Friday, March 29, 2013

Business Tip #1

The 1st thing that I did when I started selling my jewelry was to make a Facebook page.  These are free to make and can be great advertising for your product and/or other websites.  And what is really great about making a page is that shortly after you do, Facebook will send you an offer for $50 worth of free advertising.  After you have your page completely set up with all your photos loaded and links to other websites, use this offer by setting a budget of $10 a day for 5 days, that way you don't go over the free amount while still getting the maximum benefit.  Also make sure when making the advertising campaign that you extensively fill out the "Choose Your Audience" section so you target only the people who would be interested in your product.  This is key! 

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Making Resin Plugs

So my need to jump from medium to medium is rearing its ugly head again, and the new project I have to try is making resin plugs.  I don't have gauged ears, but I know people who do and think there would be a good market for them.  I found a video on YouTube that shows how to make glittery ones!  Now I just have to get myself some stainless steel hollow plugs to start with!

Art with Kids Project #1

The blog Sweet Happy Life posted a great idea for a kid's art project:  Painting with watercolors, glue, and salt!  What I love so much about this is that even a child (or the not so painting inclined) can make a beautiful piece of art...not that beauty is everything in art, mind you...anyway, check out the post!


Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Happiest Baby DVD

So I go to my local CareNet Pregnancy Center every week for their Earn While You Learn program, something I highly recommend for anyone who is pregnant or has a child under a year.  Today my lesson was on the Happiest Baby on the Block DVD, which would probably have been the greatest advice I ever got about my baby if she was still under 3 months.  The founder, Dr. Harvey Karp, explains probably the fastest way to calm a crying infant through what he calls the calming reflex and the 5 S's...swaddling, side/stomach, shushing, swinging, and sucking.  He shows how to properly swaddle a baby.  I tried his method and it actually works!  He also shows how to properly "shush" a baby (lol) as well as how to teach them to take a pacifier.  My daughter is already 6 months so these methods probably will not work for her anymore, but I did take away some valuable tips.  If you are pregnant or have a newborn I definitely recommend you watch this video or read the book!

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Playing with Resin....

A year ago I bought a tube of Ice brand resin and finally took it out last month.  I think I have found a new love!  Resin can be touchy, and if not mixed properly will yield a forever sticky yet hard, impossible to remove substance, but when used properly creates really professional looking work from the beginning.  Just make sure to follow the directions to a T and be prepared to fail sometimes.  The first time I tried, despite the directions, I ended up with a beautiful collage in a large oval bezel that now is collecting dust, hair, and fingerprints.  Make sure when you try this for the first time you use materials that are not expensive or important to you!  Save those for when you know what you are doing....

My second round turned out great!  I made a whole series of hummingbird collage pendants with little flat-backed crystals. Pouring the resin over these crystals created a really neat effect, making them look flat.  Some bubbles and imperfections are unavoidable with this medium (at least I think!), but I feel this adds to the uniqueness of each piece.  Here are the necklaces from my 2nd try:

Click to buy!
Click to Buy!
Click for Listing!
Click to Purchase!


Click for Etsy Listing!


I also made resin papers, but I will leave that for another day and another post!



Monday, March 25, 2013

I'm now legitimate!

Yay!  My new business cards have arrived!  Hooray for Vista Print!  I designed these on their website.  The swirly images were a template, but I designed my text logo myself.  I added an image on the back so they can act as price tags at craft fairs and such.  Of course after ordering I start my Etsy shop and my blog, so I need to add those URLs, but I'm pretty happy with how they turned out.    My scanner I guess sucks so the colors are a little off.

 Front: 
Back: 

Beetle wings!


So at Beadfest I found a new material to work with...beetle wings from the Sternocera aequistignata beetle!  I have not had so much fun making earrings in a long time.  I decided to keep it simple, something I can have a hard time with from time to time, because I thought the wings should speak for themselves. I used my new favorite tool, my Euro Punch metal hole puncher, to make the holes, and placement was easy because there is a natural discolored round dot at the top of the wing where it looks like a hole is just supposed to go.  I also used my wire snips to cut off the gross little ridge at the top of the wing just for aesthetic purposes.  Then I stuck a jump ring through the hole and put the jump ring on the ear wire...Voila!...a gorgeous pair of earrings!





