And That's Three

As I thought about my recent ability to create a new piece a day, I somehow got it into my head that I should keep trying to do that. One new piece a day, for as long as I can manage it anyway. I never know when I will get derailed by other obligations, but I figured it definitely couldn't hurt to try and get a small piece out everyday. They may not all end up listed for sale, but I will keep sharing them here at least so we can all learn from the successes and failures of the day.

Yesterday's piece was a motif I chose out of a DMC tatting book circa 1972. Now, I asked the twitterverse whether this was considered vintage and though many people created during the seventies and before were reluctant to agree, we decided it was. I know that's not really all that important as a book put out by a thread company probably contains a lot of recycled patterns anyway. Anyway, I tatted up the motif as it was written intending to break down the elements to create something new, but I liked the motif so much by itself that I chose to make a pendant out of it. In the pattern it was part of a luncheon set and the picture was so bad, I couldn't tell how pretty it really was.

I couldn't leave it be though, so I added some beads in deep red shades using my less that stellar wire wrapping skills and hung it from a ribbon. It has a very Gothic feel to it and is the perfect contrast to the more modern designs of the last couple of days. I still plan on dissecting the design for some more pieces. I could see the elements tease me as I worked up the motif the first time. I think today might be a simple pair of matching earrings, but I've some interesting choker ideas as well.

I had zero sales yesterday and though I'm not crying in a corner weeping over it, it did get me to thinking about advertising my shop which aside from my "social networking" I do not do. I've no ads anywhere and I'm starting to think that I might want to get on that. Every time I sit down to design one though, I feel like it's coming up short and then I just stop. I've also been thinking of sponsoring a giveaway on another site, but am not sure where would be a good place. Then of course there's the fear of asking where I think I might like to do one. I may be a perfectly competent lace maker, but as a business person, I am seriously lacking. Well, that's enough of that for now.

One last piece of news for you this Friday morning. You might have noticed the large badge in the right column stating that I am a Wishpot expert. If you don't know what wishpot is, it's a social shopping site. What is truly nice about the place is the interface with which to share ones wishlists or recommendations with others. Like other similar sites, you download a button for your browser bar and use that to add anything you want from any site to you lists. Perfect for any kind of registry, the lists can be shared and there is even a feature to request contributions to a larger gift. Say you want a vacation for your birthday, so can ask all your friends to simply contribute money through paypal to the end cost. I still need to look around a bit and get more familiar with the site. I was recruited on twitter to be a handmade expert and though I really hesitate to call myself an expert at anything, I get some exposure for my etsy store and I'll be able to add my Wunderkammer finds to a larger venue so they get exposure. My blog also syndicates over there, so again more exposure...maybe I won't need to take out ads after all. So check out the site, so far I like it much better than some of the others I've played with. Only time will tell.

Wunderkammer Ramblings

I've been thinking a lot about my other blog, the Wunderkammer, lately. It's mostly a labor of love for me, I don't get much traffic to my store or here from it and yet I have an irresistible desire to have it succeed. I get plenty of heartfelt 'thank you's' from those I feature, but what I really want, is for it to become a coveted honor or daily destination for those it was intended to speak to. So, to that end I've been thinking of ways to improve its traffic, its appearance and, well...it.

Yesterday, I took a small first step and added another element to my picking and posting process. Each item I pick will now be stumbled, stylehived and wist...ed. I can do these things fairly quickly and hopefully they expand the exposure of the items featured. I am also stumbling the wunderkammer entry itself. If you are into that sort of thing, I'd appreciate the adds. So that move increases the exposure for the featured artisan, but now I need something for the Wunderkammer itself. I don't want to join a dozen blogger network sites, because...well, they're mostly annoying. I did apply for project wonderful the other day, though I've not heard back quite yet. If approved, I'll had some ad spots with them to the blog and use any profit to advertise the Wunderkammer elsewhere, though I've no idea if that will help either.

The next thing I want to do is redesign the Wunderkammer itself and for that I need help. I know I have artistic and graphically minded friends out there and if anyone wants to help, I'd be grateful. The idea is to create a more appealing background than the plain yellow, but it shouldn't be distracting. It's also like to create a better logo and banner design using the current font and faded paper look as a base. I want something nice enough to perhaps open a cafepress or similar storefront to sell Wunderkammer merch. I'll be hitting up a few people for help, but feel free to volunteer. Though in the spirit of full disclosure, I'm horribly picky, so don't be offended if I choose someone else for the task. I figured that a small line of stuff might compensate said artist and myself a bit for the time spent, though I've really no delusions of making blogging profitable.

