Find the original image and some incredibly cool mixed-media jewelry in the link above.
Showing posts with label blog meta. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blog meta. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Look what Fanciful Devices made!
So true, Fanci. So true.
Find the original image and some incredibly cool mixed-media jewelry in the link above.
Find the original image and some incredibly cool mixed-media jewelry in the link above.
Friday, February 17, 2012
Let's try something a little different!
Okay, let's try this. I wanted to do something picture-heavy and topical today, but I'm not in the mood to code a Treasury Wednesday (on Friday), so let's play clothing-and-jewelry pairings. I don't get to do this much in real life, since I'm the youngest of my coworkers in a fairly conservative area, so virtual dress-up it is.
For the pretty base pieces in this post, I'm using Maxi dresses from Goddiva. Just in the interests of disclosure.
Let's start with this little mesh-insert number, which -- yes -- is sort of daring for many people, but could easily go sci-fi (Inara cosplay, anyone?) to pull it off:
It's actually transparent, not silver; that's the mannequin. Which leaves us with any metal option we desire. How shall we make this fantastic? I'm thinking with a big steampunk statement necklace like this one:
Sorry, sold to a pretty lady at Upstate Steampunk!
And maybe a jeweled belt, like this nice vintage example, which would suit either the teal or the red version of the dress and, in either case, introduces another high-contrast color that would be fantastic in a draped shawl, or as earrings:
Available here from Nana's Cottage House Antiques.
Instant sleek space-opera sci-fi -- or maybe even bustle it up over a constrast underskirt and see what happens.
Less costume and more couture, you say? Fine. Look at this peacock-patterned garment:
You could actually wear this under a waist-length leather jacket and calf-high boots, and have a bit more of a casual-elegant look on a spring day. Try it with a necklace that adds more visual weight to the top half of the ensemble. For this purpose, I can't decide if I prefer the knotted linen from Grey Heart of Stone on the top or the repurposed bridle rosette from Funkyjunkmama below:
Probably the bridle rosette. It picks up the colors attractively without blending in, and has a sturdier, heavier look that will contrast well with the dress's airiness. Hey, both! No?
On warmer days, this dress of course demands a light shrug and a cool big bracelet like this one:
Available here with matching earrings here.
For the pretty base pieces in this post, I'm using Maxi dresses from Goddiva. Just in the interests of disclosure.
Let's start with this little mesh-insert number, which -- yes -- is sort of daring for many people, but could easily go sci-fi (Inara cosplay, anyone?) to pull it off:
It's actually transparent, not silver; that's the mannequin. Which leaves us with any metal option we desire. How shall we make this fantastic? I'm thinking with a big steampunk statement necklace like this one:
Sorry, sold to a pretty lady at Upstate Steampunk!
And maybe a jeweled belt, like this nice vintage example, which would suit either the teal or the red version of the dress and, in either case, introduces another high-contrast color that would be fantastic in a draped shawl, or as earrings:
Available here from Nana's Cottage House Antiques.
Instant sleek space-opera sci-fi -- or maybe even bustle it up over a constrast underskirt and see what happens.
Less costume and more couture, you say? Fine. Look at this peacock-patterned garment:
You could actually wear this under a waist-length leather jacket and calf-high boots, and have a bit more of a casual-elegant look on a spring day. Try it with a necklace that adds more visual weight to the top half of the ensemble. For this purpose, I can't decide if I prefer the knotted linen from Grey Heart of Stone on the top or the repurposed bridle rosette from Funkyjunkmama below:
Probably the bridle rosette. It picks up the colors attractively without blending in, and has a sturdier, heavier look that will contrast well with the dress's airiness. Hey, both! No?
On warmer days, this dress of course demands a light shrug and a cool big bracelet like this one:
Available here with matching earrings here.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Making the blog a blog of merit: Let's see how far we've come
Happy October! I've been desperately looking forward to fall ever since I moved here, and I can happily report that it is worth it.
Anyway.
Three years ago when I started this blog, it was the irregularly updated chronicle of a semi-itinerant California college student with a struggling jewelry business who did a bit of writing on the side. Now it's the regularly-scheduled ramblings of a South Carolina copywriter who works at a college and runs a small online jewelry business on the side. Life is weird and wonderful and it's taken me for a bit of a ride.
This blog will shortly be going back over to an irregular schedule of updates. Blogging is starting to feel like doing for free what other people could be paying me to do -- so it's time I scale back. I expect that this will vastly improve the merit of the content ....
... and frankly, I've been doing this for three years. I think I have a sufficiency of Jewelry Blog Content (TM). And to the rather small extent that this is still a marketing blog, I'd rather pitch myself as an interesting person than Another Jewelry Person Who Blogs.
Expect an oddly spaced soup of treasuries, against-the-grain business advice, shopping recommendations, press releases, item photos, shop announcements, and links to interesting stuff. I think that you-the-readers will enjoy it more (and hey -- leave me a comment sometimes, okay? I know you're there via Analytics, but it's quiet here). And I think that I'll be giving you more interesting stuff to read, even if there's less of it.
And I promise not to become that blog that consists entirely of posts apologizing for not posting more. Pinky swear.
Anyway.
