Popniculture - Your Ultimate Guide to Unique Handmade Gifts

Unusual Jewelry Tool Organizers

2011-12-09T08:44:00.000+07:00

I just recently purchased Mixed Metal Mania: Solder, rivet, hammer, and wire exceptional jewelry by Kim St. Jean to add to my instructional book collection. I have only skimped the book so far, so I cannot comment much on the literature at the moment, but I was fascinated by her vast collection of tools and organizer that are unusual to me. Two of them that caught my attention are a slide top chicken feeder for organizing pliers and Ice Tube Tray for needle files and other hand tools.

I hunt them down and bought a 24 inch slide top chicken feeder from Amazon and a couple of ice tube trays were cheaper on eBay if you wanna buy more than one.

What I found as funny is that Ice Tube Tray got bad reviews on Amazon if used as intended, to make ice cubes, but it got rave reviews from artists who use this ice tray as tool organizers such as artist's brushes! Suggestion for the maker of Ice Tube Tray, sell it as a tool/brush holders! :D

I can see why so many artists clamored the use of it as a tool/brush holders. The construction is solid plastic with solid snapped on bottom, the tubes are big and 3.5 inch tall, perfect for holding brushes and other hand tools. It's also make a good holder for pencils and pens.

My chicken feeder is quickly filled up with my pliers and cutters collection. I can even fit my scrapbooking punches with scissor mechanism. Looks like I may need another chicken feeder soon! I can fit up to two pliers in one hole.

Shows that you can be creative and use everyday, unthinkable items to your advantage if you look hard enough :) Thank you Kim St. Jean for showing us that.

Tips on Selling Online Tutorials and E-books

2011-11-23T00:24:00.001+07:00

I've had an interview with Greg Holden, a writer for Ecommerce Bytes, about selling digital merchandise online such as jewelry making tutorials, that I wrote and sell through my supply shop in ArtFire, PopnicuteSupplies. A part of the interview (combined with other artisans interviews) is published in his recently published article, Digital Content: Selling Merchandise You Can't Touch or Feel. After obtained his and EcommerceBytes' permission I publish the rest of interview in my blog as it might benefit others as well.

Q and A with Greg Holden

Greg: How long have your tutorials been online?

Me: My tutorials have been online for a couple of years now.

Greg: What kinds of challenges do you face when trying to sell a digital, non-tangible product on your storefront along with your tangible products? Do people ask, do I get a printed book, or *can* I get a printed book?

Me: There are several challenges on selling digital tutorials.

Sometimes customers skimmed the description and assumed that they'd get physical books and expected the tutorial to be delivered to their mail box instead of their email inbox. Some did ask prior purchasing if I could send the books in physical form.
Spam Filters. Since I send the tutorials from my personal email address, high spam filter settings might filter my email to their Spam folders if my email hadn't been added to their contact list.
People expected it to be an instant download even though it's written in the description that I will email it personally within 24 hours of payment.

Greg: How do you figure out how to price digital goods?

Me: I compare my tutorials to other digital tutorials of the same field in the market. The exclusiveness of the design plays the part too. Simple designs would be priced lower than the more elaborate ones. I also factor the originality of the designs when pricing my tutorials.

Greg: What kinds of copyright issues do you run into with selling an e-tutorial?

Me: I can't control what people would do with my tutorials. Although I believe that most people would respect the Terms and Conditions stated in the tutorials, there's always someone who would break the rules so it's something to be expected. I put this terms of use inside the listing descriptions and inside the tutorials too.

Here's a sample of my Terms of Use:
You may sell any jewelry/crafts you make out of this tutorial.

© 2009 - 2011 by Popnicute.
All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of Kharisma R. Sommers of Popnicute. You may NOT use the digital and printed tutorial as teaching material. This tutorial is an intellectual property of Kharisma R. Sommers.

It would be nice if you give credit to me and/or my tutorial if you make something out of it.

Greg: How have sales been?

Me: Sales have been good. Especially the first few months after the tutorial release. No doubt sales would decline after people get more familiar with the techniques but there is always someone who needs one. If I wanted the sales to be better, I'd create new tutorials to keep things fresh.

Greg: Do you talk about selling only on ArtFire or on the Internet in general?

Me: I have several other websites where I sell my tutorials. A couple of them are dedicated to jewelry making. I believe having several venues to sell my tutorials help with sales.

Greg: What kinds of advice would you have for people considering selling their knowledge or expertise in digital form?

Me: I'd suggest them to provide high quality pictures and/or illustrations of the steps along with clear text instructions. Also I think it's important to state the level of skills needed upfront if the tutorial is intended for beginner, intermediate, or advanced users. And don't forget to include terms and conditions inside the digital copies, whether the tutorials are intended for personal use or if you're allowing people to sell their creations based on your tutorials.

So that's the end of my interview with Greg. I hope it helps :)

Refurbished Old Wooden Bench

2011-09-24T09:11:00.001+07:00

A new house, a new venture. Since I moved to the USA and bought a house, I've done a lot of things I wouldn't have dreamed of doing if I stayed in Indonesia. Fixing crumbling plaster, replacing moldings, reupholstering furniture, not something I would have done myself in Indonesia. Labor is cheap there, hiring people would be the way to go. Besides there are no home improvement stores there. DIY fixer upper is not common there, hiring contractors and/or handymen is.

We all watch HGTV, all the DIY fixes look so easy to do and fun over there. What HGTV didn't tell you is that painting cabinet has very little excitement to it and they didn't warn you about brush marks. Although I feel like I did a good job at it, I wish I'd just varnish those unfinished cabinets. Three coats of primer on each sides and repeat on 20 doors and drawers and I'm not even painting the colors yet. What a monotonous chore. So to take a break from priming my kitchen cabinets (a very boring thing to do, btw, if you didn't catch my drift), I reupholstered the bench I got at thrift store.

Again, something that HGTV didn't tell me. Decades old staples are very hard to take off. I had my work gloves on and used the staple remover tool. 10 minutes into working, I decided it would be easier if I just cut the fabric along the perimeter and work from there. I think in average it took me about 5 minutes to remove ONE staple! Got most of the staples off after almost 2 hours of struggling. Working on the floor killed my back too. I'm getting old :P

Since it was just a layer of fabric, I didn't bother to take off all the staples. I left some and just continued on reupholster the bench. Equipped with a staple gun borrowed from FIL, I stapled the poly sheets as padding and diamond patterned vinyl leather on top of it. I admit I'm a little bit of a perfectionist, So I made sure everything is aligned and fabric is evenly pulled. Took me a while to figure out how to round the edges nicely. But I'm proud of the outcome. Goodbye "grandma" fabric and hello sophisticated :)

I had problems with the bench made creaking noise when someone sat down on it. I did a little experiment to reduce the creaking noise. I added a piece of foam sheet, about 2 mm thick, sandwiched between the bench leg and then tighten the screws properly. I think it worked pretty well actually! :D Now this bench is sitting nicely inside my bathroom.

Notice "party on the bottom" non woven fabric. LOL. Maybe someday I'll change that to solid brown. I don't know.. Maybe..

I hope you enjoyed reading my little adventure with this old piece of furniture.

Make A Mother's Day

2011-04-25T00:41:00.001+07:00

A collection of Mother's Day handmade gift ideas from
Popnicute Artisan Jewelry.

Your mother deserves the best :)

Mother's Love
Her love is like
an island in life's ocean,
vast and wide
A peaceful, quiet shelter
From the wind, the rain, the tide.
'Tis bound on the north by Hope,
By Patience on the West,
By tender Counsel on the South
And on the East by Rest.
Above it like a beacon light
Shine Faith, and Truth, and Prayer;
And thro' the changing scenes of life
I find a haven there.

~Author Unknown

Make A Mother's Day

Curated By: popnicute

ArtFire.com

Unique Gifts

Naturalizer Midlake Size US 5 Wedges Comfortable Women Sandals

2011-04-10T08:57:00.004+07:00

COMFORTABLE WOMEN SANDALS SIZE US 5 FOR SALE!!

View listing here http://yardsellr.com/for_sale/naturalizer-midlake-size-5-wedges-sandals-435296

Product Information

Brand: Naturalizer.

Style: Midlake.

Size: US 5 (hard to find size).

Heel height: 2 inch.

Platform height: 1 inch.

Type: Wedges.

Color: Coffee Bean (dark and medium brown combination), genuine leather/nubuck upper, manmade sole.

Width: M (B).

Fit: True to size, comfortable soles, moderate arch support.

Have been used only ONCE for an hour or two. Like new condition!

Retail price: $75. http://www.shoebuy.com/naturalizer-midlake/354787 (this particular style got great reviews)
Can be yours for $39, come in Original box, original condition.

FREE SHIPPING throughout USA.

Reason to sell: One word, bunions. These sandals are very comfortable but the front straps hit right where my bunion is. Comfortable for my feet, I can imagine strolling on them for hours without having my feet hurting but my bunions say no :( I've worn them so I can't return them to the store. Anyone with normal feet would love these sandals! They are adorable, comfortable, and made of real leather. The bottom of the soles are really cute too with floral cut outs. If my bunions didn't get in the way, I'd so keep these sandals! They are casual enough but can also be worn for dressier events.

I'm a huge fan of comfortable shoes so you can take my word that these shoes are comfy. Footbed is soft and supportive. Footbed is using N5 technology (see last picture for explanation)

No refund/returns.

Popnicute is 2011 About dot com Readers Choice Awards Winner

2011-03-16T00:05:00.000+07:00

March 15, 2011, Popnicute is selected as the Winner of About.com Readers Choice Awards in Handmade Jewelry Artisan category. I'm truly honored by this and would like to thank everyone who voted for Popnicute. Handmade jewelry is such a saturated market and I would never be in this place without you all. I hope to keep it up and will never stop doing this. Keep learning and keep creating.

Read the article.

