Bitter o'Clock

I’ve moved this blog over to a new location. I wanted to try out Tumblr, but found it...

Mon, 07 May 2012 15:34:30 -0600

I’ve moved this blog over to a new location. I wanted to try out Tumblr, but found it didn’t offer as many design options as I would like. You can find my new blog at http://blog.bitteroclock.com.

Thanks!

Revamping Old Product Lines on Etsy

Fri, 04 May 2012 15:03:45 -0600

I often come across this piece of advice while reading articles about how to improve one’s Etsy shop: if you have a product that does not sell well, trash it. Well, obviously, the articles are more eloquent in saying this. I get to the point: if it’s not doing well, trash it. The articles warn that this may be a product line that you like quite a bit, but if it’s not working, then it won’t work. Again, they were more eloquent.

I’ve come to the realization that they were talking about my Newsboy hats. Yes! They were specifically talking to me and specifically about that particular line of hats. Now, I have a love-lust relationship with these hats. Since I first created one, I have adored these hats and own half a dozen of them. Of course people would love them, too!

But, well, the sales told a different story. Newsboy hats did not sell well. Moreover, they didn’t even get noticed—always being shoved aside by whimsical animal hats or glamorous flapper hats.

Scrap them altogether? I couldn’t. I decide to revamp the image of them instead. What hats were popular in my shop and why? Many of these hats had some kind of flair (brooches, flowers, facial features), while the newsboys only had their hopes and dreams on which to rely. So in the grand tradition of Portlandia (well, almost), I decided to put a flower on it. (I may actually try putting a bird on it next. Post forthcoming.)

Suddenly, this:

Becomes this:

And this:

Another way in which I revamped the hats and their listings is by figuring out why I like them so much. When I’m sledding, they’re warm and they stay tightly on my head. Yet I also wear them in the summer: I pull them back on my head and wear them like slouchy hats. How come I hadn’t mentioned this in the description before?

So here is my advice: before trashing a product line altogether, figure out how to revamp it.

Why do you like this product so much?
Have you mentioned the reason/s in your listing?
Is there anything you can change or add to make it trendier?
Can you put a bird on it?
Or maybe it’s as simple as taking better pictures?

Spring Into Pastels Treasury

Thu, 03 May 2012 09:26:56 -0600

Spring Into Pastels Treasury

Handmade Banks (or, Why Everyone Needs a Woodworking Grandpa)

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 14:26:00 -0600

Everyone wishes they had a woodworker for a grandpa. Someone to build neat toys for you that you can pass on to your own children some day.

Well, guess what? I do have that grandpa! And this is no “sitting in a rocking chair on the porch, whittling away at a block of wood” grandpa. No, he has huge (and scary) machines, heaping wood piles, and some serious style.

Over the years, he’s made a bunny-shaped coat hanger and various animal puzzles for Kayden. He made a book-thong holder for me. And a huge, sturdy rocking horse that I pretended was for Kayden, but it was actually for me too.

He also lets me shoot guns when I visit, but that’s another post for another day:

So why am I bragging about my grandpa and waving around all the awesome things he makes for us? Because he is now selling some awesome stuff in the Hermits of Afton Etsy shop. Yes, you too can have a woodworking grandpa!

His first line of products is of the awesomely clever and fun wooden banks. Each one has a theme which is great for either men or women, while the craftsmanship and durability makes it great for kids too.

Get a bank and start saving up for…

…a new music instrument:

…a round of golf:

…escaping Arizona:

…just the hell of it. Because, face it, you are a responsible kid/adult who likes saving money, right?

(The irony of spending money to save money is not lost on me.)

Let me tell you a story about saving money: I don’t really do it well. In fact, I forget that I have a savings account. This is normally a good thing, because it means you’re not withdrawing from that account. But in my case, it means I’m not depositing anything into it either.

So how do I save money? I don’t spend my change. At all. I just keep it in my pocket. Then each night, I drop all of my change into a bank. That’s it. And because I don’t really want to pay for a skirt with dimes and nickels, I don’t spend that money. As a result, it accumulates. Last month, I dumped all that change into a coin counter at the bank. Guess how much a month of saving coins produced?

$175.

Seriously. After a month of dropping coins in a bank each night.

