Shibori, or as Some Call it Tie Dye

When I was in college it took a class in Shibori, or Japanese tie dye. It literally means pleated and bound. With the current emphasis on denim it's really popular right now in the indigo color so I decided to try it myself again. I went to the internet to get more information (my college memory was a little hazy). One of my favorite blogs, Honestly WTF had a post and how to here. They are a little more in depth on the pleating technique, although it isn't all that hard. They did go to the trouble of getting special dye,but since I'm a little more of an immediate gratification kind of girl I just went with plain old buy-it-at-the- grocery-store Rit. I bought two colors, denim and black. My daughter wanted to use the black first, more on that later.
Since this was basically a first try experiment I used an old white sheet for the fabric. This did two things.One, it had been washed over and over and was very soft and two it had no residues or coatings left on it. I cut it into manageable pieces, small enough to get a good dye but large enough to make small bags or other small projects with.

I chose some 6 by 6"tiles, 2 by 2" tiles and a wooden tart maker as my objects to use for dye resistance. I followed the Honestly WTF instructions on pleating, I folded the fabrics accordion style a little wider than my tiles and then accordion style again, ending up with a square a little larger than the tiles. I have a great stash of old lace, so I decided to try dying some of it too and that is what I used to bind the larger tile. The smaller one I just used twine. The tart maker I pleated the fabric long ways only and then wound it around the dowel part. I bound it with twine too. There is no rhyme or reason to how I bound them.
Here comes the tricky part. I used the cold bath "sink" method as described on the bottle. I tried it with the black dye and soaked the fabric according to the instructions using the required amount of dye and water and salt. It turned out less than spectacular. The color was muddy and had little definition. So I tried again with the blue. This time I strayed from the bottle directions. I used a large metal pot with non-stick coating (would hate for my nice enamel coated cookware to be blue) on my stove top, I doubled the amount of dye used and lessened the water, still using the salt. I simmered it for 45 minutes before I took it off the burner, rinsed and washed it. I think the results were pretty great. On the larger piece you can even see the striations made by the back of the tile. The piece I wound on the tart maker was my least favorite, but still nice. The lace took the dye in different ways since it was a combination of different fibers, nylon, polyester and cotton. I think I will try some t-shirts too but for now I have some really nice shibori pieces for a new project I'm doing next week!

Dear Diary....the Streak Broken..

Dear Diary, today my no sales streak for over a week ended! Yay! I had two sales. I was getting pretty jumpy since I don't usually go that long without a sale, so I feel better. And, it frees me up a little, with no sales comes no cash and no new inventory! I'm not a fan of relisting just to get views, so if an item hasn't expired I don't usually relist. Anyway how do I know if I want to relist an item or not? I mean if it has been on the "shelf" so to speak for 3 months with no movement, well is it a good item? is the price too high? is the picture bad?

How do you move your aging inventory? This last time I relisted items I lowered the prices of them by 50%. I felt they were all fab items like the earrings pictured. I sold one of the half a dozen or so I reduced. I asked her how she found the item and she said through google, she was looking for a sterling silver picture frame and the bangle bracelet showed up in the search results, imagine that! So she wasn't looking for it, she didn't find the price a reason to buy, I don't know.....

At any rate, at the end of this listing period these items won't be renewed. I liquidate my unsold items in lots, sometimes through craigslist, sometimes on ebay, sometimes if they are sweet and small things I'll give them away as gifts with purchases. But it is a problem all of us face, what to do with dead inventory? If you have a creative solution for either handmade or vintage items, leave it in the comments, I'd love to hear! Until tomorrow, Jamie.

Dear Diary.....

Trying something new.....The listings I've done the last several weeks have been heavily fashion oriented. I have some paper ephemeral that has just been sitting about waiting to be listed so I changed tracks today and listed some of those pieces...

These are photogravure prints from an 1894 volume by Selmar Hess, Great Men and Women. I love the detail on the horses.....Wonderful pieces.. Also I've been so busy lately I seem to have lost some steam, I need to regroup, refocus, Think! My etsy shop has several different prints, I've also listed some vintage map pages for crafting or other uses, We'll see what happens!

Dear Diary, Does My Shop Have the LOOK?

