SALE!!!

Rather than having individual promotions for Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday, I am rolling them all into one big sale!

This will be the only sale I will be offering for the remainder of the year. Now is the time to get those unique Christmas gifts! Remember, all my listings are one-offs - once the piece has sold, it's gone. I sometimes have similar items, but not identical, so, if you see something you love, snap it up!

Use code THANKS2014 at Etsy checkout to take 20% off your total purchase!

The full link to my Etsy store is here - www.etsy.com/shop/dragonglassusa

Happy shopping!

Product Photography

Over the past couple of years, my photography approach has changed considerably.

I started off using a piece of wood flooring (a sample from Home Depot) and I took the pictures outside in natural light. I had lots of problems with this approach. Firstly, the pictures had shadows on them. The light also didn't really show the dichroic glass I use very well, it was almost too sparkly and you couldn't see the detail. I tried indoor pictures, but, the light would give a yellow tinge to the pics and the colours would look 'off'.

Shadows...!

Then, I switched to a piece of granite (a spare piece from where our bathroom sinks had been cut out from), but, it looked much too busy and distracted from the piece itself.

Busy background

I then switched to a while background, but, even this had its problems. The light problem was hitting me again, as was the shadow issue. Also an issue was the shade of white, depending on the light. I was spending so much time having to edit the photos for brightness, that the pictures didn't look cohesive in my Etsy storefront. I also felt that the white background was a little boring.

Grey background (even though it's white)

Glass presents so many problems when trying to photograph it. The reflective issues are great. It is also very difficult to truly show the depth of the colours and internal texture of dichroic glass, which is really beautiful.

I have now switched to using a wood-like floor tile. I also, after 2 years, discovered that it is best to photograph dichroic glass with no light on, in relatively low light, and against a non-white background.

Loving my current set up!

I bought a little pop up 'studio' from another local crafter and it's the perfect surround. I also found that my camera would decide if I needed a flash, unless I was able to manually override it, which I do with the help of an additional flash, that I simply turn off by the switch.

Simple, but works!

This brings me to my current style, which I'm really happy with. My Etsy Store looks cohesive and clean, but highlights my products perfectly.

Store looks somewhat cohesive

My tips for product photography -

- Use a background that has some interest, but not so that it detracts from your product. Your product needs to 'pop' at your potential customers.
-  Think about how your Etsy store looks - does it look messy and uncoordinated or does it look cohesive?
- If you have a digital SLR, here is your opportunity to use it! Even the pre-programmed settings can produce great pictures!
- Crop your pictures to show a view you want and have several views of your product, including a close-up and a picture with your product next to something of standard size so that your potential customer can see how big or small it is.
- Your pictures are all that your customer sees in an online setting, make them pop! Take the time to get great pics!

Share your tips for product photography!

The New Etsy Reader - A Review

My new Etsy Reader on my old work board...

A few weeks ago, Etsy announced they had released a their own 'reader', ie, credit card reader. Most crafters, including myself use a reader at shows, although, until this, most of us use Square or Paypal. The readers are all free, but take a percentage of the sale as a processing fee, usually around 2.75% for swiped transactions.

The problem with selling both in person and online, especially with one of a kind items like mine, is that you need to ensure you don't sell something in person, then find out that you have sold it online.

Etsy have a "Sell on Etsy" App, that has gradually added features over the years,  that now allows you to manage your listings and deactivate listings from your event which is helpful, but, it's frustrating sometimes to pay for your listing fee, but then have to deactivate it if you sell it in person and not get the benefit of that sale counting towards your statistics.

The Etsy Reader is the perfect compliment to an online Etsy store.

In combination with the Sell on Etsy App, it allows you to -

- Sell your listings in person.
- Create 'quick' listings on the fly for items you haven't listed.
- Add pictures to these 'quick' listings if you want to, or not.
- Sell a combination of 'quick' and already listed  items.

Selling through multiple outlets can also be confusing for record keeping. Managing Square statements, in-person cash sales and online Etsy sales makes for more pieces of paper than I personally like, and I know my hubby doesn't, since I have a tendency to file in 'piles'...

The Etsy Reader is the answer to this!

It's orange, with the Etsy logo and has a slightly rubberized feel to it. It connects into the headphone jack of your phone like other card readers.

