Featuring : Love Me Ragged By Tracy

I'd like to introduce to you one of our newest sponsors :

Love me Ragged by Tracy

Blog Interview questions

Where are you from?     

The Central Coast of California (Grover Beach)

What do you specialize in?  

Photography Props for all ages

How long have you crocheted?   

on and off since I was 8

Where do you draw your inspirations?

 Myself, my daughters, nieces , nephews, sister in law and even my dad.

Do you have a item you've made that is super special and why?  

My sleepy owl hats (especially the hot pink and green) It was the first animal hat in my shop and the first one I received pro photos of. My sister in law Nicole is a professional photographer and when I showed her the pink and green owl hat I had crocheted, she totally loved it and that is really when I decided to change directions with my shop. Since I listed the owls I have sold so many. They are so cute and very popular! I have dreams that I am crocheting them and nightmares where I forget to make and ship them. lol

What other crafts do you like to do? 

 I love making rag quilts. Originally that is what my shop was about. I couldn't come up with a name and my sister in law Nicole came up with Love Me Ragged and it just stuck. It was perfect! I will continue making them again in the future.

Do you donate or give back any portion of your sales to charity or an organization?  

I recently found out about "Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep" and for those of you who don't know about this organization please visit their website and read about them  they really are amazing! I will be making donations to them. I have made a few other donations recently. It feels really good to give back!

Why do you love to crochet? 

I love taking a ball of yarn and creating something by hand for a child that can be cherished for a lifetime. Handmade items are always special! Especially if it's for a photo shoot because when I receive the feedback that the mommies just adore my props, I know I am doing a good job and that's the best feeling. I also love seeing the babies in my hats! That is rewarding in itself.

Who taught you to crochet? 

Both of my right handed grandmothers. I am a lefty and with a lot of patience (mostly on their part) and practice, I was able to learn the art of crochet the backwards way!

On a More personal note: 

Fun questions: 

if you could have a super power what would it be?  

The ability to cure cancer!

If you had a million dollar how would you spend it  

Buy my brother a house, my dad a truck & toy hauler and the rest to St. Jude

What's your favorite color?

 Pink

If you are a salad what kind of dressing do you have?

 Definitely blue cheese

What did you want to grow up to be when you were a child?

         A nurse! I'm pretty close Certified Medical Assistant

Favorite movie and why? 

The Notebook. Best love story ever! They never stopped loving each other. Reminds me of my grandparents.

Thanks so much Tracy for sharing your lovely shop with us! 

Please check out Love Me Ragged by Tracy 

facebook. blog  and

 Etsy 

Coupon code: facebook2012 for 15% off entire purchase (expires Feb 14th)

Featuring: Sweet Crochet Creations

I'd like to introduce you to one of our newest sponsors Carrie Bennett of 

Sweet Crochet Creations

I've asked her a few interview questions so we can learn a little bit out her and her shop:

 Were are you From?

Monterey, CA (but am now in the San Francisco Bay Area) 

 How long have you crocheted? 

I think I learned when I was really young - maybe 8?  I remember crocheting a sweater for my Cabbage Patch doll!  But I recently picked it back up when my husband started doing photography professionally.  It's kind of like riding a bike, but I had to figure out how to read patterns and learn a few new stitches.  There are some great resources online.

What is your favorite stitch? 

Probably a half double crochet.  Or maybe any decreasing stitch...since that usually means I'm almost done!  lol 

What do you specialize in ? 

Crochet hats for all sizes 

How did you get started in your business? 

My little shop started because I was making hats and props for my husband's photography business (www.colejbennettphotography.com).  Clients started asking about purchasing the hats, so I happily obliged.  :)  I just added some items to my etsy shop and I'm hoping to get a little busier this year.  My mom actually helps a lot too.

 Do you have an item you've made that is super special and why?

Recently, an old friend asked if I could create two police caps for unborn twins, due any day.  They lost their father to prostate cancer while their mother was pregnant and he was a beloved police officer.  I was on a mission to find a pattern.  I found one, tweaked the pattern a little, and made the hats.  I added their father's badge number as well as a baby blue ribbon, which signifies prostate cancer.  The girl's hat has a little flower as well.  I'm looking forward to seeing the babies with their hats (any day now), and I hope they cherish them.  

On a more personal note: 

 If you could have a super power what would it be ? 

FREEZE TIME - all I ever want is more time!  To crochet, to sleep... 

