Orange Raspberry Lemonade

Vintage Coca Cola glass, looking for a replacement

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 03:31:00 +0000

This is going to sound kind of obsessive... but I loved this vintage coca cola glass I found at a show a couple years ago, and my son broke it a couple days ago. I've been looking all over and can't find it anywhere!

Of course, I also don't know what I'm looking for. So I'm hoping that some of my vintage-selling friends might be able to shed some light on the year or the event or season it might have been made for so I can narrow down my search a little bit.

And if anyone happens to find one or even a set, I'd love to take it off your hands.

Simplifying Panda: The new SEO rules

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 15:47:00 +0000

I know a lot of my friends who sell online are probably sitting around reading about Panda right now and not understanding much of what is being said. So I thought I'd start a simplified list of rules based on what I'm reading. I'm not saying I'm an expert or anything, so you should still be doing your own research. This is just a quick list to help you make a few changes.

Make your site unique and appealing. We've been told for years to do this because it improves our chances of having people share our content, which helps SEO. But now whether or not people like the look of your site and how user friendly it is directly affects your SEO.
Make it trust worthy. If people feel confident following your advice or inputting their credit card info, your ranking will improve.
Click throughs count. If someone clicks on your site and then clicks out again, it will hurt your SEO. If someone is interested enough to click through a few pages of your site, your SEO will improve. You need to have a better click through rate than other sites similar to yours.
Content for content's sake doesn't work anymore. Google has finally found a way to lower the ranking of "content farms" (sites with tons low quality content that is full of keywords). This means that having unique content and doing keyword research is still important, but you need to do more. You need informative, entertaining content that keeps people interested and makes them want to pass it on to their friends.
Duplicate content is worse than ever. Even if you're duplicating your own content across the web, you will be penalized. This update was made to specifically target "scraper" sites. These sites have little to no original content, copying it from all over the internet.

There is a lot more information out there, but hopefully this will help your get started, especially if you have trouble wading through all those tech blogs. I'll continue adding to it as I find more info.

Here are the articles I got this info from:
http://www.seomoz.org: How Google's Panda Update Changed SEO Best Pracrices Forever
http://searchengineland.com: Official: Google Panda Update 2.2 Is Live
http://searchengineland.com: Google Forcloses On Content Farms With "Panda" Algorithm Update

More Business Card Ideas

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 13:43:00 +0000

My business card ideas have evolved a bit since I last wrote about them, so I thought I'd post an update.

I'm still using Moo.com to print my cards, because they're awesome. A lot of people think they're a little on the pricey side, but I think it's worth the extra money to be able to put a different photo on the back of each card. It's like having a portfolio in my pocket! And I'm loving the new rounded corners option.

I'm also still using the same design I blogged about last time. A vertical card with my shop name at the top and my logo and details at the bottom with a big blank spot in the middle. The original idea was that they were earring cards (once I punched holes), note cards and business cards all in one.

Now they're still all that, but I've modified them a bit so they can hold necklaces and fit in the little boxes I ship in. I score across the top, just under my shop name, and fold it. Then I measure out where I want the earring holes and the slits for the necklace. Then I just cut the slits and use a thumb tack to poke the holes. This makes cards that stand up a little on their own for display purposes and sit nicely in the boxes I use.

Oh! And to all my fellow Canadian jewelry sellers - I finally found boxes that are only 3/4" tall, which means they can go through letter mail instead of parcel. That's at least $5 saved! Check out Noble Pack. The product number is M201-W.

Blog Hop!

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Thu, 26 May 2011 02:48:00 +0000

I just learned what a blog hop is... so yay blog hop!

Collections on AF to boost traffic

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Sun, 22 May 2011 01:45:00 +0000

I saw a post in the forums the other day about collections being good for boosting traffic... so I'm trying to make more collections. I'm going to make one with one of my new items every time I list new items (not one for each item, just one for every day I list a bunch of items). Today one of these collections made the front page, which was encouraging. So I'll keep doing them.

