Saturday, August 29, 2015

Long Tiring Week

But I had a great idea

I was away from home for the best part of this week. Down at our other place we were having problems. AC not cooling in 100 degree weather and our aerobic septic systems pump stopped working. In the mist of trying to get these fixed my phone died! 
(I felt naked without my phone)

But at some point I had an idea for a new Dishwasher Clean Dirty Flip Magnet! 
Subway Tiles
I would love subway tiles in my kitchen and bath. But that is not to be. I do now have a Subway Tile Clean Dirty Dishwasher Magnet!
Subway Tile Dishwasher Magnet 
two sided flip sign




Friday, August 21, 2015

Hard at Work Developing My Designs and Construction

Vintage Image Night Light Boxes 

Maybe you can tell from this picture there are differences in construction. It is a process and I have never been able to take my idea and get it right the first time! Just like when I want to rearrange the furniture I can't "see" it till I drag everything around, get it all spaced just so and then I know oh yes or oh no! But I believe the process is just about completed.

 I had a frustrating day yesterday and had to walk away from the whole mess. But this morning when I was cleaning my work space so I could make my orders of Dishwasher Magnets and Pill Cases my mind made a brake through. Unfortunately I don't know when I will be able to work on them again.  Hope to get some blanks made up tomorrow but I may have to wait till my monthly trip is completed next week. After that it is full steam ahead and on to Christmas!

(and I can't forget the next product line I have bubbling in my head needs to be ready before November too!)

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

Just a moment to vent!

The last 5 items I have searched the internet for I have not been able to find. I know they are out there. They are not strange unusual items. I can see on Etsy or Pinterest that others have found them. Why can't I?  I use DuckDuckGo for all initial searches (unless I am needing a map). If that fails I try Yahoo then Bing and lastly Google. What I find amazing is that the first pages of all the searches are almost exactly alike. And that at least half of the results are not even related to my query. You always hear that once it's on the internet it never goes away. It may not go away, but I sure can't find it!


Monday, August 17, 2015

And Now You Can Purchase

My Newly Revamped Original Clean Dirty Dishwasher Designs

Blonde

Sweet

Nightmare


Thursday, August 13, 2015

THEIR BACK!

My Original 3 Dishwasher Clean Dirty Magnet

Flip Magnets

Over 5 years ago I started making and selling Dishwasher Magnets. My first signs were large. It was not long after that I started getting request for smaller signs. I reduced my signs to the now 2.3 x 3.4. But my first three could not be reduced and still be clear and readable. I have now reworked these wonderfully funny signs.

They are still just a bit larger then my others at 2.7 x 3.9. and made of fabric, heat transfer, felt and my imagination, just like all my dishwasher magnets

My very first from vintage ads is "Nightmare"
 (This shows each side since these are flip signs)

 My second I just could not resist these vintage images from a comic "Blonde"
 (This shows each side since these are flip signs)
And my third was another from vintage comics "Sweet"
 (This shows each side since these are flip signs)

Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Love My New Items!

Sneak Peek

Vintage Image Night Lights!

With images of family moments years ago these Night Lights are perfect for that space on your shelf or dresser. They add a bit of vintage chic and country shabby to any room. 

They are not up for sale yet so keep watching!
Sisters
They are family members that none of us ever knew but this picture has always reminded me of my sister and myself and of my two girls. Sisters just about a year apart. Special.


Friday, August 7, 2015

It's August

The Weather Forecast!

100+ and it seems like the heatwave will last forever!

Yesterday 104. Oh it was hot! I went out twice to hose down the cattery and the dog's yard. Thanks goodness we are not on water restrictions now. Thank goodness I have let the yard grow a bit wild so there are lots of super shady places for the free roamers to stretch out away from the blazing sun. And me in this big early 20th century uninsulated 12 foot ceiling house? I have one cool room. And you guessed it. The day time cool room is my office! 

