Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Expiring Soon!

A new addition to the daily posts, "Expiring Soon!" is to share items that will be gone from Etsy once they expire. If you see something here that you like but can't decide whether you want it right now and it expires from Etsy before you've had the chance to make up your mind, please let me know. Just a simple description of the item in an email letting me know you're interested is enough. Send inquiries to: earthmothermosaics@yahoo.com or cindywhitephotos@gmail.com respectively.

Today is the last day for the art pendant sale! Get any pendant for $20 today only.

Etsy Shop - Art Pendant Sale
Here's what's expiring in EarthMotherMosaics on October 15th:

Mosaic Gazing Ball 10.5 Inches - $135.00

A great focal point, this gazing ball I call "My World", can be placed on a pedestal and set in the center of a table surrounded by candlelight for a special event but pretty enough to be the centerpiece of your table or windowsill every day. The glitter under the tempered glass sparkles in the light. It's absolutely exquisite. A single globe sitting on a stone pedestal near sunlight adds elegance to your home. A wrought iron holder gives strength where ever it is placed.

Layaway is available on this item. Contact me for more information.

Expiring on October 15th in our sister shop, Cindy White Photo Art:

Pillow Cover - Grow, Bloom, Fly - $30

Art Print - 10 x 8 inches - Never Stop Looking Up - $25

Clock - Grow, Bloom, Fly - $40

Art Print - 8 x 8 Inches - Grow, Bloom, Fly - $25

Support Independent Artisans, Designers and Crafters for your gift-giving needs all throughout the year. Thank you!

Stay peaceful,
Cindy

Monday, September 29, 2014

Promo Blast!

Sun Shrine In A Box
It's Monday and the start of a continued journey into daily blog posts after a long hiatus. Before I stopped my posts to enjoy the summer and work on a custom order, I had each day assigned to something specific and it worked well for me. That formula will continue, however, a few of the daily posts will differ.

Today, though, Monday is dedicated to shameless promotion!

I was looking through my Etsy stats recently for "all time" and noticed one of my very favorite mosaics is also the favorite of many others. To date, "Sun Shrine In A Box" has received 691 favorites and has been in 17 treasuries! That's amazing!


My mosaic shrine is called "Sun Shrine In A Box" using a clever play on words for "shrine" and "sunshine". :)

Measures 7 inches by 8 inches and is covered inside and out, top to bottom with stained glass, china and mirror.



It was once a small wooden jewelry box painted in pink with bright flowers heading towards the dumpster. I have re-purposed it into a fine piece of Bohemian mosaic art.




I used stained glass, tempered glass, ball chain, charms, broken china and mirror on the inside. On the outside I used broken china, mirror and stained glass covering the top, bottom, sides and back.



The sun was painted then sprinkled liberally with gold glitter, covered in tempered glass and outlined in ball chain. The charms hanging from the top are a few broken earrings and really cool odds and ends charms given to me over the years. I added the finial on top and painted it black.



back view
back, bottom and left side



Tea light shown is not included. Should you use a candle inside, to protect the mosaic and your surroundings, please be aware the structure is wood. Do not leave candle unattended or burn for long periods of time.






This is not a light piece of art! It weighs about 5 lbs. More photos available upon request. Comes with a Certificate of Authenticity. This is definitely one-of-a-kind.

Price: $250.00 + shipping.
Layaway is available on this item. Contact me for more information.

Support Independent Artisans, Designers and Crafters for your gift-giving needs all throughout the year. Thank you!

Stay peaceful,
Cindy

Friday, September 26, 2014

In The Studio

It's the last Friday of the month and fall has arrived (huzzah!) which means it's time to start writing blog posts every day once more. Starting on Monday, September 29th, I'll be blogging 6 days a week (taking Sunday off to regroup for the upcoming week) and share mostly what I do and how I do it, what artisans I've found along the way will be highlighted here and there and promotional things! Fun!!

This week I celebrated my 60th birthday.

First thing in the morning, my 7 year old Grandson gifted me with a handmade birthday card (with a little assistance from his Mom). How cute is he?!



The fun continued as I went to Peddler's Village in Bucks County, PA ( http://www.peddlersvillage.com/ ) with my favorite cousin. We had a good time walking around the cobblestone and brick streets looking in and around at the marvelous and varied shops there. We stopped for lunch where there was a gluten-free menu. I had a very filling BLT with mesquite chicken and we shared a decadent chocolate dessert; I only thought about getting photos of it all once it was gone. Trust me ... it was delicious!

Peddler's Village in Bucks County, PA
http://www.peddlersvillage.com/ )
My cousin treated me to a new pendant and I truly love it!


And ... I found the perfect sign that captures my philosophy "to a t":

It says:
"A beautiful day begins with a beautiful mindset. When you wake up, take a second to think about what a privilege it is to simply be alive and healthy. The moment you start acting like life is a blessing, I assure you that it will start to feel like one. Time spent living is time worth appreciating."

It was a joyful day.

On Tuesday, the Autumnal Equinox arrived, which means my favorite time of year is upon us!


In The Studio, it has been busy. I grouted the doll!