Virtual ice cream and cookies for everyone! *nomnomnom*

The list of Winners:

1. Best Handmade Marketplace
Artfire.com

2. Favorite Fashion Blog
The Fashion Insider

3. Favorite Handmade Artisan: Jewelry Design
Popnicute

4. Favorite Crafty Blog
Dollar Store Crafts

5. Favorite Handmade Artisan: Crochet Designs
The Crochet Dude

6. Favorite Handmade Artisan: Original Clothing Design
Togs 4 Tots

7. Favorite Handmade Artisan: Geek Craft
Debby Arem Designs

8. Best DIY Fashion Book of 2010
Twinkie Chan's Crochet Goodies for Fashion Foodies

9. Favorite Handmade Artisan: Knit Designs
Made for Me by Oaklie

Congrats to all Winners and Finalists of 2011 About.com Readers Choice Award.

Popnicute is 2011 About dot com Readers Choice Awards DIY Fashion Finalist

2011-02-16T04:57:00.001+07:00

I think this needs a celebration! I feel truly honored that POPNICUTE is nominated as one of the 2011 About.com Readers' Choice Awards DIY Fashion Finalists! Especially since handmade jewelry is a very saturated market! Thank you for my friends and clients who nominated Popnicute!

Now the voting is open to determine who the winners are. Voting closes at 11:59 P.M. EST on Tuesday, March 8, 2011. The winners will be announced on Tuesday, March 15, 2011, on the About.com DIY Fashion GuideSite.

Vote for Popnicute as your Favorite Handmade Artisan: Jewelry Design

VOTE FOR ME TO BE THE WINNER!!

THANK YOU VERY MUCH!!

PS: I voted for ArtFire.com as Best Online Handmade Marketplace!

Handmade Soap Dish Out of Polymer Clay

2011-01-26T02:11:00.002+07:00

Winter is so harsh on the skin so I've been trying handmade soaps as they're supposedly contain more moisturizer than commercial ~~detergent~~ soaps. The problem was my bathroom had no soap dish (we used liquid soaps). So there, I handmade one for myself out of polymer clay! :D

Polymer clay is so versatile and strong material if baked correctly. Last night I made my first handmade soap dish out of polymer clay. I used Kato polymer clay. Why I chose Kato? Because according to many polymer clay experts, Kato is one of top polymer clay brands out there. I was just taking their advice. I like the fact that Kato clay colors stay true after baked. Not darkened like other brands. I'm still green in polymer clay, so don't take my word, try for yourself :)

This soap dish is a blend of 4 colors, red, turquoise, white, and magenta. This blend created a muted yet somewhat vibrant maroon-ish purple. I ran it through pasta machine probably 50 times if not more. One of the downside of Kato clay is that they sometimes really hard to condition although I did ran across a few that were quite "soft" out of the wrapper. But the end result is well worth it. So after the clay is well conditioned, supple, and pliable, I cut it into shape and starts adding designs to it. You can see one of my little birdies is standing next to a couple of flowers.

The center of this polymer clay soap dish has holes for drainage. I made a mistake by not giving it a little lift underneath the drainage while baking. The heat from the oven made it changed shape a bit and the middle touched the ground, which means it wouldn't drain well. Luckily Kato clay is still quite flexible when warm. Carefully, I put a stack of paper underneath the drainage and yay! It had a little raise after it cooled down and hard like intended. Glad it was quite forgiving!

I'm quite satisfied by the end result! One tiny annoyance though, It had a tiny ball stuck underneath. That sneaky little bugger! Oh yeah, I dusted mica powders to antiqued it prior baking. It looks tons better!

Click the picture to expand.

PS: I dropped this soap dish by accident off my sink and it's still in one piece :) w00t!

Talent Show Off 1/25/2011

2011-01-25T14:07:00.001+07:00

These are the collections made this week by the members of the AJDJSS Guild, Starving Jewelry Artists Guild, and Artisan Jeweler Guild of ArtFire.com.

AJDJSS: Our hearts are in the right place

Curated By: MKPjewelry

ArtFire.com

Unique Gifts

Pearls

Curated By: EleganceAndSp...

ArtFire.com

Jewelry Supplies

Be My Valentine

Curated By: popnicute

ArtFire.com

Handmade Jewelry

Handmade Sterling Silver Jewelry on Sale

2011-01-25T09:38:00.002+07:00

Silver price has gone up and down pretty crazy this past year. From $9.xx/oz on November 2008 to $30/oz on January 2011. I had to adjust my price accordingly. Finally it's going down for a bit. To celebrate the new trend on silver price, I'm having a sale on these popular handmade items from Popnicute Studio.

11% OFF!

For 11 Days. Started Friday, January 21, 2011.

Enter coupon code SALE11 at checkout for instant saving!

Angel Wing Earrings Argentium Silver Artisan Handmade Jewelry - 18 ga

Handmade Angel Wing Earrings in 20 gauge - Argentium Silver Hoops

Cross My Heart Argentium Silver Handmade Cross Pendant Necklace

Argentium Silver Adjustable Ring Ribbon Scribble Wavy Wire Finger Ring

Cute Tiny Heart Argentium Silver Handmade Ear Studs

SAVE 11.00 % On Select Studio Categories

Use Coupon Code:

SALE11

during checkout.

Handmade Bags

Peter Rabbit on My Bathroom Carpet

2011-01-24T23:46:00.000+07:00

Look what I found ingrained on my bathroom carpet!! A perfect image of Peter Rabbit? Is it real or just my over active imagination? You decide! LOL. Of course, ever since it's been stomped on so bye bye Peter Rabbit :(

Peter Rabbit © Beatrix Potter

Good Keyword Density is Good SEO

2010-11-29T10:25:00.000+07:00

If you are involved in Internet Marketing, the first step you need is Knowing SEO. SEO is Search Engine Optimization. We hear about it a lot but not many people understand it.

For online sellers, if you are worried about your listings' SEO, RankingToday.com is a good website to check your website's SEO as a whole or as individual listings. Just copy the URL of the page you want to check (http://www....) and paste it in URL to Check in Site CheckUp page. Don't forget to enter the Security Code shown. Then hit Check button.

The result page will indicate your site's SEO health. You're doing a good job if you're ranking Good to Excellent. Lesser than that, you will need to rework your listings.

Loading time and page structure, Meta tags, and Link integrity are pretty much self explanatory, but some people confused what Keyword Density is. To quote RankingToday.com, Keyword density can affect keyword ranking. Too much keyword density (keyword stuffing) can cause your site to be tagged as spam and too little keyword density can cause the search engines to consider the page as not very relevant for those keywords which will result your listings are buried at the back of the page instead of on the first page of search result.. A healthy listing will have to have keyword density between 2% and 5%.

Keyword stuffing is something we want to avoid.

Example of keyword stuffing
i.e: I want to sell a sterling silver heart necklace.

I want my product to appear when someone search for:
heart, sterling silver, necklace

Title:
Heart Sterling Silver Necklace

Description:
Heart sterling silver necklace is shaped like heart and made of sterling silver. this sterling silver heart necklace will make your heart gleaming like sterling silver. sterling silver chain is included with a heart sterling silver pendant. don't miss this heart sterling silver necklace or your heart will cry. This heart sterling silver necklace is so well made by our silversmith. The heart is a beautiful heart made of genuine sterling silver.

Tags:
silver heart, sterling silver, silver necklace, silver chain

So out of 84 words, the word:
Heart appears 12 times (14%)
Sterling: 10 times (12%)
Silver: 15 times (18%)
Necklace: 6 times (7%)

THAT is keyword stuffing. you use the same keywords over and over again (in the most ridiculous way, most likely). It could also be just a list of repeated keywords over and over again without being a full sentence.

The GOOD WAY of writing your listings is to mention the keywords in the title, description and tags. For example if total words in your listing is 200, mention your main keywords 4 to 10 times (2 - 5%). once in the title, once or twice in tags, and several times on the description, preferably on the top paragraphs.

To make your SEO optimized, use the keywords in a good sense. Make your listings to the point by pointing out the main interests of your designs and use the replacement words, like "it, them", to avoid keyword stuffing.

Example of writing a good listing:

Title:
Unique Handmade Sterling Silver Heart Necklace

Description:
Unique handmade sterling silver heart necklace. There are so many little details on the heart hand carved on a piece of sterling silver sheet that was later domed and soldered together to make this puffed heart shape. The carved design is inspired by Maori's traditional craft. Additional sterling silver chain is included. Handmade clasp made of sterling silver wire compliments the pendant well. This will be a perfect gift for Valentine's day. The perfect way to say "I love you" in the most subtle way. Your lover will appreciate a gift that comes from the heart. This necklace comes in a gift box. Ready for gift giving.

I love custom orders. Contact me if you want to personalize this necklace or have another design in mind. Let me help you visualize your imagination.

Tags:
sterling silver, heart, love, gift, necklace, handmade, artisan, jewelry, unique, handcrafted, sheet, ....

Total words: 133.
2% of 133 is 3
5% of 133 is 7.
Your main keywords need to appear 3 - 7 times in the listing.

Now let's count how many of your Keywords appear on that listing above:
sterling silver (5 times = 3.7%)
heart (6 times = 4.5%)
love (4 times = 3%)
gift (5 times = 3.7%)
necklace (5 times = 3.7%)
handmade (4 times = 3%)

This way it would sit strong on google search. don't be surprised if you're the first result when someone search for "handmade sterling silver heart necklace" or "handmade heart necklace".

I hope that helps :)

Also read: How to write titles, descriptions, and tags in listings

Holiday Gift Ideas for 2010

2010-11-17T06:53:00.001+07:00

Christmas is coming near. Can you believe it it's only another 40 days before Christmas? Have you found anything for your friends and family or even yourself? What about shopping handmade this year? Check out these great Christmas gift ideas from handmade sellers in ArtFire.com and find the perfect gift for everyone on your list.