For those of you who sell vintage Etsy just put on their blog this week part 1 of their Guide to Selling Vintage. I browsed some of the shops mentioned and read the entry but one thing common to all the guides is PHOTOS. One of the most asked questions in any forum I've ever stumbled on has been never ending how do I take a good photo. It also calls to my mind some of the shops that have such wonderful images it becomes part of their shops branding or style. This is one of my favorite etsy shops, DearGolden.

Their photos are simple, always against the same background, always on the same dress form and highlight the merchandise. This has become their visual identity. Another seller, (whose name I will not reveal) relies on two pieces of copy paper and the great outdoors for her light. Even others rely on light boxes. Obviously using copy paper and light boxes your items have to be small but the same theory applies, the same look every time.

I went in search of my look when I started listing more clothing. I had to have a dress form so I was no longer photographing lumps of clothing flat on the tile floor. I got one off of ebay. Not the best of quality but the price was right. Ebay is an excellent source for light boxes, dress and jewelry forms. I then set out around the house to find a good background. I still don't know if I've found one but I settled on my stucco wall on the balcony for now. Here is my latest photographic endeavor.  Doesn't really compare to my "golden" standard but maybe I'll get there someday. It is a lot better than flat on the tile floor though! Complete weekend stats on Monday, but started off right with two sales late last night. Good Sales to everyone and until Monday, Jamie.

Dear Diary....Day 4 Odds and Ends plus Google Analytics

Stats
Sales 2 for a whopping $8.74   Net $8.43 (total sales less etsy fee for sale)
New Listings, 0
Views +323 (how'd I do that?) see below...
New Shop Hearts 3

Yesterday I talked about Project Wonderful. Ironically I got what I'm sure was a form e-mail (but it was addressed to me personally so it made it seem better) from PW Customer Service asking for my feedback. Not sure how I'll respond yet but I will at some point, anyone with anything to say to them let me know!

Okay now to the meat of today's entry... I wanted to know how I got the bump in views with no new items so I went to google analytics to see where those views came from. Google Analytics is a kind of Back of the House for people with websites. You can see a post in the Storque about GA for those of you who don't know what it is.

Yesterday I had 96 visits from 90 different people. They looked on average at 3.83 pages per visit. Here's the surprise, only 25 of those visits came from people already on etsy's website. The rest of them, 71 others, came directly to my shop from google, a PW ad, twitter or other sources. Based on that I'd say outside marketing is extremely important to the views and eventually sales in your shop. Tags and the title of your items become very important too with google being the 2nd biggest source of views for me.

Do you know any useful little tidbits about google analytics? Do you use it? Let me know, as always, until tomorrow, Jamie.

Day 2, Dear Diary......

What happened yesterday? Listed 5 items, Sold 1, Gained 1 Shop Heart. 
Financially? Made 9.99, Spent 1.34 (listing fees, plus .34 for the sale) for a net profit of $8.65; Less cost of goods, and well it is a little less than $8.65 hmmmmmm.

On the bright side I did sell an item and gain a heart so here's to repeating a sale today and more sales in the future. 

Yesterday, I mentioned promotional efforts. I divide promotions/marketing into two types. Passive and Active. Today I wanted to talk a little bit about active. I think those are things like Twitter, Facebook, Plurk and whatever other social media you use. It is active because it requires your time to interface with the platform and users. You just have to be careful how much time you spend. It can get addicting, but it does work. Last week I sold an item to @MerCuriosJewels. She saw it on twitter from her phone and bought it from her phone. Hey, marketing in action. Her Etsy shop is pretty great too, check it out http://www.etsy.com/shop/mercurios

Tracy with an awesome etsy shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/polishedtwo who recently hit 5000 sales (GASP) uses facebook a lot for her marketing. So I guess it is kind of what you are comfortable with.

What's your favorite form of active marketing and why? Submit what works for you by commenting. I'd love to hear and I'm sure others would too!
Until tomorrow, Jamie.

STATS - A Starting Point......

 
Okay, Where to start my Diary? Well since my aim is to grow my shop how about my current stats.

My shop started selling vintage in February of 2009, before that I sold handmade so here it is since vintage...

Sales since 2/2009       346

Sales Per Month            23

Shop Hearts                447

Items for sale             178

Shop Views            23,305
Avg Views/Item           131

These are fairly simple stats, I didn't dig down into item hearts, or any of the google analytics data, but the numbers I chose are what we would have called topline stats a few years ago and I think they should be a good measure of my overall success in getting more sales. 

