Subject is Summer and what kinds of Fun Crafts are Lirking!

Lirking crafts you say......yes! Lirking...The kids will be going to camp and doing all kinds of crafts that are going to be great fun.........Remember in Girl Scots when you made an OIL CLOTH PILLOW to sit on so you wouldn't get dirty around the campfire.

Mine did not look that this one at Cherry Hill Cottage http://cherryhillcottage.typepad.com/cherryhill_cottage/2008/04/cottage-oilclot.html, but I thought it was great...Our troop made them from Kelly Green solid oil cloth and we stiched around them with yellow yarn...I'll never forget that Summer when my Mom was our troop leader.  That was a lot of fun.

Other Crafts lirking will be those from the camps all around the country...your child may come home with something like this...although maybe more crudely made. It is at this link from Katesy's shop http://www.kaetsy.etsy.com/   http://www.etsy.com/listing/47882323/perfect-for-summer-wooden-armoury?  Very cute...don't you think. 

And if you are going to the beach..........think of all of the shells that you and the kids may want to pick up for making shell, beachy stuff later.  My kids and I made all kinds of neat things after visits to Padre Island and other beaches......We made shell frames...just glued the shells on...after soaking them in bleach to get the stinky smell out and all kinds of jewelry.........I came across these site on Etsy for shells and other neat things that may give you some great crafting ideas.  www.thesaltyseahouse.etsy.com has these and other wonderful treasures for you to purchase if a trip to the beach is too distant on your Summer Calendar.And don't forget about all the wonderful things you can do with Rocks. You can pick up rocks anywhere.........you don't even need a Vacation!  I have loved rock projects with my kids....Paper Weights, Door Stops, Scuptures, Mosaics and lots of other things that you can let your imagination fly with....and...I found these wonderfully colored and shaped crayons for kids that you may love...www.AugustGrove.etsy.com has them and lots of other great things  too. 

The only problem that I see with these crayons...they look good enough to eat!

Enjoy.....until nex time...take a look at my own art on my etsy sites:

http://www.diannearnettedesigns.etsy.com/ and http://www.wantzit2.etsy.com/

I am a CREATOR...when not working on real estate!

Weird is the Topic of TODAY...TOAY'S creatively WEIRD!

CosmicFirefly

Today just felt "weird" to me, so I decided to support my feelings with some really cute and creative weirdness from my fellow artisans on Etsy, the famous handmade website that helps us all "get discovered". The idea of weirdness is, well, weird but also weirdly creative....In fact, we artists are used to being referred to as delightfully weird, or original...we like that!  The shop for the eyeballs is  BeanDoll.etsy.com

Lilley.etsy.com

Isn't this just adorable!  How sweetly weird...almost anyone would love to cuddle this little guy.

CosmicFirefly.etsy is where you will find this very Cosmic Steampunk necklace....you are sure to be the only one at your party with this cutie...and how orginal...to have her head stuck in a camera...This could be one for the Pavarotsi girls.  Of course, being weird can be wonderful! And speaking of wonderfully weird...see what is next. I seem to be attracted to eyes and heads today in this blog on weird so take a look at what HappyFunShop.etsy.com has created and how it is just too cute and wierd for words.The other thought that I have as I blog and share today is how great the photography is for all of these items.........The photos make us really notice how wonderfully weird these all are.

and without further babbling about wierd, enjoy some of these other creations from Etsy and friends.

KristinaEllis.etsy.com

hapitat.etsy.com has beautiful and unusually created items....take a look there.   Well...as you can see as I stop today's findings and expressions...I am beginning to find more on the beauty side of weird.

Note:  I is not that I actually think any of these are "wierd"....it is just that "wierd" was one of the tags used in each of these listings........so I guess that "wierd" like "beauty" is definitely in the eye of the beholder.

I am Crafting in Pink today......Pink is for Girls and Pink is for Spring...

What the heck....I just love pink and bet you do too.

Along the way today, I am going to show you some lovely "pinks" that are onsale at http://www.etsy.com/.
At Etsy, we are crafters and we love to make stuff............but to make it is not enough, we also want to sell it.  There are many budding designers just waiting to be discovered.....and of course, there is me!

You can find all of my designs at http://www.diannearnettedesigns.etsy.com/ and http://www.wantzit2.etsy.com/.

(I am in the process of closing http://www.wantzit.etsy.com/ and everything is 20% off...so close me quick!)

Now for PINK!   Pink can be reddish, orangish, bluish, .........purpleish.......well you decide.

You can mix pinks and reds and blues and turquois and they just all work together.  You can dress a girl, a baby, a man, a woman in pink and they all look good..........It may be a jewel, or a tutu, a tie or a purse......Pink looks, well Pink! and Pretty.

Pink mixes with checks and just about any pattern that can be imagined.Dogs wear pink.............mine does! And she just loves it!

I love pink in anyway it is used.........I often like pink in my own designs, but this blog is about other people's pink today...

You can see my pinks at http://www.diannearnette.etsy.com/ and at http://www.wantzit2.etsy.com/ 

Enjoy

Arts and Craft Shows....Good, Bad, Beautiful, and Ugly!

Since I began selling the jewelry and accessory items that I design, I have found that one way of promoting my jewelry business is by participating in art and craft shows in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.  This has been both rewarding and frustrating at times.  At my first show I had no idea of what to expect.  Would they like my things? Would they be priced too high or too low? Would there be a lot of people there? Did I have enough inventory to show?  Maybe I would sell everything and then have to start over!

Now, with 6 shows under my belt, I have become a good judge of what is good, great, bad, or just plain ugly in the way of craft shows.  Read up!

1.  Timing.........if the show is too close to a holiday, people won't come and buy....because they already bought.  If it is on a weekend of a holiday, people are getting ready to go out of town, or are already gone.
..........slow people traffic
2. Promotion ....Show organizers are going to make money whether the vendors do well or not. They have their money up front.......so I now know to ask what kind of promotion advertising the organizer will be doing.......and ask to see the printed materials and dates for those ads.  New promoters will often think they can just pocket the money and not do anything to produce buyers at the show....News alert!  If there are not many people there........the vendors will not participate a second time.
3.  Types of vendors showing.  If every other booth is offering the same as your product, you may have too much variation in product and it will just confuse the shopper.  They cannot decide what they want when earrings are $25.00 at one booth, and $6.00 at the booth down the way....Shoppers often don't take the time to find out what the differences in the products may be.
4.  Music........If there is entertainment at the bazaar.......it must appeal to a wide variety of people.  The music should make the shoppers enjoy the experience, not make them want to flee the area.
5.  Concessions........Vendors need a place to get a snack, drink, etc. Promoters who do not think of this, are not thinking of the vendors who are counting on them for comfort, traffic, etc.  Vendors will feel unimportant..frustrated .i.e. you just wanted my booth fee, but did not want me to like your show.
6.  Good Promoters make everything as easy for vendors as possible when checking in and out.  They ask for feedback about the show...was it what you expected?...How can we improve?  etc.

I love the opportunity to meet my potential customers at various shows...and I like it when I see repeat customers...It is like seeing an old friend!  I also like visiting with the vendors who I have often met before at other shows.  They are helpful and I am finding a vendor network who is willing to share other really good information with me....

If you have been to a craft show recently either as a Vendor or a Buyer..please take the time to tell us about your impression of the show.

I am always looking for new shows and venues....I love to craft my jewelry and accessories and offer it to the people who will appreciate it........