Shop Small Business This Year!

Happy Small Business Saturday!

I am currently offering several different promtions my Etsy shop for your holiday shopping pleasure!

• SALE ITEMS: Type sale in the search box to find discounts on regularly priced items.  
• 15% off of all purchases made this weekend! (Sat., Nov. 30 - Mon., Dec. 2) Use Code:
  SMALLBIZSAT13 at checkout.
• FREE GIFT with every purchase made this weekend! (Sat., Nov. 30 - Mon., Dec. 2)

Botanical Silk Wrap Bracelet: Silver Morning Flower on Red

100% silk, hand-dyed ribbon. This one has a beautiful focal button, others have natural stone beads. See the shop for the full selection!

  

 

Note Card Sets - choose 6 per set

These feature my original botanical and nature artwork and are printed and packaged for gift-giving.

I also have leather wrap bracelets, adjustable natural stone pendants, earrings, original art and more!

I will continue to add new items to the shop each week, so check back often to see what is new! Also, feel free to contact me directly if you have any specific requests for stones, colors, etc. 

Please keep me in mind as you go about your gifting this holiday season!

Kerrytown BookFest!

Last Sunday (September 9) I had the opportunity to have my first, official, by-myself booth at an event. I had a table at the 10th Annual Kerrytown BookFest!

BookFest is a fantastic, local event focusing not just on authors and the literary arts, but also on the art and craft that goes into creating the physical books, including bookbinding, printing, and papermaking. As a librarian and artist, I couldn't resist the combination!

Held in the space where the weekly Kerrytown Farmer's Market occurs, my booth was in a great location just outside of Sweetwater's cafe, next to the information booths for BookFest. I was also right at the T-insersection of the first aisle of the market.

I had consistent foot traffic all day, so much so that when I took a couple of brief breaks, my volunteer relief (both BookFest volunteers and also my husband!) reported that I had folks stopping by and browsing and asking questions. Great to hear!

 

My offerings included the full range of items that I have in my Etsy shop, including wrap bracelets, jotter journal sets with prints of my original artwork on them, natural stone pendants, hand-knotted macrame gemstone bookmarks, and some handbound mini-journals.

<-- Jotter Journals with Prints of Original Art

Handbound journals, bookmarks and pendants -->

In addition to my products, I had a couple of other things that were incentives for folks to stop by and linger:

1) A giveaway! I thought it would be a nice sign of appreciation to the folks who came by to have a chance to win a gift card to my shop. I put a sign on the front of my booth and had a  sign-up sheet on the table for folks to win a $50.00 gift card to my Etsy shop. I had over 60 entries and picked the lucky winner (Ellery) during the week after BookFest.

2) Something informative! One other item I had on my table that seemed to be helpful in drawing folks to the booth and giving them something "no-pressure" to do was an informative display about Stones of Michigan. You can see the sheet in front of my jewelry stands:

It included samples of five different stones, all from Michigan, with descriptions of the origins of each.  Most Michiganders are familiar with the state stone - Petoskey Stone - which is a fossil coral, specifically Hexagonaria, found off of the shores of Lake Michigan. In the course of making wrap bracelets and researching the state's natural history, I have discovered a number of other stones that I have started to use in my creations. These include Leland Bluestone, which is actually a glass/stone mix that resulted as a by-product of smelting in the 1870s; epidote, a gorgeous, green stone; mid-mitten alabaster; and kona dolomite (a fossil algae.) People were drawn into the booth and it gave them something to look at, and learn from, while browsing around.

The content of the booth also includes the finishing touches, such as a nice table covering and display stands, professional signage (I printed pricing cards up and laminated them) as well as some decorative items to fill up the space so that the table doesn't look too sparse. All of this contributes to creating an attractive, inviting, and professional display that speaks to the quality of your products and your business as a whole.

