Autumn is here and so is my GIVEAWAY!

Happy Equinox to everyone!  I hope today finds you balanced and well.

Now, onto the important stuff.  I am holding a GIVEAWAY!  I want to drum up some traffic,views, and perhaps even some sales in my Artfire studio.  I also want to giveaway gift certificates to my Artfire studio!  How cool is that?  I'll be giving away THREE gift certificates to my studio on September 30th.  There are tons of ways to enter.  Some activities will earn you more "chances" to win.  So... here's the skinny....
1.) Like my Facebook page= 1 chance
2.) Make a comment on my Facebook page that doesn't include a link to another shop= 3 chances
3.) Make a comment on my Facebook page telling me about one of my jewelry pieces= 5 chances
4.) Follow my on Twitter= 1 chance
5.) Tweet about my blog or giveaway= 2 chances
6.) Tweet my Artfire studio or a piece from my Artfire studio= 4 chances
7.) Follow me on Tumblr= 1 chance
8.) Like a post on my Tumblr= 1 chance
9.) Reblog a post on my Tumblr= 3 chances
10.) Follow my blog= 1 chance
11.) Blog about my giveaway on your blog including links= 5 chances
12.) Make a comment on a blog entry on my blog= 3 chances
13.) Make a purchase from my Artfire studio= 7 chances

Now that you know how to get your name entered, here's the information you will need to get started.
http://www.facebook.com/#!/FoolsandJewels  Facebook page for my jewelry
http://divapixie.tumblr.com/
http://divapixie.blogspot.com/
http://www.artfire.com/ext/shop/studio/divapixie
http://www.twitter.com/divapixie

If you tweet something, please send me an email with a copy of the tweet, the link for the tweet and your name to be entered.  If you blog about my giveaway, please email me the link to your blog entry.  I can be emailed at divapixie25@gmail.com

And now... the REALLY important stuff.... more info on the PRIZES!  I will be drawing three names on September 30th.  First prize will we a $50 gift certificate to my Artfire studio.  Second prize will be a $25 gift certificate to my studio and third prize will be a $10 gift certificate to my studio.  These certificates will be emailed codes that can be used in my studio on Artfire.  If the amount of your certificate does not fully cover the cost of your order, the difference will be owed.  A gift certificate does not imply free shipping.

So, get out there and get entered to win!

The muse is still visiting!

I am still creating new pieces.... lots of them.  I seem to be inspired and motivated and these are the results.

    
      
All these pieces and MORE can be found at my Artfire Studio. http://www.artfire.com/users/divapixie

Rob Kalin SCARES me

So, I have a Livejournal in addition to this Blogger account.  That is my very personal and limited journal whereas this one is more public.  On Blogger, I follow a number of other blogs for various reasons. Makes for excellent reading material throughout my day. At any rate, one of them I follow is called Etsy Bitch.


Etsy Bitch was founded on the principle that they wanted to help change Etsy by pointing out what needed to be fixed. This mission has changed... considerably... especially given that Etsy is turning into a complete and total MONSTER. But I digress. What I want to talk about briefly is something I saw in a few recent posts on this blog.

Apparently, Inc. magazine did an interview with the CEO and founder of Etsy recently and the article hit news stands and the internet yesterday. I became curious about what the man behind the monster had to say, so I went on over to the website and read the article.

WOW. That was the one word I came back to repeatedly. From reading this article, it became clear that the journalist was having a hard time trying to report exactly what was going on. To his credit, the journalist did try to stick to the point of just reporting the facts and quotes from the person in question... and just by doing that the truth about this nut was revealed. He's freakin' scary.

If you are interested.... here are the links.

www.inc.com/magazine/20110401/can-rob-kalin-scale-etsy.html#



And here's Etsy Bitch if you are looking for some more although snarky info.

http://etsybitch.blogspot.com/



Seriously..... SO glad I ditched out of Etsy while I could and am now happily instated at Artfire. Whew!

