Daisy Lee Designs

A New year A New day

2012-01-13T06:22:00.000-08:00

It is a new year and a new day. I cannot believe i have not updated my blog since march last year, shocking! One of my resolutions this year is to keep my blog up to date..it will be a challenge for me in this busy world of life and motherhood, but i going to commit to keeping up with everyone.

I have discovered a totally great site, which I am sure many of you have also discovered...Pinterest...what an inspirational site for self, for home and for business...I have became hooked with ideas, so many I want to do. Well I hope this day finds you all well and i look forward to what this year brings for us all

It's Friday

2011-03-18T12:03:00.000-07:00

Another week is coming to a close, it has been a busy week of getting things ready for the new boutique in town, cleaning house in between getting things ready..and the kids have been off for spring break. I don't know about all you, but i am exhausted. I got all my things ready for the boutique..ten hand made tote bags, thirty hand made pairs of earrings, I don't know how many bows and some other nifty little things. I think i will give my sewing machine a couple of days off, my glue gun some well earned cooling down time....then before I know it, it will be time to do it all again. I have sold a little bit of this and a little bit of that, I guess my earrings are a hit and now that Easter is approaching...I am hoping that my bows will fly off the shelf...wishful thinking..Well hope you all have a good weekend

Boutique Time

2011-03-08T12:39:00.000-08:00

I am displaying my Hand Made items in a local boutique, I am super excited..what to do..what not to do. This is the first time of working with a boutique, so I am a little nervous. I have done craft shows, displayed in other places, but this is a proper boutique and it is so local to where i am..five minute car ride. I will keep you all posted on my boutique journey, day one begins tomorrow.

Stacking Coupons at walmart

2011-03-04T13:47:00.001-08:00

Did you all know that Walmart lets you stack coupons. I just found out from a friend that she stacked three coupons together for the same product and ended up getting the product for pennies. I have not tried that yet, but I am planning on doing it...so I will let everyone know if it works for me. i am excited to see

Couponing

2011-03-03T05:54:00.000-08:00

Okay ladies, I am going on a couponing mission. I want to get free stuff just like the people in the TLC show "Extreme Couponing". Right now I am teaching myself the lingo, I am exploring different websites like couponmom.com or thekrazycouponlady.com. I am liking what I read about everyone saving money, seems like a great deal of work, but I am willing to give it a try, so i will update you all. First things first, I need to make myself up a binder, they say that works best for organizing your coupons. I have collected coupons from the sunday paper, I have downloaded and printed coupons from on line sites..so here I go, hope my mission is fruitful. I would love to hear from anyone who might have some good tips for me.

Bible Study

2011-03-02T19:15:00.000-08:00

Our church is doing a woman's bible study on the book of Esther at the moment. The bible study is being led by Beth Moore. Beth Moore is an excellent speaker, very motivational and inspirational. The way she presents her studies amazes me, she draws you in, captivates you and makes you feel like you are part of Esther's life..truly amazing.

I recommend anyone who has not studied the book of Esther, to study it with Beth Moore as your teacher. We are doing the video serious with her. I am truly in awe of her the gift the Lord has given her to bring His word to His people.

Tri Fold Card Tutorial

2011-03-01T12:23:00.000-08:00

A Beautiful Way To Send A Greeting

Instructions
Start with a 6 inch by 12 inch card stock
score at 2,4,8 and 10 inches
using a cutter, line up and cut in 11/2 inches from edge between first score line and last score line
turn and do the same cut in 11/2 inches
fold into shape and decorate to your own desire

Card Making

2011-02-27T11:05:00.000-08:00

I found an exciting video on you tube when I was looking for some new ideas for cards. I was so excited when I came across this video with this type of card.

I have never seen this type of card before, so i decided to give it a try and I was so in awe of of it, that i thought i would share it. I have made several and they are so much fun to make and something a little different.

so get your stuff out and give it a try, you too will be excited. Like any new craft we crafters embark upon, you will not be able to put it down.

I bought a score pal and I do not know how I ever lived without it, the best tool I have bought in a while. have fun and please let me see some of the designs that you all come up with.
Check out the you tube tutorial link below and check out my first attempt above. I will definitely be adding these to my boutiques and craft fairs this year

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qS-79Yl6Dmo

Hello From DaisyLee

2011-02-26T22:20:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone, I have decided to return to my craft business and blog after being away for a couple of years. I have been going through some things in my life that has taken me away from everything for a long time..but I am back and I am excited to see what this year brings for me and my fellow crafters.

