Saturday, December 29, 2007

I made my first set of bobby pins today. I'm hoping that tommorow's weather will be good so I can photograph them. I wonder what site I should add them to? etsy? my website? lov.li? even mintd? Probably either etsy or my website...

Friday, December 28, 2007

Best shop ever. etsy needs more nudity. *saves up furiously* but where would I display the naked photos?!

soap petals
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
It was a very etsy christmas- with my brother getting a tiny meat wallet, my other brother getting babypop gloves, my dad getting a sugarfoot sunglasses case, and my mama getting these soap petals from a breathoffrenchair! Also one of these corn things from halfpinto.

Saturday, December 22, 2007

I've all but closed for the holidays. My energy has left me, and the only things business related I seem to be able to do is to renew on etsy, and I did draw some earrings, but they aren't made yet. I believe they will be lovely when made. I also broke down some old items for use as supplies in new items.

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

I'm very pro this new shop local tool as at least it gives people exposure based on proximity. Of course, it's much fairer for me than for people in really big cities since there are only a million people around Memphis, so you get a fair variety but you're not going to never come up on the first page, if you get me?

I note it's on the front page now, which is good- finally something that we can all equally be in.

Sunday, December 16, 2007




so want!

Saturday, December 15, 2007

I paid off my whole etsy bill. Merry Holidays!

Friday, December 14, 2007

For the love of god, pay your etsy bill.
So I'm packing up my orders from etsy, and am boggling. I'm always getting tripped up on etsy because the site seems to be set up as an area for all crafters to try to sell- the lack of jurying, the fact that they talk about it being a place for everything handmade,etc. Also, there's a forum to tell admins your ideas, and you can get the admins to post a storque article for you if you write it yourself, giving the illusion of a democracy or at least some participation. So I am often confused about the etsy spririt- is it a community where people of all skill levels, all pocket book sizes, all energy levels to be connected with buyers, other crafters and admirers, or is it a place for the 'crafting elite'? I would prefer the former as there's plenty of the latter. To develop a crafting world that is awesome and to promote handmade items, I think we need to have more community feeling. There are plenty of sites for the elite only, but let's have etsy be for the rest of us.

Thursday, December 13, 2007

A touchy subject- why is shipping so high?

People often wonder why people charge $2 or even $3 to ship a pair of earrings. The truth is that if your package is not completely flat, there's a charge of 1.31 to even ship earrings that weigh one ounce. Then there's delivery confirmation, which is essential for people who sell with paypal [18 cents]. There's also the cost of packaging the item. Tape, bubble wrap, bubble envelopes[if you can get them in bulk, 20 cents each, but you have to lay out the whole $30 or $50 at once]- this all adds up. I also use shipping software so I can have envelopes that are readable, that have all the zip codes down to the four digit extension, and so I can ship first class international without waiting for an hour at the post office. This software is in fact, not free, but it helps packages get there faster. How? If the post wo/man can't read the label, that slows down the mail, having the four digit extension slows it down, and being able to print things at home allows me to ship more days a week, thus causing faster shipping.

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

I got two sales on etsy today, so I am packing them up. I really like to ship same day if I can because I generally am impatient with the mail. I also found my supply of purple organza bags, so I am generally happy.

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

flower bracelet


flower bracelet
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
I took photographs like crazy today. Some have to be retaken, but since it'll rain tomorrow, that won't happen.
It's another flash toy!

Monday, December 10, 2007

Today under the fear of exams, I crafted like crazy. I hope it doesn't rain.

Sunday, December 09, 2007

green stripes


green stripes
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
Today is the start of the buy one, get one half off sale on etsy- running until the 15th. I'm hoping to do all my promoting for today before lunch and study the rest of the day, with large gaps for napping. I think that today I might be able to finally eat soup with noodles. Having your wisdom teeth removed makes it hard to eat.

Saturday, December 08, 2007

Etsy CEO profile with interesting comments section. It's drizzling so yesterday's creations will not be posted today.

Friday, December 07, 2007

I didn't know the donutlounge was bailing out of etsy. She only has one item left.

I think a nice handmade item is a good donation for children for christmas. Handmade items actually are a bit more high toned and less supportive of the idea that the poor don't deserve nice things than a dollar store Barbie is. A well made toy that will stand the test of time is a really nice thing, especially compared to some of the things people give poor children. So if you make toys, give them this season. You can even give through etsy. And all year round- please donate yummy food to the food drive. Does anyone even eat pickled beets?

Thursday, December 06, 2007

Admins say they will pull duplicates in gift guides.

I'm hoping to be able to make hoop earrings today. I changed my website around to showcase a variety of items on other sites, so it can be more of a one stop shop for cassowary goodness.

Monday, December 03, 2007

strawberry ring


strawberry ring
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
I'm becoming more productive as all I have to do is catch up with my reading for school. I think my illness is waning too.

