Etsy Educators: Getting your creative business online

I was lucky enough to get invited up to London Etsy HQ today to train as an Etsy Educator. I'm excited to announce I've been selected by Etsy to be an 'Etsy Educator'. Following my training, I'll be holding my first workshop 'Etsy Educators: Getting your creative business online' I was there with 8 other sellers from across the country. I'm now Etsy accredited which means I can teach new shops how to set up a successful Etsy shop.

If you have yet to set up an Easy shop or have registered but not yet sold anything, this is the perfect workshop for you. If you are interested you can Join the Facebook Event Page

The details of the workshop:

Saturday 7th October 2017
Thomas Reade School, Abingdon, OX14 3RR
10am-4pm (lunch is included)
£45 per person [£35 if you sign up before 16th September]

The workshop is for BRAND NEW Etsy sellers, that don't already have a shop. Perhaps you have a craft/market stall but are not yet online, maybe you have hobby that you would like to turn into a business. I have a wealth of Etsy knowledge that I want to share with you so if you know anyone who has a craft/handmade business, (including craft supplies or vintage items) and is not yet on Etsy or is thinking about it and might be interested in this workshop tell them to get in touch!

The workshop will cover:
• Naming your shop (if you don't yet have one)
• Pricing your work
• Shipping
• Packaging
• Photography
• Branding & marketing
• SEO, stats & trends

We'll look at common mistakes to avoid and tips from getting the best from your shops. We'll also go through the actual process of getting the etsy shop up and running with a step by step. I'll be holding a Q&A session at the end. After the workshop you will receive a follow up to see how you are progressing. Please note there is a limited number of spaces for this workshop, so get in touch if you would like to reserve your place.

Hers is a full list of all the Etsy Educator workshops taking place across the country including some online ones.

• Claire from Claireabellemakes - Cambridge on 14th October full day workshop

• Sarah-Jane from Fragment Designs – South Wales on 7th October. Book now.

• Christina from Christina Made It – Oxfordshire on 7 October. Book now.

• Becka from Becka Griffin Illustration – Liverpool on 21 October. Book now.

• Jilly from Jilly Jilly Design – Dundee on 22 October. Book now.

• Rose from Luna Harkin Co – Leeds throughout October. Book now.

• Rachel from The Dorothy Days is hosting a webinar which you can book here.

• Nikki McWilliams is delivering online workshops here.

For those that already have an Etsy shop, I hope to run a workshop later in the year for beginner shops & shops looking to grow. So keep an eye out if that is something you might be interested in. You can show your interest in any future sessions via this form.

Our team attempt at an Oscars style selfie! 

The Making of a Jewellery Holder

My mum has A LOT of jewellery and wanted a jewellery holder for her birthday. I couldn't find anything in the shops that would hold all of the pieces she owned as well as have them all out to view (a much better way to choose what to wear each day when you can see it all) soooo I figured I would make one instead.

I started by making the design of the back board on the computer in Illustrator I made an outline of the New York skyline with the windows of the buildings being the holes for the earrings to hang. 

The kind people at Jewsons gave me a free piece of scrap wood which I gave to the Laserman to laser cut the design out of. I also got the screw holes pre cut using the laser to make sure everything was evenly spaced and alighted correctly. 

I sanded down the top surface in preparation for the spray paint. I sanded it down very unevenly and also dropped the sander which made a big dent which I then had to cut out - oops. Very important to wear a mask and goggles as the wood dust is carsonagenic.

The whole thing was then spray painted with the base coat. It took about three even light coats to cover with a light sanding (sand paper) in between the coats.

For the necklaces and bracelets to hang I got a broom handle and some wooden dowling from B&Q which I cut to size (I did try sawing  it but my arm ached so I cheated and got the trusty dremel out. Not sure this was the right tool but it got the job done...)

I also had the discs for the front of the necklace hooks laser cut into the same piece of board along with some 'washers' to support the hooks from the back (the discs with holes in). 

All the discs were bonded to the posts using apoxy resin (I use this stuff to join everything!) it's a two part bonding glue that you mix together. The squeezy tubes are very messy, I think they have since redesigned the packaging though.

Two holes were drilled into the bracelet holder for the rods to go into. They weren't the neatest of holes (no offence Danny, thanks for drilling them for me!). I had to use some filler to fill in the gaps. 

Then I sprayed everything with primer - the grey spray paint which is a base coat for the main paint colour to adhere to. 

Each hook I drilled a hole in ready for the screws to go in, using the centre punch and a hammer to make a dent for the drill to align to.

All the pieces were screwed into place, with the wooden washers on the back, for structural support.

Washers to support the weight of the jewellery. 

Side view of washer attachments for the bracelet holder. 

Finished base coat with all the fittings attached.

Four coats later... The whole piece had a nice black gloss finish. 

It took me a good couple of months to complete, so I don't think I'll be making any others but when you can't buy what you're looking for the only other option is to make one it's very satisfying to see the finished piece.

To fix it to the wall (this actually proved to be the most confusing and complicated part for me, this is definitely not where my creative skills reside) I settled on using a wooden baton which was drilled into the wall with metal French cleats (B&Q) and then the same attached to the back of the holder but the other way round. It was important to have the baton so that the holder came away from the wall to allow the earring backs enough space behind to hook them through.

Here is the finished result, it can fit about 40 necklaces, 40 Bracelets and 40 sets of drop earrings. The only thing it doesn't hold is stud earrings and rings, this is because my mum, who I made the holder for only wears drop earrings and all the rings she owns, are on her fingers. I could have added a small shelf for these or made a separate dish to go on the table top below so it would have been possible to cater for this.