FRIDAY FEATURE - Diva Loves Silver

Give us a summary of your shop, and how you got started?
Hi, this is Gina from Diva loves silver. We feature silver flower pendants, silver bracelets and silver cross pendants, as well as silver animal pendants and lovely silver earrings, just to name a few of our unique silver jewelry.
We opened this Etsy store in May of 2007. All the jewelry in our store is designed by my sister Jane who is in Australia working as an artist and hand-forged in our studio here in Toronto. We have a small boutique store located in Toronto which opened just 2 years ago in 2006. Basically, we made jewelry from our studio and then sell them through our boutique store. Eric is the artisan in our studio and also my boyfriend. ^_*
It was sometime in 2006, at the Ebay’s seller forum, I saw few people talked about how good Etsy was in a thread. I was curious and wanted to see how it looks like. And that’s it; I end up selling in Etsy a year’s later.

How did you select your name?
We don’t like fancy name, actually. We all believed store’s name must be straightforward. It must point out directly to the customers what we are selling. So we came out this name “diva loves silver”.

What makes your shop unique?
Each piece of jewelry in our store is an Original creation designed by my sister Jane. Many of our jewelry pieces are one-of-a-kind. Most of pieces are inspired by Asian and western art (She took art program in university).
For Jane, making jewelry is a way of expression of herself. She wants to make unique jewelry that can mean something very different to each person.


Do you sell anywhere outside of etsy? If so, where?
Yes, we sell them through our own boutique store here in Toronto.
How long have you been making your craft?
We are in this business for around 2 years now. But our Etsy store is still new.


Is it your full-time job?
I will say it is a part-time job for me, I am a musician. But for Eric and Jane, it is a full-time job.
How do you balance work, and/or your shop, and home?
Eric helps me out in the boutique store, so I can just focus on our ETSY store, doing promotion and posting stuff. It is all about time-devotion (less TV and less entertainment). ^^

What is your favorite material?
925 silver

Click HERE to visit Diva Loves Silver.

Friday Feature - Designs By Melissa

Give us a summary of your shop, and how you got started?
I found Etsy one night while I was online looking for Christmas presents. I loved the items I was finding on the site, so I made some purchases. Then, after Christmas I was helping my boyfriend's daughter make some jewelry from a kit we had gotten her, when I realized I was enjoying myself more than she was. I was addicted! So, I started selling my creations on Etsy.

How did you select your name?
Since I had already signed up as a buyer, I had already selected my name. I didn't think at that time I would become a seller. Melp1979 is my address, but "designs by Melissa" is my shop name. I chose "designs by Melissa" because my name is Melissa, & I wanted to leave the name open enough to allow any of my creative items to be sold under one name. I also do floral arrangements, although, I don't have any listed in my store on Etsy.

What makes your shop unique?
I believe my shop is unique because I make many different styles. My designs reflect my mood for the day. I like for each of my pieces to have a very "unique" look to them as well.


Do you sell anywhere outside of etsy? If so, where?
I currently only sell on Etsy.

How long have you been making your craft?
I have been making my jewelry for 5 months now. It sounds like a short time, but I have ate, drank, & slept jewelry for those months! I have learned so much & have seen a great improvement in my craft!

Is it your full-time job?
Etsy is not my full-time job. Other than making jewelry, I have a full-time job, an internship at another place, & I go to school.

How do you balance work, and/or your shop, and home?
I am a very hardworking & dedicated person. I throw myself into everything I do. I don't really have any "me" time. When I'm not working, in class, or working on projects, I am creating new jewelry pieces!!

What is your favorite material?
I would have to say my first love is buttons!! Add a button to anything and it is adorable!! I also love the look of wire, especially oxidized sterling silver.



What inspires you?
There is inspiration in everything. I am an Interior Designer by day, so I am constantly surrounded by colors, textures, & patterns. I also find inspiration from nature & people I meet.

Click HERE to visit Designs By Melissa

Friday Feature - Nature Manipulated

Give us a summary of your shop, and how you got started.
Nature Manipulated's visual and wearable art is designed to reflect upon nature and all of its elements. At NM we believe that EVERYTHING holds a piece of nature. Everything is nature manipulated.

What motivated you to open your shop?
Approximately four years ago, I bought a pair of cute earrings at a pretty pricey boutique. After returning home, I examined the earrings and realized there wasn't much to making them so I thought I would give it a try. I went to the bead shop and bought tons of supplies. Way more than I needed for a beginner designer. I started making more and more earrings, and then necklaces.

