hot hot hot

ah summer. we are in it's throes here in the sacramento valley, and apparently all along the pacific north west. i don't know about you guys but my electric bill is literally on fire but *sigh*, what can you do? i know what we have done is take full advantage of local swim spots, and our proximity to the ocean! :) trust me, it helps.

along with the season, we have summer craft shows which are a little like a sado-masochistic exercise if you ask me! vending on asphalt on a "spare the air" day of triple digits is just...well, a labor or love i suppose! so far, there are two ongoing events i have done and loved a lot, and will be doing for august and september: 2nd saturday @ park your art by mcmartin reality and 3rd saturday @ design downtown put on by the sacramento news and review. look for me there if you are in the area and love supporting your local DIY/craft scene.

in other NFB news, my website got a mini-face lift and i am loving it. if you haven't gone lately, please check it out! neverfeltbetterbyjen.com

i have listed a new group of vintage fabric soldered pendants, along with fabric "feather" and bird headbands--cute cute! also, i plan to donate a portion of fall/winter sales to the farm sanctuary.

website updates, craft shows, summer oh my!

happy summer! and it is setting off with a quiet bang for me here at neverfeltbetterbyjen.com central! i have two craft shows back to back this month, july and it is a trial by fire since i haven't done much in the way of vending for a few months and feel a bit rusty. but, i am ready to begin again and along with that i got some new graphics for my site and etsy shop (you like? i love!) and am having some different tweaks and wallpaper coming mid-july that i am really excited over. it is a good thing!

here are some recent new items for the site, enjoy! please check back for more vegan "feather" headbands and fascinators...ready to be sewn in my little workshop as we speak LOL.

happy to be crocheting again...

crocheting, soldering...hey i am overly proud of myself for making anything other than a drool puddle on the computer desk lately :) drool puddles aside, it is making me happy to create. my good friend gave me some radical 1980 wrapping paper that is all swirly and colorful--they don't make'em like that anymore. i ended up making double sided soldered pendants that turned out pretty nicely! then, i finished two new pouches. both cotton, the blue and white one is more of a ditty-bag (i love saying DITTY, by the way) and the pretty pinky one is more of a fully lined clutch, decked out with a vintage button closure and vintage fabric button with a darling vintage carrot cab. neat! (i love saying NEAT, too).

i have been noticeably absent on the second saturday/craft show circuit and i am feeling the itch (thank you thank you thank you) but i don't want to act too soon. my brain is mush, i had a hard mothers day without mom and i am juggling a bunch of plates in the air. in the meantime i am going to take it one day at a time, create as the need arises and not be too hard on myself in general. one thing i do notice is the drop off in sales, which is a ego-blow for sure. but i am not really promoting myself other than facebook and twitter, a little myspace now and again. not really much at all, actually. it's my own fault.

i welcome june (my birthday month AND anniversary--FIVE YEARS!!!), it's my favorite month of the year. go gemini's! :)

never felt better? me too!

i love spring--our backyard is coming along nicely, the weather keeps you guessing, bike rides are a priority...

renewed hope and a good attitude is what i am running on right now! i have a couple craft/art shows on the horizon (more to come as info comes to me) and a new line of glass tile pendants and magnet sets that has me really excited. i have had some custom work here and there (working on a pair of fingerless gloves for chilly east-coasters and custom photo soldered pendants) and that has been keeping me busy between orders and shows. also scaling back on the child care i was doing during the week and having my preschooler start this next week is really making me happy and giving me a new lease on craft! LOL. i am planning a real attack on the shops around town, and already have a line on one so i feel pretty great about all that.

soon i will be back to the busy bee self i have grown to know and love. it has been a few months now since losing mom and i know she would not want me to be using her as an excuse for anything--business or personal. i have to get back my MOJO!

take a look at some new pendants/magnets up now on the site now. i hope you think they are as cute as i do! i can also make them into a soldered version but i am digging on the glass tile look on these. expect some new day of the dead art skulls, too. i sold the last big one in november and got the itch to do some painting last week so one is waiting to be finished. they are so fun to make :)

marching on...

well, time marches on even in march. i am making some goals for myself to get out, meet and greet any and all potential wholesale accounts here in sacramento and in the bay area but something always comes up and then i get frustrated at myself for lagging on something SO important. i am doing childcare during the day and would need someone to sub for me, but that is just another excuse i don't need to be giving. i am working on a game plan, since time is of a premium i have to KNOW where i am going for optimal success.

what i do know is that i will be hearing "we don't do wholesale, we are only offering consignment". *sigh*. i think i can talk people into taking the plunge on my soldered pendants. they are gifty, well made and a really great seller for me and other shops in the recent past. i have branched out to making customized photo pendants (thanks to me snoozing at the wheel, some other lucky seller cashed in with mickey roarkes customized dog pendant at the oscars! doh! that should have been me, what in the hell was i doing instead?), and am going to have some good marketing stragedies with those in particular. you have to be smart nowadays...times are tight and people are not so loose with their monies.

other than that i am working on some underground backyard type craft bazaars with a friend of mine here. between the two of us we know all kinds of sellers who are looking for a cheap, but fun and productive venue to sell. :) more details on that to follow.

other than all that, things are great: the girls are settling, the backyard is coming along, i have several starter plants ready to plant and i am doing some pepper seeds in my windowsill as we speak. i cannot wait for the garden! thank dog spring is just around the corner.

be mine :)

ah, valentines. what a stupid holiday. and i am happily married! in my mind it marks something more momentous...SPRING IS COMING! see, in our house, it is valentines all year round...there is a lot of love in here! we give one another extra love on the 14th for sure but it is like any other day in our world. :)

what IS new is that i have a jazzy new energy for neverfeltbetterbyjen.com
and with my trusty new soldering iron i have some new soldered pendants in the que. a few are posted this week and more are in line to be photographed. i made a business page for it this week on facebook, so if you are on FB please check it out and be a fan!

i plan to focus mainly on the soldered pendants this spring and am working on a type of catalog to be able to email prospective wholesale accounts to make their buying decision easier--with general colorways available, the process, and materials that i work with and some good shots of the many custom orders that have been a great hit with brides for bridal parties, thank you gifts, special orders, etc. i have some good press that i should pass along as well, that can't hurt.


oh and your homework for the week is to tell one friend about neverfeltbetterbyjen.com! have a great weekend!!!!!!!

neglected blog alert

i have been ignoring this blog, partially on purpose-partially not. for those close to me, you know my mother passed away on new years eve and i have been really battling grief these past few weeks. it comes in waves, but when it does it is more like a tsunami and i am working hard at working through it all with the right amount of perpective. i have a lot of work to do, yet. the whole she left in my life larger than life at the moment.

it is affecting my work, my drive, my goals for neverfeltbetterbyjen.com
but i am working through it, as i said. i have more than enough stock and have been doing custom work here and there. there is another indiesacramento.com coming up on february 7th that i will be there for sure (i missed january's--i just could not make it under the circumstances) and i am really excited to be "back" in the craft show circuit.

look forward to some springy accessories there and on line, like my vegan bird fascinators
and some new crocheted items, as well! lots of tile and soldered pendants, too. if all goes well this spring, i am hoping to do a site re-launch with a new NFB look and feel to the website by fall-09. it is just so pricey! i almost had a heart attack at the quote, but from the gals who do my work it is totally worth every penny.

thanks to anyone who takes time to read my blog, and the support i have received from friends since the first of the year. NFB may be a tad neglected for the moment, but i am going to come back strong and better than ever for 2009!

*cheers*