Still Adding!!

Things here are busy!  I have to take some more pictures soon, as I have been working on some great items that I need to get into my shop! A bunch of new vibrant bracelets, some trees, a whole bunch of rings, and some other new goodies.

I'malso going to take this moment to pimp my other blog, where I discuss handmade items, samples and samplers, my crazy life, and where I am probably going to start posting some sewing tutorials....as soon as I finish unpacking my sewing room.

Go ahead and check it out:

Marbled Nails and Other Important Life Decisions

A Change of Focus

Contrary to my husband's desire, I will not be focusing solely on keychains in my etsy shop. Yes, they are my best seller (both at street fairs and online in my old shop), but they are not where I want to spend my free time. (he wants me to make exclusively keychains and sell them at street fairs)

After I sell off my current inventory, I am going to focus almost exclusively on my wire wrapped and "eternal" pieces.  I love making my trees, and I feel like my bracelets are some of the most versatile items in my line, since the focus is on the bead. And, of course, I love my big and fabulous wire wrapped pendants. They are where I got my start.

At the craft shows I vended at this past summer, everyone commented on and loved my wrapped pieces, and were verbally disappointed that there were not more of them. I didn't get such a positive reaction to many of my beaded pieces, so, even though I LOVE them, I will not be continuing most of them.

I hope this doesn't end up being a bad idea, but with my going back to school and looking for a job, I cannot do everything anymore, and I want to focus on the things that give me the most pleasure.

So, in the future, it will be the keychains, wire wrapped pieces, and wire art in the form of my eternal lines. Oh, and maybe a few surprises if I get my hands on something fabulous.

Is This Wrong?

For the holidays, I bought myself a couple of gorgeous necklaces made by other Etsy sellers. I am going to end up wearing threm wound, too, and considering how nice they are, I will get some compliments and some "oh, WHERE did you get that??" questions.  And I'll answer.

The problem is, every time I get questions like that, I feel like "man, I should have worn something of my own."  Then I feel like I am being disloyal to myself for not wearing more of my own work on a daily basis, but honestly, I make it every day. I LOVE many of my pieces, some so much I end up keeping them, but sometimes I want to wear something made my someone else that I never would have made myself, but I love.

I wish more people loved my work and wore it for compliments, but I know that time will come eventually.  Right now, I will just have to deal with my feelings of being torn by wearing other people's gorgeous work.

Trying some new things

Due to my complete lack of sales, I am trying some new things that I hope to be able to perfect and start posting in the new year.

Keep an eye out for it.  I will also continue to list my current items at a mark down.

AngelTree Gems

December Sale!

Ok, I have decided to extend a sale to all of my loyal blog readers (or anyone who stubbles here, I'mm not picky), and offer 10% off of your purchase for the entire month of December. This INCLUDES custom pieces.

Also, for everyone, as mentioned in my etsy shop, when you spend more than $50, I will give you a FREE upgrade to priority shipping.

Here's the link again, so you don't have to look it up:

ANGELTREE GEMS

I am still listing new things every day (pretty much), and by the way, yes, those sets that are listed as coordinating separates, and offer 10% off if you buy the set?  Yes, I'll stack the savings.

So, how was that for a lovely mercenary blog post? 

Coming soon: new questions for you and new ideas for me!

Weekend sale!!

Yes, It is true! I am oofering a site wide 20% off plus free shipping in the USA, and 50% off international shipping from Friday until 11:59pm Monday, Nov.30!

AND....

For all of you loyal blog readers, mention this blog in the message to seller at checkout, and I will give you an additional 5% off and a free priority mail upgrade on all orders over $50.

Just check out as usual with Etsy, and I will refund you the percentage and the shipping.

CLICK HERE FOR ANGELTREE GEMS!

Address Change!

This blog, in case you hadn't noticed has changed addresses, too!  I decided that I needed the blog to have the same address as its title, so we are now are ANGELTREEGEMS.blogspot.com.  No more trying to remember how to spell Coqui Ainjelfire

HUGE listing influx and sale

I am fighting the sinus infection from heck right now, and am pretty much home and bed bound, but whenever I feel up for it I am taking pictures, editing them, and listing all of the jewelry I made and have in my house. There are a lot of items never seen online before, because they are from my craft shows last summer and never got listed due to the move.

I will try to list at least a few items every day, with the goal of having plenty for customers to choose from come the holiday shopping season.

