Spring Orchids

A few of my orchids are in full bloom. First up, a Vandaceous hybrid. I've only had this one a year so it's nice to see it re-bloom on schedule.

This Dendrobium Aggregatum is a compact plant with a lovely delicate display for about 2 weeks per year.

This Pink Phaleanopsis is lovely and showy with many blooms from two stems.

This smaller red phal hybrid likes my front porch even with limited sun, and blooms twice a year for me.

Gemstone Shopping Mini-Spree

The intergalactic gem show was in town this weekend. I'd be holding off ordering new stones for a while in anticipation - there's nothing quite like looking over the strands close up to decide which one is perfect before you buy!. At seller at one booth, observing me browse, commented: "I'm enjoying watching you - a connoisseur - I can see you know exactly what you're looking for!"

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Now to find some time to make these into new jewelry for my shop!

I curated the Etsy Front Page today!

My Red/Valentine's themed treasury was selected for the Etsy Front Page today from Noon - 1pm (EST). The collection featured some of my Aspiring Artisan's Guild teammates, as well as some other favorites sprinkled throughout. This is a first for me so I was quite pleased! A couple of the items appear to have sold as a result as well.

Packaging my Etsy Shop Jewelry

In recent weeks I've read a lot of Etsy shop posts asking about "how do you package?" Of course everyone has their own styles and ideas. Some go way detailed and others more utilitarian - I try to find a balance. Of course with any shipment my first objective is to make sure my jewelry arrives safe and sound. I also don't want to add costly overhead, or waste, to the process. But I think a little girly-pretty stuff can sneak in there easily enough! I've always used the Kraft bubble mailers for actual shipping, and Kraft paper boxes for my items which I find very sturdy and perfect for gifting. I made up my own little earring/necklace cards to put the actual items on, wrapped in a little tissue inside each box. Until a few months ago, I then tied a simple strand of ribbon around the box and voila.

A few months ago, I enlisted WinchesterLambourne to create a new banner for my shop (which she did beautifully!). From that, I got the idea to print my banner onto label sheets (since I buy those for mailing labels anyway), to add a little extra something to my boxes. I can print about 30 banners onto one label, and the labels I buy in bulk so this expense is probably only another penny per item, but I really like the way it adds to the overall box.

I've been looking around for small, inexpensive note cards to include with orders, but haven't had much luck (especially with the inexpensive part). So I printed my own! Using light card stock, and cutting/printing myself, these little cards were very easy to make. I tuck in a little note about caring for jewelry, and thank my customers simply inside.

A couple of customers have commented they liked my packaging this holiday season, so I figured I'd share it here as well. I buy my boxes, mailers and labels in bulk and from the best sources I can find to minimize costs. The extra touches are a few pennies per package but so effective.

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October & some Orchids

This past weekend the weather was just perfect here in South Florida: the humidity eased, the temperature dropped just enough, and the breeze picked up ever so slightly.

Some of my more hardy orchids are noticing the change in season. Why the Phals are more strict about their show dates and won't tempt me for a few more months, some of my more reliable multi-bloomers are out.

This Brassavola Nodosa has lovely white waxy flowers - fragrant only at night. He has outgrown his basket several times over the years and been separated into now about 3 plants (maybe 4...I think my mother has one from me now).

The little blue Ascocenda has such pretty blooms:

This dendrobium is quite hardy - I have him on a lower shelf and it looks like some critter has taken a few bites from a leaf, but he's such a bright bloomer.

Hopefully more plants will follow suit in the coming months!

Anticipation...New finds ready for new creations for my shop

The spoils of my gem show spree, I've already got several ideas for these lovelies...

The strand at the front already inspired these...more to come!

Fall Themes - Creating for the Season

Every month Etsy publishes a guide for the coming trends and themes, for shop owners to be prepare their items, pictures, titles, tags, and treasuries to be more fitting with the Front Page and Finds themes that the admin team will be looking to promote.

With my jewelry, that usually means making sure my gems are tagged for the appropriate birthstone (For September, Sapphires will be featured more often). Heading into fall, I picked up a few new leafy pieces to incorporate into my items.

First, I found a nice sterling silver leaf charm, and added gems of Garnet, Beer Quartz, and Citrine in a fall color combo:

Next, these fun little earrings feature carved orange moonstone leaves. I paired them with a small "pumpkin orange" carnelian stone:

I've had these little silver butterfly charms for a while now but wasn't "feeling" a design to make them work. I decided to put lots of smaller stones - again with the fall colors of garnet and citrine - and hung them from bali flower-accented earwires. So, both a nod to the departing summer and a welcome to Autumn in one design:

Here in South Florida we don't get much of an Autumn, and it will feel like summer for the next month or two, but it's still fun to let myself be inspired by the thoughts of a changing season.