Gifts

We are having a gift exchange this year with my family at Thanksgiving since we are all going to be together. That means I really have to start shopping! Today, I am taking a look at some fun things on Etsy to give as gifts.

I found this fun pillow for girls from Sobrightdesigns:

Check out these fun crayons from Mykangaroo!

These little cupcakes look really fun to play with from Child'splaycrochet:

And this cute little pouch...I love it! It's made by Simbiosisbyjulia:

Then I am going to add this little promo for myself! ;) Actually it's from my shop, but my mom is the one who made it. I have these cute sweaters for my girls, and so I can tell you that they are durable...they have had them for over a year now, played with, and they still look fantastic! My girls love them too!

Good morning!

It's a beautiful new morning! I have to tackle a large pile of laundry this morning...well, all day!

I am trying my hardest to take some photos of some really great projects that I just finished. That is the worst part of the process. My photo box that I made broke, so I have to either make another one, or try something else.

It's a pretty exciting week for me! I can't believe it has been a whole year since I set up twiddlestix. I have learned a lot in the past year, one thing in particular, it's not easy to sell your product! Also, I can't believe how bad my pictures were when I first started! Wow. I have gotten involved in a lot of other Internet activities all because of my Etsy shop. My life today is much different than it was last year at this time.

Enjoy your day!

Etsy Seller

I met an Etsy seller today! Technically, she hasn't put anything in her shop yet, but she plans on doing that soon. I can't tell you how fun that is to actually meet someone like that! Especially since I live in a small town. I went to the craft fair that I thought about doing, (and actually decided against because of other circomstances) and came across her booth. She sells the cutest baby items, and I eneded up buying some of the burp cloths she had for sale! I am looking forward to seeing her shop opening, and I will show off her fun items when it does!Only 5 more days until the big give-away!! All you have to do is mention that you would like to be entered to win 3 cards of your choice from my shop. Take a look at my shop to see if you would like to be entered! Thanks!

Also, take a look at my latest Christmas cards that I will be listing!

Friday Favorite

This weeks favorite is Wall Candy. I fell in love with her adorable prints as soon as I saw them! The first time I saw her shop was in the forums and she had a monkey print for her avatar, and that drew me in. And she's a fellow Iowan...bonus points! ;) Take a look at her wonderful shop!

Compare

So back to the HandmadeFuzion site... There is no doubt that there is a lot more views, faster, there at that site. I listed similar things there and on Etsy the other day (at the same time) and Handmade has gotten me 32 views, while Etsy's card only has 14. And maybe this isn't a fair comparison since I have been on Etsy for a year, here is an interesting point: I have 11 listings at Homemade, and those 11 items have 642 total views. With my 75 over at Etsy, I have 4475. Do the math...Handmade has an average of 58 views per item, and Etsy has over 59 views per item! I should take the the cards that I've listed in the same amount of time at both places.

Views do not compute into sales however. I have been slow over at Etsy, and have never made a sale on Handmade. (I confess, I have seen something on Handmade that I thought was cute, and ran right over to Etsy to see if that seller was there too. I think if I were to buy that item, I would buy it from that seller on the Etsy site!)

On the other hand, none of my items have been favorited on Handmade, and neither have any of my items. Then there is the issue of not many items being uploaded to Handmade. Imagine my shock after listing something there in the early morning, to come back at night and find that same item still scrolling across the top of the page! There is only the newest 24 items listed scrolling all the time!

This whole thing keeps me in limbo...do I keep going? About 6 months ago I started a Big Cartel shop, and that has such pathetic views (mostly because of me, that is something you have to promote your self and I am lacking in that department!) so I am going to close that down. Keep things a little more streamlined, and focus on making some decent sales!

I am excited about the Christmas season! I am hoping to jump into a bunch of card sales. I've decided to list my Christmas cards for less than my normal $2.50 price.

It's Fall

The weather is definitely turning colder! My lawn is littered with leaves...and will be for quite a awhile! I live on a farm with over 200 trees, so there is no way I can get those all picked up. I also live in a very windy place, so a lot of leaves actually get blown to the next county!

I always feel sad when summer leaves, but there is something beautiful about Fall too, so I try not to complain. As most of you know, I love to take photos, so I will be having fun with that too. (It's a wet and rainy day, so none today anyway!)

Fall is never a time to take a "color tour" for us either. It's a busy time of year for the farmers. The combining has to get done, manure hauled, and fields disked. So as much as I would love to head out East to see the beautiful color there, I am planted here in Iowa, so I must find the beauty here. And there is much to be found!
Take the time to enjoy the cooler weather and the beautiful foliage this Fall!

Christmas Cards

I have some Christmas cards listed in my shop! These cards really turned out well. They don't have to be used for Christmas either.

Don't forget the free shipping at the moment, and of course the give away!