I am also offering some specials for my loyal blog readers: 

Mention this blog in your checkout comments, and I will give you 10% off and free shipping (in the USA and Canada, or 50% off shipping outside of the US and Canada) on your entire purchase, except on BLACK FRIDAY.

On Black Friday, I will give you 25% off and the same shipping deal.

Decisions Decisions

Ok, I have a lot of very nice jewelry and keychains that I moved with me from New York. I had made a whole bunch of stuff for a craft show that I did...well....VERY POORLY at.  A lot of the stuff is not necessarily the kind of stuff that I think I will carry with my new AngelTree Gems line, though it is still very nice and high quality.  However, with the holidays coming up, and with my just not having a whole lot of time to create since we moved, I am debating whether or not to take a day, take a world of pictures, and list the items at a reduced price.  Even though they don't really work with the rest of my plans, and even though they are not necessarily "holiday" items.

The other possibility is to spend that day where I would be photographing and make some new tree ornaments.  This would be significantly less merchandise, but would they sell? That I have so idea.

I know, I know, the jewelry is already made. Mark it down and list it.  You're right. I will.  I think my next free day is next Friday.  Right in time.

Thanks for the advice! ;)

Jewelry with meaning

When I make jewelry for myself, it frequently has a meaning behind it.  Maybe the color signifies something. Maybe it's the stone, or the design, or whatever.
With Coqui Ainjelfire, I had gotten away from listing the meanings of my pieces. I thought it might be a little pretentious seeming to take a necklace made of purple glass beads that I named Orchid and to discuss how purple is a color of mystery and nobility....but the more I think about it, that's what the necklace means to me. If you don't care, that's fine, but I do.

So, I have decided to start listing meanings on my pieces again. They're mostly simple and a bodging together of an umber of belief systems and theories, but that's OK.  I get a lot of inspiration from the world around me and put a little bit of myself into each piece, and I want to bring that to my customers.

Ok, Off of my soap box.  Thank you.

LEGAL!

I got my permit to collect sales tax in Texas on Monday this week.  So, I am legally in business. I have some listings on my etsy site, and as soon as I get a minute to myself, I will start creating and photographing again.

However, I have been inundated by phone calls from comanies offering me services.  I believe I already mentioned my issues with the credit card company I am dealign with, leadign to my not cancelling that account? Well, I have gotten over 15 more offers for credit card acceptance services. 

Just today, I have gotten calls about business accounting services, website development, and credit card machines, adn it is not even 11am.  I get 3-4 calls a DAY.

Now, I'm kind of excited I am getting thiss kind of attention, but where was this attention in New York when I had the time and wanted the business to be a full time venture? Right now, I am barely keeping up with my regular life and doctor's appointments!

*sigh*

In 3 months when I am ready to be really up and running, I am not going to hear from anyone again and I will be in trouble.  Figures.....

Keychain, Keychain, Who's got the Keychain?

Since my keychains are my best sellers, I am, of course, starting off listing a whole bundle of them on my new etsy site.

I love my keychains. I get high quality split rings and attach simple but pretty beads and charms to them. They are good quality, but able to  take the beating a keychain typically takes. I use glass beads because they have less of a chance to chip, and I can offer a replacement guarantee for 3 months where, if the bead DOES chip, I will replace it for free if you bring it to me, or you cover the shipping.

I also make custom color and charm combinations at no extra cost and am always open to ideas.

Here are a few of the keychains I have to offer:

And Laziness wins again....

So, I moved to Texas in August.  Today, I decided that I am SICK AND TIRED of unpacking and it was time to officially move and rename my business.

This has caused me no small headache.

Filing my final NYS sales tax report? No problem. I just have to mail the form and check.

Registering for TX sales tax authorization? Again no problem.

At this point, I thought I was on a roll....but NOOOOOOOooooooo.

Cancelling my old merchant account would lead to a $250 cancellation fee.

Moving my business bank account was no problem, but my new business is not the same name, and I cannot change the business name on the account. D'OH!

Fortunately, the business is under my actual name DBA Coqui Ainjelfire.

Instead of the headache of closing one account, opening a new one, and changing over all of the paperwork and business accounts, I have opted for laziness:

I will do business in Texas under my REAL NAME. This also saves me needing to register a new business name.

I feel like such a rebel, lol.

Of course, now I have to change everything online again. I'll probably keep the AngelTree Gems name and just say that that is my "jewelry line", so it will be AngelTree Gems by AMSE (My initials).

