cat_scradle

Hello!  I'm new, so I'm filling out your fancy questionnaire:


What's your shop name/URL?

Volkova



What do you sell/make?

Photographic prints.  
I like trying different materials so sometimes I print on photographic paper, but sometimes on art paper or on canvas.
Right now I have some things that come in wooden frames which I've painted by hand to compliment the image.


What are your future plans for stuff to sell/make?

Future plans involve more images on different kinds of papers and surfaces.

How long have you been doing this?

I'm fairly new to Etsy, but I'm been taking photos for a great many moons.  The majority of my adult life, to be sure.  

What are your current marketing strategies?

I'm quite new to selling prints so I'm in an experimental phase.
Right now I'm trying to promote my shop by mentioning it on twitter, tumblr, lj, and anywhere else where people might listen.


What kinds of problems are you having (if any)?

I'm selling next to nothing.  I seem to be getting views at my shop at least, but I don't know how to get noticed by people who actually have money to spend on art.


What would you like to learn more about?

Marketing in general.
For instance, I believe there is an art even to setting your prices.  I've read a few articles about that now, and tried out some pricing calculators that suggest a price based on your material costs and the hours you put in.  I get prices that are so very much higher than what I charge that I do wonder if I'm doing it wrong.  
Maybe I'm undervaluing my work a bit and giving people the impression that it is something cheaper than it is.


Any big successes/wins you'd like to share? We love to hear about victories!

I consider it a big victory to have made the 3 sales I have so far.
I know that isn't much, but as I feel like I'm just starting to figure this out I'm very relieved to have made even the tiniest of starts.
So my start is small, but my relief to have started at all is enormous.


What fellow Etsyians do you love? Why?

Quennessa
She's a wonderful person who really believes in the beauty around her and pursue that in her art.
(Though she does not currently have anything up at her shop.)

Jerseymaids
She is quite inspiring in the way she uses photographs not just in creating prints but all manner of things such as jewellery and lamps.


What kind of support or challenges are you looking for from this community? How can *we* help *you* be even more awesome?

I'm looking for advice on self promotion, but also just an opportunity to observe and learn from how others do things.

Are there any special skills that you can offer to help other Etsyians?

I'm such a novice that I'm not entirely sure I have any skills applicable here just yet.

How did you find us?

I found you through quennessa .

Hello, everyone!

Loved the Stash Challenge responses! They were fabulous!

So, this is themed then. With the holidays and assorted gift giving type events incoming, what do *you* have specifically created for the upcoming mayhem?

We want to see!

Especially as I have an actual budget this year and want to buy handmade/special as much as I can this year.

Get ready! Set! Go!

Last year I made a bunch of push molds, and a bunch of Sculpey beads from said push molds, then stuck them in a box and forgot about them. Some time later, in a spasm of geekery, I bought a bag of pony beads that react to UV light by changing color, and similarly squirreled them away after stringing a few bracelets with them.

Now I've put the two types of beads together on satin or hemp cord, and ended up with some fun jewelry for kids and similarly free spirits to help keep them mindful of sun exposure when they go outdoors.

Here's one example, you can see the pony beads have turned blue in the second shot:



They go REALLY blue here in New Zealand on a clear day, so people weren't kidding about that lack of ozone layer here!

I had some gears around that I couldn't use in my regular metalwork because they were too big and had unremoveable axles in the middle of them. And I had the blanks for hairsticks. With some work to polish the gears back to bright shininess, drill the hairstick blanks to the same size as the axles, and apply some Zap-a-gap (which is like superglue, but better and scarier), I came up with five pairs of these guys!



I know they're simple, but I tend to err on the less-frilly side of steampunk. And I can add further decoration in the future if I change my mind.

They won't be in my etsy shop until sometime after Columbus Day weekend, though, because for now everything I'm making is headed for Strowlercon :)

I just did my first series of ACEOs (Art Card Editions and Originals). They are so fun! I totally recommend anyone who draws, paints, collages, or does anything two-dimensional to try making some if you haven't already--it's a great way to showcase your style in miniature. They just have to be 2.5" by 3.5". And you can sell them, or just trade them with other artists (in which case they're ATCs, artist trading cards).

I personally adapted my black velvet painting technique:



See the whole series on Etsy.

Try it out! :)

Okay, the "NOOO don't cut it up!"s have it. It's safe for this round on Etsy:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/56365092/celtic-ostrich-egg-pysanka

Thanks everyone!