Of course, if you have no qualms about buying dinner with those dimes and nickels, there are handy ways of retrieving your money from these banks:

Start reaping the benefits of a woodworking grandpa today!

Finish Unfinished Projects Week

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 09:54:11 -0600

I’m a hat-maker 90% of the time. Sometimes I’ll throw in a custom-ordered book thong or a custom-ordered baby blanket or a custom-ordered scarf. But it’s not often I set out to make any of these items for the hell of it. The reason why is that I love hats and wear them all the time.

The real reason, though, is that it takes me about 2-4 hours to make a hat (depending on the complexity). And after I make a hat, I can spend time adding artistic touches to it. I like being able to kick out a “base” quickly, then do the interesting work to make it a special Bitter o’Clock hat.

What I can’t do is work on the same stitch over and over again, with no end in sight. And with nobody ordering that product (and therefore, no deadline and no tangible motive for doing it), I lose interest.

With all that being said, I was setting up my designated craft area last week when I came across my Unfinished Projects drawers. A big pile of sad, half-finished (or half-unfinished, depending on your perspective) projects just filling up precious space.

(And sadly, this is not even all of the projects…)

With the weather getting warmer and fewer people thinking wearing a skein of yarn on their heads in 70+ degree weather is a good idea, the business was slowing down. I decided it was time to work through some of those projects.

First up was that pink lacy thing you see up there. It was supposed to be a jacket, I think? Maybe a shirt? I have no idea. What I do know is that I had no intention of seeing it through. And so, in the grand tradition of “Bitter o’Clock turns unfinished shit into neckwarmers,” I turned it into a neckwarmer (or rather, a cowl, which is pretty much a baggy neckwarmer):

Crochet Infinity Cowl- Mesh Pattern in Powder Pink

Next up, the blue thing.

Now, I remember where I was going with this. I was going to be a baby blanket for a pregnant coworker. Well, I believe that baby is now five years old and I haven’t been at that job for four of those years.

And so, it becomes a neckwarmer:

Crochet Infinity Cowl- Mesh Shell Pattern in Summer Sky Blue

Now, lest you think I’m all about the lazy style of crocheting, here are some projects that were actually begun with the intention of being neck accessories. Granted, I intended them to be scarves, but whatevs…Neckwarmers!

Crochet Scarf Necklace in Celery Green and Cream

Crochet Infinity Cowl- Buttercream Scarf with Stripes of Dark Red and Orange

Crochet Flower Neckwarmer with Gold Button- Scarflette in Purple and Olive Green

By the week’s end, I had finished five of the projects. Watch out for more upcoming finished projects (oh, let’s just call it like it is, they’ll probably be neckwarmers) next week!

Yeondoo Jung is an incredibly creative photographer who used...

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 16:34:30 -0600

Yeondoo Jung is an incredibly creative photographer who used children’s drawings as his inspiration. These works are a few years old, but still magical. His photos make me want to recreate some of my own childhood drawings.

"Crobotics is when you’re curled up on the couch with a glass of wine and good company or TV and..."

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 10:48:12 -0600

“Crobotics is when you’re curled up on the couch with a glass of wine and good company or TV and you’re drinking, talking or following the program and crocheting. Crobotics hinges on having a project that lends itself to casual inattention and incidental slight inebriation. This does not mean the crochet has to be plain, dead easy or boring. For example, even if you’re doing a multiple row repeat lace stitch pattern, once you’ve memorized the repeat you can go crobotic, not have to think about every change-up and if you’re truly in the zone, not even have to look.”

- Crobotics: Automatic Crochet by Doris Chan

New Book Thongs Listed

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 10:59:17 -0600

I don’t work on book thongs very often. I’m usually so busy making hats that these little guys really fall by the wayside. However, as the weather is getting warmer, I have begun stocking my book thong shop, Bitter Book Thongs, with more products.

I like these because you can customize these for pretty much any person or any holiday. For Mother’s Day, you can make a bouquet of flowers extra-special by tying a book thong around the stem, using her favorite colors or hobbies as a theme.

Remember my post about creating an illusion? Here is another...

Fri, 30 Mar 2012 09:12:55 -0600

Remember my post about creating an illusion? Here is another article about creating illusions in photography, found on Bitter Sweet Blog. Her solution to creating steam is hilarious. Click on the link below (or the photo) to go right to the article.

