thefunkyfelter
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thefunkyfelter's blog: Fiber Arts, Feltmaking, and Indie Business Tips
In Etsy's Gift Guides . . . my handmade felted heart rings made the first page in stocking stuffers Tue Nov 18 15:09:00 UTC 2008
After being a seller on Etsy for a little over two years now, I sometimes feel like an old-timer there - a bit over the hill almost. Last year around this time, I remember being in a lot more treasuries, Storque blog articles, and other little features here and there. Now, with so many fiber art newbies and shops in general, sometimes I feel like it is easy to get lost in the crowd - especially if you have been around for a while and are no longer a "fresh" face to see.Don't get me wrong though! I love Etsy and its community there. Sometimes I love it a little too much! Browsing shops and the forum there really impedes on my daily activities if I let it. On most days, I feel like my shininess has worn off a bit though because I've been around the block on Etsy a few times. If one of my items does get featured somewhere on Etsy, it is a little boost and affirmation that perhaps I am still on the right track some how - whether fresh, new, and shiny or not. I felt that little ...
Buttons, Banners, Backgrounds, and More! Easy online help to make your indie business brand look better. Mon Nov 17 14:53:00 UTC 2008
I realized this morning that it had been a while since I posted some useful resources for indie business. Part of my role as an indie business owner is constantly researching how to improve it. A lot of times, this has to do directly with fiber art and feltmaking, but it also means dealing with developing my "funky felter" brand as well as the more technical details of the business end.While researching recently, I came across a few neat websites that can help you with making banners, avatars, buttons, and more for your Etsy shop, website, blog, or whatever you need. A couple of these sites provide free backgrounds and digital photos and images. The other two are sites that can actually help you build buttons, banners, ads, avatars, and more. You can make them online without the use of any software on your own computer which is very handy. Although I haven't had a chance yet to explore every detail of these sites, I thought that I'd go ahead and share with you so that you can be exploring while I am too. Hopefully you will find them to be useful.
For ...
Just a few away from a milestone and sooooooo looking forward to it! Sun Nov 16 17:33:00 UTC 2008
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://www.etsy.com/etsy_mini.js"></script><script type="text/javascript">new EtsyNameSpace.Mini(88515, 'shop','gallery',1,2).renderIframe(</script>I realized today that I was just five sales away from 500 in my Etsy shop! I am truly excited at the prospect of reaching such a milestone sales number. I have been on Etsy for a little over two years now with moderate to good success. I am thankful for and proud of every single sale that I've had in my Etsy shop and hope for 500 more (or even much more!) in the next two years. I also want to thank each of those buyers for making this milestone happen - a BIG thank you! I can't wait for my "sold item" number to roll over to that wonderful 500!
Want a Chance to Win this Handmade Nuno Felted Scarflette? If so, make your way over to The Felting Blog at CraftGossip! Fri Nov 14 16:29:00 UTC 2008
The Felting Blog at CraftGossip is hosting a giveaway contest for the nuno felted scarflette that you see above. If you'd like a chance to win it, please visit CraftGossip for all the details of how to enter. (And, thanks so much to the wonderful felting editor, Linda, for being extremely kind and generous and hosting this!!)By the way, I've had a few people email me to ask how to comment on the post at CraftGossip. If you go the main page of the Felting Blog, you'll need to click on the comments link directly under the post title, and then scroll to the bottom of the page to leave your comment and contact information (name/email). If you click on one of the direct post links here, it should take you to the post where the comments are already showing and a box is visible for you to comment at the bottom of the page. Please read the entry instructions before commenting though because there is something specific that you need to comment about to enter.
Oh, and you have to leave a comment over there to enter, not here. Be sure to ...
