You're the boss of me.

Have you seen my custom bag listings yet?  These are becoming my most popular item.

People love being the boss of me -- designing their own, one-of-a-kind, messenger and laptop bag.

Customer get to pick everything, from the color of the bag to design on the patch.

Check out some of these recent personalized designs.

Cthulhu in custom colors	B9 Robot in custom colors
Torchwood	Sketch for a custom owl design
For a singer (color/layout check)	Sugar Glider (color/layout check)

The Latest and Greatest

Love Yourself First.

Treasury by ArtsiBitsi (also for ArtsiBitsi)

Do you know about Etsy Treasuries? They're a member curated gallery of handpicked items from Etsy member stores.  Each treasury features the best in a particular category, or the best example of a certain style of work.  Etsy sellers love to get featured in a treasury, for the distinction, and for the opportunity to have their work seen by a new audience.  Anyone with an Etsy account can make a treasury.

Now here's a little activity for you to try to see how this can work for a seller.  Click each of the two links below and note the differences and similarities in the results.  (Try substituting your shop name for ArtsiBitsi in each one.)

1. Treasuries featuring ArtsiBitsi: http://www.etsy.com/treasury/search/?search_query=ArtsiBitsi
2. Treasuries created by ArtsiBitsi: http://www.etsy.com/people/ArtsiBitsi/treasury

   Lend yourself to others, but give yourself to yourself.  ~Michel de Montaigne  

Sometimes I make treasuries for fun.  I like the challenge of filling up a treasury with a particular color, or difficult to find item.  Sometimes I make treasuries especially to feature members of one of my teams.

And sometimes I make treasuries just to promote myself.

   Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you.  ~Ralph Waldo Emerson  

Here's how it would work.  Say for example, I have a new item in my store, like a new zombie or alien design.  To promote it, I do the traditional things like post about it on my Facebook, twitter, and Flickr.  But sometimes I also build a treasury around it.

To make my promotional treasury, I put in one item from my own store, but fill it out with other sellers who are doing something similar.  Making robot paintings or robot t-shirts, for example.  This is really fun.  There are some really amazingly talented people with stores on Etsy.

After I build and publish the treasury, I contact each of the sellers and give them the link.  Now they are happy because they are in a treasury, and they look at all of the items.  They might even see one or two things that they really like -- this being a treasury of zombies or whatever.  Hopefully they also tell their Facebook Fans and Tweeps about being featured.  And these people look at my treasury too.

   If I am not for myself, who will be?  ~Pirke Avoth  

In the end, a few more people see my new design than would have seen it otherwise.  And fifteen other sellers get a little more exposure than they would have gotten otherwise.

Is it such a terrible thing?  To love yourself first, so that others can love you too?

   Put your future in good hands - your own.  ~Author Unknown  

We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?  Actually, who are you not to be?  You are a child of God.  Your playing small does not serve the world.   ~Marianne Williamson, 1992 (commonly misattributed to Nelson Mandela)

Bringing Awesome to Weirdos Everywhere

Robot Messenger Bag by ArtsiBitsi

Recently I was asked to explain why I sell almost exclusively online, through Etsy, rather than through gift shops and bricks-and-mortar stores.  Aren't most people more comfortable shopping in person, where they can pick up and examine an item before deciding to buy it?  What kind of person would buy a backpack or messenger bag online -- solely from pictures?

I can relate.  I would never buy an avocado online.  And fortunately I don't have to, because there are lots of supermarkets that sell avocados.  I can squish as many real avocados as I like before deciding which one I want to buy.  (I don't really squish the avocados -- I'm just saying, I could.)

But suppose I am a weirdo from Smallville, Kansas and I want a sweet skull backpack or cthulhu messenger bag.  My local Walmart doesn't carry them and neither does the mall.  Shopping online is the best solution for a quirky non-conformist like me.

So my online shop is like a beacon and gathering place for fellow nerds, geeks, oddballs and weirdos worldwide.  Through the power of the interwebs, I am able to connect with cool people across the pond and down under.  

I Cthulhu, Do You?

As a fan of classic horror and a great reader in high school, I enjoyed stories by Poe, Shelley, Bram Stoker and Lovecraft.  I loved stories about robots and alien landscapes.  Probably I empathized more with the creatures in these tales than with the heroes who were trying to slay them.  For sure, I thought of myself as a stranger in a strange land -- awkward and full of strange impulses and appetites that I didn't understand.  

Now that I'm more grown up, maybe I can be friends with the monsters that live inside my head.  Or at least I can channel them into more productive directions.  I can take what is dark, and make light of it.

One of the monsters that I am finding very interesting right now is the Cthulhu.  

It's commonly pronounced kə-THOO-loo now, but this high priest of the Great Old Ones has had many names throughout time. Cthulhu are said to evoke abject terror in all who have the misfortune to encounter them.  According to HP Lovecraft, their appearance "yielded simultaneous pictures of an octopus, a dragon, and a human caricature.... A pulpy, tentacled head surmounted a grotesque scaly body with rudimentary wings."  Sounds charming, right?