I have the old 80's some "Oh, me so Horny" going in my head but it's me so LAZY instead.

Aren't you glad I got that some stuck in your head, too??

Now, as soon as I get my permit, I can start re-listing to sell all of my lovely items. :)

A Move and A Change...

We have completed the relocation to Texas. The kiddos are in school and I am internet enabled. I am still in the process of closing down the business in New York and making the new, NEWLY NAMED business in Texas all legal-like. I still need to unpack and all, but I have internet, and that's what's important, right?

I have also decided that, since I started off sewing, once a month I am going to post a new sewing photo tutorial.

So, now the-business-formerly-known-as-Coqui-Ainjelfire will be known as AngelTree Gems, and we will get going soon, I hope!

Long Time No Blog....

Check out my sewing tutorial of how to put a patchwork panel into jeans! I am thinking of running a monthly sewing tutorial post on my other blog. Once upona time I dreamt about writing a sewing book, but I think tutorials will be fine for me.

http://thenewnew.blogspot.com/2009/04/how-to-refit-old-jeans-with-side-panels.html

Also, I have a special running in MY ETSY SHOP with a free upgrade to Priority shipping inside the US for the rest of the week.

Oh wait....where have I been, you ask?

So, I don't like to post this much here, because, well, it's whining. But life here has been well....hectic and non-work related....well, non-my-work related. The husband doesn't have a job, and he's the main bread winner in our family. Though he's getting some great opportunities, all of hubby's big interviews have been out of state. Because of this, I have been working less on making, photgraphing, and selling jewelry, and trying to prepare for potentially moving my family of four. (It always falls on Mom, doesn't it?).

Ok, enough whining! I am still trying to list a few new things a week, and I will start making the time to tell you aboout them and other things I find to be of interest! Promise!

Singing the Praises of my Sonic Cleanser

For Christmas this year, I got myself a little sonic cleaner. It was really cheap on eBay, and I figured, since I wear so much jewelry, much of it costume, eventually, it would pay for itself.

Fast forward to February, when I bought a bunch of lots of gemstone, pearl, coral, and glass beads from two different sellers who each had them listed at steal worthy prices. Another seller had a few pounds of vintage jewelry, also for a steal, so I picked those up, too.

Well, when they arrived, I found out why they had all been listed so cheaply: they STANK!! Obviously, either the eBay seller or the person they had bought the beads from was a heavy smoker, and the beads reeked. I was understandably upset about this, as I am not a smoker, and actually have an over-sensitive sense of smell. The last thing I wanted in my stash was a bunch of smelly beads. And they hadn't all even arrived yet!!

I went online to try to find some remedies for cleansing the reek off of my beads. Some people suggested letting them air, So I put the bin outside in the sun. Others suggested washing them with dishawashing soap. That just gave me clean, smelly beads. Some suggested bagging them up with a dryer sheet. That just added to the stench. then I had someone suggest I bury them in clean cat litter, and the litter would soak up the smell, as it does cat urine. this sounded feasible, and I resolved that the next time I bought more cat litter, I would pick up some extra for this experiment.

As Fate would have it, before I got to the store to buy more cat litter, the last few lots of beads arrived. And one lot stank.....of cat litter. That lot actually smelled worse than the smoke, if you can believe it. And I have 2 cats, so I am somewhat desensitized to the stink of litter.

I was at my wits end. I was really concerned that I was about to have to throw out all of my super discount beads and admit to my husband that he had been right about the beads being a deal "too good to be true".

Then I remembered my sonic cleanser.

At that point, I figured, what the heck. I pulled it out of its box, muddled through the "not quite English" instructions (and giggled at the translations), and set it up.

The first load was the stinkiest beads. the instructions said that you might have to run the cleanser more than once to get your items fully cleansed, so I ran it five times. The water was dark brown by the time the last run was completed.

I pulled the basket out with my beads in it, buried my nose in the wet beads and inhaled deeply.

And......

Nothing.

The beads didn't smell!

At that point, I didn't really trust my nose, so I stormed upstairs to my husband, shoved the beads under his nose, and instructed him to smell.

He didn't smell anything either.

The stupid little $12 sonic cleaner had worked!

It has been over a month now. I have the cleaner set up next to the work sink in the kitchen. It takes 2-3 runs per load to get the beads to stop stinking. I run between 5 and 6 loads a day while helping the kids with their homework. I tried running the loads while I was working, and I kept forgetting them, so I have to limit my loads.