Today I listed some earrings with gold plated hearts, and put this together.

Heart of Gold Jewelry

Curated By: aMagpiesDream

ArtFire.com

Handmade Gifts

Store Display

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Sun, 08 May 2011 14:53:00 +0000

I'm working for a small jewelry store in town. In return for watching the store and helping her set up a website (it's not set up yet, will post a link when it's done), the owner is letting me display my jewelry, have a quiet work space away from home and is giving me driving lessons (did I mention we got a van?).

So I thought I'd write a quick blog post to show off my display.

I'm not earning much in the way of cash - she gets commission on my sales, I get commission on hers, and it's a slow time of year - but it's nice to be working again, and I love talking to the customers.

One of the customers totally made my day yesterday. She liked one of my necklaces but couldn't buy it right away, and she said that if it sells by pay day she wants me to make another one just for her. It's nice to know that people like my jewelry enough to buy it - but liking it enough to have a piece custom made if they can't get the one they were looking at is a much bigger compliment in my mind.

Best Handmade Cloth Pantyliners

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 22:16:00 +0000

If you've been reading my blog for a while, you know that I'm a huge fan of menstrual cups and recommend them to anyone. They're the only menstrual product that hasn't been linked to health problems because they aren't absorbent and therefore don't interfere with your body's natural cleaning fluids. They're also great for busy lifestyles because they usually only need to be dealt with once or twice a day. The reusable ones are also eco friendly, but if you prefer disposables they are also available with all the same health benefits.

Usually my menstrual cup is all I need, but if I'm really busy on a heavy day I prefer to have some backup. In all honesty, it has yet to actually be necessary, but it makes me more comfortable. So I've been trying out a few different brands/styles of cloth pantyliners. I wanted to get away from the disposable ones to save money and the environment... plus they're just uncomfortable.

It took me a while, but I've finally stumbled on Caroline's Creations, home of the most comfortable pantyliners I've tried. They're so comfortable that I completely forget they're there! They cost less than $10 for 3 pantyliners, shipping is only $1 and there are quantity discounts available. Plus you can get them custom made in whatever fun fabrics catch your eye. They're made out of cotton and soft flannel and are easy to clean - I just throw them in to the washing machine with my underwear - though pre-soaking is recommended if you do get blood on them.

I ordered a custom set of 3 just to try them out, and I ordered more the day they arrived. I haven't tried any of Caroline's other products, but I'm sure her other products (menstrual pads, nursing pads, facial scrubbies, flannel wipes) are just as comfortable and well made as her pantyliners.

Luxury Handmade Solid Lotion with Beeswax

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 14:34:00 +0000

This solid lotion from Forget Me Not Soap Shop is great for on the go. Just keep it in your purse, gym bag, school bag or anywhere else you might need it. One bar lasts a surprisingly long time, and you don't have to worry about it leaking all over your bag like regular lotions might.

It's the only lotion I've found that instantly stops my feet from itching when they're dry. I used to scratch my feet raw, they were so itchy, but now I just put some of this lotion on whenever they start bothering me again. I'll definitely be buying more once I finish the bar I have now.

Handmade Easter Gifts for Toddlers

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 15:06:00 +0000

With Easter coming up next weekend, I thought I'd throw together a list of gift ideas from some of the wonderful handmade artisans I've found online. I've geared this list specifically towards Toddlers because I've found it a little difficult to find gifts for our 18 month old son. I didn't want to get him much candy, but he doesn't need a pile of stuffed animals either (though there are a couple in this list), so I went looking for other ideas.

Clothing and Accessories
I guess this is more of a gift to yourself than to your kids, since toddlers don't really care what they wear as long as it's comfortable... though my niece does tend to get attached to a pair of shoes or a jacket sometimes. Still, it's a practical gift that they'll get a lot of use out of.

Play Food
Easter themed play food makes a great gift, and one that your kids will likely get a lot of use out of.

Stuffed Animals
Chances are your kids already have a lot of these, but sometimes they're just irresistible.