These simple topline stats are easily available in your shop and by using http://www.craftcult.com/ . If you are new to the etsy game you will be sure to want to check it out. 

On the agenda for today? 

•  Shipping - I have two weekend sales to ship
• Listing - I have several items to photograph and list  (affecting views and sales hopefully)
• I always, answer e-mails, tweet, check on other promotional efforts (more to come there!)

So Until Tomorrow! J.

Suzanne's Crazy for Collars!

I recently purchased a new collar for Cruz our Chihuahua from Suzanne's shop Crazy for Collars. My daughter chose the fabric but I think the blue looks great against his shiny black coat. She has some beautiful Christmas designs, take a peek for your little (or big) buddy!

Personalized Ipod or Phone Cozies!

Well most of you know I love to do embroidery and felt applique. I had a customer request personlized ipod cozies for her family last week and I finished the first one today. I thought it turned out so cute! Pictured is the finished item for the mom, I am making a little girl's and boys too, I haven't done the boy's but the girls is partly done. Her embroidery and the lining is pictured.. These are big enough for ipods, iphones, blackberrys, even some cameras. This design could be easily adapted for a glasses case too. Interested in one for a gift or yourself? Click here. Thanks, and have a great day, Jamie.

The Awesomeness of Craigslist

Craigslist has gotten somewhat of a bum rap with all the scamming, adult services and the infamous craigslist killer getting lots of publicity. You don't often hear great stories from there, but, I have one....

Sunday I was browsing the FREE STUFF. You would be amazed at what people give away for free. For some reason there are always 3 or 4 toilets in there, Hmmmm. But an ad caught my eye, Ebay Sellers, Boxes, no longer selling. So I called. Left a message. I got a call back from a very nice woman who said she was had opened an accounting business and it was going so well she was getting out of ebay and she wanted to get rid of her shipping supplies. We arranged for her to leave them on her porch yesterday and I picked them up. Wow! I would have paid a lot for these and now I have great boxes and mailers for the holiday season!

Thanks to Next Step Financial Services for a real blessing in boxes and mailers! (I don't even know her name.)

So I guess the moral of the story is be careful on craigslist but it can be useful!

Holiday Napkin Rings

A couple of weeks ago I posted a picture on Facebook of some felt embroidered leaves I made. I loved them but was at a loss as to what to do with them. A friend of mine from high school that I talk to on Facebook, Ronnie Applewhite, suggested I somehow make them into napkin rings. Well I finally got the time to try it out, here is my result.

I also thought it looked good as a wine glass wrap. The how to? Super Simple. I make the leaves from three layers of embroidered felt, you could machine stitch them or even use silk floral leaves. I then attached them to a piece of bias that that I had inserted floral wire into. I twisted buttons onto each end of the floral wire so that they couldn't poke anyone or get stuck on anything. I sewed them onto the bias tape but they could be glued just as easily. So there you go Ronnie, Napkin Rings!

What do you think? Let me know via comments. Have a great week! Jamie.

Finishing the Sale, Etsy Tips

So you have a shop now and have made a couple of sales but things aren't going as smoothly as you thought?

Well you aren't alone! In some of the groups I'm in we are seeing an increase in the amount of time it takes for the buyer to pay. A lot of times it is because new buyers are unfamiliar with how to complete a sale in etsy. I recently came across a seller http://www.amorevivo.etsy.com/ .

She sells wedding florals and sees a lot of first time etsy buyers. She includes in her listings the text

"If you're NEW to Etsy, here is a helpful link to guide you through the checkout process: Very Easy to Buy!!http://www.etsy.com/help_guide_checkout.php "

This link takes them to the super explanatory link that takes them step by step through payment. I loved this and thought it was a great solution to both welcome new buyers and guide them through the process and in return, get your cash! I just had to share, thanks AmoreVivo!

Also, when you ship internationally you are required to fill out a form 2976 or 2976 A . On those forms is an identification number. Keep your receipts! These have recorded on them the scanned id number and even though it doesn't work every time, if you need to track that package many times you are able to get a status by putting that number into the tracking number blank on the usps website. In addition if you need to investigate a missing package you can go to the post office and with that number send an information request. I know from experience that shipping internationally can sometimes be frustrating so every little bit of information helps! Well, all you etsy sellers have a great day and if you have a tip of your own, post it here in comments, I love new ideas!

