Little visitors in the snow

Probably because the kids have been outside a lot,

but I haven't seen any birds at our feeder

since our big snow started on Tuesday night.

They have been around apparently.

There are cute, tiny birdie footprints

all over our snow-covered back porch now.

Improving product shots

Still playing with the photo cube and lights

in hopes of getting better Etsy products shots.

I am liking the clean backgrounds

but find I still have to manipulate the photos

in Photoshop Elements just as much as before.

The lights are set to lighten up the back wall

and the cube faces a bright window.

(Still need to work on getting the wrinkles out.)

This will work very well for non-shiny surfaces

not so for all these pieces of metal.

Can you spot me in any of these? LOL

I wasn't totally satisfied with the results,

even after manipulation and thought to try B&W.

These look like they are right out of mid-century

(and earlier) houseware catalogs.

Their Etsy listings will still have full-color views

but I will see how these are as the main photographs.

Has anyone else tried it before?

From tacky to boho chic

Don't ignore those half-finished pieces you come across.

Be it the quilt your grandmother never pieced together.

or, as in my case, the crocheted granny squares

that were originally destined to be a rather ugly afghan.

I think if I had used all the colors together

in one project as they were originally intended,

the result wouldn't have been as dramatic.

These four super long scarves have much more appeal,

and will see more use than as a tacky 70's afghan.

BOHO CHIC Super Long Scarf White on Green

BOHO CHIC Super Long Scarf White on Brown

BOHO CHIC Super Long Scarf White on Orange

  

BOHO CHIC Super Long Scarf White on Yellow

Click the links to see more photos

and find out how you can purchase them

if you are so inclined.

Snowstorm

Power of social media

Never underestimate the power of social media when selling

your handmade (and, also in my case, vintage) goods.

I've been working on this scarf for weeks now

and talking about its progress on Facebook.

I couldn't wait to share the finished piece this morning.
Within an hour, a friend saw it and bought it.

This isn't my only positive experience like this today.
Another friend bought one of my necktie scarves
after checking out my Etsy link on my Facebook fan page.
(I also have a "My Etsy" tab on the top of that page.)

Besides Facebook, I also use Twitter and StumbleUpon
to promote what I am creating and selling.
My Facebook fan page posts go straight to Twitter
and I believe you may be able to get your new Etsy listings
to automatically get posted on Facebook and Twitter
but haven't looked into that recently.

What other social media outlets do you use
and how successful are they for you?

Portraits in the snow

I just discovered my camera has a wide variety of settings

for a wide variety of situations -- beach, fireworks,
aquarium, and most useful to me right this time of year,

taking photos in the bright whiteness of snow.

I'm in love with it, as long as there is strong enough sunlight.

My boys went skiing yesterday afternoon but since the sun sets

behind the mountain, it was too hard to get shots of the skiers.

The shots I got of the spectators,  my son's friend

and my two youngest boys, came out phenomenal.

My New Year's non-resolution

Did anyone have a  New Year's resolution

pertaining to being more organized?

While it wasn't anything formal,
in fact I don't ever make resolutions,

but I wanted to have this place straightened up

before our routine got back to normal.

It's not done, not by a long shot, but

I am slowly making progress with the piles.

It really helped that my husband knocked

some things off our list and spent

most of the weekend cleaning the basement.

Our bedroom is done,  except for

the always-accumulating piles of clean laundry.

Here is how my yarn stash turned out.

Not the prettiest of solutions

but it is all sorted and easier to get to.

I managed to finish up the attached

living room and kitchen which

gave us back half of our main living area

after the chaos of the holidays.

Even though I first wanted to get

my dining room work space cleared out,
I couldn't resist trying out my Christmas present.

Turns out the kitchen table
offers the best morning light anyway.

On New Year's Day, my husband and I snuck out

for some coffee, a drive and a stop at

the storage building for a used furniture store.

He stood guard over my pile

(what's it with me and piles?)

until I was done "shopping."

Even he had to admit we got some really great deals.

These are but a bit of what I bought.

I'm drawn lately to silver and glass pieces and

this GE industrial gray fan just had to come home.

So there is my progress on my non-resolution.

I'm heading back to do more organizing now.