More new pieces

I have been a whirlwind of creating recently... and I want to share some new pieces with you, my readers.

 

I have big plans to start working on some new pendants and rings this evening as well.  I have started making pieces for a lady with a fashion website that offers clothing, jewelry and accesories for dwarves.  I thought it was a great idea and agreed to do larger bulk orders for her.  She wanted rings that are more adjustable for that exact purpose.  I am planning to work on those shortly.

APRIL FOOL'S SALE!

Since today is the last day of my Spring Cleaning Sale, I decided to up the anty as it were.  Today only, everything in my studio is a whopping 20% OFF!  Yes, everything.... new pieces, old stock, puppets, destash..... EVERYTHING!
Fools and Jewels

Come on over to my studio and check it out!

New pieces!

I have been busy creating and listing new pieces in my studio all weekend.  Here's just a few samples of what's new.

Come on over to my Artfire studio and see what else is new!  Fools and Jewels

Spring Cleaning SALE!

I have decided to clear out some of my old jewelry stock to make room for new stock. This means savings for you!  From now until April 1st I am offering 10% off everything in my studio!  If you tweet, blog or Facebook this sale, please leave me a comment and something special might come to you as well. ;)

Come on over and check it out!

http://www.artfire.com/users/divapixie

Costume construction: One of my other interests

I am trying to blog about more of my other intersts so as to keep this blog interesting and give myself more blog topics.  Today I'd like to share some of the costumes I've sewn in the past years.
I do have another studio on Artfire just for my costumes, though admittedly I neglect it and the sales show that.  Gypsy Threads
On Etsy I did a fair amount of business, though even that was hit or miss. I did some great kid's costumes and some decent adult costumes but on occassion, like anywhere, I would have a PITA customer (Pain In The Arse).  I no longer opperate either shop on Etsy, for various reasons.


A happy client in his ghost costume.

 Anyways, I enjoy making costumes.  I'm not a professional seamstress by any stretch of the imagination but I do enjoy it and within my given parameters, can turn out some nice things.

This is a picture of my best seller.  I used to make at least a dozen of these every September/October.  It is a cape design that allows a child to be a ghost without having to put a sheet over their heads.  I could also do these in colors and you'd have the ghosts from Pacman.


I also do a lot of Renaissance costumes for myself, friends and family members.  I'm a big fan of Renaissance festivals and always attend in "garb".  I'll share more of those pictures at a later date.  Right now I am having difficulty getting my photos to upload.

What's new today 2-10-11

Well, today was the first day back at work after my two day snow break.  Everything went smoothly.  And we are already to the weekend again.  Wow... what a strange week.

I have a few things to share with you.  I have been working on a custom pendant as a part of a trade I have arranged with a fellow artisan on Artfire. I -finally- finished it this week.  I hope that the recipient enjoys it as much as I've enjoyed creating it.

While I was snowed in my house I also spent quality time with my puppy, Wynton.  He's a little over 4 months old now.  He's a cream colored toy poodle.  We had a good time playing and napping.  I have to brush out his coat once every day or so.  And his hair is so long now I have to band it up out of his eyes.  Normally my boyfriend's mother does his grooming (she used to groom and show poodles for clients) but I have had to learn to take on a bit of the maintainence.  It can be very frustrating, especially when he doesn't want to cooperate. Anyways, here's a picture of him right after he was brushed out.
That's all for this blog entry.  I have several other jewelry pieces in the works, which I will fill you in on at a later date. 

Guess what's happening where I am today?

Well, first and foremost... it's snowing like crazy!  My school called and told me not to come to work today (I am a music teacher). 
So... to that end, I decided to go through and purge my studio of unwanted fabric and other things.  Here is what a choatic mess my studio looks like currently.

So, I am attempting to see about selling scrap fabric lots on Artfire to see if I can get a couple of bucks from all this mess.  Whatever I don't sell, is being given to a local church quilt group.  Here's an idea of now much fabric I have to get rid of.

