Excitement!

Today was exciting! The Boy and I were stuck in traffic most of the way, both times it was because of congestion around the Newburgh-Beacon bridge. So a 15 minute trip turned into a 45 minute trip. Luckily, I had the sound notion to bring my iPod with me today. I always knew it would come in handy. Anyway, today's adventures consisted of going to Fishkill to pick up The Boy's check, and then snailing our way over to Middletown, getting COMPLETELY LOST and spending $500 on a remote control car. For my part in being a supportive girlfriend, he took me to A C Moore, where I picked up a few things for myself. I got myself some leather, a stamp, some beads that were on clearance, and a picture frame for the gorgeous drawing I bought from fineartist on Etsy.

Today was also exciting, because I got my ring from markaplan from Etsy today! It is absolutely gorgeous! I lurves it. Now I have to lose 10 more lbs so I can get something else from my favourites.

I meant to go on about my new leather cuffs that I'm currently working on, but I got sidetracked by my shiny new ring. I've cut pieces of leather 1.5 inches wide and stamped them with an oil based paint. They're hanging up to dry right now, but here are some pictures of the progress:


I can't wait until they're dry so I can finish them! I've never worked with leather before, but it's something I've always wanted to do. I'm a big fan of cuffs, and I think this could be a pretty interesting project.

And remember my free gift with purchase in my Etsy shop from now until June 10th!

What's this? Free gift?

That's right. Now through June 10th I'll be giving away a free (surprise) gift with each purchase made from my Etsy store!

http://paysonwinters.etsy.com

I've been busy lately, promoting my shop and working on new items. I really want to take a metalsmithing class, but I don't know of anyone in the area who does them. My college doesn't offer one either, which makes me angry. I want to be able to make my own jewelry, instead of just assembling it like what I'm doing now. Anyone can do that. Not everyone can forge their own rings and pendants. That's what I want to be able to do. I want to add some unique items as well as some staple items such as hoops and rings and bangle bracelets. There's only so much you can do with beads, charms, and chains.

So as some of you may or may not know, I've started to diet again. I want to lose my weight slowly though, so my skin has time to shrink. There's nothing more disgusting than a person who's lost a tremendous amount of weight in a very short amount of time and has all that loose skin hanging off. No, that's just wrong. Anyways, I've been setting little goals for myself. I've just lost my first 10lbs so I bought myself this gorgeous ring from markaplan on Etsy. I'm going to do this for every 10lbs or so... Pick one item in my favourites on Etsy to reward myself for doing a good job. I think next I might get three of Gemma's Delicato stacking rings... I've been eyeing them for quite some time...

Aaaand I'm off. G'night.

No Excuses.

Well, I figure I might as well update this. I have been overwhelmed with school, work, and trashy romance novels. I have so much I need to put up on Etsy, on both of my shops no less, and a lot of re-listing to do as well. I also need to start SAVING the money that I make on Etsy, now that I have enough supplies to last me quite a while. I've spent a great deal of my personal funds to get myself going on Etsy and it's time that I pay myself back. Also, I want a new laptop of my own, because the Boyfriend is getting increasingly possessive over his.

Today is my last day of school, so I'll have a lot more free time after today is over. This is what I've been waiting for for the last 10 weeks! Now I'm free until August. I should be blogging a lot more, being able to devote more time and effort into my posts instead of just jotting down whatever comes to my mind before bed or in between classes.

I have so many plans for the summer, I don't know if I can accomplish them all.

Well, I'm off now, gotta go to class.

Eco-Chic

I've been hearing a lot of talk about young adults being eco-conscious these days, as we should be. The planets future lies in our hands, and we need to do everything we can to preserve it for our future and the future of our children, so on and so forth. Recently I was shopping in several of the largest box stores in my area, and I came across a few "eco-friendly" items and also some "energy saving" items that I thought would be worth mentioning. Think of this as a review, if you will.

EcoTex Earth Friendly Bed Pillow

This pillow was a bargain at only $5 from WalMart. It is made with polyester fiber made from recycled water bottles. It helps reduce landfill waste. The cover is a very soft 200 thread count cotton cover (not organic) that is bleached with natural hydrogen peroxide, as opposed to traditional bleaching methods. Even the packaging that it comes in is biodegradable, claiming to degrade in the landfill "in as little as three months"

My rating: ***** 5 stars. It is cheap, very comfortable, and good for the environment.