Three years ago when I started this blog, it was the irregularly updated chronicle of a semi-itinerant California college student with a struggling jewelry business who did a bit of writing on the side. Now it's the regularly-scheduled ramblings of a South Carolina copywriter who works at a college and runs a small online jewelry business on the side. Life is weird and wonderful and it's taken me for a bit of a ride.
This blog will shortly be going back over to an irregular schedule of updates. Blogging is starting to feel like doing for free what other people could be paying me to do -- so it's time I scale back. I expect that this will vastly improve the merit of the content ....
... and frankly, I've been doing this for three years. I think I have a sufficiency of Jewelry Blog Content (TM). And to the rather small extent that this is still a marketing blog, I'd rather pitch myself as an interesting person than Another Jewelry Person Who Blogs.
Expect an oddly spaced soup of treasuries, against-the-grain business advice, shopping recommendations, press releases, item photos, shop announcements, and links to interesting stuff. I think that you-the-readers will enjoy it more (and hey -- leave me a comment sometimes, okay? I know you're there via Analytics, but it's quiet here). And I think that I'll be giving you more interesting stuff to read, even if there's less of it.
And I promise not to become that blog that consists entirely of posts apologizing for not posting more. Pinky swear.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
A linklist, which should really be one word
... this spammy blog (is there a term for this?) uses an article I found while trying to discover M's Ratemyprofessor rating, and it is just about the funniest damn thing I've ever seen. M and I did dramatic readings to each other.
Is this a thing now? Seriously someone -- is this a thing?
On a more relevant-to-anything note, here are two of the many cool things I've turned up while doing the copywriting for this lovely site, Keys of Paradise:
This mellifluously written essay on musk is fascinating, informative, and a truly beautiful piece of online writing which is a superb example of structuring lengthy content for the Internet reader.
There is an loa in the Voodoo tradition who protects abused women and lesbians, hopefully not always in combination: Erzulie Dantor.
And everything I ever wanted to know about alchemy can be learned from these sites: Alchemy-Works, which does sell some of its products but is more valuable for its wealth of information, and <"http://www.alchemylab.com/guideto.htm">a page on which I have wasted hours which gives the alchemical properties of hundreds and hundreds of ordinary foodstuffs.
On a vaguely related note, many props to the makers of the Mystery Case Files games, available from Big Fish Games and on disk at many fine department stores. They're a combination of hidden-object with item-adventure games; they capture the essence of the greatest old-style text adventures in their snarky humor, intertextual references, and complex plotlines, but are also absolutely state of the art in graphic rendering and in the incorporation of live-action film with digital art scenes. They have a smoother and more graceful user experience than their imitators as well. And, as I was playing the latest entry, "13th Skull," between pages of my novel-sized list of item descriptions, I realized they also apparently have a really excellent cultural consultant.
"13th Skull" has a few problems in terms of atmosphere, notably the fact that while the previous games, "Return to Ravenhearst" and "Dire Grove," had an engaging and incredibly atmospheric creepiness, this one had sort of a hokey Scooby-Doo ghost feel. I'm quite willing to believe that this was deliberate (M was not so kind about it), but it's a little startling -- perhaps it's the lack of a well-developed and sympathetic victim to save. Or the fact that there are about four actual Southerners voicing the Louisiana residents. Anyway, the point is, despite the oddly built atmosphere, every depiction of voodoo and hoodoo spells is, as far as I can tell in my admittedly amateur experience, perfectly accurate. Right on!
Crap, this post has no subject. Unrelated photo time!
Available here.
Is this a thing now? Seriously someone -- is this a thing?
On a more relevant-to-anything note, here are two of the many cool things I've turned up while doing the copywriting for this lovely site, Keys of Paradise:
This mellifluously written essay on musk is fascinating, informative, and a truly beautiful piece of online writing which is a superb example of structuring lengthy content for the Internet reader.
There is an loa in the Voodoo tradition who protects abused women and lesbians, hopefully not always in combination: Erzulie Dantor.
And everything I ever wanted to know about alchemy can be learned from these sites: Alchemy-Works, which does sell some of its products but is more valuable for its wealth of information, and <"http://www.alchemylab.com/guideto.htm">a page on which I have wasted hours which gives the alchemical properties of hundreds and hundreds of ordinary foodstuffs.
On a vaguely related note, many props to the makers of the Mystery Case Files games, available from Big Fish Games and on disk at many fine department stores. They're a combination of hidden-object with item-adventure games; they capture the essence of the greatest old-style text adventures in their snarky humor, intertextual references, and complex plotlines, but are also absolutely state of the art in graphic rendering and in the incorporation of live-action film with digital art scenes. They have a smoother and more graceful user experience than their imitators as well. And, as I was playing the latest entry, "13th Skull," between pages of my novel-sized list of item descriptions, I realized they also apparently have a really excellent cultural consultant.
"13th Skull" has a few problems in terms of atmosphere, notably the fact that while the previous games, "Return to Ravenhearst" and "Dire Grove," had an engaging and incredibly atmospheric creepiness, this one had sort of a hokey Scooby-Doo ghost feel. I'm quite willing to believe that this was deliberate (M was not so kind about it), but it's a little startling -- perhaps it's the lack of a well-developed and sympathetic victim to save. Or the fact that there are about four actual Southerners voicing the Louisiana residents. Anyway, the point is, despite the oddly built atmosphere, every depiction of voodoo and hoodoo spells is, as far as I can tell in my admittedly amateur experience, perfectly accurate. Right on!
