Safely home...

and a TAG from Cassie of ShopClementine!

Now I must list 7 random facts about myself and then get 7 other people do the same. As Cassie mentioned it'll be a challenge to find people who've not been tagged yet, so leave me comments so I can find new people!

1. I really like turtles.
2. I grew up without TV, and I'm very grateful!
3. I'm a total bookworm/snob but I love trashy romance novels.
4. When I walk around living my life I often carry on a running dialogue in my head between trees, squirrels, rocks, or anything else that might catch my eye. Most commonly I create relationships and personalities for the cars highway. I am not crazy...
5. I love independence, but secretly I love my room in my parents' house so much that I never want to move out.
6. When I was little one of my favorite snacks was cream cheese, jelly, and yellow mustard on rice cakes. It's not disgusting. It looks disgusting, but I think most people would love it if they'd just try it.
7. I have a completely irrational fear of snakes coming out of the drain in the bathtub. Always have.

I had a pretty good weekend, I got to relax a bit, danced my tushy off, and hung out with some cool kids. I'm exhausted though, so I'm going to take a nap!

The Strangest Creek in all the Land!

Yes yes, I'm off for some summer fun before work really swings into gear. Strange Creek is an awesome little fest in the town of Greenfield, right near my old prep school. How I managed to live there for four years and never hear about it is beyond me. Anyhow, now I know, and I'm heading up tomorrow morning! I'm taking some of my double-posted earrings with me, like the one below, to see if they generate any interest. When I get back I have a ton of new things to post on Etsy and I'll be a busy little bee getting that done.



Just a reminder, there's a ton of jewelry marked down in my shop right now to make way for summer products. Please feel free to stop in!

Grades!

I got my grades for last semester. Here's the breakdown:

Drawing: Visual Think 2     A            
Integrtd Design 2:Forces    A            
Basic Metal                 A            
Art of Western World 2      A             
Composition II              A            
Elementary Spanish 2        A-        

HELL YES.

Cleaning Up Shop!

I'm noticing a significant shift both in my style and in the materials I am using. As a result I am working on cleaning out my shop to make room for my newer designs. Please check out the "Cleaning up shop" section of my Etsy Shop, as a lot of items will be marked down and moved there. Here's what's up. I'm making the shift from base metals to sterling, from stringing to wire and solder (note, there will always be some stringing, I do love it so), and just in general moving in a different direction with my designs. Many of my earrings are now hung on handmade sterling earwires with handmade sterling headpins. They're elegant, let me tell you. I'm working on cleaning up my older work to make room for my new designs. Take advantage!

Here's a peak at some of what's on sale!

Etsy: Your place to buy & sell all things handmade RobinMarie.etsy.com

New Shipping Rates Revealed!

I did some sleuthing today, by which I mean I took some packages of different weights down to the post office and made the poor lady explain to me exactly how the new rates work. I hope this is useful for those of you mailing smaller packages like me. The information is all out there, but it's a lot to sort through. Here's the deal:

The "Size" Issue:
I use 4" x 7" Duck brand bubble lined envelopes. Because I sell primarily jewelry and it always fits in these mailers, they are what I took to the post office. What I learned is this. Due to their thickness (over .25") these envelopes will always be considered First Class Parcel Post, regardless of their weight.


The Domestic Issue:
Domestic prices are as follows:
1 oz - $1.13
Each additional oz - $0.17


The International Issue:
"How many International pricing zones are there?"
As it turns out, only three.
Canada
Mexico
The Rest of the World

The rates for Canada and Mexico for packages 1oz - 5oz range from approximately $1 - $3.
The rates for the rest of the world are simply $0.90 an oz. A 3oz package would cost $2.70. Not bad, eh?

The Weight Issue:
My biggest problem was that I had no concept of how much my pieces weighed, so I got an example of each weight category weighed up in the envelope. Here are the results (and please excuse the quality of these pictures):

Bubble envelope with light wire and stone bracelet, 1oz, $1.13 domestic.

Bubble envelope with stone chip strand and pendant necklace, 1.7oz, $1.30 domestic.

Bubble envelope with multi-strand stone chip and round necklace, 3oz, $1.47 domestic.

I hope this was helpful to you! I'm off to my Etsy shop to sort out my shipping prices.

Home Sweet Home

Finally. I came home last Thursday, but I've finally got myself completely unpacked and set up. I love my room. I've tried my best to completely contain my life on the top floor of my parents house, something we all appreciate. My mom loves my room and sometimes comes upstairs hang out with me which makes me happy. She should be worried though, I may never leave home!

Here's the virtual tour. It's basically three different areas, living room, bedroom, and work area.


Living Room

Bedroom (See my stuffed animals?)

This is my favorite part, the work area! One desk for my computer, another separate for my jewelry, and a ton of storage!

Lastly, my bookshelf. I love it.

So that's the tour of my room. I find it very inspiring and conducive to work. Expect to see results on my Etsy page soon!

The Beat Goes On....

More new work to share!





These vivid little things are made with Amber, Amethyst and Sterling Silver chain. They are exactly 2" long, and very swingy!





I am completely in love with this pair. Amber, Coral, Garnet and Sterling. Bright, bold colors! 2" long.

As always, keep an eye on my Etsy page for new listings and sales!

New Work!

I wanted to post a little taste of some of my new work!





I'm completely thrilled with these guys. Made with tons of Garnet and Turquoise chips, glass and Sterling chain, these earrings have a lot of movement and energy to them. They're elegant but funky, and perfect to dress-up or dress-down. Hung on handmade silver ear wires, these earrings measure just under 3".





A perfect match for the Turquoise and Garnet Cluster Earrings, this delicate, versatile little bracelet looks super hot with jeans, or a little black dress! Stone chips, glass, and a handmade silver clasp add up to a total of 8.25".


More soon!

In the fall....

A couple of my friends and I have taken to working on smaller jewelry projects out on the lawn, or in the lounge in our building. As a result a lot of people walk by, and they want to make jewelry, or learn to make jewelry. We decided that perhaps we should teach classes in basic jewelry techniques. So, in the fall that's what we'll be doing! For a flat fee people can sign up and join our little workshop. We'll provide the materials and guide them through the steps they need. Over time if they choose to take on bigger projects we will be able to help them along in where to find components and tools they might need. We're very excited!

Whew!

The semester is coming to an end, and what a semester it's been! I'm still very busy, but not quite so much as before. I'm feeling the summer creeping up on me.

I have lots of news, and lots of planning to do!

First and foremost, I was accepted into the BFA program for Metals at SUNY New Paltz. I'm loving it here, and my first semester with the one and only Jamie Bennett has been phenomenal. I'll be posting more work from his class just as soon as I get my final projects completed. He's brilliant, and I feel blessed to have the opportunity to work with him!

I got a huge order from FMG a few weeks ago, and I've had to completely overhaul my entire organizational system. I'm currently completely indebted to my Crop in Style case my darling mom bought me for my birthday. It's saving my life!



It is God.

As a result of my supreme organization and insistence on procrastinating on my schoolwork, I've gotten a ton of pieces finished! They're entirely different from my other work, and I'm excited about the new direction I'm headed in. Pictures soon, but here's a preview.

More soon!