Pincushion Rings in New Colors!

Pumpkin

MelonMy cupcake pincushion rings are now available in 8 colors! I'm open to custom color requests as well :)

Taking an online course

I internet-know a lot of amazing people offering their wisdom in online course form. I always thought that sounded completely cool but had no idea what it meant. When I went to school there were no computers, all my classes were in real classrooms where I was surrounded by actual human beings scribbling notes with pens on paper and missing phone messages being left on their answering machines back at the dorms.

But this being the 21st century, things have changed! I shed my fears and signed up for an online class taught by Diane Gilleland. Diane is a crafty powerhouse; not only does she teach online classes, she produces a popular podcast called CraftyPod, has a lovely website, publishes e-books and has written a beautiful book on the art of fabric flower folding.

I follow her on Twitter and knew her to be friendly and encouraging to crafters. So when she offered a 3 week online course on how to make a PodCast, well, I could not resist.

And I am totally thrilled with the results! Even though over 20 people signed up for the course, Diane helped me personally learn my way around the online classroom. Once I signed in I had access to class forums where discussions could be held amongst the students and teacher. The lessons were broken down into manageable sections with each week's lessons released at the beginning of the week. The lessons were multi-media, encompassing videos, audio, and writing with images and diagrams. Also there were checklists and worksheets I could download. Each lesson had a space for discussion and questions. Also Diane was available for questions privately through one-on-one email. The lessons stay up for the duration of the course and for a certain time period after so you can access them at your own pace.

Every Wednesday Diane initiated a group chat on Gmail where we got to socialize and get to know each other a little, plus ask questions and see questions asked we might not have thought of on our own.

I feel like the course was an incredible value for the kind of information imparted and how well it was presented, but especially for the personal attention the online format afforded.

Now I feel like I understand what it takes to produce a podcast AND I now know what a professional online class experience can be like, I'm sold. Thanks Diane!

Craftopia Craft Show

THIS SUNDAY!

CRAFTOPIA rings in spring at Hope Artiste Village on April 10

Who: Rhody Craft 100 promotes local artists and crafters through its seasonal store and website. At Rhody Craft 100 everything is 100% handmade, 100% local, and 100% delightful.

What: CRAFTOPIA is a super-duper day of art, craft, food, and fun in the beautifully restored Hope Artiste Village in Pawtucket, RI. Showcasing the unique work of 70+ independent artisans, Craftopia offers an eclectic afternoon of shopping, and celebrating all things local and handmade. Repurposed clothing, impeccably stitched handbags, one-of-a-kind jewelry and accessories join paper arts, fine arts, bath and body products, housewares and a whole lot of fabulosity you just won’t find elsewhere.

Always festive, Craftopia is the perfect way to swing into spring. Admission is just a buck, and kids, of course, are admitted free.

Where: Hope Artiste Village
1005 Main Street, Pawtucket, RI 02860
In the Main Hallway {known locally as the home of the Winter Farmers’ Market}

When: This Sunday, April 10, 2011. 10 AM - 4 PM.

Hope to see you there!

Bookbinding Class with To Boldly Fold

I recently took a beginner bookbinding workshop with Melissa Chao of To Boldly Fold. It was so much FUN!!

A group of us gathered at her apartment in Watertown one rainy afternoon. Melissa had carefully prepared for our arrival with a neat workstation ready for each of us. Some papers were pre-cut and some were left large so we could learn to hand tear like she does with all her pages.


We learned to make 4 little hand-sewn booklets and a box to store them in!




I thought that was the coolest, and we were all so pleased with our little journals, thinking about how we would fill them, then we found out there was another book to make!


This one was a travel journal. So cool, it was 4 sections of pages sewn into an expanding cover. We had the most fun choosing color papers, map pieces to decorate the book jacket, and little envelopes (which would hold souvenirs) to scatter through the pages.




Melissa was a great teacher, she really knows her bookbinding. Her instructions were clear and the handouts were informative AND cute. It was a great way to spend the afternoon with friends and come away with a new skill and tangible goods as well.

Contact Melissa if you are interested in taking this class!
http://www.toboldlyfold.com/workshops

To Tweet or not to Tweet

I read this post by Megan Auman on Crafting an MBA and it dovetailed with a post I've been wanting to write on my own blog.

The same way artists ask me if they should Open an Etsy shop, people also ask me if they should use Twitter. And the answer is always subjective. But here is why I use it and what you might consider before deciding if Tweeting is something you'd like to do.

