simplyraevyn.com

Well it has been awhile since I have written in my blog about anything other than Etsy, and I think it is time.

I have been keeping myself very busy. I am really loving making cards. I love picking out patterned paper, and being able to play with colors. I have also been getting some custom requests from people for their events, which is very exciting to me! So I am getting a lot deeper into making cards than I ever thought I would. But it’s great. It also lets me be distracted from manically making earrings and things. However, it is difficult for me to keep up with all three of my shops at times. I have been able to establish sort of a rhythm though. The down side is it keeps me busy pretty much 24/7. I don’t let myself relax, and I think I am starting to get stressed out.

I am not sure if my mood lately is a bipolar thing or a stress thing. But I think it is a combo of both. I am snapping pretty easy lately. A quick example: The other day I stubbed my toe on a mostly empty laundry basket, so I picked up the basket and threw it against the back of our closet. Now don’t get me wrong, snapping is not a new thing to me. I have had an anger/rage issue for as long as I can remember. I just have not had a big problem with it in awhile. I really hate it, it makes me feel so out of control. I also worry if it will change the way my fiance looks at me. He is an amazing man, and he has been so accepting and supportive of me since the day we met. But I still worry. I am not worried I will hurt anyone, my family and friends are not in danger. As a matter of fact the person I tend to hurt is me. I just am so afraid of how it makes me look to others. And I am so sick of apologizing about it.

In high school I would punch brick walls, and I remember one event when I was meeting with my guidance counselor that I picked up a chair and threw it. Now I do not do these things to intimidate people. I think that the fact that I do these things just as often, if not more so, when I am alone then when I am with other people is proof of that. I just get filled with such anger, that I have to do something. When I punched walls I would look for the brick walls instead of the “softer” plaster walls. I am not writing this to say I am afraid I will start doing small things to hurt myself. I have no urge to punch a wall or anything like that. I just hate feeling such anger inside, and it is usually for no reason at all!

I am also crying a lot these days. I don’t just sit on the couch and cry. But I cry over just about every show or movie we watch. Once again, it annoys me because it just makes me feel so out of control. It is weird, because I really like where I am. I love being here in Texas, I love being with Paul, and I am very proud of the progress I have made with my Etsy shops. But I still have all of this inner turmoil. I know, that sounds so totally emo. But I really don’t know how else to explain it.

I think what I just need to do is get back to my shrink. I am having a really hard time making myself leave the house, and appointments almost worsen that because all I do is think about the fact that I have to leave from the time I make the appointment, until the time I go. But I really just need to buck up and do it. And I need to get myself on a medicine regime. Well not get myself, but work with my shrink to figure out what will be the best path. I am 32 now, and this is really not cute anymore.

Anyway, those are thing things going on in my head the past few days. Like I said, things are good. I am just going crazy :p But I love where I am, I love Paul, and I love the business I am trying to build. So I know I can make this better, I just need to take the steps to do it!

Well thank you for reading my ramblings Talk to you soon!
:w

Tags: anger, anxiety, beading, bipolar, crying, etsy, handmade, jewelry, Life, mood swings, Raevyn, rage

Holly is the owner of both of two amazing shops. I actually first met her when she bought from me on Ebay. She then ventured over to Etsy to take a peek at my shops, and decided to set up her own shops as well. And I am so glad she does. She has two beautiful shops, both with very different items.

Her first shop is Painted Pets. This shop immediately caught my eye. I am an animal lover, and I have always had pets that I love to death, and tend to spoil. This shop is filled with Holly’s beautiful paintings of animals. She paints them on rocks, accessories, jewelry, and any other place she can think of! She has told me that she also loves doing custom work. As soon as I saw her shop, I ordered from her! This is what I got:

Her second shop is A Treasure Forever. In this shop she has beautiful handmade jewelry! Her chandelier earrings are gorgeous! You should really take a look.

Although Holly keeps herself very busy with two shops, she did take the time to answer a few of my questions.

Name: Holly Cicchirillo

Age (if you don’t mind): The Last Age of the Baby Boomers
Where do you live?: The High Desert Plateau of Arizona, a mile high and up!

I know you have two very different etsy shops with very different products in them. Which is your favorite to work with?
I can’t decide, really. When I’m beading, I want to paint. When I’m painting, I want to be creating jewelry. I’m beginning to see some up sides to this cloning thing, or anything that would satisfy the old adage about the need to be in two places at the same time.