The use of these wings in adornment is an ancient practice in Asia, especially Thailand, and is now becoming more and more popular here in the West.  The beetle symbolizes many different things, including rebirth, stability, practicality, and groundedness.  According to the Symbolic Meanings Blog by Avia Venefica, "They move with bellies always close to the earth, and so their wisdom is sacred and deep."

So anyway, my new earrings are available in my Etsy Shop at https://www.etsy.com/shop/ErikawithaKDesigns.  They measure approximately 1 1/2 to 2" in length (including the ear wires).

Sunday, March 24, 2013

Bead work tip #1

Most books on bead embroidery say to use "Lacy's Stiff Stuff" as backing.  While this stuff is great, it is also around $1 for a few square inches.  I use basic stiffened felt that can be bought at any craft store (Hobby Lobby's being the best as it is stiffest).  In my opinion this works just as well and costs $1 for an 8 x 10 or larger sheet! 

Friday, March 22, 2013

Oh the joys of being a beginner...

Maybe this is why I'm always switching to something new.  And maybe, just maybe, this is why I've started my Etsy store over 3 times and made 3 other blogs that went nowhere (this one is going to stay I promise!).  Maybe, I don't know.  But I do know that I really like the beginning stages of these things when each and every view, each and every favorited item, each and every *gasp* sale is a triumph.  Or maybe I'm just lazy, not sure yet. 

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Scheduling my unemployed life...

Ok, so I find that I am dreadfully unorganized and have a really hard time with schedules, but everything I read about being self employed says in order to be successful I will need to work like I have a "real" job.  So I have written down a tentative schedule for myself that hopefully I can uphold.  I'll keep you posted on how I do.  Also, this is all keeping in mind that I have a dog and a 6-month-old baby (who I am nursing) and am going to school.  Homework will have to be scheduled for the weekends and evenings.  Uggg!  I don't know if I can do this.....

My new schedule for my work day:

                    Mon.                         Tues.                   Wed.                Thurs.               Fri.

6:50-8:00     Wake Up                    Same                   Same                Same                 Same
                    Take Son to School
                    Get Ready

                  
8-10:00       Blog/Misc.                   Blog/Misc.           Blog/Misc.        School              Blog/Misc.                                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                           

10-12:00     Thrift Store Shopping   Photo and List     CareNet           School               Photo and List
                   **until done                 Thrift Finds                                                            New Jewelry

12-1:00       Lunch                          Lunch                  Lunch               School/Lunch     Lunch


1-3:00         Finish Thrifting/Misc.    Make Jewelry     Make Jewelry    Make Jewelry    Make Jewelry

Me, my work, and my aspirations!

Hello to all my potential readers!   I'm fairly new to blogging and I'm assuming the first post any new blog should have is an introduction.  My name is Erika (obviously!), I'm 27, and I have 2 kids, a 7-year-old boy and a 6-month-old girl.  And oh yeah, I am a hermit...uhh, I mean bead artist/jewelry designer...same thing in my experience.  So this blog is as much a way to get myself out there and make some friends as it is to get my work seen (and hopefully bought!).  I recently lost my "day job" and have made the decision to finally seriously take a stab at making a living from my art, something you will have the pleasure to be a part of!  I have experimented with many art media in my life, from drawing to collaging to knitting, but by far my favorite is jewelry making, especially bead embroidery, which I have been doing for about 5 years now.  I have shown my work in my own gallery show with Kayla Cote-Woodward of  Kayla Cote Handmades, as well as in Beadwork magazine in their Challenge section of their Feb/March 2013 issue (mine's on the right).  

I live and go to school in Santa Fe, NM, studying for an MA in art therapy and counseling.  I want to share with others (and you!) the healing that can be attained from art and jewelry making. 

Here I am in a 1920s photo shoot taken by my talented sister, Shelby.