My Esty Makeover Quest

If you are an Etsy novice or thinking about Etsy this post might be of interest... I plunged right into Etsy when I didn't have the time to think things through and have been struggling ever since... At the beginning of January Etsy offered a Makeover Workshop and I followed along AND started researching similar Etsy sites.

1.Of course they emphasized the importance of good photographs but also the "number" of photographs.. I had one picture of the button front and one with the back beside a quarter. But as I looked at sites with lots of photographs I decided it does make a difference.. so to add interest I'm adding a photo of me painting buttons, a photo of the tiny brush and a photo what the button would look like beaded...or on a CQ.

2. Then they discussed "tags" (the way people find you) so again I start researching tags on similar sites. I discovered a lot better tags than I had been using. I wasn't nearly expansive enough. It pays to research.

3. I had been just grabbing images for backdrops for my buttons and NEVER happy with any of them... I spent a couple hours one day working up backdrops and trying buttons on them to compare. Anything too busy overwhelmed the buttons. I wanted real CQ and something elegant so in the end I opted for an off-white beaded CQ. Everything looks good on it but the chickens and they're not selling anyway...

4.They had a whole section on improving the narrative but I haven't got to that part yet...next week

My biggest challenge all along has been photographing the buttons... Some problems are inherent such as their highly reflective surface.. and also since they're round, unless you are directly over them they look oval.

Some time back I adapted this section of a photo enlarger and it works great EXCEPT the only way to check the reflections in the view finder was to stand on a ladder or set it all on the floor which is hard on my back and knees crawling around it.. So on my list for some time has been searching thrift stores for a small, stable, low cart on wheels and I found just the thing the other day.

This computer printer cart is the right height and not only has wheels, it has drawers... A girl can never have too many drawers... And weather permitting I can roll it out on the porch...which will make Susan happy! So I plan to use it this weekend to photograph all the buttons I've painted over the last week...
Last but not least I found a solution for another little but irritating problem... All my buttons have metal shanks on the back so they do not lie flat. I'd been using terrycloth but found something even better.... heavy rubber shelf matting with BIG holes is perfect for supporting the buttons for photographing and spraying with sealer... None of the above efforts are all that exciting but finding that many solutions to problems has really been gratifying...