What inspires you most?
The beauty of God’s creation - animals, the plant world, colors, textures, aromas, sounds. A trail ride on a mountain path. Watching baby animals discover the newness of life. Leaves falling. The dogs swimming in a pond. Taking a nap with the horses (which is NOT the same thing as sleeping with the fishes).

What do you do in your spare time?
Paint and bead, of course! And spend time with the husband and animals - dogs (all black chows or chow mixes - we’re addicted), cats, chickens, and a seriously deranged Siamese Fighting Fish named Bruce.

Tell us a little known fact about you.
I’m a licensed pilot, with a college degree in Aviation Science. I usually don’t share this, as it leads people to have false expectations of me, like, I’m smart or something. Flying is fun, but much too stressful. I’d much rather be painting or planning my next piece of jewelry.

What are you working on now?
Painting Memorial stones for dog friends who have gone on. Trying to organize my beads. (Is that even possible? Even if you get the current stash organized, what about the beads who haven’t come home yet? My stack of organizers is getting higher, and there’s no end in sight.)

What is your favorite all time piece? If you have a link to the picture for it, please include it.
So far, my favorite painted piece is a memorial stone I painted for my best friend Liz, of her Siamese cat Sapphire. Not just the technical aspects of the painting, but the cat’s personality really came through. It helps to know one’s subject when painting, I can attest to that.(Bethany, this will be one of the pics in the banner, so you can word this how you like) As far as jewelry pieces, I love wire spirals, whether they’re one dimensional, or 3-D spirals. As long as it coils, I’ll like it.

Do you twitter, flickr, facebook..or anything else where people can follow you? Please feel free to list all of your “social networking” addresses.
Huh? Yeah yeah, I have heard of those things, but really - if you do those things, doesn’t it take time away from the real fun of creating?
Sorry, I’m something of a hermit, cyberspace-wise and in real-life.

All I can say is Holly’s shop are what Etsy is all about! Talented artists offering their handmade, amazing goods for sale! Take the time to look at her two shops, you won’t be disappointed.

Etsy Buy Handmade PaintedPets

Etsy Buy Handmade atreasureforever

Tags: animal, chandelier, ebay, etsy, handmade, jewelry, necklace, painted, paintings, pets

I know I am a few days late posting this month’s contest. I got busy, and then I got sick But here I am! And I am hoping to make up for it with this great contest!

February is a great month! Along with so many other things, it is also my birthday month. So I decided to make this a big contest, with 3 prizes.

Prizes:
3rd Place - $10 gift certificate, good in any of my 3 shops
2nd Place - $15 gift certificate, good in any of my 3 shops
1st Place - $25 gift certificate, good in any of my 3 shops

Ways to enter:
Entering is simple, and I will give you a chance for multiple entries.
1. Get 1 entry by leaving a comment here telling us what your favorite Etsy shop is, and why!
2. Get 1 entry for signing up for my mailing list. I do not use this list to spam, and I will not give your email address to anyone else. I use my mailing address to announce special sales, and I may eventually do a monthly newsletter. This is the address: http://www.simplyraevyn.com/index.html#contact
3. Get 1 entry for posting the link to your favorite “February related” item on Etsy. This can be any item that relates to February in your mind! Valentine’s Day, Black History Month, President’s Day, winter…or whatever! Show us those items!

Okay so there you have it. You can get up to three entries. All entries must be received my Febraury 28th at midnight (est). On March 1st I will put all entries into a hat and my fiance will draw three winners; 1st place, 2nd place and 3rd place. Game on!

Tags: beading, blog, contest, etsy, febraury, gift certificate, giveaway, handmade, jewelry

Well my first monthly blog contest is done, and the response was so much more than I had expected! There were 57 entrants. I decided to use a totally “random” way of picking the winner. I used a random number generator and used 1-57 to pick the winner. The winner was Sue. Congrats Sue, you won a $25 gift certificate that can be used in any of my 3 shops!

I will be posting Febraury’s contest tomorrow!

:w

Tags: blog, contest, etsy, gift certificate, jewelry, monthly, wimsy

In the world of Etsy, there is no shortage of jewelry. As a seller of jewelry myself, I am very aware of the huge selection. But some people stand out above the others, and today’s featured seller is one of these people. Gallagj’s shop is beautiful. The shop owner, Jo, is someone that I have come to know, respect and love. She is very talented. Her shop holds her gorgeous creations. She also has a great selection of destash, which I love to get my hands on Jo has quickly become an expert on keeping her customers happy. Recently, she took the time to answer a few questions for me.

