It's Official!

I am now an official vendor in the state of Ohio. I have my handy-dandy vendor's license now, and I must admit I do feel quite special. I will also feel special when I have to start charging sales tax for Ohio sales and filling out sales tax forms twice a year.
This is mostly in preparation for my summer adventure, where my friend (and fellow teacher) Lori & I will be vendors at the Lynn & Pearl Alley Markets in downtown Columbus!



Now, all the paperwork is not finalized; but it should be within the next few weeks. The market will be open starting in June, and we will be there in July and August until school starts again.

Read more about the Lynn & Pearl Alley Markets here!

Mixed Media

I have been working on several versions of the yarn-wrapped necklace. Some of them are definitely more "mixed media" than others. This particular one, which I titled Creamsicle, is made from yarn-wrapped wooden beads, crocheted beads, vintage lucite, and glass.

You can purchase it online at my Sweet Stella Designs' etsy shop!

Other motifs of mixed-media jewelry in the works: Watermelon Mania!, My Bedroom, Purple Is A Fruit, and Lollipop.

I am very excited for Monday night (April 30th), as it is the monthly gathering of the Columbus Craft Collective at Surly Girl Saloon. Last month was a blast!!

New Layout

I decided to go for it and redo my colors, fonts, and banners to go with my brand new business cards and display tags. I moved away from the saccharine-sweet (although it was super-cute!) and came up with a more modern motif.
I don't know if I did something great or stupid! I like the orange and blue, but I can't help but think that there's some sports team that has those colors...the CAVS? Who knows...
On the plus side, I am overjoyed about my business cards. They are fantabulous and I will be leaving them everywhere.

Natural Light

I just saw a little video tutorial on Etsy.com's Myspace page with Brooke (Gemmafactrix). She was sharing a few of her secrets about photographing jewelry. I had tried using natural light in the past, but just wasn't getting it right. After viewing her tutorial, I was inspired to give it another shot!
I also like using paper with a subtle pattern. This grid is a lot more interesing than plain old white!

Now the only problem with relying on natural light is that Ohio seems so gray and rainy. It's supposed to snow tomorrow! :::wail:::

New Logo?

Oh Vistaprint...you tempt me so with your specials. Yes, indeed. I ordered 250 business cards for only $4.99!! I also designed a vertical card for earrings, pins, and ring displays when my jewelry goes off to consignment land!

Business card

Jewelry display card

So, now that I have my new business card and jewelry card, I suppose I need to redesign my blog, MySpace, and Etsy pages, too! How do we feel about orange and blue?

Citrus Blast!

Last Friday, I had some extra time on my hands and decided to make some pendants from 1.5" wood circles. I hand-painted citrus motifs (with acrylic paint) and then sealed the painting with a glossy varnish. Silver bails are attached to these, but they can also be pins!

Here is how a pendant would look on a neck wire. Very summery and fun!

You can purchase the lemon pendant at sweetstella.etsy.com.