Art/Craft Supplies
Crafts are a great way to get the family doing something together on a holiday. Here are some easter-themed art supplies to get you started.

Storage
These can be used as easter baskets and then used to store toys, art supplies, ect.

Other

Other cute items that didn't really fit anywhere else.

The solution for dry, cracking, peeling feet... Foot Goo!

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 22:06:00 +0000

Time for a couple of long overdue product reviews (sorry it took so long).

First up is BAKidagain's Foot Goo. This stuff is amazing! My feet have been dry, cracking, peeling, bleeding, itching, ect for about 7 years and nothing I've tried worked. I tried pretty much everything the drug store had to offer, a couple prescriptions, samples of various things that I had to order from foreign companies, different kinds of socks, shoes, insoles... you name it, I've probably tried it. Most things worked a bit, definitely better than not using them, but in the end it just wasn't worth the cost.

This Foot Goo has healed my feet faster and better than anything I ever tried before. I used it every night until I ran out (just put it on my feet and put socks on before going to bed) as well as using a pumice stone on my feet when I showered (which I've been doing for years), and by the time I ran out my feet looked almost normal!

After ordering samples, I made the mistake of not ordering more soon enough, and now my feet have reverted to their original condition, but I just got my order in the mail on Monday and my feet are already feeling SO much better! Definitely won't be making that mistake twice.

BAKidagain's Foot Goo is currently available in Electric Lime and Lavender. I have to admit, I thought lime scented foot lotion sounded weird, and I'm a lavender girl through and through, but the lime (which is the only sample scent available) is such a refreshing scent that I ordered it again instead of ordering the lavender. Everyone needs something a little different sometimes.

I might order the lavender if I succeed in going camping this summer, though. There's logic behind my lavender obsession! I don't like bugs and I don't like chemicals (like bug spray). Bugs don't like lavender. So whenever I get out into the great outdoors, I make sure to bring all natural, bio degradable lavender scented soaps, body sprays and lotions. I've even been known to soak all my clothing and (if I have time) my tent in it before I leave. It works! Just make sure you line dry, it's not nearly as effective after a trip through the drier.

Another great product from BAKidagain is her Intense Hand Cream. It's made with nurses in mind, so it's completely unscented but it moisturizes like no other hand cream I've found. It's great for anyone who constantly washes their hands (whether for your job or just out of obsessiveness like me, lol) and because it's unscented you don't have to worry about allergies (your own or anyone else's).

Why Twitter isn't helping you

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 15:47:00 +0000

I've been seeing a lot of people on twitter lately who log on and spam links to their own items. Honestly, I scroll right past all of them. I don't mind someone linking to their items once in a while, but if all I see is 20 posts with links to 20 different items, I'm going to scroll past - and I know I'm not the only one.

Twitter is designed for networking, letting your customers know who you are, meeting people with similar interests. If they're interested in you, they'll click the link on your profile and the links you post once in a while - if all you ever do is spam them, they'll either unfollow or mute you eventually, something I've been doing a lot of lately.

So what should you do? Post what you're doing in your everyday life. Not every little thing - but things that people might be able to relate to or find interesting. If you found an interesting article on something - business related or not - post it. If you tried a new recipe - post it (if you found it online or blogged about it). Did you learn something today? Did you discover something new? Is there something new in the market that you want to buy? Post it! Seriously, anything that interests you likely interests someone else out there.

Also, follow people and groups that interest you - your favorite fan websites, favorite artists, or just people that have similar interests to you - and RT whatever catches your eye.

It took me a while to figure this out, but since turning over a new leaf (twig?) on Twitter, I'm seeing more people checking out my shop, and I can only assume that it's because other people, like me, just scroll past the majority of "check out my new item" links posted. I still post an item once in a while, and I still link to other peoples' items that I find interesting (putting an @ in hopes that they'll return the favor), but I also write about my favorite games, technology that I want, TV shows I'm watching, my son's antics.