What about yourself? Join ArtFire.com for free and you can create a collection of things you want for Christmas! Treat it like a wishlist and send the list to your friends and family so you will get what you really wanted for Christmas. Share the link in email, facebook, or twitter so everyone can see. Good thing ArtFire doesn't require membership to buy. Fast, easy, and hassle free!

These are the things in my "wishlist" that I made into a collection in ArtFire.

All I Want for Christmas

Curated By: popnicute

ArtFire.com

Holiday Gift Ideas

Looking for handmade jewelry? Maybe you'd find some gift ideas from my shops. These are a list of best sellers from Popnicute and PopnicuteSupplies studios; handmade jewelry and tutorials.

Popnicutes Best Sellers

Curated By: popnicute

ArtFire.com

Christmas Gift Ideas

Handmade Christmas Fundraiser for Billy Zurcher

2010-11-07T08:38:00.003+07:00

Are you ready shopping for Christmas and at the same time knowing your money will help someone's life?

Shop for a good cause!

Fundraiser for Billy Zurcher. You may also know him as Alastar Dragonfly. DragonflyJewelryDesigns

A bunch of kind hearted sellers from all around the world have been pooling their items in DragonflyJewelryDesigns and 100% of the proceeds will go to Billy to help him pay for his medical expenses.

A little background story about Billy's medical condition:

Billy has degenerative bone disease with severe back pain. He has had five major back surgeries since 2000. He has a great deal of pain in his neck, mid and low back with radiating pain in his arms and legs. He is rapidly getting worse and is now mostly confined to bed. In 2006 he had a heart attack that left only 17% of his heart still functioning. No further surgery is possible because his heart is too weak to undergo anesthesia. Acupuncture is the only thing that significantly relieves his pain.

And this said Acupuncture service is not cheap. It's more than $800 for a package (for so many sessions). After reading the Story that Pam, Billy's girlfriend, has shared in Beading Daily forum Struggling...some good, some not so good, someone came up with the idea of raising money to help Billy. Dozens of frequent members of Beading Daily forum discussing what would have been the best way to do this. After several good suggestions, we came up to this solution of opening a studio in ArtFire.com to sell the jewelry that Pam and Billy have made in the past AND donated jewelry from fellow beaders. We all sure that these moral and monetary supports from good friends will help Billy and Pam going through their tough times and hopefully bring them good health.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Be advised that some of the jewelry that are being sold in DragonflyJewelryDesigns may come from another countries, so please read the descriptions thoroughly.

Fundraiser for Billy Zurcher

Curated By: popnicute

ArtFire.com
Handmade Gifts

I'm donating my Toggle Clasp Tutorials for Billy and Pam. Please go to this listing page to buy it directly from them.

Toggle Clasp Tutorial by Popnicute - PDF Instruction

However, these tutorials will still be sent from me, so if you wish for immediate respond from me, please forward your proof of payment to my email, k_ry1@yahoo.com, as I do not have access to Billy & Pam's Paypal account. Thanks!

All I Want for Christmas

2010-11-05T04:30:00.000+07:00

For Anyone looking to buy me presents for Christmas.. Here's my wish list! Teehee.. All handmade or to be handmade!!

This will be my first Christmas with Steve :) Not sure if we'll be going anywhere, but for sure I will be in the family's photo this year. Here's to a great year =D Have a great Christmas and holiday everyone!

All I Want for Christmas

Curated By: popnicute

ArtFire.com

Fine Art Photography

Journey to the USA and I Am Here to Stay

2010-09-28T13:55:00.000+07:00

We, Kharisma and Popnicute, have moved to the US of A!

In order to marry my beloved fiance, I have to move to the USA. How great is that? :) That's why in the last few weeks Popnicute hasn't had any new items yet. I've been busy preparing my move, packing, and make sure I had everything i needed. I had a very long flight from indonesia to USA with three stops and in total 37 exciting hours. My parents, grandma, and sister sent me off at the airport.

My route was Surabaya - Singapore - Tokyo - Chicago - St. Louis.

SINGAPORE - Changi International Airport
Loved singapore’s airport! I'm glad I followed my aunt's suggestion to take the flight that stops in Singapore. Great, shiny, and big! Super clean even though you don’t see any janitors around. it’s so huge and almost like a mall inside an airport! Scrap that... It's like three different malls within three terminals in an airport. I called a friend in singapore for an hour or so FOR FREE. Internet was free too but has time limit of 15 minutes each section and doesn’t have tabbed browsing system. It was overall a pleasant experience. i’m most impressed by Singapore’s airport! It even had computerized foot massagers lining up in front of each gate if not every other gate. Free computers with internet are abundance and easy to find. There are sleeping area for transit passangers, fun wall games, food court, water fauntain which water tasted good. Fantastic! It didn’t feel at all that long the whole 9 hours waiting in it. I had fun strolling around the "malls".

The inside of Singapore's ~~mall~~ airport.

Skytrain that takes your from terminal to terminal

Computerized foot massager

Sleeping area with provided big pillows and bedding

Gravitram - fun wall "game". The metal ball is dropped to go through several different passages. Once it hit the bottom, one of the "lifts" will take the ball and bring it back to the top again.

TOKYO - Narita International Airport

Narita airport was not impressive at all. I was expecting something better being in japan. But it had cute souvenir shops and sushi take out booth on the other side of the gates. I picked up some gifts for Steve’s sisters and mom. My only regret is that I didn’t eat sushi while in Japan. Not enough time to pick up any although they did have some kind of sushi take out in the airport next to the souvenir shops. My camera also acting out while in Japan so no photos. Two hours of transit has proven not long enough. haha.. But to Tokyo's defense, I didn't have time to be further out than the gates area. So maybe the other sides of Narita was better.

CHICAGO - O'Hare International Airport
Chicago O'Hare airport is big, long lines of people going through immigration. But it has this “cold” feeling. Unlike Singapore’s that’s so colorful, bright, warm, and welcoming, Chicago’s airport was almost scary. Nothing impressed me but the long lines of people at the immigration. Just a big architecture with blue and steel themed interiors and lines of seats. St. Louis airport was not any different. Just a smaller version of the O’Hare airport. I had to pick up my own suitcases in Chicago Airport to be transferred to St. Louis. Good thing they were already out of the moving wheels. But still, lifting them up to the trolley by myself was not a nice experience. 50+ pounds weight times 2! No one was moved to help this little girl. LOL. However, I found a nice airport worker in chicago who lent me his iPhone to call Steve since the frickin' pay phone ate up my quarters! Jerk! One suggestion for American airports. Give free calls within USA. Not everyone is ready with quarters. Especially for first timers like moi.

ST. LOUIS - Lambert International Airport
My last stop. This is where Steve and his mom and sister picked me up. They're nice people that made me feel welcomed and made me feel like home immediately. We all hugged and later stopped by Cracker Barrel to have some dinner. It's a pretty good place with good food. I had chicken grill with mashed potato and some biscuits.

GOOD TO BE HOME d(^_*)b

My first impression of North America? Huge parking lots are everywhere!!

Smiss00 Dragoncon 2010 Sale!

2010-08-29T00:31:00.001+07:00

My dear friend, smiss00, has her geeketh overfloweth and wanted to visit Dragon*Con 2010. So to fulfill her fangirl desires, she's having a sale to funding her trip.

Get a FREE pair of button hair clips when you buy any 2 pairs of Hair Clips or Earrings, or any Badge Reel.

Get THREE FREE pairs of buttons hair clips when you buy any framed Snark Stitch™

Get 2 FREE pairs of button hair clips when you buy any unframed Snark Stitch™

NO LIMIT!

Please use coupon code: DRAGONCON.
Please specify which pair you would like free in the notes to seller, or she will send a pair of her choosing. Free pair value US $3.50 or less.

Now go buy her stuffs and make Smiss' day ;)

SMISS DRAGONCON SALE!

Curated By: popnicute

ArtFire.com

Handmade Jewelry

Halloween Gift Ideas

2010-08-28T12:03:00.000+07:00

Trick or Treat!

Halloween is near, time to shop some costume and decorations! Here I present some costumes, make up, decor, and gift ideas for Halloween 2010 from sellers in ArtFire.com.

All in classic Halloween colors of purple, orange, and black.

Boo!

Cute or Scary?

Curated By: popnicute

ArtFire.com

Halloween Costumes

AJDJSS Bead Addicts

2010-08-27T13:35:00.002+07:00

Calling all the bead addicts out there!

Artfire Jewelry Design and Jewelry Supply Studio Guild is celebrating beads this week!
Check them out :D
Beautiful rosy colored beads, from handmade to commercial supplies.

Bead Addict

Curated By: popnicutesupp...

ArtFire.com

Handmade Gifts

10 Ways To Be Featured In A Collection

2010-08-13T13:54:00.005+07:00

Since ArtFire.com has publicly launched their Collection Engine a week ago on August 6th, 2010, almost a thousand collections has been created. This is a huge promotional tool and it's spreading like fire! You don't want to miss this. Be in a collection or more and get the attention you deserve. Some members claimed that their views doubled ever since being included in collections. Some others sold their items featured in others collections.

Everyone can be in a collection as long as you have a product to sell in ArtFire. Pro and Basic members have the same chance to be in a collection but Pro only Collections will have the chance to be featured on the Front Page of ArtFire.com. The amount of exposure is incredible. Eight hours of front page exposure per select collection(!) if everything goes as planned.

10 Ways To Be Featured In A Collection

Have great products.
Have great pictures. Learn how to get great pictures. Good photos will score you more collections. That's a fact.
Create a Collection.
Feature your own products and post it on your blog.
Feature others products. Some will return the favor and you'll score more collections.
Include dominant colors of your products in your tag. Like many others, I often create Collections based on color schemes.
Have clear titles and descriptions. Learn how to write good titles and descriptions.
Join an active Guild or more.
Create joint Collections. i.e: featuring items from your Guilds or a group of sellers. Group promo is always better.
List more products. The more products, the better chance your items fit in someone's collection.

