So snowy!!

So they just mentioned on the radio that, not including today's snow storm ... Chicago has already had 14 inches of snow and it's not even winter yet!! We have another foot coming today depending on if you're getting all snow, snow/sleet or snow/ice/rain. What a mess! I'm really glad I took the day off of work today. We had a big storm that hit right around 3 pm on Tuesday. My normal 25 minute commute took 1 hour and 45 minutes, which was nothing compared to some of the travel times out there. Ick.

So I'm thrilled to be at home today working on some top secret Christmas presents and hopefully working on a few store projects too. If all goes well I'll be out to lunch with a friend too. My hubby has his last final today (yay tax law???). So I'm looking forward to ordering Lou Malnati's and staying cozy with a movie tonight for sure. Sounds like a perfect day right??

Stay warm and safe in the crazy weather!

Until next time ...
The girl behind the lama
~LMM

Featured ETTeam Member: LindenAvenueDesigns

Only one more week until Christmas (who's freaking out??). I am happy to announce that this week's featured ETTeam member is LindenAvenueDesigns. Let's find out more about here shall we?

What’s the story behind your store, where did it all start?

When I first started making beads I knew that at some point I would like to sell them. I wasn’t really interested in doing craft fairs, etc., so I looked around for something that I could do online. I tried out that other “e” company, but I was turned off by the pricing and that I really couldn’t showcase like I wanted to without paying an arm and a leg. And, then I found Etsy and was so happy that in this venue I could list a lot more beads and actually have a little store. It has been a wonderful experience and I am still learning and growing everyday!

What can we find in your store?

In my store you can find handmade lampwork beads. They are in a variety of styles and colors and since I can’t really make up my mind about what I like to make, a buyer can always find something new in my store. And, as time goes by I will be adding jewelry that is made with my beads and silver.

Do you have any favorite items?

Oh, that is such a hard question to answer! One day I am just crazy about the chunky disks and then the next I’m loving what the high silver content glasses produce in the flame. I have one set that always amazes me called Elektra Gems. I make the beads in a variety of shapes, but it is the Elektra glass which is just amazing! The blues are so deep you can actually see shade when light shines down on the bead. I always have to explain when I list a set of these beads that I feel like I’m looking down from a plane and looking at a river as it cuts through the landscape. And, Elektra glass can also be iridescent too.

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=17634014

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=14810981

Where do you get ideas for your products?

I take rods of glass and line them up. Sometimes, they may not even be in the same color range, but it is amazing what you can see. They might remind you of a couch you used to have, or the roses outside, or the Grand Canyon, but whatever an idea usually starts and I usually do some test beads to see how the glass itself reacts with the other glasses. And, some of my most interesting ideas have come from jewelry designers who want me to make a specific type of bead but only have a general idea on the color. That has really provided me with some fascinating combos of glasses that I really love!

What has been your biggest store challenge?

I have to laugh because it still is my biggest challenge! My banner! I don’t have Photoshop so I have been unable to incorporate my name into the banner. I just have the picture I want to use and that is all. One of these days I will get together with another Etsian, a friend who also does beads and work on this hurdle! Otherwise the rest of the store has slowly come together and like everyone else has learned on the job.

Do you have any advice to other store owners, especially newbies?

The hardest part is getting people to know you are there on Etsy among all of the other people who do what you do. My advice is to keep making what you make and listing. And, join a team if you can. It helps to visit with other people who are in the business and get feedback. The best place is Etsy’s forums. There is a unending amount of information there already posted and if you get bogged down and just don’t know what to do there are helpful people ready to answer your questions.

Thanks so much for the interview MaryAnn! I hope you all enjoyed learning a little more about another Etsy seller and don't forget to check out LindenAvenueDesigns great selections of beads!

Happy Holidays!

The girl behind the lama

~LMM

An Almost New Years Reflection

I know that it isn't quite New Years yet, but this afternoon I found my self reflecting back on where I've been this year and how I got to be here ... blogging ... and selling crafts on Etsy.

Last year at this time I was just your normal average American girl. I had just bought our first home with my then fiance. I was pulling my hair out during a long and arduous kitchen remodel (so worth it!!!). I was knee deep with planning our wedding and sorting through what seemed like millions of pictures of flowers and cake. I wasn't doing too much in the crafting realm. Until that point I had lived in small apartments that got even smaller when I moved to Chicago. Quilting meant having to take the table cloth off of my sewing table, pull out the machine and all of my tools from storage spaces in craft boxes that also dubbed as end tables. God only knows where my knitting needles were and if I had any matching sets.

It was Christmas last year that I met my husband's cousin-in-law that sparked my crafting world back into life. She is a seller for Stampin' Up and brought her collection of cards home for the holidays. Now at about this time I was also sorting through millions of wedding invitations and getting very frustrated that nothing was exactly what I wanted. After looking through her cards I thought about how silly it was to pay someone to make invitations that weren't exactly what I wanted when I could just make them myself the way I wanted them (yes I'll admit I have control issues ...). Well, two weeks later I started going to card making classes at Archivers and the wedding invitations were under way! That snowballed into stationary sets as thank you gifts to bridal shower hosts and eventually into the bud vases favors.

