3zArt Land

MOVING!!

2009-11-21T17:31:00.001-06:00

I recently fell in love with wordpress, sorry blogspot, and am in the process of starting a new blog there. I have set up the google friend connect so feel free to come follow me over there =) My new blog is AJMcCormick.com.

Its been fun!

-AJ

40 Tips for an Exceptional Life

2009-11-12T06:24:00.005-06:00

My advisor gave me a handout with this list that I thought was pretty neat (I tried to google who to credit it to but from what I saw it looks like its just from an email that has been circulating).

Image is from PerezHilton.com, obviously, & it looks like he got it from BARM/Fame Pictures. There is actually a pretty cute story behind it.

1. Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. And while you walk, smile. It is the ultimate anti-depressant.
2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day. Buy a lock if you must.
3. Buy a DVR, tape your late night shows and get more sleep.
4. When you wake up in the morning complete the following statement,
“My purpose is to _____________________________ today.”
5. Live with the 3 E’s — Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy.
6. Watch more movies, play more games and read more books than you did last year.
7. Make time to practice meditation and prayer. They provide us with daily fuel for our busy lives.
8. Spend more time with people over the age of 70 and under the age of 6.
9. Dream more while you are awake.
10. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat fewer foods that are not.
11. Drink plenty of water.
12. Try to make at least three people smile each day.
13. Clear your clutter from your house, your car, your desk and let new and flowing energy into your life.
14. Don’t waste your precious energy on gossip, energy vampires, issues of the past, negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
15. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
16. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a college kid with a maxed-out charge card.
17. Smile and laugh more. It will keep the energy vampires away.
18. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.
19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
20. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
21. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
22. Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present.
23. Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
24. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, and wear the fancy underwear cause today IS special.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness except YOU.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: “In five years, will this matter?”
27. Forgive everyone for everything.
28. What other people think of you is none of your business.
29. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time.
30. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
31. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.
32. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.
33. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
34. The best is yet to come.
35. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
36. Do the right thing!
37. Call your family often.
38. Each night before you go to bed complete the following statements:
“I am thankful for ______________________________________.
Today I accomplished ___________________________________.”
39. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.
40. Enjoy the ride. Remember that this is NOT Disney World and you certainly don’t want a fast pass. You only have one ride through life so make the most of it and enjoy the ride.

-AJ

RE: AC takes Austin

2009-11-06T18:40:00.001-06:00

The multimedia reporters' coverage from our trip to Austin is live! Check it out HERE! (and just ignore that part where I'm posing b/c I think he's taking a pic w/ the video camera hehe) -AJ

Amarillo College takes Austin

2009-11-01T12:43:00.020-06:00

11 lucky individuals from Amarillo college were selected to head to the 2009 Texas Community College Journalism Association in Austin, TX. I was one of those lucky 11, along with 10 others from the newspaper staff!

It was a bit of a disaster getting there. We had to be at the airport at 6:45am, 2 of our group had never flown before, and we were delayed due to thunderstorms and had to travel around those storms through some crazy turbulence. Was not the ideal first flight for noobs but they did awesome. So we get to Austin and think we lucked out and missed all the nasty weather, HA! Take the city bus downtown, get off the bus to start walking the 15 or so blocks to our hotel, and there comes the rain.

After much suitcase dropping, tripping, and typical tourist cross walk confusion we managed to safely make it to the Hilton, where we were supposed to be staying. Well turned out that even though the reservations had been made for three rooms with 2 queen beds per room MONTHS ahead, the hotel had the right to change out the beds to 1 king size bed per room and we got sent across the street to the Marriott. Finally get checked in there and start to head to our rooms and no joke one of my suitcase wheels started deteriorating. Thankfully those suckers have a wheel within a wheel so I just had a lopsided suitcase.

Our luck started to pick up and three of the girls and I scored an awesome hotel room with a corner view. We hit up a decent mexican restaurant, El Sol Y La Luna, and waited out most of the nasty weather there, or so we thought. Sun peaked out & we started to walk back to the hotel only to get dumped on by the rain. After an hour of re-primping/attempting to fix our hair in the humidity we were finally decent enough to head back out. We learned very quickly that it is not an easy task to figure out where to walk to with a group of 11, which had then turned into about a group of 14 since a few more people joined us. We decided to catch a bus and head to South Congress, aka "SOCO", where we were told there are a lot of shops. I *really* hate shopping so I was pretty bored for most of the evening but it was nice getting to see everything. About 8 we caught a bus back downtown and most of us just settled in for the evening.

Friday was spent at the convention. We had a feature photography contest early in the morning that was pretty fun. Maddisun, one of the video reporters I buddied up with at the beginning of the trip, was in my group as well as Alfredo, the cartoonist, and we just ran all over town together snapping pictures of buildings and some of ourselves. We were asked to shoot "something old & something new; an artsy view of changes in downtown Austin." The photo above is the photo I went with. I wasn't too proud of it but the fact that we ran all over town, didn't get lost, AND made it back in time for all of us to share the laptop to choose photos & turn them in before the dead line was pretty awesome. Of course the next day we were walking around and I saw a brand new Subway (the fast food place) built next to an old building that would've been the perfect picture. We went to a few sessions, only 1 was dreadfully boring (pretty much was just a newspaper staff talking about inside jokes and what not), but the rest were very interesting. I was slightly suspicious that maybe Twitter & Facebook had sponsored some of the convention as every speaker we heard pimped the social networking sites--just goes to show how much of an impact the web has already had on the media.

The majority of the group hit up PF Changs for lunch, I wasn't too impressed but it was an alright meal and we had a really good time. Before the banquet Maddisun, Alfredo, and I all ran down to some water we saw from the hotel room and just goofed off taking pictures. I wish I could ask whoever planned the banquet dinner what the heck they were thinking. The salad was delicious but the entree was questionable. We are college students--gourmet is not our thing! We had a piece of chicken with a spinach artichoke stuffing and a leg bone sticking up in the air. This was sitting in a pool of some green substance. Then on the side we had a circle of quiche. I *believe* it had a mushroom on the top and rice on the bottom, but don't take my word on that. I do not like eggs at all but I did try it. I ate as much chicken as I could but the majority of us just cut up all the food on our plates and spread it around--thankfully we were all still stuffed from PF Changs.

Friday night we had a lot of fun playing cards at the hotel and then ended up going out about 9 or so since we were getting a little too loud to be indoors. I wish I would've had a Halloween costume! It was so exciting walking around the closed off Sixth street and seeing everyone dressed up. Same as we did the majority of the trip with all of us being so indecisive, we spent most of the night just walking around. We did get to hit up a dance club for a little while and overall had a fantastic night!

We had to come back to Amarillo saturday afternoon(our advisor knew better than to let us stay Halloween night in downtown Austin lol) and everyone decided to sleep in on Saturday. 5 of us did get up early enough to go grab some greasy bar & grill food, I think the place was called "Daddy's", and then walk up to the State Capital building. Took my very first cab ride when we had to head to the airport (other than passing some longhorns it was pretty uneventful). The flights back were very pleasant. The planes were fairly empty so we had the very back all to ourselves and had plenty of room to spread out. Weather was nice and Maddisun, this being only her second time flying, was even able to look out the window some. Had a really wonderful trip and wouldn't trade the experience for anything but boy is it good to be home!

-AJ

P.S. You can view the rest of my photos HERE.

Social Networkers Join Together to Beat Cancer

2009-10-17T10:36:00.009-05:00

Social Networkers join together to #beatcancer and set the Guiness World Record "for the distribution of the largest mass message through social media" in 1 day! For each tweet, facebook status update, or blog post containing the hashtag #beatcancer Ebay/Paypal and MillerCoors will donate .01 to cancer research.

Read More:

-BeatCancerEverywhere.com

-Social Media Campaign to Beat Cancer Eyes Record in Guinness Book (Mashable.com)

Seasonal Products

2009-10-11T10:39:00.007-05:00

Finally got some Holiday switch plates listed. Hoping to get some more up today. (Click on the images for more information)

Christmas

Halloween

These are all available in different styles (e.g., outlet plate, double light plate, gfci, etc.) and room sets can be made. Just contact me for more information shadesdujour@gmail.com

High Five Lilly

2009-09-27T14:52:00.004-05:00

My very first time making & publishing a video to youtube (got a little carried away hehe).

Job Update:

2009-08-31T15:21:00.001-05:00

I GOT THE JOB!!!!!

A "Real" Job?

2009-08-31T10:59:00.003-05:00

For starters, I am saying "Real" job because many of those who have not sold their own handmade creations online/in person view it as a hobby. I know my family and close friends often ask me when I am going to get a "real" job and I have a feeling my fellow online entrepreneurs get asked the same thing. Anyway! As I said yesterday I applied for the position of Web Editor for the school paper (basically the person who takes the articles from the paper and puts them on the website). If you know me then you probably know that I would be highly qualified for this job (sounds a little conceded I know, but basically the position is a glorified copy-n-paste job...and I can copy and paste!). Well I felt the interview went pretty good. I told him about my business, my interests, and how am I very confident working a computer, etc. All was well until I had to fill out a darn application. If you are like me and in no way have had a traditional upbringing, you know how hard it is to fill out any form...especially if they do not leave you room to elaborate. Bottom line...I probably wouldn't have called me for an interview after seeing that application. Two more people will be interviewed today and then we'll know tomorrow. I guess I just have to hope that the application was just a formality and that my confidence in myself to do the job well showed in the interview. I really hope I get the job! This is such a wonderful opportunity to dip my toe in the pool of journalism...well *fingers crossed*

-AJ

Took this a few weeks ago on the way to the airport.

I'm still here!

2009-08-30T10:23:00.009-05:00

Many of you who I "run" with on various social networks have probably noticed my recent absence. After piling my plate so high I finally hit a breaking point and had to let some things go. One of the major things I did not have time for was networking (twitter/plurk, posting in the forums, etc.) I even hit a point that I was having to debate whether or not to close down some of my online shops. After much consideration I decided to close down my physical booth here in town...as they were getting larger, the manager was encouraging me to stay up at the booth during the open hours and that was just not possible, or profitable enough to do. We closed down the booth 2 weeks ago...and still have not had a chance to unload the cars lol. School started back up last Monday and I have to say I'm actually pretty excited about this semester. I have already met *normal* people my age, which I did not think was possible in Amarillo--no offense =) My classes are pretty interesting as well and I think they will really help me decide what I want to do with myself. I'm taking a yoga class M-W-F and Intro. to Mass Comm., Human Relations, and Intro. to Business on Tues-Thur. I also have an interview Monday morning for the Web Editor position for the school paper *fingers crossed* So once again I have my plate piled high, but I think if I can manage my time well I will be fine.

-AJ

P.S. I wanted to apologize to all of the Artfire Sneakers. I truly wish I could have kept up with the ambushes. If anyone would like to take over and try to revive AFS feel free to e-mail me to discuss it shadesdujour@gmail.com Camels near Iowa Park, TX taken on one of our monthly trips to check on the booth in Fort Worth.
P.S.S. I am trying to use my facebook more if anyone wants to friend me http://www.facebook.com/3zArt?ref=name

Calico Cat

2009-06-26T10:00:00.000-05:00

A branch of RockyCreekGems, Calico Cat offers an array of hand knitted socks and more! Tropical Sunrise Hand-Knit Socks
From their bio:

Somehow, when your primary product is jewelry, and your shop name is Rocky Creek Gems, all the other things get lost. So to help solve that, I have opened up this second store--The Calico Cat. You will find my hand-knit items, quilts, quilt squares, and all manner of needlecrafts--but NO jewelry! If you don't see what you're looking for, let me know--I'll bet I can custom make it for you!

