Thank you for featuring the team, heartsabustin!
Showing posts with label heartsabustin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label heartsabustin. Show all posts
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Chat Team Treasury by heartsabustin
Thank you for featuring the team, heartsabustin!
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Five Questions for...heartsabustin
Team member heartsabustin has taken on a handful of question about life, art, and business!
Q. What are your inspirations?
A. I love nature - God was the first artist, and I think he did a pretty fine job. ;)
I also love walking into a fabric store and letting the color combinations I see in there inspire me. Going to the mall for me is research - I like to see what clothes are out for a season, what colors designers are using, and how I might be able to complement those colors in my jewelry.
Q. How do you balance your family life and personal life with your work responsibilities, including running an Etsy shop?
A. It's not easy, because my family is demanding! Seriously, I try to make sure the computer is turned off when my husband gets home and I make efforts to get up and play with my kids. It's so easy to sit here and *will* sales by staring at the screen. LOL
We have homework now, and they love to play games, so I get up and do that stuff with them. The crafting takes place when I can work it in.
Right now, I'm trying to concentrate on my newest love of working with precious metal clay. That's slow going because the supplies are not as readily available as I would like them to be!
Q. How do you promote your Etsy business? What types of promotion have been most successful for you? Least effective?
A. I run ads on Craftcult and Craftopolis, I have Twitter and a Facebook Fan Page (highly recommended if you don't already have one!), and I lurk in chat (obviously!!!) and the forums a great deal. (JS notes: heartsabustin has a blog too.) The more places you are and the more active you are, the better your exposure is. The least effective thing I've done is take out a Showcase on Etsy. For the same money, I can get a whole week of advertising on Craftcult.
Q. Knowing what you do now, is there anything you would have done differently when you first opened your shop?
A. I would have researched the photography part a little better. My pictures have improved by leaps and bounds since I've been here. And I would have relaxed a little bit more. I was terrified at taking such a big step into running a business. I would never have made it through if it hadn't been for my mom and my husband. Great supporters are they!
Q. What are three Etsy items you would buy today if you could, and if money was not an object?
A. Anything from TheLeatherStore.
One of WickedSoaps gift sets - for me! - in White Raspberry Truffle. Yum!
The vine necklace in MangosteenJewelry's Etsy shop. Gorgeous! She's one of my new PMC friends. What a sweetheart!
Next time...heartsabustin asks another Chat Team member five questions of her own!
Monday, February 1, 2010
"My EtsyChat Valentines" Treasury
Team member and chat regular heartsabustin has made a rich-and-rosy Treasury featuring some of her fellow chatters, and inspired by Valentine's Day. See it here, and leave your clicks and comments live through Thursday morning February 4.
Friday, May 8, 2009
Let's Meet Heartsabustin! -Friday Blog Feature
1. Who is heartsabustin?
heartsabustin is a two-woman, mom and daughter team who work respectively out of Knoxville, TN and Wilmington, NC. Mom Kathryn is an ophthalmic tech during the day and daughter Erin is a stay-at-home mom at Etsy guru for the heartsabustin team.We found a mutual love for jewlery making about three months apart three years ago.
2. What kind of crafting/art do you do? How long have you been doing it?
Kathryn went to the Ringling School of Art in Sarasota back in the freewheeling 70s and became a fabulous master watercolorist. Three years ago, she discovered the immense satisfaction of stringing beads and bits of metal on beading wire.
Erin taught herself to sew when she was twenty ('cause she can't draw or paint worth a lick!), and has immersed herself in several fun crafts - crocheting, quilting, home sewing and cross stitch. Jewelry making became an extension of the clothing sewing because most commercial jewelry is just not that cool. (Can we get a heck yeah on that one?)
3. Where do you pull your inspiration from?
Everywhere - dreams, magazines, colors, shapes. Kathryn and Erin both have tear sheets all over their repective work spaces in their homes.
4. What is your favorite medium?
Gemstones, glass beads, vintage findings, and sterling silver with gold-filled thrown in for fun. Swarovski crystals are a must in almost every piece we make.
5. Is Etsy a full time job, or just an on-the-side project?
For Kathryn, her full-time job is working for an ophthalmologist. For Erin, her full-time job is being a wife and mother. So for both of us, it is a side job, but one that we take great satisfaction from and have a lot of fun doing!
DANCERS
6. How did you find Etsy?
Kathryn found it while browsing the Internet one fateful night. Last July, she set up the storefront, but we had to wait until Erin got a computer to begin listing items.
7. How did you become ADDICTED to Etsy CHAT?
The usual way - Erin was bored and decided to check it out. She'd never been in a chat room before - ever. She found lots of friendly people who were willing to answer a newbie's questions. She got totally hooked!
8. What is your favorite piece that you have done?
Wow, there are so many! Erin's personal favorite right now is her new "Queen of the Sunflowers." It shows a certain maturity starting to form in her polymer clay work.
