Undiscovered Gold: for the little guy

Small business represent!


This past weekend was the first Small Business Saturday. American Express and 3/50 among others encouraged people to spend some of their holiday money in local shops and other small businesses in an effort to help mom and pop shops survive these years of economic pain.


In celebration of everything small, I introduce to you Le Petit Tee. A small shop, making small t-shirts for small people. Lefay Povey hand paints each baby sized tee with her unique art. Many of the images are created by her own son. There is a childish whimsy to the images and the names that coincide with them.

While searching for the perfect baby gift, Lefay was inspired to create this collection. She only make 2 sizes, newborn and 3 months. All her shirts are made of high quality cotton and she uses natural dyes to color them. Since each image is hand painted, images may be similar but every shirt is one of a kind. Lefay also offers to take her images and put them on any other shirt available.


Outside of her Etsy shop, you can also follow Lefay on Twitter. 

Blog Traffic, what do you do?

I have been reading tons of articles online on how to get people to your blog. Most will say to write about things you are passionate about, and to update often. But in this sea of blah, blah, blah, how do you find your eyes?

Twitter and Facebook are definitely one solution. You are on there anyway (well, most of us) so it is easy to mention the link and find an audience of people who are already interested in what we have to say. You may even consider facebook ads. You can spend as little as $1 a day to get your ads in front of stranger's eyes.

Another advertising option I am trying is Project Wonderful. You can put as many boxes on your blog as you like to create revenue, then spend that money on other blog's ad spaces. It is $5 to start. I paid my money a few months ago and have not had to add funds.

The one suggestion I have not seen work is the theory that if you visit other people's blogs and comment it will drive traffic to you. It is a lovely idea that I would love to make work.

What do you do to bring eyes to your blog?

Undiscovered Gold

If you are reading this you have an appreciation of words. I love an interesting font placed just so on a page to give a dramatic effect. Even better is a subtle visual joke. Maybe it is all those years working in graphic design, maybe it is just because it is so different from what I do day to day.

SwellCrafts is filled with such "swell" cards. Even if she took a pen and wrote these sayings on a piece of cardstock, it would be enough. The added bonus of these greeting cards is her font choices and clever little icons added to give that sense of humor.

Lauren, creator of SwellCrafts, is a graphic designer by trade, working in print, web and video. She even has published photographer in her resume! She lives in Arkansas where all of these cards are made by hand and can be customized by request.

The cards are reasonably priced and are made on textured white cardstock. They come with a matching envelope and are tied together with a piece of organic hemp.

Want more? You can find her full design portfolio online, read her blog, and follow her on twitter.  

Handmade Shop of the Week: Honey from the Bee

Janet Bocciardi opened Honey from the Bee in 2008. In a landscape overflowing with jewelry, she stands out; combining metalwork, beading and color.

Why did you decide to open your handmade shop? 
Jewelry was multiplying and I was losing control! Seriously, I love creating and finding new stones and objects to include in my jewelry. In order to do that, I had to start bringing in some money. After a couple years of successful art fairs, selling to friends and family, and a change in lifestyle that made it difficult to find the time to do future fairs, I decided to go online. It’s been a learning experience, as I spent the first year wondering where everyone was! Just having a stocked shop doesn’t mean folks that will love your work will find you.

Has your inventory changed much since you first opened? 
Yes. I love to learn new things and as I gain new knowledge in techniques I add them to my repertoire of things to pull out of my hat. You’ll find more metalwork and found object pieces now then say 2 years ago. However, I still like to do beadwork and love color, so beads will always be a part of my work.

Who are the majority of your customers? 
Since I don’t meet my online customers face-to-face I’ll just assume they’re similar to those I met through my shows. In fact, those that bought from me there do buy online from me now either directly or with special commissions. Other artists also will buy from me.

They are 25-70 year olds that are confident in who they are and like to wear jewelry that inspires them. They enjoy the interaction they get from others who can’t help but stop them to ask about the jewelry piece they’re wearing. Life’s too short to wear boring jewelry!

Friends and family were my first fans and still some of my biggest.

How did they find you?
my blog http://thehoneyfromthebee.blogspot.com
Repeat customers
Google search
Word of mouth
Etsy, ArtFire, 1000Markets
Newsletter subscribers

What inspires you to create?
Life is the simple answer. A longer answer would be that my love for nature, protecting the environment, family, emotional experiences, new techniques, color, … my favorites to create are those in which I’m telling a story. My story initially, but the most exciting thing happens when the absolutely perfect person finds it and believes somehow I made it just for them. That’s the universal condition isn’t it?