Sunday, December 02, 2007


IMG_6582
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
I got this from sallyscreations. I got major mom points for the decoration help.

Saturday, December 01, 2007

I'm Chateau Bizarre's Dec 1st Site of the Day.
I've decided to switch my mintd items around. I only have enough money for 10 items[i.e. the free plan], but it's not interesting to have the same 10 items all the time. Mintd has added a new blog feature on profiles, and it seems to be working better than it did earlier.

Friday, November 30, 2007

Don't call other sellers names on the forums,ok? Now that hell month is over, I'm looking forward to a lot of new designs and a lot more advertising. But no google base until I feel better

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

A pet peeve: I hate it when folks act like it takes so much more time to express a complaint than to whine that people are complaining. I think a problem is that positivity can become toxic and more negative than negativity. If I say "Man, the jewelry category on etsy is really crowded! They should put in an advanced search instead of gift guides!", that is going to cause a whole lot less bad feeling, even though it was technically a complaint than saying "I bet the reason you think the jewelry category is crowded is because you're a miserable person deep down. Why don't you leave if you're so unhappy? Why do you have so much free time to worry about that?" despite this somehow being 'positive'.

I guess the problem is that positivity is very fragile, compared to being realistic, because it does not have a firm foundation, so anytime anyone makes any mention of a negative, that bubble is burst. You can't sustain it, and you have to lash out as an attempt to keep that unsustainable world view. When you lash out, bad feelings occur. So that creates more negativity than being negative.

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

cranberry ambrosia in light

an example of the pictures I took today. I guess indiepublic and we love etsy will be getting picture updates soon. I just need to distribute the new items among my sites. This one is already on lov.li
Oddly enough, the light of the setting sun makes for fairly OK pictures. I'll show you guys soon.

Monday, November 26, 2007

Wow, that was fast! My indie crafters page is up.

Sunday, November 25, 2007


holiday earrings
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
I finally updated my website It takes me a long time to resize my images, upload them and then write in the descriptions
Today it rained. I rephoto'd some items but then I realized that the new items I made yesterday- I forgot to take pictures of them. Also, when I make a bracelet, it's always really short.

Saturday, November 24, 2007

Personally, I feel more encouraged by kind words than tough love. All of us know that we haven't put our etsy items in google base, that we have piles of unused supplies, and that we haven't uploaded our pictures onto talentdatabase as often as we need to. But do we all know about the happiness that our crafts bring to so many? Even if I can't buy from you, I love the energy of crafters. People seem to think there is too much kindness in the world. But that's not true. Kindness is not some dragon's hoard to be massed up in a cave where no one can see it. Kindness is what everyone deserves. It's like religious things. No one deserves mercy or grace, but it is given freely to all. Having a generous spirit is good for all.
Stella notes that insinuating that other people's shops are inferior is not respectful on this page.
Today, I went out in the cold to take pictures, without gloves. It was forty degrees, and while I was snapping, it started raining. It's hard to get the right white balance under these conditions.

Friday, November 23, 2007

My philosophy about crafting is as follows. Not many people are making more than a thousand dollars a year in this world, as compared to the many people under that mark. I make double that working ten hours a week. So the idea that when we create a venue for crafting, everything should be as unfair as possible makes me laugh. What do you get when you've 'tough loved' the love out of people's crafting? What do you win when you make people feel awful about themselves, and turned off of crafting all together? I wish there was a separate place for the 'elites' to fight out their cage match for craft supremacy, and the rest of us can enjoy ourselves. Really, I want to have fun.
Read my awesome how to on how to promote in the etsy forums.

Thursday, November 22, 2007

This sort of thing is why I am going to shop all online. I'm not waking up at 4 am in the morning unless people are going to give me money. As for spending it, it spends just as good online and it comes to your door.
*is in tootsiegrace's gift guide*
I've decided to be more open in my business blog. Being a one person business, it's hard not to reveal who you really are. Even if it does sometimes mean saying that I don't like posting on 1000 selling communities, or that I don't want to put up ten classified ads, or that it took me an hour to make a simple email for my mailing list. I have decided to do this because I don't want to be the sort of fake corporate business person that I don't like. I'll also tag my posts

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

A big problem that is making everyone divided over the gift guides is the sense that if you didn't get in, you're just not a good seller. The admins are working hard, but they are undercut by their cheerleaders. If you want to seem fair, it's hard to do that when folks are telling people that they didn't get in because their photos weren't good, that they are whiners,etc. But it's hard for the admin, because they can't just tell those people to shut up, and be respectful of everyone's hard work. It causes people to be more bitter if they are assumed to not be working hard or to be malcontents rather than saying that the admin worked hard, but there were too many people who are good at things to put everyone in. When you say, you're just jealous, it's not helping at all.

