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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heartsy. last one of the year!

heartsy is hosting my last deal of the year - and the first one as TheLovelySmith!  so come on over and check it out HERE - there are only 22 vouchers left! 

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good bookkeeping. (and no, that doesn't describe me)

i am sooo not a bookkeeper.  or accountant.  despite the fact that a lot of my real job has to do with money and spreadsheets, i'm really an artist deep down.  which means i am numerically challenged.  (but don't tell my boss that)  i finally had some time to sit down and sift through the heartsy voucher information from two weeks ago - initially i had been keeping great records (yay me!) at what vouchers had been redeemed and what balances were left over, if any - but as orders came in and then the strike happened, well, let's just say i got a little derailed.  so i used the heartsy csv feature and imported my voucher information into an excel spreadsheet and cross referenced with my etsy account.

(for all you sellers thinking about running a heartsy feature - take it from me and keep on top of your vouchers from the get go.  then you'll save yourself the trouble of sitting down for a couple of hours digging through everything.  heartsy has a fabulous csv export feature.  use it.)

so far, there have been 39 out of 75 vouchers redeemed (or partially redeemed).  not bad, seeing as how over the past 12 days i've been able to get almost all orders made, tumbled and packed.  the only delay has been the canada post strike (which is now OVER and the mail gets moving on tuesday!  thank you, L, for the txt message updates).  not too shabby!  (and also means i have to go on a supply run for sterling but oh well.  like shopping for precious metal is a bad thing.)  and i feel organized.  at least for today.

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mail system.

so now we're headed into day 7 of the canada post strike.  and while it hasn't affected my personal life so much (we get mostly direct mail advertising and the odd magazine) my little muffin top shop is quite devastated.  see the picture above?  that's the enormous pile of packages that are all waiting to be shipped.  plus, because of the success of my heartsy deal, i am now awaiting solder and wire because my supplies are quickly dwindling.  a couple of days of full lockout (on top of their rotating strikes) would have been okay.  but now we're talking daaaaayyyyysssss.

i, like millions of other canadians, are waiting to see what next week brings.  there are rumours that talks have broken off between the two sides at the bargaining table, that the government is pushing back to work legislation.  and i know everyone is trying their best.  while i am all for fair pay for hard work, i have to point out that the mail is still quite relevant in today's tech-savvy society.  i am lucky that i have a full-time job as well as my little jewelry business, but many of my crafting colleagues do not.  and this is killing them. 

please go back to work.  we need to work too.

(so please know that almost all of my orders are packed up and ready to ship just as soon as they start accepting packages at the post office again!)

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thank you, heartsy!

the last two days have seriously been a frenzy, thanks to the fabulous feature and sale that heartsy hosted for me!  all 75 vouchers i offered up were sold!  ($16 x 75... well, you do the math!)  i am so thankful - and now a little overwhelmed at the amount of work.  but i'm up to the challenge! 

a million thanks to everyone who supported me by purchasing a voucher - and to team muffintop (especially the mini) who backed me up!

and now... goodbye, sleep!  at least till i dig out from under! 

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excited but overwhelmed

so my heartsy deal is up!  well, for VIPs anyways.  and i already have some orders!  you can check me out here - http://heartsy.me/deals/3187 

i should have taken the day off!!!!!!!! 

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portrait of the artist?

so i've been chosen to be a "featured artist" on the handmade deal site heartsy, something that has been in the works for about a month. (i didn't say anything just in case i didn't get it.)  while i am ecstatic, i am more than just a little frightened that either a) i will be overwhelmed with orders or b) no one will like my stuff and i will be humiliated.  but, nothing ventured, nothing gained and really, i am just hoping to get my little shop some much needed exposure.  so, the day my deal goes up, you'll be able to purchase a voucher that will be worth 51% off anything.  seriously.

part of the heartsy requirement is a photograph of each featured artist.  i myself love to see the person behind the artwork when searching for handmade work, but finding a picture of myself that i like is a little more elusive.  there are barely any photographs of me in our collection because usually i am the one wielding the camera, or i conveniently am out of range when someone else swings the lens in my direction.  so this afternoon, i set myself up with my camera and took some shots.  and while none of them are calvin klein worthy, i did get a couple that i think captured me a little.  hopefully.

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