Video

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 09:32:44 -0600

Yarn Hacking

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 09:30:09 -0600

I absolutely love how creative knitters and crocheters are getting every day. Here are some of my favorites right now:

Knitted Beer, submitted to KnitHacker.com by Mst3kt

Link’s Crochet Bomb Bag at NerdApproved.com

Amigurumi Crochet Hook Plushie at Nerdigurumi

Video

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 12:31:33 -0600

How to WIN on Etsy: Create an Illusion and a Theme

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 15:50:39 -0600

This is part of a series in which I gave half-assed advice on product photography. Part one was about brightening your photos, while part two was about getting rid of the background clutter.

Before I jump into talking about photos, I have an announcement to make. My dear grandma has caught Etsy fever. As you may remember, she is the one who taught me how to crochet back in 2005. Well, now you can check out her own mad skillz at Hermits of Afton! However, because she has no interest in the marketing and selling side of the craft business, her shop is being run by yours truly. Because of this, I get to have more fun with the product photography (not that shooting hat after hat after hat isn’t thrilling…but it is nice to work with other types of products). And that is what has inspired today’s post.

In the post about background clutter, I mentioned how you should “control your environment”. Basically, make sure whatever is in the photo is intentional and remove anything that doesn’t belong. Creating an illusion is similar in that you are controlling the shot, but in this case, you are also showing a product in action. Is that vague enough for you? Here are some examples—using products by Hermits of Afton, of course.

This pair of adorable monkey slippers should sell themselves, all by themselves, right?

Sure, a detail shot of the product is really nice. But a second shot showing how the product can be used would be even better, don’t you think? Hats being worn on heads and not just laying on the floor. Pictures hung on the wall, instead of laying on the floor. A blanket wrapped around someone, rather than laying on the floor. Okay, you got me: anything is better than just laying your product on the floor.

So, we have a pair of baby booties and should theoretically show a baby wearing it. One problem, though: I have no baby and I have no access to a baby.

Enter the illusion.

I don’t have a baby, but what I do have is a little girl with skinny arms:

Now scroll back up to those earlier pictures and try to un-see that the legs are actually arms. That, my friend, is il-lus-ion.

Here’s another example that also incorporates the idea of “hide the (unintentional) clutter”.

For the line of dish soap covers, I wanted to create a scene of tranquility. A scene that says, “By buying these prairie dress washcloths, your kitchen will be transformed into a magical place where doing the dishes downright rocks.”

The only thing in the background is a blurred plant and a sunlit window, both intentionally included in the shot. But you know what isn’t included in the Etsy pictures?

All the dirty dishes I had to move to get a clean (no pun intended) shot, not to mention all of our counter debris. By purposely excluding that from the shot, I made sure the customer’s focus would only be on the product and how they could use it in their own home.

(By the way, if you look closely, you may even see the dividing line of where I cleaned the sink and counter.)

Here’s the last example, which incorporates intentional clutter, creating an illusion, and maintaining a theme.

For the line of sewing products, I wanted to create a theme which was, “Look how bright and beautiful and clean your sewing workspace can be! To get this space, all you need to do is buy this scissors case!”

Now, when I said “intentional clutter,” you didn’t really expect clutter, did you? A couple needles, a button, a sewing machine, strewn haphazardly as if a seamstress were caught by surprise while hard at work. Hard at work in her very bright and very clean workspace.

Again, illusion. I don’t actually know anybody whose workspace is that neat. Here’s mine when I’m sewing:

However, does anything in that photo appeal to the buyer in you? Probably not. And that’s why we create an illusion.

Here are some wonderful examples of creating illusions and establishing themes on Etsy:

Gray Donkey Toy Rattle by MiracleFromThreads

Forget the baby! With such a whimsical layout, wouldn’t you want to play with this?!

Vintage Monogram Passport Wedding Invitation by BeyondDesign

Since this wedding invitation is both travel- and vintage-themed, the seller maintained the theme by incorporating vintage travel items.

So, if you’re confused about how to create a theme, answer these questions:

Who (or what) will use the product? A baby? An overworked mother? A dog?

How do they (it) use it?

How should they feel while using it? Pensive? Tranquil? Excited?