No Coffee?! Quilted Wall-hanging

DJ Store Room

2009-06-25T10:00:00.001-05:00

DJ Store Room is run by a work-from-home Mom based in Singapore. DJstoreroom is offering everything from purses to tutorials! Handmade Medium Turquiose Zip Pouch Purse
From their bio:

Welcome to DjStoreRoom. DjStoreRoom is registered in Singapore in 2009 and run by myself, a Work-From-Home-Mother. Working from home allows me flexibility in managing my child, my family and my work. DjStoreRoom started out selling handmade bags and purses, before moving on to selling pdf sewing patterns for other sewers. These sewing patterns are easy to follow with many photos for the sewers to see what are the steps needed to be taken. Sewing and figuring out the steps to completing my projects allow me to destress and express my creativity. I seek to continue this for as long as possible. In the process, I also decide to offer vintage findings and supplies from my stash. These are collected over the years and will be offered up for sale. Find us at our http://artfire.com/users/djstoreroom http://djstoreroom.blogspot.com http://twitter.com/djstoreroom http://djstoreroom.etsy.com djstoreroom(a)gmail.com

Handmade Purple Applique on Linen Zippered Wristlet

Totally Tyra

2009-06-25T10:00:00.000-05:00

Totally Tyra Embroidered Turquoise Burp Cloth Pair
From their bio:

Totally Tyra is my creative outlet. I'm a stay at home mom to my 2 year old daughter and she is the inspiration in everything I do.

Best Friends Greeting Card

Picard Creative

2009-06-24T10:00:00.000-05:00

Come have a laugh withPicard Creative. One of the most active members on Artfire, Picard offers a large collection of creative magnets using vintage images with witty sayings! Picard is also the brains behind the Artfire Crazy Train, now run by the lovely LaDeDaCreations, and Indie Arts Studio-promotional Co-op for independent Artists. Vintage Image Magnet. Friends. Recycled Tin Can Lid
From their Shop Announcement:

Welcome to Picard Creative. I am happy you stopped in and hope you get a laugh or two! Magnets are ALWAYS buy 3 get ONE free!! I am always creating new designs, so check back often. Magnets make a great, personal and funny gift. For about the same price of a nice greeting card, you get a gift that will last for years and years- plus, it is functional. All of my magnets are handmade and designed by me. I am sure you will find something you love. I ADORE doing custom orders- I can create works of art from photos, illustrations or I can use your saying with a graphic from my extensive library. These make great wedding gifts (have a picture of the couple put on a magnet.) Anniversarys (a vintage picture of your parents is always fun) Birthdays, Promotions, Divorce, Just because. The possibilities are endless. I have also created magnets using a childs illustration as a gift for a grandparent. Pet Magnets are also a big request. My magnets are ALWAYS buy 3 get one FREE!! So, think about the occasions coming up soon and stock up!

Housework Sucks Kitten Magnet. Retro, Vintage Image. Recycled tin can lid

Dancing Wind Designs

2009-06-23T10:00:00.000-05:00

For hand woven bead creations go check out Dancing Wind Designs! Handmade Capri Blue Seed Bead Fringe Earrings
From their bio:

My name is Sue and I have been "playing with seed beads off and on since I was about 9 and got my first loom. I love the variety of colors they have and the infinite possibililites of creating with them. I live in the woods with my husband and a goofy little toy poodle named Sparky. About 6 months ago, Sparky decided he wanted to live with us instead of his neglectful owner, so in he moved. We have a grown son who and are going to be first time grandparents to a grandson around the end of March

Silky Gold and Black Handmade Seed Bead Swag Necklace

Caterpillar Peacock

2009-06-22T10:00:00.000-05:00

Canadian Artisan Caterpillar Peacock offers a variety of delightful felt creations, including her popular tiny hats. Teeny Tiny Fedora
From their announcement:

Welcome to my little place on the internet. My name is Lindsey and I make hats, mostly of the tiny variety. They are small in size, but not in awesome-ness. Also know that I love to do custom work. If you have an idea for a tiny hat, or other creation, let me know and we can work something out. They're here:::: Needle felted jewelry! What's your favorite flower? I can make you a felt version, message me for details. CaterpillarPeacock now has a FaceBook group:: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=151713455245 Please take a second to read through my shop policies, all is revealed there.

Teeny Tiny Beret

LicaLee

2009-06-21T18:32:00.002-05:00

Looking for gorgeous stained glass jewelry and art? LicaLee is the place to go! Handmade upcycled recycled ceramic plate pendant necklace - olive and white
From her bio:

Much of my work is inspired by nature. I spend a lot of time outdoors, getting inspiration for my designs and enjoying the world around me. Since I design all of my own pieces, my items are unique and often one of a kind. Working with stained glass has become my passion. I often spend an entire day designing and crafting a piece. Recently my focus has been on stained glass jewelry, though I also love to create sun catchers, panels and garden art. I've always loved to create with my hands. I began sewing and jewelry making at a very early age. By the time I was in middle school I was making my own clothes, working with polymer clay and taking pottery and wood working classes. In high school I worked in a bead shop making and selling jewelry. I also took classes in art metal, pottery, screen printing, enameling, and countless other things. Since then I've learned about, designed and made everything from fashion accessories to temporary dwellings.

Handmade Recycled Stained Glass Pendant Orange and Red

PopNiCute Supplies

2009-06-16T12:03:00.002-05:00

From her Bio:

Popnicute is a one woman show, running by me, Kharisma (Kay for short) R. Sommers. Arts and crafts have been my passion since i was a little girl. I've tried many art forms during my year growing up. I'm a Bachelor in Art, graphic design major. Jewelry always fascinates me and I love wearing the unique kinds. Often I'd make one for myself just to be different than anyone else. From simple stringing to paper clay, and just recently, this Summer'08, I found my calling in wire wrapping. I'm so passionate about this that I want it to be a serious business. So this is the type of jewellery that will dominate my shop! I hope you like my style :D

RockyCreekGems

2009-06-06T13:34:00.003-05:00

Fellow Texan, RockyCreekGems is a wonderful seller over at Artfire offering gorgeous jewelry and more! Peridot and Pearls Necklace A little from her bio:

"Rocky Creek Gems and Gifts is named for the little creek that runs through the 86 acres of our family property just outside La Grange, Texas. I have been making things for as long as I can remember. I'm not a "single-craft" person! I enjoy working with gemstones, beadwork, knitting, crocheting, quilting, sewing, embroidery--you name it! As a former middle school science teacher, I particularly love making use of unusual items. I am the author of two wildcrafting booklets available through Texas Parks"

Lady Bug Garden Necklace

Kraftouch Treasures

2009-06-05T10:11:00.004-05:00

KraftouchTreasures based out of Honolulu, HI offers a variety of Jewelry, fabric creations, hairclips, and more!

Mystic Dragonfly Pin

A little from her bio...

From the busy world of architecture to jewelrymaking, Aloha, I am a mother of two bubbly "wahine" 12 and 10 and my mom "Nana Puring" is a retired teacher. I am a self taught jewelry designer. I learned every techniques and design by browsing through books and magazines and practically doing it all by myself, while my mom I would say is a gifted crafter in crocheting. I was also an instructor/demonstrator at OLELO TV with Carole Mitos show -Hawaii's Hobbies and Crafts, a volunteer work I did for 6 months, that had allowed me to explore the world outside the 4 corners of my home studio. I have worked with Craft Supplies of Honolulu and Ben Franklin Crafts. I have taught jewelry classes at Ben Franklin for almost a year and looking forward to meet a bunch of my eager friends and student early next year 2009. I have truly found the simple pleasures of life and enjoyed making jewelry away from the complicated demands of the construction world which I have given up to attend to the needs of my two girls. From drafting board to beadboard, my passion for crafting and jewelry making is such a treasure I hold close to my heart because it allowed me to enjoy the wonderful growing years of my two girls, that's how I came up with my company's name "Kraftouch Treasures".

Let's Keep it Tidy-Pink Garfield

Grah-Toe Studio

2009-06-02T09:11:00.002-05:00

Wormy wood bowl russian olive burl

(Made from rescued wood)A few words from their bio:

We are a husband and wife team. We have both dreamed of doing our art full time and are on our way! We love to have new projects and welcome custom requests! We work in wood,stone,clay,metal,antler and beaded jewelry. Our studio got its name from a traveling experience..we drove from Florida to the west coast..the rock formations are amazing, some of which are called grottos..as christians,we believe that our artistic talents are a gift from God that we are grateful for all the way down to our toes! As we traveled and marveled we tossed these concepts around ,along with the amazing earth the Lord has given us to enjoy and we decided to call our studio Grah(from grateful) Toe( to our toes) ! So Inspired Creations from Grah-Toe Studio!

Wood dish catalpa

Artfire Ambush Tonight 8pm CST/9pm EST

2009-05-05T17:52:00.001-05:00

Come Join the Artfire Sneakers on our Ambush tonight at 8pm CST/9pm EST! http://AFSneakers.ning.com Every Tuesday at 8pm CST an "Un-sub"(the person who's studio we will be "ambushing") will be announced on the main page of the ning and then everyone who is able to will go and purchase from their studio and/or promote them (you do not have to be a member of the ning, or even Artfire, to participate--see all the ways you can participate on the main page of the ning). We hope that our efforts will help encourage sellers that may be discouraged with their lack of sales, and get them some exposure. The un-sub will be announced on the main page of the ning in a little over 2 hours!! PLEASE DO NOT VOLUNTEER TO BE SNUCK UP ON!! If anyone has any questions just let me know =) -AJ, 3zArt

Joy, Respect, and Harmony

2009-05-05T09:54:00.002-05:00

Being 3 words I try to live by myself, I just fell in love with this bracelet by JewelryByJanzia. The clasp, charms, and chain are all made with silver plated affirmation. Also if you spend $50 or more in her Artfire Studio she offers free shipping(however if you spend under $50 her shipping prices are very, very reasonable)!!! A few words from Janzia's Bio, I first became interested in making jewelry when I commented on liking a pair of my neighbors earrings and she told me that her daughter had made them. I was amazed by the idea that you could make your own earrings and a little seed was planted. The next time I went to my local library I checked out every book I could on jewelry making. I read everything I could on the subject but wasn't really spurred to action until I went to a jewelry party (not the handcrafted kind but a company sponsored one). I loved everything I saw but after reading so much about it I kept thinking to myself I could make that. I figured by this point it was time to stop thinking about it and start doing something. I went home and scoured all my books once again and then made my first piece which I gave to my mom for her birthday. After that there was no stopping me. Run by her studio and pick you up a lovely bracelet today, or grab a last minute Mother's Day gift!

