FEST Boot Camp is On!

Woo Hoo! Today is the day! If you signed up for the Florida Etsy Street Team Boot Camp, you’ve been waiting for this! I know I have and I’m rarin’ to get started!


This is YOUR boot camp! Do as little or as much as you think you can or have time for. The more you do, the better prepared you will be for Mother’s Day – our ultimate goal.

(FromBeths on Etsy)

Though I originally thought I’d take the easy way and follow Etsy’s Holiday Boot Camp steps, I’ve decided that we’re all too busy for long lists of “to do’s” so you’re getting my version. Feel free to chime in here with suggestions….I’m very open to ideas other than my own!

So, let's get started!

Step 1: Clearly define your goals. What do you want to accomplish? Write it down and share it with us, if you want. Here’s mine: I have always wanted to have a mailing list so I could send out news of specials for the holidays. I need to make a plan to do this. But I’d like to have a list started by Mother’s Day. So when you define your goal, think about what it’s going to take to accomplish it. Maybe you have a financial goal, or a sales number in mind. Maybe you want to improve your photography. If you share your goal with the rest of us, we might have some suggestions on how to get there!

Step 2: Make a budget for time and money. This doesn’t have to be complicated. Think of renewing and relisting as well as new listings. It will help you if you set up a plan that includes how much you want to spend each week for these things, and how much time you want to spend doing it. You may want to take advantage of Etsy’s ad program or use google ad words or Facebook Ads. All are viable options, and if you want to get noticed, you need to get customers from outside Etsy. There are plenty of free ones – like using your social networking (twitter, facebook, flickr, etc). Here’s how I’m doing it: I allow $30 a month on advertising. That’s all, no more. If I break that down, it’s $5.00 a week. It’ll come back to me with one sale, so it’s worth it. I plan to spend one hour a day listing a new item or renewing, then on to twitter and facebook to post something. One hour per day on line is enough for me. I can get carried away and spend several hours on the computer which means less time in the studio. Fun but not good! I want lots of new items to list for Mother’s Day, so I need to work! This plan may not work for you, it’s just an example to get you started. Your financial goals should include how much you want to make in a defined period. Example: $250 a week for the two weeks prior to Mother’s Day. What will it take to make that? More listings? More exposure? Think about it.

If you complete these two tasks this week, you’ll be off to a good start. Next week we’ll expand on the plan. Last time FEST did this boot camp, you were to pick a buddy. It’s not required, but if you can find a buddy to work with, I highly recommend it. It’s nice to have someone as a sounding board, but that’s just one more option to help you work your plan. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me. Most important: have fun!

Toodles,

FEST Boot Camp

Well, for those of you with Etsy Shops, you know that Mother's Day is a big day. Sales and views leading up to it are usually very good. However, we on the Florida Etsy Street Team are going to do what we can to increase our visibility by implementing Boot Camp.

Etsy introduced their Holiday Boot Camp last year, so we're adopting and adapting! Each week the tasks will be posted here along with any forms necessary. If you're not a member of FEST, that's ok! I invite you to participate anyway! If  you're from Florida, with an Etsy shop, you can join FEST by going to: http://www.etsy.com/teams/5263/florida-etsy-street-team and signing up. If you're already a member of FEST, you can sign up for the boot camp here: http://www.etsy.com/teams/10586/festive-bootcamp. Come one, come all!

Boot camp will start on March  19th. I will also be featuring a member each week, talking about how they accomplished the tasks at hand, along with some of his/her yummy designs from their shop.
So stay tuned!

Toodles,

The Oops Opportunity (or how to turn your mistakes into something unique)

The other day, while showing off one of my finished pieces to my husband, he said "I just don't know how you have the patience to do this. I would make so many mistakes!"

Mistakes???? Moi???? Ha ha ha! Of course I make mistakes - plenty of them, in fact. You name it - burn it, melt it, break it, I've done it all!  But it brings to mind something one of my instructors, often said to our class, "Turn your mistakes into a creative opportunity!" OK, sometimes it's just gone....but many times it does present itself as a ceative opportunity. I've had a lot of fun figuring out what to do with that burned hole in the middle of my cuff....or the wire embellishment that wasn't meant to be melted in half.

For those of us who create - opportunities often present themselves in strange ways. But we wouldn't continue to try if we didn't really love what we do....we'd just give up everytime we made a mistake and that would be sad.

Here's an example of a mistake that gave me pause. While trying to use the torch to get an organic appearing texture, I applied too much heat in one spot and burned a hole right through it. What to do, I thought????  Well, after putting it aside for a few days, I went back to it with a new perspective...and here's what happened.

I definitely had the texture I was going for, so I added the hammered copper wires, protruding from the hole and oxidized it to bring out that molten lava look and aptly named it "Eruption".  I liked the way it turned out and put it in my Etsy shop - and it sold right away.  Obviously I will not be able to recreate it, but it's a good example of using an Oops opportunity!

So don't give up when you make a mistake....put it aside and go back to it later. You'll be surprised at what you might think of!

