Start Advertising Your Products Online

02/01/2011

Those of you that are interested in promoting yourselves or your creative endeavors online will find everything you need to get started here.

Why is it important to promote your brand online? In the very vast marketplace of today it’s important to brand and differentiate yourself to your competitors and fellow crafters, this will tell you how to get started.

After having visited Everything Etsy I was absolutely flabbergasted about the amount of care and a display of the wonderful and sharing community. The Etsy community itself is a very giving community and as you can see there’s a lot to be learned from the many seasoned sellers that sell there.

It all brings me back around to blogs being the best bang for the advertising dollar.

From Use Advertising To Promote Your Etsy Shop at EverythingEtsy.com.

Do you want to promote your Etsy shop without a marketing budget? No problem.

From A Creative Approach to Promoting Your Shop at Etsy Community.

Your own business: will it be a dream come true — or a nightmare?

From Realities of Running an Indie Biz at MICA.

Also don’t forget to read The Etsy Seller Handbook if you haven’t gotten a chance to yet! If you’re looking for great information as a newcomer or as a seasoned seller it’s great to brush up and see how others are finding success.

1 Comment

Artist & Designer Features Self Decoration

Getting Glamorously Kitsch with Cicely Margo

12/20/2010

Cicely is a rad girl from Reno that creates eye-candy deliciousness for you to wear. We finally had the pleasure of meeting recently and she’s just as sweet as her accessories. Her creations are exactly what the doctor ordered for Miseducated girls in need of sparkle! HER SHOP!

I know we’ve been web friends for quite awhile now and I’m excited to interview you! So how long have you been crafting this amazing jewelry?
Yes a long time! Go Go LJ friends! Ive been making jewelry since I was a wee lad, and around 2004 I started to craft more steadily.

When did you decide to turn that hobby into a business?
I began selling through LiveJournal roughly around that same time and then opened up shop on Etsy in 2005.

All of us reach creativity blocks at some time.. where do you find inspiration when you reach a block?
Oh man, for inspiration, I hit up my toybox. I love gumball prizes, cheapy kid toys that come from China. I look around when I’m out at antique stores, I study vintage costume jewelry designs, I look at the color combos used. I like to combine the kitschy feel of plastic with the glamour of vintage jewels.

Oh man, for inspiration, I hit up my toybox.

Now that is probably the BEST interview answer I’ve ever heard. I love toys, too! Do you have a favorite piece of jewelry that you have made?
YES! This sugar junk glam trash necklace I made with a crap load of neon, sparkly charms. Its ridiculousness at its best!

I also love the rainbow junk pieces! Do you have any exciting stories about the purchase of one of your pieces?
Nothing too exciting. I love hearing feedback when people first get their pieces! I love their excitement over a piece of jewelry I’ve created. It makes me happy when they are happy!

2 Comments

Escapeland Giveaway

Our Very First Etsy Goodie Bag Giveaway WINNER

10/04/2010

CONGRATULATIONS to the winner, Kate Barber!

(and a HUGE thank you to everyone who entered)

An ezine about this and other new features was sent to all fans on Facebook, if you would like to receive these rare but important messages and are not a member of Facebook you may also submit your email address.

Stay tuned for another exciting giveaway coming up soon!

[Giveaway Closed: Sep 24th]

Hello and welcome to the second ever Miseducated Giveaway! We plan to have these much more often, it’s been way too long! Check out the details here.

We wanted to especially thank our readers and guests for being so creatively cute and wonderful to us everywhere we go. The truth is giveaways are a great way to find new friends and readers and to expose them to new and seasoned artists. We select our giveaways from our favorite handmade art shops, antique shops and more.

The Prize

You can win a Hello Kitty tote bag filled with handmade and diy goodies from great sellers on Etsy!

1. Sweet Star and Strawberry accessories from Strawberry Latte

2. Limited Edition Miseducated Deericorn pendant

Original DEERICORN Pendant - limited edition-1

Original DEERICORN Pendant - limited edition

3. Victorian Spats by Mademoiselle Mermaid

Victorian Spats with Bows in Oatmeal by Mademoiselle Mermaid-1

Victorian Spats with Bows in Oatmeal by Mademoiselle Mermaid-2

4. Paper glittery macarons by PaperCakes

5. Postcard set by Amber&Co with cupcake pencils

6. Bag o’ kitsch charms, beads and goodies to get your DIY tastebuds wet especially from Miseducated

The Rules

To enter simply leave one comment below, make sure to include a correct email address in case you win. This giveaway expires in a week on Friday, September 24th and the winner will be chosen at random and will be announced on Monday, October 4th. All readers, including international readers, are welcome and encouraged to participate!