Here are a few samples of Collections I made.

Magical Sunset

Curated By: popnicute

ArtFire.com

Unique Handmade Gifts

Shabby Chic-ky

Curated By: popnicute

ArtFire.com

Jewelry Supplies

You See the World in Black and White

Curated By: popnicute

ArtFire.com

Fine Art Paintings

Autumn Wedding

Curated By: popnicute

ArtFire.com

Handmade Soap

AJDJSS Juicy Collection

Curated By: popnicute

ArtFire.com

Craft Supplies

Turquoise and Red

Curated By: popnicutesupplies

ArtFire.com

Handmade Jewelry

Delicate Flowers

Curated By: popnicute

ArtFire.com

Indie Design

Check the rest of Collections I've created in Popnicute and PopnicuteSupplies

-K-

ArtFire Collection Engine is Now Live

2010-08-03T14:43:00.005+07:00

ArtFire.com has been cooking the Collection engine for a while now and today it went LIVE (only for Mavens to test drive for now but will be for everyone momentarily). I found out I've been featured in five collections already! Thank you all for showing support to Popnicute. And I've made three Collections so far. It's addicting!!! <3 You can also easily share your Collections to facebook and twitter as well.

Another cool thing about it is that you get instant notice if your items were included in someone's Collection! =D

First Collection: Earthy Green

Curated by ArtFireSMO
Featuring my Autumn Love Handmade Tree Of Life Necklace Pearls Swarovski Crystals

Sunshine

Curated by thesunnysidebiz
Featuring my Ra - Argentium Silver Copper Cocoons Yellow Sun Necklace

The Warm Colors of Summer

Curated by Coolstraps
Featuring my Peruvian Thread Earrings Shimmery Gold Copper Red Autumn

Trees Trees Beautiful Trees

Curated by M2bC
Featuring my Birthstone Tree of Life Pendant Necklace Artisan Copper Jewelry

Earth & Honey

Curated by Bijoutiful
Featuring my Artisan Roses Earrings Handmade Sterling Silver and Copper Art Jewelry

Never Ending Inspiration

Curated by popnicute

Autumn Wedding

Curated by popnicute

Summer Cheers

Curated by popnicute

For the Love of Miniatures and Christmas in July

2010-07-10T17:37:00.004+07:00

What could be cuter than a set of miniatures? Miniatures help you preserving your memories and love for certain things that you probably can't own, take home, or place them inside your house. A lot of famous places are miniaturized as keepsakes to bring home, such as magnets and keychains of the Eiffel Tower, Sydney Opera House, the windmills of Amsterdam, Universal Studios, etc. Some people show their love for miniatures by collecting miniature doll houses.

Today I'm gonna feature artisans whose work expressed their love for mini things.

First, we have zeustones. The artist behind zeustones is Fusun Aydinlik from Turkey. Her mediums are pebbles and paint. She draws and paints the pebbles using acrylic, sketch marker, porcelaine paint, archival ink, crayon, permanent marker, x-ray marker, coffee, berry juices, etc and later seals them with the appropriate varnish or system. Look at these samples below of her work! Amazing decorative details in vibrant colors! Blues, reds, yellows, white, and their coordinating colors. You can sense a hint of traditional patterns influence in her work.

Second, we have JanetSaw. A true miniature artist. I'm drooling just from browsing her ArtFire Studio! She creates her miniature sweets from polymer clay. She transforms these mini treats into jewelry, accessories, and charms. Donuts, cakes, cookies, pies, complete with their frosting, glazing, and fillings. Phew, anyone hungry yet?

Third, cute dogs cute dogs cute dogs, cute cats, cute birds, all mini and all needle felted from an array of wool material! Introducing FibreHeart, she's a mother of two beautiful girls from Ontario, Canada. Her miniature felted animals look so realistic and fantastic. She's not just creating needle felted dogs but also cats, birds, and bugs like butterflies. You'll find a snowman too in her ArtFire Studio as a part of Christmas In July* social event. She accepts custom orders!

From my own studio, Popnicute, you'll find several miniature jewelry items among my unique handmade jewelry. For example this miniature gift box necklace, mini roses earrings, owl miniature necklace, bird nest miniature charms, tree of life series, and the raincloud necklace. Miniature gift box necklace is available in all copper, mixed metal (copper and argentium silver), and all silver version is coming soon! They're the perfect Christmas or birthday gifts for yourself or your loved ones. Talk about a gift they will remember forever!! ;) I take my inspirations from the nature and my surroundings and transform them into beautiful wearable art jewelry.

Christmas In July is an exclusive ArtFire's social event where ArtFire sellers offer their Christmas items for sale in July. For the year of 2010, this event will start on July 12 to July 23, or known as The Twelve Day of Christmas (In July). Don't miss out! Get your Christmas gifts and supplies early!! Less headache, no Christmas rush, and have a peace at heart that you'll be able to deliver their gifts right on time. Start shopping now » Christmas In July.

The ArtFire 45 Day Success Guide for Sellers

2010-07-05T01:25:00.061+07:00

Oh, this is good news for new (and old) sellers! Now ArtFire.com has launched this 45 Day Success Guide for their Sellers. Their main goal is to help shop owners get familiar with ArtFire's innovation, tools, and developement. Pro members of ArtFire have access to many industry exclusive and industry first tools that make promoting and managing your online studio faster and easier.

Utilizing the ArtFire Fusion Studio Blog, the 45 day guide is presented in as many posts right here in an ArtFire Pro Fusion Studio. You'll learn about search engine optimization, social media networking, product photography and more; and you might just have fun doing it!

Start now! These are short, well written, easy to read, and easy to digest help guides. Online selling doesn't look so scary anymore :)

Welcome to the ArtFire 45 Day Guide

WEEK ONE

WEEK TWO

WEEK THREE

WEEK FOUR

WEEK FIVE

WEEK SIX

WEEK SEVEN

Hopefully you'll find these guides helpful for your business. Selling online isn't as hard as it may look. All you need is a better time management and knowing what to do that's all been covered in those 45 guides above.

Happy selling! :)

The New and Sleeker ArtFire Item Page

2010-06-11T11:26:00.000+07:00

ArtFire just changed the look of their item pages again. This time with sleeker and more modern design. Rounded corners help make the page to look more organic, free flowing, and handmade. This new design allows less customization that it was before in order to make them look more professional.

Here's a little guidance the ArtFire team has made to guide you through the changes! Click on the image to zoom in. (For Firefox users: if you see a magnifier cursor with a plus sign, click on the image once again to full view it)

ArtFire is an online marketplace where you can sell your handmade items, vintage, and handmade related supplies. ArtFire supports individual artisans to be successful with their unique and functional tools. There are two types of accounts available. Basic account, where you can list and sell for completely free with limited features, and Pro account, where you can list and sell for a flat subscription fee of $15.95/month. Pro accounts have much more benefit and perks in exchange. Registering for buyers is optional. ArtFire supports no account buyers.

Unique Handmade Gift Guides

Birthstone Tree of Life Necklace

2010-05-24T11:13:00.001+07:00

New from Popnicute! A handmade Tree of Life necklace with a Swarovski Crystal. This is a new take of the old tree of life design with swirly verdant leaves. I enjoyed making it so much. They can be easily personalized for gift giving. Use a birthstone or the recipient's favorite color. Will make a beautiful and meaningful gift. Rustic and playful.

The one pictured is currently ready to purchase. Other colors will be made to order :)

Click on the photo to go to the listing.

Or you can purchase it right here right now :)

popnicute

Unique Gifts

For the Love of Peacock

2010-03-28T16:31:00.001+07:00

Peacock is a beautiful animal. Their feathers are beautiful, awesome colors, and their whole figure is elegant. When I saw this peacock bangle, I was inspired to make this spotlight dedicated to Peacock love :) Enjoy a lovely weekend everyone!

Handmade Easter Gift Guide

Today's Featured Studios:

The New ArtFire.com Merchandizer and PRO Invites

2010-03-27T12:17:00.003+07:00

03/26/2010
The New ArtFire.com Merchandizer
We’re proud to announce the newest Pro member feature on ArtFire.com, the ArtFire Merchandizer. The ArtFire Merchandizer allows you to set the order of your items with an easy drag and drop interface. You can set up your front page or re-order your entire studio to give your shoppers the exact visual experience you want.
But wait that’s not all!
Unlike other marketplace arrangement tools online, the Merchandizer allows you to arrange the order of each of your studio categories as well. This way you have TOTAL control over your studios appearance and can ensure that each category your shopper views will be arranged just the way you like it. You can read the help guide by clicking here, or just go straight to the ArtFire Merchandizer via this link.

This is another reason to go PRO! I was one of the Maven team that tested out this new Merchandizer tool while it was under developement. AF team has done a great job smoothing out the bugs and kinks found in the developing stages. Now it works perfectly like a charm. This Merchandizer tool is very intuitive to use. You can enable and disable it whenever you want. Once you're playing with it, you'll see how fun this tool is.

Btw, if you're dying to go PRO in ArtFire, you still have the chance to lock the membership plan at $12/month. That is a savings of $3.95 per month! Current rate without invitation is $15.95/month. This offer can be used by new and existing basic members. I have 10 special invites to share. Contact me if you're interested. Remember, members who lock in this rate and maintain their membership will never have to pay an increased amount! No matter what the sign-up rate goes up to.

* Note: This sign-up offer is not available to current Pro members. LIMITED TIME OFFER! Only good for 90 days since this promo was launched on March 1st.

Why ArtFire?

