giving away my heart. earrings.

 

valentine's day has to be my most favorite holiday.  not that anything super-ass spectacular has ever happened to me on valentine's day, but the idea of a day set apart to remember to acknowledge the ones you love?  nice.  i know some of you will argue that it's a money grab (it probably is) and an overhyped excuse to get all dolled up and be with someone (more than likely) but it still holds a special place in my heart.

 

speaking of hearts, in honour of valentine's day, i've been working on some new heart hoop designs like the ones above.  and i'm giving a pair away on the daily dose of handmade blog!  they're not even in my shop yet - but you can win them for yourself or to give to someone special.  you can click HERE to see the details and to enter.  and you thought valentine's day was just another term for consumerism.  *wink*  go.  enter.  NOW.

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my guest blogging stint at the daily dose!

today i am so honoured to be the guest blogger over at the daily dose of handmade!  so i decided i'd share the post here too - hopefully these tips will help someone!!!

courtesy of gingermadesoap

One of the first things I learned on my etsy journey was the importance of great photos. While having an online business is so awesomely convenient, it also poses a huge disadvantage to us small time retailers in that we have to sell our wares to people by pictures and words alone. You want to draw your customers in, have them fall in love with your creations, and then purchase them. It's not just about a great description, but also a fantastic photograph. Truly, a picture is worth a thousand words.

courtesy of the lovely smith

Now I'm not saying that I'm the queen of taking super-duper fantastic product photos, but I'm hoping some of my tips will help you. Taking great pictures does not necessarily mean investing in a fancy camera or a high-tech lightbox. (although if I had the means, I would definitely do that). All you really need are four easy ingredients - a bright window, a white or interesting background, basic editing photo editing software, and a digital camera with a macro setting on it.

courtest of K5art

Natural Light
Seriously the number one - and the cheapest - necessity. And unless you live in a windowless basement (sorry if you do) you have a window with great light. I prefer northern or southern exposure, but really, any window that gets good, indirect light will work. In my opinion, direct sunlight tends to bleach out details and adds a sometimes unnecessary yellowish cast on your items.

courtesy of sweetPB

Background
A white piece of bristol board, the windowsill, a piece of scrapbooking paper, the bottom of a pot, anything with a flat, semi-matte finish will work. Sometimes a shiny background will make a glare and also can "bleach" out details of your designs while a very "busy" background will take away from your item. I find that for intricate jewelry, a simple background works best, while for more minimalist pieces, using a dish or even your own hand will work wonders.

courtesy of craftymothers

Digital Camera
Even the most economical of digital camera have a macro setting. Usually the symbol for the macro setting is a little flower or tulip. It allows you to take very tight shots and get in really close to your item. MAKE SURE YOU FOCUS ON YOUR ITEM. Two things that I think are definite DON'Ts are: do NOT use the flash. That is what your good lighting source (your window) is for. Seriously, your item can be the best thing in the world, but if you take the picture with your flash, it will make your design look washed out and cheap. Secondly, do NOT forget to edit out the date and time stamp on your photo if you have that setting on your camera. Enough said. You can use photos from years ago but if they are excellent, no one will know the difference. Using the flash and leaving in the time/date stamp will make your pictures look like photos from your parents' 70's inspired basement. And who wants that.

courtesy of theorangewindmill

Editing Software
A long time ago, I was able to afford Adobe Photoshop and transferred it to every computer I had since. However, with my newest desktop and laptop, it was too old. So I went in search of free digital editing software and I found GIMP. While it isn't Photoshop, it is truly amazing, easy to learn, and does everything I need to edit my etsy photos. Honestly, all you need is to be able to crop closer to your item, maybe adjust the brightness and contrast a little, and resize so that it doesn't take ages to upload. However, don't use your editing software to make your item look like something it isn't. Buyers will be very disappointed if what they received does not look like what they saw on your site.

courtesy of 50splinterswoodworks

Finally, do some research! Go through your "favorites" on etsy and the internet and really look at the photos to see what makes that item appeal to you. Is it the lighting? The details? The background? Don't be afraid to use all of the photos that they allow you to, and remember that seeing your item "in action" will help buyers see scale and how it might look on them.