Bonus Entries

All entries will be checked for accuracy!
+1 Entry: Become a fan of Miseducated on Facebook and add a comment below announcing you’ve done so.

+1 Entry: Subscribe to our blog by using Google or another reader and let us know by leaving a comment below.

+1 Entry: Link to Miseducated on your blog and comment with the link here.

+1 Entry: Feature this giveaway on your blog (or tell others about it) and let us know here.

If you would like to be featured in a future giveaway, let us know and Miseducated might purchase something from your shop for our next goodie bag!

Thanks so much for all of your support.

47 Comments

Artist & Designer Features Visual Splendor

Ordering Food on Etsy: Little Oven Bakery in NYC

05/17/2010

Order food from etsy? What? Have you thought about it?

Recently my curiosity got the best of me (as if often does) and I wondered if people really ordered food off of etsy.. Upon asking on twitter, I found that a lot of friends and readers a like have been wondering the same.

Thus, this article is born and I get an excuse to support an adorable macaron bakery AND munch on the cookies. (win/win!)

I decided to order a set of macarons from Little Oven Bakery in New York City. They offer macaron packages on Etsy and I was smitten enough to try one!

The macarons arrived fast, within a day, and were packed up so nice that they had hardly crumbled at all. I was absolutely surprised and excited to be receiving one of my favorite decadent snacks in the mail. I couldn’t believe how well they traveled.

I tasted them with my husband — we split each macaron in half and saved the second box for later (tea time).

The Flavors I ordered were Raspberry, Caramel Fleur de Sel and Meyer Lemon. We absolutely adored the raspberry with chocolate creme, the caramel being a close second and in third the lemon. I prefer a more tart lemon so it was silly to order it as a sweet macaron, however we enjoyed eating each and every one of them.

Nice crunch on the outside with a soft macaron cookie center surrounded by a complementary creme. Creme desserts are absolutely a preference of mine and these were just as delicious as having them in a French cafe with tea. Not as beautiful of course, but macarons carry a special beauty with them no matter where they are and they please everyone they meet.

Interested in getting your shop reviewed here? Let us know all about it!

7 Comments

Visual Splendor

A Delicious Scoop of Etsy Shops You’ll Adore

05/01/2010

Etsy is a marketplace of artists, diy-ers and more from all over the world. You can search for absolutely anything and usually find quite a few choices to pick between. Best of all? Everything is either handmade or vintage and you’ll be sure to find something your heart desires. One of a kind items are a unique kind of special and most often delivered as such in hand-prepared packaging to seal the deal.

Not only that, Etsy is a great community.

So you’ve probably already heard of Etsy and have spent countless hours skimming through the goodies or even sprucing up your shop to sell your own wares. I adore shopping there most of all but I have recently opened my little print shop back up — also to feature OOAK goodies for Miseducated readers in the future. I had some bad experiences with a buyer (whom I did refund and who did receive the print) but all in all I’ve met a lot of great people there.

These shops aren’t my absolute favorites nor is this a list of the best, but they each have an adorable product and they each made me squeal.

Featured Shops

Printable and plush toys at Fantastic Toys
Cute, modern necklaces and more at Joo Sweetie
Pizzicato Kei creates adorable Fairy-Kei and Japanese street fashion inspired accessories
So much more than perler beads at A Self Portrait
Kawaii Friends Cafe serves up permanent handmade sweets
Pony dresses and party corsets at Lexi Bee
Mon Sherry lolita shop with adorable cat scarves

3 Comments

Mew for Today Visual Splendor

Mew for Today: Tickle Me Green

03/17/2010

It’s St. Patrick’s Day, green shamrocks and rainbow bridges to pots of gold. Green beer. It’s time to celebrate because, as if you needed a reason anyway, there’s a holiday underway.

Green is the color of life and the earth. It signifies growth, health, environment and is often used for it’s calming effects.