1. When did you start creating jewelry?
I started creating jewelry at the beginning of this year. I love being creative. I tried out a jewelry kit and I was hooked. Of all the crafts I’ve ever done, this has been my passion.
2. How did you find Etsy, and when did you start selling there?
I found Etsy during a search on the Internet for supplies. I signed up immediately and was a buyer here for a couple of months and decided to set up shop in July of this year.
3. What influences you to make a certain piece?
Hard question. I think I just find a certain bead or slide that I really like and create around it.
4. What are your favorite materials to work with?
I love working with slides, crystals, and gemstones. They are so pretty that they get my creative juices flowing.
5. Do you have one “all time” favorite piece?
Yes, but it was sold last month. My favorite piece was the Golden Sunset Necklace. It just seemed to scream this is ME!

6. Any advice for someone that wants to start selling the jewelry that they make?
One thing I guess is to not always follow the guidelines of what you yourself would wear. You have to target all ages and kinds of people.

Etsy Buy Handmade gallagj

Tags: beading, bracelets, earrings, etsy, gallagj, gemstones, glass beads, handmade, jewelry, necklaces, sets, slides

Well it is time to get serious. I have some plans for this blog, and I will be working on it a lot this week. For starters, I will be adding the blog links to my fellow members of Etsy. They are listed on the side under blogroll. If you are a member of etsy and you have a blog, let me know about it! I would love to exchange links.

I am also working on some contest ideas, and I am writing some featured Etsy artist articles to post. I love the Etsy community, and I want to help my fellow Etsyians Hopefully I can do that with this blog.

So let’s see, what else is going on with me. Well I have been pretty manic for a few weeks now. Not sleeping much, antsy as hell, and some weird panic attacks. I am trying to make it productive right now though. I am trying to thoroughly clean the house. That includes getting rid of a lot of things. I am quite a pack rat, and it is very hard to break that. But when I am like this I find it a little easier. So I started bagging things up and we are going to bring them to Goodwill and the Salvation Army. We brought one load of things today. We have a small apartment and Paul’s mom is living with us. So space is at a premium. Especially with my beading and card making projects spread all over the place. So today I started going through our closet and I am going to keep going until everything has been gone through.

I am also getting ready for Christmas. I love Christmas! I love the lights and the songs and of course the silly Christmas specials on T.V. Like Frosty, The Grinch, etc. I have a lot of wrapping to do since I have decided to spoil my two best friends. They are both having a rough year and they need some spoiling. I found some amazing etsyians that would trade with me, and I was able to get a ton of things for Tanya and Jennifer. I can’t wait until they get to open everything. I am getting all of their gifts wrapped and packed up. Then on Wednesday I am gonna ship them Priority Mail. I also got a lot of things for my little sister, Sara. She is my angel. I miss her a lot. I was really hoping that we would be able to make it to Vermont for Christmas to see my family. But it really isn’t the best choice for us right now financially. So we are going to try to get up there in February for my birthday.

This was my first Christmas season selling my jewelry. It went pretty well, I had quite a few sales. However, I wasn’t ready. Next season I am going to make sure to be a lot more stocked up with things like brick stitch, necklaces, sets and bracelets. Those were all huge sellers and I think if I had more in my inventory, I would have sold more. So this was a good learning experience. I also donated 10% of my sales to the Salvation Army and I have to admit that that has made me feel pretty good

Whew I babbled much more than I thought I would! Guess that means I should blog more often. I am gonna try to go and get some sleep now. But I will be back tomorrow! I have so much planned, I can’t wait to get started!

:w

Tags: beading, Christmas, contest, etsy, featured artists, Goodwill, handmade, jewelry, link exchange, Salvation Army

Whew I have been busy! Sadly my blog and webpage have suffered, but I am doing my best to right that wrong now. I have had some changes to my shops, and working on a lot of new things!

The biggest change is that I opened a new shop! I opened a card shop called Peculiar Parchment. I am having so much fun with it. Basically I sell new and vintage cards there. Right now I primarily have mini cards and vintage cards, but I will be adding a lot more. Including invitations, custom sets and more! I really love making the cards, although it certainly has added a large amount of work to this already busy holiday season. But take a look at my new shop! I would love to hear some feedback on it.

Etsy Buy Handmade PeculiarParchment

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Besides working on the new shop, I have been working hard on increasing my jewelry inventories, in both shops. For Black Friday through Cyber Monday I will be offering free shipping in all of my shops and I am really hoping that this drives a lot of traffic to my shops. So my goal is to have a lot of new inventory for people to browse. I am also making holiday themed jewelry. I am really proud of a lot of my new work!

