Feature Friday - Rose from SevenSails

Good morning everybody! Or afternoon, or evening, or whatever time of the day it is when you a reading this. :)

Today's fabulous Feature Friday person is Rose from SevenSails.

Rose writes that: "I live in SE MI by Lake Erie. I have spent many hours in, on and by the lake. That is where my shop name originates. I learned to knit as a child. Over the years I have made numerous items. Afghans,scarves,socks... all make great gifts. Last year I gave one of my scarves as a hostess gift. She loved it so much that she encouraged me to make and sell them. So last winter I made a boatload of scarves. Having heard of Etsy on the Today Show, I opened my shop in August. Since then I have been expanding my product lines. Knitting and learning all about the many facets of Etsy consumes most of my time. However, I do get out for a round of golf or a bike ride. My flower beds take up a lot of my time. Right now I'm trying to get back into pilates."

Rose finds "inspiration everywhere. I love looking at yarns and patterns. For the first time I am looking at photos from the Fall 2009 runway shows to see what"s "hot". I'm also creating more of my own patterns. I'm finding that to be a real growth experience."

In her spare time, Rose likes to read Barbara Kingsolver, Bill Bryson and Margaret Truman, who are a few of her favorite authors. She also likes "most movies but love suspense. "Mercy" and "The Good Wife" are already favorites on TV. I love listening to PBS on Sat. mornings. They have a great line up of shows."

 

Rose writes that "I'm finding Etsy to be such a great place to sell my things. The support and encouragement are amazing. I love the virtual labs. I can even knit while being there. I like the more educational labs best. I would like to see a library of videos to answer all those handbook questions."

In terms of networking and getting started selling online, Rose says that "I'm finding craftgawker to be good at increasing views. Since I'm still waiting for my first sale and am quite a newbie, I can't say what has been successful. I am trying lots of ways to market my shop."

I'm happy to mention that Rose can no longer say that she has had no sales! She made her first sale yesterday! It must have been yesterday later-afternoon or evening, because Rose sent me her Feature Friday question answers at about 1:00 pm (MST) yesterday. Congratulations Rose!

Wishlist Wednesday - Kelly from justbecreative

Hey everyone! Allysattic here with another great list of items from today's Wishlist Wednesday featured Lab Rats Member. Wow, that was a mouthfull.  :)

Today's great picks come from Kelly, who runs the shop justbecreative.

1. The first items on Kelly's list is this Oatmeal tweed cape by ileaiye. Kelly says that "This oatmeal tweed knitted cape is PERFECT for fall. I always get cold in meetings at work, and this stylish cape is perfect for this time of year in NM when it's chilly in the mornings."

2. Kelly's second list item is this great "clutch - wavy pleats - burnt orange" clutch by yorktownroad. "This gorgeous pleated clutch is the perfect shade of burnt orange, my favorite color! This little guy could have a million and one uses, but a night one the town and having a place for my cellphone and lipgloss sounds pretty darn good to me about now."

3. The third item on the list is by SaraLananCollection, and is titled "Golden Applique Necklace". Kelly things that "If you want to make a statement that is elegant, yet fun and flirty...this is your perfect accessory." And I wholeheartedly agree!  :)

4. This "Black Widow FREE SHIPPING Victorian Noir Organza and Satin Flower Bracelet" from vividcolors comes in at number four on Kelly's list. She says that "I'm way past prom-age, but this elegant little bracelet reminds me of my corsage from Senior year but way cooler than 1989..."

5. The last item for this Wishlist Wednesday is this "Fanny in Grey Suede Leather" by StudioOneDesigns. "SHUT UP! I found the most gorgeous bag! And I have the perfect gray suede boots to match!"



Thank you Kelly, for being today's Wishlist Wednesday person!

And to round it all off, if I was putting together a wishlist, I would add Kelly's "Natural Aquamarine" bracelet:

Have a great humpday everyone!

Next Meeting

Hola! Just posting a little update to remind everyone of our meeting tomorrow. These will be shop critiques and I will be choosing from people in attendance!

Meeting is at 1pm EST in the Sky Room of the Virtual Labs.

Just come on in the room - no password is required. I (itsa) will be hosting the lab via webcam. Hope to see you there!

Mosaic Monday: Warm & Cozy

The lovely BabyEtte selected this week's Mosaic Monday!

1). Chunky Deep Purple Scarf by yarnabees (free shipping on this one!
2). Goose Crossing Sweater from zwzzy
3). Feminine White Scarflette by strawberryona
4). River Rocks Handwarmers by funkisockmunki
5). Red Orange and Grey Cowl by SevenSails
6). Altered Vintage Leather Gloves by aprilevening

Stay warm, rats!

Feature Friday - somavenus

Today's great Friday Feature shop is somavenus!

1. Tell us a bit about yourself, your shop, and what brought you to the Etsy community.

I'm a rad dorky eccentric introverted crafty crazy cat lady (you can read more in my Etsy profile!) My shop is filled with things I've put so much love into. I usually make my sketchbooks outside overlooking the pacific ocean, or deep in the woods closer to home. Love and magic from the pacific northwest is sewn into each book. My jewelry is made from my original artwork, and I have some limited edition zines and clocks and other neat things. :)

I joined the Etsy community when it first started up back in 2005! I didn't really take listing seriously until a few years ago, and wish I was this active back from the very beginning!

2. Besides creating beautiful things for your shop, what do you spend your days doing?

I work a 9-5'er that I'm hoping I'll soon be able to trade in for full time artist! When I'm not there or working on Etsy, I'm probably on the road headed to the ocean or the woods. I love cloud watching, photo adventures, listening to birds, and being alone in nature. It's where I get my best ideas and recharge and get inspired.

3. What sources do you draw your inspiration from and what is your creative process(es)?

Inspiration for me comes from everything I encounter. It comes from the clouds and blue sky, the rain, the wind. the birds. the ocean. the trees. things left behind. things forgotten. junk stores. sitting in traffic.

my creative process is simple. i just go. i don't really think or plan it out. just an roll with it. make it work!

4. What market (group of people) do you see your items being for?

I am still trying to find my market. I've been surprised to hear where my sketchbooks have gone. One BINGO sketchbook was used as a wedding guest book! They seem to appeal to all ages in person - but I see my work appealing most to the 20-30 something crowd. zinesters. artists. craftsters. rad people!

5. Name your top three:

- Books

Introvert Power
King Cat
Invincible Summer

- Music (song or artist)

the microphones
cat power
the books

- Movies or Television Shows

office space
how to draw a bunny
high art

- Websites

etsy!
sendsomething.net
somavenus.com

6. What are your favorite features on Etsy? What new features would you like to see added?

I'm excited about the new rearrange your shop feature! I would LOVE to see a batch edit listing tool - especially an easy way to change the price of multiple items at once (similar to the batch shipping tool).

7. How do you market your work? What has or hasn't worked for you in the past?

I market through facebook/twitter/myspace - the usuals. I don't know if I get much traffic from it. What works the best for me is trying to renew at least a few times a day. What hasn't worked for me (yet) is doing shows! I've done a few now (small free art walk in town) and I'm soooo painfully shy sometimes - it was really difficult to open up and talk to anyone looking at my work. I was lucky to have a friend do the talking for me (how embarrassing!) - but it WAS a lot of fun to see how well people responded to my work. I feel like I'm so much cooler on the internet ;)

8. What do you like most about the Virtual Labs?

the friendly helpful supportive community!

9. What topics or events would you like to see added to the Virtual Lab offerings?

more quit your day job labs - labs on promoting and being seen!