Great Marketing Idea for Etsy sellers

Today I received an order of clothing labels from BitsyCreations and inside the package along with a nice thank you was a small envelope the size of a business card. I opened the envelope and out fell several Etsy seller's business cards and a small sample of 'soap bubbles'.

What a genius idea.

If you belong to an Etsy Team - get business cards from your members and enclose them with your shipments - and they can do the same for you. This is such an easy way to spread the word - and it's FREE if you already have a supply of business cards - which is a no brainer must for any seller.

Thanks to Joan at Bitsy for the lovely labels and this great idea!

Go forth and sell people! The world needs Handmade!

Incredible Etsy information source

Every once in a while you come across information that is so helpful it's exciting. I stumbled upon the following link to a blog that lists everything that is impossible to find in regards to the Etsy website as well as links to sites that can help with your online business.




Take the time to look this over. Everything imaginable is listed all in one place. Kudos to the author at Loose Wire Studio for helping other Etsy owners with this information.


It made my day!!!!





http://loosewirestudio.blogspot.com/2005/06/etsy-helpful-links-not-found-via-etsy.html

In Appreciation of Etsy Sellers

I could look at Etsy sites and DaWanda sites all day and night. These two sites in particular offer a wide range of crafters and so much of what is sold is incredible. Why we ever go to the mall is beyond me. The customer service alone makes a person not want to shop anywhere else!

Some of my favorites lately are:

DebDutch.Etsy.com ~ "...for hand painted shoes & unique gifts..."
Deb Dutch Designs makes these adorable hand
painted canvas shoes for kids.
Some with a real sense of humor.

Check out her Guppy shoes...

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5606014



khphillips.etsy.com ~ Ahhh - then there's Keith over at Mudstuffing. I bought a French Butter Dish from him that reminds me so much of Provence and the pottery I purchased over there. He is so personable and will work with you to do just what you want. "He sews he throws" is the mantra of this shop. I wanted this teapot but have to purchase carefully or I'll have more than I have room for. I'm waiting for a dutch oven baking pot.

Yummy!

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5109726

viogeminidesigns.etsy.com ~ Now I have to admit if I was 20 years younger I would buy and wear one of these corsets handmade in England by a talented artist by the name of Viorica. She learned the craft from her Mum and has taken the art of the corset to new heights. They are really like a work of art. Some are rather Goth but this one shown is just gorgeous. Just read what goes into making one of these!!

"The corset is interlined with cotton fabric and lined with strong black cotton drill for durability and comfort.The corset comprises 10 shapely panels with the a metal busk front closure. 10 spiral steel bones are stitched into the seams and 4 metal bars on either side of the eyelets to ensure that you can tighten the corset as much as you like wihout the corset changing shape!"

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5843797

OscarANDTheodore.etsy.com ~ "Meet Oscar: A rough and tumble sort of chap who's fearless...and Theodore: A neat reserved fellow who loves to read and who sits quietly in church" This shop features handmade clothing for children that are so creative. She uses wonderful fabric combinations that are very Eastern Shore. The shorts I highlight here are called 'Nantucket Vacation' and make you feel you are at the beach just by looking at them! She tells a story with each item and brings Oscar and Theodore to life.....

Where are the graham crackers and marshmallows?

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5691728


SarahJaneStudio.etsy.com ~ is a mom and artist that captures perfectly that child-like love of things. Her drawings make you 'feel the love', so to speak. This shop is my favorite for graphics. Her pictures of the Elephant and friend rabbit tug at my heart! She sells both prints and cards. Please check this shop out for that happy feeling we all need so much.

'I love you friend'

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5317715

As you can see, there is a ton of talent out there. Visit these shops as a start and shop until your fingers hurt!!!!

As always,

Hannah
Dreaming in Colors

Tiptoe through the tulips with me.....

I just returned from a wonderful trip home to spend time with the kids and get a dose of Green. The weather showed off with temps in the mid 80's and Seattle did it's best to make me long to be back where my heart belongs. It was an eventful weekend with the opening of the tulip feastival in Mt. Vernon and the Green Fest in Seattle. I was in heaven.