Not to mention, the assumption that no one who isn't a top seller/in the guide/perfectly happy all the time promotes or does anything with their business drives me nuts. I'm not sure why you would assume that without at least asking, because there are a lot of invisible promotions that people do. I put my cards out at the library, post on craigslist, put my stuff on stylehive and the etsy mini blog. There's not a big banner in my store saying that I do this, but I do. If you're not on my myspace friend's list, or my mailing list, yea, you're not going to see my promotions, but that doesn't mean they don't exist

Sunday, November 18, 2007

I've been escaping from school work into doing business things, but I'm so behind on schoolwork. I haven't been able to make any progress for two days.

Saturday, November 17, 2007

I can't seem to make any masculine items at all. Whenever I make something, it's uber uber girly. I'd like to branch out, but it's hard when your favorite stone is rose quartz.

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Now that exam time is nigh, I've become obsessed with gluing things to other things. I started with earrings, and I'll progress to rings soon. There's just something so simple and pure about stud earrings or a ring with a nice flashy vintage twang to it. When winter break comes, I'll go back to larger scale jewelry. I have several half done projects ready to be done just when I get ready

Saturday, November 10, 2007

This year's gift guide is out! I had to delay it for one day because I made a pair of earrings that I needed to photograph.

Tuesday, November 06, 2007

Missing the Mark-

I missed the group fire mountain order, I just found out today. Time to look for greener supply pastures. I think I'll try out some gold filled items in time for the holiday. I upgraded to sterling silver at least six months ago, and it has been working well, but gold filled is much pricier..

Monday, November 05, 2007

I'm on parade on indieparade. I need to get my gift guide together soon..
Apparently flying backhoes have it out for etsy?

Thursday, November 01, 2007

On etsy, homepage showcases will be $15. A bit much for me... $7 was already high for me. [$50 etsy bill]

Sunday, October 28, 2007

A list of my various shops:

my main jewelry website
Manga, nonhandmade jewelry and more
My etsy shop
Me on Mintd
On Lov.li

so not my picture! soap resembles bar in picture.
Soap Review

Soap Name: crushed cranberry by abreathoffrenchair

Smell: Like a cranberry candle. In shower, it smells quite strongly. Out of shower my skin smells like a combination of 'clean' and a cranberry candle. I'm not sure if I am too young for cranberry. Fall scents are so mature.

Lather: Lots. I was surprised by the amount of lather, actually.

Size: 4 oz. The bar seems huge.

Other thoughts: Hands oddly smooth from using it. Came gift wrapped.

Saturday, October 27, 2007

I added a test item to lov.li. You can actually buy it, though. All went well, except for a small image error.

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Saturday, October 20, 2007

The hot topic of copying has come up yet again. I think the hotness of the topic is based on a clash of world views. There seems to be two streams of thought in the crafting world- the gift economy model and the market economy model. The gift economy model sees ideas as free floating, and the sharing of knowledge as an important part of the process. The market economy model focuses more on competition and protecting one's copyright. These don't go together and people end up talking past each other. Is craft a product to sell or a gift you give to the world? It's both I say, both!

Saturday, October 13, 2007

An etsy seller gives the lowdown on promos. I find that you tend to get better results posting a new thread if you title it in a way that makes other people want to look: be both general enough so that a lot of people will be interested in and have items for the thread, and specific enough so that your thread is not all over the place.

Not so good: "look at my shop" why? what's in your shop? why do we care?
good: Gifts for Golfers why? many items can be gifts for golfers- socks, little doo doodads with gold related slogans on them,etc. People who like golf and people who know people who like golf will check out this thread.

Also, how you act in the promos post can help too. Come back to your post, and comment on the items that other people have posted. Chat about aspects of these items that you like. People like being complimented. Of course, when you post your link, try to say what's on the page. I'm more likely to click "hand crocheted golf club cozy" than a plain link.
The etsy girls calendar is out. I'm miss december[and not just a pretty face!]

Friday, October 12, 2007

Yay! My buy one, get half off sale is live on indiecontests~! I find that you have to be pretty aggressive in finding new ways to promote for free. The more eyeballs you get, the more sales, but you also have to find ways to target to your audience, but also reach a wide enough audience.

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

It seems that we have new tagging guidelines on etsy. Learn them, love them, use them.

[so not my picture!]
I'm wearing this today. It's a bit lighter than my usual winddefense skirt, but seems to work just as well. It fits best over the stomach.

Friday, September 21, 2007

I'm feeling torn. I wanted to go back to the farmer's market this weekend, but after sleeping all day today, I don't think so. Maybe the church sale next week?

Tuesday, September 18, 2007


*so* not my picture!

Sweet Bamboo Soap:

smell: like the best citrus in the world.
lather: a lot
in shower smell: very nice and intense.
out of shower: some lingering on skin, nice if you don't mind smelling all girly all day.
Size: 3 oz.
Notes: No clue what bamboo has to do with anything.