ArtFire:

is 256 bit encrypted
duplicates your listings on 70,000 serves in 60 countries
does currency conversion
does google base submission
does coupon codes ($ off, % off, free gift, free ship) limited by time and uses
handles gift certificates
has a blog attached with auto SEO , categories, and widgets
allows for full customization of your layout, colors, fonts and pics without you knowing how to code and does auto-SEO with widgets
automatically optimizes your items for google and other search engines
has global editing toolshas category and shop rearrange with buttons and arrows
has built in auto-shortening social media tools
auto-integrates with Google Analytic, Amazon payments, paypal,and google checkout (you don't need to code - just plug in an address)
has its own server side stats package

Handmade Steampunk Valentine Gifts

2010-01-28T20:22:00.001+07:00

Steampunk has found a niche market for itself. It's a rather fascinating trend that's a mixed between Industrial and Victorian style. Brass, watch parts, lace, are several of its main ingredients. Whether if you're a hardcore Steampunk lover or just an admirer, here are several cool gift ideas for a Steampunk Valentine. Valentine is not always about sappy romance and glistening red hearts, right? ;)

Valentine's Day Gift Guide

Today's Featured Studios:
- RockLove
- FantasyClay
- edmdesigns
- Antige
- SilverLeafCostumes
- Cyb3rburn
- damselinthisdress
- cuteartworld
- WilsonGraphics

Pick a favorite and leave a comment with link to your Artfire Studio to be included on the next featuring.

All items have been submitted to Vote Handmade and Twitter as well :) Vote please!

Top 9 Valentine Handmade Geekery Gifts

2010-01-27T21:10:00.001+07:00

I stumbled upon this great studio full of geekery stuffs in ArtFire so I decided to make this new spotlight on Handmade Geekery Valentine Gift for the geeks in your life!! I'm sure you know at least someone. Not sure what's the bird has anything to do with geekery but it's just too cute!

Featured Studios:
- ThreeRingCircuits
- creativedexterity
- BACLORI
- Decibel
- Martice
- AuntMartyMadeIt
- Petitandcute
- BigHelmetHead
- boysenberrylane

Pick a favorite and leave a comment with link to your Artfire Studio to be included on the next featuring.

All items have been submitted to Vote Handmade and Twitter as well :) Vote please!

Valentine's Day Gift Guide for more geekery stuffs or anything Valentine ;)

Top 9 Valentine Handmade Gifts

2010-01-20T17:11:00.000+07:00

Valentine is the most romantic day of the year. The world's divided by two, those who celebrate Valentine's Day and those who don't. Which one are you?

Pink, red, and hearts are the most classic colors for Valentine's Day. The colors and symbol of love. I'd like to share these awesome handmade items found in ArtFire.

Pick a favorite and leave a comment with link to your Artfire Studio to be included on the next featuring.

All items have been submitted to Vote Handmade and Twitter as well :) Vote please!

Valentine's Day Gift Guide

Handmade Chic

2009-12-19T23:52:00.000+07:00

I'm having fun with Polyvore(!), can you tell?

My latest set featuring the awesome Artfire artisans. Elegant, earthy, and a little bit funky. Click on the image to get the complete list of stuffs displayed in here.

Handmade Chic by popnicute on Polyvore.com

Items in this set:
Stunning handmade knitted dress by U.K designer : maggiecook - ArtFire..., $105
Vintage Brown and Tan Hobo Bag : RubyKittenVintage - ArtFire Bags and..., $26
Red Jasper Gemstone Ring 14K Rolled Gold : cameojewelryart - ArtFire..., $57
Basket Cocoon Handmade Hoop Earrings with Crystals : popnicute -..., $41
Pin - Nest, Fuchsia and Rust : madeinlowell - ArtFire Accessories, $20

Funky with A Touch of Classic

2009-12-19T00:03:00.001+07:00

Red, grey, and black can be considered as a classic color combination, but with the right attitude, they can look funky too :D Look at these awesome handmade items. Very cool, right?

Click on the title below the picture to get the complete list of stuffs shown here.

Funky with A Classic Red-Grey-Black Combo by popnicute on Polyvore.com

Items in this set:
Red Woodoo Muse : lemuse - ArtFire Clothing, $119
BLACK SILVER CURVE LEATHER SHOULDER BAG - NEW - WEEKEND FREE SHIPPING..., $338
Frame Purse with Skulls and Roses : shastababy - ArtFire Bags & Purses, $10
Mini Tuxedo Top Hat : GypsyLadyHats - ArtFire Accessories, $75
Red Cherry Blossoms Sterling Silver NECKLACE - Sakura Chic : popnicute..., $60

Gift Ideas for Her

2009-12-08T15:19:00.001+07:00

What a girl wants, what a girl needs? Everything! Right, girls? ;) Spiritually, it's probably an undying love from a significant other. Materially, here are some ideas what to give to her, to a woman on her special day and/or Christmas.

Gift ideas for women.

Vegan Blush Beautiful Mineral Blush
Mini Pirate Hat
Coco Jasper Bracelet
Blue Floral Concho Leather Bracelet
White butterfly fine art print
Hot pink long skirt with Black victorian lace
Leather shoulder bag
Leather Art Journal
Bridal Shoe Accessories

Gift Ideas for Baby Girls and Teens

2009-12-08T14:16:00.000+07:00

Cute items for babies and girls. These are some ideas for newborn baby gifts and for girls.

Pick a favorite and leave a comment with link to your Artfire Studio to be included on next Friday's featuring.

All items have been submitted to Vote Handmade and Twitter as well :) Vote please!

Other Handmade Christmas gifts

Gift Ideas for Men

2009-12-04T19:24:00.001+07:00

Looking for presents for the men in your life is probably not an easy task. Here's several gift ideas for him that i compiled. These are extra special because they are handmade. I hope you like them!

Pick a favorite and leave a comment with link to your Artfire Studio to be included on next Friday's featuring.

All items have been submitted to Vote Handmade and Twitter as well :) Vote please!

Other Handmade Christmas gifts

Google Base Disallowed Words

2009-12-03T23:16:00.017+07:00

In order to appear in Google Base, our listings must follow Google Base rules or else they will be removed from Google Base sooner or later. To make sure your ArtFire listings are submitted to Google Base, activate it in My Gbase Feed.

WARNING: Attempts to cheat the Google system using misspellings or asterisks or other tricks are considered abuse, and could get the entire Artfire feed blocked!

So what are the forbidden words for Google Base? Here's a sum up from this and this forum threads.

PROMOTIONAL WORDS:

- free (including hyphenated words such as pet-free, smoke-free, hands-free, etc-free)

- sale

- vacation

- travel

- travels

ANYTHING ALCOHOL / TOBACCO / DRUG RELATED WORDS

- smoke, smoked

- champagne

- whiskey

- beer
- tobacco

- cigar

- cigarette

- rum

- rummo
- wine

- vine (supposedly because vine = wine in another language)

- vineyard

- camel (for it being a cig brand)

- brandy

- gin
- bordeaux
- burgundy
- ale
- hemp (?)
- absinthe

ADULT / MATURE / EXPLICIT / NAUGHTY / VIOLENCE RELATED WORDS:

- anime ( however "manga" is allowed)

- strip

- stripper

- adult; including hyphenated words such as adult-size

- sexy
- butt
- sex

- affair

- chick

- sensual

- gun

- offensive language
- knife/knives
- nude

MISCELLANEOUS WORDS:

- postage (or postage stamp)

- collecting (collectible and collect are okay)

- thorny

- precious metal
- muse
- corsage
- Z (as a stand alone letter)
- double @ (i.e: L@@K, B@@BS)
- fireworks
- bank
- FDA

PRICE RESTRICTION: Google Base will not take items under US $1.

Now we know all of this, what to do to get our listings passing through Google Base?
1. By replacing those words with other words; such as:
Free shipping = complimentary shipping, shipping is on me, no price charges on shipping, etc.
** I'm not too positive about this but I vaguely remember that having the word SOLD will make your listing go at the bottom of Google's list. So try to avoid this word. You can replace it with "you will receive a similar item", "made to order", etc. **

2. OR put those forbidden/disallowed words in the Promo Box if you're an ArtFire seller. Promo Box is not gonna get indexed by Google Base.

3. Be creative and open thesaurus! Ha! (but limit only at common words) Need help? Use this Google AdWords: Keyword Tool

CAPITALIZATION KILLS!! (update per June 16, 2010)

This just in that Google Base now inactivate listings with excessive capitalization. Google requires items to be grammatically correct with proper title capitalization. Read this link below for more details.

Why No One Should Try to "Fool" Google Base.

***** If you know other words that are not on the list, please leave it in the comment section and I'll add them on my list :) *****

* Google and Google Base are two different search engines. Rejected listings in Google Base (Google Product Search/Google Shopping) may still appear in Google.

Top 9 Angel Keepsakes

2009-11-22T01:58:00.000+07:00

Angels, angels, and angels! I love Angels! I even have a whole studio section dedicated for my angels.

Here are a select 9 angels that would be some nice keepsakes! Angels are perfect gifts for Christmas or any other occasion. I mean, who doesn't like angels, right?

Pick a favorite and leave a comment with link to your Artfire Studio to be included on next Friday's featuring.

All items have been submitted to Vote Handmade and Twitter as well :) Vote please!

Other Handmade Christmas gifts

Top 9 Handmade Whimsical Gifts

2009-11-07T02:52:00.001+07:00

Blue, Red, Orange, Purple, colors are everywhere! Witch Hat, Monsters, Jewelry, Flowers, Mirror, what's not to like? I love these unique finds in ArtFire :D

Here are a select 9 of whimsical items that would brighten your day!

Pick a favorite and leave a comment with link to your Artfire Studio to be included on next Friday's featuring.

All items have been submitted to Vote Handmade and Twitter as well :) Vote please!

Other Handmade Christmas gifts

Top 9 Handmade Orange Gifts

2009-10-22T23:31:00.001+07:00

I love orange! Orange is happy, cheerful, and warm. Orange is perfect for Fall, to warm your days when it's getting chilly. An orange is also delicious.. Mmmmm...

Here are a select 9 of orange items that would brighten your day!

Pick a favorite and leave a comment with link to your Artfire Studio to be included on next Friday's featuring.

