My life in a photo

This photo so sums up my life - jewelry and dogs, not always in that order. There are so many days where it feels like that is ALL I do. I am surrounded by dogs and jewelry all day every day. It's not a bad thing...it's just that I sometimes want to pop my head out of my box to see what else is going on out there.

Metalsgirl.com

For those of you out there who own your own business - what do you do to promote? In these economic times I am trying to be creative. I pride myself in putting out a product that is unique, well made, and affordable. I want people to be able to wear hand-made art without it breaking the bank. I want people to be able to choose hand-made instead of ponying up to the jewelry counter at WalMart. But people have to know you're out there before they can make that choice. So, got any tricks you'd like to share? I'm all ears.

Working on some promo stuff...

Are grab bags out?

When I was a kid I was a sucker for a grab bag. Probably a good sign to stay out of the casinos, huh? I loved them though. And I don't recall ever being disappointed with the contents. Colorful pencils, odd shaped and scented erasers, stickers, gum and candy - kid stuff.

So I have been brain-storming how to drum up business and the old school grab bag came to mind. I thought maybe that would be something fun to do in my etsy shop to give business a bump and help out with the vet bills. I was thinking a necklace and earrings, a bracelet and earrings plus some bottlecaps, something like that...well over the $25 price tag.

I posted a little something about it in the etsy forums and got mixed reviews. A couple seemed to think it would be fun and others were down right touchy about the subject. Like they have been personally wronged by the grab bag! I had no idea grab bags were such a sensitive subject. Now don't get me wrong, I did ask for opinions, so I have to be willing to take what I get...but damn, my grab bags don't bite!

So who knows. It might be a total dud. But I am giving it a whirl. We'll see...

An even dozen.

I was looking at the scrolling photos of my dogs the other day - the ones here on my blog, the little thing-a-ma-bob off to the right that scrolls through various photos - and I was noticing how many of the pictures are of them in costumes or clothes. I immediately felt the need to tell everyone that we are NOT those people! We don't typically dress the dogs up. But I suppose on the rare occasions when we do we feel the need to capture it on film! Anyway, if made ME feel the need to show you how truly dignified my dogs REALLY are, sans clothing.

When Tom and I helped co-found Blue Dog Rescue almost 10 years ago we had two dogs. Seven and Preacher. A very reasonable number of dogs. But over the years of fostering some just seemed to stay. We certainly never meant to have 12 dogs. But that's where we're at. And we adore each and every one of them. We have probably fostered 200+ dogs over the years so I like to tell people that keeping 10 out of 200 is not so bad!

Anyway, here they are, in order of arrival, the loves of our lives:

Seven.

We adopted Seven from the local Humane Society in 1998. She is the absolute love of our life. She's the Princess and knows it!

Preacher.
The Big Man. If you've read my blog before then you've heard all about him over the past month. He is a sweet, gentle soul who loves every single person he ever meets.

Ozilinne.

Ozo. Our very first foster and maybe the big glaring sign that we shouldn't foster because we'd want to keep them all. But thank goodness we didn't pay attention to the sign. Ozo has the happy-go-lucky of his Golden Retriever part and the independence of his Chow part. EVERYONE loves Ozo.

Clarence.

This little man is the love of MY life. He has soooo much personality rolled up into his little chihuahua/dachshund body. He's a little gangsta and considers himself The King. I have his paw print tattooed on my foot so that he walks with me wherever I go.

Pasqual.

The Notorious P.I.G. When we were fostering him and took him to adoption days kids would tell their parents that we had a pig for adoption! Pasqual was the first pit bull in Blue Dog Rescue and he won over everyone he met. He is the Pit Bull poster child!

Vincent.

My baby. We got Vincent and his four littermates when they were two weeks old. Their mom had been hit by a car. Tom and I brought them home and bottle fed them. We almost lost Vincent one night when he went into hypoglycemic shock. I slept with him on my chest all night. Since that point he has been my dog through and through. He is my guardian and protector. Where I go, he goes.

Clishy Marie Shew.

Probably the most energetic dog in our house. She wants to know what is going on at all times! And the best hugger in all the world!

Veruca Jane Shew.

While her sister is the hugger she is the kisser. And she prefers your nose if that's okay with you. Oh, and a beer if you'll share that too!

Monkey Shew.
Sweetest little boy ever - all he wants is a little attention of his own. In this pack you do have to kind of assert yourself to get attention - and he's just not that assertive. So we try to go the extra mile to give him the love and belly rubs he deserves.

The Business Man.

Oh, Ferdabidnee. The dog is even sillier than he looks. We joke that he should really be a cartoon character. His tongue sticks out and he's cross-eyed. He's not particularly nice to strangers and he has a liver shunt. He's a little train wreck but he brings laughter into our lives every single day. I wouldn't trade him for anything!

Horatio.

Our little chug. Another foster who came and just refused to leave. And while I didn't want 11 dogs I wanted life without Horatio even less. Every night it is his job to announce Bed Time. And he does so my garbling bizarre noises and dragging his belly on the floor. And when he does it they all know - "It's bed time!"

Jessica Beatrice.
She was going to be a "quick" adoption. She was NOT supposed to stay. But she wormed her way into Tom's heart by being pitiful and pathetic and only loving him. So there it was. She became number 12!

So that's us in a nut shell. It is crazy but it works. And what am I most proud of? That people come to my house and say "Wow, it doesn't smell like dogs!"

Have you visited 1000 Markets?

Well you totally should! It's a new online market place for handmade work. I've talked up handmade art for a long time - but now, in these economic times, it's even more important to support handmade. Not just for the artists, but for the consumer. When your personal and gift giving purchases budget is tightened wouldn't you rather spend your money on special things that stuff from the mall or the big box store? This is where 1000 Markets comes in. You can get it all here - jewelry, ceramics, yummy food, handmade soap, and so, so much more. Everything is separated out into Markets for easier, cohesive shopping. Here are just a few Markets to check out:

Steampunk

Handmade Haven

Bath and Body

And here are the super cool Markets that I am a part of:

Metalcraft

Wear It Out

Modern Simplicity

Bejeweled

Handmade Haven

Check it out!!

Boy gifts! Finally boy gifts!

It has taken me forever and a day to start a men's line - but I finally have a few things just for the boys! And these cuff links are the lastest addition. They are sterling silver and you can choose just about any color combination your heart desires. I really love 'em!! They are already available in my etsy store http://www.metalsgirl.etsy.com/ and will be available soon at http://www.metalsgirl.com/ Check 'em out and lemme know what you think!