Happy creating...
Toodles

2012 FEST January Giveaway!

Ring in the New Year with a Special Treat from The WoodenBee for our January FEST Blog Giveaway. Bee started it all with a love for the environment and partnered with Busby Cabinets recycling pieces of wood and other materials to make her wonderful art and product lines.

We are delighted to offer, as this month's Giveaway, the beautifully fashioned Wall Hanger seen above. It's made from reclaimed cherry wood with a merlot brown stain and would be perfect for organizing keys, necklaces, belts, pet leashes, aprons and much, much more

Each item is one of a kind and requires "following the wood" to unlock the beauty within and create masterfully finished products, giving reclaimed materials new life. You will find Wall Art, Bulletin Boards, DYI Wine Cork Kits, Mirrors with Hangers and a myriad of interesting finds in Bee's Etsy Shop.

You can visit Bee at her Etsy Store to see more of her unique and original wares at The WoodenBee . Find the perfect item for your home and save the environment too.


HOW TO ENTER: Enter to win this versatile Wall Hanger by visiting The WoodenBee or any of the FEST member shops listed on the top of our Blog Page. Find your favorite item, share it with us and tell us why you love it. Remember to add your email address or contact info so we can contact you if you are the Winner! Winner picked on 02/05/12. Simple and Easy!

December is Almost Over!

Well, this month has been one hustle! Very little studio time, unfortunately, so I have nothing new to show you, though there are several new style rings in the works.

What I have done is reconnect with friends from all over...party....eat....drink....eat....did I mention eat???

First up was the opening of the Altered Minds Christmas Shoppe at the Progress Energy Gallery. We do this every year, and it's always a great time. Most of the Altered Minds gals offer up items that they've been working on all year. It's a glorious collection of arts and crafts. We started earlier this month - just after Thanksgiving to allow the good folks of New Port Richey enough time to do their Christmas shopping. And of course we started with a party!

Some of the gang!

Great kids gifts!

Ila demonstration her spinning wheel technique!

Dolls by Diane

And lots of food! (Thanks Audrey!)

I inventoried and packed up the last of what was left yesterday. Kinda sad, but Christmas comes again next year, and I'm sure we'll all be there. It's something we look forward to every year.

Next on the agenda was the Altered Minds Christmas party. This year the party was hosted by Jill Marcus, at her wonderful home on the river. Everyone brought food to pass....did I mention we ate?....and a great time was had by all.

Ellen, Audrey and Betty

Our wonderfull hostess, Jill

Um, did I mention the food?

It was a wonderful luncheon, in a gorgeous setting on the water....great friends, beautiful weather.

Thanks Jill!

I think this is long enough, so I'll continue with the month's activities in the next post. Wishing you all a Happy Holiday!

Toodles,

FEST Holiday Blog Give Away!

We are delighted to feature as our Happy Holidays Giveaway three colorful and fun polymer clay sculptures from Kathy of SmallThingsClay. Kathy creates fanciful clay sculptures of frogs, toads, lizards, crabs and all things whimsical from the sea and sand. She utilizes glass beads, colored wires, found shells and other items to produce unique and happy figures sure to bring a smile.

Kathy is providing a set of three of her wall hanging Nubibranches from her Epicenter Gene Pool Series as our December Giveaway, two of which are pictured. Each one of a kind Gene Pool is created with polymer clay, fired to specifications, painted in the best acrylics and sealed for UV protection. A swipe of a soft damp rag is all you need on cleaning day. They are durable enough to gift to a child and also perfect for adults

As a sponsor of the Florida Parrot Rescue, Kathy donates $5 to the FPR for every item she sells and helps in the effort to rescue, rehab and rehome Companion Birds throughout the State of Florida. Below is another of her creative figurines.

You can visit Kathy at her Etsy Store to see more of her clever creations at SmallThingsClay. HOW TO ENTER: Enter to win the Nubibranch Set by visiting SmallThingsClay or any of the FEST members listed on the top of our Blog Page. Find your favorite item, share it with us and tell us why you love it. Remember to add your email address or contact info so we can contact you if you are the Winner! Winner picked on 01/10/12. Simple and Easy!

November Giveaway!

It's Giveaway Time Again!!!
We are so delighted to have our November FEST Giveaway sponsored by Cory of Aquarian Bath from Daytona Beach. Cory is a herbalist who makes wonderful and delicious natural soaps, specialty salves and natural perfumes and grows her own herbs for her organic products.


Cory is getting us ready for the Holidays with her wonderful Christmas Gingerbread Man Soap on a Rope Ornament of Ginger, Cinnamon, Clove and Essential Oils.

Her veggie soaps are hand cut and strung with natural hemp. Gingerbread men soaps are a great gift for co-workers, family or friends. Cold-process soap and Orangutan friendly; no palm oils are included.

All of Cory's items, such as those pictured below, are made from scratch and formulated by her and are either unscented or lightly scented with pure essential oils

HOW TO ENTER: Enter to win this darling Gingerbread Man by visiting AquarianBath at her Etsy Shop or any of the FEST members listed on the top of our Blog Page. Find your favorite item, share it with us and tell us why you love it. Remember to add your email address or contact info so we can contact you if you are the Winner! Winner picked on 12/10/11. Simple and Easy!

Toodles,