I am thrilled to report that I had a nice number of sales at BookFest as well as some inquiries from folks about my presence at other local craft venues. I am very grateful for everyone who came out and who supported my first foray into craft booth selling!

What did I learn? While having a craft booth is invigorating and exciting, and potentially lucrative, it is exhausting! I spent a great deal of time preparing my booth materials, making extra product so that I had enough to offer my customers, and then spending the entire day on Sunday setting up, staffing, and cleaning up the booth. It was a wonderful opportunity to talk with my customers and potential customers directly, get my products in front of people, and make some sales, but when I started to tally up my time spent on the whole endeavor, I began thinking about my pricing. I will explain more about that in my next post...stay tuned!

Have you ever sold your wares at a craft booth? Do you do this frequently, or just at a select few shows per year? I would love to hear your perspective on the subject.

Studio Update: What Have I Been Up To Lately?

It's been awhile since I have given an update on what's been going on in my studio this spring...so here it is!

I have been keeping steadily busy adding items to my Etsy shop, including a number of new bracelets and some hand-bound mini journals - here's a sampling of my recent offerings:

Safari Jasper Leather Wrap Bracelet. This quad-wrap bracelet features 4mm safari jasper gemstone beads in warm earth tones of khaki, olive green, and rusty red with beautiful camouflage patterning. The stones are wrapped in a rich 1.8 mm red-brown leather with a wood grain button closure.

Moss Agate Leather Wrap Bracelet. This was a custom bracelet done for a birthday present. It features 4mm moss agate stones with 1.5mm brown leather and a unique matching green and silver dragonfly button closure.

 

Carnelian Leather Wrap Bracelet. Some brighter colors for spring and summer include this double leather wrap bracelet featuring gorgeous 6mm carnelian stone beads ranging from fiery reddish-orange to translucent white. The stones are wrapped in 1.8mm pearly white leather with a simple, round, pearly button closure.

Lapis Lazuli Wrap Bracelet. For something a little more delicate, this double-wrap bracelet features stunning, deep blue 4mm lapis lazuli gemstone beads that contain beautiful flecks of gold pyrite. The stones are wrapped in dark blue S-Lon thread and finished with a matching, translucent blue button. It’s like wearing tiny gemstone globes!  

Sea Shell Mini Journal. A compact 4” x 2 ½”, but full of character this mini journal has a sea shell paper cover with rusty red Italian book cloth, 36 sheets (72 pages) of 70lb acid-free, blank Canson drawing paper, and is hand-sewn with natural-colored waxed linen thread. The simple binding contains a little flair of macramé down the front cover, reminiscent of mariner knot work.

  

Blue Mini Journal With Nautical Button Closure. Another compact journal at 4” x 2 ½”, this one is hand-sewn with natural-colored waxed linen thread in a chain stitch or Coptic style, it is filled with 48 sheets (96 pages) of 70lb acid-free, blank Canson drawing paper and covered in deep blue Italian book cloth. An antiqued gold button and knotted, waxed linen thread rope allow for easy closure. The inside is decorated with beautiful sea shell end papers.

In addition, I have been working on a pen and ink house portrait commission for a friend of mine. It's almost done and will be delivered within the next two weeks. I'll post an update when it is finished.

As always, I have more ideas than I have time, but I have some new things planned for the shop so stay tuned!

What has occupied your creative time this spring? I'd love to hear from you!

The indiExhibit Member of the Week! Wired Hanger: Refreshingly Original Jewelry

This week's The indiExhibit member of the week is Wired Hanger! This mother/daughter team of Erica Molina and Gloria Piracci create unique, original bead and wire jewelry, including earrings, bracelets, necklaces, and more.

 

Check out some of their beautiful pieces below!

  

 You can find them on Facebook...

...and at their website.

Stop by and visit today!

Wrap Bracelet, Necklace...or Both?

When is a bracelet not just a bracelet?

