Hey everyone - just a quick post to let people know I am turning on the "moderation-all" for comments on this blog. This means that all comments must be approved by me before they are posted. This is because almost all the comments I am getting these days are spam. If that changes, I will turn off moderation again.
Yes, I know I haven't written in awhile - this summer has been hectic! I've been sick a few times, and haven't had much time to test colors or write blog posts. Luckily I am doing better now, so I am hoping to have some more posts for you soon.
CiM usually comes out with new colors in the fall, so I look forward to new glass to try out and share with you soon. In the meantime, there are several colors I have played with but haven't written about yet, so you might see those relatively soon.
Have a great summer, all!
Showing posts with label blog. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blog. Show all posts
Monday, July 31, 2017
Friday, May 9, 2014
Bead Soup Blog Party - Blog Hop Reveal!!
8th Bead Soup Blog Party List of Participants' Blogs
Finally, the day we all have been waiting for - the big reveal! I'm writing this on Friday, and have it set up to post at midnight eastern time tonight/Saturday morning - hopefully it will work.
First, I would like to say thank you to the party administrator Lori Anderson. She is so amazing - throughout all of this huge thing, and with everything she has been going through in her life. I would never have been able to handle something like this, so kudos and hugs to her!
Now, as many people might have already guessed, this is my first time participating in what has become a very popular event. I'm first and foremost a glass beadmaker - I rarely make jewelry, and I almost always use lampwork in any that I do make. So this was a huge challenge for me, not knowing what I would get and having a deadline to create something out of unfamiliar components.
I have to say, it was really fun! I am proud of myself for actually being able to come up with something that I think looks nice and used every single thing I was sent.
My partner in this party is Kat BarronMiller of Midnight Kat Productions.She sent me this gorgeous selection of beads - you can see the blog post about them here.
The soup was beautiful, and it took me a few weeks of pondering to finally decide how to use it. I knew from the beginning that I wanted to add pops of color to bring out the lovely autumn tones in these stones and in the brass findings. I wanted to enhance the red and complement it, so I added some scarlet glass pearls and some amethyst gemstone beads. I also added tiny metallic purple glass pearls and some deep chocolate brown pearls - some shiny and some with a matte finish for visual interest.
Stringing the necklace was pretty simple, so I started with that - adding two strands so the wearer could twist them if they liked. The brass wire really worked nicely - easy to wrap into connectors. I really love the look of the brass chain with the pearls, too.
The tricky part was coming up with a pendant that would incorporate all of the larger pieces - the dragonfly and flower, and also the agate focal. I know we were't required to use everything, but I loved all three, so I couldn't leave any of them out.
I've never used anything this large in my jewelry, so it took me awhile to figure out what to do. At first I thought I might glue the dragonfly to the stone, but I really wasn't sure I wouldn't make a huge mess of that, and I doubted it would come off if I messed it up. So I decided to just make a sort of wire bail with the chocolate pearls, and then hang the dragonfly in front of the stone with some chain links. The effect is somewhat cumbersome when handling the necklace, but once it's on, it hangs well.
I connected the flower element above the pendant using the flat connectors and some chain. It's a little odd-looking, but I like it.
Lastly, I attached the pretty clasp. The pearl strands are strung on Soft Flex wire and crimped, so the whole thing feels pretty substantial and strong.
I had tiny dragonfly charms left, along with vintaj drops, connectors, and balls, so I made some earrings to go with the necklace. I love these teeny litle dragonflies! The whole ensemble reminds me of fall, which is just my thing.
Now, strangely, I don't wear a lot of jewelry, and don't have pierced ears anymore, so I will likely give this to someone I love as a present. :)
My muse had a great time with this challenge - thanks to all for reading!
Now, go forth and visit all the other fantastic artists!
8th Bead Soup Blog Party List of Participants' Blogs
Finally, the day we all have been waiting for - the big reveal! I'm writing this on Friday, and have it set up to post at midnight eastern time tonight/Saturday morning - hopefully it will work.
First, I would like to say thank you to the party administrator Lori Anderson. She is so amazing - throughout all of this huge thing, and with everything she has been going through in her life. I would never have been able to handle something like this, so kudos and hugs to her!