That's a lot of fabric.  Any readers out there interested?  Let me know and I'll make you a great deal.

Experiments in photography~ Take 2

OK. I used a link from a fellow blogger's entry to learn to make a homemade light box. Mine turned out pretty crude but it does seem to function the way described.
How To: DIY $10 Macro Photo Studio.

So, after completing this box, I immediately wanted to try it out.  I have an old goose neck lamp on my bookshelf.  I placed it on one side of the light box and took some photos of a few new pendants.  Upon taking these photos, I noticed that one side was lit up fairly nicely.  However, the photos still have a slightly grainy texture and some shadows.  This leads me to believe that I need another light source on the other side of the box. 
I am also very curious what natural sunlight would look like utilizing this box.  I plan to take the light box outside this afternoon and see what that does.  Below is a photo I took last night with my crude light box.  I need to do some tweaking methinks.


A valentine inspired piece I've been waiting to photograph and list.



Spring Fever

I was featured recently in a collection based on Spring items!  And I totally have a case of Spring Fever right now too.
Would love it if some of my wonderful readers would go check out the collection on Artfire and give it a comment or rating.  Pretty please?

Longing for Spring

Curated By: daffydill

ArtFire.com

Fine Art Paintings

In Home Jewelry Parties

A recently sold piece from my Artfire studio.

I've done blogs about jewelry parties in the past. I've done some research, conducted interviews with other artists and even attempted to get friends and family to host a jewelry party for me.  However, today I would like to blog about the one type of jewelry party that has brought me at least some measurable amount of success.... the "in home" jewelry party.

Let's face it, in these tough economical times it is very difficult to find people willing to host any kind of party in their homes let alone get guests to come to those parties with the intention of purchasing what ever items are being shown.  I myself have not found anyone willing to host a showing of my jewelry in their home yet.  It is tough.  But I didn't and won't allow that to discourage me.  No.  I found another route to take.  I figured if I couldn't find someone else to host me, why not host myself? 
So, I began doing "in home" jewelry parties or jewelry showings.  If I put out snacks for the guests, I would call it a "jewelry party" and if there was no snacks and I offered tours of my studio space, then it became a "jewelry showing". It's a simple, minor detail but for me it was necessary to establish. 

A pair of earrings currently for sale in a local boutique.

I use Facebook to send out the initial invites and then I start inviting my friends, family and work colleagues in person.  I encourage them to bring guests of their own.  In the weeks/days prior to the event I make sure to post pictures on my Facebook of new items and items available for sale.  It grabs the buyer's attention and gets them interested.  If they see one piece that interests them, they are more likely to attend.  They want to see the item in person sometimes before making the purchase decision.
I use my dinningroom in my house for my showings, though you could use any room you feel is appropriate.  My dinningroom is large, has lots of chairs and my dinningroom table is large enough to display nearly all my current pieces. I also set up a smaller card table in a corner with bead and supply catelogues for those who want to have something custom made.  I also put out some of my beads and supplies on the card table as examples.  It helps your guests know you take custom orders and can even inspire them to ask for a specially created piece.
I also have my tools handy.  I have quite a few repair customers who bring me things they have purchased, whether from me or another artist, that need some repairs done.  I often do these right on the spot unless they require more time or complicated methods (usually they don't).
I also have things on display throughout my local area in art galleries and boutiques.  An in home jewelry party is a good way for you to get the word out to people in your area that your pieces are available online, in person and throughout your comunity.  The more places your work is available,the easier it will be for people to recommend your work or even recognize your work.

In conclusion,  don't be afraid to host your own party or showing to get your work out in the public eye. It tends to be simpler and chances are you'll have better turn out and sales results if you go out on a limb.  Plus, you never know when one of your guests may decide to host you in their home after seeing your things in yours.