But like most monsters, Cthulhu have power.  The Great Old Ones are telepathic and "knew all that was occurring in the universe".  They ruled the earth before humans, but now they sleep, waiting to be awakened and dreaming of "new ways to shout and kill and revel and enjoy themselves, and all the earth would flame with a holocaust of ecstasy and freedom."  Perhaps they still visit us, "moulding [our] dreams". 

All of this gives me very pleasant shivers. 

Etsy Team Columbus: Punk Rock Challenge

VOTE FOR MEEEE!

One of my teams has started doing a monthly challenge to inspire our creative muses and generate interest in our group. This month's challenge is entitled "Punk Rock". Check it out.

http://etsyteamcolumbus.blogspot.com/2009/04/punk-rock-challenge-team-submissions.html

The ballot is on the right. Vote for your favorite item (which is "Artsi Bitsi's skull IPOD cozy", of course!).

Monstrous Video

Monsters bags and backpacks are coming to your planet. You must take them to your leader. And also to the mall. And to your school. And to your office.

Get yours at http://artsibitsi.etsy.com

Something New from the ArtsiBitsi Monster Lab

Lately I've been wondering if I could make a drawstring bag small enough for personal electronics (particularly an iPhone), and still have enough space for a cute monster face.

Yes.  Yes, I can.  Check 'em out on Etsy.

mwahahahahahah.

Bits is Back!

Wow.  December was a crazy month.  First, things got very frantic with my "day job" at Ohio State, trying to wrap up the quarter.  There was a ton of papers and exams to score and final grades to calculate.  I also had custom orders and shows to sew for.  Then, hubby and I went on the Big Safari to Africa, which meant dropping off the grid entirely for two weeks.  Our heads got empty and then got filled up again with all of the interesting sites and experiences that Africa has to offer.  

Finally, there was that little issue of Christmas with the presents, and that craziness of all family gatherings that feature wine, hyped up kids and too many cookies.  

Now it is quiet.  I am just starting to get ahead of the massive amounts of laundry and clutter that accumulated while I was off doing other things.  And I am getting back to my sewing.

Yesterday, I spent the entire day on Artsibitsi business.   I made six new Monster Minis, which was fun.  I had forgotten how much I like sewing those little faces.

And I also started two new online shops at Artfire and 1000Markets. Both sites appear to be trying to compete with Etsy, which is fine with me.  I am all about free markets, but it might be kind of late in the game. Like Etsy, they are offering free stores.  Artfire is also offering no fees on all sales.  I'm not sure what their business model is, or how they expect to make any money.

At this point, both sites seem to be encouraging community building, featuring blogs for the artists, right on their store page.  But both are also in trial mode so I expect bugs and new features to appear regularly.  Artfire seems to be the more aggressive of the two, claiming to be able to respond to market needs (for features like Google Analytics) within hours.  On the other hand, I started my store on 1000Markets last night and it still has not been "approved", whatever that means.  

Anyway, any new distribution channel is worth exploring to see if there is any value in them. Especially since the cost is basically just my time.  Check my stores and let me know what you think.  http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=Shop&seller_id=16106  and artsibitsi.1000markets.com/

What's the magic number?

A couple weeks ago, I wrote that I thought that I had cracked the code
on Etsy listings when I started listing my Monster Bags under Geekery
instead of Purses. That strategy is still working decently. I've had
more online sales in the past month than I had in the previous three
months. That's going well -- knock on wood -- and makes me more
committed to online sales channel.

But I've noticed something else that is perplexing. As a part of my
quest for enlightenment, I've been reading Etsy's Storque articles for
ideas on how to do a better job with my online store. JJM Finance has
written several (probably self-serving) articles about using hearts
and views to project sales
(http://www.etsy.com/storque/how-to/the-numbers-game-ratios-and-your-shops-popularity-2146/)

So, I've been checking my hearts and views pretty often, using this
Heart-o-matic tool:
http://www.craftcult.com/heartsitems.php?userid=artsibitsi&submit=Submit.
JJM Finance says that I should be looking at the ratio of hearts to
views. There's a golden proportion that will let me know when I'm
about to have a sale. For example, he says that for his shop, "my
heart-to-sale ratio has consistently been around 3".

After spending a good 45 minutes pulling down data and wrestling with
it in a spreadsheet, I have this. 

Over the last five months, my
hearts-to-sale ratio has averaged about 4.65. The low point was in
September where I had 20 hearts and only one sale. But that was
rapidly followed by a few weeks where my ratio was really good, like 2
hearts per sale. And now for the last month or so, it's been closer
to 4 or 5 hearts per sale.

:-)

A year in monsters

The Way of the Monster.

