1 Year Annivesary on Etsy - Cherry Blossom Giveaway

January 8, 2010 will mark my 1 year since opening my shop on Etsy. When I first opened Hapa Girls, I was very unsure of how successful I would be selling my handmade jewelry and Surfboard dog feeders in a market that was flooded with great Artisans. Needless to say I am very happy with the year end results.

In marking my 1 year anniversary I have decided to do a 1 year anniversary giveaway. I will be giving away a Cherry Blossom Keychain Charm!!
All you have to do to enter the giveaway is:

1. Heart my Etsy shop - if you want to!
   
2. Follow my facebook page
3. Follow me on Twitter
4. Follow my blog
5. Leave me a comment (under this posting) about 1 item in my shop you absolutely love!

On January 8th I will gather all the info and draw the name of the lucky winner!

Good Luck and Thank you for entering my 1 year on Etsy Giveaway.

Happy Holidays

This past month was the best selling month since I have started Etsy, 1000 Markets and Artfire shops. Now that things are starting to slow down, I hope to start doing more Artisan features and updating my blog with new designs and work in progress photos.

Next Month will be my 1 year anniversary on Etsy and I will for sure be having a special anniversary promotion!

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to all my followers !

I Love Custom Orders!

Recently I have done 2 different custom orders! This first was a Large size surfboard dog feeder. I redesigned the legs so they would aesthetically look good and were still functional. I also added a support.


The next custom order I did was an all silver Cherry Blossom Branch Cuff Bracelet. I normally do this bracelet with copper cherry blossoms. The picture does not do it justice as I am still trying to learn how to photography shiny objects!!

New in Etsy shop

Work in Progress

I am almost finished with this new copper orchid pendant. The color it is now will not stay this way although it is very beautiful! Heat patinas are great but I am sure if I was trying to achieve this color, it probably would not have come out this good!!!!

The third picture is the finished Orchid Pendant with a black oxidized finish. I have highlighted the edges to show the bright copper. I think it looks nice this gun metal finish but I can easily remove more of the black to bring the copper through.

New in Etsy Shop

Broken Hearts

Can my broken heart be mended?

My First Koi Fish

Many more to come!

Custom orders are always fun!

I recently was asked to make this charm for a customer!

EXPOSURE

This month I wanted to feature shops that were either on Etsy for more than a year and had less than 50 sales, or had been on Etsy for less than a year with less than 50 sales. My shop, Hapa Girls falls into the second category of less than a year and 50 sales or less. While putting this feature together, I got my 50th sale!!

I would like to help Expose everyone I have featured so they can reach their 50th goal.

Featured are 8 different shops from different areas of the art world. In photo order.

I found Studiondanale in the Etsy forums. I went to her shop and found this great children's painting of a train. I thought it was interesting how she had taken a 2-dimensional painting and turned it into a 3-dimensional painting by adding air dried clay. Studiodanale has many other unique items for decorating your nursery.

How can anyone pass up this lavender dandelion by ginaphoto . I think photographers don't get quite enough credit as I think they should. As we all know taking photos of our works of art can be frustrating. Can you imagine taking a photo of building or a bridge, outside, in a variety of light conditions? Gina is a 12 years veteran of photography and it shows! Her black and white cityscape photographs are amazing.

I originally found WhiteSparrowbindery on Twitter, or maybe they found me first! Either way, I was immediately drawn to their Giraffe Journal. I love writing in journals and my daughter loves giraffes, what a great combination! The Whitesparrowbindery offers a great variety of handmade journals, photo albums and sketch books ( a must for us artists). They even make holiday journals which make great gifts!

Drcraze, was found in the Etsy forums. I am so glad the Dr. replied to my post. As a jewelry artist and wood worker, I love to mix the two mediums. So naturally I was drawn to the idea of concrete, glass and metal. Though we think concrete is heavy, Dr. Craze's pendants look light and airy with the use of brass tubing inlays. Love it!

Studiomme, has been a favorite of mine for the past 6 months! Her Victorian inspired illustrations are amazing! Let me just say, drawing is a requirement for any art degree, but that doesn't mean we can all draw!!!! Some people have a gift for it and Megan has it! Megan is not only an Illustrator , but she is also a printmaker, photographer and much more.

I found Gr8clay while I was searching for sushi dishes! I think I have found them! Gr8clay offers great functional pottery with amazing detail. The Oxyblood mug is too die for...

Choumie7, Is another great Illustrator that I have been following on Twitter for some time now. Christelle has a dreamy style to her illustrations that radiate a sense of tranquility! I also like the idea that she has taken her original drawings and made them into jewelry and accessories. Can you say "Multifunctional Art"

Lastly, I found Rebecca of edwardandlilly on flickr. Her wool felt and embroidered bird ornament caught my eye, especially the lavender one! Her shop is filled with handmade embroidered items and plush animals, a sure "sweet" friend for your little one.

Everyone needs a little Exposure now and then. For some of us having an Etsy shop is a business and for others its just a hobby. Whichever it may be for you, it never hurts to help someone else attain their goals.

Thank you to all the artist that allowed me to feature them.
Please leave a comment and visit their shops!

New in shops

Just listed in my Etsy and Artfire shop!!

What's New For October

September was a busy month for me. I was only able to get in one feature but hopefully I will be able to get in at least two features this month.