Touching someone with something you’ve created is the best feeling I’ve ever experienced.

What is your favorite item in your shop currently? 

I have a couple that I’ll probably regret selling so I guess they’d be my favorites:
Marie Antoinette bracelet: http://www.etsy.com/listing/33319309/vintage-mother-of-pearl-and-crystal 
And
Happening at the Barnyard as it reminds me of my youth and hanging out and playing in our big red barn:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/16212620/picasso-ammonite-set-in-silver-and-red 

Your most popular item? 
My jewelry is almost all one-of-a-kind, but overall I’d say my earrings are the most popular over the last year. Sign of the economy perhaps or that we all can use another cute pair!

What has been your greatest resource to make your shop successful? 
Facebook and I believe my blog, which I’ve finally accepted and really enjoy posting in. It’s probably not a coincidence that they are both ways for people to get to know me and what makes me tick.

Any changes coming to your shop in the future? 
There will always be new work popping up. I try to improve my photographs constantly to make it easier for customers to see what they’re buying. Change is a necessity, but I don’t have anything else I can think of right now.

How else can we find you online? 
http://honeyfromthebee.artfire.com
http://honeyfromthebee.1000markets.com
http://thehoneyfromthebee.blogspot.com
http://twitter.com/honeyfromthebee
http://facebook.com/honeyfromthebee
http://www.honeyfromthebee.com

Any team affiliations?
EtsyTwitter Team
Olympic Peninsula Team (Etsy)
HAFTeam (Etsy & ArtFire)
Pacific Northwest (ArtFire)
ArtFire Metalsmiths

LET'S DO A GIVEAWAY!

Janet wants you to follow her blog to get the latest happenings at Honey from the Bee. If you sign up between now and July 28th and leave a comment here and on her wall, you will be entered to win a pair of her gorgeous Ginger Jar Earrings. She will even let you pick out your favorite color to make them a one-of-a-kind item!

Interested in being shop of the week? email me for information.

Sell Your Soul

lessons from my first year in the handmade community

Today is the first anniversary of my Etsy shop, http://traceyknits.etsy.com. As with any business, it has been a mountain of lessons learned and lots of hard work. I thought today i would share some of the information I have gathered over the last 365 days. Some you may have heard a million times before, others may be new to you, and bits may not apply to you at all. Whatever your experience level, i hope you get a little something out of it.

1. Get started! You may be thinking, that is not really a lesson, but it really is. If you don’t just jump in you will never know if you can make it. I have had many surprising successes and failures but I would have never known if I didn’t try. 
2. Research! My goodness, did I read everything. Etsy provides ALOT of very helpful information for its sellers and you should take the time to read it all. After you have finished that, do a google search and read anything you find there. Be sure to look up sellers who make similar items to yours, if they exist, and see if they share any advice.
3. Create Handmade! It is easy enough if you like what you are doing to do it every day, so do it. 
4. Share! I cannot extol the virtues of sharing your work enough. Just listing things on Etsy is not enough. You must have a twitter account, facebook account, and flickr account. You must list your name on twibs.com (twitter business directory), wefollow.com (get followers), twellow.com (twitter yellow pages). Facebook offers an app where you can connect your etsy shop to your facebook profile, do it! PS: you never know what a google search will pick up on, so the more places you talk about yourself, the more likely someone will find you.
5. Make friends! It is just a nice way of saying “networking”. If you talk about their amazing work to your friends and family, they are sure to do the same. I can’t tell you how many times I have been talking at a craft fair and suggested another etsian who would be a perfect choice for them.
6. Photos make or break it! Take the time to take great photographs and choose the best SQUARE image as your featured picture. I cant tell you the jump in sales I had when i retook the vast majority of my golf club covers. PS: not everyone will buy pre-worn hats or clothing, so make sure to put in the listing if this is the item they will receive or if you can make a new one for them.
7. Tag, your it! Google searches find your items based on the tags you choose. If you have researched the competition, you know how the best sellers label their items. My Yoda golf club cover is knit, used for sports, and is loved by geeks. How would I tag it? EVERYTHING! Plus I make sure to include things like Star Wars, Jedi, driver, and green. You never know what will be that thing that will connect you with that customer.
8. Work every day! Yes, no vacations. Even when i wasn’t knitting or designing a new pattern, I was tweeting, I was writing on my blog, I was listing and relisting items. I have a web enabled phone so i can check for sales or respond to inquiries no matter  where I am. I have NEVER put my shop in vacation mode, even when on vacation.
9. Take advantage of free opportunities! OMG, they are everywhere. I do an article every Monday about another etsy shop and share it with my followers, and I am not the only one! I have had my shop talked about on blogs just by responding to people who want to talk about handmade items. Again, the more you are talked about, the higher you come up on google searches. I have made the mistake of paying to be featured, a mistake I will not make again. 
10. That costs what? Pay yourself fairly! I cannot charge what I deserve for my hand knit items. It is an unfortunate problem for knitters everywhere. SO I started selling the patterns! Now knitters can share the fun experience of creating my golf club covers and hats and non-knitters can buy one already made. It has reduced my shipping costs and increased my sales. I still get to do what I love, but I get paid more of what I deserve.