To use the Etsy Reader, you must have the "Sell on Etsy" App installed on your device (it works with both Apple and Android devices and with tablets and phones).
I wish I were tech-savvy enough to actually do screenshots, but, for some reason, my shonky Galaxy S2 won't co-operate. The page describing the reader does have screenshots of how the App works.

My main point in writing this, was to actually review how the Etsy Reader works in practice and its benefits / drawbacks.

Benefits

- You can receive credit card and cash payments.
- You can add a sales tax profile and it will automatically calculate and add this amount to your sale, for both cash and card payments.
- Quick sales are not subject to the Etsy listing fee of 20c.
- Cash sales incur no payment processing fees.
- All sales count towards your Etsy sales statistics.
- Much easier to manage your Etsy-listed items and unlisted items at a craft fair
- You can keep all your paperwork in one place - ie an Etsy monthly statement.
- You can have a cohesive feel to your shop - ie, Etsy in person and Etsy online.
- You can send email receipts
 - Buyers can leave reviews for Etsy listings sold in person (not quick sale items) if they are on Etsy.

Drawbacks

- It's a little time consuming to have to type in the quick sale description. They need to add the ability to create quick listings that you can store and simply click on.
- You have to wait for Etsy to transfer money to your bank account, whereas Paypal transfers instantly to a Paypal account and many sellers use their Paypal account with a debit card in lieu of a bank account.
- Higher fees for a manually entered transaction. This is pretty standard (as the card doesn't have to be present and therefore it's a higher security risk), but a little unfair if you have the card with you and the swipe function isn't working (whether it be the reader or the card stripe itself at fault).
- Some sellers feel that the recent changes that Etsy has made to search and its business practices are not helping sellers and the Etsy reader is designed as a money-making option for them and less of a help to sellers.


Overall I love the new reader. To me, I would be paying the fees anyway (they're pretty universal) and I don't operate my business on a shoestring enough that a couple of days before the money transfers to me matters all that much.
I love having my paperwork in one place and I love that I don't need to put my store in vacation mode ahead of a big show because it's too hard to manage the Etsy-listed items as well as those that aren't listed. I can simply sell them there and then.
I also like the ability to have the equivalent of a cash register that records all sales and I love that I can increase my Etsy sales statistics at no cost to me for cash sales in-person.
The reader seems durable and I haven't had any problems with it at two shows over the past 2 weeks.

In short - it's a winner for any Etsy seller!

New Domain!

You might have noticed that now, when you arrive at the blog, that the address in the browser bar says www.dragon-glass.com. I finally took the plunge and got my own domain. I love the blogger interface for creating a blog, but, I wanted it to be my own space, and now it is! Welcome to my new place :)

Tons of Earrings!!

I recently realized (luckily in plenty of time for my first event of the season) that my earring stock was very very low.
I've been making studs for the past 7 months or so and they seem to be quite popular. They are generally a slightly lower price point than drop earrings and I know many people prefer studs.
So, here are a few of the latest ones...

I've also created a few new drop earrings in shades of the season!

 

 To purchase any of these, or to see the other recent additions hop on over to the Etsy store! They make the perfect little Christmas gift!

Twittering....

I have been using Twitter for a little while, both to promote my little business, but also to catch up on news and follow some others I like.
Well, I made a pendant a while ago and I LOVED how it turned out - it reminds me of a heart tree, which all Game of Thrones fans will recognize...
Anyway, I was tweeting some listings today and decided to tag it as such, and what do you know?!
Apparently the Game of Thrones people also like it :)

Icy Blue on Red Fused Dichroic Glass Pendant by DragonGlassUSA http://t.co/GjUMIzHKNC via @Etsy #udobiz #shoplocal #Gameofthrones #hearttree
— Sarah Stockwell (@dragonglassusa) September 16, 2014

Buttons!

I've been seeing a lot of cute chunky fall knits around lately. I particularly like the cowl / scarf type ones. This got me thinking - what would make some of these super cute (especially the handcrafted ones) items stand out from the crowd is the buttons they feature!
Whilst on my little jaunt to the glass wholesalers last week, I found a mold - for buttons!
So, I decided to have a go at fusing some!
I used browns and white, as well as some clear frit (small glass pieces) to complement the season.