The totals are in...
Last month I did a Firefighter tribute and a promotion to donate 10% of Hapa Girls sales to the Los Angeles County Firefighters Memorial Widows and Orphans Fund. I was able to generate $47.80 in donations from sales! Not too bad considering the economy. I will be adding to the donation for a total of $100.00. A big thanks to everyone who ordered something from my shop!

I want to say thanks to all my new customers and returning customers and for all the new followers and fans I have gained this last month!!

New in shop

When the paint is drying on the surfboard dog feeders, I hop on over to my jewelry side of my studio/garage and work on new items for my shop!!

The new Large Cherry Blossom cuff goes perfectly with a ring that is already available in my Etsy, Artfire and 1000Markets shops. Currently the Stargazer is only available in my Etsy shop and is "One of a Kind".

Monday Update

It's been a few weeks since I last updated my blog. I just wanted to update everyone on what has been happening!

For starters I have been busy working on a order of 4 surfboard dog feeders! Here is a photo of my work in progress. I am now in the process of painting them. I also finished a custom Surfboard dog feeder for a Chihuahua named Bailey! I think it came out quite nice!

When I have completed this order I will definitely be starting a new feature!
I will be posting pictures of the completed order.

What's New

Thank You!
I want to thank all the featured artist for participating in my Firefighter Feature this past week. I have read all comments posted and appreciate the time you took to leave your thoughts.

New in my shop
My newest creation is a Double Branch Cherry Blossom Cuff. It is one of a kind at the moment and is ready to be shipped out!!

Next Feature
I would really like to do my next feature on new artist to Etsy and Artfire. Shops that have been up and running for less than a year and have great items in their shop but need a little PR. I will do my best to put together aproximatetly 8 artist from all areas of the art spectrum. Look for me in the forums!!

Have a great rest of the week!

A Tribute to our Firefighters

This past week California had a devastating brush fire throughout areas of the Angeles National Forest. In fact the area is still burning. Hundreds of Firemen from all over Los Angeles County and surrounding cities are fighting to save peoples homes, wild life and historical places.

While fighting this fire known as the, Station Fire, Los Angeles County lost two of their own Firefighters, Captain Ted Hall and Firefighter Specialist Arnaldo "Arnie" Quinones. Though I did not know these men personally, I do have family on the Fire Department. My brother in-law, Captain Thomas Stukey of the Los Angeles County Fire Deptartment, was also on the front line and knew both Ted and Arnie.

In Honor of Ted and Arnie and the many other firefighters that put their lives on line everyday, I have decided to do a "Firefighter Feature". I have strolled through Etsy and have chosen some great handmade Firefighter products.

Thank you to all the Etsy sellers who have allowed me to feature them. In photo order - Creative Clam, Charms 4 You, Homespun Graphics, Revelry, The HomeSpun Raven, Karens Soaps, UsNavyretiredvet, Art by Beckieann

What's New for September?

August was a great month. My daughter turned "2", I did a great cupcake feature and met new fellow Etsians. I even bought some amazing items from some of my featured artist on my blog. August was also my best selling month on Etsy! I showcased a new Cherry Blossom Branch Cuff and gained 5 new customers. I have also had 2 return customers that I was able to work closely with(as close as my keyboard and monitor will let me!)on custom orders. As far as my Artfire shop, well I have downgraded to the basic shop and some how made a sale at the end of the month. It's a great place to sell but not so well known yet.

What's new for September?

I would love to do more features on thematic items. Halloween is the next festive celebration that is fast approaching, but that is in October. I may have to just pick something that is just fun and interesting!!!! Look for me in the forums on Etsy and Artfire, I will be on the look out for new featured artist. Follow me on facebook, twitter and of course flickr (it's all about your photos). I have a showcase coming up on September 19th and will hopefully be able to present a new piece of jewelry!

Thank you to all the artist that allowed me to feature them and to my new and returning customers! Have a happy and prosperous September!

Birthday Gift With Purchase In My Etsy Shop!

Starting Wednesday August 26 - Sunday August 30th, I will be giving away a cupcake charm or a Copper Cherry Blossom charm with the purchase of any 3 or more bangle bracelets!

It's All About Cupcakes This Week.

To be perfectly honest I have never really given cupcakes much thought. Yeah they're pretty to look at and good to eat, but- WOW! It's like a whole other sub-culture of cupcake fanatics! I have come across items from vintage signs of stay at home moms baking cupcakes to big pink frosty cupcake tattoos and jewelry too! It's amazing how much love is out there for cupcakes!.

So, In honor of my daughters 2nd birthday, I have decided to hop on the "sweet baking train" with a cupcake feature! I went on a cupcake hunt on Etsy and Artfire and found many, many cupcakes! I am only featuring 12 artist though there were many more.

Aren't these cupcakes great! I had a so much fun doing this feature! I was able to meet more great Etsy and Artfire artisans and show people I know personally, all the great handmade gifts one can find with the click of a button. I found so many cupcake items that I could have done a cupcake feature every week this month! Hmm that's an idea for the future!!

I want to thank all the Etsy and Artfire Artist that allowed me to feature them! (In photo order) Cutiepatooties1, Girliebows Twhittlechips, Geminiartworks, Drumchick99, Jonasillustration, Dingbatpress, Myshabbyheart, Oliveandollie, Relaxingzen, Spoiledbratzwear, and Orangyredink.

They all have great shops and products that are great gifts for children, friends or even yourself. I personally will be buying something special this week for my daughter and I !!!