Isn't it funny how seemingly small things in life can change the direction that you're traveling? All you need is the inspiration to get moving.

The rest is history. Now here I am ... married for 7 months ... living happily in our new home (which does have a fabulous kitchen) .... with all of my crafting supplies sometimes organized in my very own craft room ... dreaming about a day when I could have unlimited time to just sit down and make all of the things that are floating around in my head. In my dream world I would have a whole collection of hats and scarves, my own stationary line (hand stamped of course), a collection of mittens made from old sweaters (a project that I have started .... more details to come soon I hope), and maybe a fresh batch of cookies every couple of days.

I went to Close Knit, local knitting store the other day and they were also selling knitted items and I thought, "How cool would that be?? To see something that I made ... for sale in a store??"

So that's where I am today and I hope that next year at this time I can report back that my dream world is coming a little closer. I've had 12 sales in lama works since I opened September 1st and 103 people have marked my store as a favorite. Definitely a positive start right??

So here's to the dreamers in all of us!! Happy Holidays everyone!!

Until next time ...
The girl behind the lama
~LMM

Featured ETTeam Seller: BranchingStreams

I do apologize for the delay in posting this week's featured ETTeam member!! You know how crazy the holidays can get! My parents just got into town and it seems like anyone and everyone that needed to get a gait analysis in the lab I work in wants to do so before the end of the year so I've been pretty swamped.

On a bright note I've been swamped with a few orders this week too YAY!!!

So on that note ... this week's featured ETTeam member is BranchingStreams:

What’s the story behind your store, where did it all start?


My store was born out of a desire to contribute to my community and to worthy causes.


I started out selling on ebay and while I sold around a hundred paintings, listing fees ran my slim profits into the ground. I took a break from ebay for a year or two and concentrated on my art and showing locally. In 2004 after the Indian Ocean Tsunami I had a very strong desire to contribute to relief efforts and this charitable urge was strengthened in 2005 after hurricane Katrina. As a result of these and other similar events I searched for ways to offer myself and my efforts to a greater good. Some of these efforts were volunteering at a bereavement camp for children as well as participating in the prison outreach program my Zen temple runs. About half a year ago I decided to give selling items online again another try, this time vowing to donate a percentage to charity for each sale I made. In this way I felt justified in my efforts and I felt certain that my work mattered even if I was not turning a profit. I have spent a lot of time questioning the value and meaning of art, I think most artists have as well. I have come to believe that what is best about art is the way it connects us to something greater than ourselves. E. M. Forester wrote "To make us feel small in the right way is a function of art; men can only make us feel small in the wrong way." Being of service to another human being or to a deserving cause puts us in our proper scale. To see things as they truly are, living in our proper scale, is to affirm and embody our own essential humanity.

What can we find in your store?


My store features fine art, both abstract paintings as well as classical realist drawings. All items are originals though I do hope to start offering less expensive prints soon. For each sale 30% or more is donated to a charity, currently the UNC Lineberger Cancer Center is the charity I donate most to though others are featured on the site.


Do you have any favorite items?

My three latest paintings are my current favorites as they combine issues and styles I have been working on for over 10 years in my artwork. These paintings include the same pure abstract elements that many of my previous works have with a more representational, decorative style.


http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=17468825
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16976728
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=17362417


Where do you get ideas for your products?


I draw inspiration from a large variety of sources some of which include wall paper, lace, and Japanese "katagami" (paper stencils used to dye kimonos) as well as the artwork of abstract expressionists like Rothko, Mondrian and Franz Klein.


What has been your biggest store challenge?


I am still quite new to Etsy and so have experienced a number of problems like the difficulty in getting good quality product photos. I also have not worked out a good price range, many of my items are quite expensive and I'd love to offer more modestly priced, quality works in the future.


Do you have any advice to other store owners, especially newbies?


Well as I said earlier, I am new to this myself, but I would suggest placing your purpose in something other than just selling work. I've found when I am able to approach an activity without a preconceived notion of what success might mean, I've been able to feel fulfilled in a deep and satisfying way. I'd also suggest becoming an active member of a few groups (I'm part of Etsy for charity and Etsy treasury team) because this helps your enthusiasm level as well as increasing your visibility in the online community.

What a great interview! I personally love charity work and dedicate as much time as I can to helping others in my community, so kudos to you Ed! Check out his store today to see all of his beautiful artwork! Don't forget to check out the other featured ETTeam artists listed on the right side of my blog.

Until next time ...
The girl behind the lama
~LMM

Featured ETTeam Member: Sagefox

As a proud member of the ETTeam I've decided to start featuring my fellow members and showcase their stores every Thursday. Our second installment is from Sagefox, who has some beautiful hand spun yarn if I do say so myself!

What’s the story behind your store, where did it all start?

