Full Circle ~ Self Care and Creative Windows

Getting back into the swing of things this week. Working on my next collection for spring and summer. Trying to focus more on self care. I often struggle with that last one. I'm so driven to work hard and create with Tangleweeds that sometimes it feels easier to, well, just do things the easy way, which for me tends to lead to long work hours and not a lot of time for taking care of myself. But I promised myself I'd truly make an effort to take better care of myself this year. I'm starting small: daily meditation (even if it's just in the car during my drives from Vallejo to Oakland and back), flossing (and making an appointment for a teeth cleaning), and stretching - all daily. 

Turquoise and Moss Agate Redwoods Necklaces

The Wander Necklaces and Stepping Stones Bracelets

Pieces from the Earth Relics Collection

Above, assorted photos from the Seattle tradeshow and work in progress. Also, I got a rolling mill last week and I couldn't be more thrilled. It's seriously helping to streamline a huge chunk of my production along with opening up some new creative doors. I'll post more about the mill once I really get crankin' with it!

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Below: Some pieces that shipped out to one of my new stockists in Seattle.
+ 
worktable explosion as I work on my next collection

Ahh, Thursday. My favorite day of the week. Seriously, for the longest time it's been my favorite. Two of my favorite radio shows are on on Thursdays (one about herbalism and one about astrology and activism), and in general there's just something in the air that makes me love this particular day of the week. Today I'm working from home, but I'm also going to take some time out to go see a movie all by myself, one of my absolute favorite things to do! I think I'm going to go see La La Land.

Enjoy your Thursday everyone!

P.S. Next Tuesday my first Creative Tenacity post will go up here. I'm touching on some of the most salient advice I was offered when I was first starting out, and why it took me a while to realize I needed to take the advice offered. I hope you'll join me here for a good read.

Creative Tenacity

If you follow me over on Instagram, then you already know that this year I’m going to be starting a regular series of blog posts geared specifically towards my fellow creatives who are looking to start selling their handmade goods! Helping others out in the small ways that I can is something I’ve been wanting to incorporate into Tangleweeds for quite some time now, and this blog + Instagram seemed like a great way to do it. 

I’m going to cover the areas of running a small handmade biz that I feel the most equipped to offer advice on. Topics will range from the specific to the more broad, touching on such aspects as finding success at craft fairs, resources for inspiration and motivation, vendor etiquette, taking the leap into wholesale, building and finding a creative community that supports you, and so much more.

I’m excited to offer this to my creative followers and readers of this blog!

Before I offer up my first serving of creative advice though, I want to dispel any notions my readers may have that I am an all-knowing, all-seeing, have all of the answers at the tips of my fingers creative biz-wiz lady. ‘Cause you were thinking that, right ;-)? In all seriousness, I want to offer up my perspective because I think that it may be helpful to some other folks out there struggling to sell their handmade work. And because helping others feels great! I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how many of us, especially women, love to help others out, but when it comes to asking for help for ourselves we’d often rather walk around in the dark, stubbing our toes on things and bumping into who-knows-what rather than admit we need help. I am a work in progress when it comes to admitting I need help, but one thing I have found to be true is that the more I offer assistance to others and see them benefitting from it (and not keeling over dead because they asked for it) the more I’m able to ask for help myself. 

I also think that we all have our own unique perspective and vision that is unlike anyone else’s. Being a millennial I grew up with the notion that we are all “unique snowflakes” and that idea has been torn apart and made fun of in many a social media “news” article, but I think there is some truth to that. How many times have you met someone, someone who you had made certain assumptions about, or over-simplified in your head, only to discover that the subtle nuances and unique attributes about that person are like no one else? I may be going a little astray with that tangent, but my main point is to say, the more us creative entrepreneurs share what our path looks like, and how we got to where we are, the more clear it becomes for others. So much of this handmade economy is rather new, lending to a “walking around in the dark” feeling to many of us when we first set off down this twisty road. And while my path isn’t going to look exactly like anyone else’s path, sharing my experiences and the knowledge I’ve gleaned from the last 7 and 1/2 years of running Tangleweeds may help someone else out with a problem or tough spot they may be in.  

