Good photographs sell!

One of the keys to successful selling online is having a good photo of your item. Since your customer cannot touch and see your item in person, you need an accurate representation of it.

Please don't think I am an expert photographer by any means, but here is what I've learned in my one year journey on Etsy...all mistakes revealed!

When I first started selling on Etsy, my photographs stunk! Just to prove it to you, here is one. I took the photo inside in a homemade lightbox. Not that there's anything wrong with a homemade lightbox--I had the box, just not the light! I was using an incandescent lamp and my picture turned out dull with yellow undertones. I know you can fix things like this with fancy software, but I barely know how to use the program that came with my camera.

A kind soul suggested I try using outdoor light, so I gathered up a bundle of fabrics to use as backdrops and headed outside. I tried photographing in the sun, but the bright light tended to wash out my pictures. I waited for the sun to move and tried again in the shade. The lighting was a major improvement over my previous picture, but the wrinkles in the blanket are just plain distracting!!

My next attempt was taken outdoors again in indirect light, using a pillow for a rich, neutral background. That took care of the wrinkles, but then I had a new problem. My challenge here was trying to get a decent shot without the deck, garden, and dog running around in the background. I draped a piece of brown fleece over the chair to block the distractions. I was quite pleased with the results, given what I started with! However, my camera was having difficulty with the contrast between the dark brown backdrop and the pale foreground, giving my photo a greyish tint.

Another important discovery was the macro button on my camera. If you're taking close shots of your work and have this feature, use it!! It makes a huge difference in the clarity of your photos.

I used a piece of decorative paper for my background and tried different camera angles to avoid getting my patio table and the dog in the picture. I cropped out whatever I couldn't avoid.

After much experimentation, I discovered the perfect time of day for taking my pictures, which of course changes with the seasons, so it's a never-ending process!!

For those who are curious, here is a shot before cropping. See my lovely table and all the journals stacked in the cue, waiting to be photographed?!

For further information and tutorials, check out Etsy's storque articles on this subject. Here is one Etsy published that is helpful. http://www.etsy.com/storque/section/howTos/article/shop-makeover-series-photographing-for-success/913/

New interview!

Hey all, check out my latest interview with Valorie of Battlemaiden Studio--
http://etsyreviews.blogspot.com/2008/09/uberart.html. She did a great job!

Fourth of July Mishaps

This year's celebration was mild as compared to previous years. The only mishaps were a burnt toe from stepping on a spark, and a spray of sparks when the wind changed direction. No one's hair caught fire and we didn't burn the pier down, so it was deemed a successful weekend!

Each year for July 4th, we go to the lake with friends to celebrate and see the fireworks show over the bridge, put on by the region's Chamber of Commerce. We've always gone by boat because we've been told the traffic on the bridge is terrible and it takes a ridiculously long time to get home.

The first year we went, we drove the boat in as close as we could get to the bridge for the show. What we didn't realize was once it got dark, it would be difficult to find our way back home! There are no lights on the lake, other than the few houses and piers lit up for the evening.

Once the show was over, everyone turned their boats around and drove back, all at the same time! Everywhere you looked, there were boats within 25 feet of us in all directions! On top of that, it seemed a good number of those boaters were drunk, which made for some scary moments. We managed to find our way back without incident, thankfully.

The next year we ventured out, we didn't go in as close and came prepared with a searchlight in case we got lost. We thought we were set, but what we didn't anticipate were the swells from the other boaters. The first year we went out in the 1977 "Swinger" speedboat, which loses another part each time we take it out, but this time we took the newer pontoon boat (20 years old, with a pathetic 25 hp engine!).

So here we go, puttering along back home with all the rest of the lake population zooming by us. Our little boat was rocking and swaying like we were in the worst storm in decades. Now would be a good time to mention I get motion sick something fierce. I'm so bad, I can get sick in a hammock. We hit a few swells which washed over the front deck of the boat. The third swell was the biggest and almost did us in.

One moment we were riding along in the water, the next we were nearly perpendicular to the water, the engine behind us over our heads, looking down into the lake! It seemed to hold there for an infinite amount of time and we all thought we were going down. Finally the boat recovered and the engine went back into the water where it belonged. The dogs huddled next to me on the seat, one under each arm, shaking with fear.

No one said anything for several minutes, then there was an exclamation of something like "holy ****" and we all started laughing our heads off.