We hit Greenlake park on the way from the airport to the house and EQ showed me how much she can do now. I was terrified as she climbed the steps of the slide and came down like a big girl. She showed me how to dig in the sand and loved having her legs buried. We both had such a good time. She was so happy to see me and remembered I was one of the good guys.

On Saturday we wanted to head North for shopping and tulips.We started with the outlet mall in Tulalip which turned out to be shopping vervana. I have never seen an outlet with so much~ We all shopped to exhaustion. Then we headed further North to the tulip fields where all we could see was yellow from daffodiles everywhere. It was a sea of yellow. The weather had been too cold for the tulips, which decided to stay closed until this week. I love daffodiles though and enjoyed seeing all the fields at the base of mountains. The sights are unbelievable. We took EQ there last year when she was only 6 months old, and this year she was walking and running! Her mother decked her out in an adorable Laura Ashley dress and we were ready for the pictures to start. EQ wasn't having it. The fields, unfortunately for her, are made of dirt, and she and dirt aren't friends. She was quite unhappy having to stand and look sweet when all around her were strangers and dirt. It was a riot. Then AR of course had to sleep through the whole event.

The next day we went to the Green Festival in Seattle. It was terrific and we learned and saw so much! I try to do as much as possible to leave a small carbon footprint, but living in the SW it's hard to know if I'm on the right track. Sundance and their green programing leaves me feeling like such a failure sometimes, so seeing I was doing a pretty good job made me so proud. I have changed all my lightbulbs, inside and out to low energy, I have a front loading washer and hang my clothes out to dry, and use as little water as possible in my garden. If it would ever rain I could cut back even further on the watering. My next house will be 90-95% green inside and out. We discovered several great green clothingdesigners,(www.textureclothing.com and www.smallaxeclothing.com) from the NW, and a new social website dedicated to green folks called Greeniacs and there was vegan food and great music. EQ took advantage of the music and danced and flirted with the bass player. (Who flirted back ). We had a great time and learned a lot.

It was nice to be with family and play with kids again. When I'm here in the SW I work too much and laugh too little. Being around the little ones and my kids makes for a lot of laughter, love and snuggles.

In an effort to give back and open my horizons I have become a volunteer Wise Elder with the Elder Wisdom group and have offered advice to several people. I've lived a pretty colorful life and love sharing what I've learned with younger peeople. I certainly don't feel elderly, but have learned a few things along the road to where I am now and people seem to appreciate what I have to say. I also got my first 'bulk' order on Etsy for my Obama shirts. Yippee. I love him. I want his vision for the United States to come to fruition. We need a major change and for me he answers all my hopes and dreams for what we can be as a nation.

Well, that's it for now. As always....

Dreaming in Colors

Hannah

It's almost Thanksgiving -

Where has the year gone? Of course, living in the Phoenix area we are still having summer weather - over 90 degrees every day. Enough already. I want to feel frost and cold air on my face and wear sweaters and an overcoat. Instead, the summer clothes are almost worn out from over use this year. In my office we keep the thermostat so low I wear jackets and sweaters just to remind myself it is indeed fall.

Every day when I'm driving home and stuck in traffic, I call Reyna (daughter) and we relive what we've done that day. It's almost as good as having her still living here but not quite. She listens as I go off about being Green and how the bees are all dying and we must save them. Her dad's causes are 'W' and exercise and mine are being eco savvy and saving things....like the bees. Two thirds of the bee population have died off this year and when one first hears about it one might be inclined to chuckle, but think about all the things in our daily life that are a result of the bees doing their thing. Without pollination we have no fruits or vegies! I'm taking this very seriously and have planted my entire backyard with flowers - so the poor bees that are still alive have a safe harbor in the sea of desert around me. No one gardens in my neighborhood so I am their only sanctuary. Scientists have been working overtime on the dilemma of the bees and it appears to be a multi-leveled problem including stress and memory loss caused by pesticides. Well let me tell you - I'm doing all I can to help out.

The other news is my last trip to Seattle two weeks ago. I got to drive up to Bellingham and see my son, Javan and his partner Terina and daughter Teilani. It was a first time seeing Teilani and she is a doll. She and Elsie were best friends instantly and played and shared toys and sippy cups like they'd known each other since birth. Elise just turned a year in October and Teilani was a year is June. That is great for them growing up together and being friends for life.

