Simply Shiny Life

From time to time, I profile fellow artisans from Artfire and etsy. Today’s artisan profile belongs to Cindy from Jewelry Tales.  Cindy is also a fellow member on the Starving Artists Jewelry forum.  If you’d like to chat with like minded, seriously talented artists, join us.

Etsy shop link: Jewelry Tales
Name: Cynthia Newcomer Daniel of Jewelry Tales
Blog: Jewelry Tales: http://jewelrytales.blogspot.com/
Behind the Scenes at Jewelry Tales: http://cindydaniel.blogspot.com/
Author of SATeam Blog: http://starvingartiststeam.blogspot.com/

Where did you start and how did you learn to make the products you are creating today?
I began making jewelry at a very young age; honestly, I cannot remember ever not making jewelry! Both my my parents were lapidaries and jewelry makers; they used to let me do some of the rough work for them, and, as a special treat, I would be given a bit of casting wax to carve, or a few stones to use in my own “designs.” We had a hug box full of bits and pieces; beads, settings that hadn’t worked out, pieces of wire; you name it, and it was in there. I was always allowed to use anything I liked from that box, and I liked a lot!

What are your favorite materials?
I’ve had so many different favorites! These days, I’m very interested in using seed beads, but I like to combine them with other media. I have an amazing collection of lampwork beads; I can’t resist them. I also like using metals: gold, silver, and lately, I’ve been drawn to brass.
What are your favorite pieces to create?
I love to make big, over the top pieces; the more ornate, the better. But in between making that sort of thing, I’ll often find myself drawn to making things with simple, clean lines. I look at it as a way of “cleaning my palate” between courses.

What’s been your biggest handmade/creative oops?
I don’t believe in oopsies. If something isn’t going the way I thought it would, it’s time for me to change what I’m thinking. I was blessed to have a very creative grandmother; one of my earliest memories of working under her tutelage was of her telling me that if I didn’t like the way it was going, the problem was mine, not the work. The work was fine; I was the one who needed an attitude adjustment! I’ve never forgotten that, and I find that the things that go “wrong” are often my best pieces; all I have to do is relax and go where they want to go. That’s when real creativity happens!

What inspires you?
Everything. Ideas come from things I see, things I hear, and things that I would like to see. I have more ideas than time; I tried to keep a notebook once, but I quickly realized that I would never go back to it, so it was a waste of time for me. Once an idea is discharged in a sketch, I’m done with it. I work on the fly, letting inspiration happen during the whole process. I never know what something will look like before I start.

How do you describe your design style?
Insane. I get a general idea: sea, time, ornate; and then I go to my closet and pull things out. Everything that appeals to me at that moment, and might possibly fit my theme, comes out and goes into as many trays as I need. Then I start. Sometimes I start with the focal, and other times I may start with the body of the piece. Wherever I start, I build outwards from there. I don’t have a plan, I let things develop organically. Sometimes I have to set things down and wait a bit before I know what to do next; I’ve learned never to rush my process. When I’m working on one of my big pieces, I often “bead through” and make several smaller pieces before the big one is done. The worst part about this sort of process is getting everything put away when I’m done. I have learned the hard way that if I don’t put it all back immediately, I lose things!

What artists have influenced you, and how?
Monet, with his use of color and inference; Picasso, because he’s just so much fun; Dali, because he’s crazier than I am; G.H. Rothe, with her strength and use of line and movement; and pretty much everything from the Art Nouveau period, with its lushness, line, and sensuality.

What advice would you give to an artist just starting out? What do you wish someone would have told you when you first started selling online?
Play. Don’t take yourself, or your art, seriously. Don’t try to be an artist; try to be a child. Enjoy your materials, enjoy using them, have fun. If it isn’t fun, set it aside and do something else. Art must be loved. If you don’t love it, take it apart immediately.

How do you spend time when you are NOT creating?
Gardening, wandering, and reading. I love to do things that have possibilities and uncertainties. I like not knowing how things will turn out, and am at my happiest when I have no clue what will happen next.

Thanks Cindy!

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A couple of weeks ago, I posted an article about some of the differences in how your handmade items from Artfire and etsy appeared in Google results.  You can find the full text of that article here .

Etsy has since listened to it’s particularly angry seller base and updated the title structure in our item pages. This title structure is important as our items are listed in the google search results in the fashion that etsy has enabled the set up.