have a great piece of advice you would like to share? i would love to hear your comments!

Handmade Shop of the Week: Not Your Mama's Mix

Kim and Charissa White, of Not Your Mama's Mix, love baking cookies.
They have been offering their bake mixes online since April 18, 2010. Just a short time, but with great pictures that make your mouth water, they are bound to take the handmade market by storm!

Why did you decide to open your handmade shop?
As a mother-daughter pair, we enjoy cooking and baking in daily life, so opening our Etsy shop was a logical decision. Friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers have enjoyed the fruits of our baking labors for years, so we finally decided to make their baking attempts more successful by offering our Mixes.

Has your inventory changed much since you first opened?
We are excited to add more Mixes and exciting and unusual flavor combinations to our shop in the weeks and months ahead.

Who are the majority of your customers? How did they find you?
Our customers so far have been from our postings on Facebook, and sending emails to all our contacts. Twitter, our blog, and handing out samples have gained us shop interest and even a wholesale order in our first week in business.

What inspires you to create?
The changing seasons, flavors and unusual ways to combine them, colors, scents, and seeing the reactions customers get from trying or products.

What is your favorite item in your shop currently? Your most popular item?
Gooey Chocolate Toffee Mug Cake Mix by far! It is so easy to make a delicious dessert-cake-in 2 1/2 minutes! It is a huge hit with our customers and a personal favorite.

What has been your greatest resource to make your shop successful?
Baking skill, attention to detail, an understanding of social media, being proud of what we create and being unafraid to share what we do with everyone!

Any changes coming to your shop in the future?
Keep an eye out for new Mixes, and exciting things coming for the holidays!

How else can we find you online? Any team affiliations?
http://twitter.com/kimwcreations
http://twitter.com/auntienenner
http://www.facebook.com/kimwhitecreations
http://www.facebook.com/charissa.white
http://kimwhitecreations.tumblr.com
http://www.notyourmamasmix.com
Proud members of the EtsyTwitter Team and The OOTBS Etsy team

LETS DO A GIVEAWAY: 
Simply Tweet about your favorite product from Not Your Momma's Mix and use the hashtag #notyourmamasmix
to win Two Gooey Chocolate Toffee Mug Cake Mixes AND Two Double Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Mug Cake Mixes!

Interested in being featured? Email me for information.

Handmade Shop of the Week: Paradise Purls

Elizabeth Humphries, of Paradise Purls, loves handmade. She loves it so much that she could not limit herslef to one category. She has been selling both Hand Knits and Handcrafted Jewelry since January 8, 2010.

Why did you decide to open your handmade shop? 

I've always made knits and given them to close friends and family. When friends of friends starting asking if I "was on etsy" I decided to find out what that was! One look and I was hooked as a shopper, and it didn't take long to progress to opening shop. I thoroughly enjoy knitting as well as beading so I'm excited for the opportunity to bring my creations to the handmade community.


Has your inventory changed much since you first opened?

 

In the beginning, my inventory was mainly baby hats and scarves. As the seasons, changed my inventory needed to change with it. Most recently I've added knitted bracelets and beaded jewelry and bookmarks in addition to my knits.

Who are the majority of your customers? 

Fellow etsians and friends (and friends of friends!).

How did they find you?
 

I spend a significant amount of time promoting my shop on twitter, facebook and in the etsy forums. Most of my customers come from those sources.

What inspires you to create?


Color and texture! I love shopping for yarn. It's always first the color, then the texture of the yarn that draws me in. I also take note of colors that occur in nature and draw inspiration from that beauty as well. On a selfish note, knitting is very calming to me. I knit to relax as well as to create!

What is your favorite item in your shop currently? 

The "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" Chenille Scarf is my favorite. I'm seriously thinking of keeping it! Your most popular item?

Right now my most popular item are the hand knit bracelets. 