I adore her "out of this world" look. And her space boots, gloves and helmet all look awesome, don't you think? I'm thinking about retro names for her but haven't yet settled on anything. Any suggestions? Leave comments here if you think of a cool, retro name.

I also grouted the black and white bowl. It looks fantastic and was listed this week on Etsy.

Black and White Bowl
I did start work on the 3 story birdhouse. It looks pretty cool already.




~ANNOUNCEMENT~

Online stores news for 2015: This is an unofficial announcement really ... more like a "heads up" I suppose. After a lot of thought and consideration, I've decided to close Etsy, Storenvy and Meylah shops in January of 2015 and move everything to my own website (which I am working on now). I'm trying to find a way to make my life a little less complicated and a little more balanced. I'm always evolving and changing and this seems like the best solution for my struggles with Etsy and my online business.

My customers can follow along and find new things to purchase or request custom orders through links provided here and everywhere I share info that will take them to the website. As always, you can see things I'm working on here on the blog, on my Facebook Pages, Instagram, Pinterest and so on. Nothing much will change except the listings fees for me. It will be easier also to promote and keep track of it all because it all will be in one central place.

What will change for the worst are my views and traffic to the website, I imagine. Since starting over on a new site always takes time, I'm hoping some of the loyal Etsians who love what I do there will stop by my website once in a while and say hello and possibly share what they like from the new website onto their favorite social media spots. Less views and traffic has been one reason I've put off leaving the online venues but I know they aren't serving me as well as they used to. And I know nothing stays the same, so it's time to start something new!

This past year on Etsy has mostly been hard for me and I've lost money trying to keep listings active. It's time for me to concentrate on the next chapter, as Etsy has changed so much over the years (and continues to move away from handmade art and artisans), it seems like the right move. I've had a good run and like any relationship that lasts 5 years, it's hard to leave because when it's good, it's really good but it's time to say goodbye and move on.

I'll still use the labs for my photo prints and keep those who are interested in purchasing pillow covers, tote bags and all the rest in the loop here and on the new website of items they can purchase.

When the true, official announcement comes out, you all will be asked if you'd like to join my mailing list to see new items first before they are shown on the website and social media spots. Preferred customers deserve special treatment and discounts will be available once in a while too!

Wish me luck. I am sad to leave what is familiar but it's always good to accept the facts: it's time to "close the door" and see what new adventures come my way.

Have a great weekend!

Support Independent Artisans, Designers and Crafters for your gift-giving needs all throughout the year. Thank you!

Stay peaceful,
Cindy

Friday, September 19, 2014

In The Studio

After taking a nice "staycation" last week, I had a great week at the crafts table.

Working on many things in different stages is at times the best way to stay in the zone and keep the muse happy and productive.

I prepped:

A large birdhouse - 24 x 5 inch - and some nipped up dishes to be added to it




Grouted and listed a few on Etsy:

two sided mosaics - each side has glass and/or broken china

FB Birthstone GOG Challenge

nautical peace sign

green apple bowl

Continued with a hard project:

Mosaic Doll - I've added ball chain and white beads to face, hands and legs



she's finally ready for grout - acrylics, glitter and tempered glass added to arms and legs
And worked on something new:

ready for grout - black and white bowl

Support Independent Artisans, Designers and Crafters for your gift-giving needs all throughout the year. Thank you!

Stay peaceful,
Cindy


Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Midweek Motivation

I love being motivated! This week so far I've been working on my first Etsy shop. I've added a few new items, visited all teams (close to 60) and spent time making a treasury too. It's actually comforting to work on my Etsy shop; I'm "at home" on this site and even when the site makes changes as I'm visiting teams (like it did on Tuesday) and sharing the love, I still feel most comfortable there. It's good to feel the pull towards all the online shops I have to fix them a little bit and share with teams what's in them on Etsy.

On Storenvy, much of what is on Etsy is there too with more hand painted art work. I'm learning how to make Collections on the shop of my own items and those items I find to "Envy" and then put into a collection. This site is fun and even though there isn't much different in my own shop on it as there is on Etsy, I enjoy hanging out there.

The newest items in Etsy are:

Nautical Peace Sign - 10 Inches

Green Apple Bowl

 Next week is my birthday (on Sept 22 I'll be 60) and I've decided to celebrate a bit with a sale on art pendants. I've taken 20% off each pendant and am offering them at this reduced price for a week.

Sale on all Art Pendants
Now is a great time to get a few and tuck them away for future birthday's or the holiday's. These are casual and yet can make a special occasion just a little more special when you add one of these pendants.

I made a treasury featuring some 123team teammates and some awesome items from shops on Etsy. Check it out and comment if you'd like:

Oh Oh Let's Go!

On Storenvy, my favorite small art piece is this ATC sized acrylic:

Poppy

Here's one of the items I have in a collection called "Bohemian". Click on this link to see my entire collection. This bracelet is from Lobster Pirate Jewelry. What a great name for a shop!

Spiked leather wrap bracelet


Support Independent Artisans, Designers and Crafters for your gift-giving needs all throughout the year. Thank you!

Stay peaceful,
Cindy