Unkamengifts From An Un-common Family

I am so excited about this new website that is launching in August!  The Scenarios site will have product reviews, expert interviews, giveaways, an advice column, and lots of girl talk; it’s going to be a Christian hang out for girls. And, they asked me participate in their launch extravaganza!

They will be advertising my shop, FavMoonGirl on Etsy, and I will also be donating one of my creations as an item for their giveaway! I was so flattered when they asked, and very eager to get started creating a jewelry set to donate! I designed a necklace and a bracelet to match my BERRY berry Earrings and Rings so there would be a full set. I am very happy with how it all turned out! What do you think?  I hope whomever this set ends up with, loves it just as much as I do!

I will be posting more details as the launch date approaches!

PS~Thanks Mom and Dad for all of your help! You both ROCK!

Well, they say you learn something new every day, so here is one thing I learned last week…how to list on Ebay! I put up 5 pairs of really cute BlueFish shorts! I was kinda nervous at first, I thought it would be hard or complicated, but it was really almost fun! Mom and I had already taken a bunch of good pictures and edited them, so all I had to do was load them and fill in the description, categories, and shipping details! I really like the pair with the Birds and Butterflies, but I am also fond of the Artsy Modern Fish…almost sorry we are selling them!  But I am keeping a pair that have ladybugs on them, too cute to not keep(at least that’s what I think!)

We have done several local craft shows and have learned a lot. We have also spent a lot of money on supplies(tents, tables, displays etc) and we felt we were now ready for the next step-taking it on the road! BUT how? Where?

I didn’t know where else to start but to google “craft shows”.

At the  top of the results, a paid spot by a festival newsletter came up. I usually discount those colored banner sites, but thought I would check this one out.

I was surprised to find a very professional looking website and even more surprised when I spied an article about Etsy on the front page. I quickly read though and found that it told me that selling on Etsy was very easy, required hardly any work at all because the target audience was already there waiting for me and all I needed to do was to; come up with a great shop name, hire a professional photographer to take pictures of my “masterpiece” from every angle, sign up for paypal and write a description that included an experts critical review!

While I agree that 2 years ago when we started on Etsy it seemed to be easier, it was never easy and it has definitely  gotten less so as more shops have opened. Even with greater traffic, I don’t know of anyone who doesn’t work hard at selling on Etsy, nor anyone who would agree with this articles recommendations!

In addition to this greatly flawed article about Etsy, it flashed a buy me pop up and a sign up for me pop up while I was reading that one article so I headed back to google.

Next was another sponsored site, whose ulr was broken…..so back to google!

Festival Network Online was the first non sponsored site and I have to say, I was impressed! They have multiple ways to search, apparently understanding that some may want to search by date, others by location and yet others by a specific type of craft show. Great! They do want you to sign up, but the basic information is free, which includes the show date, name , location , rating and size. From there it isn’t hard to google the shows’ website and you’re all set!

The upgrade/paid accounts ($50, $60 and $90 a yr) include more detailed information about each show, direct links to the shows website, fees and phone numbers. Perhaps I will consider that down the road, but for now, the Free Basic account is great.

Back to google to see what else I cold find!

I scanned down the rest of the 1st google page and Indie Craft Shows jumped out at me! Wow! Could this be a site just for handmade crafters like me?

YES!

Front and center sat a great scroll of upcoming craft shows complete with links to detailed pages and links to the craft shows’s web sites…and these are all shows that emphasize handmade crafts or are exclusive to handmade crafts!

Yipee!

I stayed on this site for a while and eventually found a show near an area we are planning to visit next month that was still accepting applications. This was my first experience applying to a show, where I actually had to wait to hear if our booth will be accepted! I knew this would be the right kind of show for us as they asked for the name of our Etsy shop right after my name!

Then it got a bit stressful! I had to fill out a form explaining our craft and our feelings about handmade crafting. I also had to include five representative pictures of our craft( hard to pick the very best of the best) and a picture of our booth(so glad I happen to snap a couple of those at the show last weekend)!

And now, I wait to hear! Wish us luck! If we get in I know that it will be a wonderful experience regardless of sales! And if not, I now know where to look for shows and know to get more organized sooner and apply earlier to multiple venues. It will work out just right, because like all of life, it’s a journey, not a destination!

Do you have tips for finding or applying to craft shows? Leave them here! Thanks!

UPDATE: We received news that we have been accepted to the show! Come see us in Medford, NJ! July 18th!

1.You tweet while driving( I am going to unfollow that person that just cut me off!)