They say necessity is the mother of invention. My cousin emailed me today with a wonderful idea illustrating this idea. She received one of my bracelets over the holidays as a gift and here is what she said:

"Last night I was looking for a necklace to wear with a gray/black/white outfit.  I was going to wear your bracelet, which was laying on my dresser." Here was her solution - ingenious!

Basically, if you have any jewelry lying around with different charms, necklace focal pieces, etc., that can be removed from it's chain, then you can do this, too! Perhaps many of you have already thought of this, but I thought it was very clever. :) 

By the way, this was a double wrap bracelet with 4mm cat's eye quartz stones (very beautiful chatoyant quality...), black leather and a simple, black button closure. Here's what it looked like when I sent it off at Christmas:

Have you ever had an "ah-ha!" moment with your jewelry or art? Something you just never thought of that came to light like this? Let me know! I would love to hear from you.

 

Happy March! 10% off in my Etsy shop!

Happy March, readers! Are you ready for spring? Get a head start and celebrate by taking 10% off of anything in my Etsy shop between now and March 15! 

Use coupon code: THINKSPRING12 

There are lots of great gift items, including natural gemstone wrap bracelets, jotter journal sets and a hand-bound blank journal made with heavy-weight Wyndstone art paper. Take a look!

  

 

Brecciated Jasper Leather Wrap Bracelet 

 

Leland Bluestone Macrame Bracelet

African Daisy Jotter Journal Set 

Happy New Year!

And here we are to New Year's Eve already! I want to wish each of you a very happy, healthy, creative new year in 2012!

I thought I would round out this year's posts (my 200th, in fact - wow!) with some images of gifts I created over the holidays. I was bracelet-crazy this year and had a wonderful time making these for friends and family:

Double wrap in 1.5mm brown leather with 4mm sodalite beads and a dark blue button closure.

Double wrap in 1.5mm brown leather with 4mm sodalite beads and a pearly button closure.

Double wrap in 1.5mm brown leather with 4mm lapis lazuli beads and an antiqued gold metal button closure.

Single leather wrap with 6mm flower amethyst beads and a cute purple and silver button closure.

Red leather macrame bracelet with a cute candy-cane striped bead for the closure.

Double wrap with 1.5mm dark brown leather 
and gorgeous 6mm Tiger's Eye beads and a swirly brown and tan button for closure.

Double wrap black leather with elegant 4mm cat's eye quartz beads and a black button closure.

 


Another double wrap with black leather and 4mm cat's eye quartz beads, this time with a cloth-covered black button closure.



  



Double wrap in 1.8mm black leather with beautiful, vibrant green malachite beads and a faceted black button closure.

 

Double wrap with dark brown leather and 4mm Charoite beads. The swirls of browns, earthy greens and golds in the beads matched very well with the leather and gold metal closure.

 

Double wrap with 1.5mm black leather with fun snowflake obsidian beads and a silver metal flower button closure.

I also did a couple of additional jotter journals with some of my Spoonflower fabric swatches.

This is small jotter, approximately 3" x 3.5" made with 32 blank pages for notes, lists, doodles, etc. I used waxed linen bookbinding thread to sew in the pages and added a few white beads for embellishment. This is quilting weight cotton fabric in my roses pattern.

This small jotter is also approximately 3" x 3.5" made with 32 blank pages for notes, lists, doodles, etc. I used dark green s-lon beading thread to sew in the pages and added some flower amethyst beads on the spine for embellishment. This is quilting weight cotton fabric in my cyclamen pattern.









I am looking forward to a new year of creativity, drawing, beading, and perhaps more bookbinding. I am also interested in opening an Etsy shop, and I have some of my own ideas of what I'd like to include...what things would you like to see there?

Well, stay tuned for more creative adventures. I'd love to hear about the new things you are hoping to try in the new year, too, so let me know!

Happy New Year!

Bracelet For Sale! Double Leather Wrap with Botswana Agate.

Bracelet For Sale! 

Botswana Agate with Warm Gray Leather.

