Art experiments. . .

My art has always been a hands on learning process and some experiments work out better than others. 😅 My experiments in pouring acrylics last year had a questionable start but quickly improved.  The mix was off in my first batch and the very first piece "cracked up" badly as it dried. 😏

I got better at mixing the paints and understanding how pouring acrylics works, I even started having fun doing it.  I did eventually manage to make a few that are really cool looking.  😍 

Now I have to move on and learn the next steps in how to finish and seal poured paintings.  I have left them to cure for a few months and researched how to clean the silicone/cell magic stuff off the finished dry painting.  I have also researched different types of finishes from standard varnish, to spray sealants, ArtResin and decided that I want to use different finishes on different paintings.

So this weekend I attempted to clean a couple of them and test different finishes, sadly it did not got well.  😕  I think it's because I didn't get all the silicone.  The first one I tried standard varnish I've used before and noticed it didn't want to coat evenly and actually ran away from some spots, when it dried there are spots with no varnish.

It's hard to see the dull spots in photographs but in person they are pretty obvious.  The second one I tried a new spray sealant, I used this spray on a different painting and it worked fine but on the pour painting it sort of foamed and dried with this weird rippling water texture.  

It is very shiny and it looks pretty cool but it's not right and it's not the smooth even finish I was hoping for.  😔  #artfail 

    

Making _____. . .

Well there are a lot of ways that can go. . .making the best of it, making do, making inventory, making time. . . I have done all of those lately.  😇  

I am making do and making the best of things with etsy's ridiculous new "Star Seller" stuff.  I still find the program stupid and not an accurate measure of a shop's customer service but since it's there and there is no way around it, if you can't beat them join them. 😕  So I politely responded to a spammy request for donations with a real answer and a coupon instead of just marking it as spam, because messages marked as spam don't count but messages replied to promptly do.  Then after days of that not being reflected in the dashboard, I had to write into help and point out that if the dashboard never updates and is based on faulty data . . .well it took a week but I finally got a second metric. 😁  Now all I need is someone to leave me a fresh review before the end of the month.

I've made new trees including a couple with the fairy door in the trunk and so so many barrettes that the tray is the fullest it's ever been.  😉

I also made some time to not do business stuff because my husband (wonderful man that he is) got me a very cool anniversary gift this year. . . A trip to the Zoo, I know you may be thinking that's not that impressive or aren't you a bit old for that, BUT this trip to the zoo included a meet and greet with Penguins and art made by penguins while I watched.  Seriously totally awesome, I love penguins so getting to meet up close and pet them was amazing, they are so cute and the little rockhoppers were very personable. 💖  And I have not only a ton of photos and great memories I have a canvas they "painted" with their little footy prints. 😍  

this is me petting a penguin, she was so soft and liked being petted, the keeper said she was a hand-raised rescue so very used to people 

Now I just have to figure out how I'm going to mount/frame the canvas they made.  

Etsy "Star Seller" badge. . .

Great. . .etsy has come up with yet another new badge program. 😕

I logged in today and found an announcement of the "new thing" of the season. I went and read the article and find myself disappointed, as usual, because there are buried criteria that means in spite of my 100% shipping rate I will likely never achieve the badge. 😔 Then I found myself actually annoyed by the statement that it would all be "things that are within a seller's control" which is blatantly untrue. I know they were saying that trying to give leeway and assure people that postal delays would not count against the seller mainly because they would require tracking to qualify. However, there are other qualifiers that are not within the seller's control, like the minimum number of orders and $ amount of sales in a 3 month rolling period. Ohh and only "fresh" reviews count, so my years of all 5 stars don't matter. 😖 That's right my 37 perfect 5 star reviews in the last 5 years equals nothing.

Also it seems like I'm being punished for having clear descriptions.  I rarely receive etsy messages initiated by customers, unless it's to ask for a custom order which like I said is rare, most people just buy the already finished item listed.  I don't get a lot of questions about "how big is this?" or "what's this made of?" it's all in my listings. Now this lack of messages to respond to quickly will count against me?!  😒 Please explain how that is fair. . . 

This is not my first ride on this Merry-go-round back in 2018 etsy tested a similar Shiny Trophy program, it was called "super seller" and the badge was in the shape of an actual trophy. ~LOL~ 😄  I had for about a week.

I guess I really shouldn't complain even if I never qualify for the new shiny badge at least it's better than the stupid ODR program they tried in between.     https://rainbowmaille.blogspot.com/2019/11/etsy-backhand.html

Special Secret project. . .finished

I started this monster on June 16th, the week after my first event weekend, it was my husband's idea that a LARGE display piece that could be seen from a distance would be a good way to get attention for the wire trees.  Now I'm not saying it was a bad idea, I'm just saying it took me weeks and caused me many hand cramps because it's hard to tell scale in photos but that thing is on a 19" hoop 😳 making it the largest wire tree I've ever made.