Etsy Buy Handmade Raevyn77

Etsy Buy Handmade SimplyRaevyn

So hopefully this month I can keep up with my blog and website a bit more. I am overwhelmed with the amount of work I have set for myself, but I am determined to get it done. And I know that keeping up with this blog and my website are worth the time!

Well I am off for today. I made a lot of chandelier and Swarovski crystal earrings this morning, and I need to get them photographed and listed. I hope that everyone is having a great weekend. I know this upcoming week is a hectic one, but make sure not to lose sight of what is important. The true spirit of Thanksgiving, and exactly what it means to each of us.

Tags: beaded, black friday, brick stitch, cards, chandelier, Christmas, cyber monday, handmade, holiday, jewelry, shopping, swarovski, Thanksgiving

At first glance it may look like I have chosen two different artists for this weeks feature, but that is not entirely true. It is two different Etsy shops. But they are both run and stocked by one fabulous Etsyian. Her name is Chris, and she is one of the first people on Etsy that I developed a friendship with. As far as being a member of the Etsy community, she is very active and in my opinion very important! She reaches out to new users, and somehow pulls them out of that shell that they may be hiding in She is very visible on the forums. Participating in all sorts of threads - from BnRs (Buy and Replace) to Games to just plane talking threads. She is very approachable, and answers whatever questions that she is able to. I can’t count the amount of conversations I have sent to her asking about a certain technique or where to find certain supplies.

But aside from that, she is also an amazing Etsy artist. As I mentioned, she runs two Etsy shops. The first one that I came across is called CCSynopticvisions . At first I just looked at this as a supply shop, with some great things that I had not yet tried using! So…I ordered! I ordered a lot, and I ordered often. Her packages always arrived quickly, well packed, and usually with a few extra goodies thrown in! Then I started looking around more at the store, and was blown away by the talent! Gorgeous bracelets, earrings, rings and more! And her photography of her items is beautiful.

After sharing so many forum threads with Chris, I soon found out that she had a second shop. This one is called Studio Seven . In this shop she has her beautiful metal creations. A lot of sterling silver work. Lots of pendants and rings, as well as all sorts of body jewelry. Really brilliant work!

Although having two stores to run and filling them both with such quality work must take a huge amount of time, Chris still takes the time to reach out to the Etsy community. She is a great person to know, and probably the person that has given me the most inspiration on Etsy. I highly recommend both of her shops, as well as talking to her on the forums if you ever get the chance. I have a mini for each of her shops posted at the end of this entry. Take a minute to browse, she has so many treasures for you to discover.

Etsy Buy Handmade CCSynopticvisions

Etsy Buy Handmade StudioSeven

Tags: beading, CCSynopticvisions, etsy, featured seller, jewelry, sterling silver, StudioSeven, supplies

Well we have been home for a week now. It took a bit to get settled back in. Although we left Hartford, CT late Wednesday afternoon, we didn’t get home to Lubbock until 6am on Thursday. So it was a long trip to say the least. We took a two hour nap. Then Paul went to work and I got up. I just sort of fiddled around on the computer for the day. I wanted to bead, but I was so exhausted.

Now it is a week later.  Paul has worked every day since we got back. We expected that to happen. He is training a new cashier and trying to get the store in order. He has tomorrow off though. He will only need to go in for a bit at closing to make sure the new cashier has things under control. I have been working hard on my etsy shops. I decided to start making a goal list for every month. I used to do that, but I had fallen out of the habit. However I am ready to take my shops to the next level, and I think setting some good goals every month is really going to help with that. I am also working hard on fall and Halloween jewelry.

Although Christmas is still 4 months away, I am starting to get ready for it. I wasn’t selling my jewelry last Christmas, so I am not sure if my shops will be busy or not. But I want to be ready if they are! I have added gift certificates for both of my shops. I am also working on jewelry sets, and “higher” end jewelry made with  more expensive materials. I won’t list them quite yet. I would like to first clear out more of my Summer Clearance items.  I also want to get a lot of brick stitch done for Christmas.

I am also making plans for my website and blog. There are a lot of improvements I want to implement on both of them.  For example on my website I am going to have places that display my jewelry more prominently. And for the blog, I am going to make it much more eye catching. And have new places to feature Etsy and it’s sellers. I will also start featuring an artist once a week in my blog. Every Sunday I will feature an Etsy artist and their shop. This is a schedule I will stick to. I might even do more during the week if someone catches my eye.