I rush into the kitchen and make my breakfast. Then back to the office to eat. I rush outside to feed everyone. Then back to the office again. You get the gist. But there comes the afternoon when I have much more to do outside. As I said hosing the areas down, putting fresh cool water in all the bowls, raking the cattery, afternoon feedings and such. I get really hot! The cool office, well it still helps a lot. On my outside. But my inside needs to be cooled down too! 
I needed refreshments! And there's nothing like a good late afternoon cocktail to refresh and restore!
(and thank goodness I don't have to depend on that little fan)

Tuesday, August 4, 2015

eCrater 

A Great Free Web Store Builder and Marketplace

eCrater 

Many online selling venues have come and gone since 2004 but eCrater has not only stuck it out but they have remained a very viable web store builder with a feature few others have been able to claim. They are Free! It is free to open your store. They have no listing fee. They have no final sale fee.

This last I must qualify. Since eCrater opened their Marketplace they do charge a small, very small, fee on items sold through their Marketplace. That's fine with me. I have been pleasantly surprised at the increase in my store's traffic and sales.

I started using my eCrater stores mainly as a place to keep my listing in the event my main selling venue disappeared over night along with all my listings. Oh yeah this happened. (What was that wagglepop? All those listings gone!) As my products varied and changed I updated my eCrater store or opened another. I even ignored my eCrater store completely as I immersed myself the new and exciting venue for handmade items called Etsy. For quite a few years I built my brand on Etsy, enjoying the site, the excitement of the users, and loving the process of designing and creating my own line.

Etsys problems started pretty soon though and are way too extensive to detail here. The outcome of Etsy's evolution is that I am again forced to hunt for a profitable venue. I turned back to eCrater. I deleted the old stuff and added my current inventory. I realized eCrater had not be sitting still. They had made some great improvements in their listing process. And they opened their Marketplace. And they now have premium templates that are very low priced. 

As I continue along the path of a very small product designer producer and internet seller I am wrestling with trying to develop a business plan that will take me forward and back to profitability. One part of my plan is to make my eCrater store, Txalteredartsjumble, a center piece of my online presence. I think in this day if you are not a large company, if the super large selling venue is not for you, an online seller must develop a network of venues and try to find the advantages of each. And eCrater has a lot of advantages!

New Product Line 

Stainless Steel Business Card Cases

In the last few days I have designed the first of my Business Card Cases and listed them in my Txalteredart's Etsy Shop. These are stainless steel light weight and hold around 15 business cards. The images are made using the same process as my unique fantastically humorous, elegant and cute dishwasher clean dirty flip magnets. 
and are similar to my 

This is a soft floral collage design with a vintage wholesale receipt faded in the background. 

Check out all my designs
Oh yes and more to come!

Saturday, August 1, 2015

My Dishwasher Flip Magnets

Txalteredart's Dishwasher Magnets

Five years ago I was feed up! I was so sick and tired of hearing at least 3 times a day,
"Are these clean or dirty?".
Half of the time I had no idea. 
But I was feed up!
My companion had been screen printing for a couple of years at that time and was thinking about what he could do if he expanded to heat pressing also. It sounded interesting to me, (screen printing never did), and I got a bit excited dreaming about just what I could do with a heat press. We looked around and found a used one close to us and rather cheap. We bought it and then started learning all the problems and limitations with heat pressing. My companion soon lost interest and the heat press became mine! 

I love the heat press but struggled. I had read everything I could find on the internet. I had dreamed up a product that excited me. I had a rough design in my head. But I kept having problems. Fuzz! Fuzz was my number one enemy! Tiny tiny threads and unknown stuff would suddenly appear under my image no matter how I had pre-cleaned with a lint roller. Back to the internet. I found a great site
and learned the fuzz were particles that float around in the factories and get embedded in the fabric. They don't seem to show. Not till I heat press. 
My solution
 Used fabric - Repurposed fabric - Recycled fabric
Fabric that has been washed and washed a few times.

Back to 
But I was feed up!
The product I had dreamed up and designed was one that would solve that often repeated and totally irritating question "Are these clean or dirty?". And after a few minor redesigns and improvements in April of 2010 I listed my first 

Clean Dirty Dishwasher Flip Magnet 

There were only a few dishwasher magnet on the internet back then. Now many of many different designs. But mine design is still unique and still a good seller with many many great reviews. 
So today I decided to go back in time and see which has been my BEST SELLER through all the venues on which I sell.