What has been your greatest resource to make your shop successful? 

Time...time to invest in marketing and promoting to get some exposure and to get noticed.

Any changes coming to your shop in the future? 

I am working on several additions at the moment. I'll be adding more knit accessories such as coffee sleeves (very eco-friendly!), possibly ipod/cell phone cozies and eventually some felted soaps.

How else can we find you online? Any team affiliations?

http://www.paradisepurls.blogspot.com 

http://www.twitter.com/paradisepurls

http:www.facebook.com/paradisepurls
And, yes, I'm a member of the Etsyknitters Team, HAF Etsy Team (Handmade Artists' Forum), and BEST (Boosting Etsy Shops Team)

DISCOUNT TIME!

All this week, Paradise Purls is proud to offer a 15% discount to anyone mentioning TRACEYKNITS at the time of purchase. She will refund the money through paypal. This is good on every item in her shop, so stock up on those adorable hats and scarves!

Interested in being featured? Email me for information.

Handmade Shop of the Week: Jenco13

Jennifer Kuebrich, of Jenco13, loves to crochet. Her shop featuring adorable coffee cozies and scarves opened January 19, 2008  but didn’t start selling till 2009. Who knew you could save the earth one cup cozie at a time?

Why did you decide to open your handmade shop? 
I opened up my shop because while my husband served in Iraq I made too many scarves. I didn’t know what to do with them until one of my mom’s friends told me about etsy. I spent a year research etsy and figuring out how to put my shop together. Now I have a new reason to keep doing the art I love so much!

Has your inventory changed much since you first opened?
Yes it has—orginally I only had scarves. Since then I have done baby sweaters, baby blankets, shawls and cup cozies. The cup cozies seem to be really popular from my shop.

Who are the majority of your customers? How did they find you?
Most of my customers come from the United States. I have made a couple of international sales this year as well.

First off I have to thank the Etsy Twitter Team (ETT)and MaryMary from Etsy. The ETT is a team on Etsy and they have been a huge support and helped me with advertisements and setting goals for my shop. My first sale came from and ETT member! MaryMary helps customers on etsy find weekend deals through her picks. She had picked up my sale twice this last year. This helped bring in most of my sales.

What inspires you to create? 
Many things inspire me to create. My mom is a graphic artist and painter. She has taught me a lot about putting colors together and always tells me never to give up. My husband, Joe always tells me if things look right from a different point of view and is very supportive of what I do. The two of us have traveled the country so the colors on our road trips are also big inspirations. I love to sight see while he drives!!

I also find inspiration from my Dad who owns his own construction company. Dad’s final product always inspires me to try different things that I think I can’t do. Its amazing how all three of these people help me to create my items!

What is your favorite item in your shop currently? Your most popular item? 
Hmmm. This is a tough one cause I love them all!! I really do like my shawl though—the colors are really amazing and it was created on one of my road trips across the east coast.

My most popular item is the cup cozy—did you know by using one of the cup cozies you can help the plant out? If you drink one cup of coffee a day in a take through and use one of the cardboard sleaves take a moment to think about this—one person+one cup of coffee a day = 6 pounds of cardboard sleaves in the landfills each year!

What has been your greatest resource to make your shop successful? 
Twitter—hands down! The people who are on the Etsy Twitter Team help me promote my sales/items after I post a tweet. This reaches not only my following but also their following. I have met so many amazing people on twitter.

Any changes coming to your shop in the future? 
Yes there are—but you’ll have to come back to find out what I have up my sleave for 2010! Hint—theres a new go green line coming out and one other line ;)

Also I love to get custom orders so if you don’t see what you want please convo me and I would be happy to help out!

How else can we find you online? Any team affiliations?
Several ways:
Shop: www.jenco13.etsy.com A gift for everyone!
Twitter: http://twitter.com/jenco13
Blog: http://jenco13.blogspot.com
FB: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jenco13/116522301149?ref=mf

I am also the Team leader of the Etsy Twitter Team so please come check out our blog where we show case over 200 member’s work.
http://etsytwitter.blogspot.com/

LETS DO A GIVEAWAY!

Jenco13 is giving away one of her adorable cup cozies. Contest ends May 9th, 2010

Each action gets you the number of points indicated:
Follow this blog-1 point
Follow Jen’s blog-1 point
Follow Jen on FB-2 points
Tweet about Jen’s giveaway by using @jenco13 and receive 3 points
(must use @jenco13 in order to receive all points)
Follow Jen on twitter – 1 point (please DM her to get point-mention this article)
Buy something from Jen’s store- 5 points

Interested in being featured? Email me for more information.