My first helpful-advice post will go up on January 31st. In the meantime I’m combing through my own notes and listening to what others would like to hear more about. If there’s a specific topic you’d like more info on, feel free to leave a comment below and I’ll endeavor to make it a part of the topics I cover in 2017. 

In the meantime, I hope everyone’s new year has been off to a good start. With so many different types of energy swirling around in all of our day-to-days, I know it can sometimes be difficult to maintain focus and vision on a creative business. I hope this little blog here helps a few of you out along the way! #creativetenacity

Full Circe ~ Ready to Dive In

Good morning! And happy new year! (even if it is a couple of weeks late=) I'm freshly back from a trip to Seattle for the Seattle Gift Tradeshow and a two day re-treat with my fellow biz-ladies, the Creative Pursuit Collective. Needless to say, the last half of December and the first half of this month have gone by in a blur! 

I drove up to Seattle with Amy Rose. It was a winding and challenging adventure, what with the huge storms blowing through the west coast during our travels. Not to mention the nervousness ahead of us about how the tradeshow would go. The trip was a good reminder though, that if I can push myself to do things that make me a little nervous and a little uncomfortable, that the rewards will come in dividends for years to come! I'm now feeling a little bit like I could take on the world if (I needed to.)

By Chance necklaces - a popular hit at the Seattle Tradeshow. 

Slightly tacky opulence at The Unicorn lounge/bar in Seattle. We didn't have a lot of time for non-work related activity, but we managed to sneak in a bit of downtime! I simply adored this place.

A couple of days after getting back from Seattle, I was off to a short two day re-treat with the Creative Pursuit Collective, a small handmade business incubator group that I formed with Kyla O'neil of Impressed BY Nature almost two years ago. This was our first re-treat. It was rewarding, challenging, and insightful. We're already planning a mini-one for the middle of the year!

The ladies of the Creative Pursuit Collective (CPC) left to right: Ann Marie, Kyla O-Neil, Laura Bruland Shields, Maggie Hurley, and me! (Not pictured, Creek Lia Van Houten)

There's going to be lots of great stuff coming in 2017 for Tangleweeds and I can't wait to share it ALL with you guys. But, first and most relevant given that you're reading my blog right now: I'll be starting a series called Creative Tenacity. It will be a series of monthly or bi-monthly blog posts chock-a-block full of helpful tips and info for anyone hoping to venture into the world of selling their handmade goods. Look for a post with more details about that next week. 

And in the meantime, I hope 2017 is off to an inspiring start for everyone. I know we've all got our challenges and that the road ahead will not always be clear. What I do know is that the more you surround yourself with people who can support you through it all, the little bit easier and more manageable it all becomes. 

Secret Sale Just For Blog Readers

Merry Christmas and happy holidays! And hello quiet blog?! This time of the year is always jam-packed for me, and one of the things I often don't have time for is blogging. I know I have loyal readers out there, and in lieu of new posts for the rest of the year, I wanted to extend my Good Karma sale to you guys for the rest of the year.

***Take 30% off all orders in my Webshop (this sale does not include my Etsy shop) through the end of the day, New Year's Eve!***

Simply use code "GoodKarma"*

*orders placed between December 13th and the end of the year cannot be guaranteed for holiday delivery

I hope everyone has a beautiful end-of-the-year!

LWM ~ Bringing Back the Fall Layers

It's finally feeling like fall around here! The sounds of raindrops in the morning, pumpkins in the store (I like the funky, warty ones!), and warm layers to make you feel all cozy. 

Lately I've been listening to ~ The Felice Brothers new album. Currently my favorite song is Aerosol Ball. There lyrics are fun and slightly off-the-wall with a honky-tonk, country feel. Enjoy!

Wearing ~ Layers again! Tights and boots with skirts and dresses are my go-to when the weather gets colder. I actually think I wear pants in the spring and summer, more than I do in the colder months. I'm also wearing two of my current go-to pieces from the Tangleweeds collection: the Soar necklace in speckled rose, and the Raindrops earrings. 

Making ~ More earrings in the style of these Mountain Fan Earrings. I've been so happy that my new designs have been received as well as they have by my fans and collectors. I love working with these unusual stones in slightly larger and sometimes irregular shapes and sizes. There will definitely be more of this work coming to the webshop in the next few months. 