Craft Fair Season

2009-09-25T09:12:00.000-07:00

Craft fair season is upon us...who out there is getting ready to work flat out until Christmas?
I am going be working on a new line of products. My first fair is in October, so I need to get busy like a bee.

Vote HandMade

2009-05-01T15:00:00.000-07:00

Votehandmade.com has been re-skinned to make it more of a handmade feel. We have altered a lot of the core functionality to be easier to navigate. Today we are starting our full Launch. We did a soft launch here for Artfire members to get in and start building Karma early.

VoteHandmade.com

New website allows members to vote and submit art links from all over the web

Tucson, AZ – Today marked the launch of a new social media website, VoteHandmade.com. Powered by Reddit code and ArtFire.com, Vote Handmade serves as a link sharing platform for artisans and crafters of all types and specialties.

On VoteHandmade.com, users can share handmade items from venues all over the web with fellow users, up voting and down voting just like on Reddit. This allows artisans the opportunity to not only socialize and share links, but also to promote their quality product and drive buyers to their online studio.

VoteHandmade.com also aggregates news, instruction and business tips for the online craft world. With hundreds of thousands of handmade sellers and millions of handmade items currently listed for sale on the internet, VoteHandmade.com is a great place to see the best of all venues and all artists as voted on by their peers.

VoteHandmade is like the world’s largest juried craft show. Any user can submit an item from any site. VoteHandmade is free to use, free to join, and free to promote.

More About ArtFire.com

ArtFire.com is an interactive craft marketplace designed to bring artisans from different geographic locations and backgrounds together. On ArtFire, artisans are able to not only set up a customizable studio, but also are given the chance to meet fellow sellers though a number of interactive features available on the site. Artfire is more than just a venue, it’s a vibrant artisan community.

“We wanted to give artisans the chance to promote their items in a way which was not only free but also fun,” said John Jacobs, CEO of ArtFire.com. “Vote Handmade allows them to share and interact with artisans from the many different venues on the web.”

“We felt it was important to build tool specifically designed for artisans,” Said Tony Ford, COO of ArtFire.com. “It is our hope that the crafting community will use VoteHandmade .com to further their business and networking online and shoppers can go to one place to see the best of the best artisans in all

Craft Fair Season

2009-05-01T11:17:00.000-07:00

Craft Fair season is upon us. It is a time when us artist and crafters can get out there and share our wares.
I have done a number of craft fairs over the years between the US and Scotland.
It is a time when we can meet the very people that keep us in business and give us the motivation to do what we do.
In my experience of craft fairs...some you win...some you loose..and some are just so much fun it doesn't matter whether you win or loose

A check List for fairs from someone who has been there, done that and bought the t-shirt

* Never have your table too full
* Have a variety, but not too much where it confuses your customers
* Always iron your table cloths
*Have clear signs with business name
*Always have business cards and literature about your business
*Make sure you have plenty of change
* Make sure you have bags for all different size of items( I did a craft fair were most of my things were small, but I had made a couple of long scarfs..when I sold one I had nothing to pack it in, I was very embarrassed)
* work on your craft when you are there if possible
* Make sure you customers can either walk into your booth or around it
* Smile, you are not being tortured
*Never accept offers..not a good image for your business
* Take your own food or you will end up spending all your profits..maybe you should just shove earplugs up your nose so you are not tempted by the smells of that fair food
* Last but not least..have fun.

Susan Boyle....One of the eight wonders

2009-04-24T07:51:00.000-07:00

Susan Boyle is one of the eight wonders, she comes from the holy land which is Scotland.
Watching her flourish over this past few weeks has been amazing. As a fellow Scot who moved to the States 2 years ago, I am so very proud of her.

She is an example to all of us. We all judge a book by it's cover and Susan Boyle is an example of the very reason why we shouldn't. People are judged for how they look, how they speak, and how interesting they come across. Well Susan Boyle was judged for all of that, then she literally blew away the world with what came out of her mouth.

I am rooting for her to go all the way. I hope she blows everyone away once again when she performs.
Go Susan!

All aboard the crazy train

2009-04-22T08:24:00.000-07:00

The crazy train features artists who sell their art through Artfire.

Today we are featuring :

Silver River Jewelry

Fine artisan jewelry made with a variety of techniques including wire wrapping, metal smithing and lapidary (rocks). I make elegant, affordable, well made jewelry with a touch of whimsy.

It's Monday!

2009-04-06T06:50:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone. I can't believe another Monday has rolled around. I didn't get to blog last week as I was busy creating for my store.

I sold my first item on Artfire last week wooooooooooooo. It was very exciting.

My goals for this week is to redo all my photographs. I will master the art of good photo's :)

I hope you all have a good week.