Organizing Your Etsy Day

Like most crafters/designers the part I love is the creating. I can piddle the day away shopping for fabrics, notions, sketching, sewing, cutting, etc. I also love vintage so a day running to resale and thrift shops is a real treat. The thrill of making a sale is fantastic too. What is not so great and what a lot of us don't like is listing, photographing and shipping. But they are necessary to having a good business so here is how I organize my etsy day, maybe it will help you organize yours!

1. Listing - First off I list, if it isn't listed it can't sell!

• Check for expired listings first, an easy way to bump your store into recent listings.
• Check sold items for things to Re-list, another easy way to bring your shop into the top of the searches.
• List anything new you have (I don't include taking photos with listing, I'll get to that later).

Easy ways to make listing go faster - Install Mozilla Firefox (an alternate browser) and go to http://www.etsyhacks.com/greasemonkey/copy_listing/ . Install this script and it will add Copy Listing to your etsy shop when you are using Firefox. It shortens the amount of time it takes to list items similar to ones already listed in your etsy shop.

2. Shipping - Nothing makes your customers happier than to get their order quickly!

I ship next, I detest shipping because it usually involves lots of busywork. But I usually do it next so I can get my items to the post office or carrier before the mail goes out. Tips to make your shipping go faster

• Put all your shipping supplies in one central area, somewhere you can take your laptop or somewhere near a computer. Put envelopes, mailers, labels, whatever you need near there.
• Use paypal shipping. Prints labels, can provide tracking at no charge, gives your buyer a notification that their item shipped.
• Try carrier pickup, while it doesn't work for everyone, it can be very convenient not to have to go to the post office.

3. Now for the FUN Creating!

• Have an area (it can be as simple as a cupboard) set aside for your supplies. Gather what you need and go somewhere you can be at your best for whatever inspires you.
• If you are on the go a lot (mommy taxi) have something portable you can work on in a bag ready to leave when you do.
• Be aware of inspiration in your daily life! Some of my best ideas come from something right in front of me!

4. Picture Taking and Preparation for the next etsy day

I save my picture taking for the end of the day, I take my pics indoors so light is not an issue if it is for you take your pictures at the time of day that works for you. But try to have a back up method in case it is rainy etc. You can get clamp on lights at Home Depot and either use those or even get a light box very reasonably.

Prepare for the next day, I mentally make notes of what I need to do next, custom orders that need to be done, new item inspiration, etc.

So there it is! The point is to make yourself as productive as you can with the little time you have. While my process may not work for everyone, maybe it can make you think a little about what can. Thanks!

Kandace of Kandio Designs

Today I'm blogging about a fellow etsy seller, Kandace of http://www.kandiodesigns.etsy.com/ . She is soooo much more than an etsy seller though! I feel like I don't do much after reading her profile. Take a visit to her blog, http://www.kandiodesigns.blogspot.com/ and you will find out about the wonderful variety of talents she has. Fine art, jewelry making and interior decorating are all areas that she works in. Here are a few of her jewelry designs.

You can see why Kandio-o is such an appropriate name with the brightly colored candy looking drops she uses in her jewelry! I hope you enjoyed seeing her designs and projects as much as I did, have a great day!

One Scrappy Chic!

Good Morning, One of the things I find really fun is to look at the shops that have hearted mine and the things they make. You can cyber stroll etsy for hours, but if I limit myself to one of those shops I have a natural stopping point! Anyway it has led to some great discoveries for me and I like to share them, perhaps it can bring someone inspiration or give you a new favorite shop too!

This week I chose OneScrappyChic.etsy.com. This shop is run by Bettina and her story is familiar to us all I think!

" I opened OneScrappyChic on Etsy to bring in a little extra money for my family. I am a mother to a beautiful 2 year old little girl! She really was the inspiration behind OneScrappyChic, which started out as a pregnancy/baby album idea and eventually evolved into much, much more."

Her paper goods are wonderfully colorful, whimsical and combine sewn embellishments as well as unusual materials like paper bags. Here is her comment on her goods.

"I like to make all types of paper crafts such as scrapbooks, notecards, etc., but I LOVE to make EXPLODING albums! I love the idea of someone finding all the hidden pockets and pages and the album popping open at the turn of nearly every page. "

So I hope you have enjoyed my stroll though http://www.onescrappchic.etsy.com/ . She is also having a giveaway on her blog http://www.onescrappychic-etsy.blogspot.com/ . I know I'll pay a visit! Lastly here is a pic of her own favorite item, an exploding album.