Briolettes~ faceted wonders

One of my absolute favorite materials to use in my jewelry making is the faceted briolette.  Whether made of gemstone, crystal or glass, the shape and sparkle of a briolette is magical to me.  And it's the shape and sparkle of these that capture the imagination of many a artisan as well as their customers.

To better understand the history of briolettes, I decided to research a litle more about the process of faceting.  Lapidary, or the art of cutting and polishing gemstones, has been around for centuries.  There is evidence that as far back as 5000 BC humans were utilizing lapidary skills to create smoothed and carved gemstone pieces and tools.  There are also referrences that say the earliest proof of faceted gemstones occurs in a piece of literature referring to crudely cut gemstones in India.
The technique of cutting gemstones to certain shapes as well as the refining of diamond cutting techniques were developed in Europe.  Many of these same techniques are still used in lapidary work today.

The process of cutting, shaping and poishing briolettes and other faceted stones involves some very specialized equipment.  For example, there is a cutting and grinding wheel that can vary in size from a desk top sized one (pictured right) to one the size of a potter's throwing wheel.  And there are several steps in the cutting process before the shaping and polishing even begin.  I attribute these as factors for te expense of briolettes.
Here are some websites for more information on the process of faceting stones.
http://www.gemcutter.com/getstart.htm
http://www.faceters.com/beginners.shtml
http://scienceray.com/technology/how-to-facet-gems/
I still adore using briolettes in my jewelry work but always have marveled and dismayed about their expense.  I know have a clearer understanding of why they are so expensive.  And one look at them gives you  clear understanding of why they are worth the price.
The definition of briolette literally is "a pear-shaped or oval gem, especially a diamond, cut in long triangular facets."  However, briolettes have evolved to include smooth tear shaped gems as well as many other shapes.
 Briolettes traditionally are shaped like teardrops, rounded on all sides and pointed at one end.  More shapes for briolettes have evolved. There are pear briolettes, which maintain the tear drop shape but are flat on two sides instead of round all the way around.  Heart shape briolettes are similar to pear brios except they have a shorter and wider shape. 
Onion briolettes are short and wide like heart shaped ones but are rounded all the way around like the tear drop shaped ones.  These are by far my favorite earring fodder as far as briolettes go.   I would like to close this blog entry about the briolettes saying this... if you have not yet tried using a briolettes in your jewelry making, by all means spend the money and give them a try.  It is well worth the investment!

NSF fee SALE! ONE DAY ONLY!

Due to a snafu between my vet's office and my bank, I am forced to have a one day 50% OFF sale in my studio!  Yes, for the next 24 hours you can get anything in my studio for 50% OFF in order for me to recoup the NSF fees charged for this mistake.
Get over there and help me out please.
http://www.artfire.com/users/divapixie

Gift Guide #5~ Fathers, Brothers and all the other Men in your life!

I know.... buying handmade things for that special guy in your life can be beyond impossible at times.  So, I asked some of the artists at Artfire to lend us a helping hand by giving us some ideas.
 Bracelet for him by JenniferLynnProductions
  Hand towels for his bathroom or "Man cave" by daisydoodleembroidery
 Pirate soap by SummerfieldSoaps (and who wouldn't want their man to smell like a hot pirate?)
 This wonderful pen would be an excellent gift! Pen by madmoravian
 Every girl's crazy about a sharp dressed man right? Vintage suit by OneTrickChassis

 Shower gel in a "manly" scent by essensu

 Jewelry for men is becoming more and more popular.  Necklace by TooFancy
 Bookmarks for that bookworm guy by acadienne
 And how about this for that geeky guy of yours?  Absolutely fabulous clock by TheGeekeryShop
 Wonderful bag for a laptop by CarryTheWord
 After shave lotion to make his face nice and soft by Gingers-Garden
 For that unconventionally dressed guy, a tye dyed tux shirt by jenellsrevenge
 A wonderful men's pendant by AllWireUpTOO
 Or for that car fanatic, a vintage oil can by RaigeCreations
 A lovely hot or cold pack for him by CaliforniaCottageCreations