Crap, this post has no subject. Unrelated photo time!
Available here.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Work-Life Balance and a Schedule Change
As I may have mentioned, I've started selling copywriting on both Etsy and Elance, and ... well, it's going pretty well, actually.
The Mafia-themed social media game didn't pan out -- I don't think they liked my character-dialogue audition piece, but since I submitted it without any real idea of the mood or character type they wanted, I don't feel much sense of failure over this -- but I'm currently writing product descriptions for Keys of Paradise, a fantastic spiritual/magickal supply shop, with fantastic herbs and candles and such, run by some fantastic people. Apparently they consider my descriptions fantastic as well, because the job morphed from a fixed-rate 400-descriptions deal to a long-term by-the-piece to a continuing semi-permanent article writing and editing gig.
Unfortunately, this means I've been neglecting the Etsy shops ... but I'm working at learning how to balance the two better. M and I have been making a lot of steampunk assemblage jewelry of late, since I'll be a vendor at Upstate Steampunk in Anderson this year. And I need to contact the awesome purveyor of hair accessories DaringlyDonna, a lovely local who we keep running into at Hancock's Fabrics, about swapping custom hair flowers for teapot earrings.
So we're not dead on the jewelry front! Just slowed while I find the proper equilibrium of the two creative businesses, and I should be finally adding more steampunk like I keep saying I will.
Available here.
Speaking of slight slowing: Since I'm doing so much paid writing, and since I was glancing through the lengthy list of MWF webcomics I read and realizing how much competition those days have got, I'll be switching the blog to a Tuesday/Thursday update schedule starting next week. It's only one less post per week. Also, Treasury Wednesday is becoming a monthly feature, first Wednesdays of every month. I get some traffic and some lovely comments, presumably from Google alerts, on those posts, but they're quite time-consuming and I'd like a better balance of written content, considering, y'know, I'm a writer and all.
And a day-brightening fact (for me, anyway): As I was building the updated APA citation guide for our tech college's Writing Center, I was modeling citations for weird stuff (historic photographs of unknown subjects, letters from university archives, that sort of thing) and it occurred to me that one of the dresses from the Met's "Orientalism in Fashion" web exhibit would be a great example. This led to me finding that my June blog post "Multiculturalism in Victorian Accessories" is, as of Tuesday, the seventh Google result for the terms "Victorian clothing Orientalism." And that, my friends, is sweet.
The Mafia-themed social media game didn't pan out -- I don't think they liked my character-dialogue audition piece, but since I submitted it without any real idea of the mood or character type they wanted, I don't feel much sense of failure over this -- but I'm currently writing product descriptions for Keys of Paradise, a fantastic spiritual/magickal supply shop, with fantastic herbs and candles and such, run by some fantastic people. Apparently they consider my descriptions fantastic as well, because the job morphed from a fixed-rate 400-descriptions deal to a long-term by-the-piece to a continuing semi-permanent article writing and editing gig.
Unfortunately, this means I've been neglecting the Etsy shops ... but I'm working at learning how to balance the two better. M and I have been making a lot of steampunk assemblage jewelry of late, since I'll be a vendor at Upstate Steampunk in Anderson this year. And I need to contact the awesome purveyor of hair accessories DaringlyDonna, a lovely local who we keep running into at Hancock's Fabrics, about swapping custom hair flowers for teapot earrings.
So we're not dead on the jewelry front! Just slowed while I find the proper equilibrium of the two creative businesses, and I should be finally adding more steampunk like I keep saying I will.
Available here.
Speaking of slight slowing: Since I'm doing so much paid writing, and since I was glancing through the lengthy list of MWF webcomics I read and realizing how much competition those days have got, I'll be switching the blog to a Tuesday/Thursday update schedule starting next week. It's only one less post per week. Also, Treasury Wednesday is becoming a monthly feature, first Wednesdays of every month. I get some traffic and some lovely comments, presumably from Google alerts, on those posts, but they're quite time-consuming and I'd like a better balance of written content, considering, y'know, I'm a writer and all.
And a day-brightening fact (for me, anyway): As I was building the updated APA citation guide for our tech college's Writing Center, I was modeling citations for weird stuff (historic photographs of unknown subjects, letters from university archives, that sort of thing) and it occurred to me that one of the dresses from the Met's "Orientalism in Fashion" web exhibit would be a great example. This led to me finding that my June blog post "Multiculturalism in Victorian Accessories" is, as of Tuesday, the seventh Google result for the terms "Victorian clothing Orientalism." And that, my friends, is sweet.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Starting Monday with a Nastygram
I received this email in June from the business school attached to my undergrad university.
Dear Chelsea,
Our records indicate that you have either recently finished or will soon complete your undergraduate degree at UCR. I am proud of your accomplishments and certain that you will continue to be successful in the future.
While finishing college is an exciting time in the life of any graduate, you may be feeling discouraged in your search for a suitable job. As the Dean of the Anderson Graduate School of Management (AGSM) at UCR, I am keenly aware of the impact of the economic downturn on professional careers available to recent graduates. It is indeed frustrating and disheartening to attempt to enter the job market in the current financial climate.
