Happy Cyber Monday!

So Thanksgiving is over and many of us are back to work after the long weekend. But the sales aren't over yet. Etsy is a buzz with Cyber Monday madness, so treat yourself to some great handmade discounts.

We're having a sale today - 30% off everything in store. And there are a lot of new things at inkstrand - including the Celestial line that was previewed here earlier. Here's a peek at some of the items you'll find there:



Enter coupon code CYBERMONDAY2011 for 30% off your purchase. Sale lasts until midnight tonight (PST), so get these discounts while you can!


Also one of my favorite local teams - PDXEtsy is also having a group sale this Monday. I've included one of their treasuries here - featuring some of the participating shops. Enter coupon code PDXEtsy2011 at any of the participating stores for a discount*.

'Darling Bits of Art' by WallStoriesEtsy

Made for you with love, in Portland Oregon

Oregon coast photo, mou... BleuOiseau $40.00	Handmade Soap Gift Set ... RootsSoapCo $24.99	Cyber Monday Sale Topaz... Saressa $28.50
Nursery Frame Fabric Wa... WallStoriesEts... $89.50	Pink White Bicycle Phot... Lindentreephot... $6.00	holiday cards, vintage ... AlexWijnen $12.50
Freshwater Pearls Yarn ... JewelryByMonda... $29.00	2012 day planner weekly... AlexWijnen $25.00	Snail Clay Pendant - Ha... JewelryByMonda... $12.00
Soap for Men Gift Set /... RootsSoapCo $24.99	20% OFF with code PDXET... SesameSeedDesi... $12.00	Recycled Skateboard Spi... TrilliumArtisa... $15.00
Tumbling Maple Pod and ... BranchandBirdi... $68.00	Swirls, Felt Hair Clips... DaisyChains $7.00	Pocket Mirror, Bird Bra... loriamckee $5.00

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.

*Discounts vary between each individual shop and could be anything from free shipping to 50% off. Make sure to read the shop announcements for details.


Happy Crafting!

Local Venues: Boys Fort

This holiday season, inkstrand will start branching out to sell in a few shops around Portland. One of those shops was a pop-up shop in downtown Portland called "Boys Fort". I was fortunate to stop by the grand opening a few weeks ago and took a bunch of pictures.


The cozy entry way. Seriously, I wish my living room looked like that.


Some of my jewelry in awesome display cases. Love it.


The Boys Fort logo on the resident typewriter and journals by my crafty friend at WriteOwlDesigns.


More fabulous merchandise by other Boys Fort artists.


One of the handcrafted display walls and the salvage truck/display case.

The place looks so wonderful! If you live in Portland or plan to visit Portland during the holidays - definitely stop in. There are a number of local artists and galleries involved in helping to create this guy-topia (although I even found things I would covet) and all the work is wonderful and surprisingly affordable. Plus I love the vintage/steampunky feel to the decor - much of it courtesy of Old Portland Hardware (a lovely shop in SE Portland full of vintage goodies and the owner is a fan of Steampunk as well).

One of the challenges of working with a men's themed shop was creating more men's jewelry. So I've added a new item to my line - cufflinks. Here are two designs you can find currently at Boys Fort and will be soon added to my shop online.


Gear inset cufflinks and custom initial cufflinks.

Well that's all for now.

Happy Crafting!

News and local venues

Well, it's been a busy September and October is looking equally busy. I had quite a good response to my line after Mixer Match and then had a wonderful time at the Belmont Street Fair. I'm still a little behind updating the online shop with new items, but rest assured there will be new things listed soon.

On to the wonderful news - you'll be seeing our jewelry in shops around Portland soon. In fact, you can buy select items from the new line at Cargo in NW Portland (the Pearl district) as of this week! And soon you'll be able to find us at Mag-Big in SE and Boys Fort and Flora in SW/Downtown Portland.

I'll be posting updates about local venues as they become available and you can check the Shop Inkstrand tag for details and locations.

And lastly, October brings my favorite yearly event - Steamcon!
This year's theme is 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and I'm working on some new costumes. I considered selling at Steamcon this year, but I enjoy going to the event more than anything else, so I've decided to be an attendee instead.

However, I did participate in the festivities by including a little promo for the guest goodie bags. I spent all weekend making these little cards - the design is based on an old apothecary label - but it was worth it. I snapped this photo before sending them all off to a packing party.


It might not look like a lot, but 3,171 cards is a lot of printing and cutting.

So that's the update. There is so much going on and the holiday season isn't even here yet. Hopefully all this activity won't keep me away from the blog so long this time. Plus, I have a few tutorials, reviews and some giveaways in the works - so stay tuned.

Happy Crafting!

Mixer Match Recap and a Preview

Last Wednesday, I had the pleasure of attending I Heart Art PDX's Mixer Match - a speed dating event they host a few times each year. Hopeful crafters/artists hop from spot to spot and have two minutes to share their work with local shops in hopes of consigning or wholesaling their work.

It sounds crazy, but I considered it a crash course in marketing inkstrand as well as a chance to get feedback from a lot of folks in a very short period of time. So I signed up and was selected to participate - yay!



Not me or a recent photo of Mixer Match, but still gives you a pretty good idea.
(courtesy of Etsy Labs on Flickr)

So how did it go?

