An eBay facelift!

Tonight I'm going to list a new set of auctions with a new look!

I'm still using the same template, but I've changed the description from a block of text to a set of bullet points. I think it'll be easier to skim and pick out relevant information.

Even more exciting, I actually took pictures this time instead of using scans! I think some of the pics were too light, and I had to retake a few, but overall I really like the depth and dimension that they display.

Also, I've added scale photos to all of tonight's auctions.

Here's a comparison of the old style versus the new.

BEFORE:



AFTER:



I'm really excited about the way it looks! Let me know what you think.

Don't forget, my blog is moving! I'm posting at both places for now, but eventually it will be located solely here. Thanks!

Helping out a friend

Andrew Thornton of Green Girl Studios, one of my favorite companies (and people!) in this business, is going through some medical difficulties at the moment. Several bloggers have come forward to help, and someone has helpfully gathered all of the helping links in one place. Click here to see how you can help out Andrew.

Vintage multistrand box clasps

As most of you already know, I'm always on the lookout for interesting vintage things. And I really hit the jackpot recently! I found a great stash of base metal box clasps.

The jewelry industry on the east coast was pretty huge during fifties and sixties. They used a lot of beads, and even made their own findings, stampings, and components. These small silvertone box clasps were probably custom-made to suit the designs of the company who made them.

I found a lovely variety of two hole, three hole, and four hole clasps, all in silvertone, as well as some interesting three hole components which would look great as the center of a necklace.

I've just added them to my eBay store.



Don't forget, my blog is moving! I'm posting at both places for now, but eventually it will be located solely here. Thanks!

I'm back!

I'm back, and I'm happy to be home! I have three weeks to add new items to my brand new website, add new items to my eBay store and my Etsy shop. I'm very excited--I have a few new items that are very nice. Also, I'll be at the Bead Bonanza on Sunday, and then at the West Michigan Bead Expo Show on Saturday. Wow, what a full month this is!

So I've placed my first post on the new blog! I designed the header, and now that the website work is done, I'm ready to start blogging again. I hope you'll continue to tune into my journey! Thanks so much.

My new website is here! Also, new site for my blog.

It's happened!

After a month of taking pictures, editing pictures, writing descriptions, and tinkering, my website laurelmoon.com is now live!

You can find it here!

Finally, a way to sell in quantity, and to be able to accept credit cards! I'm so happy about this. I like Paypal, but some people don't, so this is a great new development!



And the blog is moving! Very soon I'll be redirecting this blog to my website. You'll be able to find it here.

Thank you for continuing to take this journey with me!

Featured in a treasury!

My small grape headpins were featured in this treasury by Etsy seller lucietales.



Thank you, Lucietales!

A cool blog!

A friend of mine has been taking some beautiful pictures of New York, and I thought I'd share the link:

Changing Shadows, Pilgrim Faces

Some of the images are just beautiful! Haunting photos and lyrical musings. Scenes of New York that many of us will never see.

Bring in the new

I have a new computer. My last computer lasted seven years, so this is quite a shift. I've gone from XP to 7, and I have a bigger screen now and a lot of memory. I think the best part of this is that I will finally have better color management. My old monitor was acting very strange by the end, and the new monitor is lovely and the colors look much better. The old monitor made things look darker than they actually are, which was also an issue.

I've taken a break in the website work to get the new computer up and running, and at this point I'm just ironing out the wrinkles. It's been a challenge!

Whew! Photography.

I've been working very hard on photographing beads and cabochons and glass gems for the new website. It's been fun and challenging, as well.

At one point I couldn't understand why my pictures were so grainy--it turns out that I had switched my camera's speed to 800 instead of auto. whoops! I'm so glad that I figured it out.



I've been trying to concentrate on doing a good job, but not getting caught up in making things "perfect." It's difficult, though, because I keep getting distracted by the different levels of light and how dark things look, and I have to stop myself from obsessively just taking the pictures over and over again.



What I like about taking pictures instead of scans is that you get a more 3-D view of the items in question. It looks a little more realistic. The scans are great, but they do have limitations. I think I'll include both on my website.

Also, I think I'm going to take a scale pic for every item. I hate using pennies because it looks a little...off-putting to me, but I can't think of another item that is so well-known and can give such an immediate impression of size.

Who can resist a sale?

The wonderful and talented Andrew Thornton is having a sale! He's cleaning out his bead stash, and there are some amazing beads--as well as amazing deals! Don't miss out on this opportunity. Check it out!