2. You tweet in the shower(apply, lather, rinse, repeat…)

3.You use to dread 500 word essays, now your would give anything to be able to tweet that many characters

4.You find that you only answer to your twitter user name(”James! James!”, pause,”2happyjim!”)

5.You dream of tweeting

6.You keep paper and pencil by your bed so you can  promptly write down great tweets you thought of while sleeping(like THIS one!)

7. You tweet that dinner is ready, and your family all shows up to the table right away

8. You ask the love of your life to marry you in a tweet ( Will You Marry Me?-only 17 characters-cool!)

9. The love of you life tweets, “NO”, but 6 other followers tweet, “YES”.

10.You decided to pick the person you will marry by the number of followers they have.(20,000 minimum, don’t you think?)

Bet you have some to add! Go for it!

Here is Leah working on a custom order. The glass goddess pendant was supplied, but Leah searched out and created the rest! Double strung and triple crimped-it is sure to survive even the firmest tug from a little tyke! She especially loves the combination of wooden elements with the dark blue-purple glass.

I don’t know anyone who hasn’t been affected by the economy. We are very grateful for being healthy and together as a family. Anything more than that is gravy! I think there are not only good lessons to be learned from challenges, I believe challenges are necessary for personal growth and fulfillment. So while I am not wishing hard times on us or anyone, I believe that the adversity can be turned into opportunity and somewhere down the road, we may actually be thankful for these challenges!

So, in that spirit, here are a few of the changes that we have made in recent weeks and months. I am sure that you have a bunch too! Add them to the comments so they can be passed along too!

-Visit the library instead of the book store
-Buy used books on line at Amazon, instead of new and then resell them there as well
-Dig up and divide plants, trade with friends and neighbors
-Pop popcorn instead of chips, and buying popcorn in bulk and then popping in a popper is cheaper yet and the kids think it’s cool!
-Swap clothes and toys with friends-we do this all the time with our local homeschooling friends
-Make handmade greeting cards or buy handmade greeting cards from another family-we especially like our SHETEAM family on Etsy
-Switch to a basic cable/satellite package, borrow DVD’s from the library, download free programing off the internet-we subscribe to a bunch of free educational and entertaining podcasts
-Sign up for Subscribe & Save at Amazon. Free shipping, saves time, my gas and the less often I walk into a store, the less I spend on things that weren’t on my list. I use to be famous for the $100 gallon of milk!
-Trade crafts and services, again our Etsy family is great for that. We are a “trade friendly” shop and have participated in over 30 trades! We also have traded a refrigerator for plumbing repairs and jewelry tips for web tips!

So there are our most recent helps to our budget. What are yours!

Here’s is what we are actively reading or listening to or just finished:
1. Almost America-Steve Tally
2. The Bourne Identity-Robert Ludlum
3. Izzy, Willy-Nilly-Cynthia Voigt
4. Love, Stargirl-Jerry Spinelli
5. Leonardo Da Vinci: The Complete Paintings and Drawings-Frank Zollner
6. The Sky Is Falling -Kit Pearson
7. Butt Naked Baby Blues-Rick Kirkman & Jerry Scott
8. Looking at the Moon -Kit Pearson
9. Sunrise Over Fallujah-Walter Dean Myers
10. A Walk in the Woods-Bill Bryson
11. My Side of the Mountain-Jean Craighead George
12. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows-CD-J.K. Rowling
13. Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger’s-John Elder Robinson
14. Home Learning Year by Year- Rebecca Rupp
15. Holes-Louis Sachar
16. Mossflower -Brian Jacques

One of the common questions we are asked, by other homeschoolers as well as traditional learners is, “Where do you get your curriculum?” Well, here is the short answer-all over!
OK, really, we do find interesting books, workbooks, activities, and life experiences all over, all the time! A friend recently said to me that, “your kids are in school all the time”, and he was right! We use every everyday experience we can to set an example, broaden horizons and spark a little flame for knowledge.
BUT, if you are really asking what curriculum we base our schooling on, it is Robinson’s.
We discovered this curriculum and philosophy about 4 years ago after giving up on several other “name brands”. We like it fo so many reasons:
1. Teaches self teaching
2. Based on reading great works of literature
3. Adaptable
4. Affordable
5. Easy to use
6. Very little prep work needed
7. Computer based or paper based
8. Self-paced
9. Makes sense

…and just the best! It almost sounds too good to be true! It’s what works best for us…and best of all, we have the right to choose what is best for us!

“Your heartbeat is the rhythm of your soul”-on my teabag! How cool is that! I love little inspirational lifts that come to me unexpectedly throughout the day! It can be a mini message from my son, a smile from my husband, a funny bumper sticker or a teabag! Great!