Fabulous Friday Find ~ Must Dance into Spring ~ March 20, 2015

Cool Kitty

With the future so bright 

We all need cool sunglasses

Whether out for a walk

Calling in vague or cutting classes

Life is too short to be good all the time

Take a time out and experience "sublime"

Riots of spring flowers and songbirds at dawn

It's time to go play, so color me gone

Just Be

https://www.etsy.com/shop/JeffHaynieArt

Wednesday Wonder ~ Can't Wait Until Friday ~ December 10, 2014

This amazing creation is simply off the hook ~ check out Terry's shop

Old Salt Shaker Cuff Bracelet ~ Repurposed Vintage Jewelry

https://www.etsy.com/shop/EyeImpact

This Saturday's Spectacular Find ~ April 5, 2014

The Guardian Heart

https://www.etsy.com/shop/indigolights

"The Guardian Heart is the defender of noble ideals. It guards honor and integrity, keeping them safe, until they are ready to be heard."

A Fabulous Foxy Find ~ Nov 22, 2013

Check out the amazing works of this artist

 

 

Personal Creatures

https://www.etsy.com/shop/creaturesfromel

Climate is what we expect, weather is what we get ~ Mark Twain

Warm and sunny days are sweet, but we need a change in the weather!

A Treasury of Delights

Taking Risks

My husband and I are pretty laid back, our approach to life has always been to go with the flow and that's served us well for 30 years. When we head out on a vacation the first questions are shall we turn right or left and which blue highway beckons?

http://www.etsy.com/people/SpiritedWoodland

We lost an amazing friend in November. She was a delightful woman who made friends where ever she went, chased her dreams and made them happen and truly enjoyed life. She would sometimes wonder out loud why her life was so crazy and complicated. I'd simply remind her that she was the one setting the calendar and we'd just burst out laughing.

Out of this loss her wide circle of friends are getting to know each other and sharing thoughts, time and aha moments like: take nothing for granted, do what you've been meaning to do, live in the present without regrets, and (oh darn) it's my responsibility to take care of my body.

Our big Aha moment: It's so easy to become complacent and timid hanging about home territory. If we want to get to some of our Bucket List: like seeing the Aurora Borealis in Alaska, exploring the Maritime Provinces of Canada, seeing the US by train, and adventuring to New Zealand, it's time to get started. We need to start planning ahead, a new concept for us. 

Our Rogue River Adventure

Bottom line is that it's time to start taking some risks, I found this great little quote on the cover of a notepad. The author is Andre Gide an early 20th century writer and winner of the Nobel prize in literature in 1947.

 

"Man cannot discover new oceans

unless he has the courage

to lose site of the shore"

http://www.etsy.com/people/RPeppers

Time to get a move on folks, put down the remote, back away from the television, shut down the computer and follow a dream. I said that! You are no longer in the Twilight Zone but on the No Excuses Tour. What's on your list?

Looking Up Part 2 ~ Light Show

When I was a child thunder and lightning scared the poop out of me, but I've grown to love its shear power and beauty. Amazing experiences on Mt. Robson in Canada, and in the Colorado Rockies and New Mexico seeded my new appreciation of nature's strength. Here are some remarkable works by Etsy artisans that help to illustrate the magic, the links to their shops are below.

"Thunder is good, thunder is impressive; but it is lightning that does all the work." Mark Twain



Cassiopeia and Thor II

http://www.etsy.com/shop/rrobertsphoto





Lightning
http://www.etsy.com/shop/elvenstarart




Southwest Monsoon

http://www.etsy.com/shop/KelHibbsPhotography

Seasons are changing and with that comes changing weather, hope you experience some of your own magic this year. Looking up is good exercise for your neck and your mind. Enjoy!



Looking Up Part 1 ~ The Milky Way

If these don't set your imagination to wandering I don't know what will. Enjoy these amazing photographs from Latvia, New Mexico and London artisans. 

The Milky Way

http://www.etsy.com/shop/filigreephotos

Centauris Southern Milky Way

http://www.etsy.com/shop/DeepSpacePhotography

The Milky Way

http://www.etsy.com/shop/arpadlukacs

Unplug from your television and computer, go outside, throw a blanket on the ground, grab your favorite headrest and open your eyes to a truly magnificent reality show.  

Add an Etsy Treasury to your Blog or Website

I was bummed when byhand.me could no longer provide artists with the capability to do spotlights. I used spotlights frequently to go along with my blog themes. Enter Etsy Treasuries and a whole new venue to get some incredible work seen and build networks with other artisans. 

I always email the artists I've featured with the link to the treasury. This enables them to find it without going through thousands of pages. They can then post the link to their blog or website and leave comments for you.

If you're featured in a treasury, I encourage you to click and comment. It gives feedback to the curator, increases visibility for artists, keeps the treasury active and someone may click on your shop after reading your comments. You know, it's a pay it forward kind of thing.