Now, as many people might have already guessed, this is my first time participating in what has become a very popular event. I'm first and foremost a glass beadmaker - I rarely make jewelry, and I almost always use lampwork in any that I do make. So this was a huge challenge for me, not knowing what I would get and having a deadline to create something out of unfamiliar components.
I have to say, it was really fun! I am proud of myself for actually being able to come up with something that I think looks nice and used every single thing I was sent.
My partner in this party is Kat BarronMiller of Midnight Kat Productions.She sent me this gorgeous selection of beads - you can see the blog post about them here.
The soup was beautiful, and it took me a few weeks of pondering to finally decide how to use it. I knew from the beginning that I wanted to add pops of color to bring out the lovely autumn tones in these stones and in the brass findings. I wanted to enhance the red and complement it, so I added some scarlet glass pearls and some amethyst gemstone beads. I also added tiny metallic purple glass pearls and some deep chocolate brown pearls - some shiny and some with a matte finish for visual interest.Stringing the necklace was pretty simple, so I started with that - adding two strands so the wearer could twist them if they liked. The brass wire really worked nicely - easy to wrap into connectors. I really love the look of the brass chain with the pearls, too.
The tricky part was coming up with a pendant that would incorporate all of the larger pieces - the dragonfly and flower, and also the agate focal. I know we were't required to use everything, but I loved all three, so I couldn't leave any of them out.
I've never used anything this large in my jewelry, so it took me awhile to figure out what to do. At first I thought I might glue the dragonfly to the stone, but I really wasn't sure I wouldn't make a huge mess of that, and I doubted it would come off if I messed it up. So I decided to just make a sort of wire bail with the chocolate pearls, and then hang the dragonfly in front of the stone with some chain links. The effect is somewhat cumbersome when handling the necklace, but once it's on, it hangs well.
I connected the flower element above the pendant using the flat connectors and some chain. It's a little odd-looking, but I like it.Lastly, I attached the pretty clasp. The pearl strands are strung on Soft Flex wire and crimped, so the whole thing feels pretty substantial and strong.
I had tiny dragonfly charms left, along with vintaj drops, connectors, and balls, so I made some earrings to go with the necklace. I love these teeny litle dragonflies! The whole ensemble reminds me of fall, which is just my thing.
Now, strangely, I don't wear a lot of jewelry, and don't have pierced ears anymore, so I will likely give this to someone I love as a present. :)
My muse had a great time with this challenge - thanks to all for reading!
Now, go forth and visit all the other fantastic artists!
8th Bead Soup Blog Party List of Participants' Blogs
Monday, March 24, 2014
I Was Interviewed on Glass Beads Daily!
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| My bowl of tiny spacers - from 4mm to somewhere around 10mm. |
I love Glass Beads Daily, because we can post our own links there every day, and I get decent traffic when I do. Holly also puts up a post every day - which amazes me! I'm lucky if I post once or twice a month on my blog. Holly rocks!
Saturday, February 8, 2014
Just Joined the Beads Soup Blog Party!
When I get my bead soup ready, I will post a pic of it here on the blog. Then, when I have something made from the soup I get from my partner, I will post that here, too.
Enjoy!
~Kandice
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Giving Bloglovin a Try
Follow my blog with Bloglovin
Seems like a nice place for artsy blogs.
Oh, and Facebook's down right now! :) Whatever shall I do?
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Lovely Color Inspiration
I just wanted to post a quick blurb this morning - my cousin Andrea has a new blog about weddings....and she is inspired by color! A woman after my own heart. She has some lovely color articles up that just may inspire some creativity. I know I love the Slate, Hot Pink and Creamsicle post. Her photos are delicious and her writing is effervescent and fun. Can't wait to see what else she comes up with. :)
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Question
Hey all! I have a question for you....
I have been thinking about starting a personal blog for awhile now. But keeping up with two blogs might be a bit much for me. So I am wondering - should I mesh the this business/bead/color oriented blog with more personal notes? Or do you guys even really want to read anything personal?
Should I keep this blog totally on topic, or would it be interesting to any of you to see more stuff here about my life? Would you just skip over the personal stuff to get to the bead/color/glass related posts?