Spend Your Day Tickled Green

First, start your day by preparing the cutest of the sweets, pistachio macarons at Tartelette. If you’re feeling thirsty grab an iced green tea to refresh and wake you up. Use milk and matcha powder or brewed green tea with ice.
Next get prepared for a night out on the town or for a very-green party at home. Make sure your outfit contains lots of green and is reminiscent of whimsical St. Patrick’s Day for extra fun — I relate green, rainbows and gold to St. Patrick’s Day due to the decorations!
Add a couple of drops of green food coloring to just about anything to green it up in a flash. This is great for beer and drinks as well as baked sweets.
No matter what you do I hope you can spend it with loved ones having fun and enjoying great food as every holiday should be shared.

Dress Up, Go Out

Items in this set: striped colorblock tank dress, $25 Long Leg Warmer, $16 Navy and red heart print socks, 2 GBP Shamrock Mini Glitter Assorted Cutouts 6ct – Wall Decorations – St…., $0.99 Christian Louboutin Rolando 120 patent leather pumps, $625

Green Love

Enchanted Petal Blythe

Irregular Choice

1 Comment

Mew for Today Self Decoration

Mew for Today: Baby Changes Everything INSIDE

11/20/2009

.. and if you’ve worked hard and stayed positive chances are these changes are awesome and very welcome into your life! Success is a state of mind.. remember, you’ll never be exactly where you want to be because you’ll always be striving for bigger and better things.

I’m keeping my own little secrets (haha, I guess I actually just blabbed) but I won’t be able to hide them for long.. so alas I’m on the look for delicious maternity wear for fashionable mothers to be or mothers that HAVE been. <3

TWIN SYNDROME: High-Rise Panties

Nothing’s sexier than what you Don’t Show!
Great for under high-rise jeans for a flash of extra coverage, for nursing mommies, for smoothing the look of that clingy dress, general layering on cold winter days, and just plain ol’ fun when stripping down!

Stretchy 95% cotton, 5% spandex blend is very comfortable and forgiving, french cut bottoms are sexy and flattering!

Plum Pretty Sugar Loungerie

If you’re feeling a need to lounge around, why not look beautiful while you do it? Always take time with your appearance and you’ll be pleased feeling like a queen rather than a slug.

Haramaki Love

Whether you choose to wear it under or over your shirt, the tiny white heart really adds adorable to your maternity ensemble!

YY Studio

Go Rosemary’s Baby style (this is what I wore BEFORE I was expecting) with mod little tent dresses and sweet minis.

Sub Rosa Fashion

Soft and fantastic knitted mini dresses that are loose and soft enough to feel as sweet as they look!

Craft Junky

These indoor shoes and house slippers are bright and cheerful — if your feet are uncomfortable they can be soft in style.

8 Comments

Escapeland Thankful for Monday

Thankful for Monday: Web Gratitude

11/06/2009

Gratitude journals are an easy task to add to your day that actually improves your happiness and gratefulness overtime. You begin take notice of what’s really important when you start writing down five things per day that you are thankful for.. whether you have a lot to be thankful for or not so many things.. it should help you evaluate what’s really important in your life for your happiness.

I definately keep a gratitude journal on my iPhone, it even lets you rate the day and attach a photo — great idea for bloggers! Imagine you rating each day and attaching a photo to symbolize it. What makes your days rate 5 (1-5)?

So since gratitude is always awesome I figured I’d attach some for the web world as well. I’m very thankful for the internet — without it my career would not exist. What better way to enjoy the wonderfulness of the world wide web than to appreciate 5 extra special places of interest each week?

Want to see something here? This could be related to humor, entertainment, design, diy, self-help, health, fashion, art,events, your call! If you want to let us know about your own blog or project, be sure to email us and you just might be listed here next Friday!

1

PaperCakes Finds (Cutie Girl Style post)
Chelsea is sweeter than sugar-coated gumdrops. When she told me her new finds list was inspired by me I was elated.. and then to see that the actual finds were snatched from my wildest dreams! This is exactly what I love the handcraft world because there is every kind of style, even my style, and they’re all made with the utmost care and precision of an artisan. Custom and one of a kind.

Instead of allowing someone to choose what is on the shelves we are choosing exactly what we want from the world and it makes us all a little bit more appreciative of the wonderful people making these amazing things. More empathy towards others is a huge thing to be thankful for — without it I would not have met many of the amazing people I’ve met on and offline.

2

Japan L.A.
One of the absolute cutest and most adorable pop culture shops right in L.A. They promote local artists and Japanese inspiration — two things I’m very passionate about. Absolutely adorable place, when I visited I couldn’t stop finding things to drop into my basket. I even found cute and well-loved gifts for MisterEducated and my best friend while there.