I hope everyone's week is going well! I'm a busy making bee prepping for my slew of holiday events. I still need to nail down my open studio hours. For you local folks who like to shop from me directly at my studio, I'll have those hours up by the end of next week!

On the Importance of Self Care

This past weekend I vended at the Half Moon Bay Art and Pumpkin Festival (HMB). It was a wonderful event, but even wonderful things can be exhausting! The couple of weeks leading up to it were pretty packed too, with lots of prep for the event itself, but also with just the usual melange of stuff that life throws at us. Several times leading up to HMB I found myself wishing I could take some time off. 

I've worked for myself long enough now to know that when I start wishing for a few days off, it usually means I need to take a few days off. To be clear, every time I fancy a vacation or a couple of slow days I don't automatically schedule in time off from work. Rather, I'm talking about when I find myself coming back over and over again in my head to the simple thought "I need some time off," I know I need to take heed of this. Often, to not listen to these wishes of my mind and body, means getting sick or just getting so run down that the work I do produce is done inefficiently or poorly. 

When I talk about these small breaks with some of my fellow handmade small biz owners, they often look at me incredulously and say something like "I wish I could take days off." I'm here to say "Yes you can!" I know there are probably a thousand and one reasons ringing through your head about why it's just not possible, but I encourage you to find a way to make it possible.

In mulling over the thought threads for this blog post I thought about creating a bullet-point list of things to do to prepare you for a few days off, but then I decided I'd just write about what I do, and how I go about making the days off possible. For each and every person it's going to be different. We all have different personalities and styles along with businesses that require very different levels of involvement and dedication. 

Here's what I do to make time off a reality. . . 
To start, I often don't plan this kind of time off ahead of time, or at least not much. It is usually in response to that internal voice I mentioned above that insists I need some rest. Usually I take at least three days off, but not more than 4 or 5. I want the time off to feel more refreshing than just a weekend, but not so much that I fall too much behind on work. 

I usually set an intention to keep up on one aspect of the business, and usually this is the aspect that causes the most stress if I fall behind on and that's EMAIL. Now, to clarify, this means I am only staying on top of the email coming in to my inbox. I am not generating any new email by reaching out to wholesale customers, applying to new events, or anything that would take my initiative to make happen. I am simply staying on top of what can quickly become an avalanche if not dealt with daily. 

The second thing I do is keep a running list of the things that pop into my head regarding work and my everlong to-do lists, while I'm taking a a few days off. Doing this is my way of mentally setting aside work to make room for the time off. 

Thirdly, I make sure that the days off are not planed when I have a bunch of deadlines on things due. I've accidentally done this in the past and basically ended up having to "cancel vacation" to rush back to my studio on the second day when I realized that three orders had to go out that day. For example, I REALLY wanted to take these days off last week. But I knew if I did that I'd be ill-prepared for HMB. So I promised myself the days off this week, and in that way also rewarded myself for all of the hard work put into HMB.

And, lastly, I don't plan a whole heck of a lot for this time. I might start a new weaving project, or fix something broken at home that's been long neglected, or cook some real meals. I also don't plan many trips. For me I find that the time is most rejuvenating when I'm able to slow down and simply go with the flow for a few days. Sometimes that flow isn't very productive, and sometimes that flow is lots of little projects at home. It's usually a good dose of solitude though, something I often crave when my life gets a little too busy. For me, I flourish in the lack of plans because my life is, for the most part, pretty planned out on the daily in large part to keep Tangleweeds thriving. (You might be the kind of person who wants a lot of plans during a few days off, cause it may keep you from worrying about work.)

I think the last thing I want to say is something I should have led with at the beginning: you NEED to take time off now and then as an entrepreneur. It will never feel like the "right time" and you will always have too much to do for the time allotted. My taking time off does not mean that I completely cleared my schedule and am blissfully without obligations regarding Tangleweeds this week. No, it simply means I prioritized the importance of some time off to rest and recover. . . and to possibly spend the whole day in my PJs =)

Thanks for reading this week! I'll be back next week with my next Tangleweeds Giveaway. . . 