I have nicknamed it the "ridiculously oversized tree".  The day I found the giant hoop in the store, at first I was shocked because I had never seen a hoop that big, then I thought "wow what luck, exactly what I needed".  After I brought it home I hula-hooped with it in my office, no that's not a joke I wanted to see if it really was that big so I slipped it over my head and then over my shoulders and had a holy crap moment when the hula-hoop notion worked. 😲

All fun & games ended when I set to work on it, I ended up on the living room floor for the wire cutting portion because my bench was not big enough to accommodate 5' foot wire lengths. 

Getting the trunk twisted up and the branches separated out was a pain in my hands, unlike the small trees where I use pliers this bundle was too big and the thicker gauge wire is stiffer making it much harder. I had to actually hammer the trunk to get the flatness. 😏 

That is not only many feet of wire but many strands and due to the huge hoop very awkward to try to hold and work.  So I think it goes without saying that this is a "display" only piece and I never intend to make another this size, but just in case let me repeat that. . . This is a Display Only piece and I have Zero plans to ever make another this size.  😐

The finished monstrosity is rather impressive though and I managed to incorporate several different techniques and options, from the "Fairy door" in the trunk, to the wire bird's nest, knots in the branches, top 3-D canopy with dangling leaves, if I attach a "keepsake vial" it will be everything except a "family tree" and I am not doing it over to add a second trunk. ~LOL~ 😎

Integrity in a marketplace. . .

Many people, both buyers and sellers, have complained for years that places like ebay and etsy let anyone list anything they want with very little oversight.  One of the first things I really loved about goimagine, aside from the charity concept, was that they actually vet the sellers. 

Unlike etsy, ebay, zibbet, where ever else, on goimagine you don't just create an account and start listing things for sale.  You have to fill out an application, provide some frame of reference, some proof that you actually make the things you plan to sell, social media links, work in progress photos, shop photos, etc.  There is an approval process, yes you have to be approved to sell on goimagine, it's not automatic.  Also they are serious about enforcing the anti-infringement rules, as in do not use copyright or trademarked faces, names, etc., or your items will be removed.  

I love that goimagine.com is being run and managed by real people with integrity.  😇

Busy summer. . .

 I knew when I scheduled events every other weekend for the whole summer I was taking on a lot of work.  Not just prepping and packing and going to events, setting up, selling and breaking down, but also continuing to create and build inventory in between. 😏

Each event I do, I learn and plan better for the next one.  From adjusting the display booth itself by ordering a wall for some additional shade, to adjusting the products I take based on the audience and previous sales.  It is all about continuous improvement and trying to always do better.  😇

However, that's not actually a lot of time between events considering the massive amount of things I have to do and the amount of time somethings take. 😕  For instance I plan to make a Huge display tree that can be seen from space ~LOL~ just kidding but it will be way huge and easy to see from many feet away, the hang up is . . .well it's huge and if you consider that even a 7" inch tree can take me multiple days to finish this 19" monstrosity may take me a whole week but I'm down to 3 days before my next event.  I could try to really focus on it and finish it faster but I also have lots of other things to do.  Yesterday I cleaned up and repurposed my old barbed wire necklace board so that it can include the new selection of chainmaille pendants.  I plan to take a different selection of art but that means I have to find the time to string them all for hanging on display, it also means I need my bench clear to have the surface room to add hanging string to all those paintings. 

Currently, I have set up one of my folding tables to have more work surface to work on more stuff at once but I have to have it cleared by Friday when I need to re-pack it in my car for Saturday morning. 😎

What a weekend. . .

I survived and I didn't even get sunburned. 👍  I call that a successful event weekend considering how blazin' hot it was on Saturday.  

Saturday. 🎜. on the square. 🎝. 🎶  it was super hot, it hit 90* but some people still came, it was a smaller event but I can work with it. I think I have found the disconnect in their advertising and I think I can fix it. 😎  So I am hopeful that the Saturday version will improve with repetition.  I kind of set my booth display facing the wrong way but I will know better next time.  I have some ideas about improving my display and changing up the products I take, and getting at least 1 side wall.   

Sunday behind the church was simply amazing! The lovely Ladies who organized it did such an awesome job getting the word out with the facebook event and ads. 😲  For the very first ever event the turn out was shocking, there were people showing up before we were even supposed to open and the first 2 hours was outright crowded.  I think I need to consider a different layout for the display here too, it worked ok but there were times there were so many people that the "entrance" at my booth got a little clogged up.  

I also learned I need to set up tighter to the building to avoid that stripe of sun right on my chair area. 😅

Overall, I think I did really well considering it was my first time at each location.  I also think that with some small adjustments and additional inventory these could be really great local events for RainbowMaille.  😇