Well hopefully things will get more exciting around here for you readers I need to go and get some bracelets made. See you on Sunday at the latest!

:w

Tags: beading, beads, earrings, jewelry, Raevyn, vacation

Howdy all. It has been a pretty busy few days for me. I have been doing a lot of work promoting Simply Raevyn. A friend of mine, who we affectionately call The Monkey, has been giving me lots of tips on keywords, social networking and things like that. So I am working hard to get the word out. I have also started a new line of earrings that I am excited about! I call it the “Mini Series”. That name makes me giggle. Basically, it is miniaturized versions of my brick stitch earrings. Most of the brick stitch that I made are over 3.5 inches long. These new ones won’t be over 2.5 inches long. They are incredibly cute. I actually got the idea from a customer of mine. She bought a pair I had listed. I really didn’t think they would sell because they were so long. But she loves them, and so does her daughter! So she suggested I make more. I am having so much fun making them.

Things have been really rough for me lately mentally. My bipolar seems to be in full swing, and making me crazy. I have been in a mania for weeks now, and it is really taking it’s toll. I am tired, cranky, and incredibly moody. I hate feeling like this. When my friend Jenn calls on the phone I can’t even bring myself to hold a normal conversation. I just sort of mumble until she gets mad enough to hang up. I feel bad when things like that happen, but I just can’t stop! I hate being so weak minded that I cannot even make myself have a conversation with my best friend of 22 years. I got some Seroquil, so at least I am sleeping better. But they seroquil certainly isn’t helping my moods. When I take it during the day it just makes me so that I don’t obsess about my moodiness.

I just realized while writing that last paragraph, that I have not talked about my mental issues much in this blog. Certainly not in detail, only briefly in passing. I think I should write about it more. When I was young, writing always made me feel better. And that is really one of my purposes for this blog. So here goes.

When I was younger, I think about 21, I was diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder or OCD, as well as a few other things such as depression and PTSD. At first I thought it was an odd diagnosis. I did have some compulsions, but certainly nothing like what you see on movies like What About Bob. (On a side note, that is one of my all time favorite movies.) So I decided to do a little bit of looking into the disease. I ordered a book, which I now highly recommend to anyone effected by OCD. The book is called Tormenting Thoughts and Secret Rituals: The Hidden Epidemic of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Yes I know, quite a long title. But what a wonderful book! It made me realize that this intrusive, horrible thoughts I had been having were not because I was a horrid, disgusting person. They were caused by OCD. Just realizing that had such an amazing effect on me. I guess I had never really thought much about the “Obsession” part of OCD. Movies, jokes, etc. have always dealt with the “Compulsion” part for the most part. I can’t say enough about how much this book did for the way I viewed myself.

A few years later, I was told by a Psychiatrist that I was not depressed, that I in fact had Bipolar Disorder. I have to admit when I first heard that, I was very skeptical. I then told my mom of the diagnosis. My mother is an RN, and has worked on a psyche word for over a decade. Her intitial reaction was to disagree, but within seconds she was agreeing with the diagnosis. It was interesting to watch her reaction, because it sort of looked like things made sense to her all of a sudden. My lifetime of starting enormous projects and never finishing, my weird relationships with men, my spending habits, and so much more. So, I decided to look into Bipolar Disorder. Once again, much the same way as it did when I read about OCD, things started to make sense. My bipolar diagnosis has recently been further confirmed, as well as narrowed down to Bipolar I.As I have gotten older, my symptoms have actually worsened. I am to the point now where it is difficult for me to even leave the house. I can leave, although it is usually only with my fiance. I guess I look at him as my safety person. Driving used to be a huge part of my life. I loved to drive, it gave me such a sense of freedom. Now the thought of driving terrifies me. I cannot stand being in crowds, it makes me physically sick, and sometimes makes me feel as if I will pass out. I have a lot of panic attacks. Things might be a little bit different if I could afford all of the meds I need, and also if I could afford to get the therapy I need. I’m not sure really.Anyway, I wanted to take this opportunity to discuss my diagnoses. They are a huge part of my personality, and they effect me and the people in my life a lot. I used to use writing to express myself more, and it helped me feel better. I also used to use the internet to reach out to get help for things like this. I guess I am taking this opportunity to do both things. Thank you for listening.

:w

Tags: beading, bipolar, brick stitch, earrings, etsy, handmade, jewelry, networking, obsessive compulsive disorder, OCD