Sunday, September 09, 2007




There's a certain philosophy to destashing. While to a certain extent I believe in the creative chaos of the bead box, at a certain point you need to pare things down. I think that if you haven't used them in four months, it's time to destash them. When you clear out your beadbox, you make room for new beads and new ideas to come in.

Thursday, September 06, 2007

Rokali, the owner of etsy is featured in the new york times.


There is a new bill in congress dealing with copycats.
Of course, the context is different. Although copycats are argued about every single day on etsy, I think the relationship is different- as barely anyone can afford $1000 for a shoe with a label on it, and on etsy, the copier and the copiee are in the same marketplace. On the other hand, the real issue on etsy is that many of us use commercially available materials and techniques that are very basic. A lot of toes get stepped on because there are not that many different ways to make a pair of earrings or a bag.

Wednesday, September 05, 2007

There's a storque. I've noticed that I'm more of a link blogger. I don't craft very verbally. This pretty thing goes with that pretty thing, and that's the end of it.

Tuesday, September 04, 2007

moo cards


moo cards
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
I'm glad to have some cards that both show my work and have more than one of my sites on it.

Thursday, August 30, 2007


Today I made a new pair of earrings in the morning because yesterday night I was too tired to bead. I love it when a plan comes off.
Yay! Blog feature

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

I've been semiobsessed with matching sets lately. I usually don't do them, but I've created two within the last week. I've also been dreaming about lampwork beads.

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

One of those voting websites- just for crafts! You can tell what my new addiction will be.

Monday, August 27, 2007

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

beads...


what is this?
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
The story that goes with this picture is as follows:

lady on LJ: I am selling lovely tourmaline!
me:I've got monies!
lady: yay!
me:hey! this isn't tourmaline!
lady: wtf! It isn't!

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Hey, my hero has an etsy shop. Science fiction is love. You all should read Brown Girl in the Ring.

Monday, August 20, 2007

[definitely not my pic]
Today's Cookie Review:

Ullja's Assorted Cookies: 8 cookies sounded like a small amount for the price, but as each cookie is really big- it doesn't seem so bad any more. The body of the cookie was very soft and melted in my mouth. I ate orange flavored today, and the zest really added a kick to the cookies. You might only be able to have these 2 or 3 times a year, but it'd be great when you can.

Sunday, August 19, 2007

I'm splitting my website into two- one for jewelry only, and one for other items. The new jewelry site isn't completed, but here's a peek.

I snagged a treasury on etsy- all stars in honor of the starlight etsy bead theme of the week.

Thursday, August 16, 2007

As promised, my calendar outtakes. See what I'm talking about here:


Wednesday, August 15, 2007

The poster contest winners are in. Today I completed my shots for the calendar and tomorrow I'll post my outtakes.

Wednesday, August 08, 2007

Stellabella is talking to us. I've been slacking off a bit lately. I made two pairs of earrings yesterday, but have not photographed them. I don't think I can go to the farmer's market this week because of the heat and because of my final on Friday.

The most I can do lately is to blow my book fund on jewelry supplies.

Sunday, August 05, 2007

Today's Soap Review:

Venus and Vixen Oatmeal and Honey Soap:

Price: $1
Size:3 oz

Lather: almost none

Smell and Soap Experience:

Very nice in shower smell, nice homey oatmeal smell lingers on skin. Very scrubby bar. I smell like an oatmeal cookie.

Thursday, August 02, 2007

I'm having free shipping on all etsy items until August 10th because I've gotten 200 hearts.
Today's Soap Review:

Baby Legs Soap Sample: Good lather, shaved off well. Nice shave- smooth legs.

Monday, July 30, 2007

My last post was my 700th post to this blog. It seems that Vistaprint is having some customer service problems.. Be careful small business people.


Listen to the bunny.

Sunday, July 29, 2007

Monday, July 23, 2007

Now that the mail has run, I think I'll lay in bed and bead..

Sunday, July 22, 2007

The best part about etsy is the sense of community. I traded some beads to this lady, and I see that she has made earrings from them and made those earrings their avatar. I feel sort of like a fairy godmother.

Saturday, July 21, 2007

I'm noodling around with this talentdatabase thing. I am also being amused about ebay- even with best offer on some items, you can get offered full price.

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Today's Candy Review:

Today I got a package from cravelousianna. The caramels weren't melted all that much, a miracle with the heat inside our mailbox, and so I popped one in my mouth to enjoy the sugar. Very nice toffee like taste. The packaging was also attractive. I would give as a gift or eat a lot myself, but I try not to eat too much candy.

Monday, July 16, 2007

Today's Soap Review:
Crazy Age Apple Soap: A very crisp apple scent- smells good in the shower and stays on skin. Moderate lather. I believe my skin is vaguely softer now. Also can be used as a bathroom decoration.

Size: 5 oz
Price: 1.99

Sunday, July 15, 2007

Cassowary Jewelry and Finds has been all over the internet. Proud member of etsy bead and JET, two street teams on etsy, which are improving the image of jewelry on etsy, I have also participated in many great indie events such as Happily Handmade, The Sampler, and Totally Indie Coupons.

