Team Spotlight! interview with The Ginger Card Company

MsAnomaly's interview with gingercardco:

1. When did you open your Etsy store and begin selling?
December 07, I think.

2. How did you select your shop's name?
Ginger is my first dog's name. I've been making cards for my parents with the GingerCardCo "copyright" on them since I got Ginger from the Humane Society 8 years ago.

3. What do you create and sell in your Etsy shop?
A 'zine called Peace to All Creatures that I designed and edited with a friend I met through the Etsy for Animals Team. I make necklaces, notecards and notebooks with dog illustrations. I also have some felt (spun from reycled plastic bottles) accessories, and jewelry with city maps.

4. How did you become involved in your craft?
I've made handmade cards for my parents since I was a kid.

5. Explain your favorite part of the creative process.
When the glaze is dry and I don't have to worry about ruining it! Also, I'm on the computer all day for work, so it's nice to sit at the craft table and NOT look at the computer!

6. Do you sell in another Etsy store or anywhere outside of Etsy? If so, where?
I also sell at a local art co-op in Orlando.

7. So far, what project are you most proud of?
The zine, for sure. http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=26606237

8. What advice can you give to someone who would like to learn your craft?
hummm... making jewelry takes patience - I always ruin it by checking to see if the glaze is dry - and it's not!

9. What motivated you to join the Etsy Beagle Street Team?
I have a beagle, Buddy, that I adopted from Orange County Animal Control when he was 5 - he's 9 now. I volunteer at the local dogpark, and I bring my other dog Kyanne, (who is not a beagle) to Beagle MeetUps there - Buddy can't handle a bunch of big strange dogs at one time, so he can't go to the dogpark. My friend who runs the MeetUp group has adopted 4 beagles and has 2 foster beagles, so Buddy goes to her house for playdates. I volunteer on Sundays at Pet Rescue by Judy's shelter. I'm on the Handmade4Hounds management team, and I'm about to join the Vegan Etsy Team, since I have recently become vegan. Teams are GREAT places to meet like-minded people. I recently met in person for the first time the friend I do the 'zine with - we went to an animal rights conference in L.A.

10. Any other places we might find you (Flickr, blog, MySpace, etc.)?
I don't keep up my blog very well, but I'd like to... www.loveginger.blogspot.com/
Flickr, where there are some really cute pictures of Buddy: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24627761@N02/

Team Spotlight! Interview with StuStuStudio

MsAnomaly's interview with Cher of StuStuStudio

1. When did you open your Etsy store and begin selling?
September 25, 2007. I opened my first store in 2006, but had to close it because of a family emergency and they didn't have a vacation mode in those days. So, some of my replies will apply to both. Stick with me, you'll see why in the next answer!

2. How did you select your shop’s name?
Aha! The first shop, and one of my alter egos is CheyenneGlass. I borrowed the name of my little "pocket beagle" Shy~Anne. She was named that because she was shy. Well, terrified was more like it. We got her from the shelter and she was sooooo sweet, but timid and scared of men. I hadn't had her very long before I had open heart by-pass surgery and mainly due to my inability to take anti-allergy meds, she was adopted by my son, DIL & GS. Grandson was just as shy, but they became buds and neither of them are anything remotely resembly shy anymore. But the name stuck. I still have me website under the name http://www.cheyenneglass.com/.

StuStuStudio came about because my first studio was so tiny that when I took a picture of it, the term 'studio' was bigger then IT was, so I shortened it to 'Stu'. Well, obviously the next 2 words off of my pen was Stu Studio. Phil Collins rules!

3. What do you create and sell in your Etsy shop?
Hot Stuff! Kiln formed glass for jewelry, clocks, 'spa vessels' (aka sink) etc.

4. How did you become involved in your craft?
For 20 years I really didn't do well at traditional leaded glass, so when mosaics became popular, I jumped on it. I made everything from the stepping stones to garden benches. Heavy!! My DH got smart and bought me a kiln for Christmas, against my better judgement. I spent months trying to learn, and finaly drove to Corning NY for classes. I now own 3 kilns.

5. Explain your favorite part of the creative process.
Having something come out of the kiln the way you hoped it would, or even beter.