 Favorite vacation spot or travel destination? 

My favorite vacations have been in Mexico.  My honeymoon in 2005 was in the Riviera Maya and I've been to Cancun twice in the past few years. 

What did you want to grow up to be as a child? 

Either a teacher or a pediatrician because I wanted to work with kids. I ended up a high school guidance counselor, so I'm still working with kids - just the big kids.  It's a rewarding job and you can't beat the school year's schedule! 

Thanks so much Carrie for sharing your shop and a little about you! 

Please check out Sweet Crochet Creations on Facebook and Etsy!

Chain-less Foundation Heart Headband

Need a simple project for Valentines day! This one is perfectly sweet! 

Chain-less Foundation Heart Headband

Materials : Small amounts Thick and Thin Handspun Wool Yarn (wpi 3-4-5) 

I get mine from Ilashdesigns

N/P -15- hook (10.00 MM) 

Tapestry needle for weaving in ends

Measuring Tape 

You can really make this any size but I'm focusing on NB

(you can find a general sizing chart here for any size) 

For Newborn we want it to measure around 13 inches. This headband will have about a two inch stretch so it can fit 13-15 inches (nb-3month) 

We are going to use a method called a chain-less foundation. If you don't know how to do it. I have a video linked up to help here

Headband

- work a sc chain-less foundation for about 20 chs (measure your headband un-stretched. Should be about 13 inches long. You may need to increase or decrease your stitches based on the type of yarn used)

 Join to 1st ch, (be sure your work is not twisted ) Fasten off and weave in ends. 

*Note if you work your ends to the right side of the headband you can tie it off and the heart will cover it! 

Heart Appliqué

Pattern use with permission by Sara Sach of Posh Pooch Designs
-This is actually a design by my late Grandmother! 


 (N- Hook) -
Round 1 -Ch 3, work in the first ch from the END, 3 tr, 3 dc, chain 1, 1 tr, ch 1, 3 dc, 3 tr, ch 2, sl st, leave a 8 in tail of yarn, and pull to the back.


Closing the Hole in the Center:
Thread the tail of yarn on to the yarn needle, then on the back side of the heart draw the yarn through all the loops in the circle, and secure the yarn. Fasten off but leave about 8-10 inches to attach to headband. 


Attached the heart to the seam where we joined the headband. It will hide it nicely! Try to weave off your ends to the back stitches of the heart. That will keep your work secure and no knots of loose ends in the headband itself. 


*Other yarn options.
 I've seen several stores coming up with a non-wool thick and thin you can try these or you can also use your favorite bulky weight or two strands of worsted Weight for this project. Just be sure to measure your headband so that it is two inches smaller than the size of the head measurement  and it will come out fine!


If you have any questions or see any mistakes (which happen :P) Feel free to contact me using the contact tab and I will try to get back to you within 24 hrs!


Enjoy! 

Copyright ©2012 Calleigh’s Clips & Crochet Creations All rights reserved. These instructions may not be photocopied or reproduced in any manner. They may not be sold. I have made every effort to ensure that these instructions are accurate and complete. I cannot, however, be responsible for human error, or variations in individual work.

Actual finished product may be sold. My Etsy shop name ID and URL web page address must be mentioned in listing or wherever item is displayed: Calleigh’s Clips & Crochet Creations by Elisabeth Spivey http://www.calleighsclips.com

Holy Social Networking Batman!

This has been an amazingly crazy week! I'm obsessed with checking my google analytics for my shops and blogs. I love to see where people are coming from and it's a good way to see what people are blogging or talking about in my shop!

I recently have noticed that my views in etsy had significantly rose from some very interesting sources that have talked about my shop and our products!

Usually my top sources come from Facebook, my Blog and Pinterest!

I thought I'd share a few! Some are really good! Some are unique and Some just really annoy me!

1. DailyMail - UK Based Online Newspaper - Featured my Batman and Robin Cape Sets
2. Buzz Feed- Featured my Batman and Robin Cape Sets
3.The Mary Sue - The Guid to Girl Geek Culture - Batman and Robin Cape Sets
4. Slash Film Blogging the Reel World -  Featuring Batman Cape Sets
5. Poorly Dressed - Featuring the Turtle cape (while the name is deceiving it wasn't a mean article)

That's just to name a few that I had high volume hits from! Social networking is amazing!