Well for one, the nights leading up to the event were spent feverishly preparing, photographing and figuring out what I was going to say. I've only just begun selling offline, so this was a huge next step. Approaching retailers means creating a line, making line sheets/catalogs and setting up wholesale policies and pricing. And of course, you need to create a wonderful physical display to draw them in.


A page from my little line sheet - made in Word with a lot of patience.

The day of the event I was nervous. So were a lot of people. I talked to a few of my fellow vendors in group A (we were split into two groups) and many of them were Mixer Match newbies like myself.

Once we began, it all went so quickly. Seriously. When time was finally called, my head was spinning, my mouth was dry from talking so much and I was exhausted. But the experience was well worth it. My work was received fairly well and quite a few shops showed interest. I also learned a lot from the shops that weren't such a great match about pitching to retailers, pricing and finding your "niche". I will say that it became a lot easier after my first presentation and I barely noticed the man yelling out times on a loud speaker (not even remotely kidding) until it was necessary.

I learned a lot in those 50 minutes and intend to use that knowledge in future meetings with retailers (minus the break-neck presentation) as well as planning/preparing to try my hand at wholesale and consignment. If you have a chance to participate in Mixer Match or something similar, I wholeheartedly suggest it.

A few words of wisdom about "pitching" for wholesale/consignment:
1. Make a catalog (with good photos)
2. Have business cards and include your name and contact info
3. Cater your pitch to the retailer - they're your client.
4. Have a unique (or at least interesting) display
5. Know your prices - retail and wholesale (but most retailers will want to know wholesale)
6. Know what makes your work unique
7. Always follow up and be persistent


So a few of the pieces I brought to Mixer Match was a new line I created for the summer. They've only debuted at craft fairs so far, but will make an appearance online soon.

"Celestial"









And a separate piece that's a favorite of mine - "Icarus"


Well that's all for now. Time to get back to work prepping for an upcoming craft fair in September and some consignment pieces.


Happy Crafting!

#Undiscovered Wednesday - 7/6

Summer is fast upon us and I'm busy with craft fair season. I wasn't going to do #Undiscovered Wednesday this month, but I've missed it so much I couldn't resist. This collection of artists is quite wonderful - they have unique, beautiful work that really captured my attention. If you haven't visited their shops yet, you're missing out.

Enjoy!


One Barefoot Gypsy

Mother nature is showing her glorious colors in full force, so why shouldn't you? And if your jewelry box is lacking in color, then this shop is a good place to visit. Deb, who also runs a vintage/antique shop in Kentucky, knows a thing or two about eclectic jewelry and vintage items and loves to celebrate nature with her one-of-a-kind pieces. To do this she works with vintage findings, lace/ribbons and an assortment of stones. The results are stunning.



Adorn yourself with lovelies fit for any Gypsy queen at One Barefoot Gypsy.



The Soap Trail

If you think natural products have to be boring, you haven't seen the wonderful soaps at this shop. The ingredients might be all natural, but the designs and colors are a far cry from dull. Based in Norway, this artist creates soap using a cold press process, essential oils and mineral pigments. The finished results sport bold patterns, swirls and stripes that are as delightful as their scents: Lemongrass, Spearmint, Peppermint and Lavendar (to name a few).


If you're looking for beautiful natural soaps that will be gentle on your skin, take a look at The Soap Trail on Etsy.



Sir Cedric's Good Heads

The Theatre has always held a dear place in my heart, so I was immediately drawn to this seller and their beautiful work. As their shop name suggests, they sell heads and very good ones at that; or "jester sticks" to be more specific (think puppets without the legs and extra moving bits). The diverse and interesting characters are plucked from Medieval and Victorian times and other periods in between. These unique pieces were created by Lynda Jasper-Vogel, an artist based in New Mexico. She has a long standing history with the theater and has worked with the Sante Fe Opera, worked in props and carpentry, which can be seen in her work. Sir Cedric's Good Heads came about during her time in California and the "jester sticks" originally graced Renaissance and Dickens Fairs, department stores and even movies. The line may have been retired, but now you have a chance to own one of these limited edition pieces.


If you love Dickens, Shakespeare and theatre, you should definitely visit Sir Cedric's Good Heads. Update: Since last week they've had three sales. Congrats!



Jate's Marvellous Marvels

If you've been following my blog, you know I'm fond of beautiful, mysterious photography - so of course I fell in love with this artist. Jate, a photographer based in Germany, finds wonderful ways to make the mundane seem surreal with soft focus, selective color and interesting angles.


Get your own print of the mysterious and beautiful at Jate's Marvellous Marvels.



The Bad Button: Bespoke Corsets

Like any fan of Neo-Victorian culture and fashion, I love corsets. So I was thrilled to find this lovely shop and their corsets. For ladies considering the investment, you won't find any "fake corsets" here - these are made with the best fabrics, boning and finishing. Alisha, the artist behind this shop, has over 17 years of experience with sewing and historical costuming - so you can be sure you're in good hands. Custom orders are her favorite, so don't hesitate to ask for something special - whether it's historically accurate or something more modern. To learn more about Alisha and her work, check out her FB Fanpage.



Consider getting your next custom corset at The Bad Button. Update: They've had a sale since last week. Huzzah!

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Follow me on twitter for next week's #undiscovered Wednesday picks. And if you're an Etsy shop that's interested in being featured, please drop me a line.

Cheers!