(Photo Copyright Twinkie Chan)

3

Twinkie Chan
If there were a more amazing decadent, pop art food textile designer I would be shocked. She creates adorable accessories that look good enough to eat sweet! Not only is she a diy-diva but she’s also a sweetheart to boot! I guarantee you’ll be drooling after you take a look at her creations!

4

Pupe Girl
A tasty little Japanese fashion site that you probably already know about but perhaps not.. you earn accessories and clothing by uploading photos of your own accessories and clothing as well as by participating in the community. It’s a cute Japanese social network based around fashion — what could be better?

5

Bento Box Guide
An ‘old skool’ website I was surprised to still find up! It’s a cute little guide on bento boxes and is absolutely aimed towards the beginner, yes even you can make them! So give it a try and be proud of your adorable, healthy lunch.

4 Comments

Design Your Life

Who’s That Girl? Anna of Branch and Birdie

04/22/2009

At 18 I ran as quickly as I could from my two stoplight town, to New York City where I dabbled in the fashion and modeling industry.

At 19 I tried out Los Angeles and motherhood all at once. Three years later my daughter and I headed back to the Big Apple in search of something more. What I did find was my soul mate, and we moved out West together to bask in a few of San Diego’s rays. Sunny yes! Creativity and culture? Not so much!

So a Medical Assistant Certification, a marriage and one more baby later my little family of four and I trudged to the rainy town of Portland, OR. Now at 25 years old here I am.

My life has already started, it’s in process and I knew I would not ever be content without creating and decorating.

I had always dreamed of having a little boutique full of local artist’s goods, but I never would have imagined that I would be able to become that local artist. I had sold some of my handmade jewelry in stores before, but did I have the motivation to start up my own empire? Then I discovered Etsy! Fantastic! Phenomenal! A mecca of beauty and vision! With a few click clicks on my computer keyboard, and some design help from my genius filmmaker husband (owner of Two Penguins Productions) I plunged forward and started up Branch and Birdie.

I find my inspiration in nature, scavenging through thrift stores and watching my daughters draw and play! As women we are being profiled from birth, directed to become the celestial being of beauty- but don’t you think that it’s time we take charge? Diaper in one hand, courage and confidence in the other? So good bye NYC glamour and hello PDX basement! I’ve traded my Louboutins in for a sewing machine, and couldn’t be happier.

0 Comments

Crafts DIY

Create Your Own Mosaic Frame

04/14/2009

Before you begin

Choose boxes or frames “unfinished”; paint them with acrylic paint gold or silver (or whatever color you want, depending on your color scheme) just to have a base for the tiles to stick to. I don’t like to show raw wood between tiles because I don’t use grout in between the tiles (too messy and may scratch). Paint back and edges.

Supplies

Polymer clay (various colors)
Acrylic roller and/or pasta machine
Cookie cutters and craft blade
Stamps ( rubber or any texture you find around your house)
Acrylic paint and brushes
Metallic powders
Varnish for polymer clay
Glue (Liquid nails or Weldbond are good)
Oven (don’t use you home oven)

Creating Mosaics

Paint white tiles as if they were little canvases using acrylic paint.. get creative! Use more than one color. Paint a single tile with multi colors or a landscape, try to make small pictures.. tell a story.

Mosaics with Texture

Cut the polymer clay until desired thickness, approx. 3mm ( see picture ). Gently stamp with your texture (I use toy palms in this case, you can use any texture like buttons, stamps, texture sheet, etc ). You can use mica powders or metallic powders to enhance the texture, then cut my tiles with the cookie cutters or a blade (squares are easy to arrange on you frame). I bake them following the instructions for the polymer clay brand. I don’t like to use a regular oven (fumes).

Mosaics with Stamps

Paint white tiles with acrylic paint, before they dry gently stamp them, it will take the paint off the tile creating a negative image of the stamp. Use rubber stamps for this and wash them after each use.

Making the Mosaic Mirror

I classify the mosaics by color, so they are easy to arrange when designing the mirror.
Arrange tiles on the frame as a puzzle and when you like the composition glue each tile. You may use ceramic tiles, milagros, beads, etc. just to have different textures and fill spaces when I don’t find the correct size of tile.
The last step is varnishing the tiles.

Use your imagination and have fun!

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