6. Do you sell in another Etsy store or anywhere outside of Etsy? If so, where?
I've got a destash store, StuStuStudio2.etsy.com and I've started the bare bones of a shop on Artfire. My website could eventually become a shop. Right now it's a brochure.

7. So far, what project are you most proud of? http://www.flickr.com/photos/1cher/2793999284/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/1cher/379873164/

8. What advice can you give to someone who would like to learn your craft?
Have a passion for glass, then lots of time, money and effort! It's been as much of a science as an art.

9. What motivated you to join the Etsy Beagle Street Team?
Here is ShyAnne (top) visiting me, and Brando looking pathetic. http://www.flickr.com/photos/1cher/2446072136/

Here is Brando & Stella, and Brandos' personals ad. http://www.flickr.com/photos/1cher/2408293607/

You'll notice the the little Stella gets the big bed, while Brando prefers to tighten up into a little-big ball of fur. My first encounter with a beagle was years ago, when a stray old beagle informed us that he'd be living with us. He was ultimately named Trouble, which he never was. Trouble and Stella are aarrrrooooing on the other side now, best buds, I'd be pretty sure. In short, I am a beagle rescue group.

10. Any other places we might find you (Flickr, blog, MySpace, etc.)?
I'm here, I'm there, I'm everywhere!

blog:http://www.tomcher.blogspot.com/

Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/1cher/


1Cher on twitter

ARTFIRE: http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=Shop&seller_id=15386

http://www.cheyenneglass.com/

I don't have time to keep up Myspace, and have skipped facebook. I'm not putting my face anywhere. Just funny that way. Cheers! Cher

Another Wonderful Winter Challenge Entry!

This is an updated list of our team challenge entries. The last entry shows one of our "senior beagles," the adorable gertie, and also shows the awesome work of another of our talented team members! Don't forget to click all the entry links; they are as individually unique as our dogs! :0)
Warm Winter Wishes Etsy Beagle Street Team winter challenge:
MsAnomaly, Angle Beagle Ornament:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16998337
Debrlee, Kitten Mitten:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=17076815
FrumsGlassMenagerie, Snow Kitties:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=17482012
arooodog, Holiday collar:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=17505492
kookyhandbags, Holiday patchwork stocking:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=cat3_gallery_13&listing_id=17512590
GertieGearStore, Rudolph Characters Cover:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=17215706

Let's See StuStuStudio!

StuStuStudio is a husband and wife Etsy shop. Cher makes beautiful fused glass jewelry and photography note cards, and her husband creates original fine art paintings. This talented twosome have a beagle named Brando. Stop into StuStuStudio before taking your beagle for a walk or joining him/her for a nap! Arrrooooo! http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5316323

Let's Visit FrumsGlassMenagerie!

If you love animals and beautiful glass earrings and pendants, please visit the Etsy shop FrumsGlassMenagerie! I have the pleasure of owning a beagle pendant made by this talented artisan, and I get compliments on it every time I wear it (which is quite often). It is one of my favorite pieces of jewelry! :) FrumsGlassMenagerie's jewelry showcases many other animals and dog breeds, not just beagles. The shop owner shares her home with Italian Greyhound rescue dogs. Sounds great, right? So, C'mon, let's go! http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=17830

I'm on a space kick!

It's my son's fault! I am getting ready to have a garage sale, and I asked my sons to go through all their old "stuff" that was stashed in the family room closet. My youngest son was quite into "aliens" and outer space at one time, and decided to part with a great bunch of little space-themed figures. They won't make it into the sale! ;) They had "pendants" written all over them (albeit in some planetary language only my son and I can understand). Anyway, this is my first, because he is SO CUTE! I named him Rocky Planet, and he is the biggest alien superstar/rock star ever! I had these fantastic vintage beads that I call glitter-beads, for lack of a better or known name. They are like sugar-beads, but have a smooth surface with tiny flecks of metallic gold. The swirled finish looked very planet-like to me, and I matched the colors of the beads to Rocky, his guitar, and his beautiful big green eyes. There are some vintage faceted purple lucite beads, and just for fun, some new plastic blue star beads, since Rocky is a star from beyond the stars! I've got more necklaces done, but have to wrangle with my biggest jewelry-marketing dilemma - pictures (shudder, shudder; excuse the pun)! Once I get some decent pics, more outer space jewelry will appear in my store: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5149442