I went to the PA Farm Show a few years ago..and it was love at first sight when I saw the angora rabbits. Next I fell in love with the alpacas on display. And then I watched the sheep to shawl competition and the rest is history LOL I came home and told my husband that I needed a sheep, a spinning wheel and a loom lol. A few weeks later I took a spinning class at the local fiber shop...and that summer the owner of the shop sold me a trio of fiber critters..an alpaca, a black rambouillet lamb and a baby angora goat. It's been over 2 years since they arrived and they bring me so much joy every day... the fiber, as it turns out, has only been icing on the cake :) I also raise english angora rabbits that keep me stocked up on luscious angora fiber.

What can we find in your store?

hand-dyed wool roving, handspun yarn, handwoven shawls, crocheted mittens/hats & other fiber gifts

Do you have any favorite items?

I think my favorite item to create is my handspun yarn with freshwater pearls plied into it. It's alot of fun to spin up and it also knits/crochets items that are truly one of a kind. My other favorite item in my shop right now is a hand-woven shawl named "Log Cabin". I love the earthy tones of the wool yarn and the fluff of the novelty accents.

Where do you get ideas for your products?

I love animals & nature..so usually I'll be thinking about somewhere we've visited or the latest critter that's past by and I'll start thinking about how the colors of a beach pebble or the stripes of a chipmunk could translate into a roving, yarn or shawl.

What has been your biggest store challenge?

Leaving the roving up for sale and not spinning it all up myself. Last week I went thru my entire inventory because I got a serious spinning bug lol.

Do you have any advice to other store owners, especially newbies?

RELAX! :D I hear so many people worrying about sales, prices, finding customers...and of course, everyone wants sales and wants to price fairly..but it shouldn't be a stressful process. Have fun, get your name out there and relax..if you do your best and offer your greatest work, the sales will come...and even if they don't..no amount of worrying will help! :D

So check out Sagefox and all of the other Etsy Treasury Team members next time you're hanging around Etsy.

Double digits!!

I passed the 10 sale mark today!! I actually jumped from 9 straight to 11, YAY! Things seem to be picking up now with the holidays. I'm not sure how, but I have had 6 sales in the last month, crazy! One sale was even a repeat customer who wanted additional scarves for her friends so that gives me faith that I'm putting out products that people really enjoy.

I was reading another blog post about that the other day (wish I remembered where..) that no matter how long you've been making and selling things there's always a little piece of you that freaks out and hopes the person on the receiving end doesn't think that your work is a piece of junk when they actually have it in front of them.

I know I'm still trying to find my way in the crafting field and can't seem to settle on a niche, but maybe I don't have to! If all I did was knit year round I think I'd really start to hate it. And so far I've sold 7 knitted items, 2 sets of cards, 1 set of bud vases, and 1 purse, so it seems like there is interest in a variety of my items. I definitely get a lot more hits on the knitted items, especially this time of year. They've also been the most popular hit to make it into treasuries too.

So we'll see where I go. I've got a few projects started. I managed to knit up 6 more dish cloths on the car ride home from Thanksgiving. I'm also working on drafting up my own version of recycled sweater mittens. I have pieces cut out and I'm hoping that I'll get lucky and they go together without a hitch. I'm working totally patternless on this one, just my own sketches. I'll try to get some pictures up tonight!

I do have a bunch of Christmas presents to get together in the remaining days before Christmas. Can I actually get it all done? If only my real job didn't get in the way of the fun things in life ... sigh ...

Until next time ...
The girl behind the lama
~LMM

How to be an engineer …

I got to work today and took a look at my puzzle of the day calendar. Puzzle of the day:

You have been presented with a tray bearing five bags that should each contain 100 gold coins, except you have been told that one of them contains only 99. You quickly arrange the bags to reveal the one that’s short. How?

My first instinct was to arrange the bags on the plate and balance the plate on a point, see which way the plate tips and you know which one is slightly lighter than the rest, thus containing one less coin. Perfect!

In my mind I was thinking that this is what engineering is all about. Problem solving. This seemed like an easy one to me, but to others I’m sure the answer was not quite as obvious. This got me thinking. Have I always been like this or was I taught to be a problem solver?? I’m sure in engineering school they taught us to look at problems in many different ways and that you won’t always be able to solve the problem the same way every time, but to some extent did I know that before I got there? Is that why I became an engineer, because I was good at problem solving? Chicken or egg??

It made me start to wonder about other professions. How do you decide what skill it is that you have that pushes you toward one profession or the other? Or do you decide you want to have a certain kind of job and you learn the skills necessary to be successful?

I guess it’s the same with crafting too. I can go into a fabric store and see a group of fabrics together and get an image in my head of what I could make out of it. Or I can see a pattern and know in my head what colors and types of fabrics I want to use. Have I always been good at that or did someone teach me how to be creative?

It gives you something to ponder for the day doesn’t it. How did you get to where you are?

Until next time ...

The girl behind the lama

~LMM