Celebrating Little Victories

I went to a local Art show last night (Henderson ArtsWalk) and had a lot of fun!  I met some really cool artists and got to show off my lovely creations.  This is my third month participating in the ArtsWalk and I'd never had as much fun as I did last night.

I also sold two of my hair bows!  It's so cool that total strangers came up and thought they were pretty or cute enough to take home with them!  I was a little discouraged because I didn't sell very much, but I talked about it with Devon and I've decided to be happy about it.  While I didn't make very much, I at least earned back what I paid for my spot and got to promote my store and items for 4 hours.  I can't wait for the bigger shows I'm doing this season!

What to do about Copycats?

With the opening of my new store KABowtique, I've had the chance to experiment with new designs and have had several come out very well!  I'm so excited to be able to present them.

With that, I started seeing other people copying one of my designs, the Lion Hair Barrette.  At first, I was more than a little concerned and angry, but then, after thinking about it, it's not a big deal.  I look at other people's designs for inspiration, too.  I talked about it with Devon, my husband, quite a bit last night.  He says that I should ask them to credit me, but I'm not sure.  It's really not a big deal to me, and I'm flattered that my design was good enough to copy. 

First Sale for KABowtique!

I just celebrated my first sale in my new store, KABowtique!  It's so exciting to be selling the things I make.  I hope to have many more sales.

Sales are slow, all around, but I'm working hard to promote my stores and I've got several craft shows that I'm attending in the next couple months.  Hopefully, that will serve to get my name out there and also to bring some more sales.  I'm really working hard on my stores and it's really hard work!  But I love making my items.  And I love seeing people enjoy them!

Item Fiction

I am (Devon) into fiction and the fantastic.  I love science fiction and, to a lesser degree, fantasy stories.  Awhile back, I was creating names for each piece of jewelry and a short story to go along with it, describing the supposed special powers that piece contained.  While it was fun and entertaining for me, it didn't seem to increase views, sales or any kind of reaction to the items.

So, my question, or my discussion topic, is this:  Do buyers appreciate those little bits added to the items?  Or is it merely a way to spend time amusing myself?  I'd really love to hear your thoughts and opinions.

Etsy Showcase

The idea behind the Etsy Showcase is a wonderful one.  I really like it, I do.

Having said that, I don't know if it works!  Karla has purchased three Showcase slots and has generated exactly zero sales from it.  It's frustrating, knowing that you're spending money on advertising that's not working.  It could be because she hasn't gotten a slot on the Main Showcase.  We decided to try that one, next, but it's hard to get a slot.  They get snapped up so very fast!

Has any of our readers had any success on any Showcases that weren't the main one?  We'd really like to hear about your experience and how you maximized your Showcase slot.

We're having a Halloween giveaway contest!

We're having a Halloween giveaway contest:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=245227&id=127950039247

Minnie Mouse

Some of the greatest inventions of all time have come about when people mix two things that don't obviously go together.  I'll save exposing you to my ignorance by not making a list.  But the principle is true.

Karla did something interesting, something I've never seen before.  It turned out to be one of the cutest hair barrettes she's made up until now.  She combined quilling with ribbon, and created an awesome Minnie Mouse hair barrette!  I have got to say, it's very cool.

She's planning on using the same technique to make some more interesting and unique products in the future.  Stay tuned, and I'm sure you'll be amazed!