The good news, however, is that this is an excellent time to consider starting your graduate studies. Our records indicate that we have been in touch with you about our graduate programs in the past. Therefore you may already know that a Master of Business Administration (MBA) is, by far, the most sought after and competitive graduate degree. At AGSM we offer an MBA program that is accredited by AACSB and is focused on developing leaders ...
[further platitudes ensue]
***
Dear Dr. [redacted] (or manager of this inbox),
Thanks for your interest in having me apply to the Anderson School of Business Management. While I have moved across the country and my degree from UCR was in fact in the social sciences, not in business, I am now a freelance copywriter having reasonable independent success despite your concerns about my employability.
Consequently, I have a counter-offer for you. For the relatively competitive price of $25, I will ghost-write the email that you send to candidates like me in such a way that it removes the paternalistic and condescending tone which, sadly, reeks from the first two paragraphs of the email I received from your program dated 16 June, 2011.
If you intended for the air of condescension to be so apparent, then I apologize for the assumption on my part. Thanks in advance for your consideration and I wish you the best in your future endeavors.
Sincerely,
Chelsea Clarey
Copywriter
scribblegoat@gmail.com
elance.com/s/scribblegoat/10180/
scribblegoat.etsy.com
Dear Chelsea,
Our records indicate that you have either recently finished or will soon complete your undergraduate degree at UCR. I am proud of your accomplishments and certain that you will continue to be successful in the future.
While finishing college is an exciting time in the life of any graduate, you may be feeling discouraged in your search for a suitable job. As the Dean of the Anderson Graduate School of Management (AGSM) at UCR, I am keenly aware of the impact of the economic downturn on professional careers available to recent graduates. It is indeed frustrating and disheartening to attempt to enter the job market in the current financial climate.
The good news, however, is that this is an excellent time to consider starting your graduate studies. Our records indicate that we have been in touch with you about our graduate programs in the past. Therefore you may already know that a Master of Business Administration (MBA) is, by far, the most sought after and competitive graduate degree. At AGSM we offer an MBA program that is accredited by AACSB and is focused on developing leaders ...
[further platitudes ensue]
***
Dear Dr. [redacted] (or manager of this inbox),
Thanks for your interest in having me apply to the Anderson School of Business Management. While I have moved across the country and my degree from UCR was in fact in the social sciences, not in business, I am now a freelance copywriter having reasonable independent success despite your concerns about my employability.
Consequently, I have a counter-offer for you. For the relatively competitive price of $25, I will ghost-write the email that you send to candidates like me in such a way that it removes the paternalistic and condescending tone which, sadly, reeks from the first two paragraphs of the email I received from your program dated 16 June, 2011.
If you intended for the air of condescension to be so apparent, then I apologize for the assumption on my part. Thanks in advance for your consideration and I wish you the best in your future endeavors.
Sincerely,
Chelsea Clarey
Copywriter
scribblegoat@gmail.com
elance.com/s/scribblegoat/10180/
scribblegoat.etsy.com
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Treasury Wednesday: Sugar and spice? Also, my "rules" for making these
When I make a treasury, I select items with this sort of "decision tree." This isn't anything I've codified, mind you, these are just the priorities that have evolved naturally as I became dedicated to the idea of letting these be my community presence.
First of all, I won't feature anything that I strongly suspect to be a reseller item. I'm certain that some slip through my grasp, but I'm pretty careful. Also, blatantly incorrect tagging and glaring spelling errors drop things very low down the list of things I want to feature.
After those basics, my first priority is photo quality. I try to emphasize both good photography and well-made items -- decoupaged clothespins go in way after hand-drawn sketches. Good crisp lighting, however, trumps it; if the clothespins were photographed well and the sketch poorly, in they go and out goes the sketch.
I select to match both a color family and a theme, but color comes first.
If I have the option of a well-known, oft-featured shop and a newer one, all other factors being equal, I go with the newer one. I try to overemphasize shops with fewer than 100 instances of feedback.
Last and least important is avoiding competing with myself or M. I won't feature fairy doors or plush squid, and I do attempt to limit jewelry, though mostly that's because I try to have a wide range of item types.
This treasury is a great example because I managed to get a good number of newer shops, to emphasize some really excellent photography, and to make every single item fit a theme/story. It's a little naughty, which I always expect people to remark on more than they do -- you'll notice some bondage-themed items, never mind the corsetry -- but has an appealingly innocent look covering the wickedness, with a light blue and dark blood red combination that's unconventional enough to intrigue but could easily be a standard slightly-vintage Fourth of July scheme.
Light blue and bright red in a variety of beautiful vintage-inspired designs. And once you see the story, just a bit scandalous.
First of all, I won't feature anything that I strongly suspect to be a reseller item. I'm certain that some slip through my grasp, but I'm pretty careful. Also, blatantly incorrect tagging and glaring spelling errors drop things very low down the list of things I want to feature.
After those basics, my first priority is photo quality. I try to emphasize both good photography and well-made items -- decoupaged clothespins go in way after hand-drawn sketches. Good crisp lighting, however, trumps it; if the clothespins were photographed well and the sketch poorly, in they go and out goes the sketch.
I select to match both a color family and a theme, but color comes first.
If I have the option of a well-known, oft-featured shop and a newer one, all other factors being equal, I go with the newer one. I try to overemphasize shops with fewer than 100 instances of feedback.