Kathi's Kreations - Great Etsy Shop with an Eco-Centric Focus!

Today I'm going to share with you a new etsy shop I found that I love. Kathi's Kreations, http://www.kathip22.etsy.com/ . She has a fresh approach to eco friendly products and upcycling. You know those cool reusable sandwich/treat bags? Kathi's shop has a great selection of them.

When I cut fabrics for a project I always feel a little guilty when throwing away the selvedge, the border where they print the fabric manufacturer, the screen colors and stretch the fabric before printing. Well Kathi has a lot of wonderful creations made from upcycled selvedge!

Trivets, picture frames, coasters and more are all items she has made from the cast offs. Like typical artists/crafters she has always felt the need to create. Here is what Kathi said on her own behalf.

"I'm 58, been sewing and crafting since I was a child. I love to sew, knit, needlework and I'll try any craft that interests me. I like to craft/make things that are new & trendy. I am always looking for the latest/greatest thing out there! I also want to do more to help our planet so I have become eco friendly in my crafts. "

So, check out her shop, she is one of the many great finds on etsy!

Wonderful World of Felt - Felt on the Fly!

I love crafting with felt and do a lot of applique and embroidery work with it. Up until now I have used only eco-spun recycled felt. Here is my newest creation!

It's a variation on a card holder, the flap is functional and will hold all your goodies inside!

This week I received some yummy wool felt from http://www.feltonthefly.etsy.com/ . Aren't the colors great? I am so excited to work on some new things with it. It arrived in a beautifully wrapped package with some great marketing materials on Janet's things that she makes from felt too! I think I will do some sugar skulls with it. they will be like this one only in the high contrast limes and fuschias. He is a card holder too with a small pocket on the back to put your paper money, cards, etc in. Lots of hand work to keep me busy, just the way I like it!

some valentines quotes and cute kittens....

A few valentine's quotes for a chuckle.....

I just love to do special things for my wife on Valentine's day. Like open the door for her when she puts all the laundry in the washing machine, or plug and unplug the vacuum as she moves from room to room cleaning. Guys, it's these little thoughtful things you can do to have a marriage such as mine.

I don't understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine's Day. When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon.

Sales ad at a store: ‘You are my one and only’ Valentine's cards, now on sale: 4 for $5.”

" Love is the thing that enables a woman to sing while she mops up the floor after her husband has walked across it in his barn boots."

My New Name!

Thanks to everyone who submitted names for my Shop/Brand!

Here is a list of my families favorites!

1. Exit Strategies
2. Accessories2Go
3. Crabby Traveler
4. Destination Handmade

I'm having a contest to pick the name!

To enter leave a comment with your number choice and e-mail if you aren't logged in. UWIB members can also post directly. If you aren't familiar with my shop and want to look first it is www.retrochique.etsy.com. The prize is $20 Free in my shop. Entries will go until December 5th. Winner will be chosen randomly. Thanks for your help!

UWIB Testimonial

Okay, I know "testimonials" are for things like acne products, but, UWIB, Unique Women in Business is so different it deserves something that testifies to its attributes!

I've been selling online for over 5 years now. First on Ebay and then on etsy starting just a year ago. In all my time selling it has been such an alone experience. You list your items, you take questions, you hope they sell and you deal with sometimes rude buyers. You deal with competitors that spam your buyers, badmouth you and just aren't friendly and then you start all over again when you list another item. Etsy is a little different in that the crafters and buyers are friendlier to one another and you meet people in the forums, but UWIB beats it all. I found them through twitter and signed up being a little skeptical. It seemed like it was kind of like a buying club, but I was going to buy things anyway so what did I have to lose. I have only been impressed with the other members since I have joined.

When you post something in the messages, the members actually read them and they click on your links. They provide feedback and encouragement to the members and sincerely are interested in what is going on. There are opportunities to show your products in chat room parties and the leader of the group is always promoting the members stores and merchandise in every online venue you can imagine. Twitter, myspace and the UWIB blog all are pumping the members items. It is the only thing I have done outside of etsy that I can be 100% sure has increased my sales and not just because other members have bought.

So if you want to become part of a truly amazing group, that is positive and does what they say, this is it, Unique Women in Business http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/Unique-women-in-buisness/