I'd love to know your thoughts - please feel free to post in the comments one way or another, and why, if you like. Thanks for reading!
I have been thinking about starting a personal blog for awhile now. But keeping up with two blogs might be a bit much for me. So I am wondering - should I mesh the this business/bead/color oriented blog with more personal notes? Or do you guys even really want to read anything personal?
Should I keep this blog totally on topic, or would it be interesting to any of you to see more stuff here about my life? Would you just skip over the personal stuff to get to the bead/color/glass related posts?
I'd love to know your thoughts - please feel free to post in the comments one way or another, and why, if you like. Thanks for reading!
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Win a Tutorial!
Lori Greenberg is having a contest over on her blog to win one of my tutorials! She interviewed me last week on Beadnerd and decided to review the Raised Flower tutorial and have a giveaway. Take a look at her blog over on Beadnerd - it's a wonderful business blog for artists. Her personal beadmaking blog is great too! Thanks Lori!
Monday, June 1, 2009
End of the Saga, and on to Better Things!
So, after a week or so, I have some clarity regarding the stolen pic issue. (read the last two posts for more info.)
As it turns out, Tartsie, the Etsy member who used my bead pics in her banners for sale, replied to my inquiries about what was up with that.
She claims to be very young - right out of high school. She also let me know she got my pics from something called Flickr Creative Commons.
Now, the high school thing - well, first off, I am not sure I believe that it should be a good excuse, but I can let that go, I think.
However, the Flickr Creative Commons thing is just strange. I did at one time have a Flickr account, but I never uploaded anything to Flickr Creative Commons. From what I understand, Flickr Creative Commons is an area of Flickr where people can grant licenses giving permission for use of their artwork. However, none of the license agreements I read there grant permission to sell the artwork to others.
It's confusing, I know. At any rate, Tartsie claims that someone else must have put my pictures there if I didn't, because that's where she got them. She was unaware that she did anything wrong. I am not sure if I believe and/or agree with that, but there's not much I can do other than what I have already done.
The person who bought the banners has graciously taken them down and replaced them with something else, for which I am very grateful. Tartsie's shop on Etsy has been closed for a long time, so I am hoping this won't happen again with her.
However, this is a common thing, and I am sure it is happening elsewhere as we speak. All I can do as an artist is hope that people will listen to me and use their own images in their marketing. I also fervently hope that people who make and sell banner ads, avatars and web graphics will consider purchasing images legally and not resort to lifting them from the web, even from a place called Flickr Creative Commons. Obviously, it's easy to illegally post images there.
Aaaaanyway, I am moving on from this. I made some pretty beads yesterday, so if you read this far, thank you - here are some pics! :)
As it turns out, Tartsie, the Etsy member who used my bead pics in her banners for sale, replied to my inquiries about what was up with that.
She claims to be very young - right out of high school. She also let me know she got my pics from something called Flickr Creative Commons.
Now, the high school thing - well, first off, I am not sure I believe that it should be a good excuse, but I can let that go, I think.
However, the Flickr Creative Commons thing is just strange. I did at one time have a Flickr account, but I never uploaded anything to Flickr Creative Commons. From what I understand, Flickr Creative Commons is an area of Flickr where people can grant licenses giving permission for use of their artwork. However, none of the license agreements I read there grant permission to sell the artwork to others.
It's confusing, I know. At any rate, Tartsie claims that someone else must have put my pictures there if I didn't, because that's where she got them. She was unaware that she did anything wrong. I am not sure if I believe and/or agree with that, but there's not much I can do other than what I have already done.
The person who bought the banners has graciously taken them down and replaced them with something else, for which I am very grateful. Tartsie's shop on Etsy has been closed for a long time, so I am hoping this won't happen again with her.
However, this is a common thing, and I am sure it is happening elsewhere as we speak. All I can do as an artist is hope that people will listen to me and use their own images in their marketing. I also fervently hope that people who make and sell banner ads, avatars and web graphics will consider purchasing images legally and not resort to lifting them from the web, even from a place called Flickr Creative Commons. Obviously, it's easy to illegally post images there.
Aaaaanyway, I am moving on from this. I made some pretty beads yesterday, so if you read this far, thank you - here are some pics! :)
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Tag, I'm It!