Last and least important is avoiding competing with myself or M. I won't feature fairy doors or plush squid, and I do attempt to limit jewelry, though mostly that's because I try to have a wide range of item types.
This treasury is a great example because I managed to get a good number of newer shops, to emphasize some really excellent photography, and to make every single item fit a theme/story. It's a little naughty, which I always expect people to remark on more than they do -- you'll notice some bondage-themed items, never mind the corsetry -- but has an appealingly innocent look covering the wickedness, with a light blue and dark blood red combination that's unconventional enough to intrigue but could easily be a standard slightly-vintage Fourth of July scheme.
'One Way or the Other' by balletllama
Light blue and bright red in a variety of beautiful vintage-inspired designs. And once you see the story, just a bit scandalous.
 Giclee illustration... $15.00 |  SALE SALE 1970s lig... $20.00 |  Royal Blood - Chain... $70.00 |  pretty blue ribbon ... $299.00 |
 SALE. Group of thre... $54.00 |  dog waltz - fine ar... $30.00 |  Personalized Pet Bo... $26.00 |  Red Leather Rose Fl... $199.00 |
 Hilarious, Mean Any... $3.50 |  Caught in a Net of... $33.00 |  Red satin cupped lo... $995.00 |  Classic Cameo Heart... $8.00 |
 Untitled 12x8 Fine ... $35.00 |  Burlesque Gloves wi... $25.00 |  Baby blue linen cus... $30.00 |  Hand painted Doggie... $399.00 |
Monday, June 20, 2011
Anomie and Etsy: A sociological approach
Student quote of the day: "Dr. Mazhan Khan discussed the felt and pitfall when my grandmother is an emergency room."
Yeah, that has no relationship to anything, I just had to share. Anyway.
The Slate.com article from Friday's post and my recent rumination on the site's weird pricing competitions make me think of anomie, a concept in the theory of criminality I was recently explaining to a student. Basically, the idea is that deviant behavior results from a disconnect between a.) that which society teaches as worthy goals and b.) that which society offers as methods to achieve them. Much of the time, b. doesn't accomplish a. At this point, the individual can either continue to strain themself psychologically by continuing to accept both a. and b. (conformism), refuse to accept a. or b. or both (ritualism, innovation, or retreatism), or replace both a. and b. with more suitable alternatives (rebellion). In other words, when you are told what to want and how to get it but the "how" doesn't give you the "what," you have a couple of choices as to how to cope with that.
On Etsy, the teaching of the weird little internet subculture is a.) to live on the profits of an Etsy shop is a worthy goal and one we should all strive for; and b.) the way to achieve this is through creating unique, high-quality products and selling them with diligent work.
The problem is that these aren't as cause-and-effect as the Etsy Success newsletters would like us to believe.
Consequently, we have a number of options:
Yeah, that has no relationship to anything, I just had to share. Anyway.
The Slate.com article from Friday's post and my recent rumination on the site's weird pricing competitions make me think of anomie, a concept in the theory of criminality I was recently explaining to a student. Basically, the idea is that deviant behavior results from a disconnect between a.) that which society teaches as worthy goals and b.) that which society offers as methods to achieve them. Much of the time, b. doesn't accomplish a. At this point, the individual can either continue to strain themself psychologically by continuing to accept both a. and b. (conformism), refuse to accept a. or b. or both (ritualism, innovation, or retreatism), or replace both a. and b. with more suitable alternatives (rebellion). In other words, when you are told what to want and how to get it but the "how" doesn't give you the "what," you have a couple of choices as to how to cope with that.
On Etsy, the teaching of the weird little internet subculture is a.) to live on the profits of an Etsy shop is a worthy goal and one we should all strive for; and b.) the way to achieve this is through creating unique, high-quality products and selling them with diligent work.
The problem is that these aren't as cause-and-effect as the Etsy Success newsletters would like us to believe.
Consequently, we have a number of options:
- Conformism: We blame ourselves for our inability to reach the goal, and keep at it like the little Skinner-boxed hamsters we are. (For an interpretation of the Skinner box, see here for the history, here for the interesting applications).
- Ritualism: We reject a.), saying in effect, "I can't quit my day job. Whatever," and continue going through the motions of listing and relisting.
- Retreatism: We reject both a.) and b.). We close our shops. We give up.
- Innovation: This is the insidious one and the one that causes both brilliant and deviant Etsy behavior. We keep a.) but reject b.), saying, "I'm quitting my day job, damn it -- and I'm doing it my way." This can range from finding a totally wild product (dog butt covers, anyone?) to assembling products poorly and relying on volume to cover the poor result to selling mass-produced Chinese wedding dresses and pretending they're handmade in your little studio.
- Rebellion: We say "To hell with all of this." We reject a.) and b.) and replace them with new ends and means of our own We go start doing IRL craft shows again or, alternately, move to Artfire.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Treasury Wednesday: Just like last time, only with a color scheme
I did a previous treasury that was all button designs, but I used such a general color scheme -- "earth tones" can be just about anything -- that while it went together quickly, I wasn't totally satisfied with it.
I've noticed that Etsy really likes neutrals for the homepage, though. There are variations -- Valentine's Day takes the cake for the most dedicated treasuries I've seen, and there was a Japan Relief treasury on the front page on March 17 that made me get all warm and teary -- but by and large, while you occasionally get a strong seasonal color, white and black/navy and cream and grey and mocha brown turn up a lot.