If you remember previously, etsy’s title structure was:

Handmade <Category Name> on Etsy – <My Item Title>, <My Shop Name >

This was problematic at best for sellers, because Google and other search engines return results titles that range from 60-75 spaces. The Etsy model added about 30 characters with the “Handmade (category) on etsy bit”, my shop name adds 15 characters, which only left 15 to 30 for my actual item title.

The new etsy title structure was rolled out around June 18th. It is

<My Item Title> by <My Shop Name> on Etsy

Since that date, I’ve been testing Google search results to see if my items started to appear with the new title structure. Some have, most still have not.  Items that I haven’t renewed lately are still appearing in the old etsy title structure. Recent items I’ve added or renewed are finally appearing in the new structure.  This is frustrating as it appears I will need to renew, at 20 cents per item, all the handmade jewelry in my etsy shop, in order for it to be updated in the Google listings. This isn’t the case with my Artfire listings, however. I updated ALL my listing titles in both locations at about the same time. Meaning, I edited the titles to ALL my etsy listings and almost all of my Artfire listings. Guess what? The Artfire listings I updated are already appearing updated and correct in the Google search results. Rock on Artfire technical crew.

Here is an example from my etsy shop: These earrings used to appear in google searches as:
Handmade Jewelry on Etsy – Handmade Aqua Teal Peruvian Amazonite ……
(Note: Google inserts …… once the character limit has been reached in a title)

I renewed them last week, so now they appear as:
Handmade Aqua Amazonite Dangle Earrings – Amanda by …

Not perfect, as my name still doesn’t appear in the results title, but better. Looks like I still need to work a bit on the item titles. One thing to note. Having the ‘on etsy’ at the end of the title effectively cuts in out of the results title all together if you item title and shop name are 60+ characters together. Keep that in mine when editing your item titles to make better use of the available character space.

Unfortunately, my shop name is long. If I had suspected how it might impact SEO down the road, I’ll bet I’d have chosen a shorter name in the beginning. Live and learn I guess.

So what do you need to do?

• Find an item in your shop and perform a test search using the title in Google to see what appears
• Review your Google analytics to see what search terms are bringing buyers to your shop
• Ask yourself how YOU would search for that item if you were a buyer. Use those terms in your item title.
• Count the number of characters in your shop name. Add that number to 4 (The number of characters, including spaces for the word by, which is included in the title in Google results). Subtract that number from 60. The result is more or less the number of characters you have left to use in your item title. For instance in this item from my Etsy Shop:

Handmade Gold Fill Labrodorite Earrings -Stormy Seas

There are 52 characters including spaces in that title. I’d expect the Google search result to be:
Handmade Gold Fill Labrodorite Earrings -Stormy Seas by ……………
About 55 characters total because Google won’t cut the ‘ShinyAdornments’ shop title in half. It just excludes it all together if it exceeds the character number limit.

If I want my shop name to appear in the title, I need to make the overall title shorter. Perhaps edit out the Stormy Seas name from the title all together.  If I edited out the “Stormy Seas” part, which, less face it, potential buyers probably aren’t using in the search criteria, my title would most likely appear as:

Handmade Gold Fill Labrodorite Earrings by ShinyAdornments on …..
about 61 characters

Hope that helps a bit. Feel free to email me, or you can find me on plurk,  if you have questions.

I went to lunch last week with a good friend who is also a Mom. We were talking about so called ‘good’ and ‘bad’ words. Stupid was one on her list that was not allowed to be said in her house. So, given that requirement, here are a few dozen ways of calling someone stupid, without actually saying that word.