Gorgeous Jewelery by CreativeCoveJewelryDesigns

2009-04-23T09:24:00.004-05:00

I was browsing through my friend CreativeCoveJewelryDesigns Artfire studio and discovered some of the most beautiful jewelry. I love the colors of everything she has listed in her shop, and the pendants she uses on some of her work....wow! Like look at this Purple Glass Necklace with silver connectors and this Teal Dichoric Glass Pendant Necklace but my absolute favorite is her Olive Green Jade with Butterfly Pendant Necklace Run by and check out her studio! Lots of her necklaces also come with beautiful matching earrings and very reasonable prices! -3z

Funky Finds Spring Fling

2009-04-20T14:07:00.003-05:00

Thanks to a wonderful friend of mine I get to attend the Funky Finds Spring Fling this Saturday in Fort Worth, Texas!!! This will be the first official craft show I will be a part of (all the others have been other kind of shows that have just allowed me to set up) and its supposed to be huge!! It will be this Saturday the 25th at the Will Rogers Memorial Center in Fort Worth from 10am-6pm (get directions here). I'm so excited!! Not only are we going down there for the show, but my mom FINALLY sold our house down there!!! So hopefully we will finally get to move out of this tiny rental house that My Mom, My Grandma, My Stepdad, animals, and I have all been crammed in (we're getting in each others hair a bit). I'm putting all of my shops on Vacation mode on Wednesday and not sure when I'll be back as we have a lot of business to take care of in the DFW area, including thrift & fabric shopping...yes!!! Then chances are we'll take the round about way back and go through Oklahoma so we can hit up a casino. Even though I'll be working the whole time I cannot wait to go on my mini "vacation". Wish me lots of luck everyone and if you're in DFW come by and visit us!!! -3z

Shine YOUR Hiney

2009-04-20T13:48:00.002-05:00

I've purchased from a few handmade soap sellers and have to say that ShineYourHineySoap is one of my absolute favorites, not to mention she came up with the cutest name for her shop! She carries body butters, Bath Mitts, Bath Salts, Soaps, and everything else you need to pamper yourself! I recently purchased this Pearberry lotion, not only does it smell delish, it works great too! Then my favorite soap she carries is the Green Tea and lemongrass. I have extremely dry skins and have been using this on my hands. I can actually wash my hands with it and not have to immediately put lotion on!! Oh and the smell....yum! Next on my list to purchase from her is one of the bath mitts, I really like this little guy: Oliver the Friendly Bathmitt Monster You really couldn't go wrong with anything in her shop! I think I'm eying me some of her Dragon's Blood Buddha Soap Next I got a sample of it and looooove the scent. Go grab you a bar of her soap now and see what you've been missing!! -3z

I'm an Official Ninja!

2009-04-16T20:02:00.004-05:00

Thanks so much to NinjaJenn for honoring me with The Official Ninja Award

Also check out Ninja Knowledge for help educating yourself in networking, online selling, and so much more! -3z

Help Make an AF Artisan's Day!

2009-04-14T14:32:00.001-05:00

Come join us on AF Sneakers! We will "Ambush" a different Artfire Seller every Tuesday at 8pm CST (starting tonight!!!) After chatting with some friends about wanting to purchase from Artfire sellers that had yet to receive any sales, but still remained positive, we decided to get a group together to try and bring sales and exposure to different Artfire sellers each week. Every Tuesday at 8pm CST the "Un-sub" will be announced and then everyone who is able to will go and purchase from their studio (you do not have to be a member of the ning or Artfire to participate--see all the ways you can participate on AFSneakers). We hope that our efforts will help encourage sellers that may be discouraged with their lack of sales. I've set up a ning as a hangout for us its http://AFSneakers.ning.com you do NOT have to join the ning or Artfire to participate, you can just purchase from/promote the "Un-Sub"(selected Artisan) once they are announced at 8pm CST/ 9pm EST. They will be announced on the AFSneakers main page & forum so make sure to check in!! If you have any questions or comments about it feel free to post here =) -AJ

Wine Stoppers Anyone?

2009-04-14T12:27:00.002-05:00

We rarely have bottled wine here (we're Franzia people) but when we do we love to top it off with a beautiful stopper. I just came across these stunning wine stoppers by AccessoriesByGottjoy. She uses these amazing lampwork beads created by an expert from BC Lampworks. Here are a few of GottJoy's wine stoppers: AWESOME LAMPWORK BEADED SILVER WINE BOTTLE STOPPER BLACK AND SILVER WINE BOTTLE STOPPER PUMPKIN LAMPWORK WINE STOPPER However wine stoppers aren't all the she carries! You can find gorgeous necklaces, earrings, pens, keychains, ceiling fan pulls, and much MUCH more! Run by her shop and pick yourself up a treat today! -3z

The Jewelry Shop

2009-04-08T15:37:00.004-05:00

I was browsing through one of my Plurk budz Artfire studio today and found the most stunning jewelry! She carries a large collection of handmade and vintage jewelry at very reasonable prices! My favorite piece she has is this gorgeous pair of Kramer Red Rhinstone Earrings and check out this Lightning Strike Sodalite & Sterling Wire Wrap Pendant The Jewelry Shop is a collection of jewelry made with love by 3 family members: Amy, Jim, and Lynda. They have been making jewelry for over 10 years and back in January Amy took the plunge and set up their shop on Artfire so they can now share their love with the world! Stop by and pick up something today! Get your unsuspecting mom a gorgeous new necklace, grab some earrings for your wife or girlfriend. Whatever you pick out, you won't be sorry!! -AJ

Shop for a Good Cause

2009-04-07T14:22:00.005-05:00

AFSneakers, a new group that was inspired by the "Sneak Attacks" on Etsy, is having its very first "Artfire Ambush" today! Here is our ning group: http://AFSneakers.ning.com Today's "Un-Sub", selected shop, is AmyDesigns. Basically an Artfire Ambush is where a designated sneaker will browse around Artfire for a seller who hasn't had any sales yet, has a full shop, and a decent range of product. Then that person will be announced on the AFSneakers page and the members will go "Ambush" their shop with purchases! However our first Ambush has a bit of a twist... You may have heard that 100% of all of her sales today are going to the National Association for Down Syndrome in honor of her son's 21st birthday. Here is some info she posted in her studio: Dean is my 2nd son of 4. In honor of his 21st birthday, any proceeds from sales TOMORROW, TUES., APRIL 7, 2009 will be donated to the National Association for Down Syndrome. I will be ever grateful that they were there when Dean was born! To try and get as many participants as possible, we know that not everyone is able to afford to purchase something, we will also be accepting donations for her. Come by and visit the ning for more information. Even a simple promotion of her shop would be greatly appreciated! Thanks for reading! We've already raised $71.50 in donations and will be accepting donations until 10:00pm CST. -AJ, 3zArt

Had to share this fantastic purse!

2009-04-03T16:35:00.003-05:00

On Artfire I came across the neatest Purses/wristlets by PiratePixieCrew. The "Green and Blue Skully Purse" is my favorite! As the title says its blue and green and then has this funky skull & crossbones attached to it, but it gets better! Open up the flap, which is kept closed by a nifty bobble, and find an explosion of color! She's also got fantastic hats (adult, child, & baby), leg warmers, hand warmers, neck wear, and much much more! Go check out her studio...you'll be happy you did! PiratePixieCrew.Artfire.com

Artfire Tony on Blockhead radio tonight!

2009-03-31T16:57:00.003-05:00

This is a copy of a post TheChainMailleLady just made on Artfire.

"Tonight 7pm EST, I will be debuting my new radio show "New Discoveries" on http://www.BlockHeadRadioLive.com!! My first guest will be Tony Ford, COO and Co-Founder of ArtFire!! You won't want to miss this! Tony will make a very special announcement regarding ArtFire. Please join us in the chat room and ask Tony questions that will be answered on the air. Every Tuesday and Thursday I will introduce you to artisan shops from all genre's, i.e. ArtFire, Etsy, ShopHandmade, CafePress, etc. Each show will last about 30 minutes. From time to time I will interview founding members of the various artisan sales sites. If you are interested in being a guest or have any suggestions or comments, please email me at Chain@BlockHeadRadio.com. Hope to see your name in the chat room!!"

I dunno about everyone else but I am pretty excited! I'm kind of think the special announcement is going to be that the verified accounts are now $12 a month, but we'll see. Maybe its going to be a fantastic advertising opportunity *fingers crossed*

Blizzard

2009-03-26T17:02:00.002-05:00

Yes you heard me correctly, blizzard warning here in West Texas *sigh* but it'll be back up in the 70s Sunday..yay lol! Hopefully being snowed in will give me some good time to get some work done (and maybe clean....maybe). Here's our warning:

AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS WINTER STORM IS EXPECTED TO IMPACT THE PANHANDLES REGION BEGINNING LATE TONIGHT. COLD TEMPERATURES WILL RETURN TO THE PANHANDLES TONIGHT... WITH PRECIPITATION BEGINNING AS LIGHT RAIN BEFORE SWITCHING TO SNOW OVERNIGHT TONIGHT. BY EARLY FRIDAY MORNING HEAVY SNOW AND VERY STRONG WINDS WILL BE AFFECTING A LARGE PORTION OF THE AREA. NORTHERLY WINDS OF 35 TO 40 MPH WITH GUSTS OVER 50 MPH WILL CAUSE WIDESPREAD BLOWING SNOW WITH NEAR ZERO VISIBILITY IN WHITEOUT CONDITIONS FROM FRIDAY MORNING THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT. HEAVY SNOWFALL OF 6 TO 12 INCHES IS EXPECTED ACROSS THE WARNING AREA WITH AMOUNTS IN EXCESS OF 12 INCHES COMMON. SNOW DRIFTS OF 10 TO 20 FEET WILL BE POSSIBLE BEFORE THE SNOW FINALLY ENDS SATURDAY MORNING. THIS IS AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS STORM. ANYONE CAUGHT OUTSIDE DURING WHITEOUT CONDITIONS COULD BECOME DISORIENTED AND MAY NOT BE ABLE TO FIND SHELTER. TRAVEL WILL BE DANGEROUS IF NOT IMPOSSIBLE ON FRIDAY... WITH POWER OUTAGES POSSIBLY LASTING INTO THE WEEKEND.

Never been in a blizzard before...will post pictures if I can get any that aren't just solid white =)

-3z

Flea Market 2

2009-03-24T20:24:00.004-05:00

I went and set up our flea market booth today and have to say I am now very excited about it! The manager is so cool. She told me as long as it isn't extremely loud or hazardous I can work while I am up there, so I've got the booth set up where 2/3 is items for sale and 1/3 is work area & checkout counter. This is going to take SO much stress off for me. I'm going to be there from 9-6 Thursdays-Saturdays and now I will actually be able to work on the orders from the booth...yay! I'm going to take the laptop up there Thursday and see if I can mooch some wifi off one of the neighbors, if that works I will be set! On top of all of that...our house is somewhat clean! Not only do I have storage for all of my finished and discontinued products, but I'm also getting rid of some of this crap that has just been piling up. Anyway wish me luck! As I said I'll be up there Thurs-Saturday so if anyone e-mails me or tries to contact me elsewhere during that time, my response will be more delayed than normal. Hope everyone is having a good week so far...sheesh it feels like its already Thursday! Here's some of my new sushi light plates before I go:

-3z

Flea Market

2009-03-23T22:58:00.002-05:00

Apparently I don't have enough on my plate and had to get a booth at a new flea market here in town (not even a full week after our show that we still haven't unpacked the car from). We set up tomorrow (have I prepped at all--nope!) and it's going to be open Thurs-Saturday from 10:00am-6:00pm and then the 1st Sunday of each month from 10:00am-6:00pm. If you're in Amarillo come by and say hello! Its the "Vendors Market" at 7901 S.W. 81st (when you're going south on Soncy, 81st street is the last street before the road curves).

Also make sure to checkout JuliaDarling.Artfire.comfor custom ads, banners, avatars, and whatever else you can think of! She did such a wonderful job on my ad:

That's all for now...I really should get some prepping done (oh and finish packing up orders!!).

