Etsy, Bonanzle, Artfire

One of the things I love on a Saturday morning is to hop in the car and go estate and garage saling.
Etsy is a wonderful site, but with the 20 year vintage rule many of the neat things I find do not qualify for my AgelessThings store.
I have an ebay account, but with the fees they charge it did not meet my needs.
I found bonanzle. I opened what they call a booth. I can list anything there. I am still finding my way around. It is alot like etsy, with forums and favorites and their form of front page treasury. But there are significant differences too. They have what is called a bonanza, where you can have a sale once a month. Haven't tried that yet. You can also hold an auction, haven't tried that either.
After much thought about both my AgelessThings on etsy and my AgelessThings on bonanzle I decided to concentrate on clothing. I love purses and shoes. I also find great designer clothing now and then.
The thing I find about clothing is that it is hard to photograph without a beautiful model. Although I am beautiful in many ways, I am older and starting to show signs of wear. Also that would leave my husband to take all the pictures. He is a great guy, but he already invests enough time to my projects. A man needs his space.
I have another store on etsy called BusyBeadLady. In it I sell the handmade jewelry that I make in my spare time. I really love doing this, but with all the competition on the internet it is a full time job promoting. I also list any vintage jewelry I find in my travels.
I also have a store on Artfire called BusyBeadLady. I started as a paying member, then downgraded to a free membership. I feel that having this store is kind of a waste of my time. It's not that artfire is a bad site, I only can list 10 items for free and nobody really visits and I have not made a sale in almost a year. I do not invest much here and therefore don't get much back.
So on a nice Saturday morning, I hop in the car and I go to the local thrift stores, estate sales and garage sales. It is a nice break from the business of selling online. But then I get home, take pictures, list, double check for sales, promote, ect., ect.
Gosh I love doing this.

9 Months Later, The Baby is Born

On July 11, 2009, my etsy store, BusyBeadLady, has been opened for 9 months.

Nine months ago, the seed was planted and fertilized by a brief encounter with the Martha Stewart show. The idea that there was a place to show and possibly sell my product, was romantic and irresistible.

As with anyone finding out that they are about to have a baby, I tried to find out as much as I could about the process. Oh the excitement of a new adventure! Of course my baby was going to be the most perfect, desirable baby ever born.

Over the last 9 months, my baby has grown in the belly of etsy. I give it the nutrition of listing, blogging and twittering. I brag to everyone about it on the forums and chat rooms. I check it's health with site optimizers and google analyst.

Being the proud mother has a set back. When nobody views my baby, it makes me sad. Am I a good mother? Where did I go wrong? Then I think of all there is left to do do to give my baby every chance in this cyber world, better pictures and descriptions. Perhaps remaking the item. Is the pricing right? Am I showing my baby in dirty diapers or giving it the scrubbed, baby powder look that will attract the attention it deserves.

As with any child, the more love and respect I give my store, the more I will receive back in the end.

As we embark on our life together, mother and child will grow. Hopefully my child will take care of me well into my old age.

WHERE DOES YOUR INSPIRATION COME FROM?

In most of the interviews that I read of etsy sellers, there is one question that scares the heck out of me. "Where does your inspiration come from?" The answers given are usually very good and really make you want to look at the seller's work.

My inspiration is a concept that totally baffles me. Even when I ask myself "Where did that come from?", my mind is a blank.

Many times when I purchase beads and things, it is on a whim, an impulse buy. It may sit in my stash for a long time without any recognition of it's real potential. I have been known to find a bag of product, months later, tucked away in a cabinet. Oh yea - let me make something with this! I'm inspired.

Other times "inspirations" come on me like a hurricane in Florida. I'm sitting around wondering what to make and the greatest idea comes to me. I'll make wedding jewelry. I'll do a whole line with this idea. I run out and replenish my pearl and crystal supplies. I scour the bridal magazines for "inspiration". Finally my creation, a new necklace is born. I'm on my way! Cool! Now to make the earrings.

As I dig thru my stash, looking for a silver bead for the new wedding earrings, I find this great piece of turquoise that I purchased last May. Wow, why didn't I make something with that? It's beautiful and with some coral and black colored beads it would be fabulous.

Where are those black beads that I purchased in the fall?

I push the pearls and crystals off to the side of my work bench. I drag out my bin of black beads. I search thru the little plastic bags which I use to "organize" my beads. I find the right bead. Now where did I put the turquoise? It's definitely mixed in somewhere with these pearls and crystals.

So when I do my first interview as a seller, I'm just going to lie when they ask me where my inspiration comes from. I'll tell the interviewer "I put on my CD of ocean sounds and I close my eyes and think of the nature of things. I see the blue of the bluebirds, the browns of the owls, the reds of the roses and it inspires me to make beautiful jewelry." I won't mention the cluttered work space. And I won't admit that what started out as pearl earrings ended up being a Southwest turquoise necklace.