After feeling comfortable with my work and assured that I produced quality work, I spread the word to my family and friends. A few people bought some stuff and suggested I open my work up to a bigger customer base. I taught myself html and designed a website for Nature Manipulated. Then, by chance, I found out about Etsy. I thought the site was incredible, competitive but incredible. It was just the site I wanted to immerse myself in. I opened a shop and have been selling ever since.


How did you select your name?
As mentioned before, I believe that everything contains a piece of nature, whether its a book, a building, a car, etc. I take objects of nature, stone, paper, wood, metal and manipulate them to reflect upon the world from which the objects came. Everything, except nature in its purest sense is nature manipulated.


What makes your shop unique?
I don't think my shop is any more unique than the next shop. Everybody's work is unique because whether it looks like something someone has made or not, it is made by a unique person, and the inspiration behind somebody's work is never the same for everyone. What makes my work unique, is that it is made by me, and MY thoughts, MY experiences and MY inspirations make their way into every piece.


Do you sell anywhere outside of etsy? If so, where?
My work is also available through my website http:www.naturemanipulated.com
I am toying with the idea of redesigning my website and linking my Etsy shop to it.

I also have a blog, http://naturemanipulated.blogspot.com, which features other Etsy shops, provides helpful information for new Etsy sellers, offers tutorials, and of course, every so often delves into my thoughts and creations.



How long have you been making your craft?
I started creating jewelry and beaded accessories approximately four years ago. As for photograpy, I have always been drawn to the camera, and started truly taking pictures 13 years ago.


Is it your full-time job?
Being the artist, designer and owner of Nature Manipulated is a full-time job, but it is not my only one. I also work in the biotech industry.


How do you balance work, and/or your shop, and home?
Balance? What balance? There is no such thing. On weekdays, I spend at least nine hours at the office. During my lunch break, I run to the post office or do some advertising/marketing work for Nature Manipulated. Then nights and weekends I do everything else, sleeping not more than five or six hours a night.


What is your favorite material.
In terms of jewelry-making, I really like turquoise, carnelian, horn and wood.
In terms of photography, I really like taking pictures of old cemeteries. I think they are one of the most peaceful places in the world and contain so much history. They are a timeless place and often esthetically beautiful places.


What inspires you?
Everything inspires me. Different landscapes I encounter traveling, the weather, peoples faces, emotions, historical events, nostalgia, ... EVERYTHING.

Click here to visit Nature Manipulated

Friday Feature - SmuTopia

Give us a summary of your shop, and how you got started.
When I was planning my wedding, I just couldn't find the right jewelry to wear for my big day. Being the crafty girl that I am, I bought some beads and started designing my own. Thus began SmuTopia! I was hooked and haven't stopped making jewelry since.

What motivated you to open your shop?
After several years of desiging and creating jewelry for family and friends I entered an online contest for 'best unknown jewelry designer'. Well guess what--I won! The prize for first place was an online feature and link to my shop on the contest organizer's website. I had already created an Etsy account and the shop link prize got me motivated to set up shop!

How did you select your name?
My full name is Jessica Smutek, so SmuTopia is really a play on my last name. Whenever I'm feeling especially silly, I like to come up with new "Smu" words---Smu-pendous is my favorite but SmuTopia seemed like a better shop name :)

What makes your shop unique?
My shop is an expression of myself--and I am far from ordinary! :)

Do you sell anywhere outside of etsy? If so, where?
In addition to Esty, SmuTopia has recently debuted in the Raleigh, NC craft show scene at the Designers Downtown Market. I plan on selling at several more NC craft shows this summer, as well as the NC State Fairgrounds.

How long have you been making your craft?
Although I have been crafting my whole life, I only began making jewelry about 4 years ago.

Is it your full-time job?
My dream is to make SmuTopia a full time job, but there is a lot more work to be done to make that dream a reality. For the present, SmuTopia is more of a hobby/second job that provides me with creative and personal satisfaction. In my daytime life I work 40 hrs a week as a receptionist and office coordiinator.

How do you balance work, and/or your shop, and home?
Life can really be a constant juggling act. Since opening my Etsy shop I have gotten very good at squeezing in a few minutes of computer time whenever I can--when I first get up, on my lunchbreak, while dinner is in the oven....I'm sure I can only keep up with it because I enjoy Etsy so much :) I also have to give a ton of credit to my incredibly supportive husband--I couldn't do it without him!

What is your favorite material.
I love all beads, but my favorite material to design jewelry with is freshwater pearls. Many of my favorite designs custom orders over the past few years have featured freshwater pearls in a variety of colors.