Now when we go out, we are at the very back of the crowd and the first boaters back to shore! The fireworks are so far away we can barely hear them!

Fortunately for us, this year we stopped right by the pier of someone who'd spent their retirement money on fireworks, so we got our own show right over our heads. It was very nice and made up for the distance we kept from the official show.

Making handmade paper

Here is what I've been working on most afternoons for the last week. I have a nice stack of handmade paper now, in various colors. This is a great summer project to do outside on your porch or deck. It's kind of drippy and messy, so it would make quite a mess indoors.

It's been about 8 years since I last attempted to make my own paper. At that time, I thought the project went well, but now that I have a better idea of what I'm doing, I think not!

Some of my paper was so thick it came out looking like the toilet paper wads you see on the ceilings of public restrooms! I've concluded I had too much pulp in my vat. I ended up tearing all the super-thick paper up and recycling it for my new paper.

The project went very well this time with the exception of a little mishap I had with some inclusions. They looked very pretty, like little crystals, but turned out to be rather uncomfortable to run your hand across once the paper was dry. I think they would be showcased better in a paper casting, rather than a sheet of paper.

Here is a sheet from my first batch. I used recycled paper (copy paper and letterhead) with no inclusions, other than the flower seeds I originally used 8 years ago.

A green sheet using dark green tissue paper and green cold water dye. The dark flecks are the tissue paper.

This piece is from the same recycled pulp, but this time I added purple and lavender tissue paper to my blender of pulp. The tissue only lightly colored the pulp. The dark purple I blended longer than the lavender, resulting in large areas of lavender and flecks of dark purple. A nice effect, I think.

I had some leftover dye from a previous project, so I dumped it into the next blender full of pulp. The dye was called chestnut brown, but as you can see, the paper ended up more terra cotta than brown. I used Arnold Grummer's Gold Dust in this vat. (see arnoldgrummer.com for supplies--great customer service!)

Here is my last sample from today. I've photographed the paper both wet and dry to show the dramatic difference in color once the paper dries. I used more leftover dye in denim blue and Arnold Grummer's Silver Sprinkles. There are more sprinkles in the wet piece than the dry because it was the last of the pulp and I poured it into a mold, so the sprinkles were very concentrated.

As you may have noticed, it sounds as if I am addicted to making paper, and I think I am! I find myself walking around the house wondering what would happen if I added this or that to my paper! Quite possibly there will be more experiments to come. In the meantime, have a safe and happy 4th of July!

More features!

Yeah! I've been honored in another Etsy treasury, this one curated by BurningRiverBeads. My pendant is the first one in row three.

My Red Hibiscus Pendant has also been featured today in SweetVib's blog. Thank you very much!! http://sweetvib.blogspot.com/2008/06/polymer-clay-magic-by-uberart.html I'm still surprised at how much attention my pendants have received, since my shop's main focus has been journals! I guess that will be changing soon--maybe 60% journals-40% pendants.

I'm getting ready to ramp up my inventory in preparation for the holidays. It seems a bit early, but if you notice in the stores, they're already getting Halloween items stocked. Besides, these things tend to sneak up on me and I'm scrambling at the last minute!

Busy weekend

Have you ever planned a kid's birthday party? If you have, then you know how much work it is! I am better able to appreciate all my mother did for my parties growing up!

I was mega-stressed the morning of the party because it was raining and all the party activities I had planned were outdoors! Normally I would have been in the backyard doing a rain dance because it's been so dry (see the pathetic brown grass?). No rain for two weeks and wouldn't you know, the morning of the party, it rains. Thankfully, it cleared up so we were able to continue as planned.

As a special treat, Grandpa borrowed a blow up jumpy thing from a friend and set it up in the backyard for the kids. Here is the party boy, having a trial run by himself before he gets run over by all his friends. That was always me in those jumpy things. I was the kid laying on my back, helplessly being bounced around by the big kids, trying desperately to get up. My fondest memories are when I had it all to myself!

Needless to say, I was exhausted after the party and got little else done over the weekend. I've been so tired my newest art magazines have been sitting on my desk since their arrival yesterday, untouched. That is unusual for me. I barely get them out of the mailbox before I'm poring over them. It's now Tuesday and I feel sufficiently recovered enough to post on my blog.