I've been showcased on many blogs: Indie Fixx, Kaskaad, Wickedly Chic, Roxi's Friends,The etsybead blog,Chateau Bizarre

Saturday, July 14, 2007

Treasury


Treasury
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
I fail at screen capping, but it is rare that I get a treasury
Got a treasury.

Friday, July 13, 2007

Chunky Necklace


Chunky Necklace
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
This necklace is full of items that I didn't expect to be as big as they were. I traded a pair of earrings and a bracelet for the wooden beads.

Thursday, July 12, 2007

Monday, July 09, 2007

Lost Earrings


Lost Earrings
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
I forgot to photograph these for weeks, but they are on etsy now.

Sunday, July 08, 2007

Not Delicious Candy!


Not Delicious Candy!
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
I like getting promos, oddly enough.

Monday, July 02, 2007

I'm getting addicted to Iliketotallyloveit.

Sunday, July 01, 2007

Sweet! One of my sk*rt stories got published.
Soap Review:

I got a sample of Nag Champa(sp?) soap from distilled rose. Good lather in bath, subtle bath scent, a bit stronger on the skin. I can't describe the smell- it's not floral or fruity,, I smell a sort of sweet type of clean now. Would buy it if available.

Thursday, June 28, 2007

What are these beads?

I can't for the life of me figure it out. I thought they were trade beads, but maybe not?
Finally, a good link to sk*rt

Monday, June 25, 2007

Golden Pearls


Golden Pearls
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
I think that the black background will become my trademark someday.

Sunday, June 24, 2007

There's a big marketing outrage going over at bentolunch on LJ. I use bento boxes for the farmer's market since it's a lot better to have little cut up strawberries, peanut butter crackers, etc on you instead of buying fast food.

Also, never procrastinate. I did and it rained and I have five things to photograph.

Saturday, June 23, 2007

To the person who stole the pet jewelry lady's keychain at the farmer's market:

When you steal from a vendor at the farmer's market, you're really not helping your local community. When a person vends at a farmer's market, a lot of the money goes back into the community. There's the booth fee, which helps the farmer's market keep going, encouraging local produce and crafters, which take less gas to get to market and thus are better for the environment. Any profit that people make at the market often either goes back to buy stuff at the market or to help support the local crafter- when you buy local, you help kids go through college, stay at home mothers surmount the wage gap, disabled people have decent work...there's so much value there. So boo on you for stealing.

No love,

shannon

Friday, June 22, 2007

I've started posting some of my stuff on Gumiyo. No clue if I'll get anything out of it, but the more exposure, the better,eh?
Soap Review:

Lather Lemongrass: A lot of lather, very little in shower smell, very subtle scent on skin. I really like the slight citrus smell. Special thanks to dad for the hotel soap.

Thursday, June 21, 2007

Is your gemstone a real stone? Also, olive jade is sepertine and african turquoise is jasper.

Sunday, June 17, 2007

More product reviews:

Venus and Vixen Vanilla Chai Body Milk: Be careful with this! I wasn't anticipating the thinness, put on too much and ended up smelling like dessert(it mixed with my cinnamon soap) all day. and not subtly either.

Lather Yuzu Bergamont Moisturizer : Smelled a little too fruity at first, but goes on subtle. Not the best thing ever, but pretty good for free.

Bright Green Earrings


Bright Green Earrings
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
Etsy seems to be fixed so I posted these earrings. 21 views so far, not so shabby!

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=6216552
I love this funny antihotlinking image

Friday, June 15, 2007

Etsy Party Pics

Thursday, June 14, 2007

Purple Spiral Earrings


Purple Spiral Earrings
Originally uploaded by cassowaryjewelry
If etsy ever is up this weekend, I'll list these earrings there.
Hey, My My is having a store opening.

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

I got a treasury! Of course, they are testing how many treasuries people will get before a disaster occurs.

Monday, June 11, 2007

Meringueshop tries to clear her name.
I've started a free shipping sale on my etsy store until 12 am CDT on Friday to celebrate my 100th heart.

Sunday, June 10, 2007

I saw that post too, and thought that jared shouldn't have posted with his badge because people would confuse his personal feelings with an Ok to copy others from etsy itself. Don't copy, please.
I've started a new flickr account for my jewelry pictures. Also, Pass made a new store for her (much) cheaper glass jewelry.
Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

new earrings up I hear gingko is trendy nowadays. One trend I'm seeing a lot of is domino art for jewelry. Although now even magnets are getting in on the action.

Friday, June 08, 2007

Etsy top sellers. I only have sold 26 items, so it's really inspriring to hear about those who have sold in the thousands on etsy.
A comparison between the showcase and relisting. When ebb and flow relisted she got exposure in several places: the time machine two, the fresh items on the buy page, the newly listed items on the bottom of the front page, and in the search and category pages.