-3z

Fuchsia Zebra Print

2009-03-20T20:53:00.004-05:00

I just listed this market bag in my Grandmother's Artfire studio, and its just so cute I had to share! Checkout her shop as well at http://Nonnie.Artfire.com

Fuchsia Zebra Print Market Bag

-3z

Howdy!

2009-03-15T14:47:00.003-05:00

Sorry about the lack of blogging lately. I had a "show" Friday and Saturday and have been a bit overwhelmed all week. Finally have a moment to stop and breathe today! The show went really well. It was actually "Amarillo's Largest Garage Sale" but so far its been the best I've been able to find locally that had reasonable booth rental fees. I dunno if its bad taste or not to share your "numbers" but I'm excited so I'm going to! We sold $441 worth of product!!! I also handed out TONS of business cards and according to my Google Analytics people have actually been visiting. Yay! Now just to wait to see if they start buying...

I'm also participating in the 'Artfire Stimulus Package'. I have some amazingly low prices on mouse pads and switch plates AND have taken half off on the shipping. To find other sellers participating just search Artfire for 'Artfire Stimulus Package'. I will try to keep 10 items in my Artfire Stimulus Package category for the entire month of March! Here are some of my ASP items:

3zArt

Buy Handmade

-3z

Short, sad post

2009-03-11T02:19:00.002-05:00

About an hour after I posted my last post, both of the babies passed. I was too torn up to speak to anyone and just hid in my room. They were so bad off when we checked on them yesterday morning (we had found them 3 mornings ago), all I can really hope for is that we comforted them in their last few hours. It just breaks my heart that they were actually feeding (willingly) an hour before they passed. I've been a major sob fest since....seems like everything is reminding me of the poor babies. Anyway I need to try and get ready for my show Friday! I appreciate all the help everyone gave!

-3z

Abandoned Rabbits

2009-03-09T19:30:00.002-05:00

Our pooch, Lilly, discovered a nest with 2 baby rabbits in it 2 days ago. Luckily I was outside at the time and was able to get to them before she did anything other than sniff them. We covered back up the nest and made a little barrier around it to keep the dogs out. Also put a little stick over the nest so we could see if the momma came by.

The next morning it appeared the stick had been moved. We peeked in the nest and the rabbits still seemed perky and even hopped a little. So we covered the nest back up and put the stick back. A little while later we saw a grown rabbit stop by our fence for a few moments and then hop off.

Then this morning I am looking out the window and saw a rabbit looking in the fence again for a moment, then hop off. At this point I started to get worried and went outside to check on the babies. They were both very still and it didn't look like they had made it through the night. I picked one up and it moved just a little bit and let out a little "meep". I grabbed the other one and ran them inside, wrapped them up in some fleece and managed to get both to drink a little water.

After lots and lots of researching, and a plurk & Artfire spaz out, I got the general info to help keep them alive until I could get some help from the wildlife center. We have still not been able to get ahold of the wildlife center. We also called many vets in town and they all sent us somewhere else, apparently no one is too concerned with saving rabbits in Amarillo =( I went and bought some puppy milk and we finally got them to eat some (they're so sweet when they stick their little tongues out). We've got them nestled into a fleece "nest" in a little cardboard box on a heating pad set on 'low'. They're still doing pretty rough. Going to feed them again right before I go to bed and hope they make it through the night. From what I've read they are less than a week old, their little ears are still back and their eyes haven't opened yet.
The babies snuggling up after dinner

Waiting for his turn to eat

Soooo tiny

If anyone has any advice or experience with wild baby rabbits please share! Going to try and get ahold of the wildlife place again tomorrow, but for now looks like we're on our own!

-3z

Sushi!

2009-03-08T15:50:00.003-05:00

I listed a new Sushi Mouse Pad today in my Artfire, Etsy, and 1000 markets shops.

After looking at the mouse pad for so long I started reeeeaaally craving sushi. Sadly the only good place in town is on the other side and I'm not even sure if they'll be open today (or if I want to drive all that way). So I did the next best thing, I made a ByHand spotlight featuring sushi items!

Hopefully I'll have enough free time this week to go grab me some, but this'll have to do for now. Speaking of time....I have a show Friday and haven't even been able to start prepping for it!! Yeah, my head may explode lol. Anyway I hope everyone's had a lovely Sunday!
-3z

Find out if you're in an Etsy Treasury...FAST

2009-03-07T19:56:00.002-06:00

Came across this awesome new site while I was in the Etsy forums craftopolis.com all you have to do is enter your username & it will tell you if you're featured in any treasuries on Etsy. It updates every 10 minutes so if the treasury was just made you may not come up in the results right away.

Too cool! Major props to StudioMarlene for creating the site!

-3z

I am in love!!!!

2009-03-06T19:34:00.006-06:00

I got the most fantastic package in the mail today! I'd been looking for some new house shoes since I had broken my own rule & worn mine out a few too many times. Luckily for me Broken Hallelujah posted a pair of her super cute slippers in one of the "Item of the Day" threads in the Artfire fora. Browsing her shop I found this delicious pair in "Mint Chocolate Chip"

...just so happened I was having a very mint chocolate chip day and knew it was destiny! I was a little hesitant to buy because I was worried the back wouldn't stay on but boy was I wrong! I got them in the mail today, beautifully packaged, and was so excited! I felt like Cinderella when I was putting them on....they fit my size 8-1/2 feet perfectly and I've been wearing them ever since. Go by and grab you a pair, you won't be sorry!

My Daily Coffee & Promote Checklist

2009-03-03T19:48:00.002-06:00

Without a doubt getting your name out there is one of the biggest and most difficult parts of online selling (well selling in general). As I approach my one year anniversary of online selling (yay) I've been trying to get a daily checklist together of things I should do to promote and decided sharing my list may help others as well. Everyday I try to get up at 8:00am and usually drink coffee until about 10:00am. Originally I would just spend this time responding to e-mails and browsing the web, but I have found that these 2 hours can be much better spent. So here is what I do or want to do every morning while I drink my coffee to help bring more exposure to my shops(at the moment I am really focused on promoting my Artfire studio so many of these will refer to Artfire). *NOTE* One HUGE piece of advice: Do NOT spam other members! When I say "write on someones wall" or "comment on their page" talk to them, don't just say something to promote your shop.

∙Plurk/Twitter - (I do both but most of my attention goes to plurk). Stop in and say "Hi!", talk to a few people, then if the timing is good drop a link. DO NOT just post links. That will just irritate people and most likely lose you friends/followers.

∙Stumble Upon 1 Artfire Artisan or Item--not your own! Not only is it just a nice thing to do, but bringing traffic to the site in general brings traffic to you.

∙IndiePublic - Welcome, compliment, or just say "Hi!" to 2-3 members. If you have photos try to upload a photo a day to your IndiePublic.

∙1000Markets - Write on 2-3 other members' walls/blogs.

∙ByHand - Join in atleast 1 forum thread, comment on a blog post, and comment on a spotlight. If time permits create a spotlight promoting other sellers.

∙Artfire - Post in the "Item of the Day" thread (if you need help posting a picture see here: How To Post An Image).

∙Blogger - Reply to atleast 3 other bloggers' posts.

∙Etsy or Artfire - If time permits try and help out someone with a question in the Etsy or Artfire Forums.

This is just the beginning of my daily checklist. As I start to get into the habit of doing all of these I hope to add much more. If anyone else has suggestions for the morning checklist I would love to hear it! As always best of luck to everyone! Thanks for reading =)

-3z

Important USPS Info

2009-02-28T16:30:00.008-06:00

Well I feel silly for not knowing this sooner (and I've been shipping through USPS for almost a year) but I feel its important to share with anyone else who may not know. On this site there is this very important note:

Note: All Package Services parcels mailed with Delivery Confirmation must measure at least 3/4" at the thickest point, or be in a rigid box.

If you are printing your shipping labels as USPS First Class Mail through Paypal it will automatically add Delivery Confirmation (from what I have seen there is no option to remove this). So if you are shipping an item First Class Mail and printing the label through Paypal make sure that it is more than 3/4" thick or, if caught, they will return the package to you or deliver it to the recipient and charge for Priority Shipping--not something you want one of your buyers to have to deal with!

I've been very lucky this past year and not had any trouble with my mouse pads (they weigh 9oz but when packaged are only 1/2" thick), but from what I've seen in the Etsy fora the USPS is cracking down!
-3z

Congrats!

2009-02-28T12:27:00.003-06:00

Congratulations to my gift certificate giveaway winner, Jinx1764!!!! Thank you so much to everyone for entering! Make sure to stay tuned for my next giveaway/contest!

You may have noticed this "Rapid Cart" thing on the right hand column of my blog. It is Artfire's newest feature and it is FANTASTIC!! It allows buyers to purchase & checkout directly from my blog without even having to register on Artfire! All verified members can create their own Rapid Cart's for their blogs too (In "My Artfire" on the Left index under "Promote").

I have lots & lots of new switch plates available in my Artfire & Etsy stores and should be adding 3 more today. Here's some of my St. Patrick's Day switch plates:

I hope everyone is having a lovely weekend!

-3z

A little ticked off, but not too surprised...

2009-02-24T10:57:00.007-06:00

I had a buyer over the weekend on Etsy that I was wary of their intentions with my product (worried they were buying it to resale as their own). In attempts to figure out what to do I e-mailed abuse@etsy.com asking for any advice or if they'd had any problems with this person in the past. This is what I get in response:

Hi Alexandria

If you feel uncomfortable with this sale or buyer, you can cancel the transaction using the link under Items in Your Etsy. Have you received payment for the item?

You know your craft and business best, and Etsy will stand behind your policies as a seller (provided they are consistent with ours). This Etsy Street Team, Sellers Assisting Sellers (SAS),can offer private advice from one seller to another: http://team.etsy.com/viewteam.php?id=412

We hope this helps.

Yup that was about as helpful as a third elbow (is that the saying? does not sound right...). Who would have a policy about suspicious e-mail addresses??? I can see why so many people "call out" in the forums...you can't get a friggin' straight answer in that place! All I needed was a simple, "No we haven't had any problems with this buyer in the past" and maybe some advice on what to do if there is a problem in the future. Really makes me appreciate how wonderful the Artfire staff has been to me...I even got a call from them to try and help me out.

Oh well! I went ahead and shipped the item & treated it like a normal transaction. So hopefully everything works out OK, I know I'm probably just being over paranoid. Thanks for listening to my rant!

-3z

*EDIT* Just went to check my twitter and had an @reply from the President of Artfire...take that Etsy! *winky face*

My First ByHand Spotlight!

2009-02-22T18:44:00.002-06:00

Made my first spotlight on ByHand =)

Oh Gnome You Didn't! If you haven't already stop by and set up an account on ByHand! It is a wonderful new community for all things handmade. Caution: It IS addicting!!

-3z

Have to show off!

2009-02-22T12:11:00.005-06:00

I was listing new items in my Etsy shop last night and about half way through realized I had been listing them where the matching switch plates were in the same column. It turned out so awesome!!! Now I'm not wanting to relist anything and mess it up lol. Here's a snapshot of them:

Just wanted to show off =) I'll try & write a real post later, ta ta!

-3z

Finally starting on my New Year's resolution...