Here is one I created last week............JUST FOR BOYS.......................

All About Daisies

2009-04-01T07:34:00.001-07:00

All about Dasie's Hat was inspired by my love of daisies. Daisies bring back beautiful memories of childhood, it reminds me of sitting in the tall grass of Scotland in the middle of summer and making daisy chains. Every little girl should sit in the middle of a grassy garden and make daisy chains.

Share with me a warm fuzzy memory of childhood.

Google Keywords

2009-04-01T07:29:00.000-07:00

We all know how important it is to have the right keywords and titles for our products.
I found a great link yesterday that enables you to find keywords for your products that rank in the searches.

The link is:
https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal

This what I will doing all day, I will be changing my tags, keywords and titles..I will let you know how much a difference it makes in driving traffic to my store

Give Away of The Week

2009-03-30T09:27:00.000-07:00

Everyone likes free stuff, I am giving away this week, this adorable clip holder.
All you have to do is visit my shop http:www.daisyleedesigns.artfire.com and tell me what your favorite item is and comment back. You will be entered into a draw for this week.

Good Luck

Shop Of The Week

2009-03-25T11:49:00.001-07:00

I would like to feature my Mum, She has been with etsy for about a year now, although she has not many sales through her store, she has done incredibly well. She has been knitting since myself and my siblings were tiny tots, she continued knitting for her grandchildren and now she knits for business...you go Nana....

Her name is Helen..aka Nana. She lives In scotland with my brother Paul and my son Sean ( who is over there for university). I hear she is knitting everyone socks at the momeny..very cold in Scotland.

She has 5 children and 11 grandchildren. She also has many adopted people in her life from both Scotland and America..every where she goes people love Nana.

Everyone give her a big cheer.....

Etsy Verses Artfire

2009-03-25T07:19:00.000-07:00

I am with Etsy and Artfire. I have been with Etsy for over a year. I love Etsy, the forums there are wonderful and very easy to navigate. The people are great and the array of hand crafted items are marvellous.
The down side for me with Etsy, I find it so overpopulated with certain things. I gave up selling my jewelry over there, there is far too much competition. I will continue with Etsy as I am an Etsy fan.

I have been with Artfire now for a couple of weeks, so I am no expert. One of the things that I believe sets it totally apart from Etsy is the load product page. It is fantastic, I load more there as it is so much easier to use than the Etsy page, it is faster, more efficient and you can work on your description while loading your products.
I think that there are some things they need to work on, but overall I am very happy with Artfire.

2009-03-24T21:14:00.001-07:00

My latest creation with the most beautiful little model ever :) Thank you Beka for being so super

Is everyone enjoying spring break?

2009-03-23T17:43:00.000-07:00

I Hope you are all enjoying spring break. The weather here in Missouri is lovely. I am enjoying having the kids home and catching up with all the projects that pile up.

Hope wherever you all are, that the sun is shining...well! I know my family in scotland will say that it isn't :)

Wishing you all a happy spring break.

2009-03-23T17:34:00.001-07:00

Part of my Spring/Summer collection.

Cats Paw Artifacts

2009-03-22T19:32:00.000-07:00

Judy Richards resides in Portland, Oregon where it rains this time of year. A well kept secret is that it doesn't rain all year around.

Judy is a member of the Portland Bead Society, the ORBS (Oregon Regional Beadmakers Society) and the ISGB (International Society of Glass Beadmakers). She also belongs to PdxEtsy, Etsy BEAD team, and CGGE.

Judy makes lampwork beads and designs jewelry - unique and hopefully artful jewelry. She is always striving for new ideas, new shapes in glass.

Judy is inspired by nature (flowers, birds) depicted in glass. She loves abstract lampwork most of all with layers of glass and complexity. She is always striving to that goal.

You can visit her shop
http://www.catldy99.etsy.com

You can visit her blog
http://www.catldy.wordpress.com

See Judy in April at Art and Elegance in Beads at the Portland Convention Center

Spring is here, I am buzzing with ideas for a spring collection

2009-03-21T18:00:00.000-07:00

I have so many ideas to play about with, I am hoping that most of them come to fruition.

When i lived in Scotland, I worked at a school that ran a story book program. It was to help and encourage kids to read and understand what they read.
One of the ideas I have is to design some story bags. I am very excited and cannot wait to get started.
I am hoping they will be a hit at the craft fairs this year.
I need to shop for materials to make the bags and then shop for the things to put in them.
I don't make stuffed animals, but I will be on the look out for some hand made ones...so if any of you bloggers make stuffed animals, let me know and give me your link.

I will post the progress of them, hoping to start them this week.