Bohemian Mermaid Palace

Jeesh... guess I've been snoozing on the whole blog thing eh? And still no snotty comments from Fred. Go figure. Well, I see I haven't yet put up a craft fair report from the Arcata Holiday Market. Mostly because I didn't take any photos... not as fun to report that way. Ha. But also it was fairly uneventful... bah, I'll make one anyway I suppose. One project I've neglected to report on is my friend's little temporary store in Old Town Eureka, on the Gazebo next to Sjaak's Chocolates . I know you know where that is. So, yeah... two friends of mine who import stuff from Ghana and Vietnam opened this store just for the month of Dec and asked me to consign some of my goods there. Not sure how many I have sold... some. But now that gift giving is over, they are trying to drum up business by having a super blowout sale. So, I guess I'm putting stuff on sale too. I think they plan on being open through Arts Alive on Jan 5 and then close the next day. So for ...

Get the eBay Listings (Slideshow Format) widget and many other great free widgets at Widgetbox ! Yeah, I have skills. Sortof. I've been making all sorts of doohickeys online lately. My ebay store has lots of bells and whistles, which I've been trying to take advantage of since I do pay a monthly fee. Pretty fun. See how my store is called Bohemian Mermaid Crafts?? Yeah, cuz that doll chick has Bohemian Mermaid as her ID (mine has a 9 in it) so I can't use it to name my store. Sigh. Whatever. I also finally made a myspace page . Ok, I knew it was a very populated site... which is why I wanted to join. Just to promote my biz like all those bands I hear are on there. What I didn't expect was to actually know people. Like local people and bands I love. Trippy. So, I have connected with some friends... AND I'm promoting my biz. Woohoo! Oh, and I just sent out my very first marketing email. Got a sale in like the first hour! Sweet! I kept it simple and linked to my sal...

Of course I was going to post this last week, but every time I started I blathered on and on and on in such an almost pukey way. I made myself sick. Plus, who wants to read all that? I think I can boil it down to a few bullet points. Ha. Try this... Man, am I freakin thankful! I have pretty much the exact life I've wanted, and do just what I please. It all boils down to support, I have lots. Here are the highlights: - Barney, the Bestboyfriendinthewholewideworld . He supports my endeavors in every possible way AND he's very easy on the eyes. - All my friends ROCK . They believe in me even when I don't and are just super awesome people. - My family is pretty cool too . Even though they think I'm a little nutso, always behind me 100%. - This place is magic. I'm thankful every day for this amazing place where I live. The people, the nature, the vibe... all keep me going and allow me to live this creative life. - I'm pretty healthy and capable . Thanks. Mostly, I...

I know you've all been dying to see some new stuff on my web site . Ok, maybe a few of you. Or someone you know ... or once heard of. Whatever. The point is, I have been spending my days taking photos and posting new items to my site. And updating the old ones to look better and hopefully easier to read. I made a check list to keep track of what's done and about half are checked off now. Woo! I added color swatches t o each individual item page, which I think helps a bit. Shows the new colors and odd vari ations of colors. I added a few pieces which I've carried in my booth for a while, but hadn't gotten to the site yet. Woo! Many more to go... like skirts, baby stuff, hats and jewels. But it's coming along. To fix the lighting/camera issues I've been having, I finally gave in and just set up the mannequin outside. I just can't get the indoor lighting right. Grrr. But, it's working ok so far I think. I'm using my old funky camera, since Barney's ...

I'm adjusting. Working on developing a routine for this new working at home thing. So far, um it's not yet in place. Ha. It's a process. What I HAVE done is ... let's see. Posted about a ton of buttons and stickers on my new eBay store. Mostly because they were sitting here in a box right next to me... and they're easy to photograph. I bought a bunch on my last day at the Peace place, while I could still get the cheapo price. Ha. Started working on my web site. The home page was totally deleted and redone. Removing the tables really helped the spacing issues I had. I tried to simplify the top and put the more detailed info further down the page. Once I have some better outfit pics, I'll move them to the top. I've also been taking photos of new colors and garments. Sigh. I have lighting issues. That's always the issue. I'm not sure what the problem is. I'm using the lights from my booth setup and the shot will look well-lit when I'm taki...