All items have been submitted to Vote Handmade and Twitter as well :) Vote please!

Other Handmade Christmas gifts

A Wish Comes True - Artfire & Amazon Wish List

2009-10-14T19:48:00.001+07:00

Artfire never ceased to amazed me! Now you can easily compile a Wish List using Amazon Wish List. Artfire has implemented the Wish List button in every listing :D Read the official announcement below.

Amazon Wish List Option
Members can now add favorite items from ArtFire to an Amazon Wish List with our Universal Wish List button, found on the left of listings (excluding mature items, which are against Amazon’s TOS). This feature puts together a linked list of items from ArtFire that can be emailed to friends and family members. Members should note that there is a minor bug with Amazon regarding the URL, so if you click the Add to Universal Wish List link without being logged in, you will not be redirected to the wish list option on Amazon. We’ve already contacted Amazon about this error, but for now, make sure you’re logged in to Amazon before clicking the link. Wish lists are fun and super easy to make, but in case you need a little help, we’re working on putting together a help guide, which should be posted on the site shortly, so stay tuned!

To use this Wish List button, first you need to have an account in Amazon.com. Sign up or sign in to your account so your wishes will be recorded. Go to your favorite store in ArtFire and start wish listing and let the world know what you've wished for! :D Once you're done, simply send your Wish List through e-mail to your friends and family using the Share button in your Wish List page. Maybe a Wish List for this Christmas or an upcoming baby shower or a wedding! Get only gifts that YOU like.

This is my Wish List, mind you that I'm not done yet ;)

How to Wish List in ArtFire:

1. Find that button in a listing. It's on the left side of every listing picture. Click that button when you found a favorite.

2. After you click that, a pop up window will appear within the listing page (See image below. Click to expand). Enter the price of the item, and hit Add To List button.

3. If you still want to browse for something else, close the Wish List window by hitting the X button on upper right corner.

4. Find the Wish List in your Amazon and share the list to friends and family through e-mail, Twitter, Facebook, etc. Click image to expand.

If you have any questions, ask away :)

My Kiosk was Featured in Auction Bytes

2009-10-13T01:46:00.001+07:00

Oh, happy day!!

I found out that one of my Facebook Kiosks was featured in Auction Bytes website!

Read the complete article »» Ecommerce Kiosks Come to Facebook via Artfire

A very nice article!

I have Facebook Kiosks, do you? ;)

Top 9 Handmade Reusable Gift Bags

2009-10-08T17:07:00.001+07:00

What would be better than giving gifts in reusable bags? Environment friendly, instant beauty with less effort!

A select few of reusable handmade bags/pouches.

Pick a favorite and leave a comment with link to your Artfire Studio to be included on next Friday's featuring.

All items have been submitted to Vote Handmade and Twitter as well :) Vote please!

Handmade Christmas gifts to go with the bags

ArtFire is Now Free for All!

2009-09-27T00:38:00.005+07:00

Yes you heard it right. ArtFire now offers unlimited listings for Basic Accounts. As Basic Account holders, you can list everything you have for free, no listing fee, no final sales fee. This promotion is good since today, September 26, 2009 although the promotion is for the month of October.

Here is the sign up page.

ArtFire Gives Away Free Unlimited Listings for the Shopping Season

Everyone gets free unlimited listings for the holidays on ArtFire.com

Tucson, AZ – ArtFire has just announced that they will be giving away unlimited listings completely free for all sellers during the holiday season. This means that everyone can sell and list as many items as they wish for absolutely no cost or fees.

When they first launched, ArtFire revolutionized the handmade marketplace by making it completely free for users to sell online. Site members were able to list and sell up to 12 items at any point on the site, and could have unlimited listings with customizable features for the flat rate of $12/month. However, due to the current economic situation and the upcoming holiday season, ArtFire has decided to remove this 12 item limit for the shopping season, giving everyone on the site the option to list unlimited items for sale.

To make things even easier for sellers, ArtFire has also launched the Etsy Importer, allowing members to import all of their Etsy listings onto ArtFire quickly and easily. To help manage these imported listings, ArtFire is allowing free access for the month of October to their Global Product Editor, which gives sellers the chance to make batch edits to hundreds of products in their inventory at once.

“Regardless of marketplace or venue we’ve found that sellers who list more items have a much greater success online,” said Tony Ford, COO of ArtFire. “We want to give everyone the chance to be successful, and free unlimited listing will help our artisans obtain more sales during the fourth quarter.”

“Many of our sellers are concerned about the shopping season due to economic issues, and cannot afford to promote and advertise as they had last year,” said John Jacobs, CEO of ArtFire. “This Holiday Free for All will allow them to sell more items than ever before completely free.”

This Holiday Free for All Promotion is the first ever of its kind, and expected to completely change the craft marketplace.

For more information, please contact:

Tony Ford, COO
ArtFire Inc.
1-877-688-2323
http://www.artfire.com

This is the greatest thing since the internet! Don't miss your train, sign up now!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Why bother with verified anymore if I can list unlimited items as a basic member?

If you like what you get in ArtFire and thinking of getting more benefits, you can pay the membership's flat rate fee for $12/month, also no listing and final sales fee. With Pro (formerly known as Verified) Accounts , you will get the following:

+1 search weighting (verified members always win a relevancy contest where the tie is with a basic member)
The Facebook Kiosk (worth $12/month all by itself by monetizing your fan page)
Coupon codes and gift certificates
Free featured spots for every verified member on the category, trend and gift guide pages (randomly selected)
Artisan Guilds
Artifacts
Sticky Cart
Global Product Editor
Multiple quantity listings (which is great. every time a product of multiple quantities sold, it will get relisted to the front page! Less work for sellers :) )
Fully customizable colors and layouts for the Fusion Studio
The Gallery on your Fusion Studio
Larger Super banner
Advanced Artisan Bio with multiple pictures and links
Studio widgets capability for ads, video, or other html and flash widgets
10 pictures instead of 4 on items.
No advertising in your studio or items.
No promotion of other (verified) sellers items on your item listings.
Up to 99 studio categories

Those mentioned above are Pro only benefits. If you're interested of becoming a Pro Member, please kindly mention popnicutesupplies as your referral :)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A little more Q&A:

How can ArtFire offer free unlimited listings to everyone?

Charging for a listing has been a staple of e-commerce since the late 90's. However the model is out of date, its costs next to nothing to host a listing. Why should a website charge you to put unique advertising content on their website?

Why would ArtFire do this?

ArtFire believes in artisans in the community. Time and time again they've seen that the single most common factor in a successful online businesses is that they list a lot of items. They want to remove barriers to your success, even if that means free unlimited listings for everyone. They believe that the real benefits of being a pro member go beyond unlimited listing. With the time saving promotional and management tools, tie breakers, benefits and more, why shouldn't they give new sellers the best chance of being successful.

Top 9 Handmade Christmas Gifts

2009-09-25T16:52:00.001+07:00

A gift Guide for Christmas! Looking for Christmas gifts or something to wear for Christmas parties you're going to attend? Looking for handmade Christmas decorations? Send lovely handmade Christmas cards to your loved ones! Better shop now to secure your items before the crazy season takes over the post office!

Pick a favorite and leave a comment with link to your Artfire Studio to be included on next Friday's featuring.

All items have been submitted to Vote Handmade and Twitter as well :) Vote please!

Check out these cool Handmade Christmas gifts

Global Bulk Editor is coming to ArtFire

2009-09-23T23:52:00.005+07:00

Finally! Something we've been waiting for months is finally ~~[almost]~~ here!! The Bulk Editor for our product listings in ArtFire :)

See the full view screenshot here! Exciting isn't it? :D

09/24/2009
Global Product Editor is LIVE
We are happy to announce the release of our newest feature at ArtFire, the Global Product Editor This timesaving tool allows you to batch edit many of the fields to a product including: prices, shipping, categories, promotion text, and more. This means members can quickly make changes to 100s or thousands of products in their inventory with just a few simple clicks. The Global Product Editor has been one of the most requested features from our artisans since ArtFire began. We are excited to be the first handmade venue to offer this robust selling tool. You can find a full help guide detailing the features of the Global Product Editor by clicking here.
Progress Bar is HERE
This week we have also implemented new requirements for our basic members to list items for sale on ArtFire. All basic members are now required to upload an avatar and studio banner, choose a payment method, provide an address, and fill out their artisan bio and studio policies before listings can go live. This change helps our new basic members open a more professional looking studio and relieve shopper uncertainty before listing products for sale. To help guide members though the process, a new progress bar has been added to your "My ArtFire" control panel that shows the status of each requirement. All members will see this status bar until each step is complete.
Facebook Contest is Almost OVER
This month on Facebook we will be awarding two sellers with FREE VERIFIED ACCOUNTS FOR LIFE There is only one week left to enter, so don’t miss your chance. To enter just post a link to your ArtFire Facebook Kiosk on the ArtFire.com fan page wall If you are new to Facebook, or having trouble setting up a business page, answers to most of your questions can be found in our Kiosk help guide. Contest entries will be accepted up until 11:59:59 EST on September the 30th. Don’t miss your chance at a free verified account for life!

Are you ready for Handmade Christmas Shopping?

2009-09-19T00:27:00.003+07:00

Christmas is around the corner. I know! How fast this year go by? Here I select three items from my studio that would be perfect to accompany you to go to any Christmas Party or as stocking stuffers!

Click here for closer look at the necklace

These simple copper earrings would look fab with any wardrobe!

What could be a better gift than a personalized painting of your beloved? Send me a clear picture of the person you wish to be painted and receive the digital art within a week in your e-mail.

Visit Popnicute Studio and Popnicute Supplies for more awesome gift selections :)

Top 9 Featured Friday 09/18/09

2009-09-18T23:42:00.004+07:00

What is adorable and shiny?

Pick a favorite and leave a comment with link to your Artfire Studio to be included on next Friday's featuring.