Handmade Shop of the Week: Mootsie

Audrey Angrisani, of Mootsie, considers her work to be mixed media art, though most of it ends up as wearable Jewelry. She opened her eclectic shop in 2007 as a way to reach her customers without working the craft fair circuit.

Why did you decide to open your handmade shop?
I used to do shows, I found them to be exhausting , was looking for some other way to sell my art that made sense.

Has your inventory changed much since you first opened?
Yes

Who are the majority of your customers? How did they find you?
Mostly Women who appreciate unique handcrafted jewelry, I find alot of customers on Twitter.

What inspires you to create?
Mostly vintage supplies like buttons, ribbons, broken jewels, I lay them out and just play, sometimes I have a sketch, Nature also is a huge inspiration.

What is your favorite item in your shop currently? Your most popular item?
My Nest Pendants are my Favorite, I can't stop making them, and they are probably the most popular next to my Alice in Wonderland items.

What has been your greatest resource to make your shop successful?
Etsy Forums, Twitter and I belong to a group of artists called CAKE, we have a BNR on etsy and promote each other on the forums and on twitter.

Any changes coming to your shop in the future?
try to add more items daily

LETS DO A GIVEAWAY!

Mootsie loves nest pendants and she would love to share one with you.

here's how to enter: one entry for each action, giveaway ends May 2nd, 2010
1) visit Mootsie and comment here on your favorite item in her shop
2) make mootsie one of your favorite shops and heart your favorite item
3) follow her on twitter and be sure to tweet about this giveaway
4) write a blog article about Mootsie and her giveaway
5) make a purchase in her shop!

Interested in being featured? Email me for information!

Handmade Shop of the Week: Fabled Charm Designs

Welcome to the 8th edition of the EtsyNJ Team Tuesday blog hop! Here's how it works - write a feature about any EtsyNJ team member on your blog (as long or as short as you'd like it to be) and then add the blog hop code at the end of this post and check out all of the other great features - get to know the EtsyNJ street team!!

Carrie A. Cahill, of Fabled Charm Designs, has been selling her delicate Jewelry and Handbags on etsy since December 30, 2009. She combines crystal beads with metal accents creating a subtle but beautiful effect.

Why did you decide to open your handmade shop? 

I sell handmade jewelry to local boutiques and want to get more exposure on the web.

Has your inventory changed much since you first opened? 

Yes, even though I've only been open since December, I've been tweaking my inventory based on what I see sell more on etsy.

Who are the majority of your customers? How did they find you? 

Most are adult females. I've been found on twitter and facebook.

What inspires you to create? 

I love beads. Working with the colors and textures of different beads is a process I love. My inspiration starts with matching up colors, textures and shapes and then putting them together to create a unique product.

What is your favorite item in your shop currently? Your most popular item? 

I recently created a pair of lucite tulip earrings that are probably my favorites. I almost kept them for myself.  In its first day it had 40 views.

What has been your greatest resource to make your shop successful? 

So far, my views and sales increased as soon as I started promoting in the forums and putting items on twitter. 

Any changes coming to your shop in the future? 

I will probably be adding some scrabble tile pendants. They are fun and easy to make, so I will probably add some here and there in between making actual jewelry pieces. 

How else can we find you online? Any team affiliations? 

Other than EtsyNJ, I don't have any team affiliations yet. I just opened a new website. http://fabledcharmdesigns.com and I'm on twitter: http://www.twitter.com/fabledcharm

LETS DO A GIVEAWAY!

I have a pair of cute earrings with small porcelain owls that I would like to list as a giveaway. They are hook style earrings with pewter rings and tiny porcelain owls with green wings.

Here's how to enter: 

You will get one entry into her giveaway for each action. Giveaway ends April 25th, 2010

1) Visit Fabled Charm Designs and comment here on your favorite item in her shop. 

2) Heart her shop and your favorite item.

3) Follow her on twitter and tweet about this giveaway.

4) Write a blog article about Fabled Charm Designs and this giveaway.

5) Make a purchase from her shop.

Interested in being featured? Email me for information.

Handmade Shop of the Week: KnittinK

AB of KnittinK has been supplying handmade yarns for fiber lovers everywhere since the Summer of 2008. Her handspun and handdyed yarns are whymsically named and seriously gorgeous.

