Who Says November Is All About Thanksgiving?

Announcing  ...

The Promotional Frenzy November TREASURE HUNT❣

 

Click on banner to visit the Pomotional Frenzy Blog ... get the scoop on our TREASURE HUNT

 

The promotional Frenzy Team on Etsy has put together a fantastic Event that lasts the entire month of November ... just in time for the Holiday Season❣

Many of the shops on our team will be putting this picture into ONE listing in their shops:

 

All you have to do is search through their shop and find the “treasured” item. It won't be the main photograph, so you will need to click on the item to find the special picture. But that's the fun ... getting to see some of the wonderful items that our talented team members have to offer! 

Each shop will have the details in their Shop Announcement as to what special they're offering ... Free gifts, Free shipping, BOGO’s, Coupon Codes, and you can be sure they're all offering AMAZING deals for holiday shopping!  So read each shop announcement carefully.

Here is a sampling of what you will find in the participating Shops:

Visit Sewing Granny by clicking on the photo

 Click on photo to visit Trinkets N Whatnots

To visit Rooee, click on the photo above

Visit CalliopeAZ Creations by clicking on the photo

Click on photo to visit Sunny Crystals

To See more items from Painted Memories By Ros, click on the above photo

You'll find other jewelry from Peelirohini by clicking the photo

Click to see more work from NewCreatioNZ

Visit Symbolic Imports by clicking above

Click to view more intricate designs from Krystals Jewelry

More photos coming soon ...

Promo Frenzy Team Enters the HandmadeTop 10 Contest!

There's a new site called Handmade Top Ten List recently started by the same Etsy seller who runs the very well know website, Handmadeology! Tim has announced the very first Etsy Team Challenge designed to give Etsy Teams more exposure and give them a chance to win an advertising package worth $450.  

The Promotional Frenzy Team has gotten on the bandwagon in a big way! Our goal is for every member to add two items to our Top 10 list and promote, promote promote! And we're definitely rocking out The Vote :D

Check out some of the items from our members, and be sure to visit our Voting page by clicking on "A Handmade Top 10 List" in the rust-colored box below. From there you can 'Like' us on Facebook ...  
                     
                                                         VVV    Click Here    VVV  

I hope you enjoy seeing some of the items that are representing the Promo Frenzy Team in this contest ...

Petunia and Ivy

Most of what you see in this adorable Etsy shop is created for newborns, but the shop owner, Jennifer will be happy to customize to a larger size and different color!

Petunia and Ivy opened in February, and I can guarantee it has some of the cutest item photographs on Etsy!!!

Artisans Book Lounge

The Artisans Book Lounge is where you will find Business e-books and a variety of crafting books to help you grow and your Etsy shop grow. Janet also has two other shops on Etsy ...   Tinkets N Whatnots Jewelry shop and Supplies shop.

 

My Passionate Interest in PINTEREST

I'd never heard of Pinterest until GlitterbirdGlamour sent me an invitation to join. Just over a year old, there seems to be a lot of positive buzz out there about this site! You can sign up all on your own, but you'll have to wait several days before being accepted.

I adore Pinterest!!! And I PIN pretty much anything that I would normally bookmark or save to my desktop. I've got quite a few BOARDS going, each with a different sort of theme. 

Pinterest isn't complicated . . . it's kind of like the bulletin board I had in my room when I was in high school. I cut cool stuff out of magazines, kept ticket stubs from a rock concert and pressed a lovely flower I'd gotten from a special guy ... and ALL of them got pinned to that bulletin board!

Sound familiar? Maybe you had a board like mine, and maybe it was full of all the things you found interesting or just plain loved.
 

 Well, that's what Pinterest is - a place to catalog the things you love. You could compare it to hearting items and shops or creating a Treasury on Etsy.  But it's not just about one venue, it's about the entire Internet! Think of it as  a virtual bulletin board — a place where you pin almost anything you find on the Internet to that board. You can create collections of things you love and 'follow' collections created by people whose great taste you admireღ 

Here's an example of how your Boards might look ...

Jill Q ~ Pinterest BOARDS

And your PINS page . . .

Jill Q ~ Pinterest PINS

Can you PROMOTE your Etsy shop with Pinterest?

~ Pin Etiquette says to "Avoid Self Promotion. Pinterest is designed to curate and share things you love. If there is a photo or project you’re proud of, pin away! However, try not to use Pinterest purely as a tool for self-promotion."

Don’t think for one second that I’m suggesting you go on there and add every item in your shop…no way!  That kind of in-your-face self promotion turns people off big time. But it's certainly fine to have your Etsy shop in your profile and sprinkle a few photos of your handcrafted goodness on your Boards (collections). And who knows how many times they could be re-pinned after that!!! Pinterest is blazin Hot right now, and getting hotter♨

If YOU have an Interest in Pinterest, these links may be useful ...

                          About   http://pinterest.com/about
 

                          FAQs   http://pinterest.com/about/faq

                          Getting Started    http://pinterest.com/about/help


We all know the pitfalls that come with enjoying time on the Social Networks - often, we enjoy it too much . . .