Can you photograph it being used?

Better yet, is there a way to create the illusion of it being used, while controlling your environment?

Finally, how can you tie all of these ideas into one beautiful picture?

And lastly, here are some ideas for creating an illusion:

Have a beach-themed item, but no beach within 500 miles? Find a sandy volleyball court or playground.

Have an item that is designed to be used on animals…but you’re allergic? Find a realistic-looking stuffed animal to use (but for the love of Rob Kalin, make sure the viewer can’t tell it’s a stuffed animal…stay tuned for that upcoming article)

Have an item to be used at a wedding? Buy a $30 dress from a thrift store and stage a mock wedding, using close-up shots. Better yet, you may even have a friend who would love to relive her wedding by posing in her dress.

I am loving this crocheted mobile, found at the Etsy shop, Amy...

Thu, 15 Mar 2012 08:06:05 -0600

I am loving this crocheted mobile, found at the Etsy shop, Amy Gaines.

This is my newest favorite song, “Big Jet Plane” by...

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 16:05:05 -0600

This is my newest favorite song, “Big Jet Plane” by Angus and Julia Stone. Keene calls it “that song where the guy sounds like a little kid.” Just ignore him.

Check this out from the Etsy shop, lilimandrill. You could put...

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 09:40:37 -0600

Check this out from the Etsy shop, lilimandrill. You could put your face on a stamp. If you’re hip, you could put a mustache on a stamp, then stamp it on whenever you’re in an ironic mood. I could have one made with the word “Fantastic!” on it, then stamp anything I deem worthy. ANYTHING could be made into a stamp.

Wouldn’t that just be the coolest thing? No, but really, it is. Quit arguing. Or you won’t get the Fantastic stamp on your forehead. You’ll get the “I argue a lot” stamp instead.

Make Something Cool Every Day

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 08:00:06 -0600

Check out this post at Bored Panda, with awesomely creative photographs by Brock Davis.

If you are a beginner photographer or designer looking for an easy way to success, then all you need to do is one project. That’s it! Only this one little “365 project”. 1 hour a day, for the rest of the year doing something creative, and nothing more! Everyone can sacrifice 1 hour a day, right?

Copper and Silver Etsy Treasury by HermitsOfAfton

Tue, 13 Mar 2012 15:35:00 -0600

Copper and Silver Etsy Treasury by HermitsOfAfton

Tonight I explained to Keene the idea of the Pantone seasonal...

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Tonight I explained to Keene the idea of the Pantone seasonal colors and why they’re important. At the end of my lecture, I had the feeling he thought it was some kind of ultra-powerful, super secret society.

Boys.

It occurred to me, though, that Etsy sellers may not think to research such things as which colors have been designated as “upcoming trends.” I won’t explain the logic behind staying up to date on these shades, but it may be worth your time to either add some new products in the Pantone colors…or see if any of your existing products already match them.

Bitter o'Clearance

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0700

If you haven’t been by my Etsy shop lately, you are about to miss out on an awesome deal. For a long time, I’ve wondered how to make my shop look more cohesive. I liked the variety, but at the same time, it was a little too chaotic with too many product lines.

My first step was to ditch the book thongs. Or rather, to move them to their own Etsy shop. I’m not really feeling them right now, but I don’t want to quit them entirely. So there they sit until I decide whether to start promoting them…or to just kill them already.

My next step is actually happening right now. I thought about which items were making my shop look cluttered. Which items didn’t have that “Bitter o’Clock” look about them. Which hats had been hanging around since before I developed my own style.

It was actually easy for me to spot them. They weren’t quirky, strange, or random. They were just hats. Nice hats, sure. Well-made, okay. But just hats. So, I decided these were the ones that had to go.

To ring in 2012, I am discontinuing some of my older products. From now until Wednesday, January 11th, all items in the Clearance section have been marked at 50% off the normal price. Yes, this includes the custom orders. But this is first-come, first-served. I will not be re-listing anything.

On Thursday, January 12th, they will be marked down an additional 25%…by only for a few hours. By Friday, January 13th (wooooooooo), they’ll be gone. Vanished into the ethers of Etsy. For-ev-er.

There you have it. Pop over to my Etsy shop to see if any of those hats tickle your fancy or anything else.