Thursday, June 07, 2007

Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

I finally got this set up at my site I broke my little hand, so I'm debating super glue or getting a new one..
I've started selling on ebay again. It can be tough to pull several venues together, which is why I don't do more, even though the extra exposure doesn't hurt.

Tuesday, June 05, 2007

Awesome artist Jelene has a romantic comic themed pop painting up. Someone should make romance comics for today
I'm glad I'm not the only one who noticed this, but I guess more books are donated to the library since used copies are worth nothing.

Monday, June 04, 2007

More about the new treasury beta. All good quality treasuries here too.
Etsy has a new treasury in beta. Thread

Friday, June 01, 2007

I'm preparing for the farmer's market. I've got a zillion tags to put on.

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

I'm having a bought too many beads sale on etsy. 20% off everything with code toomanybeads

Tuesday, May 29, 2007

It's a hard life being an online business person. All my google base listings expired at once. For etsy I have to do them one by one, but at least my website lets me export the listings and I only have to type a few things in.

Saturday, May 26, 2007

Good Earth Soaps Chai Soap

Price: 4.25
Review: A large size bar, with a little lather in the bath. Good smell, and cinnamon fragrance lingers on skin.

Friday, May 18, 2007

Information about the May Trunk Show is here. Get 10% off on everything in participating stores!

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

I've started a layaway plan on etsy. Half down, half the next week.

Wednesday, May 02, 2007

Note: All my earrings are the same pair pictured, and have never been worn. In response to this thread.

Monday, April 30, 2007

Blog post on etsy trends. Thread on etsy trends. I love bell flower earrings! The thing with jewelry is that there are only so many ways to combine jewelry findings. Of course, many makers are also responding to larger trends. This sort of earring is getting popular. I saw them, so I decided to make my own version.

Saturday, April 28, 2007




New necklace up on my site

Friday, April 27, 2007


I've gotten 50 hearts on etsy! *happy* and posted a new item.
Etsy soap off: I'm a soap addict, and so I've sampled a few of the soaps on etsy.

Country Heart Samples: Great guest soaps- the fragrance stays on your skin. The clear ones last for a shorter time than the nonclear. Buying an actual bar of soap might be a better deal though. Price: 3.75

Lemon Poppy Seed from Daisycakes: Lots of lather, nice and scruby. Smells great but fragrance doesn't stay on skin. Good value, but the different soaps tend to sell out. Price: 2.75

Oatmeal, Milk and Honey Soap from Distilled Rose: Very large bar with nice scrubiness. Smells quite earthy in shower, and lends a subtle fragrance to the skin. Price: 3.75

Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Daisycakes has become an etsy featured seller! She makes very good soap. Lemonpoppy seed was the soap I bought and it was great for exfoliating. It was limited though, so she doesn't have any anymore.

Sunday, April 22, 2007

Etsy is back up if slow after an all day outage. Avenue beads has a nice glass 101 on annealing and an after party bead treasury.

Friday, April 20, 2007

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Etsy bead party treasury! All items 10% off at participating stores! Free gifts for over $30~

Monday, April 16, 2007

Bead party treasury!! The bead party is on the 21st and you're all invited!

Sunday, April 15, 2007

Mother's Day showcase spots are on sale.
Crafters of color corner:

Etsian ibec got press coverage in her local newspaper. I don't have a translation though.

I've been slow in setting this up, but I hope to have more information about crafters of color as I don't think that crafting is quite as white as people depict it as.
I have a kadoodle list.

Also, amazing pottery treasury. A front page contender?

Saturday, April 14, 2007

New etsy bead treasury- all earrings, all under $10! One of my earrings is featured.

Monday, April 09, 2007

Etsy email!

Dear Etsy Sellers,

This is a quick note to let you know that we've finalized the new DOs and DON'Ts of Etsy, which you can view by clicking the Help link in the main site header.

As we've grown and grown, the need for clearer rules has grown, too. We spent a lot of time sharing ideas and getting feedback from the community on our Forums, and the DOs and DON'Ts reflect this (we hope!). Our goal is to keep things growing nicely, encouraging community and kindness.

March set several records on Etsy: over 100,000 items sold in a single month, bringing the total items sold to well over half a million. That's a whole lot of crafting! On average over 1,000 new people a day join the community, which means more and more buyers.

Right now we're making some key changes and additions to the website. Our goal is to get things in shape for a flawless holiday season, and get us back on track adding the many many features everyone's been asking for (and we love to make for you).

Our goal is to grow big while staying small. We love the community we have and the site itself will always be something handmade. This month in the Etsy book club we're reading Ben & Jerry's Double Dip: How to Grow a Values-Led Business, which has many lessons to learn from.

Last but not least, if you're in town please come join us at Etsy Labs in Brooklyn on June 16th at 7pm, the night of the Renegade Craft Fair. We'll be having a party celebrating two years on the Web.