Handmade Love ~ Amy Rose Moore Illustrations

I'm here today with a return to the Handmade Love series. And to say, don't buy your art from commercial shops, big box stores, or soulless chains, buy it from artists!

I have been a big fan of Amy Rose Moore's work since I was first neighbors with her at a Treasure Island Flea market two years ago. Her whimsy mixed with the natural world made me smile. Her work, through the inclusion of unexpected details, takes nature drawings and paintings and makes them into something that sparks thoughts in the viewer that go beyond the everyday.

pictured above, her Great Blue Heron watercolor hanging in my front entryway

While I gravitate to her more serious work, she also has a penchant for the funny and fun. A perfect example: penguins on ice cream?! Love it!

Another favorite of mine, pictured below: Blue Jay, Tree Frog and Dandelion. 

Growing up surrounded by nature (in Lassen County) was the childhood fodder for her love of the natural world. Quoted from her artist statement on her website: "The portraits and personalities that take shape under my pen and paintbrush evoke (in me, at least) a sense of nostalgia, not just of my youth, but of a commonality-- of universally shared emotional spaces and fondly remembered narratives." 

You can find her work in her Etsy shop, or meet her in person at one of her many events, listed on her webpage. Her work is sure to bring some of the beauty and story of the natural world into your home!
 

The Newest Collection: Connections

All of my collections are always near and dear to my heart. And they always reflect a little bit of where I'm at currently in my life personally, and the things I am focusing on and drawing inspiration from. I wanted to show, metaphorically, how the connections between two people shape and mold us into more intriguing individuals. 

At the core of jewelry design and creation are connections - deciding how and wear to connect two elements can greatly alter a design's final look and feel. This practical application of connections beautifully mirrors the real-life connections we are making all of the time with the people around us, from our lovers, parents, and friends, to our co-workers, neighbors and casual acquaintances. 

Pictured above are the Connections hoops - the title piece of the collection. I think one look at them and you can understand why they're the title piece =). I really pushed myself with this design to come up with something that was interesting, had movement, and was still a hoop. These are definitely a current favorite of mine!

(and pictured below you can see there is also a necklace version and a hoop without the stones)

To see the whole collection simply head on over to the Tangleweeds shop and select the "connections collection." And, a little secret to share (with blog readers only!), I'll be offering a giveaway from this collection sometime this month. Check back for the news on that soon!

LWM ~ Fringe-y Fun

Happy Thursday everyone! This week I've found myself re-visiting a lot of my favorite albums and artists. Sometimes there's nothing that beats the comfortable familiarity of an album you know you love. . . and can sing along to 90% of! A couple of years ago I saw Zoe Muth and the Lost High Rollers at the Starry Plough in Berkeley. I was already a fan, but seeing them in person only further cemented my love of their music. (If you listened to last week's you'll hear some similarities between the Honeycutters and Zoe Muth.) Enjoy! 

Wearing - One of close friends is getting married in October and she had her bachelorette soiree about a week ago. I thought it'd be a good time to break out my velvet and fringe rob/kimono. 

Making - New pieces for my on-going collection "Earth Relics." I actually just finished a couple of these in this photo today. They'll be making their way to my webshop soon!

Oh, September. You remind me that fall is right around the corner. This summer, heck this whole year, has just flown by in a way I am, quite frankly, not accustomed to. It's been mostly good though, but with lots of challenges sprinkled throughout. But I'm thinking a month-long "stay-cation" would be really rad. . . oh to dream! ;-)

Full Circle ~ Early Mornings

Ahh, early mornings! When everything seems possible and the time in the day seems endless. Just dropping in this morning to share some snapshots from the past week. Below is my home workspace - where the administrative part of the biz happens (and some beadwork on the side.)

The sunsets in the bay area have been beyond gorgeous the last few days. This shot is from my front porch in Vallejo. 

And below, a little tease of new work that is coming soon! So soon. I'm photographing my fall/winter collection next week (as long as all goes according to planned). The components below will become a new hoops design. 

That's all for now! I'm off to my monthly small business meeting later tonight. These meetings are always such a great motivator AND a great source of maker camaraderie. Happy Wednesday everyone!