I am about 75% of the way through the beads. I purposely test myself when I come in from being outside to make sure they really don't smell. I ask friends to smell them (the true test of a friend is someone who actually smells the beads you ask them to without more than a strange look).

I LOVE my sonic cleaner. It has proved to be invaluable! I recommend to anyone that they get one. I use it on my jewelry sometimes, too. :)

Final steps!

Ok, I have been working like a madwoman trying to get things made so I can have a nice full looking display in the picture I need to submit for the shows I am applying to for this summer. I finally got enough to take some pictures, and I am sharing them here for all to see:

Not bad, eh?

It only took 3 hours for the husband and I to figure out where we had stashed the tent 2 years ago, get all 6 boxes out and unpacked, figure out how to put the tent up, start carting jewelry and display materials outside and set up, make a sale to a guy who drove by and wanted soemthign for his wife (yay!), rearrange things about 8 times, give up for now on the things I had hanging on the wall after they fell down three times in the wind, and finally decide things were "good enough" and take some pictures.

Then everything came down. Only took an hour to get everything put away. I figure next time we set up, it will be about 2 hours, now that I know where everything goes.

I wish I could figure out how to photoshop in my wall pieces, but I just ordered new ones that will (hopefully) stay up better.

Now, I can focus on getting pictures taken of all of my new items, and listing them! Woohoo!!

Dealing with Life's Little Quandries

So, I am trying to get things ogether so I can take pictures and apply to a few new shows. Every show seems to require a picture of your "display", and thought I have plenty of product, most of my selling has been online and face to face, so I still need to figure out a display.

I have a 10x10 canopy that I bough a few years ago when I was going to do my sewing as a business. It's a high end tent that hasn't been out of the box yet. I currently have tables set up in my living room for figuring out a display, got a cash register yesterday, and have a sign being made as I type this.

I just wonder how detailed these pictures need to be.....

Can I set my tent up in my back yard or driveway, artfully display my pieces in the tent on my tables, take a few pics, and send them in? Or do I really need the sign in place? I would LIKE to get everything set up this weekend, but the sign won't arrive for another week or two.

Also, as I have been setting up, I am realising I have plenty of some things, and definitely NOT ENOUGH of others. Can I set up light and go fromt here, or shoulf I put in a few LOOONG days and get enough for the displays to look full?

Am I making this more difficult than it needs to be? These aren't juried shows, but they are screened and popular fairs, and I would like to get in to them. I feel like all I have done for the week is worry about this, spend money, and make things to fill in display holes......

Maybe I'll just call them and explain the situation.....

More Etsy Lovin'! Unicorn's Pride!

Friday was my birthday, so I decided to break into our funds and buy myself a few gifts. As they have been arriving, I have been doing the happy dance. One seller whose package arrived the other day really outdid herself though, to the point that I feel compelled to give her a shout out. So HUGE shout out to:

Lana from UNICORN'S PRIDE

(Note the picture I am using for her shop has FROGS in it. I love frogs!)

My order was for one of Lana's dry room and body Sprays in "Love at First Sight" and a custom order of soap sacks and scrubbies in colors to match my bathrooms.

Well, they all came quickly enough to be here for my birthday, even though it was a custom order (!!!), and Lana threw in some extras! I was agog at her generosity!

Everything she makes is professional looking and lovely. My husband immediately stole the soap she had thrown in and popped it into "his" soap sack. I have a feeling I will be buying him more soap from her in the future.

To top everything off, Lana is a super nice lady. I can't say anything negative about her at all, other than the fact that she just hooked my husband on her soap. ;)

So, please add Unicorn's Pride to my list of "etsy sellers I highly recommend" and also to the list of "etsy sellers I will return to purchase from".

Oooh! Givin' the Etsy Love!

I have a confession to make: I am addicted to fuzzy things. snuggly sweaters, fingerless gloves, hats, blankets, and slippers are one of my weaknesses. I just love feeling all cozy.

So, when I found this awesome etsy seller who makes her fleece baby booties in ADULT SIZES, I just had to have a pair.

Who is this awesome seller, you ask?

Well, the shop name is Piddies and her slippers are awesome.

I got the Black Cat Slippers:

Aren't they adorable!?!

The sizing is perfect, they are all warm and snuggly and fuzzy, and my husband is very jealous, so multiple happy faces from me! I want another pair, but I just can't justify gettng any more. :(

If you also love fuzzy slippers, then I recommend that you pick yourself up a pair of Piddies! She'll make them in your size!