Why did you decide to open your handmade shop?
Originally a knitter, I fell in love with fiber, became wholeheartedly addicted, and started spinning my twisted little heart out. I opened a seller account once I knew I'd call myself KnittinK, and originally thought I'd have screenprinted tshirts and handknit items. That was before my stash was taken over by fiber, rather than finished yarns. :)

Has your inventory changed much since you first opened?
Not so much, then again, I'm still a fledgling shop in a lot of ways. I still have the same vision, which is to produce bizarre and interesting yarns based on comic books, general geekery (LOTR, video games), and 80s cartoons.

Who are the majority of your customers? How did they find you?
So far, my customers have been my friends, former co-workers, followers on twitter, and a couple of ravelers. I think twitter and ravelry have been mainly responsible for my customers, though I've got a few hearts from flickr as well.

What inspires you to create?
When I start up the dyebath, I do google image searches on characters I like, or sometimes just phrases. I also like to take photographs of action figures at my local comic book shop, Comicazi in Davis Square, and make lists of what I think would be compelling. I really like the concept of pitting characters against each other, particularly when they're not from the same "universe". Like "Firestorm vs. Phoenix", Firestorm's a DC Comics character, while Phoenix is the better known, Jean Grey of Marvel comics.

What is your favorite item in your shop currently? Your most popular item?
Spring at Rivendell has the most hearts right now, but Green Arrow is my favorite.

What has been your greatest resource to make your shop successful?
So far, I'd have to say Twitter and Ravelery. Both communities have great people, with fantastic resources. In addition to that, I'd say, simply meeting people, and having my card handy has been very helpful as well.

Any changes coming to your shop in the future? Why yes, as a matter of fact. More fibers! In the coming months (Feb-March), I'll have some mohair, BFL, vegan fibers, bamboo, tencel blends, etc. In addition, I'll be posting yarns as they correspond to movie releases (HINT: Iron Man 2 and Tim Burton's Alice, for a start!)

How else can we find you online? Any team affiliations?
You can find me on ravelry, flickr and twitter as: KnittinKbyAB. I'm not yet on any etsy street teams, but I'm hoping to do a Phat Fiber box by Spring at the latest (that depends on what shows I do locally this year).

CHECK OUT THIS DEAL! Any sales up to and including #25 will be entered in a random drawing for a gift certificate of $15 if they enter "I read TraceyKnits' blog" in the message to seller.

Interested in being shop of the week? email me for information

Handmade Shop of the Week: Klose Knit

Eileen Skocdopole, KloseKnit, has been making Knitting/ Clothing/ Accessories since August of 2009. She is a master of making the basics fashionable, as seen with her houndstooth cowls and no-roll scarves.

Why did you decide to open your handmade shop?

I heard that Etsy was a great community, and I was impressed with the theme. And I thought, hey, give it a try!

Has your inventory changed much since you first opened?

Not much, I have added combos of hats and scarfs along with individual listings

Who are the majority of your customers? How did they find you?

I have invested a bit in showcase spots, and I truly think they have generated the most sales. Secondly would be word-of-mouth and family.

What inspires you to create?

I keep my eyes peeled for styles and adapt them to what I know about knitting and the style I knit in (the round)

What is your favorite item in your shop currently? Your most popular item?
I am loving my hounds tooth cowl, the green and white one. My most popular item is my "No Hat Head Hat"

What has been your greatest resource to make your shop successful?

patience and an optimistic outlook!! And a digital camera.

Any changes coming to your shop in the future?
Yes. I am going to offer more neutral boleros. And the rest is top secret. ;-)

How else can we find you online? Any team affiliations?

I have a twitter account to advertise new listings, and specials at www.twitter.com/skocdem.

I also am a proud and happy member of the Etsy Knitters Team. And when I come across knitters whose work really speaks to me, I invite them to this great group!

Enter the Giveaway! New subscribers to my blog at http://kloseknitclaremore.blogspot.com/ will be entered into a contest to win a great free gift! Along with free shipping and inside updates to BOTH of my shop's specials and discounted proto-types.


And every 25th new commenter will also get a free gift! This giveaway will end April 15th.
http://www.kloseknit.etsy.com/
http://www.skocdem.etsy.com/
www.twitter.com/skocdem

Interested in being Handmade Shop of the Week? Email me for more information.

Handmade Shop of the Week: ThreePeats Jewelry

Suzanne Lamberg, of Threepeats Jewelry, has been creating handmade jewelry for her shop since January 2007. She works often with recycled materials to make beautiful new things to adorn necks and ears.

I started creating my unique necklaces for myself, friends and family. When strangers started asking me to make them one I decided to open an online shop. Since I had discovered etsy as a buyer, it was the natural place for me to start selling.