1. A few clowns short of a circus.
2. A few fries short of a Happy Meal.
3. A few beers short of a six-pack.
4. Dumber than a box of hair.
5. A few peas short of a casserole.
6. Doesn’t have all her Corn Flakes in one box.
7. The wheel’s spinning, but the hamster’s dead.
8. One Fruit Loop shy of a full bowl.
9. One taco short of a combination platter.
10. A few feathers short of a whole duck.
11. All foam, no beer.
12. The cheese slid off her cracker.
13. Body by Fisher, brains by Mattel.
14. Has an IQ of 2, but it takes 3 to grunt.
15. Couldn’t pour water out of a boot with instructions on the heel.
16. An intellect rivaled only by garden tools.
17. As smart as bait.
18. Chimney’s clogged.
19. Doesn’t have all his dogs on one leash.
20. Doesn’t know much, but leads the league in nostril hair.
21. Elevator doesn’t go all the way to the top floor.
22. Forgot to pay her brain bill.
23. Her sewing machine’s out of thread.
24. His antenna doesn’t pick up all the channels.
25. His belt doesn’t go through all the loops.
26. If she had another brain, it would be lonely.
27. Missing a few buttons on his remote control.
28. No grain in the silo.
29. Proof that evolution CAN go in reverse.
30. Receiver is off the hook.
31. Several nuts short of a full pouch.
32. Skylight leaks a little.
33. Slinky’s kinked.
34. Surfing in Nebraska.
35. Too much yardage between the goal posts.

Shiny Spotlight Thursday
There are some really talented artists, designers and creators that sell their handmade items on Artfire and etsy. I thought it might be nice to highlight some of the things that caught my eye this week while browsing.

Clicking on each image will link you to the seller of each item, if you decide you simply must purchase it.

If you haven’t opened an account on etsy to purchase handmade items, you really should. Also, if you haven’t checked out Artfire in a while, you need to browse the new shops and the new studio designs. Artfire doesn’t require you to open an account to purchase handmade goods. Easy peasy.

This week’s selections were inspired by the Summer sun. Enjoy.

Sunshine Citrus Natural Soap from Sudstress

Drops of Sunshine Photographic Print from MNH Photography

The Traveler from Population One

Sunny Flowers Journal from Awaken Journaling

Look for Shiny Spotlight Thursday every week.

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From time to time, I profile fellow artisans from Artfire and etsy. Today’s artisan profile belongs to Sue  from Dancing Wind Designs.  Sue is also a fellow member on the Starving Artists Jewelry forum.  If you’d like to chat with like minded, seriously talented artists, join us.

Artfire shop link: http://www.artfire.com/users/dancingwinddesigns
Name: Sue Lovett
Blog: http://dancingwinddesigns.blogspot.com/
Location: S.E. Georgia coast

Where did you start and how did you learn to make the products you are creating today?
I discovered seed beads when I was 9 and got my first bead loom for Christmas. It didn’t take long to use up all the beads, so I cut up what I had made and re-used the beads. Little did I know what good practice that would turn out to be. Since seed beads were hard to find back then, and cutting up my work was not fun, I set the loom aside for a few decades as it happened.

What are your favorite materials?
My favorite materials to work with are seed beads, of course. LOL! I also love gemstones, cabs and crystals-putting them in beaded bezels. agates, gemstones and rocks have also been an addiction of mine since I was small.

What are your favorite pieces to create?
Right now, my favorite things to make are spiral chains-single, double and triple-to hang the beaded cabs and focals on. I love the way a spiral can be beaded to mimic the pattern and color of the focal stone or cab. I also love making earrings-especially the tassel earrings I make.

What’s been your biggest handmade/creative oops?
That was abut 3 1/2 years ago when I first seriously started trying to sell my work to local shops. One day, I went into a shop, wearing a choker I had loomed for myself. I had only taken a little bit of the jewelry I had with into the shop and they were interested in seeing more. I was headed out of the shop to the car, when I felt something “trickle” down my back. I felt it again as I got to the car. I reached behind my neck and my hand came away with beads in it!! I freaked out. One of the bottom threads on my choker had come undone. I had some tape in my purse, taped up the loose end, went back into the shop and made my first sale.

What inspires you?
I am inspired by the colors and patterns in nature. I look at a stone I want to use as a focal and as I am going through my beads, pulling colors out, the “pattern” forms in my head. OF course, sometimes my muse will decide she doesn’t like what we had planned and things get changed, but for the better.

How would you describe your design style?
I think my style is simple and everyday wearable. I try to make pieces that can be worn to work or for a casual evening out and look good either way.

What artists have influenced you and how?
One bead artist who has been a big inspiration is my friend, Erin Simonetti. She has encouraged me when I was down, rejoiced with me when my work has reached a new level and commiserated with me over spilled beads.