I plan to go up to Seattle again next weekend and then again in December and of course for two weeks minimum in January to welcome Goonie - my first grandson. I need to get trained on how to survive a day taking care of an active toddler ending with Elsie in a good mood and ready for bed on schedule. Her mother gets exhausted and is 30 years younger. What hope is there for me?? With 8 days training under my belt I'll feel a bit more confident.

Reyna has been busy getting Goonie's nursery put together. She's doing a Pirate theme. It looks so cute - she's a craft diva and has done so many cute things in a Pirate vein - the best is a song lyric she put on a wall "picture" and all kinds of nicknack's that are so cute. Goonie is going to love his new room.

I keep trying to get to my Etsie site to add knitted hats, but working all day and then getting home after 7 PM most days makes it tough. It took me all day Sunday to take and edit new pictures of everything using a better camera and then Photshop editing them - by the time I was done the evening was well underway and I was pooped. There needs to be an additional day to the week or 30 hours per day. I'm not even busy compared to some people. Reyna gets to read her email and scrapbook after 9PM when Elsie is down, and my friend Jennifer does all her jewelry making from 10 PM - 4 AM. I guess if I could get by on 4 hours sleep there would be no problem. Unfortunately, they have shown in studies that sleeping less than 7 hours a night can make you fat so it's 8 hours min. for this kid. I feel like an old person going to bed at 9:30 PM but if it allows me that piece of pie, so be it.

Hope this letter finds you all well and happy.

- Happy Thanksgiving -

Dreaming In Colors

September is here...almost Halloween

As I am told daily - Halloween is almost here. According to my daughter Halloween should be as big or bigger than Christmas. I spend almost as much on candy each year as I do on Christmas so I figure it's almost what she's wishing it were. We live in a development that fringes agriculteral land, and truckloads for farm kids come by each year and it lasts for 4 hours and I always run out of candy. I may conplain but I love it. Some towns and cities don't have that kind of neighborhood traffic anymore which I find so sad. Another thing from my and my children's childhood that is disappearing. (Please vote in the poll that follows this posting)

I am really getting into Etsy and my journals. Never being a marketing genious has proven the difficult part of all of it. How to get the word out and spread it coast to coast is hard. There are so many great things to see on Etsy that the down side is you get lost in the shuffle.

I'm getting better at doing digital papers. It's still takes me time to narrow down what I want to use and what it should look like, but the actual task is faster than I thought it ever would be.

My daughter is coming to town from Seattle to celebrate her birthday this weekend. (The BIG 30) We always do the CKC Show in Sept. and that and a group night at Recollections (crop night) headlines our list of to-do's this weekend. She coming alone for the first time since becoming a mother about a year ago, and I can't wait to see how things go back at her home with Daddy in charge for 3 days with an 11 month old.That will be a full blog unto itself I bet.

Anyway, we plan on cropping, shopping and eating our way from one side of town to the other. I can't wait.

Thanks for checking in!

Hannah
DreaminginColors.etsy.com

Last week of summer - Thank G*d

I can't believe I have a blog. I always enjoyed reading them but me doing one is another thing.



Things have been hectic this August, and of course we're in the hottest summer on record since the 1980's which makes everything so fun.



The job search continues but I'm taking avantage of having "free time" to get my site on Etsy set up and getting stock made for the journal portion. Next will be a new set of hats.



Reyna and Jason are expecting their second child this winter so I'll have baby caps to knit and Elsie is growing up so fast - she'll be one year in October and will need all new caps for winter. Javan has a little girl Telani who just turned one in June and they now live in Bellingham. Everyone seems so far away.



I've been working on the land in Selah and looking for a possible house plan for building the dream of a sheep farm. I fluctuate between a country farm house and a totally modern 'green' house. Go figure.



We just celebrated Phil's (Papa/grandpa)Reyor's 80th birthday. Louie and his brother Mike were able to non-rev to Denver to celebrate the event, but air travel is such a hassel anymore, I stayed behind and took care of the house and cats.



I'll try to update this weekly to keep you informed of the goings on around here.



Thanks for checking in!

Hannah