Do you enjoy using technology?
I love the internets! I can't get enough of online everything. I should have a smart phone, but then you'd probably never get me to talk to you again without me saying "OK but first listen to what this person just tweeted!" It's bad enough now with access to a computer and being able to text tweets from my old-school cell phone. My husband is very patient with me.

Do you enjoy being social online?
I used to love the Forums on Etsy, but then I realized they were very repetitive and people got into weird fights and it was a downer so I stopped going there. For me, Twitter is like the forums, but if someone is weird or bums me out, I can unfollow them and I won't see their posts anymore.

Do you have a business?
Having a Twitter account allows you to be a human in real time online. By which I mean that folks who are interested in your work would probably like to know a bit more about you. Since Twitter is a conversation, followers have an opportunity to see a bit of your personality.

I know I have blurred the line between my business persona and my real self on Twitter, and sometimes I worry about appearing unprofessional. But I haven't pulled back behind a locked account or made two separate accounts yet. I guess I am willing to take the risk of alienating some people who might have considered buying from me until they found out I'm a progressive liberal who firmly believes in gay rights and supporting National Public Radio. I guess I just gotta be me!

Does Facebook make you sad?
I know this is not everyone's experience, and a lot of people use both Facebook and Twitter equally, enjoying the variations of both social networking sites. But I am not a fan of Facebook. I don't know why it is, I feel down every time I dip in, so I rarely visit. I claimed a Fan Page, but I never developed it.

When I first joined Facebook I friended everyone who requested it. Then I realized these strangers now had access to pictures of my nieces on the beach, ick! So I whittled my friends list on FB down to people I actually know (or have known online for years and years). I understand what vendors are getting out of the Business Page experience on Facebook; conversations, interaction, exposure to their customers and fans, but I am just not there yet. I'd rather use Twitter and Flickr and blogging to communicate.

Do you want a peer group?
When you work for yourself there's a good chance you will feel isolated at some point. I'm lucky to have my studio at Western Avenue Studios where I have a terrific collection of friends and fellow artists to bounce ideas off of. I get excited about their projects and it's excellent just to have other humans around. But I know you don't all have access to a group of individuals with your same job. Twitter lets you connect with a bunch of other YOUS. You can find out what other people with your job are dealing with, succeeding at, struggling with. And the possible solutions to your own dilemmas. It makes the world smaller and friendlier.

Do you want to get to know people in your own town?
I'm no shrinking violet, but I have met more people in real life by first making contact with them on Twitter than I ever realized I would! People in my own city with whom I might rarely cross paths but who shop at the same stores I do, walk the same streets. And so what if you did pass someone in the stairway of the parking garage? Would you really take the opportunity to get to know them? Certainly not. But because of Twitter, I know that guy in the stairway is actually Ed, he lives one street over from me and his wife likes reading! So I say "Hi Ed!" and he says "Hi Liz!" and we both win at being humans in real life. The local connection is vital. On Twitter we all talk about traffic, weather, what is that parade going by my window right now? It's like the walkie talkies I had as a kid, except back then no-one was out there to answer my 10-4 good buddy.

For all these reasons I use Twitter! I try to be a good twitizen. I don't post link after link to my Etsy shop items, that is so spammy and tedious. I interact with people who talk to me even if I don't follow them. (Except spam-bots which I block). I re-tweet links I think might be of interest to my followers. I try to provide relevant or funny content. I click on people's blog posts when they link to them. I occasionally promote people I admire, we are all out there helping each other is how I see it.

So is Twitter for you? I don't know, try it and see! Tip: I know you need to follow and be followed by some critical number of people (not sure how many) before things get interesting and you don't feel like you are tweeting to an empty room so don't give up right away. And if you follow me, say hi by using an "at reply" (@madeinlowell) so I can get to know who you are. Sometimes I can't keep up with new followers and people get unintentionally lost in the crowd.

Do you use Twitter already? Any unanswered questions? Please add to this discussion!

Cabin fever this Sunday!

Gifts from the heART!

Tomorrow, Saturday, February 5th, from noon to five, Western Avenue Studios is hosting First Saturdays Open Studios. I will be there in studio A305!

In addition, thirty of us artists banded together to offer a fun promotion called Gifts from the heART. Pick up a postcard at the entrance to the building and carry it around with you. When you come across a participating studio, gather a heart sticker. When you leave Western Avenue, drop your be-stickered card off in the box outside the loading dock on the second floor of the A Mill to be entered into a drawing!

Collect 10+ hearts and be entered to win a $25 gift certificate. Gather 20+ hearts and be entered to win $50 gift certificate. Get all 30 hearts and enter to win a $75 gift certificate!

I have been replenishing my stocks from the holiday shows and adding new colors of old favorites. Hope to see you!