2009-02-13T09:57:00.003-06:00

As I said a few posts back my New Year's resolution was to do my pilates 3-4 times a week. Well I FINALLY started doing them about 2 weeks ago and have really been feeling a lot better. I haven't been craving junk food as much as I used to (oddly enough I've been getting chocolate cravings...before I started dieting I never craved sweets). I like Denise Austin's Pilates for Everybody DVD....she gets a bit annoying so I've started muting it and just playing music. You can only hear, "Girdle of strength....let me see those smiling faces..." so many times. Another really odd thing is I have been waking up starving in the mornings. Usually I don't eat my breakfast until about noon. I like a few hours to just drink coffee and chill and really don't like food with my coffee. I've cut back to 2 cups of coffee a day and then the rest of the day I drink tea. I haven't really lost any weight but I feel better and I can see some results. I'm not too concerned with a number anyway...just want to take care of myself and feel good about my body, inside and out.

I was approved for 1000 Markets the other day and have been trying to get that shop set up. I also have been setting up Artfire Studios for my Mom and Grandmother, and trying to get mine stocked while not completely neglecting my Etsy shop. My plate is a little full =)

I'm still on my never ending task of retaking product pictures. I need to get some more backdrops for my lightbox but am scared to go to any craft shop as I always spend too much money. I did have a red piece of foam lying around and was able to get this awesome picture:

Which reminds me! If you have decora switch plates I will be adding lots more in the near future! Every time I have to make a toggle or outlet switch plate I've been making a decora out of the same pattern. Well I am starting to ramble and really need to get to work. Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!!

-3z

P.S. If you have a moment please stop by and check out this week's featured product for the Artfire Decor Guild! Thanks =)

Short post to share a link

2009-02-12T16:19:00.002-06:00

For anyone selling on Artfire or anyone interested in Artfire I would like to share the interview that made me decide to join. I read it back in December and joined that day. Here is the article: http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2008/12/04/artfire-handcrafts-a-new-way-for-artisans-to-sell-online/

That's all for now =)

-3z

One of my Favorite Artfire Studios

2009-02-08T11:28:00.004-06:00

As you may have noticed from my products I love anything with a little bit of color and a little bit of funk. So of course I had to love LaDeDaCreations! I wish I could buy everything in her shop. She's having an A.S.S. (Artfire Sunday Sale) on her already reasonably priced jewelry, it's Buy 1 Get 1 half off, so make sure to stop by her studio! Here are a few of her fantastic pieces:

Hope everyone has a wonderful Sunday! -3z

Same ole Same ole

2009-02-06T10:35:00.002-06:00

Nothing too exciting going on in my neck of the woods. Doing what I can to increase traffic and sales and still take a moment to breathe! Really need to do some good sales in the next few weeks so I can go visit my dad for a few days. Oh how a "vacation" would be nice! Actually just getting away from Amarillo would be nice....maybe I'll see if my mom wants to take another trip to Albuquerque. Since we played on the slots so much at the Sandia resort we got our players cards bumped up to gold cards. Now we get some awesome rates at the resort and have a lot of free play that needs to be used before March.

I am absolutely loving this new light plate I made Don't really have much else to say...thinking about everything I have to do today, should probably get started on all that instead of just think about it =) Will try to be more interesting later!

-3z

Tips on Selling in a New Venue (Artfire)

2009-01-31T10:57:00.013-06:00

Happy Saturday everyone =) As you probably have seen I have been trying to promote Artfire and recruit new sellers. I have been so ecstatic with everything on Artfire and want to share that joy with everyone else, but there are quite a few recurring questions/comments that I wanted to address to prepare everyone who takes the plunge & joins Artfire. So here we go (please note..some of the things I say may sound harsh & I want you to know they are not directed at any one person, these are things I have learned the hard way & want to pass on).

∙Artfire IS in Beta( Definition of Beta ) so expect glitches and try not to get discouraged when you encounter them. To show their appreciation to the first 5,000 members that join Artfire as a verified seller while its in Beta they are offering $7/month for life (that's no relisting fees, no final value fees, just $7.00 a month--period). After that it goes up to $20.00 a month so I suggest "getting in on the ground floor". On Etsy many of us are paying anywhere from $20-$100 a month in fees and personally I think we're being treated like crap there.

∙You can't just list 2 items and wait for them to sell before deciding to use a new venue(I know this may work for some but overall its not going to work). If you really want to succeed you have to put your all into every endeavour you take on. Think of it this way, the more items you list, the more diverse the keywords are that lead buyers to your shop.

∙If you DO start off on Artfire with the basic account don't just list 1 item and be done with it. Make sure you upload an avatar, banner, write a bio, welcome note, and policies. I don't know about you but I'm not buying from anyone that can't take the time to put in a little info about their craft/studio.

∙Take advantage of everything the site has to offer. Artfire automatically submits your products to google base, all you have to do is list them in your studio(that is just 1 example of the many tools Artfire has and there are many more on the way)!

∙Be active in the fora(Chatterbox). Not only can you learn from the questions other members are asking, but you can get your name out there as well.

∙You are going to have to be patient and willing to put your time and energy into it! I know we all want sales right away, and need them, but its just not going to happen without some effort put into it. You have to promote yourself and get your name out there. True sites do advertise for you/the marketplace but you have to do the majority of that promoting yourself.

∙Don't be intimidated by international shipping! If the item is under 4lbs you can ship it USPS First Class International. Next time you go to the PO pick up a stack of the green customs forms so you can fill them out at home & have them ready to take with you to the PO (you can print First Class International postage online through certain sites and put the packages in a blue drop box, however I recommend checking with your Post Master before doing so, our PM requires we hand the package over to a Postal Worker directly). I bought a generic kitchen scale for $10 to get estimates for all of my products' weights. Then use the USPS International shipping calculator to get estimates. There are limits on what you can ship where so you will need to educate yourself on the info, see HERE. It requires quite a bit of research on your behalf, but if you are able to ship your items and don't mind having to drive the packages to the PO I say go for it! Think of how many buyers that will open up your shop to! I recommend making a note in your policies stating that you are not responsible for any customs fees that may be required once the item is delivered and that you will not lie about the value of your products on the customs form. You can also use your google analytics (you can set that up in Artfire under My Artfire::My Studio Stats) to see what different countries people are looking at your studio from.

∙Don't renew, create! Renewing is a silly thing that was created on Etsy, you are much better using that time, and money if you're on Etsy, creating new products and then listing those. Or if you are not ready to create more items, use that time to promote outside the marketplace you are selling on. When you are browsing categories on Artfire it shows the items in a random order. Search is based on relevance, not when the item was listed.

∙Join social networks! Not only is it a great way to meet new people, it can be a great way to promote if you do it correctly(The #1 no-no is to sign up and only promote your items, you will lose followers very quickly if that's all you do). My 2 favorites are twitter and plurk, but there are many more out there.

∙"Bring optimism, anything else is counter productive." (Wonderful advice from NCTeddyBearLady)

Well there are many, many more tips & tricks. I will try to post more as I think of them and feel free to comment with your tips as well. I may not be the most successful online handmade vendor, but I have done pretty decent in my opinion. I haven't made a fortune on Artfire but I have sold enough to pay my $7/month and made a little profit on top of that. Sorry if this turned into more of a rant than list of tips =)

AND if you decide to join Artfire as a verified member I would LOOOVE for you to use me (3zArt) as a referral Register on ArtFire.com Best of luck to everyone!!

-3z

3zArt $20 Gift Certificate Giveaway!!!

2009-01-27T20:39:00.002-06:00

3zArt's Artfire Studio Grand Opening Giveaway

To celebrate the Grand Opening of my Artfire Studio (a little late I know, had to get it started up) I will be giving away one (1) $20 Gift Certificate! The gift certificate will be valid at http://3zArt.Artfire.com and can be used on any product except the lamp shades. No purchase is necessary to enter. The winner will be chosen by the good ole method of drawing a name from a hat.

How to enter

∙Everyone is allowed one (1) free entry to the drawing. You can enter this way by adding a comment to this blog with either your twitter, plurk, or artfire username (please identify which it is) and I will contact you that way if you win, or you can e-mail me how you would like to be contacted at ShadesDuJour@gmail.com

∙You can also get entry by purchasing from my Artfire Studio. There is no limit on entries by purchasing. Anyone who has already purchased from my Artfire Studio will be given one (1) automatic entry as well.

The winner will be notified on February 28th(and if it's OK with the winner they will be announced on that day as well). Please let me know if you have any questions, and good luck!!

-3z

Posting an Image in the Artfire Forums

2009-01-25T19:15:00.004-06:00

How to post an image in the Artfire Forums (chatterbox). A tutorial w/ snap shots:

At the current time you are not able to upload a picture directly from your computer so you will first need to obtain the image URL. You can either grab it from one of your listings or upload the image to a image hosting site like flickr, photobucket, etc. To grab an image URL on Google Chrome just right click the image and select "Copy Image URL"

In Mozilla you will select "Copy Link Location" and in Internet Explorer select "Properties" and it will pull up a box with the image link in it.

Next pull up the reply page in the forums and click the button to insert an image:

A box will pop up where you can paste the image URL. You can paste it by pressing 'Ctrl'+'V' or by

right clicking the text bar & clicking 'Paste'. After pasting the image URL you can click the 'Link' tab to send someone to the item when they click the image(make sure you paste the listing URL not the image URL).

I hope that helps!! Feel free to contact me on Artfire if you have any questions/problems. Sorry about my lack of computer terms...as much as I learn about computers I will never know the language *<:o)

-3z

**EDIT** Adding a link to the image. You can also highlight your image (on the page you are writing your post) and then click the link button to add a link to the image.

A.S.S. Sale!!!

2009-01-24T10:32:00.002-06:00

Not much to say today, but I wanted to post. I'm having an Artfire Saturday Sunday Sale this weekend! All switch plates Buy 2 Get 1 free (see shop announcement for details). Yay sales!! =)

Random poll...why? I have no clue!

When it is time to clean out your purse do you....

A. ...buy a new purse and toss the old one in a closet.

B. ...dump out the contents of your purse into a grocery bag and toss that into a closet.

C. ...actually sort through you purse and throw all of the trash away.

D. ...other, please explain.

(Yes I am procrastinating and this was all I could come up with)

-3z

Get your act together!

2009-01-19T17:23:00.003-06:00

Get your act together, that was my theme for the day....and I failed very miserably lol! Luckily the day is not yet over so I can still make up for some of it. Days when the PO are closed I always seem to have trouble (more than normal) getting motivated.

I did create a flickr group for snapshots of the Artfire Item of the Hour to help people see if they made it. Kind of had a "Duh" moment while I was google searching for a list of the items that had already made item of the hour. I really need some people from different countries to join and help me add the items that make it while I am sleeping (also people here to help add items while I'm out). I've set it up to where everyone can add photos but please only add Items of the Hour. You can check out/join the group here: http://flickr.com/groups/artfireioth/

Just moved one of my favorite lampshades from Etsy over to Artfire. This one: I'm trying to get back into posting more often so I'm going to try and keep them short 'n' sweet =)

-3z

Some blog with your coffee?

