Sleeping in...what's that??

I was so looking forward to sleeping in today and like clockwork I was up after 6 hours of sleep...uuuggghhh! What happened to the days when I could sleep for 12 hours, oh how I wish I could do that again.

I don't have a lot planned for the day. My boys are clam digging with some friends and I'm still in my pajamas sipping on a much needed cup of coffee. Oh, I received the check today to get my roof done..woohoo! If you don't remember, the roof over the deck collapsed from the heavy snowfall. It ruined the BBQ, my deck furniture and the air conditioner, so I'll be replacing those items too. I loved my deck furniture and am hoping that I can replace it easily.

I've added more stock to my Shophandmade store at http://shijewels.shophandmade.com/ I've only listed my custom made items there...these are things that I constantly make so yes I have them in my Etsy store as well. I do really love Shophandmade but the traffic there is slow. I checked out http://artfire.com but they are almost as over filled with jewelry as Etsy is, but it's still a venue that I may consider.

So here's a question to my readers...where do you sell your wares and what are your experiences with them?

Well I'm off to get ready for the day and to get out of the pajamas....have a good one!

All of My Eggs in One Basket

Lately it's been really slow on Etsy, and I've even done some tests with my listings to see if it would make a difference. Nada! So it's really got me thinking about having all of my eggs in one basket. I've started to list more on ShopHandmade (the picture above is a pair that I just listed their last night). I've had views there, but no sales yet. I figure I'll probably be listing about 2 items a day or every other day there to fill up my store. They're still in their Beta testing period, so I know that it will probably be awhile before things start taking off there, but it's exciting to think that my shop is part of an innovative online venue.

I often wonder how some of the older (sellers who've been there for years) artisan jewelers are doing? Are they selling as often as they used to? If not, do they think it's because the jewelry side of it is so flooded? Or, do they think it's because of the economy? I personally feel that people are afraid to part with their money right now...and believe me I completely understand! I no longer purchase items that aren't necessary....or aren't needed. I'm fortunate though because "jewelry" is my second job, I can hold out until the economy improves, but I really feel for those that depend on this for a source of income.

I'm not giving up on Etsy, I love that site, it's been very good to me, but right now I just want to test the waters with other venues. Really you have nothing to lose listing on Shophandmade because it's completely free.

ShopHandmade.com

Well....after much thought I've made the leap to list on ShopHandmade.com . I've only listed one pendant there so far but should be listing more as I get more familiar with the site and more products made. The pendant that I have listed there is a pendant that I also sell on Etsy, but I have 5 of them already made, so all is okay if I sell either one of them. It's a pretty cool site, and not to take away from Etsy but I really like that it focuses on an Eco-friendly environment. So check it out and stop by My Store there too!

I did a screen shot of the front page and my pendant was featured on it (though I think they do that for all new listings), I thought it was pretty cool that it was on the front page, unlike Etsy. Really in order to get on the front page on Etsy you have to be featured in a treasury that catches the eye one of the Etsy admins.

I'll keep you posted on how it works out.....Ohh I forgot to mention that it costs .25 cents to list or you can get a sponsor and it's free, 5 free photos and...this is the big one....you can decide how much you want to pay ShopHandmade when your item sells...and that fee is anywhere from 0-100% of your sale cost. All I can say for that is WOW! No, I didn't choose 0% I chose 1%. You're probably asking why give them anything if you don't have to?? Well, because they are donation based, so to keep running they need donations so there's my answer plus I really like what they stand for and how they advertise...1% is nothing!