What advice would you give to someone just starting out?
Sales won’t happen overnight. Don’t give up because it takes time and it isn’t always easy. When I started selling online I wish someone had told me that I would be spending just as much time marketing my jewelry as I do creating it.

What are you doing when you aren’t creating?
I am probably either marketing and thinking about creating, watching baseball and thinking about creating or gardening and thinking about creating.

Thanks Sue!

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Remember a few weeks back when I told you I’d be attending a silversmithing class this summer and asked for advice about what tools and supplies I needed?

Well, I’ve attended two classes and have started assembling some projects. Can I tell you it is MUCH less aggravating than I thought it might be? I was REALLY excited about being able to attend this session, but kind of worried that I wouldn’t like it. I don’t have the greatest amount of patience, an attribute unfortunately picked up, in spades (LOL) by my son.  I was worried that the amount of detail work and precision needed would exceed the satisfaction in the creative process, and it wouldn’t be fun. I’ve discovered otherwise though… and I am REALLY enjoying it so far.

Ok, so, it’s only been two classes. I, ahem, may perhaps be underestimating the forthcoming aggravation factor. 

I thought I’d share some of the cabs I’ve wrapped in bezel wire so far, an assortment of some awesome fused glass cabs, a lampwork bead and some stone cabs. Not sure if I’ll make them into rings or necklace pendants. The bezel wire has been soldered, but I haven’t soldered the backs on yet. I’ll do that next week. I’ve also got a couple more projects cut out as I have an idea for a heart necklace. I just need to persuade hubby to help me set up space in the garage for the torch.

Oh, and can I tell you how much I am CRAVING a fordham rotary tool? The foot pedal speed variation rocks! Here are some of the tools and supplies I need to find a new home in my work space for. (The chunky stuff in the carpet is PlayDoh as my son sometimes accompanies me while I am working. )

What do you think? Handmade pendants or rings?

TGIF everyone!!
Signs That You May Now be an adult. Sad really. 

Your house plants are alive, and you can’t smoke any of them.

Having sex in a twin bed is out of the question.

You keep more food than beer in the fridge.

6:00 AM is when you get up, not when you go to bed.

You hear your favorite song in an elevator.

You watch the Weather Channel.

Your friends marry and divorce instead of “hook up” and “break up.”

You go from 130 days of vacation time to 14.

Jeans and a sweater no longer qualify as “dressed up.”

You’re the one calling the police because those %&@# kids next door
won’t turn down the stereo.

Older relatives feel comfortable telling sex jokes around you.

You don’t know what time Taco Bell closes anymore.

Your car insurance goes down and your car payments go up.

You feed your dog Science Diet instead of McDonald’s leftovers.

Sleeping on the couch makes your back hurt.

You take naps from noon to 6 PM

Dinner and a movie is the whole date instead of the beginning of one.

Eating a basket of chicken wings at 3 AM would severely upset, rather than settle, your stomach.

A $14.00 bottle of wine is no longer “pretty good stuff.”

You actually eat breakfast food at breakfast time.

“I just can’t drink the way I used to”replaces “I’m never going to drink that much again.”

90% of the time you spend in front of a computer is for real work.

You drink at home to save money before going to a bar.

You read this entire list looking desperately for one sign that doesn’t apply to you and can’t find one.  See, sad really.

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Shiny Spotlight Thursday
There are some really talented artists, designers and creators that sell their handmade items on Artfire and etsy. I thought it might be nice to highlight some of the things that caught my eye this week while browsing. It’s sad really, that my paycheck is not able to adequately keep up with my great finds.

Clicking on each image will link you to the seller of each item, if you decide you simply must purchase it.

If you haven’t opened an account on etsy to purchase handmade items, you really should. Also, if you haven’t checked out Artfire in a while, you need to browse the new shops and the new studio designs. Artfire doesn’t require you to open an account to purchase handmade goods. Easy peasy.

This week was inspired by my desire to take another cruise. Somewhere in the Caribbean, for a long, long time.

Handmade Cotton Wide Brim Sun Hat – CORAL POPPY FLORAL PRINT by NadineNewYork

Handmade LUND Everyday Orange Purse from IkaBags

Handmade Art: Caribbean Time, Limited Edition Watercolor, by Laura Trevey

Just Peachy Kiss(tm) Lip Balm From Coquette Bath & Home

Look for Shiny Spotlight Thursday every week.