This double-wrap bracelet features gorgeous 6mm Botswana agate stones in swirling banded patterns of apricots, dark grays and dusty purples. The 1.5 mm warm gray leather and antiqued metal button complete the look. This has two closures to fit wrist sizes 6 - 7.5 inches.

Metaphysically, Botswana agate is said to be a stone of harmony, giving courage, energy, strength, and emotional comfort. Agate also enhances creativity and stimulates the intellect.

 $35.00 plus shipping. Michigan residents add 6% tax. 

Email me if you are interested: carol @ ccreechstudio.com  (Don't forget to eliminate the spaces in the address!)

Double Wrap Bracelet in Blue!

Here's my latest bracelet! I mixed it up in the color department this time, going with 2mm black leather cord, 8lb smoke grey Fireline thread and 6mm sapphire blue round shell beads.

Yet another button from Gram's tin. This is a very nice, faceted black button which gives the closure a subtle bit of flair, I think.

I included an "in-progress" photo in case you were curious about how this looks as it's being done. It's easiest to keep straight if you clip one end to a piece of cardboard or other flat surface. I really need to invest in a simple clip board as I have seen others use. For now, I am getting by with this, but it's a little too short for this double wrap length. I also bought a bracelet beading tray from the craft store which is great for lining up beads, sorting out ones that are too small or damaged, and generally keeping the project in one place. It also has a handy lid that I can pop on top to keep it closed off from kids and cat. :)

I had a little birthday money to spend last week, so I made a nice trip to the local bead shop the other day with my girls. Bless the bead shop - they had a kid drawer with crayons and coloring books, so I actually was able to shop uninterrupted! I bought some beautiful 4mm Rainforest Agate and 1.5mm warm grey leather cording. I hope to make a nice double wrap (at least) out of that, so stay tuned! 

I do find that at this point, at least, it's easier for me to stop and start work on a small sewing project like these bracelets than do much drawing. I hope to get back to some pencils and paper soon, but for now, I am happy to keep some creativity going with the beads!

Tiger's Eye Leather Beaded Bracelet

I am continuing on my fascination with wrap bracelets! 

 

I completed a sweet little single wrap, this one with 6mm Tiger's Eye round beads and dark brown leather cord (2mm). It actually has a surprisingly nice heft to it, which is why I chose to only do a single wrap.

I love the look of Tiger's Eye as it has a silky sheen to it, an optical reflectance effect seen called chatoyancy seen in certain gemstones. It's like seeing swirls of honey and caramel wrapping around your wrist! 

I paired the stones with another button closure from my box, this one a simple style in a matching dark caramel color.

Metaphysically, Tiger's Eye is said to be a grounding stone, bringing calmness, serenity, and harmony and the ability to see clearly.

Here's to a New Decade!

Today is my birthday and it's a big one - 40! It is such a nice, round number :) I am excited to start a new decade.

I have spent a lot of time in the last couple of years setting up my Zazzle and Spoonflower stores, creating my business Facebook page, and updating the look of my blog and my website. Now that much of the infrastructure is in place, I think that one of my big goals in the coming year(s) is to simple do more art! I always have more botanicals that I want to do, and I am very interested in doing more beading, including more bracelets, but also working with seed beads. I would love to play around with some bookbinding as well. So, plenty of interest areas - I will not be bored, that is for sure!

Speaking of creating, I did manage to finish another wrap bracelet this week - a double wrap with lighter-colored leather and white and brown swirled shell beads (6mm this time.)

Well, I am off to do some regular stuff around the house and hopefully squeeze in some playtime with the beads, perhaps. Have a wonderful day!

Thanks to Marlene Brady!

A big thank you to Marlene Brady for her gorgeous bracelet giveaway that I won. Marlene is a polymer clay artist who also does beading and mixed media painting. Check out her blog, her page on Crafthaus, and her Flickr photos for her amazing and creative work.