But because I have a day job and I'm not able to spend a significant amount of time on my shop and it's promotion, my traffic numbers are not where I would like them to be. Other then spamming my facebook friends and wearing stuff around, hoping that at some point something will catch someone's eye and they'll buy it, the eyes that see my work are few. So far that's only been the case three times that friends/family have bought something off of my shop. And at that rate, it isn't going to help me make any type of revenue back.
Now don't get me wrong, I really enjoy what I do for my hobbies, however at some point I need to earn back the hundreds and hundreds of dollars I've invested over the years in supplies. And that comes by increasing traffic to my shop. Now I'm sure if I had the time I really could get into the head of etsy and do the research and figure out how to promote my shop and get the traffic flowing... but time is the enemy here. So until I suddenly become a money tree and can quit my day job, I get to flounder around in the etsy world trying to figure it out on my own.
That being said, I have another showcase spot coming up this Wednesday. All in all by selling that 1 pair of gloves I made up for buying both showcase spots. Which in the end helps me feel like I didn't completely throw away $14; we'll really know how I feel after Wednesday has come and past and the earring part of my shop is up for showcase.
But, I'm sure what you really come here for is the pictures. Well that's why I go to any blog anyway, if it doesn't have pictures it very rarely holds my attention. Call it the 2 year old in me or the artist, I'm sure it's a combination of both.
This piece is something that took me quite a while to put together. As most of my other steampunk themed necklaces seemed to fly together this one did not flow as easily. In fact it probably took me over a month to craft it, playing with different combinations of what I thought looked good together and what didn't. I finally got so frustrated one day that I became quite determined to finish it and get it up on the site. Though I've finished it, I'm still not quite sure how I feel about it. But I did wear it to work the day after I finished it and was pleasantly surprised at how many compliments I got on it. It really does have a eclectic feel to it.
It would also be nice to have a model other then myself... or at least a tripod and a studio light. Having better photography on my adds I'm sure would really help for aesthetic appeal. I'm a visual being and I know that I will pop onto an add if I like the thumbnail. If the lighting or angle is bad I tend to keep scrolling and never take a look. The problem is since I work an 11 hour day I get home after dark, which means I need to take any photos either on the weekends or at night... and the light provided by the ceiling light in the room I rent just doesn't cut it. It casts a yellow low quality light that I believe just cheapens the images. So yes, a tripod and mobile light source (other then a lamp) would be a good thing if I'm stuck taking pictures of myself. Blurring out all the scarring on my chest gets old also. But having a model at my whim would be amazing. Though in reality it is much easier just to take pictures of myself because I don't have to work around someone else's schedule.
Anyway I realized this weekend that all of my pieces are getting bigger with each new one... especially the last one (above). I figured it might be good to tone it down a bit, which in turn would tone down the price a bit as well. Having a variety in price is always a good thing, at least in my book it is. So Saturday evening I made this:
I like the way it turned out. This is the first item that I'm using jewels to accent with. I was a little apprehensive about the jewels at first, but I think they work. The back of the piece is a part from a projector I bought from a thrift store for $3 and tore apart. I have all kinds of bits and pieces from it that I'll be using in future projects. It was the perfect size about an inch and a half by an inch and a half.
Anyway until next time...
