My Studio ... Teeny Tiny and in need of an 'upgrade'

I am not a big fan of the business side of my Etsy shop.  Yes, I can do it, yes I can research ways to "get traffic", yes I will even watch many many videos and read on what to do.  But, it's not what I love about it.  It's sort of a necessary evil -- like having to reload the copy machine in an office environment.  It has to be done, but no one wants to do it.

Since I reopened the Etsy shop a couple of years ago -- I have been working diligently to not only focus on the business aspect of the shop -- with attention to innovative marketing and learning the most I can about photography.  But, what I want to do is create. 

It's a bit ironic, actually -- my entire career has focused on different ways to communicate, in a business oriented way.  Which is odd, considering, that's the part I have to force myself to do now.  I much prefer even looking for fun packaging materials that will make the customer really feel like they are getting a special gift from a dear friend -- than I do working what really honestly used to be my actual job.

Enter my studio -- it's tiny right now.  Sure I have a fabulous variety of gemstones and enjoy most of all hammering metals (it's visceral, like a form of anger management) -- but I just don't have the space to use my blow torch, or really hammer things. 

Enter the house my husband is looking at.  It's modest, to be sure, but has a large plot of land for the city area we live, and it has a wonderful little nearly finished "shed" type thing in the back yard.  That one item (even if I do not set up the "extra room" as an office) will set me up with triple the amount of work-space I currently have now.  It's exciting, and excruciating waiting to see if closing will come through (we are working for a VA loan, which is not a lot of fun right now.

The hubby and I find ourselves checking out the house on a nearly daily basis -- just sort of a drive by (It's close to a Lowes, so we look forward to doing a few things ourselves).  We've never bought a house before -- and even though it's modest, we look forward to having space to not have to fight over areas he can do his work and I can do my hammering. 

I also look forward to the implications of hammering, soldering and playing with tarnishing materials outside in the open air 'shed'.  It's so very, very hard to wait -- and I can't wait to show you the process of setting up my new 'studio' areas.  Plus -- there are older fruit trees we are hoping produce fruit so that I can show you some super fun "homesteading" I have learned here in the apartment that also serves as the studio.

~Maggie~

Green Opal Heart Earrings -- For Spring, Mother's Day or Summer

So many changes ...

Well, hubby came home after a 2 month temporary duty down to California (this just short of six weeks home after 2 years away just prior to that -- yeah I know, how on earth do I keep track?  I don't. I rely on the kids to tell me).  And as he was getting ready to come home, we had this stellar weather -- the weather that makes it so you don't really want to sit in your studio working on things?  Yeah, you know it, not a cloud in the sky and 70 degrees. 

So, like anyone, I decided to play as much as I could in between bouts of cleaning.  Neither of these two things ended up working out for me.  Meanwhile the whole pre-coming-home-week was spent with the kids kind of sitting there saying, "since when do you want me to put my clothes in a hamper?  Sacrilege."  No, seriously, it was that bad. 

But, I did get a few items done, and a few requests for custom items that are proving less than fruitful at this point. And for some reason, even though it's not a big color for spring, purple is really working out well for me.  Yeah, I do know there are all kinds of colors for purple, but we all also know that every shade of purple is basically just purple for me.   And Pink :)

Oh and by the way, my dear friend at Moonshine Designs and Photography made me this fabulous shop banner:

Awesome, Right?

So here are a few new spring items I have been working on between dishes, cleaning up after the kids and setting up my old computer since my laptop decided it was done last week sometime.

Monaco Blue Freshwater pearl earrings in Sterling Silver (Posts)

14k Gold Wire Wrapped Fluorite Earrings

Raw Garnet Wire Wrapped Ring in 14k Gold Filled

Rose Smoke Mystic Quartz Wire Wrapped Post Earrings in Sterling Silver

Ombre Pink Ruby Large Hoop Earrings in Sterling Silver (July Birthstone)

Raw Citrine Statement Necklace in 14k Gold Filled (November Birthstone)

And Remember, The Mother's Day Sale is going on for One More week.  I ask that stateside (domestic orders) be placed by May 6th, 2013 so that I can get the items to you for Mother's Day.