I have added several new necklace designs and incorporated new materials such as vintage ribbon and lace and recycled t-shirt yarn and felt beads. I also started creating earrings at one customer’s request.

The majority of my customers seem to be young women, especially college students (I often ship to dorms!). I promote the shop on facebook and twitter where many customers seem to be hear about my work.

I have many inspirations. The materials themselves, especially the vintage beads and chain, speak to me. I also am inspired by people, places I’ve travelled to and music.

Right now, the favorite group of items in my shop are the T-shirt Yarn Necklaces. They are soft around the neck and lightweight. I’m all for comfortable, affordable jewelry.

I think personal connections ( as much as possible in the virtual world) have helped to make my shop successful. I create treasuries, respond to convos, twitter and blog about other peoples’ work. A new style of necklaces (shorter) I’m working on now came from ideas given to me by several prospective buyers. As an online buyer, I also know how important fast shipping is. I make sure all items purchased from me are shipped within 48 hours (easy to do if you live in NYC:))

I write two blogs, one about my jewelry ( http://threepeats.blogspot.com// ) and one about life in NYC ( http://sittlife.blogspot.com/ ) People can follow me on Facebook @ http://www.facebook.com/threepeatsJewelry and/or twitter @ http://twitter.com/threepeats I am also a member of the very active Etsy Twitter Team whose blog can be found @ http://etsytwitter.blogspot.com/


LETS DO A GIVEAWAY! Threepeats is happy to offer the item of his/her choice from her etsy shop to one lucky winner! You recieve one entry into the drawing for each of the folowing actions: 1) Comment here on your favorite item in her shop 2) Tweet/Facebook about her shop and/or this amazing giveaway 3) become her fan on facebook and follow her on twitter 4) Heart her shop and/or your favorite item 5) Blog about it or find someother way to share your love of Threepeats with the world. Contest ends March 8, 2010

Interested in becoming Handmade Shop of the week? Email me for more information.

Handmade Shop of the Week: Wellspring Creations

Judy/Wellspring  of  Wellspring Creations, has been selling jewelry on etsy since September of 2008, and other places for more then a year before that. She combines beautiful wire wrapping with oversized jemstones.

Why did you decide to open your handmade shop?

I did way too much "eBay Therapy" when I couldn't find a cancer support group for a family member's rare cancer (now two years cancer-free!). About the time I discovered what a huge stockpile of natural gemstone cabochons and beads I'd collected, a friend introduced me to wirework. It was a natural match!

Has your inventory changed much since you first opened?

I'm still working through my stockpile of gemstones (though I'm still always looking for unusual stones), but my skill and techniques have really developed. Now I am much more creative and inventive, especially with geometric and asymmetric shapes.

Who are the majority of your customers? How did they find you?

I do many markets and fairs. Most of my transactions are in person, simply because my work sells itself. Online, my clients vary. Most find me through web searches, though some of my best clients are Twitter friends.

What inspires you to create?

In my life, I've done just about every kind of needlework imagineable, but I was only able to follow patterns, never able to create...until I found wire. Now any quiet moment, sometimes even in my sleep, I will be designing. I have literally gotten up at 2am with several ideas to sketch that came to me in my sleep!

What is your favorite item in your shop currently? Your most popular item?
I am particularly fond of this sterling silver wrapped teardrop amethyst pendant. I hand picked it at a gem show for its clarity and fascinating internal structure. The wrapping holds it securely, but doesn't cover up the amazing stone. Most of my items are very limited edition or one of a kind, but one popular item is the sterling silver wire wrapped Swarovski crystal ring.

What has been your greatest resource to make your shop successful?
Twitter, because I've cultivated a lot of friends, and from my blog, WellspringCreations.blogspot.com. My greatest strength is that I use the finest materials: sterling silver, solid copper, or 14K gold filled wire and rare, high-quality stones. I combine them with great attention to detail such as careful placement and finishing of wire ends. I even make my own earwires to make sure they meet my high standards for comfort and stability (so they stay in your ears rather than 'work' their way out!)

Any changes coming to your shop in the future?
I seem to be very creative this time of year, so I will be adding new designs as the season progresses. I will know what they are when I hold the stone in my hand and it suggests a wrapping. :-)

How else can we find you online? Any team affiliations?
I have three eCrater shops in addition to my Etsy shop. All can be accessed through http://www.wellspringcreations.us/. In addition, I am a member of the EtsyTwitter Team. You can follow me on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/WSCreations.