Here's a short tutorial on importing an Etsy treasury to your blog:

1) Open your photo processing program, I work with Picassa but they all have similar functions.
2) Open your treasury.
3) Go to "view" on your toolbar and reduce percentage to a point where you can see the title and all 16 thumbnails on the screen, 65%-68% works for me.
4) Use your print screen function (Control/PrintScreen) and Picassa will capture the page.
5) Go into Picassa and crop the treasury.
6) I then "Save As" and give it the treasury name (I save photos that will go on my blog or Etsy shop in desk top folders, then I don't have to go hunting for them).
7) There won't be an active link to artist's shops like an Etsy mini or a byhand.me spotlight, but you can add a link to your post to take visitors to the actual treasury, which does have links directly to artist's shops.

Thanks to Molly at http://www.etsy.com/shop/mjalexander386
for getting me on the right path. It certainly does take a village.

Link for "Fire and Ice" treasury is

http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4c77eb0b74068eef34403cb4/fire-and-ice?index=0

So off you go: Create a great Etsy treasury, share it with the world and share it with the artists. If you're featured in someone else's treasury or want to promote one you've done you now have the tools to do it. Happy Trails.

Tuesday's Discovery

I was exploring Etsy Forums this morning and stumbled upon a thumbnail that intrigued me. I clicked on the link and discovered the amazing work of Carole Andreen-Harris.

I found laughter

contemplation

and the HEART of the matter

This print is from an original painting of a horse rescued by HEART of Tucson, an equine rescue based in Tucson, Arizona (www.heartoftucson.org). HEART takes in and cares for horses at risk, the abandoned, abused, neglected and unwanted. With proper nutrition, medical care, shoeing and interaction these horses are true Cinderella stories! A portion of proceeds from sales of these prints goes to HEART. This is Bella, an older Arabian mare who was found abandoned in the desert very thin, without food, water or shelter. Check out Carole's work at http://www.etsy.com/shop/andreenharrisart

You Just Never Know

I was my checking my email a couple of mornings ago and noticed a communique from Etsy. The event chair for the Greater SW Chapter of the Arthritis Foundation in Arizona wanted to know if I'd be interested in donating my new salad serving set "Galaxy" to their annual silent auction and fundraiser for their juvenile arthritis programs. 

My grandmother Hazel Hobson Bagg and my mother-in-law Marjorie Helvey lived with arthritis for most of their lives and were brave beyond words to endure the constant pain. This seemed like a perfect opportunity for me to pay it forward in some small way. You're wondering why Arizona, when I live in California? Well my parents retired to Sedona in the early 1970's, my grandfather John Sherman Bagg discovered the Catherine gold mine (in western Arizona) in 1900 and his father, my great grandfather Stanley Chipman Bagg, lived in Arizona in the late 1880's. So you could say I have some Arizona connections.

Anyway, if you'd like more information about the fundraiser and programs here is the link:
http://www.arthritis.org/chapters/greater-southwest/salute.php

Must Have Monday - Customer Thank You Notes

From my neighbor's garden

I read a lot of forums, features and blogs to expand my knowledge of marketing and promotion for my online shops. What I love about the artistic communities is that all are willing to share what they have learned.

A majority of these conversations support the idea of adding a thank you note to a customer's package. Some buyers appreciate the effort and some may not notice, but to me it adds a personal touch. If you have the time and talent to make your own tags or cards it's definitely worth thinking about. If you don't have that spare time (and most of us don't) consider supporting a fellow artisan.

The creations in the accompanying spotlight from http://www.byhand.me/ showcase a variety of mini gift cards and tags from Etsy artisans. They range from fine art to whimsy, from simple to sublime. Click on the thumbnail photo in the spotlight and the link will take you to the artisan's shop.

Wordless Wednesday Color

Paper Art Studio - River Reeds

Wordless Wednesday

From www.artman757.etsy.com

Harvest Time

About 3:30am I was awakened by bright lights, tractors and laughter. I toddled out to my studio and opened the door. It looked like a space ship had landed in the vineyard next door. Then it dawned on me, it's harvest time! I found out from a friend, who has a small vineyard on her property, that grapes are often harvested in the wee hours to delay the onset of fermentation.

I decided to explore Etsy and 1000Markets with the key word "harvest" and here are a few of my favorites for this week. Support independent artists!

"Goddess of the Forest" by creativityjewellery

"The Harvest" from Jewels in the Garden

"Home Grown" from Burning River Studio

To the Roads Less Travelled

Having just returned from a great adventure, I wanted to feature four Etsy artisans who also seem to be into roads less travelled, and of course pay homage to poet Robert Frost:

*

"I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence

Two roads diverged in a wood

And I took the one less traveled by

And that has made all the difference"

*

A click on any of the photos will take you to their Etsy sites Road Less Travelled by Country Dreaming

Blue Highways by Gretchen Simons

Road Less Travelled by Jane Perdue

Road Less Travelled by Robin Cheers

Word Play

There is amazing power in simple words of description. They can capture your imagination or tell you a story, suggest a flight of fancy or stop you in your tracks. I work with lampwork glass in all of my designs. I am first drawn to colors and patterns, but it is often the descriptions that grab me. Today's kudos go to JavaBeads.