To Artfire or not to Artfire?

I'm choosing to Artfire!!



Artfire.com is another new place on the web to sell your handmade, vintage, and supply items.
You can list 10 items for free or you can become a verified member for only $7.00 a month for life.
If you list one item a day on Etsy or relist for 30 days that comes out to $6.00. So paying $7.00 a month really is a great deal considering you get shop stats!!
Of course that is only being offered to the first 5000 sellers. After that it'll be $20.
I haven't been able to add anything to my shop yet, because of my broken computer. So I can't really say if listing is easier or not. There is one thing I'm not to fond of though and perhaps it's simply because of my computer, but I can't fit the whole screen on my monitor. I have to scroll to see everything. Minor, but yet still annoying.
You can also pay your bill through paypal. YaY!! I went ahead and signed up for the verified account. Maybe I should have tested it out a bit before I took the leap but I really think the site has potential. Plus at $7.00 a month perhaps it'll give me the motivation I need to actually do something with my shop. Oh and here's a plus if I can get 10 people to sign up for the verified account by the end of the year, I can have a free lifetime verified account. The odds of this happening? eh not very good but it's worth a shot.
If you sign up please SIGN UP HERE!!

Perhaps with a little competition Etsy will get their butts in gear and add the features that the sellers have been asking about for years.

Shop of the day!

Look!

I'm the shop of the day!! YaY!
I'm being featured on Neatostuff.com as well as in several Etsy shops and blogs. It's all part of the great marketing exchange that I've been participating in and today is my day to be featured.

Cupcakes!!

So how do my readers eat their cupcakes? Check out the results below.

www.sweetnshabbyroses.etsy.com

14 people rip off the cakey bottom, eat that part, then eat the frosting top!
(42%)

14 take huge bites of cakey bottom and yummy frosting top all at once.
(42%)

3 People lick the frosting off then shove the rest into my mouth.

3 (9%)

2 people eat them some other mysterious way.
2 (6%)

www.CrashCanStudio.etsy.com

Local Shout Out!

Time for another shout out!! Today's local featured artist is theCircledStanza. She makes beautiful jewelry and only joined Etsy a few months ago. So be sure and check out her shop. Read on to learn more about her.

Tell us a little about yourself.
I'm a "recent" college graduate (though May '08 growing less and less recent as we speak!) looking for employment and not finding it, and considering further studies in poetry writing. I worked at a bead store for a year or so while attend ing college in Iowa City, and that's where I learned how to do nifty things with beads.

Besides Etsy, do you sell your items anywhere else?
I'm looking at renting a space at Old Elbow School Shop, but do not currently sell my jewelry anywhere besides online.

What kind of items do you make?
There's a lot of variety in my jewelry. My (mostly) necklaces and earrings can be chunky or delicate, colorful or subdued, fancy or casual. I like combining materials that at first seem dissimilar, but surprise me by creating a cohesive whole. A lot of my pieces aren't simply strung on a single strand, but bloom into multiple strands with clu sters of this or that, or I will link them with wire. The idea is to create something unexpected--in shape, color, etc.

What/Who inspires you?
Well, working at a bead store was definitely inspiring, and I feel that I gained a good, well-rounded aesthetic from my coworkers, the owner, and customers. Sometimes one bead is all it takes to conceive of a plan; other times I treat the beads as paint, mixing and matching to create a "palette."

How long have you been crafting/selling?
I made beaded "daisy chains" when I was young, and hadn't returned to the craft until early 2007, when I started working at the bead store. Since then, I have been making jewelry for myself and for gifts. Recently (this past August) I've branched out and begun to sell.

Have any interesting hobbies?(besides making the items you sell)
My other "hobby" is writing poetry and creative nonfiction. The University of Iowa was known for its literary atmosphere, so I got to meet some esteemed authors and work with many inspired peers. I'm still writing and thinking about applying for an MFA degree--somewhere, somehow.

Have you always lived in this area? If not where are you originally from?
I've lived in Eau Claire since I was 3. For the past four years, I've lived in Iowa City, an amazingly diverse and artistic place which became very much like a second home. Now I'm back in Eau Claire, becoming reacquainted with "the north."

Describe your craft/work area in three words or less.
My craft/work area is: periodically in shambles.

What do you listen to when you are crafting?
I prop my laptop up next to my beads and listen to Pandora while crafting. The down time gives me a chance to explore new musicians.

The Great Marketing Exchange

A couple weeks ago I was on the etsy forums and I ran into this thread. It was asking if anyone wanted to sign up for a marketing exchange. Basically a group of us are going to be promoting each other. Every shop gets a day to be featured by everyone else.. either on their blogs or in their shop announcements or anywhere else they can think of. I'll be posting the shop of the day on the left side of my blog. Be sure to come back everyday and see who is the shop of the day and go check out their awesome items! Thanks!!!

Congratulations President Elect Obama!

You are welcome!

I feel proud that I helped to elect you. It is nice to vote for someone and actually have them win. I hope that you will at least attempt to change this country for the good. I hope that what you say wasn't just hype to get yourself elected. I hope that people will give you a chance before they start ripping you apart. If McCain would have won I wouldn't have been a sore loser. I would have still been hopeful that this country could change for the better. I hope that Obama and McCain will actually work together and show the rest of the country that if they can work together.. we can all work together. I thought it was interesting when McCain gave his speech.. mentioned Obama and part of the crowd boo'd and then Obama gave his speech.. mentioned McCain and part of the crowd cheered. I'm proud to live in a country that isn't afraid to elect a black man as president. I just wish people were more tolerable of same-sex marriage.