Our thanks to all the sellers who make Etsy what it is,
The Whole Etsy Crew

Rob, Chris, Haim, Jared, Matt, Adrian, Alex, Anda, Anna, Charles, Emily, Erin, Jay, Lauren, Lori, Mary, Mike, Sarah, Simon, Tim and Vanessa

Saturday, April 07, 2007

The Art Beads Scene monthly contest is going on. Just produce an item using art beads with the theme 'flight' and you can win hundreds of dollars worth of beads
Trailer for Handmade Nation. I'm inspired by this. I want to collect interviews with crafters of color now.

Friday, April 06, 2007

Thursday, April 05, 2007

The unofficial etsy news blog is up! Get the latest etsy news.

Wednesday, April 04, 2007

Sunday, April 01, 2007

Saturday, March 31, 2007

Hella Good is moving on. PSU's new virtuemart googlecheckout module. I can personally say the module works well- most of my site sales are processed through google checkout.
Ebay stores fee increase rumors. Sellers of vintage collectibles continue their discussion. My theory on the seller of the low priced new items is that people are starting to tighten their belts a little. Not a lot, but enough that a low price appeals to many people.
New etsy bead treasury- purple and black!
New etsy beads blog, with the exciting feature of the day!

I'm also having a huge free shipping sale!

Thursday, March 29, 2007

Wednesday, March 28, 2007

More treasuries: advertising for the jewelry party. I plan to bead up a storm, but my supplies aren't in yet

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Another etsy beaders treasury. Very beach feel, very serious jewelry. And another: from beaders with less than 10 sales!
Interesting ebay forum thread: what do young people collect? Also, another etsy bead treasury! Ooooh!!! When you're in a treasury, you do get a little star!!!

Monday, March 26, 2007

Newspaper story on ebay. Forum thread. I think a problem in basing one's ebay business around collectibles is that there's a limited audience for them. There's only so many people who collect a particular thing, and after a while, the audience is satiated. Another issue is that time keeps moving on. Maybe some items were rarer on ebay when the bulk of the boomers didn't know how to sell on ebay. But now, they all know how to use ebay, so there's a bigger supply than there is a demand. Of course, another issue is expectations. People expect to make 1000s of dollars a month on ebay, so when that doesn't happen, people get upset.
New etsy beaders treasury- bountiful beads!

Saturday, March 24, 2007

Interesting etsy article. I think sales from posting on the forums aren't just from just random posting, but from participating in events(I got a sale from the big destash thread), and joining street teams(I'm in etsy bead) which can help in treasury placement. I sometimes get sales or hearts from people who seem to be buyers only, but I do promote outside etsy.

Friday, March 23, 2007

Best. Blog. Ever.

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Next item sold over $10 gets free shipping. I'm finally getting around to fiddling with my stylehive.
Another etsy beaders treasury. Some of the unappreciated beadweavers are in this one. I don't bead weave, but I have much respect for those who do.

Monday, March 19, 2007

I'm #3 in the squidoffers!
My squidoo offer is up! Vote it up up up!

Sunday, March 18, 2007

Thursday, March 15, 2007

New social shopping site: iliketotallyloveit.com
IndieFixx's Spring Gift Guide is out~!

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Etsy makes it easy to find ACEOS with their new ACEO Street Team! Tiny pieces of art for your consumption! I dabble in painting(here is one I've done) but I'd really need to hone my technique before I could do ACEOs!
Etsy showcase spots on sale today noon EST.

Monday, March 12, 2007

Jelene featured on front page of etsy. Congrats Jelene! Full disclosure: she designed my promo stickers.

Friday, March 09, 2007

I got my sampler today:


Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting


Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting



I gave the vintage fabric to my mother to patch our quilts. Thank you reprodepot(?)
My lens is in popular lenses in DIY and Hobbies.

Thursday, March 08, 2007

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

Monday, March 05, 2007

My website is back up- now with the power of google checkout! Just click the buttons for ultra fast checkout.

Sunday, March 04, 2007

I've put new books on my amazon 'shop' and my ebay store has a nice Asian vibe to it now.
I'm still bummed about my domain issues. I am trying to transfer my domain, but it might take days to get up. But a place in a treasury for the new etsy beaders street team is helping soothe the pain.

Friday, March 02, 2007

Argle, bargle, it may take up to two days for my site to go back online, so I have redirected to my ebay store in the mean time. A new domain name and google checkout(beta) may be added. Try back Monday.
Etsy has a new constitution. I listed a new choker in the spirit of etsy. Handmade by me.

Wednesday, February 28, 2007

The gallery of the March sampler is out! See the other great contributers!
I did it! I got two showcase spots on etsy! Spots are going fast so snap them up!

Sunday, February 25, 2007

The March Sampler is going forward! Subscribe to their mailing list so that you can get future samplers. I might try for April's sampler too!