This is definitely part of the Etsy "look," though. White or strong solid-color backgrounds, hero shots or close-cropped style shots, and very bright, crisp high-contrast photos. And of course, it's all unrelentingly hipstermod, but I don't get to complain about that because I too emphasize photo quality over the item's nature. These are the treasuries that make the front page: Very "classy," very unified color. This is also the trend of the Etsy Finds Get the Look Decor emails, but these emphasize strong contrast and primaries to the point that they're sometimes garish.
Anyway, now that I've established that, this isn't it.
A further tribute to the humble button, featuring both well-established sellers and some brand-new ones.
I've noticed that Etsy really likes neutrals for the homepage, though. There are variations -- Valentine's Day takes the cake for the most dedicated treasuries I've seen, and there was a Japan Relief treasury on the front page on March 17 that made me get all warm and teary -- but by and large, while you occasionally get a strong seasonal color, white and black/navy and cream and grey and mocha brown turn up a lot.
This is definitely part of the Etsy "look," though. White or strong solid-color backgrounds, hero shots or close-cropped style shots, and very bright, crisp high-contrast photos. And of course, it's all unrelentingly hipstermod, but I don't get to complain about that because I too emphasize photo quality over the item's nature. These are the treasuries that make the front page: Very "classy," very unified color. This is also the trend of the Etsy Finds Get the Look Decor emails, but these emphasize strong contrast and primaries to the point that they're sometimes garish.
Anyway, now that I've established that, this isn't it.
'Pushing Our Buttons Again' by tangopig
A further tribute to the humble button, featuring both well-established sellers and some brand-new ones.
 Fabric brooch badge... $10.00 |  Blue Button Journal $25.00 |  The big top, A set ... $15.00 |  Handy Dandy Yo Yo F... $10.00 |
 Spring colored vint... $28.00 |  The Compass Clutch ... $29.99 |  Condom pouches $7.00 |  primary color flowe... $5.00 |
 FELIZ Cumpleanos Ca... $3.25 |  Upcycled Hand Embro... $12.50 |  Orbital ring $8.00 |  NEW SKIRT... Warm R... $18.00 |
 Avocado Green, Sky ... $30.00 |  VINTAGE LEDGER - Se... $4.75 |  Blue Handsewn Felt ... $23.00 |  Dindin -------- Cot... $78.00 |
Treasury tool is sponsored by Lazzia.com A/B image testing.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Watch This Space: Writing Workshop Live-Blog
Since this seems like a Scribblegoat sort of thing, I will be live-blogging tonight's Etsy Success Writing Workshop in comments to this post.
I expect to be mildly critical, if only because I first heard about it through Regretsy, but I was surprised to find that their worksheet is exactly what I would have made -- the first half, anyway. You can download a PDF of the worksheet from the link above. The last question, the first-person narrative from the object's point of view, left me going "Really? Really." and seems to belong in much more artistic venues than even the handmade business world -- the goal here is evoking emotion in order to sell, not evoking emotion for the sake of it. But the first two are good questions: 1.) List three cliches from Etsy site copy you're tired of and rewrite one in a fresh and interesting manner, and 2.) take two pages of writing about yourself or your work and reduce it to Tweet length. That's exactly what I recommend to my copywriting customers and to my college students.
The problem I expect is that the Etsy business model is sort of painfully whimsical, and I think that divorcing and developing the "business self" independently from the "creative self" is one of the best things a handmade-seller-cum-copywriter can do for him- or herself.
Anyhow, I'll be blogging about the Livestream feed with a probable combination of professional opinion and snark, starting tonight at seven o'clock Eastern, so watch this space!
UPDATE: Am now blogging! Click the comments below.
I expect to be mildly critical, if only because I first heard about it through Regretsy, but I was surprised to find that their worksheet is exactly what I would have made -- the first half, anyway. You can download a PDF of the worksheet from the link above. The last question, the first-person narrative from the object's point of view, left me going "Really? Really." and seems to belong in much more artistic venues than even the handmade business world -- the goal here is evoking emotion in order to sell, not evoking emotion for the sake of it. But the first two are good questions: 1.) List three cliches from Etsy site copy you're tired of and rewrite one in a fresh and interesting manner, and 2.) take two pages of writing about yourself or your work and reduce it to Tweet length. That's exactly what I recommend to my copywriting customers and to my college students.
The problem I expect is that the Etsy business model is sort of painfully whimsical, and I think that divorcing and developing the "business self" independently from the "creative self" is one of the best things a handmade-seller-cum-copywriter can do for him- or herself.
Anyhow, I'll be blogging about the Livestream feed with a probable combination of professional opinion and snark, starting tonight at seven o'clock Eastern, so watch this space!
UPDATE: Am now blogging! Click the comments below.
Monday, April 25, 2011
Disappointments and Blessings
I ventured back into the Etsy Forums the other day.
This was a mistake.
See, I had this flash of inspiration: Since the entire function of the Etsy Forums is to self-promote to other sellers (which I have always found to be a losing game, but others disagree), I would go along to the "Critiques" section and, using my Scribblegoat account but not rudely or blatantly advertising, offer free, helpful professional advice to the legions of people asking the community to critique their shops/descriptions. This would, with professional propriety and helpfulness, put the name of my business before those who were already seeking similar services. I hasten to assure my sighing readers: From my experience of the forums, this seemed a genuinely excellent plan.