And since I've started writing about all that stuff, not only are people paying more attention to what I say (and clicking links more), they're also responding more - and I love it when people actually respond to my comments and we can get a conversation going.

Twitter Party Time!

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Sun, 13 Mar 2011 22:52:00 +0000

Just thought this might be a fun idea, if enough people are interested.

What I'm thinking is that next weekend we can all have a look at each others' shops and tweet the items we like - and good tweets, not just links all over the place with generic messages. Actually think about what you're writing - describe the item to attract interest instead of just posting "check this out".

Then, when you see that someone has tweeted your item, you go check out their shop and find something to tweet about. It could generate a lot of links for everyone involved. Just remember to put @ whoever made it, so they see that you've linked them!

If you're interested, comment with your shop link (AF, Etsy, Zibbet, Folksy, your own site, whatever) and your twitter name and I'll start a list below.

I'm thinking we might even make it a weekly thing if people enjoy it and benefit from it. So be sure to let me know how it goes, otherwise I'll only have my own stats to go on.

The Tweeters:
@aMagpiesDream from A Magpie's Dream
@PurpleBirdEtsy from Purple Birdie
@JulieClarkArt from Julie Clark Art
@ShealynnsFaerie from Shealynn's Faerie Shoppe

Photoshop is awesome.

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 23:35:00 +0000

I know, I know, it's supposed to be Maggie's column today... but I've been working so hard on getting a website set up (I love AF, but it's not the same as having your own website) that I just haven't had time to get another of her columns.

So... instead I'm going to blab about the photo I just added to my homepage. It's amazing what you can do with photoshop tools.

Here's the before:

and after:

I'm obviously not an expert, I just know my way around the program better than the average person. I used the magnetic lasso tool to cut out Maggie and put her on a separate layer. Then I used the dodge tool (set to highlights and 5% exposure) to turn most of the background immediately surrounding each necklace white. I then lassoed those (regular lasso, not magnetic) and put them on another layer. Then I just went in with the eraser with the hardness set to 0% and did some touchups.

After that all I had to do was hide the layer with the original image and add a white background layer. I also rearranged a bit - I made Maggie bigger and moved her closer to the jewelry, removed the quartz necklace and added a shadow behind Maggie so she didn't look like she was floating.

Hopefully in the future I'll be able to make it look less amateur-ish, but for now it serves its purpose.

Wearable Wire Scupltures

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 20:49:00 +0000

For my favorite product this week (really going to try and get these weekly columns going), I couldn't choose just one. I tried, I really did - but when looking at a shop as amazing as HonkusGrogana's, it just can't be done!

Normally I write a lot more in these posts... but I think I should just let this wire wrapping artisan's work speak for itself in this case.

Meet Maggie

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 17:14:00 +0000

Meet Maggie. She has been modeling all my jewelry in A Magpie's Dream, but I didn't want to formally introduce her until the wig I ordered for her got here.

Now that her look is complete, she's going to be doing a weekly column and showing off some great handmade jewelry and accessories. She might feature hats, hairpieces, headbands or barettes. She might even have a completely different wig one week, just for fun. She can obviously wear necklaces and I have attached fish hook earrings to her sometimes as well (I can clip her hair out of the way if needed to show off the earrings). She might even be seen wearing scarves or have her new favorite bag sitting beside her.

Right now she is wearing my latest creation - a gold plated necklace with rose quartz and green czech glass beads. It's a perfect addition to a spring wardrobe and it comes with a matching pair of earrings. Click here for more information.

However, in order for her column to include something other than my own jewelry I need help from my fellow artisans. If you have something you would like to see Maggie wearing in her next column, contact me and we'll sort out the details.

Generally, we'll split the shipping costs equally and I'll photograph and return your item to you as quickly as I possibly can. This usually means that it will arrive at my place early in the day, I'll photograph it and I'll have it back at the post office before they close that day. I will keep you updated on everything and provide you with a tracking code after I've shipped your item.

I will also ask you to aprove what I have written about your item before I post it, so that I can make sure I haven't misrepresented it.

