WE HAVE A WINNER!

bellalindawp — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 14:23:55 +0000

WHOOPEE for Cory from Aquarian Bath on etsy…a fellow member of the Unique Women in Business team!

HERE’S WHAT CORY WON:

A beautiful, handmade fine silver pendant and chain (a different chain than the one shown, but nice!)

AND – I have a confession to make! When I went to Random.org it was complicated, it cost money, I didn’t know where my credit card was, it was 5:00 in the morning and the dog ate my homework…

SOOOO…I did my own little version of a carefully fair drawing, which I’ve documented in photos HERE, with the assisstance of my lovely hand model/husband Joe! We literally pulled a name out of a hat!

MANY THANKS to all who participated! MORE give-aways are coming up! Spread the word!

Have a GREAT day!

Sharpening my Focus: A New Camera’s Photos to Compare

bellalindawp — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 17:34:27 +0000

So, I’ve made it through the 57-page instruction manual and I’ve taken a couple of shots, let’s compare, shall we?

The last shot shows my daily inspiration, the view from the back of my home!

Looks like the patina is still PERFECT…good to know, right! Hooray for the Rio Grand Jewelers Lacquer: http://riogrande.com

I think the photos are better quality, too, but there is still the photographer’s skill level…hmm I’ve got to work on that! Back to the etsy forums and UWIB blog for more pointers!

STAY SHARP: Shop Revamp – Start with the Photos

bellalindawp — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 16:21:15 +0000

My life approach is reflected in the title of this blog, I was always the person most likely to actually run with scissors! It’s led to more of a roller coaster than merry-go-round type ride in this life, but I love it. This was the approach I used to start my online sales experience. I just make some nice stuff, post it, and millions of people will clamor to buy, right? WRONG! Now, almost a year later, here’s a little of what I’ve learned to share and hopefully, you’ll have something to add to the conversation!

You see this advice everywhere…the MOST improtant thing you can do to generate interest and sales in your online shop is TAKE GOOD PHOTOS!

As I start out blogging about my almost ONE YEAR on etsy and the things I’ve learned as a newbie, this one things keeps showing up, so I’ve decided to track the difference in the “look” of my shop and if views/sales/attention is generated by better photos. Can’t hurt, right?

Hubs traveling in India brought home a new camera as a surprise. What a doll. It was a surprise, alright, the instruction manual was 57 pages long! But we don’t let that stop us, do we??? After I digest this manual I’m going to try a little experiment, you may be interested.

All the photos in my etsy shop as of today http://www.ciaobela.etsy.com were on my old, reliable Olympus D-560 Zoom. Today I had an inquiry from a fellow etsian about how I stabilized the patina on a copper bracelet I featured on the Copper Wire Jewelers blog here: http://copperwirejewelers.ning.com/profile/LindaReynolds and I thought I would demonstrate the difference in cameras showing the subtle patina on this piece, while showing at the same time, whether my method actually DID stabilize the patina over time.

Let’s see:

Here’s the direct sun outdoor photo shot with my OLD Olympus:

Now, I’m going to go learn how to use my new Olympus FE-47 X-43 which sounds like a spaceship, not a camera. It sort of looks like a very small spaceship, actually. Especially on the tripod. YES – TRIPOD. I’m going whole hog here! I’ll photograph the same bracelet using the new camera and we can all compare. Be back soon…

Fabulous Treasury by UWIB’s jmjcreations: LOOK RIGHT~

bellalindawp — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 20:00:57 +0000

HOT TIP OF THE DAY:

This one was so special I just had to share! Perhaps it’s the circus performer in me, but I’ve always been partial to these kind of caberet images…and then, of course, there’s Liza with a “z”…who could forget?

Want to know how to share a treasury on YOUR blog? I found it in etsy forums (yesterday): these nice people put it together, so if you don’t mind their logo at the bottom (fair’s fair, after all!) it couldn’t be simpler:

http://www.whalesharkwebsites.com/tools/treasury.php

Enjoy, click and comment and BUY STUFF from these fabulous fellow etsians!

Ciaobela by Bella Linda Designs Tops Sales on Etsy!

bellalindawp — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 15:00:02 +0000

OK, I’m dreamin’…but I’m dreamin’ BIG! So, to start out crafting the life I want, and as a very first step toward making my dreams come true — How about I give away SOMETHING FREE???

I think I’ll start out my first blog post with a FREE GIVE-AWAY of this beautiful fine silver, hand-crafted seashell necklace:

This is the prize for my very, very first FREE GIVEAWAY, in conjunction with Wickedly Chic...

All you have to do is leave me a comment with your email address, tweet this post the winner will be chosen on the Wickedly Chic blog sometime after SUNDAY SEPT 5th…

I’m starting to feel like a “master of the universe” I’ve managed to get this blog going (only took a year) and plan to talk about my experience starting out as a brand new, absolutely NO experience person who knew NOTHING at all about e-commerce…It took me a year to get here, but I never stopped!

Follow me on my journey…I want us to learn from each other!

NOW – BACK TO WORK!