2009-01-17T10:07:00.006-06:00

Good morning friends! First day of the rest of my life...blah blah blah =) anyone else say that every morning? Only on my second cup of coffee so this blog post may not be as emoticon filled haha. Well for starters I have to say that I absolutely love Psych and I woke up chuckling about the part where the victims name was Kenny Loggins and Shawn said, "So he's not alright?" *snort* A little 'serious' stuff...finally finished all of my tax stuff, just gotta figure out what I do with it now! Really happy only ended up losing about $600 last year (I didn't calculate in my car payments for the time I had the biz or my laptop), not bad for my first year of working for myself. I also decided a few days ago that I'm going to take this semester online. Last semester I had to commute 30mins there and 30mins back, almost everything I learned was something I read in one of the books or looked up online, and we took our tests online.....so I decided this semester I will save my gas & time and just do it on my own schedule at home (which will help the biz a lot b/c its unpredictable).

Well I need to start working. I'm trying to add some more items to the free online marketplaces and link back to my Artfire shop to help bring in some more traffic. Which reminds me, if you haven't already check out www.foundhandmade.com its no longer free but if you have a little extra to spend promoting its a kind of cool site (and you can change out the items in your blocks as often as you want). I'm giving the 5 blocks for $20 a try this month, I'll let everyone know how it goes! New item: Zebra Double Light Plate Cover If you have a moment stop by and enter in the Artfire Fun Cute & Whimsical Guild's first giveaway HERE. I'm the sponsor! The winner gets 1 free switch plate from my shop!

And please stop by and show this week's featured product for my guild, Artfire Décor, some love

I almost forgot to say!! Artfire is now offering market hubs! They show up on your listings and link back to sites you have accounts with (Etsy, blogger, flickr, etc.). Here's a snapshot of what mine looks like:(To access your hub go to "My Artfire" and on the left hand menu, under 'Promote' you will see "Market Hub")

I hope everyone has a wonderful, safe weekend!!!

-3zArt

Warning: This is a promo post!

2009-01-11T12:05:00.008-06:00

I am determined to hit 10 sales on my Artfire shop today(and hopeful my determination gets 20)! To help try and reach that goal I am offering a Buy 2 Get 1 free sale on ALL of my switch plates! You can mix & match or buy 3 of the same switch plate (if you are wanting to purchase multiple quantities of the same switch plate please let me know so I can make a listing for you). You can access my Artfire shop here: http://3zArt.Artfire.com Here are a few of my newly listed switch plates on Artfire:

Things have been crazy...sorry for neglecting!

2009-01-05T20:35:00.005-06:00

I guess I should say things have been crazIER! Been doing pretty well with sales lately and have a lot more motivation. I think that extreme decline in sales for 10 days in December helped bring back the motivation when I finally started making sales again. I actually worked from 8 to almost 6 nonstop (well there were a few twitter breaks but they were very short!) and now I don't know what to do with myself! Usually in the evenings I'm still finishing up work but other than making new product (which I don't really need to do right now as I made new product today) there isn't anything that HAS to be done. Maybe this free time will help me to quit neglecting my blog :)

More serious news, my stepdad had to go in for a triple bypass last week . My mom was staying at the hospital with him the entire week so on top of the normal work stuff I was running around taking care of her errands. I wanted to help of course & didn't mind it at all but I have to say by about Saturday afternoon my head was ready to explode! He got to check out yesterday and is at home now. He has to go back in for another surgery on his leg as soon as he is well enough for it, then hopefully after that he will be surgery free.

and in the midst of all of this I decided to start an Artfire guild! The turn out has been very good and I must admit I am very, very excited about it!! I've started a blog for the guild if you'd like to check it out: http://ArtfireDecorGuild.Blogspot.com and if you sell décor products on Artfire and are interested in joining you can do so HERE.

Two last things, I got the most fantastic fabric in the post today and of course made switch plates out of it as soon as it arrived! Here is the outcome:

Hot Pink Zebra Print....wowzas!! I'm very excited about it, I think this one is about to top my best sellers list! I'll take new pictures tomorrow when it is actually light outside so the colors will be true and everyone can see how hot pink it really is! I also have a new creation....my Original Photography Switch Plates! I have many photos from when I lived in Hawaii that I've been pondering what to do with other than just selling the prints and I think I may have figured it out (well atleast one thing to do with them). Here is the first of the collection: That's all for now =)-3zArt

Happy New Year & ArtFire Guild

2008-12-31T21:08:00.004-06:00

Happy New Year everyone! I've heard people talking about it all day so I don't really have much to say about it. I will share my resolution though, do my pilates atleast 3 times a week! Nothing to extreme(and I can't say diet because I have been for the past few months) but something I need to be doing. With all of the excitement of the ArtFire guilds opening I decided to create one myself! There is still a lot of set up being done but it is still very exciting! I created the ArtFire Decor Guild. If you sell Decor on ArtFire feel free to join HERE. (you may also join if you are not a Decor seller just please note that the only items & sellers we will promote will need to be Decor). I've also got a thread going if you would like to join in or just give it a little bump to maybe help bring in new members :) You can get to it HERE. Everyone have a safe & fun night! See you next year!! -3z

Happy Holidays & Treasuries!!

2008-12-25T23:30:00.011-06:00

So Happy Holidays everyone! Don't really have too much to say about the our holidays so I'm just going to talk about treasuries =) I curated 2 this morning (they both opened within a few minutes of each other...it was intense) and I was featured in one yaaay! First here is my Suave Mauve Treasury (amazed I was able to spell the title correctly with so much pressure from the treasuries opening)

In this treasury:

∙ArtbyskyM

∙juneshin

∙snaulkter

∙FireBirdFlamework

∙theeye

∙annemade

∙prairiefibers

∙Lolleys

∙Glovens

∙ShadesJewelry

∙marshallarts79

∙ShySiren

Then I snagged a Treasury West...I named it like I was naming a boat (the boat of course was my treasury) "I shall call her....Avocado"

In this treasury:

∙SydnorWorks

∙createdbyrisa

∙zippybeads

∙wenifnotnow

∙sweetmaddie

∙MAKUstudio

and last but not least I was featured in this muy caliente treasury by metacarpals.

I hope everyone had a wonderful, safe holiday!!

-3z

Driving Slow on Sunday Morning..

2008-12-21T12:51:00.005-06:00

Actually not driving at all, I'm trying to stay in on Sundays, and its now Sunday afternoon so I guess none of that works but I didn't have a title. So I woke up at about 11:30 and remembered I'm supposed to be on "Newspaper Watch" (you may remember the newspaper bandit, if not: Click Here) So I run out the front door in my bathrobe and there is a duck!! LOL Never a dull Sunday in this house....anyway I followed him around with my camera (freezing my butt off) and trying to feed him bread. He stuck around for about an hour and then I guess he finally got fed up with me and flew away.

As you may have noticed I have started listing products on my blog. I will try and keep it my 5 top sellers so feel free to purchase directly from my blog and pay through Paypal (and save me some fees). Love those paypal buy now & donate buttons! Well I'm going to stop now & just make this a short 'n' sweet post since my last was soooo long. A mutts comic strip: Have a great day everyone!

-3z

I'm back :)

2008-12-19T08:26:00.011-06:00

Before I delve into everything about my trip....I got a 4.0 for this past semester!!!!! Yaaay I'm so happy all my hard work paid off! Also...Art Fire now has Shop Windows!! If you haven't started your Art Fire account yet you need to hurry and do it while there are still $7 accounts left! Sign up HERE! Make sure you get a verified account...its only $7/month and you get unlimited listing (and a lot of other cool stuff).

http://3zArt.ArtFire.com

You may have noticed I've been neglecting the blog a bit much lately. Sheesh my last post was Thursday, Dec. 11th! Well thankfully my Christmas rush finally came in this past weekend, I guess everyone is like me and waits until the last minute to do their Christmas shopping. Monday was my Birthday and my mom was planning on taking me on a mini vacation. I tried as hard as I could to get all of my orders packed up Sunday but they just kept coming in so that evening I finally had to put my shop on vacation. Then Monday came around and it still took me until 2:00pm to finish packing them up, so we didn't leave for my trip until almost 3. Luckily its only a 4 hour drive from here to Albuquerque...ha....ha! We checked the weather forcast before we left and it wasn't supposed to get below freezing until after 9pm and there was only 30% chance of LIGHT snow. Well we are driving for about hour and the snow starts coming down pretty good. Drive about another hour and the roads are completely covered in snow and ice, and the left lane is so covered in snow there basically is no left lane. So we still have about 120 or so miles to go and are in a line of traffic on in the right hand lane averaging about 30. On top of that the stupid semi's keep passing everyone in the non-existent left lane and swerving towards all of the other cars almost forcing them off the road. Happy Birthday AJ! Finally get to Albuquerque and our hotel. Roads are too bad to go to the casino and the casino won't come pick us up :( Luckily there was a Japanese restaurant right by the hotel so we got to have a nice dinner (and lots of sake). Here is a sushi cake my mom ordered. It was beautiful, but not really for me. I don't really like fish....I'm very particular about the texture of my food, but I really want to like sushi so I always try it and we always order some. I also got some shrimp tempura rolls. They were awesome and this place actually made them where you could fit the piece in your mouth! Usually they are gigantic. Oh I also forgot my real camera...that should have been a sign that something was wrong with the trip! Tuesday morning came and the roads had cleared up enough to go to the casino yaaayyy!!! Took forever for my mom to get up and out of bed but we were finally on our way! We were going to drive around and look for another hotel (cheaper...we had gotten our first night using some reward points) as the weather hadn't cleared up enough to make the trip back, but once the casino was in sight we just had to go in! We went and signed up for our player's cards and they gave us a voucher to stay in the resort for $100--SOLD! The room was beautiful!!! The picture is when we were driving up to the casino (you can kind of see the casino on the left hand side of the pic). We didn't win a whole bunch of money but we didn't spend too much either. I managed to play on $20 for about 4 hours. We also had dinner and drinks for under $30 and were the only people in the restaurant/bar so that was kind of cool. We had to check out Wednesday so I was up & playing slots at 8 that morning! Mom joined me at about 10 and we ended up staying until almost 3 whoops :) We did manage to rack up enough Player's card points that we had a free meal before we left. We really wanted to put our points towards playing some bingo but it was getting way too late. The drive back was pretty good, except my Ebay vacation settings weren't working for some reason so I kept making sales the entire trip and was stressing out about all of that on the way home. Now time to get my motivation back and get some work done! I'm going to try and take lots of new product pics today and get new items posted on my Art Fire and then try and start editing all of my Ebay listings....they are such a mess!

-3zArt

After a day like today, a full moon makes too much sense!

2008-12-11T20:41:00.002-06:00

I felt like someone was walking behind me all day singing the twilight zone theme song. It all started when I listed an item this morning on Art Fire, posted the link on twitter, clicked the link and the item was no longer there. Much to my surprise it was not a glitch and had actually sold! (and there was much rejoicing aaaahhhhh). Well I go and click on the invoice and the buyer was "ArtFire President" thus the freaking out began! Not only am I sitting here on a huge coffee buzz, stressing out about my final in a few hours, now I have to remake this light plate to send to Art Fire. So of course, the fabric is no where to be found! I'm spazzing out, trying to study, and searching for this fabric. Then, sale after sale starts coming in! I am grateful for any and every sale but I don't think they could have had worse timing. I finally had to recruit my mom to come help me as my head was on the verge of exploding. Well my day pretty much went on & on (even to this moment) in the same manner. The good news is I am done with this semester yaaaay! Also I got an A on my Classical Argument(the insanely long essay a few posts down)!! The 1st day of class the professor told us that it was very likely no one in the class would get an A on a paper and I was determined to prove him wrong (maybe that was his goal from the beginning) and after many papers I finally did! I won't know all of my grades until Monday but even without knowing the grades I'm pretty proud of my performance this semester. Oh before I forget...has anyone else had the Art Fire President purchase from them or anyone have any clue what it means? I could not decide how to go about the transaction so I just did the normal shipping with the shipping confirmation. BTW If you haven't joined Art Fire you should! As of right now we are the guinea pigs (so to speak) but it is definitely going to pay off. By becoming one of the first so many verified users you will only be paying $7/month for life. I don't know if this is true but I have heard that once they are done testing & working everything out the rates are going up. Even if you don't sell anything the first few months $7 isn't bad. I mean we spend more in a day or two at Starbucks.... So if you decide to sign up feel free to use me as a referral:Register on ArtFire.com and also feel free to ask me any questions if you have them. I'm not Art Fire genius but I have learned a few things. Hope everyone has a wonderful night!!!