Mixed frit in the mold, ready for firing!

First firing result!

I then decided to flip the buttons and refire them to give them a little more of a regular shape - it's always a little bit of a challenge to know *just* when to run the cool down with a new mold...

And voila! Here is the fired result! I think they look pretty cool.... (and this from a girl who refused to wear buttons as a child - and I *still* won't do plastic ones... :) ) They're available in my Etsy store here as a set of four and here as a set of 2.
I just love how they're all unique - now to expand with some other colours! Got any suggestions? Leave me a comment!

On a backing card - ready for shipping!

Ooh - More Experiments to Try!

I love trying out new things, sadly to the point where I am a little ADD I think. Anyway, one of my favorite gifts to receive is an Amazon gift card. You see I love books. They are my favourite things. I have a tablet computer, with a kindle app, but I much much prefer a real book. A book where I can see how far through it I am and where I can flick back towards a point or passage I want to refer back to.
My latest acquisition? "Making Soap From Scratch" by Gregory Lee White.
I recently had a local crafter make a batch of peppermint and rosemary soap for me. It's delicious. It is invigorating and refreshing and the best way to start a morning. She is very reasonable and makes great products, including the best lipbalms containing DoTerra "On Guard" essential oils.
But, here's the kicker.
I am a trained chemical/metallurgical engineer. Why don't I just make my own? The process seems much easier than I would have ever thought.
So, I picked up the above book and cannot wait to try it out. I love an experiment. I also love saving money.
Roll on next week - I'm going to acquire some ingredients and give soap making a go, albeit in between foiling my last stained glass panel for my front door and everything else I have going on.

Another Front Page!!

Imagine my surprise this morning when I checked my Etsy Store?!
A treasury I was featured in made the front page!

A huge thank you to Christine of PaperSprouts for the feature! Here it is - it's a really beautiful collection!

Getting Projects Finished....

I've been working on the glass for my front door for over a year. Things have come up so many times and I've just not had the time to be able to get it finished and installed.
Today was the day that pigs finally flew. My front door panel was installed.
I'll add that I still have to get the one finished sidelight 'sandwiched' in tempered glass and I have yet to draw and put together the other sidelight.

But....wow. So worth the work. A complete original.

Front Page!!!

I am so excited this morning! One of my items was featured in a treasury that made the front page of Etsy!!!
Here it is!



A very big thank you to Christine for making this lovely treasury! You can check out her store here!

Busy Bee!

I've been firing up the kiln quite a lot lately. I went to the wholesalers in Denver just before Christmas and bought a ton of new glass, so I figured I would use some of it.

The puzzle piece pendant stock is continuing to grow, and I've already sold a few, which is great! The purple ones have been a hit!

I've also continued to make some of the cast ones and they're so bright and sunny - loving them.
They all come with a $3 donation each to Alpine.

I've been branching out a little too and making some little noticeboard magnets. Perhaps I should use some of my ideas and get myself more organized...

I've been using some of the lovely glass I bought and making more pendants and earrings especially, including studs.

Finally, I've decided to have a little bit of a sale - I wanted to clear out some of my older stock to justify my new glass purchases....

New Puzzle Pieces!

So, last year I raised over $120 for Alpine Autism Center through sales of my puzzle piece pendants. This year I have an ambitious goal of doubling that.
I picked up a mould recently online for a puzzle piece, since I wanted to create some pendants that are a little different, and I also wanted to work more with moulds and frit (glass particles) anyway.
Here is what I came up with!

https://www.etsy.com/listing/176765588/green-and-white-autism-awareness-fused?ref=shop_home_active_4

Personally, I love it! I now have the flexibility to create many different combinations using whichever glass frit I have or can find.

I'm also still doing the etched pendants, which I love. I have some purple and orange ones almost ready and they're super cute. Autism Awareness that comes with ACTION. Now that's what I'm talking about.

2 Down, 1 To Go!

Well, it seems like my new year's resolution to actually get my front door panels finished has had some effect!

Aside from a little patina (the 'stain' for the solder - I don't like silver) touchup, it's ready to be sandwiched inside tempered glass and go into the sidelight!

Just one more panel to do - better get to drawing!