Problem number one was immediately apparent: Recently (to judge from the complaint threads still fresh and full of vim), the Critiques and Promotions sections were phased out.
However, people were still posting the questions, just under "Site Help." I proceeded with my plan. Then I realized that a significant number of the threads were starting with "Five Ways to Make Sales," "Ten Ways to Improve Photographs," "How My Dog's Shop Made 18 Sales in Its First Month," etc. Cool! I made one linking to my word-choice series.
Half an hour later, I checked back. 14 comments! I was thrilled.
And then I read them.
A couple of polite thanks, made me feel great. Then these:
"I noticed you're really new here, do you have another shop somewhere where you've sold a lot of things based on your descriptions? Otherwise, I'm not sure how useful I would consider this information."
"Honestly I don't think people totally read the descriptions. It has been my experience that I'm answering questions that were answered in my descriptions."
"Please don't start threads made to bring attention to your blog. Offering suggestions on how to help make one's business successful is awesome, but please share most of that content here when you're doing so to prevent us from viewing the thread as a promotional one."
These don't seem as bad on the second read, but at the time, they were a slap in the face. The first made me angry. The articles themselves and every single element in my Scribblegoat shop -- including the descriptions themselves -- make it very obvious that I'm both a qualified writer and an experienced seller under the TangoPig account; this person didn't actually look at anything. They apparently took the barest of glances solely so they could tell me my hours of work were useless information, and I didn't know what I was doing. (Also? Comma splice. Yes, I'm petty.) The second one is more dismissive than I would be willing to be, but actually makes me laugh, since it is proved by the one above it.
And the last one is from an Etsy moderator and locked the thread.
I acknowledge that Etsy has a right to keep content primarily on the site itself; I'm good with this. But this does require, for the sake of the most basic standards of professionalism, that they either A.) have a posted rule about it in the FAQs, or B.) follow the damn links to see where they actually go -- because it's blindingly obvious from a click that that's not my blog.
It's not a big deal, and I know this, but it depressed me for the rest of the day. And yet -- that's also how I feel pretty much every time I visit the forums. It's this great groaning chorus of "Etsy sucks because of this," "And also because of this," "My customers are awful," "I'm ahead of the rat race, let me condescend to the fellow rats," "I'm the only honest seller here," "The rules were formulated to make life hard for me," and on and on and on and on ...
Yet -- even though the Etsy venture isn't going where I hoped, even though people have been cruel and dismissive about my extensive qualifications and generally made me feel like shit -- I do this for a living. I work in a great writing center where there's tons of support, I make pretty good money and learn interesting things. Even if I'm not freelancing it yet, I get to do this as a job. And the job isn't just editing other people's work, it's also doing my own -- I spend a couple of hours writing descriptions and blog posts every week, and my Etsy shop pays for itself now, though I know I'm still years from making back the startup supply costs.
Furthermore, I say "not freelancing yet" -- but I'm not sure what criteria I'm giving myself, because as of now? I've had three commissions, totalling a pretty respectable wage for a weekend off.
So I have much for which to be grateful, and with that in mind -- the slap in the face from trying to engage with the Etsy community? Small fry.
This was a mistake.
See, I had this flash of inspiration: Since the entire function of the Etsy Forums is to self-promote to other sellers (which I have always found to be a losing game, but others disagree), I would go along to the "Critiques" section and, using my Scribblegoat account but not rudely or blatantly advertising, offer free, helpful professional advice to the legions of people asking the community to critique their shops/descriptions. This would, with professional propriety and helpfulness, put the name of my business before those who were already seeking similar services. I hasten to assure my sighing readers: From my experience of the forums, this seemed a genuinely excellent plan.
Problem number one was immediately apparent: Recently (to judge from the complaint threads still fresh and full of vim), the Critiques and Promotions sections were phased out.
However, people were still posting the questions, just under "Site Help." I proceeded with my plan. Then I realized that a significant number of the threads were starting with "Five Ways to Make Sales," "Ten Ways to Improve Photographs," "How My Dog's Shop Made 18 Sales in Its First Month," etc. Cool! I made one linking to my word-choice series.
Half an hour later, I checked back. 14 comments! I was thrilled.
And then I read them.
A couple of polite thanks, made me feel great. Then these:
"I noticed you're really new here, do you have another shop somewhere where you've sold a lot of things based on your descriptions? Otherwise, I'm not sure how useful I would consider this information."
"Honestly I don't think people totally read the descriptions. It has been my experience that I'm answering questions that were answered in my descriptions."
"Please don't start threads made to bring attention to your blog. Offering suggestions on how to help make one's business successful is awesome, but please share most of that content here when you're doing so to prevent us from viewing the thread as a promotional one."
These don't seem as bad on the second read, but at the time, they were a slap in the face. The first made me angry. The articles themselves and every single element in my Scribblegoat shop -- including the descriptions themselves -- make it very obvious that I'm both a qualified writer and an experienced seller under the TangoPig account; this person didn't actually look at anything. They apparently took the barest of glances solely so they could tell me my hours of work were useless information, and I didn't know what I was doing. (Also? Comma splice. Yes, I'm petty.) The second one is more dismissive than I would be willing to be, but actually makes me laugh, since it is proved by the one above it.