Any help, opinions or random useful advice is gladly accepted, if not openly acknowledged. Now I really must get back to the tatting.

I Hope You Like Looking At My Feet

The first pair of shoes I ordered came in, so I took some pictures. There are more of them on my flickr, but here's one of each of the newest designs to enter the TotusMel catalog. The first I've just decided to call 'The Queen's Feet' which would be a play on the Viva La Reine upon which they are based. I've made this motif so many times that it is really second nature to me. They turned out exactly as I had hoped, much more dramatic than the many crocheted versions I happened upon.
Next up, we have the first of the Ankle Corset designs. This one is based on my Portrait Of An Elegant Lady collar and will be called 'Portrait of an Ankle Corset'. They took quite a bit more time to tat up than the barefoot sandals and I think they look amazing with the shoes. I am still waiting for the stiletto sandals to arrive so that I can show them off with a different look.The last one to show off is the only piece not based on something I've already made. These ones started with the edging of a 40's era centerpiece, but evolved far past that. I added quite a few elements including the motif I call, In Bloom. As you might have guessed I used that as their name, the 'In Bloom Ankle Corset'. These too will get additional photos when the sandals arrive.

I'll be listing them on etsy soon and we'll see if they were worth all the effort. Though honestly, the challenge of creating them was quite a rush and I am so glad of all the advice and suggestions I've gotten throughout the process. I think I have a special surprise for you next week as well, I'm just working out the details, so stay tuned.

Oh, The Horror...The Horror

You might have noticed that I was suspiciously absent yesterday. If you did not, then this story will not be particularly relevant, but I shall tell it anyway. Just as I was sitting down to write, my access to the Internet ceased. I am horribly spoiled to have a computer technician as a husband, but when he is at work and I am left to my own devises I am inept. Of course I called him right after checking the "easy" stuff, but as I feared I would just have to wait until he came home to see if it was anything he could fix.

I found myself in the uncomfortable position of not being able to check my email, list my new pieces on etsy or any of my usual morning activities. I know it's not the end of the world, but I have become so used to having the world at my fingertips that being unintentionally cut off for even a few hour was, well, uncomfortable. I can do it voluntarily of course, I can go on vacation, play outside with the kids or just simply avoid the computer if I so choose, but to have it taken away without my prior approval is horrible.


Today however, is another day. Clearly the problem has been resolved and my information addiction is being fed. So back to the usual stuff. I have listed two of the three new pieces inspired by the choker I was talking about in my last post. I've renamed the whole collection, La Petite Goth because it makes the sound fancy. I've got just the last one to make up and it will be complete. I am really surprised that it took me this long to come up with these. They are such simple diversions from the original design.

Speaking of design, I just finished a wonderful special order request. I was challenged to recreate a rose and vine tattoo as a tatted anklet. This isn't the first time my tatting has been compared to a tattoo, but it is the first time I designed a piece to look like one on purpose. I am again, mighty proud of the rose motif i came up with. It's simple, but I think it looks just like a rose. It does, right?

Now, back to work. I've got so many ideas swirling around and I need to work on them before I forget half of them.

I Made It Myself

As you may be aware, I am fairly new to the world of tatting. I've only been at it for a few years. A year or so ago I had an etsy friend ask me to deign a piece for them, a large heart. So I did what I always did at that point, I searched the Internet for patterns. I ran across an uncredited picture of a tatted heart, figured out the pattern and made it up in a couple of different colors. After I sent off the one my friend liked I listed the other in my shop. Later I was contacted by etsy who had been informed that the pattern was copyrighted and permission had not been given for me to sell anything made with it. I was mortified, I removed the listed and vowed that I would only use public domain patterns and start creating my own designs.

Flash forward to a couple a days ago when the same request was made of me, except this time the heart needed to fit inside a preexisting shape. Now, I have designed many pieces of jewelry and a few small motifs at this point, but I have never designed something this big. First I tried to draw the design out and when that failed, I just started to design as I tatted. This is the most comfortable method for me. I used scraps of tatting from failed prototypes and laid them around the design until it felt right.




So, here it is my very first large motif. It isn't finished as I still have to hide the thread ends, but it fits just inside the shape and I'm pretty proud of myself. Does this mean that I'm a grown up tatter now? Probably not. I've seen designs that make mine look like stick figures sitting next to the Mona Lisa. I just hope that if I've come this far in just a few year that after a couple of decades of tatting, I am as amazing at it as some of the other tatters I've seen.