Hello, cradle rockers! So this is what I just finished:



It's an ostrich eggshell, the largest pysanka I've ever done (the largest possible until scientists bring back the giant moa via cloning). It took around 19 hours to complete and I'm pretty happy with it. But now I'm not sure how to go about selling it on my Etsy. It'd be a grand centerpiece for a table, sure, but knowing the price such items go for, would it sell in this economy, even with the fetching Celtic knotwork that my customer base frequently eats up? I've also seen people make jewelry out of ostrich eggshell, and I did just buy a Dremel which I'd like to put to use. Sooo... I'd appreciate some feedback.

Poll #1618059 I honestly cannot make up my mind:
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 15

In what form should I market my latest creation?

I'm curious about everyone's strategies for photographing things to list them, and whether any of them seem to work better than others.

So far, I've been sticking to photographing jewellery on a neutral background (like this one) or posting scans of 2D art.

Poll #1616381
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 12

What have you used?

So, in the interest of keeping things fresh and beginning the Challenge portion of our community, I hereby give you all the following Challenge!

Show Us Your Stash!

You know. The Stash. Those things and bits and bobs and bits that you bought ages ago. Supplies languishing in cupboards and drawers and shelves.

Now's your chance!

For our first Challenge, you have a month to create the object or objects of your choice from your Stash! When you're done, post pictures both here and put it in your shop! At which point, we will boost the signal to get peeps to look at your new shiny things!

Yay! Shiny things!

On your marks, get set, GO!

Hi there! Who are you? What's your shop name/URL?  I'm Summer, and I am a very new Etsy seller with a shop called Songbird's Treasures (http://www.etsy.com/shop/sixstringsongbird). I'm also a musician, and any money I make from my Etsy sales is intended to help me with recording costs for my first studio album.

What do you sell/make?  Right now, jewelry. I only have a few listings up, so I'm working mostly on building up inventory, and waiting on my new camera so I can take more pictures.

What are your future plans for stuff to sell/make?  In the immediate future, I want to offer homemade CDs for people who like my music - with different themed track lists, or custom selections of my songs, and hand-drawn artwork. I'm an incorrigible dabbler when it comes to crafting, so I'm leaving the door wide open for expanding my inventory down the line. Possibly other types of accessories (leather/sewn/knitted.)

How long have you been doing this?   About a month. :) I've been a buyer on Etsy for a couple of years, and I've been making jewelry for about 10 years, but I'm brand new to the selling side of things.

What are your current marketing strategies?  I haven't gotten very far with that, yet.  I feel like I need to have better photographs and a little more inventory before I really start advertising, so "marketing" so far has been limited to a few announcements on LJ and Facebook.

What kinds of problems are you having (if any)?  I've always struggled with organization and time management. I'm really interested in creative solutions for getting organized in tiny workspaces/living spaces. I know a few people here have already posted about balancing Etsy with work and other obligations, and I definitely feel that. Full-time work/music/marriage/chronic illness create a pretty overwhelming balancing act, sometimes, and too often the result is a spiral into depression and lack of productivity. So I guess I need to figure out how best to manage myself and my time before I even begin to dive into anything else.

What would you like to learn more about?  In addition to the above, I'm very much a fledgling in all aspects of online business. So I'd like to learn more about the marketing and business side of everything. I'd also like to improve my jewelry-making techniques and learn some new ones.

Any big successes/wins you'd like to share?  We love to hear about victories!  I've had three sales!  Haha. :)

What fellow Etsyians do you love? Why?  Oh man have 15 pages of favorite sellers.

Thyme2Dream - Elven-inspired jewelry.
sculptedwindows - Polymer clay beads and pendants, lots of ladies peeking out of leaves and things.
kennosborne - Leather masks that I covet.
EmilyBalivet - Many wonderful pagan-flavored paintings.
immortallongings - Shakespeare! <3
TwilightFaerie - Made my wedding headwreath, is very sweet and easy to work with.
solsticescents - Because their Harvest Moon bath soak makes me go to heaven a little.

What kind of support or challenges are you looking for from this community? How can *we* help *you* be even more awesome? I'm hoping if I stand close enough, the awesome of some of the other people here will magically rub off on me. Barring that, I'm just happy to be part of a community with good, creative, supportive people, and I think I can learn a lot by reading and listening and watching.

Are there any special skills that you can offer to help other Etsyians?  I'm, um.  I'm a good listener!

How did you find us? Cat's journal.