Dawanda

Since I have been too tired to create anything new lately, I decided to set up a shop on Dawanda, the European Etsy.
Curious how things work on Dawanda.
First of all, I find listing the items very slow. I don't really know why it takes such a long time to list an item. I really have to get used to it. Refreshing a page takes ages. I don't think that's to blame on my computer since it's fairly new and we also have a fast internetconnection.
Second everthing is priced in euro's which I find an absolute advantage. Especially with the dollarrates it's really hard to set and keep prices.
Third, on Dawanda it shows more statistics on the items you have listed - I like that feature a lot! Not only that, but people are able to leave a comment on an item you have listed. That way you get feedback from customers and other sellers on a specific item.
I did not make any new items for Dawanda. I just used the ones I have on Etsy and cross my fingers they won't sell at the same time! ;)

Barbapapa

A few days ago I joined 'We love Etsy' and 'Indiepublic'.
I use a different avatar there.
For those who are curious what the avatar is all about:

A few years ago I had to make an assignment for my ceramic evening class: as smooth as glass. Design a series of small, fluent shapes. These shapes can be part of an entity what concerns shape but it doesn't have to be the aim. The shapes need to be polished, several times to make the surface smooth as glass.
When I heard the words smooth and fluent, I immediately associated the words with the figures I remembered from my childhood: Barbapapa. I love smooth, fluent shapes.
They invite to touch. There are no sharp edges.
My shapes have been 'naked raku' fired. A technique where at first you give the shape a very thin layer of clay slib, in this case it was a gray slib and then you put the glaze on top of that layer. The shape is fired in an oven with a maximum temperature until 880°C. Then one takes the shape out of the oven and sprinkles it with drops of water. The glaze breaks and when the shape has cooled down, it can be removed. You then have a matt piece of ceramic.
Would you like to read more about Barbapapa en Co?
Have a look at: http://www.barbapapa.fr/

Survey results

Here are the results of the survey:

95% of my blog visitors found me on the forum
5% of my blog visitors found me some other way

That means I spend way to much time on the Etsy-forum-threads. :)

Frontpage

Danielle from Etsy labs and http://preciouspups.etsy.com/ included me in a treasury full of newbies, a few days ago.

I was pleasantly surprised to find it on the frontpage a day or two later!

Never had so many visitors in my shop in such a short period of time.
I was actually a bit shocked!

The scatching cards surely have been noticed now! ;)

For Felting Freaks

A little while ago, I got this beautiful book as a present.

It's a book which is written in English and Dutch and it's an absolute must for all those 'felting freaks'.

It has wonderful photography, decribes the process of felting and gives some great felting artists a chance to show their work.

It is written by Ria van Els-Dubbelaar. She is a passionate creator of textile art and feels equally enthusiastic about passing on her art and skills to others.

You can order this book here: http://www.zijdarbook.com/shantoeng/catalogus/Products.asp?PGID=598
If you live in Belgium, they sell it in this shop too: http://www.debanier.be/

New line of cards

I have been busy making a new line of -yes- limited cards.

A few years ago, I used this idea for our own New year's wishes and had so much positive feedback on them, that I thought it would be a good idea to sell them on http://artmind.etsy.com/.

This is a picture of a prototype:









The main card is Japanese handmade with beautiful edges so you can see it's handmade and I also used Japanese paper to decorate it.

I have made them in four colours for now and I'll wait a bit for response to make more.
I don't know yet if I should sell them in sets of three or seperately.

With every card, I add a flat lolly stick for scratching the wish away!
Yes! Underneath the biggest round bubble, I have written a special wish.
Want to know what it is?
Keep an eye on my Etsy-shop and you will see... :)

Oops! I've been tagged

There is this lovely lady named Bee
She's a bit naughty too because she tagged me! :)

These are 7 facts about me:
1. I once fell of a volcano in Mexico. It was in Paricutin I wasn't too badly injured but I thought I had lived the last minutes of my life when tumbling down. One day I will go back to conquer this volcano.

2. I have a boyfriend from Holland and we often have discussions about different words we use for different things. I suppose it's like the difference between British and American English.

3. I work for a company which distributes creative supplies, so I'm right at the source when it comes to getting supplies. I have to hold myself back not buying everything I see really...

4. I quit smoking nearly four years ago and it's the best decision I have ever made.

5. I started running last February. The first few times I thought I would drop down dead, but now I already run for half an hour.

6. I won't buy mugs if I can't fit at least three of my fingers in the ear to hold it. I love to warm my hands on a cup too.

7. I feel I have too little time to do all the things I want.

The rules:
1. Link to your tagger and post these rules.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself: some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post and list their names (linking to them).
4. Let them know they've been tagged by leaving a comment at their blogs.

People I have tagged:
Syko Because I love her avatar - and her work too of course!
Element clay studio Because I'm madly in love with her fragile work.
Morganmoore Because you must check out her wonderful lunch sacks.
Karlita's shop Because I know her and she knows me, but she doesn't know yet who I am - I think.
Village Vegan Because I love food and one day I came across her blog and bookmarked it so once in a while I go there to see what she's come up with!
Feltland Because she lives in the city where I hope to retire when I'm old! Absolutely love this place. I like her avatar and shop too.
Carla Sonheim Because she paints in such a magical way I had to share this with you...