Don’t miss a single post.
Follow this blog:  Click here
Want to receive the latest Simply Shiny post via email? Click here
Want to be notified of the latest ShinyAdornments artisan handmade jewelry sales and special events only available to newsletter subscribers? Sign up for my newsletter.

If you missed it previously, here is my list of venues to sell handmade online.  I’ll be updating it with June’s numbers soon.

Wow! SEO has been an especially hot topic in the world of handmade venues this week.  Etsy and Artfire have very different positions about how your item titles are submitted to Google.

And why should you care? Well, because potential shoppers that know nothing about Artfire or Etsy look for handmade  items to purchase, where? Google. Sellers NEED their items to be easily found and easily recognizable by the average shopper.

Here is an example from my shops to illustrate the differences between the two sites.
Pools of Fire – Handmade Orange Lampwork Bangle

I used these search terms on Google:
Handmade Orange Lampwork Bangle

This is how Etsy structures the handmade item titles:

Handmade <Category Name> on Etsy – Item Title, Shop Name

So, my etsy item appears in the google search as:
Handmade Jewelry on Etsy – Pools of Fire – Handmade bright orange …

This is how Artfire structures the handmade item title:

Item Title, <Artfire Artisan>, My Studio Name

So, my Artfire item appears in the google search as:
Pools of Fire – Handmade Orange ArtFire Artisan ShinyAdornments …

Hmm, neither are perfect, but the Etsy title is worse for the seller I think. Google and other search engines return results titles that range from 60-75 spaces. The Etsy model adds in around 30 characters with the Handmade (category) on etsy bit, the Artfire model adds 15. This means my actual item title and my shop name continually are over Google’s character limit with Etsy’s model.  Developing a brand means that I need my shop name continually associated with my items in search. As I have a longer name, Etsy’s new model effectively nullifies this.

If you’d like to read a LOT more info from some pretty angry etsy sellers, here are a list of Etsy forum posts for you to peruse.

http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=6186063
ttp://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=6185215
http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=6183719
http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=6185314
http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=6185600

http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=6186413

Artfire is addressing it head on (of COURSE they are. ) with a “Meet Artfire’s SEO/SMO Team” event in their forum.  Also, Tony, an Artfire admin has posted this info regarding their tagging methodology:
“Hey there! Working on a Sunday. We wanted to get a jumpstart on our SEO guides. I just made some additional changes based on the feedback we see from our sellers and wanted to update you. We’ll be doing full official info next week. But, for those of you following along. . .

Check out the page source on your items now.

The title is still generated based like it was before with the title first, then username, then ArtFire then Main category.

But now the author is (drum roll) username on artfire for studios and items

and

the meta keywords are now (bigger drum roll) the first 10 of your tags plus (coming soon) artfire and the main category.

A couple of things

A) This means you can choose what’s important

1) only want your title for SEO? = use all 70 characters

2) only want your title and username? = use 70 minus your username characters for title

3) want all of that and ARTFIRE!!!? =( good idea in my opinion) use 70 – username – 6 (for Artfire)

4) Want the main cat in there too? Use 70- username – 6 for Artfire – main cat for title.

B) don’t dupe your tags – our search engine won’t give it anymore weight and it WILL kill your search engine placement cause it makes the google people angry (no kidding steam out their ears and everything).

C) The first word or phrase of your title is your best keyword for people searching for you item. e.g . “turquoise bracelet”

D) MAKE SURE you use that keyword in the first sentence of your description – That will generate the summary on the search return with your first few sentences of description. If you DON”T do that – the spider will look for other text that has the keyword.

E) This method allows for total customization of your SEO or we do what we think is best for those who don’t want to bother. YOU GET TO CHOOSE. Freedom to choose your own path, we think that is the key.

Formal updates and guides will follow this week. . . stay tuned.”

So what does this mean for you? Make your displeasure heard at the Etsy forums. Comment in the Artfire forums about what is working and what isn’t for you. Tweak your item titles based on what you know. For instance, in the examples above, I’m going to slightly tweak my Artfire titles to make better use of the characters I’m given.  Use online tools to review your titles for length and edit as necessary with the information above. A good one to try is http://www.scrubtheweb.com/cgi-bin/webtools/meta-check.cgi

UPDATE: Here is Part Two