-3zArt PS You can check out my Art Fire here: 3zart.artfire.com

Product Pictures

2008-12-07T11:23:00.002-06:00

So I got some really great advice from a friend on Twitter and will be redoing most of my switch plate photos today, in between studying for my History final of course. Here is a sample of what my new pictures will be looking like: Now I just need to figure out how to take better pictures of my mouse pads. They are especially tricky because a lot of the time the background I am using can look like a border. I actually had used some of those clear gems as a background for a few mouse pads and had someone on Ebay message me asking if I would make the mouse pad without the "bubble border" lol. I think today I am going to move some of my lamp shades from Etsy to Artfire. I really like them being on Etsy because they get a lot of views and are put in a lot of treasuries, but I think on ArtFire maybe they will actually sell and it will show some variety in my shop. Yeah I'm going for it :) I also raised all of my prices on Ebay. The fees were getting ridiculous so I am going to make sure if I sell something it is going to be worthwhile. I may have said this in my post last night but when I was doing numbers for my kiosk I figured out if I sold $7000 of product on Ebay I'd probably pay about $2000 in fees (if not more). Craaaazy!

-3zArt

The future is scary!

2008-12-06T20:58:00.003-06:00

I didn't do my pilates. Surprise, surprise. So while at the mall with my mother yesterday we decided to go for the kiosk idea. Sadly the mall manager was out so I have to wait until Monday to contact her. I have been toying with the idea for quite some time. Actually started back a few years ago when I was wanting to buy dog accessories/clothing at wholesale and resale it in my kiosk. That was when the whole Paris Hilton Chihuahua on the arm was "in". Now that I make and sell my own products I am a lot more excited about the idea and more determined to make it happen. Its not going to be cheap, that's for sure, but I've been toying with the numbers and its looking promising! I really have enjoyed selling online but I kinda feel like I've reached my "peak". I don't think my sales are going to start dropping but without paying tons more on top of what I already pay, I don't think my sales are going to go up. So I have decided that now is the time to take a step forward with my business. It is very scary but it is a risk I have to take. I will be working on my business plan and then going over it with possible investors. I know I don't have the experience that many business investors are looking for, but I think that what I sell will be so intriguing and my determination and planning should impress them. The wonderful thing about selling switch plates is that you can't go to Wal-Mart and get them. True, the do have about 5 available but that's no where close to my inventory! I basically have no competition other than online. It is also wonderful that my inventory appeals to people of all age ranges. Those wanting to decorate their homes to kids being dropped off at the mall with $20 bucks. Anyway I am very, very excited! It's going to be a very difficult first few months but I am hopeful that after a year I will have enough to move up from the kiosk to an actual shop in the mall. I would love to have an actual shop because I could actually be able to make product in the back! That's all for now...I will update everyone with what happens!!

-3zArt

Tomorrow......

2008-12-04T21:01:00.008-06:00

I will do my pilates...I will do my pilates. I'm so full of excuses not to do them..I have to clean my room so I will have room for my mat, can't clean my room because of the spiders (they are bad. We've been here since May 1 black widow, 2 brown recluses, and many very large wolf spiders). I have been hardcore dieting once again and have almost gotten down to my desired weight. I can button my "skinny" (not designer skinny jeans but my jeans I bought with the hopes I would lose weight and be able to wear them) jeans. They may not be flattering in the stomach area but I can button them! I just have got to get myself to start doing my pilates daily and I think I will be good. I like Denise Austin's Pilates for Everybody. She gets pretty annoying with her "Girdle of Strength" talk but after watching it a few times you can mute it and play your own music. I really like that DVD because after a week of using it I start to feel more flexible (I'm a very stiff person) and I can balance myself a lot better (I'm also very clumsy). So the worst part of my diet is that I can no longer have my nightly glass(es) of wine. I am only allowing myself 1 night a week to drink. In my opinion you have to give yourself a day a week to bend the rules or else you will "relapse" in no time. The really awesome thing is that since I have cut back on the vino I have had a lot more energy. Usually by 2pm I am exhausted and cannot get much more accomplished but lately I've been very energized up until about 8pm.

FREE Advertising Opportunity: If you would like to advertise on my blog just e-mail me at shadesdujour@gmail.com I won't charge anything but I am really only looking to advertise Etsy/Artfire shops or your blogs (and people that actually need the advertising). Please include an image or link to an image you would like used (approx. 175 x 175 pixels) and about 5-10 words describing your shop/blog.

I don't like complaining but I just want to say this one thing. It really sucks when you are trying to make your birthday plans and have to be more concerned with what everyone else wants to do and not hurting their feelings rather than getting to do whatever you want for your birthday. hmph. -3zArt

Day 2 of my "Vacation"

2008-12-04T11:37:00.006-06:00

So I am trying to start up shops in different Marketplaces and advertise where I can. So far I have only set up my Artfire shop and am still waiting to see if my shop is approved on 1000Markets. I'm going to set up shop as many places as I can over the break and then close down the ones with the least traffic/sales at the end of the break. If anyone knows any cheap or free ways to advertise my shop(s) please let me know! I've got 25 items listed on ArtFire...I really want to add more but I think I should wait and see how it goes before spending any more time adding stuff. Another amazing thing I learned about ArtFire is the administrators listen! I had a glitch on my ArtFire account and posted a thread about it. The administrator fixed the problem and replied to my post saying that he had fixed the problem and it should be back to normal now. WOW! I've been on ArtFire 3 days and the adminstrators have already aknowledged me. Even if I don't make a lot of sales on there I may stay anyway just to show my support. Make sure if you sign up to become a verified user. They are already paying to advertise the site so I feel $7.00 a month is worth it! You can use me as a referral by clicking HERE. Well that is all for now. My mind just went blank! I'm going to listen to Estelle and search for somewhere to advertise (and make a flier that I'm going to need if I do find somewhere to advertise).

-3zArt

P.S. If you would like to advertise on my blog just e-mail me at shadesdujour@gmail.com I won't charge anything but I am really only looking to advertise Etsy/Artfire shops or your blogs (and people that actually need the advertising).

Treasury, Artfire, & Some Pics

2008-12-03T14:44:00.006-06:00

So today is the unofficial beginning of my Christmas Break. I still have finals next week but I'm going to take it as easy as I can until then. I stayed in my bathrobe until almost 2:30 today. It was wonderful! While lounging about a created my "Theeeeyyyy're Grape" Treasury:

Then after I finished creating my treasury I learned that I was featured in a fantastic treasury made by Glass Identities. Thanks so much!!! I also started listing today on Artfire. You can get to my shop at 3zArt.ArtFire.com I've gotten 23 items listed and am very excited about it and wanted to let everyone know the pro's & con's I have discovered so far. Pros: STATS I have visited them 30 times already(they even show anytime a link to one of your items have been posted on the web), Awesome 1 Page listing (you can even fill out the rest of the listing information while the picture is uploaded), $7.00 a month gets you A LOT of extra stuff, the forums seem pretty friendly, the shop layout looks wonderful, and there is a list where you can see everything they are working on/adding to the site! Cons: There is no option to turn off the e-mail notification everytime you add a new listing (if you are like me and get your e-mails to your phone that is very annoying. In the forums I was told they are working on adding that option though), the site can be a little glitchy..I've had a few problems but nothing major, and thats all I've really noticed so far. Im sure there will be many more pro's and con's down the road but so far I like what I see! Now I have 2 pictures I wanted to share. The first of my "Tree at Dusk" I was waiting for a sunset that never came(it was just gray then dark) but managed to get this picture:

And then last night after I got home and in my comfy clothes I looked out the front window and got this awesome picture:

When I'm out and waiting for the sunset I get nothing, and when I'm unprepared they are amazing lol. That's the way it always works! Anyway I hope everyone is having a wonderful day! We're supposed to have a snow storm tonight =) I love the snow when I don't have to get out in it. -3zArt

Update on ArtFire! There IS an option to turn off the e-mail notification for everytime you list an item, it is on the actual create listing page in the upper right hand corner. Also I was in the forums asking about a glitch and one of the administrators answered the forum himself saying he had fixed the problem and everything should be back to normal. You rock Artfire!

English 1301 Classical Argument: Etsy Needs to be More Seller Friendly

2008-12-01T17:48:00.006-06:00

When we had to choose our Classical Argument topics a few weeks ago I had Etsy on the brain, thus I chose "Etsy Needs to be More Seller Friendly". When I spoke of it on Twitter there were a few people interested in reading it so I decided to post it on my blog (maybe just temporarily I don't know yet). Of course it is due tomorrow so I'm working on it tonight :) Enjoy and feel free to leave advice! So here it is, but first: A note from the Author:

I know there are hundreds of current issues on Etsy right now that we would all like to see fixed and I wish I could have included all of them. My paper is already waaaay over the min. words required and I was worried if I included much more it would sound more like I was rambling and the reader (well my Professor) would lose interest. We had to stick to a fairly strict form. I. Introduction II. Presentation of Main Point with Reasons III. Opposing Views IV. Response to Opposing Views V. Conclusion I have merged my Opposing Views and Response to Opposing views because when I had them seperated it made the paper confusing to readers (especially because they don't know what Etsy is and our "Slang"). Also the administrator "arguments" are NOT actual arguments I have seen. We were not allowed to do any research for our paper so I had to make assumptions and basically argue with myself. Enjoy!