All items have been submitted to Vote Handmade and Twitter as well :) Vote please!

Are you ready shopping for Handmade Christmas?

And the Winner is...

2009-09-16T19:25:00.000+07:00

Jonathan Darrell Davis!!

CONGRATS FOR THE WINNER!

This has been a fun contest. Thank you all who entered WIN A FREE CUSTOM DIGITAL PORTRAIT PAINTING GIVEAWAY. Keep an eye open for my next Giveaway :D

<3

-K-

Top 9 Featured Friday 09/11/09

2009-09-11T22:51:00.002+07:00

And I'm feeling blue....

Pick a favorite and leave a comment with link to your Artfire Studio to be included on next Friday's featuring.

All items have been submitted to Vote Handmade and Twitter as well :) Vote please!

Other unique gifts at ArtFire..

ArtFire Now Accepts Amazon Payments

2009-09-09T14:16:00.005+07:00

Today's good news for ArtFire sellers! ArtFire has integrated Amazon Payments as one of the payment options. The bad news is that Amazon Payments currently only accepts US residents as members but we heard that they're working on opening their market for international members as well. So let's wait and see! :D

Read the news below as quoted from ArtFire community letter.

09/08/2009

Today we completed the integration of Amazon Payments, ArtFire’s newest payment option. Every U.S. based artisan can now set up and accept Amazon Payments along with PayPal, Google Checkout, Revolution Money Exchange, and of course check and money order.

Over 88 million people are currently registered with Amazon Payments and are familiar and comfortable with their payment process. With this integration all of those 88 million members familiar with Amazon Payments become your potential customers. Our goal at ArtFire is to give you and your customers as many options as possible so that each artisan has the tools to make their business successful.

This new payment option comes on the heels of the release of the breakthrough Facebook Kiosk and our Coupon Code system. After these two releases we have watched the average daily sales on ArtFire double. Kiosks and Coupons partner perfectly as seller tools. We have been very excited now to witness the incredible results for our artisans first hand. These features come in time for the busy holiday season ahead. If you haven’t tried out our Facebook Kiosk application or coupon codes there’s no time like the present. With help guides full of pictures and rapid response customer support, we’re ready to help you launch your business into the fourth quarter and beyond.
We have a lot more on the horizon for our artisans. Rest assured that if a feature or function will help you sell, open up new markets or give you access to new customer bases we will be working on making that feature or function a part of the Artfire platform.

Top 9 Featured Friday 09/04/09

2009-09-04T20:53:00.002+07:00

I'm feeling like featuring Halloween unique gifts and artwork found in Artfire. These items can be found under "Ghost" keyword.

Pick a favorite and leave a comment with link to your Artfire Studio to be included on next Friday's featuring.

All items have been submitted to Vote Handmade and Twitter as well :) Vote please!

Other unique gifts at ArtFire..

WIN A FREE CUSTOM DIGITAL PORTRAIT PAINTING!

2009-09-02T00:14:00.005+07:00

Get your picture or your beloved digitally painted by me, Kharisma R. Sommers for FREE!

SAMPLE:

http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=Shop&op=listing&product_id=385228

HOW TO ENTER THIS CONTEST:
1. You must be a fan of Popnicute to enter.
2. GO to Popnicute Fan Page http://www.facebook.com/popnicute and Leave a single comment there who would you want to be painted and why.
3. Invite your friends to join the contest too.
4. The Winner will be chosen using random.org.

CONTEST PERIOD:
Contest will be OFFICIALLY started on September 1, 2009 until September 15, 2009.

GRAND PRIZE:
a Digital Portrait Speed Painting done by Kharisma R. Sommers. Retail Value of $45.

RULES:
1. One entry per person.
2. IMPORTANT: Do NOT leave other messages aside than what was requested or you will be disqualified.
3. The winner will have to provide a clear picture of the person that will be painted and send it to my e-mail.

WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT:
September 17, 2009.
The winner will be announced publicly and contacted personally.

READ THE PRIVACY POLICY HERE:
http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=Shop&seller_id=12496&op=new&body=3

Enjoy the contest and have fun! :D

-K-
http://popnicute.com
http://popnicutesupplies.artfire.com

ARTFIRE COUPON CODE

2009-09-01T14:04:00.007+07:00

After the glamorous ArtFire Kiosk launching, now ArtFire has launched a new feature just for Verified Members. Coupon Code is another great addition to follow the success of ArtFire Kiosk!

Here's the quote of the official newsletter or Coupon Code release.

08/31/2009

ArtFire is proud to announce the release of our new Coupon Code system. This innovative system gives verified members the ability to create customized coupon codes with dozens of configurations and distribute via multiple channels with just the click of a mouse. The new system allows you to create coupons with incentives like percentage off, dollar amount off, free shipping and or free gifts. You can choose to apply these incentives over the entire range of your offerings, from your entire studio right down to the individual item level.

No more refunding your buyers after checkout when running a sale, with the new ArtFire Coupon Codes offering a sale is quick and easy! Along with the new coupon codes we also added the ability to offer Gift Certificates. You can now create gift certificates for exclusive use in your shop and email them right to the recipient. This means you can also list and sell gift certificates during the holiday season and beyond.

The coupon code launch comes right on the heels of the new ArtFire Facebook Kiosk. This new application allows verified sellers on ArtFire to add your customized fusion studio as a tab on your personal Profile and business Fan page(s). Sellers can now easily pair some of the best features at ArtFire.com. For example you might offer a "Facebook exclusive coupon" that can be used during a no account required checkout through your ArtFire Kiosk, to create leading edge promotion and exposure opportunities.

In the First week of rolling out the new Facebook Kiosk there have been over 3,000 Kiosks put up and reports of member sales increasing! We hope to see similar results with the Coupon Codes and will say that of all the features we have released none have been in higher demand than Coupon Codes. With unique new features we continue to grow the ArtFire community and our member's sales continue to grow as well. In August we saw record site traffic of over 1.7 million unique visitors and major advancements in SEO indexing on search engines!

At ArtFire we believe that innovation is the key to long term success. We strive everyday to keep our sellers on the cutting edge of what is possible in the age of e-commerce.

ArtFire’s focus on innovation and powerful management tools allows you to focus more of your time on running your business and building your brand. Thank you for allowing us to work with you, we look forward to many more successes with you.

I have personally used this feature and my buyer was able to use the coupon code smoothly! No more delayed paypal refunds!

Click here to read all about creating and managing your coupons

You can get to your coupon management screen here

You can get to the coupon creation screen here

Just want to say I'm glad i choose the right venue to sell! :D
If you're seeking to upgrade your account, click here. Kindly mentioned "popnicutesupplies" as your referral member.

ArtFire Kiosk for Facebook

2009-08-28T21:35:00.002+07:00

After the great Rapid Cart, now ArtFire has come with another ground breaking marketing tools!

Introducing: ArtFire Kiosk.

What is ArtFire Kiosk?
Shop for items and checkout through ArtFire.com without ever leaving Facebook. | No Account Needed | Encrypted Secure Checkout.

Sounds awesome huh?

As described above, ArtFire Kiosk is an application for Facebook, like Etsy Mini only WAY much better! The application can be installed in BOTH of your personal AND fan pages! It's like having another outlets without having to manage yet another accounts! ArtFire Kiosk will show all of your items and buyers can buy straight from Fracebook. They do not need to register to purchase anything as long as they have Paypal or major credit cards, they're good to go. I know several people already got sales from it so it's definitely working!

This is another reason to join ArtFire and/or Facebook if you haven't yet! This awesome feature is exclusively for Verified Members of ArtFire. If you're seeking to upgrade your account, click here. Kindly mentioned "popnicutesupplies" as your referral member.

Install ArtFire Kiosk Now

How to Install ArtFire Kiosk on Facebook

See It on My Fan Page

UPDATE! As of September 9, 2009 ArtFire has tied the facebook kiosk into Google Analytics. You should be able to see some indication of traffic there now via your existing GA account. They are working on a tie in with the Artfire server side stats as well.

Sounds great to me!

-K-
~ popnicute - imaginative handcrafted jewelry
~ popnicutesupplies - quality jewelry supplies and cocoon beads original

ART THEFT ON ETSY

2009-08-28T20:36:00.033+07:00

ATTENTION SCRABBLE TILE PENDANT ARTISTS!

DO NOT PURCHASE FROM THIS ART THIEF!

http://www.etsy.com/view_transaction.php?transaction_id=18788481

www.eettssyy.etsy.com

EETTSSYY'S NEW SHOP IS DOWNLOADANDPRINT!

www.downloadandprint.etsy.com

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=7970688

EETTSSYY or alias Aleksandra Kinshina alias Alex, SOLD MY IMAGE AND OTHERS WITHOUT OUR PERMISSION! AND ONE CAN ONLY SUSPECT THE OTHER IMAGES ARE STOLEN AS WELL. Eettssyy claimed that the artworks in the store are made by her. So please take a look to see if your artworks and photos are being sold without your permission! And now she comes back as DOWNLOADANDPRINT !

ORIGINAL ARTWORK BY ME Sara Sixblades

As you can see she carefully cropped out my signature!! I will have to use offensive watermark on all of my artworks from now on!

EETTSSYY profiles:

Her Flickr Account
E-mail: alex_florenc@yahoo.com
This is her website My Etsy Treasure.
If you do not want to be associated with an Art Thief,
kindly ask your Etsy Minis to be deleted from the site.
Eettssyy Blog
Twitter: GraphicForCraft

Grab My Button

Copy the code

UPDATE: As of Friday, August 28, 2009, this fraudulent shop has been put in a VACATION MODE by the seller. You can watch when she's coming back and see if she's back for a fair business or not. Thanks to everyone who has helped spreading the words!

This matter was kindly brought to my attention by a fellow deviant who pointed me out to this journal post. A quote from the original journal post can be read below

>>>original post:
It was just brought to my attention that this person: [link] is selling images of stolen artwork in "high-resolution" printable packs over Etsy. She claims the artwork as her own, and gives all purchasers rights to use and reproduce the images for their arts and crafts. I have recognized work from several artists in her listings, as well as my own.