Sometimes I might be able to photoshop an item onto Maggie instead of worrying about shipping, but that needs to be figured out on a case by case basis.

New Business Cards!

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 15:56:00 +0000

Just wanted to give anyone who's been reading an update on my awesome new business cards. They came in the mail the other day and I think they turned out extremely well! As planned, I can use them as regular business cards, note cards or earring cards (or all three at the same time).

Click here to see my original post about these business cards.

The gold earrings with rose quartz and green Czech glass beads you see in the picture are part of a necklace and earring set for spring - click here for more details.

CRAYONS! (Handmade, of course)

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 19:25:00 +0000

So I read somewhere recently that somewhere in the U.S. one of the baby milestones is something like "Does he hold a crayon and scribble with it?" around 12 months. My little guy is 16 months, and I think if I had given him a crayon any earlier he would have only been interested in eating it. But I saw this crayon by LilDoodlers on ArtFire. The title said "Perfect for Toddlers" so I thought we'd give it a shot.

It came today, and he's loving it! He doesn't have much of an attention span, so he only sat with it for a few minutes, but I left it out where he can see it and he keeps coming back and making a few scribbles before getting distracted again.

The same seller mentioned that she has an easter egg mold so after this trial run I'm hoping to maybe pick up some of those for Easter.

SEO optimized descriptions

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 00:14:00 +0000

Just taking a break from a day of SEO work to write a quick blog post about what I've been doing all day. None of it is live yet, but hopefully by tomorrow all my descriptions will be better for SEO. I'm also editing some of my photos while I'm at it. Apparently my screen is darker than most peoples' and some of my photos are over exposed even though they look perfect to me.

So, I've spent most of my day on google adwords using their keyword tool. For every item and for each of my studios, I entered in my current keywords and then made a list of all the popular relevant keywords that I found. It's a neat tool because it tells you approximately how many people search for each keyword each month and gives you an idea of how many competitors are using the same key word.

Then, using these keywords, I'm going to edit my item descriptions and my studio announcements.

If I'm successful in all of this, I should see an increase in views... probably a fairly large increase, since I'm actually planning each description out instead of just quickly writing them out as I list.

In the future, I'm going to do the keyword research and write proper descriptions for each item as I list them, so I don't have to do the whole studio over again and I'll start getting more views right away.

I'm also considering getting a book about SEO to improve even more, but I'm not entirely sure if there would be any information in it that I can't already find online. If anyone has any good books to recommend, though, I'm all ears!

Triple purpose business cards for jewelery makers

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 02:32:00 +0000

So today I was designing myself some new business cards and thinking about how to display my earrings, and here's what I came up with. I turned the card vertically, put all my details along the bottom put, my shop name along the top and left a big blank spot in the middle.

Once the cards get here, I'll punch holes in a few of them to use them as earring display cards. I can also use the blank space to write a little note to my customers, which will save on paper... and, of course, it functions as a business card which is more advertising. Plus, because I always print through Moo, I can add up to 50 photos and a different one will be printed on the back of each card. So they can show off more of my work to their friends.

I know I'm probably not the first to come up with this idea, but I thought I'd share... someone else might find it useful.

Introducing A Magpie's Dream

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 18:45:00 +0000

Lavender Bubble Earrings - my first jewelery sale!

In the last week or so, I opened up a second shop on ArtFire, called "A Magpie's Dream". This was the result of me finally finding time to start making jewelery. I only wish I had come up with the name months ago and locked in my rate at $5.95.

Today I made my first sale - a pair of "Bubble Earrings" that I came up with the other day. I can't believe they sold so quickly! I only listed them a couple days ago. I'm going to have to make a few more pairs and see if more people buy them - probably with different beads, though. I don't like making the exact same piece of jewelery twice.

I've also been working on some "floating" chokers, which are currently the only style of necklace I have listed... but I have tons of sketches of new pieces just waiting to be made.