9. What is your favorite Etsy shop (other than yours)?
Kathryn's would probably have to be ImagineStudio. Not only is her artwork amazing, she is a wonderful, sweet person on top of it! Erin is hooked on DukDesigns right now. Who knew Erin would be such a bag freak?
Opals and Avon
10. Tips for other Artists?
Believe in yourself, and everyone else will believe in you, too!
11. Tell me a secret about yourself.
Erin is 100% terrified of the rattlesnake rattle earrings that Kathryn just bought. LOL
12. Any parting words of wisdom? Questions? Comments?
Having an Etsy shop is a LOT of hard work, if you want it to succeed. We spend entirely too much time doing this, but we love it. We have found that if you really love something, you are willing to work your tail end off for it, no matter what.
Sunflower Earrings!!
Heartsabustin has put these adorable sunflower polyclay earrings up for a giveaway!! HEre is what you do:
1. Go to www.heartsabustin.etsy.com and choose your favorite thing. Come back here and post what you like!! (1 entry)
2. Follow US! (leave a comment here that you follow) (1 entry)
3. Tweet a promo to heartsabustin.etsy.com, then link us to the tweet (1 entry)
Next Friday, I will random.org to choose a winner. That winner gets these CUTE earrings!
Oh and dont forget!! Follow the Chatters Team blog for a chance to win a 50$ or 25$ gift certificates to one of our participating shops!! SO VERY EASY!! We will be choosing the winner(s) once we reach 200 followers (or May 27th whichever comes first)
heartsabustin is a two-woman, mom and daughter team who work respectively out of Knoxville, TN and Wilmington, NC. Mom Kathryn is an ophthalmic tech during the day and daughter Erin is a stay-at-home mom at Etsy guru for the heartsabustin team.We found a mutual love for jewlery making about three months apart three years ago.
2. What kind of crafting/art do you do? How long have you been doing it?
Kathryn went to the Ringling School of Art in Sarasota back in the freewheeling 70s and became a fabulous master watercolorist. Three years ago, she discovered the immense satisfaction of stringing beads and bits of metal on beading wire.
Erin taught herself to sew when she was twenty ('cause she can't draw or paint worth a lick!), and has immersed herself in several fun crafts - crocheting, quilting, home sewing and cross stitch. Jewelry making became an extension of the clothing sewing because most commercial jewelry is just not that cool. (Can we get a heck yeah on that one?)
3. Where do you pull your inspiration from?
Everywhere - dreams, magazines, colors, shapes. Kathryn and Erin both have tear sheets all over their repective work spaces in their homes.
4. What is your favorite medium?
Gemstones, glass beads, vintage findings, and sterling silver with gold-filled thrown in for fun. Swarovski crystals are a must in almost every piece we make.
5. Is Etsy a full time job, or just an on-the-side project?
For Kathryn, her full-time job is working for an ophthalmologist. For Erin, her full-time job is being a wife and mother. So for both of us, it is a side job, but one that we take great satisfaction from and have a lot of fun doing!
DANCERS
6. How did you find Etsy?
Kathryn found it while browsing the Internet one fateful night. Last July, she set up the storefront, but we had to wait until Erin got a computer to begin listing items.
7. How did you become ADDICTED to Etsy CHAT?
The usual way - Erin was bored and decided to check it out. She'd never been in a chat room before - ever. She found lots of friendly people who were willing to answer a newbie's questions. She got totally hooked!
8. What is your favorite piece that you have done?
Wow, there are so many! Erin's personal favorite right now is her new "Queen of the Sunflowers." It shows a certain maturity starting to form in her polymer clay work.
9. What is your favorite Etsy shop (other than yours)?
Kathryn's would probably have to be ImagineStudio. Not only is her artwork amazing, she is a wonderful, sweet person on top of it! Erin is hooked on DukDesigns right now. Who knew Erin would be such a bag freak?
Opals and Avon
10. Tips for other Artists?
Believe in yourself, and everyone else will believe in you, too!
11. Tell me a secret about yourself.
Erin is 100% terrified of the rattlesnake rattle earrings that Kathryn just bought. LOL
12. Any parting words of wisdom? Questions? Comments?
Having an Etsy shop is a LOT of hard work, if you want it to succeed. We spend entirely too much time doing this, but we love it. We have found that if you really love something, you are willing to work your tail end off for it, no matter what.
Sunflower Earrings!!
Heartsabustin has put these adorable sunflower polyclay earrings up for a giveaway!! HEre is what you do:
1. Go to www.heartsabustin.etsy.com and choose your favorite thing. Come back here and post what you like!! (1 entry)
2. Follow US! (leave a comment here that you follow) (1 entry)
3. Tweet a promo to heartsabustin.etsy.com, then link us to the tweet (1 entry)
Next Friday, I will random.org to choose a winner. That winner gets these CUTE earrings!
Oh and dont forget!! Follow the Chatters Team blog for a chance to win a 50$ or 25$ gift certificates to one of our participating shops!! SO VERY EASY!! We will be choosing the winner(s) once we reach 200 followers (or May 27th whichever comes first)
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