C'mon help a gal out! Please take a few seconds to vote on my poll questions . . . Thu Nov 13 19:00:00 UTC 2008
Today I come to you to ask a teeny weeny little favor . . . really it will only take a few seconds and will be quite painless . . . I promise! But here's the back story before I ask my favor . . .After much discussion and planning, my husband and I are seriously considering opening our own feltmaking and fiber art studio/shop. It is still very, very tentative and up for debate because there is quite a lot to consider from the creative to the business itself. Personally, I really want a place to teach classes on needle, wet, and nuno felting. (I get quite a lot of requests for instruction on my techniques.) We'd also like to sell my own creations along with some fiber art kits and supplies. This is something that we've been discussing for a long time. It is just recently that we've felt it is the right time to proceed and see what our options are locally. Honestly, I'm not sure if anything at all will come of it, but I am enjoying the research that we are doing to explore the possibilities.
Now on to the favor . . ...
I rarely snap photos while I'm working on a felted piece, but I took a minute to snap a photo of some of my latest nuno felted scarves while I was in the process of creating them. I thought that my blog readers might be interested to see the before and after photos. The first photo is of the layers of wool and silk chiffon prior to being wet felted. You can see the loose wool fibers laying on top of the silk chiffon with some of the fabric showing through in places. There is also another layer of wool on the bottom of the silk chiffon which you can't see. The silk is sandwiched between the two layers of wool roving. The second photo is obviously the finished results after wet felting and drying. You can see that the colors changed a bit during the feltmaking process because of the merging of the colored wool into a different colored silk base and because of some bleeding and mixing of the dyes. (Also, the lighting isn't the best in my before photo which affected the colors too!)
These scarves are ...
It is not often enough that one of my items makes it to Etsy's front page, but it happened this morning with my needle felted heart rings. I always find that my item views and shop hearts get a big boost when this happens, and I make some sales occasionally too which is so nice! My item was only on the front page for a short while today though. Yet even with that, I gained almost 20 new hearts for my shop. I have found that my needle felted pendants and rings are selling quite well and getting noticed more often than some of my other items. Probably because they make wonderful, inexpensive holiday gifts and stocking stuffers. They are also available in 15 customizable colors. You can find those and many other "giftable" items in my Etsy shop.
I just wanted to give a shout out and big thanks to Jenn of Windrose Fiber Studio for writing a magnificent blog post on my nuno felted scarves. It was part of a series of articles on her blog about nuno felting. If you are into fiber arts, Jenn's blog and Etsy shop are a must see. She has wonderfully informative posts about all things fiber and great fiber supplies and finished items for sale too. Now go take a peak at both . . .
Mark your calendars if you live in the Kansas City area because I'll be a vendor at Christmas for a Cure, a local Holiday Open House. I'll have many of my felted items on display and for sale that day. There will also be several other local area artists and crafters. Come by to browse, shop, and support a good cause. A portion of the proceeds from the show go to support the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in honor of the show coordinator's nephew who suffers with the disease. It is the fifth year for this event that is hosted by Bec of Bec's Beads. It is my second time to participate, and I'm very happy at the opportunity to take part in such a worthwhile show. It will be a great place to buy wonderfully unique handmade gifts for the holidays. Below you'll find all the event details so please plan to drop in!
Well, I just love Flickr! I have been using their photo storage service for over a year now to back up my felting photos as well as some of my personal family photos. I have found it to be a great place to network with a large community of people who have all kinds of interests. There is a group there for just about everything, and if you don't find what you want in a group, then you can make your own. Below are a list of a few direct sites and article posts that offer services and tools to go along with your Flickr account. I have found these to be very helpful in using my Flickr photos to the fullest. I hope that you find them to be useful too.
Big Huge Labs has lots of cool tools! I used their mosaic tool to create the image above.
Slide allows you to make neat slide shows and more with your Flickr photos and other apps too.
Quick Online Tips has an article with a huge list of sites related to Flickr toys, tools, and more.
PedagoNet also has a big list of sites ...