And the last one is from an Etsy moderator and locked the thread.
I acknowledge that Etsy has a right to keep content primarily on the site itself; I'm good with this. But this does require, for the sake of the most basic standards of professionalism, that they either A.) have a posted rule about it in the FAQs, or B.) follow the damn links to see where they actually go -- because it's blindingly obvious from a click that that's not my blog.
It's not a big deal, and I know this, but it depressed me for the rest of the day. And yet -- that's also how I feel pretty much every time I visit the forums. It's this great groaning chorus of "Etsy sucks because of this," "And also because of this," "My customers are awful," "I'm ahead of the rat race, let me condescend to the fellow rats," "I'm the only honest seller here," "The rules were formulated to make life hard for me," and on and on and on and on ...
Yet -- even though the Etsy venture isn't going where I hoped, even though people have been cruel and dismissive about my extensive qualifications and generally made me feel like shit -- I do this for a living. I work in a great writing center where there's tons of support, I make pretty good money and learn interesting things. Even if I'm not freelancing it yet, I get to do this as a job. And the job isn't just editing other people's work, it's also doing my own -- I spend a couple of hours writing descriptions and blog posts every week, and my Etsy shop pays for itself now, though I know I'm still years from making back the startup supply costs.
Furthermore, I say "not freelancing yet" -- but I'm not sure what criteria I'm giving myself, because as of now? I've had three commissions, totalling a pretty respectable wage for a weekend off.
So I have much for which to be grateful, and with that in mind -- the slap in the face from trying to engage with the Etsy community? Small fry.
Friday, April 15, 2011
Five errors to avoid in your descriptions
This belongs in the word-choice-for-sellers series, I guess, or at least in the vicinity. Why can't it go there? Because I'm about to be spiteful and negative and not pull punches and Rena is lovely and sweet and generally a national treasure.
If you are trying to maintain a Positive Day, I happily invite you to scroll down and look through my tag list, there in the right column under my contact links, to look for something that looks interesting to read. I'm not usually this nasty. But I'm getting it out of my system today.
Still with me? Okay.
Read on for a list of things never to do in an item description.
If you are trying to maintain a Positive Day, I happily invite you to scroll down and look through my tag list, there in the right column under my contact links, to look for something that looks interesting to read. I'm not usually this nasty. But I'm getting it out of my system today.
Still with me? Okay.
Read on for a list of things never to do in an item description.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
I was convinced everyone in this thing would hate it ...
This was the first treasury that sent me searching in earnest for a tool I could use to show them off, and also how I found it -- the maker of the first item posted the treasury on her blog with this same tool.
Relics. Traces. Markers of ancient thoughts. An odd self-possession. A moment of solemnity.
The whole treasury was inspired by this photo of the first item, which was cropped a little differently at the time and was the top photo:
Photo copyright Bonjour Poupette.
The description of the treasury is what came to mind when I looked at the photo. Originally, the solemn little antelope person was a little more off-center, stately and coolly lonesome in the sea of white. Very eye-catching. Queer, in the old sense, makes me wish the word "rum" still meant what it used to. Almost sinister.
It's really a lesson, isn't it, that just where the item is placed in the photo can have such a striking emotional effect.
The treasury got a lot of attention, I think largely because it was right before Christmas so it was totally different from anything else that was then being done. I'm kind of tempted to credit how near it fell to the solstice. The longest night. Old things passing away. Note to self: Do weird, pagan little things during cheery times of year. Everyone wants to read a really macabre blog post in the season of warmth and goodwill! Right?
'Idols and Oddities' by tangopig
Relics. Traces. Markers of ancient thoughts. An odd self-possession. A moment of solemnity.
 Spiral Horn Antelop... $24.00 |  Cruciform Idol from... $50.00 |  Howard - Tiny ceram... $20.00 |  Spiral Nest - Paper... $200.00 |
 Copper scorpion ta... $110.00 |  The Dovid- Brazilia... $16.00 |  Ghost Spirals Skull $ |  Dark red stoneware ... $35.00 |
 Handmade Porcelain ... $6.00 |  Lady Ash the Bird L... $65.00 |  Twisty Relic Bracel... $30.00 |  solemn space $26.00 |
 modern relic $65.00 |  Sycamore Amputee $37.00 |  Wise Man Sill Sitte... $65.00 |  MEZCALA Fetishes $12.00 |
Treasury tool is sponsored by Lazzia.com.
The whole treasury was inspired by this photo of the first item, which was cropped a little differently at the time and was the top photo:
Photo copyright Bonjour Poupette.
The description of the treasury is what came to mind when I looked at the photo. Originally, the solemn little antelope person was a little more off-center, stately and coolly lonesome in the sea of white. Very eye-catching. Queer, in the old sense, makes me wish the word "rum" still meant what it used to. Almost sinister.
It's really a lesson, isn't it, that just where the item is placed in the photo can have such a striking emotional effect.
The treasury got a lot of attention, I think largely because it was right before Christmas so it was totally different from anything else that was then being done. I'm kind of tempted to credit how near it fell to the solstice. The longest night. Old things passing away. Note to self: Do weird, pagan little things during cheery times of year. Everyone wants to read a really macabre blog post in the season of warmth and goodwill! Right?
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