What inspires you?
Nature is my main inspiration, especially the ocean. I have my Mom to thank for my love of nature--we spent a lot of time outdoors in my childhood and that love of nature is deeply ingrained in my personality.

Click here to visit Smutopia's shop

Friday Feature - Lake Erie Beach Glass

LAKE ERIE BEACH GLASS "offers ONLY authentic sea beach glass that has been tumbled by nature's wind, surf, and sand! We create beautiful jewelry designs from the pieces that we pick up off the shore just as they were found!"


Give us a summary of your shop, and how you got started.
Lakeeriebeachglass.etsy.com is stocked with handmade artisan jewerly that uses genuine sea beach glass as its main element. Sea Beach glass is old glass that once served a purpose as dinnerware, tableware, apothecary, medicine, and poison bottles. It may have been used as fruit and canning jars, or even whiskey and liqour bottles. Whatever their original purpose, they have found their way into the oceans and lakes where nature tumbled it for several years into smoothly frosted little gems. They are depostied on the shores where my family and I collect them and make unique wearable pieces of art with them.

What motivated you to open your shop?
I opened a shop on Etsy after hearing about the site from a fellow artisan at a local festival.

How did you select your name?
Selecting a name proved to be very difficult, actually! I had tried to come up with something catchy and unique but since I started my business during a time when sea glass was barely known, I decided that I should go with a name that links it to what I do.

What makes your shop unique?
I think my shop is unique in several ways. I am able to take something that was once considered trash and give it new purpose by making it into something new. I try to reach a wide variety of buyers as well by offering designs made in simplest form to classic and even off the wall unique!

Do you sell anywhere outside of etsy? If so, where?
I actually started out on eBay and have participated in a few craft shows. I currently am featured at Pure Art Gallery in the Cayman Islands, at Glass Growers Gallery in Erie, Pa. and at The Kada Gallery also in Erie Pa. I am an active North American Sea Glass Association member and will be participating in the Sea Glass Festival this year in October at Lewes Delaware on the University Campus.
How long have you been making your craft?
I've been collecting and using sea beach glass in my creations for the past 7 years now.

Is it your full-time job? How do you balance work, and/or your shop, and home?
I quite my secular job only 4 years ago after having my 3rd child. I currently have four children ranging from age 2 to 15 years of age. I run my business full time, homeschool my children full time, and run a household full time. How do I manage? I sometimes wonder that myself!:) It is difficult to explain but I DO try to have an organized daily schedule of activities. I HAVE to be flexible enough in the schedule to allow for my childrens different needs by age. They too are also a part of my business and enjoy taking breaks down by the beach!
What is your favorite material.* I love using sterling silver and copper!
What inspires you?
I am inspired by different things daily! I sometimes call myself the moody jeweler! I can receive a magazine in the mail that will have an awesome picture on the front using a unique color scheme and that will inspire me. My walks on the beach and viewing our Lake Erie sunsets will inspire me. Hearing the children play, laugh, and giggle will inspire me. My inpsiration comes from all around me and it effects my mood. My mood determines what I will produce for the day.

Click here to visit Lake Erie Beach Glass

Friday Features - Julia Belle Vintage

Julie Belle Vintage - "I find inspiration in all things vintage."

Give us a summary of your shop, and how you got started?
My shop is all about using old items to make something new and wearable! I've been a member of etsy for a long time, but didn't start selling until August 07. One day I just decided to go for it!

What motivated you to open your shop?
I was wearing a lot of my own jewelry, and getting tons of compliments. I finally decided to take a shot and see if others would feel the same way about it. I'm so happy I did!

How did you select your name?
Julia Belle Vintage is named after my daughter, Julia Belle! My username is actually myhools, which I never would have used if I knew I'd be a seller one day! We call our daughter Jules, which somehow turned to hools. So myhools is actually my daughter.

What makes your shop unique?
I like to think that I use vintage, everyday materials in a new and interesting way.

Do you sell anywhere outside of etsy? If so, where?
Yes, you can find my work at a sweet antique/resale shop in Ridgefield, IL called To Market, To Market.

How long have you been making your craft?
A few years now. I love it!

Is it your full-time job?
No, etsy is just part-time. I work full time at a publishing company during the day.

How do you balance work, and/or your shop, and home?
I definitely have trouble doing this well! Somehow I manage...just don't judge my housekeeping skills at the moment.

What is your favorite material.
Antique book pages, postage stamps, any old paper!

What inspires you?
Books and old photos, mostly. I just love finding an old item that I can turn into something new. I love thinking about the life it had before it came into my possession.

Click HERE to visit Julie Belle Vintage