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

I got my totally indie coupons today. I wasn't expecting the huge box of coupons I got. I'll have to make my first coupon pack tommorow

Saturday, February 17, 2007

As I put together's this week's newsletter, I saw that it had almost been a year since I had started using my mailing list in its current form. I nearly have 500 subscribers now.

Thursday, February 15, 2007

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

I'm having a sale until the 21st on the anime section. Everything is 10% off.

Monday, February 12, 2007

The Happily Handmade Giveaway will have 51 winners- 50 regular gift box winners and 1 special grand prize box winner. You can enter by clicking on the Happily Handmade logo on my site.

Also, it seems that google and paypal are competing with rebates, but with Cassowary Jewelry and Finds, you win. I take both. However, google checkout's $10 for a first time purchase of at least ten dollars expires Feb 15th.

Sunday, February 11, 2007

I've been updating my etsy shop. Birthstone and easter bracelets are on sale.

Saturday, February 10, 2007

Friday, February 09, 2007

I'm so excited! I just made my happily handmade giveaway page. I can't publish it for you all to see until Feburary 12th, but I can't wait. They have sneak peaks on what you could win at their website

Wednesday, February 07, 2007




I have a lot of auctions this week. 80s seems to be the order of the day

Monday, February 05, 2007

My shopcast was featured on the thisnext blog.
It really was like 60 degrees in the winter when I typed that rec.

Sunday, February 04, 2007

Ok, my cart is back up. Here is how you make an order on my site. First you click the add to cart button. When you want to checkout, go to the checkout button on the top of the site. If new, fill out your infomation(we never share it with anyone else) and then click registration on the bottom. Then choose your payment type- google checkout, paypal and money order.
My cart is down for the time being, so for orders email me at seweary @ gmail.com and I'll invoice you(google checkout,paypal and money order are taken here)

Saturday, February 03, 2007

Friday, February 02, 2007

I have my indie recs list for this week up. Yesterday I talked about getting some gallery space in Memphis. Wish me luck.

Sunday, January 21, 2007

My Thisnext list for this week is up! I create these every week. To get the week's new list, special coupons and always know what's going on at Cassowary Jewelry, I recommend you join my weekly mailing list.




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Friday, January 19, 2007

Business owners! The DMOZ's suggest a site is back up.

Tuesday, January 16, 2007

I was featured on Roxi's Independant Designer Friends.She also posts lists of her indie favorites on thisnext.

Monday, January 15, 2007

I'm Secret Pal Friendly- that means that if you put on your order comments that you are a secret pal or a secret Santa I will send the package out with the name just 'secret Santa' and my business address.
I signed up for the happily handmade giveaway. I'll have to make a happily handmade giveaway page.

Sunday, January 14, 2007

Woo! I'm confirmed for totally indie coupons! Hopefully I can get into the Happily Handmade giveaway tomorrow. Wish me luck!

Saturday, January 13, 2007

Friday, January 12, 2007

My new indie picks list is up. and my new mailing list should be out tomorrow. Now just to upload the eBay listings I put in turbolister this morning and I should be done.

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Now after fooling around in the backend(you all bring your own jokes) I've made it easier to find the paypal and money order options on the checkout.
Kimino Momo is having a wholesale prices sale on her site. I'm hoping to be able to get into the sampler for feburary or march. I'm also preparing for the happily handmade giveaway.

Sunday, January 07, 2007

I have 2 ebay listings for faux pearl earrings ending tomorrow. Check them out.

Saturday, January 06, 2007

I'm also listing up a storm on amazon. I have 32 items listed now.
Two new bracelets up. I think my hard work is paying off.
Ah, finally my feed up on my site. I'm going to have to work harder on my blog now.
DMOZ submit is down.

Also, information about art jewelry.

Etsy has a great Zelda 2 error page.

Friday, January 05, 2007

Even though I'm on a diet, I ordered spoon fudge. I'm going to be a future fatty-chan for sure.
Apparently there's an indie craft documentary being made.
My new indie recs list is out. The next list may be generated by my mailing list members.

Thursday, January 04, 2007

Rates for priority mail And probably for first class mail as well. I may have to raise my shipping prices, which include more than just the shipping price. I also put in for the cost of tape, bubble mailers, shipping software and promotional materials. Why don't I just do exact shipping? Because I know that if I'm losing 50 cents on every package, and I mail out say, 25 a month...yea, I could have had two good dinners out with that cash.

Wednesday, January 03, 2007

Ebay fees will increase in 2007.
Encidia saves the day. I had three media mail packages to send out(2 books and a CD) and before, I woud have had to stand in line. The line was out the door at the post office today, and I had to circle around twice to get a parking space. But having my postage already paid, I could just toss them in the chute and get on with my day.

Tuesday, January 02, 2007

Monday, January 01, 2007

I've gotten a ton of faux pearl earrings in. My other jewelry section is nearly as big as my jewelry. I should fix this with new year's day shopping.