Magickal Enchantments

 I would like to extend a warm welcome to my first interviewee, Kat with Magickal Enchantments.  I am going to be starting a weekly, maybe more often, posting of fellow Etsy members here on my blog as a way to introduce them to those who read my blog as well as give them some deserved exposure.  So, as Kat was the first to respond, I am posting her interview first.  She is a talented lady and I love her Witch Balls.  For more information about these delightful and stunning creations visit her Etsy shop.  Details are listed at the bottom of the interview.

1. Tell me a little bit about yourself.

My name is Kathy, I am a 35 year old married Mom of two lovely daughters ages 15 and 5.  I have been married for 13 years.  I have practiced the craft for 6 years this summer.  I was brought up Catholic and attended Catholic schools so it was difficult for me to make the leap.  How I wish I had done it sooner. The craft has given me so much in the way of peace and balance within my own life.

2. Tell me a bit about your background and how long you have been an artist/crafter.

I have been making items for about 15 years or so. I started out making things for myself and my home and then started making things for friends and family.

3. What is the first thing you can remember making by hand? How and why did you make it?

A wreath for my front door, I saw one in the store, I wanted it but could not afford it. As I looked at the wreath I thought I could try to make it. So, I did and I still have that wreath!

4. What inspires you? Where do your ideas come from?

The craft and people inspire me. Sometimes I will be sitting and talking with a friend about some situation and I think “I can make something for that”. So, I research and if it is something I am capable of making then I give it a try.  I enjoy helping others. I would not sell anything that I wouldn’t use myself.

5. What are your favorite materials?

Herbs and essential oils.  Oh yes and beads, I love beads!

6. What is your favorite color? What colors are you drawn to?

My favorite color is purple. I am drawn to greens and browns, earthy tones.

7. If someone were looking to take up a craft, what advice would you give them?

To find something that they are going to enjoy making. If it becomes tedious or boring then look to take your craft to a new level, to make it your own.

8. What is your area of interest in crafting? What do you specialize in?

I enjoy making oils and herbal mixtures. Specialize in? Hhmmm tough one, I have been making Witch balls longer then anything else but I enjoy creating all of my items.

9. What would be your top 5 tips for a beginner?

• Be prepared to put a lot of time and effort into it.
• Research your supplies, look for sales and always hit the clearance section in the craft stores. I have found some great items there and it doesn’t hurt as much if the project goes bad. Ifan item speaks to you, buy it! Many times I have purchased something with no idea what I am going to do with it but always end up finding a great way to incorporate it into my ideas.
  Once you become better at your craft invest in better quality products.
• Invest in some Tupperware containers for your supplies, it will pay off later to take the time tobe organized.
• Before starting any project take the time to make sure you have everything you need before hand. Many times whenI started out crafting I would start some project to only realize halfway through that I am missing some supply. Because of this, I had many 1/2 finished projects lying around.
• Always be proud of your work!

10. What would be your top 5 items of essential equipment?

Herbs

Oils

• Glass bottles and Jars to keep my mixes in

11. Can you recommend a technique or ‘tips’ book ideal for a beginner?

If you are interested in herbs then I would recommend The Complete Book of Incense, Oils and Brews by Scott Cunningham.  I would also say to play with your own recipes, use the books as a guideline only.

12. Can you recommend any brands to look out for, when buying equipment or kit?

I would say to grow as many of your own herbs as you can. When buying oils learn the difference between essentials and fragrance oils. If someone is marketing an essential oil for $3.00 then it probably isn’t a true essential oil. 

13. Do you sell your work, or is it purely for pleasure?

Both although it started out for pleasure then as I am sure with most crafters it went to making things for family and friends. They are the ones that encouraged me to sell my items. We all need that little vote of confidence now and then.

13. What is your Etsy shop address and name?

Magickal Enchantments: http://www.magickalenchantments.etsy.com/

14. Where else can we find you?

I have a myspace page that I show my items on: www.myspace.com/magickalwitchballs

Thank you so much for this wonderful opportunity!
It is greatly appreciated.
Brightest Blessings,
Kat

PayPal Nightmare!