Maybe William Penn saw it coming way back in 1700 when he said, "Time is what we want most, but what we use worst." 

Is YOUR time spiraling out of control?

I love  Urban Dictionary and can spend too much time on it. I tell myself ... it's NOT a time suck, it's an education!

PROMOTIONAL FRENZY TEAM ~ 100 MEMBERS!!!



                    

                  

                    GO TEAM!!!

It's kind of hard to believe that it's been less than a week since we were but a humble thread found on the Etsy Forums.

And now we've become a Team of 100 members!

I thought it might be interesting to see all the new 'faces' that have joined us in forming the Promotional Frenzy Team . . .



The New Promotional Frenzy Team ~ Estab 01/30/2011







NICE TO MEET YOU . . . Sweet and Sassy Cards!

Who is Becky Roedl from Buffalo, New York? Why she's the sole proprietor and creative force behind Sweet and Sassy Cards ... that's who!!!









Becky is a married mother of two.  Her earliest crafting memories are from the days spent with her grandmother wrapping yarn around spools with nails in the top and weaving the resulting strand into pot holders.  Her family is full of "crafty" people who have instilled the love of all things "handmade" in her. 

When her children grew up and left the nest, she found herself having too much time on her hands as well as the need to be creative.   Becky says the one good thing coming from the little birdies leaving the nest was a new workroom for her!  She's rather word didn't get out, but apparently she started painting and putting the room together the day he moved out. So keep that under your hat, okay?  Now she has all the space she needs to work and play at her craft.  Lucky Lady . . . how many of us can say THAT?



Becky's workroom in Buffalo, NY



Sweet and Sassy Cards is a great shop on Etsy where Becky shows off her skills at creating handmade greeting cards, all sorts of interesting tags, place cards, as well as products for other Etsy Shops. She also welcomes Custom Orders.  And it's also the place where she shows off, what I feel fairly safe calling ... her somewhat sassy sense of humor!




Now how 'Sassy' is this?  I LOVE it!!!



 Becky can also walk on the 'Sweet' side ...





Here are a few more of my personal favorites available from Sweet and Sassy Cards





Mini thank you cards handmade by Sweet and Sassy Cards on Etsy



Unique Wedding place cards are in the form of a book



You can Custom order your thoughts and words on your own personal card!



Wedding Favor Tag amuses with a play on words ... 



You can find Sweet and Sassy here:

 







LET'S GET IN THOSE APPLICATIONS!

Applying for the 2011 Spring/Summer Shows

Even though it's a good eight months away, the deadline to apply is only a week away for one of my favorite art festivals.  It's definitely time to be thinking about the  2011 season.  We all know that there is high demand to be included in certain juried art festivals in each of our areas - the ones that are in great locations and pull in the largest numbers of visitors who come to buy!

Festivals with all-day crowds like this are popular with Artists

In the Atlanta are there is a great deal of competiontion to get in four particular Spring and Summer events, and the competition among those who create handmade jewelry is especially tough.  It's a real accomplishment to go through the jurying process and get that acceptance letter. 

In this area, the best of the best is considered to be the Dogwood Festival.  It is one of the largest and most diverse juried art festivals in the country.  More than 250 artists from around the country exhibit in 12 categories.  It has been in existence for 75 years.

April 15 - 17, 2011    The deadline to apply was October 22, 2010

Setup begins very early in the morning the day before the event

The Dunwoody Art Festival will be in its second year and is taking place Mothers Day weekend.
This show is just around the corner from me and had a lot of success last year.  Some very talented jewelers, as well as artists from the South in diverse categories such as painting, glass, clay, wood, photography, leather, metal and mixed media.  The dealdline to apply is only a week away.

Mothers Day weekend, May7 & 8, 2011

The Decatur Arts Festival is one of my favorites and takes place before it gets very hot in Atlanta.  Decatur is a sophisticated 'small town' that is artsy and quite charming.  The city sponsers many interesting events throughout the year.  This show is also jutied with many applicants hoping to be included in this successful show.  People definitely come to buy!

May 21 & 22, 2011

Beautiful Decatur home

Charming restaurant in the center of Decatur

The city sponsers many concerts and events

Virginia-Highland has a yearly show that takes place in early June and the temperatures are almost always quite hot!  This show isn't as large as the others, but is always fun.  This area is quirky and many interesting people come to this art fair.  Attendance is good as are sales.

Virginia-Highland is known for diverse shops that support indie artisans

This years show will be June 4-8 . . .  It is a wonderful area!

This time of the year is always hectic.  I'm trying to get a lot of stock made for the Fall season, as well as the Holidays which will be here before we know it!  The deadlines for all the Spring and Summer festival applications have a way of creeping up on me.  I'm always surprised when I realize I have a whole bunch of paperwork to do and a very short time to do it!  Most of the time I wish I had a robot or something waiting in the wings to take care of it for me . . .

Ahhhh, a dream come true!