Here are some more articles that you might find helpful:
How To from Etsy
A Simple Lightbox - from The Strobist
Photoplus - Editing Software
PAINT.net - Editing Software
(and a special thanks to my teammates for taking such gorgeous photos!)

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newsletter.

i haven't had any issue - at all - sending out the Daily Dose of Handmade newsletters a couple of times a week.  i love promoting other people and seeing the increase in traffic that they get!  after much thinking however, i thought that perhaps i should aim that newsletter theory to my own ventures and i actually sent out a newsletter to some of my most recent buyers.  promoting my inclusion in the Daily Dose Summer Wedding Gift Guide, i put together a newsletter and after hours of deliberation, sent it out.  now i'm not sure if anything will come out of it, but i had to try!

(if you are looking for a discount - the Daily Dose has my discount code for this promotion!  just sayin'.)

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gah. time is passing, isn't it???

i just brought back my classic intertwined rings and realized that the original ring (and photos) were made when we still lived in our old house, over three years ago!  and then i realized that i hadn't posted anything here on the blog for over a week.  *insert smack to the forehead/wicked spanking right here*

i have to admit that i have been going through a little bit of a slump here lately, and haven't been feeling the best.  i also haven't been very inspired in the last little while, which is totally related to the fact that it is fiscal year end at the office and my day job has pretty much soaked up most of my energy and get-up-and-go.  the artist part in me gives the tired part of me a browbeating daily, but i am too exhausted to protest.  today, the easter candy sugar overload has also crashed my fuel tank to below empty.  yup, hoppy easter to ME.

the weather is getting better, however, and things seem to be lightening up on the work front.  the mini's 3rd birthday is on the horizon - yup, THREE! and spring finally seems to have settled in.  i am hoping that it will bring some inspiration as well. 

(BTW - the daily dose is also off to a rockin' start and julie and i have gotten an awesome rhythm - you NEED to check us out here.)

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great items...

the lovely julie is on a roll making gorgeous treasuries featuring our new DDH teammates... and this one is no exception! you can check them out here - just click on the image above! thank you julie!!!

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slacking off.

yes.  i'll admit it, i've been slacking off pretty much with everything lately (well, except for the office work, which never ends and with the pressure of fiscal year end, it's CRAZY and demands most of my day).  but finally i have caught up with orders (drew barrymore's rings are in LA as we speak, waiting to be put in her gift basket!) the laundry is only down to one load left to fold, and most of the dishes are clean.  julie and i are working on the daily dose - which has now grown to almost 100 subscribers and counting - and we are thrilled!  the mini also continues her jewelry loving journey - as you can see above, she is modeling drew's rings.

now i just have to tackle our taxes.  yay.  (*insert sarcastic face here)

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the daily dose!

so the little venture known as the "daily dose of handmade" that julie and i started is not so little anymore!  we are on our 4th round of shop features and our subscriber list just keeps getting larger by the day!  so to sweeten the deal, we started our win-it-wednesday giveaway feature!  and i get to kick it all off with my sterling knot ring!  you can enter to win just by subscribing to the daily dose newsletter and following the blog!  check out all the details here!!!!!

we are also always looking for people to do giveaways and features!  we have also opened up the blog for advertising if any one is interested!  you can email us at dailyhandmade@gmail.com

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daily dose of handmade.

with the imminent demise of heartsy (RIP), i think that many of us sellers are quite sad.  i have to admit, having run 3 sales through them, i have been able to generate tons of traffic and some repeat customers, which i would have NEVER been able to do on my own.  while i am puzzled as to why they are closing so quickly, it makes me wonder what else is out there in regards to marketing myself.

julie and i have been brainstorming (honestly, julie is the brain power behind this, i feel like i am just following along and helping between naps) and we have started up a very small but hopefully very exciting blog, where buyers can sign up and enjoy wicked deals.  called "the daily dose of handmade" or DDH for short, blog members can access the discount on specially selected items from etsy sellers.  hopefully, we will have enough sellers that we can change things up daily.  we are working out the bugs as we speak, but we are now live!  you can check us out HERE - and you can get a pair of my wishbone earrings for 40% off!

we don't know where this is going to take us - if anywhere at all - but you can't blame two gals for taking some initiative.  and sellers - if you want to be featured, let us know too!  (dailyhandmade@gmail.com)

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