I felt compelled to write about my recent experience, this week, with PayPal.  I was one of those thinkers, you know who you are, “It can’t happen to me!”.  Well, it did!  Someone stole my bank card information and at 10:00 am this morning I received a call my bank fraudulent department asking me if I had been shopping at a department store website and spent what I had in checking there.  My reply, “No, you just woke me up.  I haven’t been shopping anywhere!”

I spent most of the morning then filing a police report online, talking with the department store website on the phone, and sending my bank an e-mail online to let them know that I wanted my money back in my account and would be in tomorrow morning.  What a nightmare this has been.  They wiped us out and the worst thing is, I fell victim to a phishing e-mail from PayPal that I would normally delete.  So, if you get an e-mail from PayPal, which according to them, they do not send e-mails like this, do not respond.  Delete it right away.  It asked me to confirm my pin numbers what I had listed with them, i.e.: checking account and credit cards.  I could hit myself for this because I know better.

Now I am going to have to check into Google for creating my buttons for my website to sell my jewelry so that I don’t have to deal with PayPal.  According to a number of online articles PayPal is in a class action lawsuit for people stealing their customer’s information and them taking forever or not at all returning their money.  Not only did this happen, but someone charged my PayPal account $70.00 from China, which I also did not authorize, but according to PayPal, this is not possible because they are so secure.

Ok, I’m done venting, but I wanted my friends and people that read my blog to know that they just need to be careful as people out there are getting more and more desperate with the economy going down hill and this may be something that we see more of.  Also, this could happen to you, it could.

The Challenge

The Challenge

Originally uploaded by jewellery.craft

This is a story about a friend I have met through Flickr, Mandie. Mandie is forty something, married with two wonderful wonderful boys. and lives on the Dorset/Hampshire/Wiltshire border.

I love the way she describes this place as “a beautiful and inspirational place to live, from The New Forest to the Jurasic Coast of Lyme Regis to The Blackmoor Vale, all this just a stones throw from my front door, bliss.” Hmmm, doesn’t that just sound like something out of a mystical type movie.

She manages a bead shop in the historic market town of Shaftesbury and really thinks this is cool, I would too! She says she is surrounded by the prettiest beads all day, which is good because she is completely addicted! She ”makes jewellery both at work and at home, usually one off commissions, which is [her] favorite way of working.”

I love her work, her jewelry is some of the best I’ve seen. I have a Flickr photo stream here on my blog and thought I would go ahead and post a little about her. Here’s to you jewellery.craft’s. You can find more of her photos at:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/21457230@N08/

She also has a blog:

http://jewellerycraft.blogspot.com

The Handbook to Handmade

Ok, have you ever thought, “Wow, how do THOSE people get to be in a magazine or book?”  Well, here is your chance to do just that.  I have been given a remarkable opportunity to be in the next book offered by Timothy Adam Designs.

 

“The Handbook to Handmade”, Volume IV.  This book has a ton of opportunities for those who will be featured in it as far as promoting themselves, as they will have 2 pages in to show off their artistic abilities, pictures and a bio.  The best thing, it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg like those magazine spots!  

“The Handbook to Handmade is an 80 page monthly volume of 35 ETSY artists and their shops…this is a promotional tool that is used to help promote artists and Etsy. The first volume was a success, with a great mix of artists from 36 different cities from around the world.”   

The book comes out sometime in March and for those of us who will be featured, we are definitely anticipating its arrival, as we get a copy for signing up to be included.  I plan on using it at craft bazaars, festivals, shows, coffee houses, and play groups, any where I go that will have people I talk with.  What an awesome idea for a marketing and promotional tool to carry around.  Thinking about, if you leave it out on your coffee table when you know company is coming over, you know they are going to want to pick it up and look through it. 

 

Not only are you allowing people to see your work, but the work of other talented artist on Etsy.  The more we help to promote Etsy, the more exposure we can come to expect.  So check out the following links to find out how you can be a part of a growing popular trend in marketing and how you can help Etsy and yourself become everyone’s’ “place to buy and sell all things handmade”.

The official blog for the book: http://etsypromobook.blogspot.com/

Tim’s Etsy page: http://timothyadamdesigns.etsy.com/