Saturday, February 23, 2008

Motivation

Occasionally, I will hear someone say that they got so involved in what they were doing that they missed a meal. I should be so lucky! Generally, it seems like I flit from one thing to the next. Maybe I have ADD (ADHD)? Earlier today, I found myself in the midst of a little cleaning blitz (more like straightening up); it just hit me out of the blue. Of course I was delighted, but it only lasted maybe 30 minutes and then, as often happens, I came back to the computer (in the other room) to look something up and got lost wandering the web and playing games.

I've been working on one craft project for more than a few weeks now. Some days I'm lucky if I even look at it; other days I may spend 30 minutes on it. It's not a difficult project, but it did have some very tiny pieces in the early stages and I was rather frustrated trying to work with them. But that's all behind me now and I could finish this in probably an hour ... if only I'd do it.

So my question is: How do you get motivated ... and more importantly, how do you stay motivated?

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Monday, February 11, 2008

Where to Find Me

If you are interested in purchasing any of the goodies shown on this blog, there are a few places to find me ... and one where you probably won't ... anymore.

If you haven't yet discovered Etsy, I would like to invite you to check it out! Etsy is an online marketplace for buying and selling all things handmade. Etsy is not an auction. If you see something you like, you buy it ... right then and right there (of course you'll need to set up an account first!). Since Etsy launched in June 2005, over 100,000 sellers have set up Etsy shops, including many international (i.e., non-U.S.) sellers, and more sellers are joining Etsy every day! In addition to handmade items, you will also find vintage items and various craft supplies on Etsy. All sales are between the seller and the customer. PayPal is the preferred form of payment amongst most Etsy sellers, although many also accept money orders, checks, and other forms of payment. I have added pictures of some of the things currently available in my Etsy shop on the right sidebar (over there --->). When you click on one of these pictures, you will be taken to that item's page in my Etsy shop ... how cool is that?!

You may already be familiar with my web site, Prairie Primitives Folk Art. If you haven't visited lately, I hope you will soon!


I also have an online yard sale where I sell all sorts of things, including antiques, vintage textiles and buttons, "de-stashed" fabric, and books.

I am delighted to combine shipping between these various sites! Just let me know what you're interested in and I will check on the shipping for you. Please remember to include your zip code (or country) when asking about postage.

And lastly, where you will not be finding me for the foreseeable future is on eBay. Although I have sold on eBay for nearly 11 years now, I'm thinking that their most recent policy changes which are scheduled to take effect on February 20, 2008 will make it too expensive to sell there now. This is especially true for sellers of lower-priced items (such as myself), as their FVF (final value fee) is going up quite a bit on items selling for less than $25! eBay's new feedback policy is for the birds too. While it doesn't go into effect until May, I think, under the new rules, sellers will be forbidden from leaving anything but positive feedback for a buyer. And while I don't enjoy leaving less than glowing feedback, there are those rare occasions when it is genuinely warranted. Sigh.

Friday, February 8, 2008

Guess I Can Start Here ...

OK, the shock of having created this blog on a total whim has sunk in just a bit now and so I thought I would tell you a little bit about what I do!

I love to make primitive cloth dolls! However, the demand for primitive cloth dolls seems to be dwindling in the last year or so, and thus I am gingerly exploring some other avenues. For my last show of 2007 (Bird in Hand in Los Altos, CA), I made a few "early-look" things.

One of these was a six-pointed star (inspired by my friend Margo White).

I also made some pinkeepers (sometimes called needlekeepers) in a heart shape. Each one comes with an assortment of vintage and rusty pins and needles.









But my favorite new "early-look" creation was a flock of little birdies! Most of my birdies have paper wings (the paper is actual pages from an antique book!) and vintage mother-of-pearl buttons for eyes.

I had a lot of fun coming up with these things! My dolls tend to be in the $60 and up range and, with a lot of buzz going around about a looming recession, I wanted to offer my customers some little treasures at a more affordable price. I also enjoyed working with the tiny print fabrics for a change! For many years, I worked exclusively with homespun plaids; then I started using star print fabrics and of course I needed some stripes to go along with the stars! And then my fancy was caught by polkadots ... oh my! And now it appears that I may have come full circle, back to the little print fabrics I used when I first started making dolls (gasp!) 30-some years ago.

Gotta Start Somewhere ...

I've thought about having a blog for a long time. A very long time, in fact. And now, totally on the spur of the moment, I've gone and done it. What have I gotten myself into??? LOL!