Simplicity Laundry Detergent

Another WalMart purchase of mine, also pretty easy on the wallet. I believe I paid $5.44 for this 50FL oz bottle. The detergent is 2x concentrated, so you can wash more loads with less detergent. Always a good thing. It is also hypoallergenic and non-toxic. The package also claims that it is phosphate free, safe for septic systems (very important in my house, as we have septic) and is not tested on animals. I have not tested this product yet, but it looks to me like a good investment. This company also makes hypoallergenic non-toxic dryer sheets, which I have yet to test, because I still have plenty of my Bounce sheets left.

My rating: *** 3 stars. Cheap, concentrated, but I'm not sure of its cleaning abilities yet. Also, it smells kind of strange. I may feel the need to edit this review after testing the product.

Georgia Pacific 100% Recycled Printer Paper

I only browsed past this item, but I thought I would include it anyways even though I didn't sit there and read the label. Looks to me like a good deal though, at $3.82 from WalMart. It's 100% recycled, not like other papers that are between 30-70% post-consumer recycled paper.

My rating: **** 4 stars. It is definitely something I would use for my business, as I do go through a LOT of paper, between invoices and other nonsense. Also, I'm a college student so I write a lot of essays.

Eco-I totally forgot the name School Supplies

Okay, so I forgot the name, but I saw these notebooks, binders, filler paper, folders, notecards, etc at Target the last time I was there. I love that they are 100% recycled paper and printed with soy-based inks. I use the notecards as thank you cards for my jewelry purchases. They are amazing, and they come in excellent designs. My only concern is that they are a bit pricey, especially for Target.

My rating: *** 3 stars. These school supplies are friendly to the environment and the eyes, but not so friendly to my wallet.

Organic Sheet Set

I saw these at Target as well, and I must say they are SO soft. There are two different types of sheets that I saw, the first is made of 100% organic cotton and the second is made from is made from a blend of cotton and bamboo fiber (40% bamboo/60% cotton). Both are priced starting at $29.99 for a Twin set, and going up to $59.99 for King or California King. They come in beautiful earthy colors as well as some beautiful blues and greens.

My Rating: **** 4 stars. Organic and pretty, very good. Not as good on the wallet as other sheet sets, especially the Nurture brand, which starts at $79.99.

Well if you're still reading, I give you a cookie. Or, well, you can get yourself a cookie because technology is limited at this time.

Don't forget to check out these great handmade eco-friendly products on Etsy.com!
Recycled Skateboard Earrings by 2ReVert
Overnight Maxi-Pad by Ambrosiadesigns (Yes, you heard me right, these are COOL!!)
The Hound Hoodie by anniessweatshop

Tutorials? Yay or nay?

So, my last blog had an open ended question that no one answered, so I'll ask it again. Do you want to see me produce some tutorials? If so, what kind? Any input would be much appreciated.

Thanks, I look forward to hearing your responses.

Well things are looking good...

Today I took the day off. It feels so good to just sit at home and vegetate! 

Yesterday I sold 2 more items, which is amazing!

I'm glad things are finally taking off, and I've already met my April goal of 3 sales in my first week! I'm just waiting on some more supplies I bought yesterday to arrive...I should be expecting those in a few days. I just can't wait.

I was thinking of creating a few tutorials on basic Etsy functions, and some basic jewelry-making techniques, but I have no clue what people would want to learn about. Any suggestions?

Caffeine = GOOD

Wooh!  I love success. I had another sale on the 1st of the month. Made my day =] I've been lurking around the forums and reading the Etsy Success Stories and I've been formulating a "plan of attack".  I don't quite have the money to re-list every piece in my shop on a daily basis, so this is my plan: (Sharing is caring!)

* Create at least 1 new piece every time I sit down to work.

* Take very good pictures.

* Stay active in the forums. Sellers are also buyers!

* Try and list at least 1 or 2 items per day.

* Have good item descriptions including all materials that the item is made of. Also, use proper punctuation, grammar and spelling in all descriptions, profile information, shop announcements.

Hopefully I will stick to my own advice and have some success in this little undertaking of mine. 

Time to list some new items I just finished!