Nuno Felting - A Before and After Sneak Peak at the Technique from Raw Wool and Silk to Finished Scarves Wed Nov 12 20:56:00 UTC 2008
I rarely snap photos while I'm working on a felted piece, but I took a minute to snap a photo of some of my latest nuno felted scarves while I was in the process of creating them. I thought that my blog readers might be interested to see the before and after photos. The first photo is of the layers of wool and silk chiffon prior to being wet felted. You can see the loose wool fibers laying on top of the silk chiffon with some of the fabric showing through in places. There is also another layer of wool on the bottom of the silk chiffon which you can't see. The silk is sandwiched between the two layers of wool roving. The second photo is obviously the finished results after wet felting and drying. You can see that the colors changed a bit during the feltmaking process because of the merging of the colored wool into a different colored silk base and because of some bleeding and mixing of the dyes. (Also, the lighting isn't the best in my before photo which affected the colors too!)These scarves are ...
My Handmade Needle Felted Heart Rings made it to Etsy's Front Page Today! Yippeeeeee! Tue Nov 11 16:35:00 UTC 2008
It is not often enough that one of my items makes it to Etsy's front page, but it happened this morning with my needle felted heart rings. I always find that my item views and shop hearts get a big boost when this happens, and I make some sales occasionally too which is so nice! My item was only on the front page for a short while today though. Yet even with that, I gained almost 20 new hearts for my shop. I have found that my needle felted pendants and rings are selling quite well and getting noticed more often than some of my other items. Probably because they make wonderful, inexpensive holiday gifts and stocking stuffers. They are also available in 15 customizable colors. You can find those and many other "giftable" items in my Etsy shop.
Thanks to a fellow Fiber Artist, Wind Rose Fiber Studio, for a wonderful blog feature on my Handmade Nuno Felted Wool Scarves Sat Nov 08 23:26:00 UTC 2008
I just wanted to give a shout out and big thanks to Jenn of Windrose Fiber Studio for writing a magnificent blog post on my nuno felted scarves. It was part of a series of articles on her blog about nuno felting. If you are into fiber arts, Jenn's blog and Etsy shop are a must see. She has wonderfully informative posts about all things fiber and great fiber supplies and finished items for sale too. Now go take a peak at both . . .
Upcoming Local Craft Show Event - I'll be a vendor at Christmas for a Cure in Independence, Missouri, on November 22nd! Shop for Holiday Gifts! Fri Nov 07 17:12:00 UTC 2008
Mark your calendars if you live in the Kansas City area because I'll be a vendor at Christmas for a Cure, a local Holiday Open House. I'll have many of my felted items on display and for sale that day. There will also be several other local area artists and crafters. Come by to browse, shop, and support a good cause. A portion of the proceeds from the show go to support the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in honor of the show coordinator's nephew who suffers with the disease. It is the fifth year for this event that is hosted by Bec of Bec's Beads. It is my second time to participate, and I'm very happy at the opportunity to take part in such a worthwhile show. It will be a great place to buy wonderfully unique handmade gifts for the holidays. Below you'll find all the event details so please plan to drop in!Where: 12304 E. 42nd Street, Independence, Missouri 64055
When: Saturday, November 22nd, 2008
Time: 10 a.m to 4 p.m.
When: Saturday, November 22nd, 2008
Time: 10 a.m to 4 p.m.
If you love Flickr, check out these handy dandy sites and tools to do more with your photos! Thu Nov 06 17:04:00 UTC 2008
Well, I just love Flickr! I have been using their photo storage service for over a year now to back up my felting photos as well as some of my personal family photos. I have found it to be a great place to network with a large community of people who have all kinds of interests. There is a group there for just about everything, and if you don't find what you want in a group, then you can make your own. Below are a list of a few direct sites and article posts that offer services and tools to go along with your Flickr account. I have found these to be very helpful in using my Flickr photos to the fullest. I hope that you find them to be useful too.Big Huge Labs has lots of cool tools! I used their mosaic tool to create the image above.
Slide allows you to make neat slide shows and more with your Flickr photos and other apps too.
Quick Online Tips has an article with a huge list of sites related to Flickr toys, tools, and more.
PedagoNet also has a big list of sites ...
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