A Product for a Different Price Point

So, the last time I was at the Open Door Art Studio, Ashley told me that they seem to sell more items that are small and lower priced.  Seems like the price of my Monster Bags continues to be an obstacle.  Courtney reassures me that $40 is a reasonable price, but she also says that most of their customers don't want to pay it.
Okay, okay.  I get it.  I need another product that hits a lower price point.  

Introducing MONSTER MINIS. Basically this is a scaled down, Mini Monster bag for just the few items that you absolutely, positively need. 

These little pouches are 3.5" x 5.5" -- just a little bit bigger than your standard phone or coin purse. You can even put a digital camera or PDA in them. Or if you prefer, you could hide a couple (ahem) "sanitary" or other personal items.

There's a skinny pocket on the back for your business cards or ID. But keep it minimal. These mini-purses are strictly for folks who like to travel light and move fast.  

I designed and constructed four of these over the weekend. The assembly line worked a little better and I averaged one hour each. Since the labor and materials are a fraction of the regular bags, I can price them lower. I listed these at $13 each. I have a few corrections to make on the design, but I will probably keep them under $15.  That seems to be the price that others are asking for similar wristlets/pouches.

The good news is that Courtney and Jon both seemed very excited about this design and the price, and want me to make lots for the store and the upcoming shows.

Monster Factory

Well, I learned a lot about art and manufacturing this week.  First and foremost, there are NO economies of scale in the art business.  Making eight Monster Bags all at once takes exactly the same amount of time as making them one at a time in series.

Here are the steps --

1) Select and cut the fabric.  Fleece for the skin and cotton or satin for the lining.  I need one piece for the body (inside and out), a block for the legs and arms, and two very long pieces for the straps.  I really love these bright colors for the skins.  And I get to use some crazy zebra and batik prints that I've been saving up, for the linings.

2) Sew together the straps.  Try not to fall asleep whilst zigzaging 72" long seams.  Reload the bobbin a lot.

3) Feet and arms.  This is slightly more entertaining than the straps since the final product actually resembles something like what its going to be.  This time, I stuff the little legs and arms with some cotton to make them squishier.  Fun.

4) Design and applique the faces.  Because the fleece is so bright, I've decided to put an extra layer of black around the eyes.  I've also experimented with the stitch and people seem to like the zigzag better than the satin.  Lots more bobbins to fill.  This step takes me all weekend to finish.  But just look at those cute faces!

5) Sew up the bodies of the bags.  Gotta make sure that all the arms and legs get completely sewn in place, all the curves lay flat, and all the corners are square. Pin, press, stitch, turn, press. Pin, press, stitch, turn, press. Pin, press, stitch, press again.   Good thing that the sewing machine and the ironing table are so close together.

6) Labels and hardware.  Each bag gets an ArtsiBitsi label.  Monster bags get a set of grommets for the backpack straps.

7) Thread the straps and tie.  I made myself a flexible threading tool for this step and it still takes time and patience.

8) Naming.  Each Monster whispers her name to me and I write it down, along with her story.  It's a very moving ceremony.

9) Graduation.  Yesterday all my little Monsters left home and went to live with Courtney, Ashley and Jonathan at the Open Door Art Studio.  It was a little sad for me, but they looked excited and full of the spirit of adventure.

Birth of a Monster

Would it be interesting to see the process of the creation of a Monster? It might surprise you to learn that it does not involve a dark tower, or stolen body parts nor even a serendipitous thunderstorm.

Here are some photographs of my studio after yesterday's cut-a-thon.   

This is my work table where all the pinning and cutting happens.   It features a most excellent, stainless steel table with an adustable height shelf underneath for my supplies.  It fits a nook between two closets, with set of big windows that look out across the woods. My kitties like to lay on the fleece (back left corner of the shelf) and watch the birds come to the feeder.  The feeder is only a few inches from the window, so both the kitties and I get a good look at the woodpeckers and nuthatches and tufted titmouses.

The other important station in my studio is the sewing and pressing table.   This is not ideal space, as it's a little crowded and underlit.  And there is nothing really to look at but the material that I'm working on.   Maybe I need to put a mural on the wall. Or some mirrors.   ... Or maybe I just need to concentrate on making straight seams.  :-)

BTW, that's just an ordinary Brother i6000 sewing machine.  It has about 60 different stitches, but I probably only use three of them.

So I am basically designing eight monsters at once -- an heroic feat which has not been attempted before.  By me.  

Aren't these fun colors?

Every monster needs a colorful fleece skin, and a coordinating lining.  Most of these will have some sort of funkadelic cotton lining. At this point, I am already starting to think of names and personalities to give to each bag.

In addition to the skin and the lining, I also need to cut the feet and arms and straps.   There is about ten feet of strap for each bag.  Here are all the straps, cut to length, but not finished.  When I set down to sew them, it will be a few hours of ironing and sewing.  And a lot of thread.  I'll probably have to replace the bobbin on my sewing machine three or four times.

Don't the straps look like guts?  Mwah ha ha ha.