Here are my thoughts on it! I really love the free advertisement but I guess if I was going to share someones work or ideas I would credit them. I think that people don't realize there are copywrites on most of the images I use. (while some of these do give me credit in name I don't understand why no links)

If your going to share someones work. Here are a few things I think are very important:

1. Ask them if it's okay! - Send them an email, ask a few questions, get the facts straight before you publish and article!
2. Make sure you have permission to use images. Most the time if it's for advertising me I would say of course as long as I and the photographer get credit.

     a. it's never okay to remove watermarks!
     b. it's never okay to alter the image in any way!
     c. Its never okay just to use someones else's photos - Don't copy, save or use! - You must get permission from the photographer, I and  maybe even the parent! Believe it or not some parents don't want there babies image plastered all over the internet. (while they probably task the risk and is why photographers should have parents sign a release to the photographer do they know how it could be used)

3. Let them know when your going to publish the article or blog!
 
I would like to know because -

 a. I got tons a hits over the course of two days. This resulted in awesome sales( way above normal). Not that that will happen every time but since one was a popular newspaper article in the UK things got totally crazy with my pattern listings. I would have made sure there were extra causing less hassle for the customer and for me. Also it being international I got a tons of sale over night so again knowing when it was I could have better prepared.
 
b.  It would have prevented lots of convos and emails about how to find the items that were shared.
(my guess is that they googled and found me that way since many didn't link to any of my websites. So people didn't now where they could buy my patterns or items!

So I hope the people that published these aren't offended but I think that some of you could use a little internet etiquette!

*side note back to Pinterest! While I to am obsessed with it! Please Please Please don't save image and upload them without actually linking to the source. (my turtle image is everywhere I can usually get on Pinterest and it will pop up on the front page often) I wish I had time to go through and paste my links all over it but that would be a little tasking and I don't have time for that.

*I will do my best to protect my photos but I think I could seriously hire someone to find all the images used with out credit and fix the issue. I just don't have time to be the copywrite police!
 I found one person using it as there profile picture on a forum because they just thought it was cute. While I can understand it being cute that isn't your picture to use! (they kindly agreed to take it down) {thanks}

This also reminded me that one of my goals for the next month is to re-watermark all my images. I've not done them all but I'm going to do it so that even my professional images that are already watermarked have my website one them in a way that to me will probably distract from the image but make it hard for someone to remove it and then if it does get taken then at least my web address will be there so people can source it back to me! Hopefully that will also prevent other sellers from using them. Just a reminder to the craft world show your own work! You can easily find a photographer to work with! I've had the privilege to work with some awesome ones and if you can't save for a great camera and work with natural light! I started from scratch too!

A lot of people ask me how I find my photographers and how did you grow so fast and how do you get so many orders. The bottom line is hard hard work! It's taken me two years to get here and I have a lot of people to thank for helping me along the way but the truth is it's really is hard work! I love what I do and I wouldn't change it for anything. I'm always happy to help! I hope you find this article helpful and maybe the next time you blog or share a resource don't for get to give credit where credit is due!!

So the long and short of it! If your going to share or blog about someone, get permission, get the fact straight and give credit where credit is due!

Thanks!

Winner of the 2012 Crochet a day Calendar

Hello! Thanks so much for those of you who participated in the 2 Year Celebrations yesterday! I had my biggest sales day ever and gave away around 650 Cupcake patterns and lots of other fun prizes!

We have one last prize to pick a winner for and Random.org has spoken 

The winner of the Crochet a day 2012 Calendar is :

#35  Christin said...

i liked you

December 31, 2011 2:13 PM

Christin has 48 hrs to claim her prize by using the contact tab to email me! If I don't hear from her a new winner will be selected.

2 Year Celebration FUN DAY!!

It's Here! 

If you haven't joined in on the fun on my Facebook page I think you just might be missing out!!!

I'm giving away lots of patterns. Some are for a pattern of choice others are for the eight new patterns I released today! (Jan 3, 2012) 

1st

 We have 10 % off finished items in my Etsy shop

Just enter the code at check out 

celebration2012

 2nd

 We have a sale on patterns

 buy 3 for $10.00 

3rd

a Brand New Free Pattern for today only 

Just Click this link for your free download 

 Celebration Cupcake Cuddle Cape Set 

4th

I'm giving away a free advertising blog on my blog

Click here to enter - 

5th

If you haven't had a chance to enter to win the 2012 Crochet a day Calendar you can still do that all today! 

So many Great things going on! I hope you'll stop by and see the new designs and play along!