English 1301 Classical Argument: Make Etsy More Seller Friendly

Sellers on Etsy have been crying out for changes to be made on the site for months and their cries are not being answered. More and more major problems keep emerging but the Etsy administrators are only focusing on small problems and little games to add to the site. I recently made a post in the Etsy Forums asking, “What is the #1 thing you would change about Etsy to make it more seller friendly?” I have received more than one hundred replies about very major issues with the site. I was disgusted that same day, while browsing the forums, to come across a post from the administrators asking if the sellers would like to be able to organize their favorites. The majority of the sellers could care less about organizing their favorites. Many sellers are also buyers and chances are if we are not making sales we most likely do not have extra money to shop through our favorites. Etsy needs to be more “seller friendly” because the sellers are the backbone of Etsy. Etsy is an online marketplace for everything handmade. It is similar to Ebay and Amazon, except smaller and without auctions. The administrators do not understand how many sellers are leaving from lack of sales and traffic. Etsy sellers cannot serve their buyers well if the administrators will not give them a hand. Buyers are more likely to visit Etsy more frequently if the promoted items are more diverse, more people would join, and stay on, Etsy as sellers if we could add items and organize our shops in more efficient ways, and if Etsy administrators would spend more time promoting Etsy it would increase traffic. The sellers pay very good money to keep their shops up and running and Etsy is not helping direct and keep sales on the site. Buyers are more likely to visit Etsy more frequently if the promoted items are more diverse. If you view the front page treasury (a treasury is collection of collections that is supposed to be picked by Etsy members to promote different sellers) and the Gift Guides it is the same items over and over again. They are all nice but if buyers keep coming and seeing the same items and those are not items they are interested in they will quit coming. Etsy has so many unique items that are not getting the exposure they deserve. More people would join, and stay, on Etsy as sellers if we could add items and organize our shops in more efficient ways. This is the one of the largest current problems on Etsy. We cannot organize the items in our shop. They are just in order by which item was most recently listed. Most sellers like for their new products to stay on their shop front page and If we make a sale, it is hard to decide whether to re-list the item or not. We can either list the sold item at the risk of one of the new products being bumped to the next page, or not re-list the item and lose potential sales. On top of that, it takes a grueling amount of time to list items. Not only are there five pages you have to go through, there is not an option to post the image URL. You have to sit there and wait for each product picture to upload, and most of us have an average of four photos per item. If Etsy administrators would spend more time promoting Etsy it would increase traffic. I have yet to speak to someone in person who actually knows what Etsy is. It is starting to appear to sellers that the administrators are just wasting time. I was very, very put off at a recent observation I made. I was in the treasury and there was a new treasury that had been created when there was not a treasury opening. I clicked on the users name and discovered it was someone from the administration team. Not only did they randomly create a treasury (pretty much crushing the hope of all of our treasuries making front page) but creating treasuries is basically playing around and something you should do in your spare time. That time should have been spent helping bring traffic to the site, not promoting your friends! The Etsy administrators will argue that they do promote Etsy. They advertise in magazines, television shows, and other internet sites. If you go to the “press” section of Etsy you will see all of the many places they have advertised. True Etsy administrators have been promoting the site, but they are not promoting wisely. They are sticking to small, and a lot of the time local, magazines and shows. They advertise on other websites where the viewers are most likely not going to be clicking on links to buy handmade items. Instead they should be trying to book an appearance on shows like “The Martha Stewart Show” and “Rachael Ray”. These shows are all about creativity and it is very likely that they, like the majority of the population, have never even heard of Etsy. Administrators also argue that they have made their front page more diverse. They have changed around the layout of the entire front page so that the Gift Guide (a guide showing featured items from sellers that the administrators think would make good gifts) is located at the very top of the page. The new front page set up has it where all of the sections directed to buyers are at the top, and the other sections (that probably only sellers are using) are located further down the page. I, along with many other users, agree that the administrators have done a fantastic job of redesigning the front page, and we appreciate it. Even though they have changed the layout it is still the same items being promoted. It is almost like you have to know the Etsy Administrators personally to get a slot on the front page or in one of the gift guides. Outside of that group the only other items picked are a small group of items that have to be in earth tone colors. It appears that Etsy administrators are trying to make the front page look like a magazine rather than trying to support all of the amazing items that are on the site. Lastly, the administrators will argue that they keep the sellers’ shop set up how it is because it is cleaner, and it keeps the newest products on the front pages. There are also preset shipping options you can use and sections you can place your items in so the buyers can browse the sections. Like the Etsy administrators, we want Etsy to load quickly and look “clean”. At the same time there are little fixes they could do that would make the shop set up process a lot easier on the sellers. As I have said before, even just a small change like making the listing process one page instead of five would save the sellers a remarkable amount of time. The administrators do post in the forums, respond to e-mails, and have made a lot of changes. It is just very obvious that they are wasting a lot of time on miniscule problems, when they could be focusing more of their time on bettering the site. Etsy needs to be more “seller friendly” because the sellers are the backbone of Etsy. Not only are we buyers, but if the we the sellers are not there will be nothing to buy. The administrators need to listen to its people and prioritize the members’ requests. After all, seller friendly equals buyer friendly. Many buyers get frustrated with Etsy and just leave altogether, and do not buy anything. Buyers are leaving and sellers are too. If you go to the forums you will find many posts titled, “I give up. I’m closing up shop.” The sellers are not just paying to have their items listed, but they are paying to have the marketplace promoted. Bottom line if Etsy does not get its act together and listen to the sellers, the sellers will leave and the site will crash!

Thanks for taking the time to read!!

Here is the tally from the thread I posted (you can get to the thread HERE) :

Buyer Friendly(Fix the Search, Easier/Clearer Checkout) 46

Faster/Efficient Listing (Batch Upload, Organize Items, Templates) 25

Stats 14

Front Page/Gift Guides Diversity 9

More 'Your Etsy' Options(Expired, Inactive, Alchemy, Search Y.E.) 9

In-house Currency Conversion 7

Etsy promote Etsy more effectively/Bring more Traffic 5

More Shipping Options (More than 1 choice, Insurance,Calc., Etc)5

Site Goals More Professional & Clearly Stated 2

Seller Forums 1

Lower Renewal Fees 1

More Etsy Mini Options 1

Phone Alerts 1

Clearing House 1

No Change 1

Make Showcases Easier to Buy 1

The Newspaper Bandit

2008-11-30T09:27:00.014-06:00

So this morning I finished drinking my coffee and was heading to the the kitchen to rinse out my coffee cup. I looked out the window and saw this strange lady parked in front of our house. When I went to the window she was walking back to the car and I was trying to figure out what she had done to our car. I started to head out side and she sped away. I ran to look at the back of the car and to my surprise the newspaper was gone!! What kind of person does that? We only get the Sunday paper so that my Stepdad can have the TV Guide (He is not going to be pleasant when he wakes up).

I'm not too mad about the fact that she stole the newspaper, but more that I have to leave the house on Sunday which is our day to stay in. I got a google map & edited it in paint to put everything in perspective. A is my house and B is the Gas Station by our house. The wonderfully drawn arrows show the route I saw her taking after she sped away from our house. So not only did she probably spend more in gas to drive here than the newspaper originally cost, but she very likely passed a gas station where she could buy her own newspaper. I guess I can be thankful for her to give me something to blog about today! Knowing me I probably would have gone on about my Jacket shopping and gift certificates (which are coming out really well I just need to figure out how to get the ink not to smear on the glossy card stock..hairspray?).

-3zArt

Birthday Jackets

2008-11-29T12:16:00.017-06:00

So my Birthday is coming up (yay!) and I am actually gettting presents this year...I think :) There will be at least one more person celebrating with me this year, My Grandmother. Last year was my 21st Birthday....my mom & I went to a Japanese steakhouse...had a few bottles of sake...and I think I was home in bed by 10:30! At least I didn't have a hang over the next morning. Anyway I know for sure my Grandmother is getting me a jacket so I have started shopping. Here is a Vintage 60's Red Peacoat from Decades.Etsy.Com I am going to post a few more that I have found so far...you will probably see a recurring theme!

Here is a cute Plaid Trenchcoat from Forever21 I'm actually pretty impressed with their jackets this year.

A vintage Pendleton Wool Coat. This one from Smmak.Etsy.com

This Yellow Felt Coat also from Forever21

And last but not least this fabulous Vintage 60's Tweed Houndstooth Coat from TheDustyDog.Etsy.com I don't know how I will ever decide! I haven't even searched Ebay yet (Comp is really acting up today and won't load Ebay grrr). I used to have this fantastic light blue & Pink Plaid Tweed Jacket but I lost it when I moved to Hawaii.

I think I am going to try to go to JoAnn's at about 7 tonight in hopes that there isn't so much of a crowd. I need to buy some more scrapbook paper so I can make some Gift Certificates of different values (and a little easier to read). Had a few sales this morning on Ebay and 1 custom order on Etsy! I hope it keeps coming, I'm really, really motivated today. Hopefully it lasts throughout the entire day and isn't just really a coffee buzz *<:o)

-3zArt

Gift Certificates

2008-11-28T14:50:00.019-06:00

I had a drawing this morning in my Etsy shop for a $20 Gift Certificate. When I was making the Gift Certificate I remembered some card stock I had laying around from other projects & was hopeful I could finally get some use out of them. The experiment was a success!! Here's a few pics of the Gift Cert. I made: I'm really excited about the Gift Certificate...it turned out so cute! I think I'm going to shop for some card stock that will be easier to read when I print on it, and start selling them in my shop. I was really nervous about having to keep up with them and everything but I made a spreadsheet with the information for this one & a special unique code so I think it will actually be fairly easy. Now to do a little more research and then maybe create the listing! -3zArt P.S. I am supposed to be packing shipments and actually getting some work done. *<:o)

Purple, Orange, & Black Friday

2008-11-28T11:00:00.005-06:00

So last night was the one day of the week that I allowed myself to drink(sadly wine does not fit well into my diet) & of course I stayed up too late! The good part is I also snagged another Treasury. This is the first time I've ever gotten in the Treasury & Treasury West in the same night. Here is my new Treasury: I will add a list of everyone featured here in a little bit...took me forever to do it last night!

Today is Black Friday. I really, really want to do some online Christmas shopping but I'm still short on my car payment that's due in a few days. I also just got an e-mail offer for 53% (I don't know why they picked 53) percent off Microsoft Office 2007 which I could really use as my trial is about to expire. I cheated the trial long enough that I've made it last almost 3 months heh heh (I would open the programs, leave them open & just put my computer in sleep...probably not too great for the laptop). Surprisingly no sales from my Etsy Black Friday Free Shipping sale. I did sell a mouse pad on there and 2 switch plates on Ebay. Maybe I will continue the sale on through tonight.

Only one day of classes (well & finals) left this semester wooooohoooooo!! I have 2 papers due Tuesday that of course I am putting off. I am writing my Classical Argument over how Etsy needs to prioritize the changes that need to be made. It has been a lot of fun writing but I've had to be very careful not to start ranting. Its funny writing Classical Arguments...I always feel like I am having an argument with myself. English Prof. actually read my Rough Draft to the class (I think because I am the only one that gets the opposing views section). Maybe I will make some sales from that lol =) Well I am off to Work...or shop...probably play Solitaire Pyramid. Then eat something involving leftover turkey & stuffing. Hope everyone is having a wonderful day!! -3zArt

You Put the Lime in the Coconut

2008-11-27T22:22:00.016-06:00

My Newest Treasury: Featured Sellers:

∙Spiral Stephie ∙Mich Vanetta∙Tizzalicious∙Pix by Cat∙Eleganza Gifts∙Nessa Ancalime∙Mack∙Crafty Steph∙Penny Dog Accessories∙Lil Songbird∙Kre8or∙Tropics Lady

Thank you so much for giving me such wonderful products to create my treasury! Now if only I could get this song out of my head....

Black Friday

2008-11-27T14:45:00.013-06:00

After having to work at the mall the past 6 Black Fridays, I am all for staying in this year! In hopes that others will be staying in as well, and do their shopping online, I have decided to do a Black Friday Sale!! You can get details in my Etsy shop announcement at www.3zArt.Etsy.com

This is my 1st Thanksgiving in awhile that I will be having with a lot of family...and I have a feeling it's going to be pretty rowdy! Football, Booze, and Rednecks...oh my! My last 2 Thanksgiving's were spent at either a Nursing Home or Retirement community so I am very grateful that we get to have a family Thanksgiving at home, and my Grandmother gets to be here with us.

Turkey Bot by IttyBittiesForYou.etsy.com

Hope everyone has a wonderful, safe Thanksgiving!!

I hope my first blog post wasn't too lame :) I have finally got the setup to where I would be OK sharing my new blog with everyone. Bear with me as I finish setting up. -3zArt