or 2 and still did not have even a glimmer of hope. I decided to take a break.

And then one day I had a random memory of a friend's sister who handmade jewelry as a hobby. I don't know why it suddenly appealed to me at that moment but I remember thinking "I could do that!" The next day I went to Hobby Lobby and bought some cheap aluminum wire, a basic tool kit, and some beads. I immediately became obsessed- checking out Beading magazines, beading books at the library, and scouring the internet for free tutorials. Then I researched all the types of wire and beads and within about 2 or 3 weeks I had lots of materials ordered and opened my account on Etsy.

It's been about a month since then and so far I have 9 items listed on my online shop which I decided to call "Pick-Me-Up Boutique". I've had one sale so far (from a friend) but have gotten great feedback, and altogether I am really proud of the pieces I have created so far.

So although this blog will mainly be for my shop Pick-Me-Up, I have many other interests that I would like to write about. I would like to feature other artists' work on my blog. Being an artist myself, I have a huge appreciation for handmade objects and the clever people who create them. I love to learn about new techniques and technologies that are evolving, and will share them so maybe you can apply it to your lives. And I will probably write about architecture occasionally (my first love)...

If you have any questions or work you would like to have featured on my blog, please feel free to contact me. I hope you enjoy reading my blogs!

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