A GREAT DEAL!
From now to the end of the month of February, Wellspring Creations is including a gift with each purchase with the code: HEARTS (type it in the checkout process or email immediately afterwards with the code... ship fast :-)

Shop of the Week: Made by Melissa

Melissa, of Made By Melissa, specializes in handmade jewelry, crochet accessories and toys. Her shop has been open for almost 4 years and has racked up over 300 sales!

Why did you decide to open your handmade shop?
I really enjoy making things and I was running out of room for my creations. Everyone I knew already had blankets and scarves and jewelry and didn’t really want more. A friend of mine showed me Etsy and I thought about it for a really long time and finally decided to open a shop.

Has your inventory changed much since you first opened?
Yes, very much. When I first opened my shop, I only had my jewelry listed. Then I slowly started adding my crochet items, first blankets and scarves and then washcloths. I most recently added amigurimi plush toys.

Who are the majority of your customers? How did they find you?
Almost all of my customers are women, I would be hard pressed to find the last male that made a purchase from me, it makes sense though, just looking at my inventory.
I would love to know how people find me! I know some have said they saw me in the Etsy forums (although I don’t spend much time there anymore), some from the street teams I am in (EtsyNJ and EtsyBloggers) and some from Twitter and Facebook. Although, I can’t really say for sure how people find me, I’d like to think that the networking I do is a help.

What inspires you to create?
Everything! My supplies, what I see people wearing, my mood…. Lately I have been more into my crocheting than my jewelry making, so I look at my yarns and I check patterns and I think about what holidays are coming up and try to make things that fit what people are currently looking for. When it comes to the plush toys, my 2.5 yr old son has been inspiring me, he asks for animals and typically gets to keep the first ones that I make.

What is your favorite item in your shop currently? Your most popular item?
Right now I am loving all my hearts! I started making heart shaped washcloths in preparation for Valentine’s Day and I love how they are coming out. I have three sets listed and more will come soon

Mi Corazon Trio of Heart Shaped Washcloths

It's Amore Heart Shaped Washcloths

Jaded Love Black Heart Shed Washcloths

My most popular item has been my white make-up remover pads. I make them in all colors, but hands down, the white is the most popular.

What has been your greatest resource to make your shop successful?
It’s a great big recipe of things that makes my shop a success. My creativity, advice from other Etsy sellers, support from my family and friends and the fact that Etsy is so easy to use. Social networking sites have also been a great help in getting the word out about my shop and showing off my items to people who normally wouldn’t know about Etsy. The handmade movement has also been a huge factor, people in general are really looking for handmade, unique items and want to help “the little guy” get ahead.

Any changes coming to your shop in the future?

Not in the near future that I know of, the trend right now in my shop is more towards my crochet items but I can’t say that it won’t switch back to jewelry. I never know what I will find and decide to make, so I can’t really guess what is to come.

How else can we find you online? Any team affiliations?

I have a blog: http://madebymelissa.blogspot.com/

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/madebymelissa

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/madebymelissa

Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/madebymelissa

Ravelry: http://www.ravelry.com/people/madebymelissa

I am a proud member of the EtsyNJ street team, the NJ folks are really a great group of people. I do a lot of writing for the team blog at http://etsynj.blogspot.com/
I am also a member of the EtsyBloggers street team. The bloggers are awesome and from all over the world! Its great to read everyone’s blogs and see what is going on. Their website is http://etsybloggers.com/

LET'S DO A GIVEAWAY! Handmade by Melissa is happy to offer up one of her adorable plush animals. One entry for each of the following activites:
1) commenting on their favorite item in the shop,
2) hearting said item,
3) tweeting about your shop or favorite item with #traceyknits so we can track it
4) writing about your shop/item on their blog/facebook and sharing the link in the comments


If you are interested in being a Handmade Shop of the Week, email me and I would be happy to send you the information.

Bleh, twitter

Social Networking can be a bitch.

I have tauted the merits of connecting via twitter but when the bad stuff starts to happen, it is hard to get motivated to start all over again. About a week ago I began to have a problem with some of the follower programs i signed up for. It was tweeting without my knowledge, but at least I was able to stop it by unsubscribing from their service. Then, out of nowhere, my twitter account sent out a tweet that got reported and got my account cancelled.

Well, this time I am doing it right! No more easy-way-to-followers programs. I am going to find people through organic means (like twellow) and hope they follow me back. I am going to tweet more about my day and less about my shop and blog. I am going to get involved in more discussions.

check me out on my new twitter: http://www.twitter.com/TRedArt