Ok, this is a new festival at the Redwood Acres Fairgrounds in Eureka taking place in April and October. It's put on by an artist who thought we needed a show to do during these two slow months for crafts vendors. And she's got the right idea here... again, I'll say how well she put it together, how I like the non profit activity booths, the themes, the quality of vendors, the beauty of the addition of beer to the festival. It's all very good. But, people just don't really know about it yet. I guess. Because attendance is still pretty low and slow. I did pretty well at the spring version... but this time not as well. My neighbor didn't show, so I even had a big Mermaid clearance area (in the empty spot) which didn't really yield results. Oh well. There was music. There was beer. There was a diverse selection of art and crafts. There were some friends to visit with. IF YOU LIKE TO GO TO CRAFT FAIRS, YOU NEED TO ATTEND THIS ONE AND BUY STUFF NEXT TIME! APRIL....

...for YOU to send me money... I'm working. I'm just about done dyeing, gotta finish up the label-sewing, ironing, hanging & pricing. Then, off to my last out of town craft show of the year. Wooo! The Steele Winery in Kelseyville... near Clear Lake off hwy 20. Easy little 3.5 hour drive. I'm hoping this is my last big shebang. According to the vendors I met down there this summer, this is THE woopedydoo event. I'm ready. Looks like the rain is supposed to stop just in time for 73 degree days and sunshine. Yippee. (hey, this could be your big chance to give me some money... you waaaant to go wine tasting this weeeeekeeeeend...) Let's see... what else... oh, yeah. I opened an Ebay Store this week too. We'll see how it goes. There's a monthly fee, but then I can list things in the store for super cheap listing fees but a higher percentage if they sell. They don't show up in searches as readily as regular auctions, mostly just in the store list. There ...

Yeah see, here's the cool part where the universe starts hurtling cash towards me in support of my move to save the world full time. You can be a part of this deep cosmic happening by sending me some money too . See? Ok, well I'm remembering when I left my job at the storage place to pursue my dream of self employment... a bit prematurely, but still. In the span of maybe 2 weeks, people sent me money that I didn't even know I had coming. Hundreds of dollars, I swear. Let's see... I got a power company refund of a deposit I had forgotten about. Which led me to phone my old roommate/dickhead boyfriend for another deposit I recalled helping to pay. Got that back too. There were some show fees I had written off... for a little market I had paid for then stopped attending. Didn't expect the money back. Yet, the organizer walked right up to me on the street and said,"I owe you money, let me write you a check." He insisted, so I took it. THEN, maybe the weirdest ...

Holy crap, what a fun time!! Maybe I have mentioned it before, but I LOVE going down to the Mendocino coast! It's so much like Arcata and home. The people are so cool, the area is so beautiful, the vendors are so talented. It rocks. Caspar Fest was no exception. We really lucked out with the weather, sunny and beautiful... while it poured rain at home on Sunday, I heard. A bit of wind and pretty cold at night, but overall nice nice. Now, there were a few adventures on my way down. I was running pretty late getting out of town Friday, so I thought it would be smart to book a room in Willits for the night. I couldn't set up the booth until Sat morning anyway and the van was full of stuff, which makes sleeping in it a challenge. Also, I wouldn't stress so much about getting there by dark if I wasn't driving all the way. Smart. Yep. I found a good deal online and booked it. Well, when I got there that night I found I had booked it for the following night. Smart. They said ...

Ok, I'm back from the Caspar festival and working my last days at the Peace Place ... and I am freakin tiiiired. Sheesh. I'll post separately about the festival, it was super fun. But you know, it would have been courteous for my last week at work to be a slow one. It's been so busy. I mean, I've had one day off since um... jeesh, when? Hm one day in like over 2 weeks. I took the monday after North Country Fair to sit around mostly. Then prepped for Caspar and got home sunday night late... back to work monday A.M. Sigh. For a lazy person, I work hard man. Ha. But, tomorrow's my last day. Post work beers at the Lost Coast Brewery to mourn my passing. Then dyeing stuff for the next two shows. Yippy. I'm starting to feel the freedom and really excited to work on some Mermaid projects unencumbered. I'm ready. Saving the world ain't easy, folks.