This is a good example of something that has already been sold, containing artwork from myself and many other artists. [link] If you recognize any of these artists, please contact them so we can get this collectively reported and stopped immediately.

This is where the seller claimed that these pictures are original artwork by her/he. Which actually were a compilation of stolen arts many of them are popular artworks in deviantArt.

And according to the same journal. Etsy only removed the listing and didn't ban the seller! Well, isn't that upsetting! I hope ArtFire will do better than Etsy regarding this matter if it ever occurred.

She sells/sold Klimt, Twilight, Disney images as well as from other independent artists.

This is the list of Independent Artists whose works had been stolen and discovered. So if you happened to have bought or about to buy some of the digital collage sheets that didn't come from the original sources, please contact these artists to gain their permission before you sell or make any products out of them!

• Kry1 » Website | deviantArt | Online Supply Store
• Saimain » Website | deviantArt
• Faboarts » deviantArt
• Twosilverstars » Website | deviantArt
• Anathematics » deviantArt
• Messtor » Website | deviantArt
• Magnusti178 » Website | deviantArt
• Vyrl » Website | deviantArt
• Genzoman » deviantArt
• Daekazu » deviantArt
• Begoth » Website (mermaid paintings, various artists)
• Runswithwind » Website

Please inform me if you have more information about the original creators of the images eettssyy has stolen. I will add them on this list!!

Irony at best; quoted from her listings: like she had the rights to do it in the first place! This disclaimer shows that the seller was fully aware that she was infringing copyrights by selling other people's images!

"Purchase of this collage sheet entitles you to use the images for crafts and artwork, but does not entitle you to reproduce the images in original form for resale or redistribution to others."

In this digital collage sheet she had the nerve to say that these are her original artwork. I recognized the first painting was by this artist and several others are popular deviations in deviantart.

Click on the images to see the real size. They will open in a new window.

You will see the highlighted parts where she claimed that these paintings were her original artwork!

+++ an active listing

+++ sold items

... yeah right.

Imagine the damage she'd caused for these artists as to this date she has sold 998 digital collage images! Update, She ended up with 1,011 sales before she put her store in vacation mode.

Help the true artisans and spread the words. Please contact the original creators of the images you see at eettssyy's store and report the images to abuse@etsy.com

-K-

Last updated: Sept 3, 2009.

Spun Sister Designs

2009-08-28T01:50:00.003+07:00

SpunSisterDesigns is having a summer end sale! Everything is marked down 20% until the end of August plus free shipping to US and Canada. Get these elegant handcrafted jewelry at a fraction of the original price while they last! :D

More handcrafted jewelry from SpunSisterDesigns..
Other unique gifts at Artfire..

How to Get A Sale

2009-08-25T13:25:00.006+07:00

As we all struggle to make a living, we can't help noticing that some people do really good in their businesses. We all wonder [and so jealous we want to kill them to steal their customers] what their secrets are.
• Why didn't they buy from me?
• Their items are not better than mine but what made buyers chose them and not me?

What do they do that you don't? They must be doing something different, right?

These are a few naive thoughts why do they succeed:

- They've been around longer than you.
Even though their ArtFire or Etsy shops are new, doesn't mean they hadn't been around way before that. Once I contacted an artisan friend to ask what was her secret. How could she generate so many sales in such a short time being new at Etsy. She told me that she'd had an established customer base already before she joined Etsy and only redirected them to purchase her creations from her brand new shop.

- They advertise a lot.
We all hate people with more money than us, right? But truth be told, you can't make money out of nothing! You need money to make money. Being a home crafter like me with no real budget to spoil, I used a part of my deposit to get a kick start in my jewelry business. First I bought cheap materials to practice, after I was confident enough, I moved onto better materials and start selling them. The money I earned, some are used to buy new materials and so on. Same with advertising. I always in the look out for free advertising opportunities. There are a lot of handmade shopping directories that you can find all over the internet. Google it! Once I had enough money, I purchased cheap advertising spots I could afford. That's much better than not having one at all.

The point is to get seen often and a lot. More often you're seen, the better chance someone would buy from you. Word of mouth is also good advertising. Give really good service to your customers and words shall spread. :D How to get seen more? One of the many ways is to list a lot.

Here are a few things i could think of as of to get sales online:

1. Passing out business cards / postcards / fliers (or a combination of all) is always a good idea.
Don't be a stranger. Pass these advertising tools in your local stores, friends, family, previous customers, on the streets if you have to. Promotion is very important!Don't forget to include your business cards in every order.

2. Offering discount and other specials help your business going.
Take Victoria's Secret online for an example. Once you're subscribed to their store, you will always get different discount codes all the time and daily reminders to the subscribers sent via e-mails. I think that's a good business practice. Something is always happening in VS and they'e not shy letting people know. That will keep you in mind of many readers. I have found myself several times falling to their "trap" ;) Guilty as charged!

REMEMBER:
When offering specials, make sure your sale price wouldn't get you broke. There's absolutely no point in getting sales if you wouldn't get something from it. Value your own time and talent!

The malls over here always have something for sale. So rotating your items for a discount could be a good idea.

Hosting giveaways also worked for some sellers.

3. To make profit online or offline, you need to set a realistic goal.
Here's a good software for pricing Jewelry Pricing Calculator Software | Jewelry Software . I love it because it covers everything including annual profit, overheads to subscription, and postage. Everything!

4. Take a peek at several articles that I have written in the past.
A collective ideas, thoughts and tips that I gathered, that I learned online and offline. They might help you get around ArtFire specifically.

• Tips on Tagging - Tag like crazy, seriously. ArtFire kindly gives you 10,000 words for tags. So use it!

• Tips on Creating Ads

• All About ArtFire That We Love

Successful Referral Tips - Get verified and invite people to get verified too for a free ride!

• Jewelry Photography Tutorial - Good photography always help boost sales. Use attractive models and set up. If you're selling shawls or fashion products, show your buyers that your shawls will look good with what wardrobe. You don't need to be a fashion guru for that but just dress yourself or your mannequin/models for the occasion before you take photos. Don't wear ugly faded t-shirt that look more like a floor rug under your beautiful handmade shawls. That will surely turn buyers off. We all love to see eye candy not sore to the eyes. Freshen yourself up before taking pictures. Put on a little make up if needed. Don't look depressive. Be happy on camera as you're promoting your great handmade [with love] products!

••• This is a good listing example and more than 4.500 buyers agrees with me. The target market is obvious by the way the model dressed up. This product is for the young, the hip and funky individuals. Also gives you idea what outfit would look good to be worn under the shawl.

••• This photo below makes you wonder about the product's hygiene and ...smell. Sure old and worn out mannequin can look awesome in the hands of the right photographers but certainly not this one.

••• If you can't find a good model, get yourself a good mannequin to represent your store like this one below.

Bright and clear photographs are very inviting. If you want to make money online, invest a bit of your time to learn how to use your camera and photo editing programs as the weather and camera sometimes wouldn't cooperate. Gimp is a good software and free to download. Always try to photograph your items under natural light when the sky is bright and clear. Find a good shaded place to take your pictures, like in your porch or next to a window as direct sunlight can be distracting too. Read your camera's manual to get the appropriate settings specified to your needs.

• Uploading Image to ArtFire Forum Posts

• BHR Artisan Shop Directory for low fee advertising! Always in the look out for advertising that you can afford. Make a budget for advertising and place your ads where you think your market is flocking. Join the forums, or other social media to advertise yourself for free and be a part of the community. Join challenges, guilds, teams, etc. Interaction is important. Also there are a lot of places that offers free plugs. Like shopping directories and such. Just Google them! There are quite a handful out there.

Let me ask you this question:
When you Google yourself and your store, how many pages of results do you have? If you only got one page with 2-3 results, then no wonder no one buys from you. You're not really OUT there. your products maybe buried in the bottomless pit of Google searches. Make yourself heard! Create a blog and/or posting a lot in the forums will help boosting your page count. Make sure to create quality posts too among the chit chats.

Last but not least, sign up to my latest Top 9 Featured Friday post to get extra exposure next Friday. I have weekly spotlights exclusively for ArtFire artisans.

Internet is an amazing place. We learn something new everyday! Google is your friend ;)

~ popnicute - imaginative handcrafted jewelry

~ popnicutesupplies - quality jewelry supplies and cocoon beads original.

Faye Farms Soap

2009-08-24T14:24:00.002+07:00

Every bar of Faye Farms soaps is made with wholesome milk from their dairy herd of Ayrshire cows as well as lard or tallow from their naturally raised livestock. All of Faye Farms soaps are made from scratch using only the highest quality ingredients. A variety of vegetable oils and butters are also used to make a beautifully balanced bar of soap with lots of lather. If you would like to learn more about Faye Farms, please visit their website at www.fayefarms.com

More handmade soaps from Faye Farms..
Other unique gifts at Artfire..

Woods N Goods

2009-08-23T21:12:00.004+07:00

WoodsNGoods is a very talented wood carving artisan who resides in Michigan, USA. Many of their items have no coloring added, just the grain and natural color of the wood species. At times leather dyes are used along with the shaping of the wood to provide depth and interest. I love this studio! The prices are very attractive too. Are you looking for Christmas or Halloween ornaments? Want to decorate your house with amazing hand carved wood art? Make sure to visit WoodsNGoods studio!

More from this talented artisan..
More unique gifts at ArtFire..

Top 9 Featured Friday 08/21/09

2009-08-21T00:23:00.000+07:00

Wonderful collection of teal and orange unique gifts found around Artfire.

Pick a favorite and leave a comment with link to your Artfire Studio to be included on next Friday's featuring.

All items have been submitted to Vote Handmade and Twitter as well :) Vote please!

Other unique gifts at ArtFire..