Facelift

I read some great tutorials on photos and tagging and so I decided to try my hand at taking better photos. This is what I came up with. New Photos

The necklace is still the same, but in my opinion, it is so much more appealing to look at than the previous photos I has of it in my shop.

That's all that's new for now, except that I've created a google group, and you can sign up to be notified of new happenings as I post them. The link is on the top of this page on the right side.

MyCraft

I have discovered a great new place that I may get addicted to more than facebook or myspace!

MyCraft is a great new social networking site for crafters, artists, and those who admire creativity.

What I like most about the site is the ease of which you can navigate around the pages. Maybe I've been on myspace for too long, but my biggest hurdle thus far had been navigating the terrifying new waters of(new) social networking sites and promoting my shop when I can't even find the link to add friends.

Let's face it, when you get used to one thing, it's harder to accept and get used to another. MyCraft was easy. Beautifully easy. I already have plenty of friends (not that I don't need anymore!), and it displays my photos of Beach Glass Jewelry amazingly well. Right in plain view of whoever visits my page. It's also ridiculously easy to add your etsy mini to any comment that you leave on another crafters page, further allowing you to shamelessly promote yourself.

Bottom line is this: If you're a fan of social networking as a promotional tool, I really encourage you to get over to MyCraft and give it a try. Go ahead and add me as a friend!

My First Sale

My "mild" frustration has turned into not-so-mild elation. I logged into my etsy account and didn't notice, but then when I checked my email, there it was: "Etsy Sale Payment Notification"

At first I didn't understand. I thought that I had mistakenly bought something on Etsy. Silly me!

Anyway, I'm just super excited and really motivated to make more. I really love what I'm doing and if I can make money doing what I love, then that's even better.

That said, even if I didn't make money, I'd still make the jewelry, because I love it that much. I'd just have to give it away!

The pic in this post is the necklace that I just sold.

Mild Frustration

I say "mild" because it really only is mild. I feel like I should be getting discouraged but I'm not.
Let's face it, the online selling market is saturated. I count myself lucky to have several views of my jewelry a day. And besides, all the research I did before I signed up with Etsy prepared me for this. Sort of.

Needless to say, I'm anxious to make a sale. I have lots of oohhs and aahhs, but no takers.

Just a little vent for today.

New Etsy Profile

Today, I created a new profile for my Etsy shop. This one says a lot more about WHO I am rather that just WHAT I am. I've copied it below.

Bio I've always lived near the beach, at least always within an hour of it. But I never really appreciated the beauty and splendor of the lake and all it had to offer.

A few years ago, my husband and I moved into the tiny little lake front village of Fairport Harbor, and my love of beach glass, beach pottery, sand, and sun was born.

There's something so calming when you hear the gentle waves playing tag with the shore, and it's so humbling when you see the mighty waves crashing over the breakwall during a furious storm. Or, I can unleash my inner daredevil and stand at the water's edge when a water spout is gathering strength.
Even in the bleakness of winter, I find beauty at the beach.

I attempt to capture the beauty of every moment at the beach with all of my beach glass jewelry. All of the pieces that I make are inspired by an experience I had while at the beach.

My love of beach glass jewelry developed into a love of all jewelry-creating, and so you'll see a variety in my shop, along with some crochet items from time to time.

Thankful

Well, I got a job. It's part time at K-Mart. Certainly not what I was looking for, but it'll help with Christmas money.

Then I decided to see the blessing in disguise: With the part time hours I'll be working, I'll make just enough to ensure a comfortable lead in our fight against coming up short every month, and I'll have plenty of time to take care of my home and family, and to create!

So while I'd much rather have a part time dental assisting job, this will certainly do.

I am very thankful for God's provision for me and my family.
Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

I Wonder?

I'm sitting here looking out the window at the snow coming down. It's very steady, and accumulating fast. I think it's pretty, and I actually like snow this early. Keeps things festive.

The problem is that I have two job interviews today, and unfortunately, my vehicle is not the kind that should be driven anywhere in the snow. Grrrr.

So I think to myself, "Maybe I'm not supposed to work outside the house. Maybe my work is here?" I've been actively job hunting for about 3 months now, and nothing seems to be happening. Trust me, I'd LOVE to stay home and create things, take care of my home, spend these last two precious years at home with my last precious child.

So as I'm wondering about these things, and worrying about my drive today, I'd like to ask a favor of anyone who may be reading this. Please pray for me. I'd love to know God's will for me in this situation. Without a doubt.

New Etsy Shop

Okay! I finally did it!

I don't know what took me so long, but I finally created an etsy store. I think that maybe what held me back was a fear of rejection, or disappointment if I didn't get a quick sale...or any sale for that matter. But a new way of thinking lately has got me feeling that I can only learn from this, and really I need to start sucking it up and be a big girl.

So, without further ado, I give you http://sparkleandfuzz.etsy.com

I realize it doesn't look like much now, but it will soon. I have just finished moving, and having birthday parties and so I'm trying to sort out all of my stuff AND still find time to make new stuff, clean my house, tweak recipes for holiday foods to make them healthier, find a job, wipe butts and noses, create menus, shuttle kids to lessons, workout and...well, you get the idea.

So just keep checking back, and if you like what I have, you can always let me know if you want it tweaked just for YOU!

This is why....

So I named my blog "Sparkle and Fuzz" because it's my crafting blog. My two main interests are jewelry, (sparkle), and crochet (fuzz).

That's not to say that I don't try new things, but those are my main things.

I'm super new to jewelry, and really at this point, I'm just practicing technique, and all designs are prototypes. I use cheaper materials for now, until I am more confident in my abilities.
I especially adore wire work. Don't get me wrong, stringing beads is great and all, but there's something about wire working that makes each piece way more interesting and unique. If there's wire work in a piece, you know for sure that it's truly one of a kind. That's probably why I like beach glass so much too. Pieces of beach glass are like snowflakes; no two are the same. So if I combine wire work with beach glass, I get a really unique piece of jewelry that's absolutely gorgeous.

So that's just the beginning. I sort of am in the middle of several crochet projects, but I'm not really working on them because I'm all gung-ho about jewelry. One quick comment about crochet; I rarely follow patterns. Once again, probably because I'm such a huge fan of one-of-a-kind items. I generally dream up my own stuff, and spend forever working on it. I have tons of WIPS, and my hubby is seriously a great guy for living with me and all of my kookiness.