Hand Painted Upcycled Paper Roses

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 22:55:00 +0000

When I wrote about my hand stamped origami paper in my last post, I was planning on using it to make paper roses. They didn't quite look right, the paper made them look too busy, so I started making them with unpainted paper and painting them minimally afterwards.

Now I have long stemmed roses as well as boutonniers available in my store. I'm working on some more decorated boutonniers as well as some bouquets, but it might be a while before those designs are done. I am hoping, however, to find some larger books so I can make some larger flowers (right now without the stem they only measure about 1").

Each flower takes me about an hour to make. I cut out each sheet of paper, fold it, paint it and assemble it and then spray them all with sealant to protect them against moisture. I can of course make them in whatever color you might want to match your decor or your wedding or any other event.

Red roses symbolize eternal love - and now the roses are eternal, too (well, as long as you don't get them wet).

Recycled Origami Paper

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 23:37:00 +0000

This is the beginning of my Valentines Day preparations. I'm going to be making bouquets of paper flowers, but to do so I needed some origami paper - recycled, of course.

I have a huge box of books that the local library was throwing out. They're all damaged in some way that made them useless to the library (missing pages, water damage, ect), but for the most part they're still useful to me. So I grabbed a book from the box and ran my knife along the spine to remove it. Then I cut the pages down to 5x5" squares, since that was the biggest I was going to be able to get out of this book.

They're not absolutely exact (I'm not a machine), but they're as close as humanly possible. I'd say the worst of them probably has 1/36" error in measurement.

Then I grabbed a wooden stamp I bought from Catfluff on ArtFire (she's got tons of them and I'll definitely be ordering more) and started stamping. Now I'm just waiting for them to dry and then I'll press them in a book for a few days, since paper tends to curl when it gets wet.

I want to mention that I failed at stamping at first. I tried over and over with different amounts of paint and water, with sponges and paint brushes, every stamping technique I could think of and it didn't work. I was just about to give up when I remembered that Fluffy had mentioned something in the forums - these stamps are originally made for body art - henna, to be exact. Of course, skin is a lot softer than the wooden table top I was working on. So I put a towel under my work space, and it worked perfectly. In fact, I think it might have been too soft! I might try using foam floor tiles next time (the puzzle piece ones that are made for work shops and kitchens and such).

I haven't decided yet if I'll be selling packs of origami paper or not. I'm going to concentrate on getting my bouquets done first. However, if you like the paper, I'd be happy to make up a custom order just contact me through my ArtFire shop (EccentricOcean) or this site. I can make origami paper in any size up to about 6x6" and I can stamp in any color. Just remember that this paper is thicker than regular origami paper, so it will be hard to do more complex models. If you need thinner paper I can have a look in my pile. There might be a book that was printed on thinner paper, but it still won't be nearly as thin as some of the origami paper I've seen.

Butterfly Fairy Illustrations

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 18:09:00 +0000

I wanted to try doing illustrations on the pages of a book that was being thrown out by the local library. The result is going to be a series of illustrations of fairies. The wings of each fairy are going to be based on real butterfly wings and each illustration will be OOAK.

I just posted the first one, based on the monarch butterfly. Let me know what you think! And if you have a favorite butterfly let me know, I'll add it to my list.

Quilted Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 17:01:00 +0000

The next collection in my series to help everyone get in the holiday spirit. This morning I found a gorgeous quilted ornament (the red, white and green one at the beginning of the collection if it hasn't sold yet) and decided to search "quilted christmas" to see what else ArtFire's fabulous quilters had come up with. So here you go, enjoy!

Quilted Christmas

Curated By: EccentricOcean

ArtFire.com

Handmade Soap

Christmas on the Table

noreply@blogger.com (Lauren) — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 17:33:00 +0000

Another collection, as promised, to help get everyone in the holiday spirit. I actually had a lot of fun compiling this one. I'm itching to buy an entire holiday table setting now... maybe next year (unless I suddenly make a few hundred sales).

Christmas on the Table

Curated By: EccentricOcean

ArtFire.com

Handmade Gifts