I've been tagged! So, as usual, I made a graphic. Please feel free to swipe it for your own tagging pleasure. :)Cen over at Cen's Loft tagged me today with some fun questions. The game is to answer the questions and then tag other blogs to do the same.I love stuff like this. Don't forget to let the other blogs know you tagged them, and to link to whoever tagged you!
Here are the questions -
8 Things I'm Looking Forward To:
1. Seeing the new Star Trek movie
2. The new Harry Potter movie!
3. Autumn
4. Finishing the dress I am knitting for my niece Morgan
5. Morgan's first birthday!
6. Not having to worry about money (okay, that's wishful thinking)
7. The ISGB Gathering coming to Seattle (wishful, again)
8. No more war
8 Things I did Yesterday:
1. Worked on my new website (more on that another day)
2. Dropped Entrecards
3. Played World of Warcraft for a little while
4. A load of laundry
5. Made beads for the first time in awhile - in light purples, greys and blacks
6. Listened to Pandora while working
7. Petted my kitty Ember while she played with my feet
8. Hugged my husband
8 Things I Wish I Could Do
1. See my family more often
2. Create without worrying about selling
3. Have a baby (yes, still)
4. Travel - all over!!
5. Play the piano
6. Get rid of guilt
7. Keep Ember from peeing all over everything (Thank goodness for Nature's Miracle!)
8. Fly
8 Things That or Shows I have Watched
1. American Idol
2. Dollhouse
3. Bones
4. Friends
5. Fringe
6. Ghost Hunters
7. Storm Chasers
8. Mythbusters
Now, to tag 8 people and their blogs! :) Man it's hard to pick just 8.
1. Sand & Sea Designs - Oh, her jewelry is luscious!
2. Lampwork Beads by Lara - a blog by a local beadmaker and friend
3. Dogmaw Blog - another beadmaker favorite
4. Deronda Designs - and yet another!
5. 2 Witches Blog - one of my faves on Entrecard
6. Split Rock Ranch - another fave!
7. A Rose By Name - lovely beadwork!
8. Gregorio Art Studio - a very interesting blog
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Off Topic: Entrecard Top Droppers
Every month, Entrecarders like to show a little love to the people who have visited our blogs the most. Here are my top Entrecard droppers for the month of February. Thanks so much guys!
Also, you can add your entrecard Blog to my new EC Drop List! This list is more general than my webring - any blog with an EC widget can join it.
Top EC Droppers for February
Youniquely Chic
All Blogspot Templates
Dallas Marketing Services
ThemeLib
Outlandish Observations
my review
Dunia soer
John Wright Art
Unique You
Stroll Through Storyland
Also, you can add your entrecard Blog to my new EC Drop List! This list is more general than my webring - any blog with an EC widget can join it.
Top EC Droppers for February
Youniquely Chic
All Blogspot Templates
Dallas Marketing Services
ThemeLib
Outlandish Observations
my review
Dunia soer
John Wright Art
Unique You
Stroll Through Storyland
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Blog Award
How sweet - I got another award from Saffie's Blog - this one is called the Kreativ Award - thanks so much!!The rules are to nominate 5 blogs which inspire me, and link back to the blog which gave me the award. Also, let my nominees know by commenting on their blogs. So here goes!
Kimberly Affleck - her blog is new, but her beads are so inspiring, and she is a lovely person!
Ever After Artistry - gorgeous beads and a clean, simple blog - perfection!
Nagibeads - she tests glass and has the cutest hearts!
The Glass Owl - a delightful blend of weird and cute - her owls are so much fun!
Lampwork Diva - Cindy's blog - just overall lots of fun to read!
Thanks for the great blogs, you guys. :)
Friday, January 30, 2009
Off Topic: Entrecard Contest Entry - Who's My Fave?
There's a contest going on at one of the blogs of Entrecard, and this is my entry. To enter, I need to answer this question:
What is your fave Entrecard blog site and why?
My favorite blogger over at Entrecard is also another beadmaker and bead blogger. Her name is Jenelle, a.k.a. Sortafloweringdesigns, and her blog is called Glass Muse.
From a purely asthetic point of view, this blog is gorgeous to look at. Juicy colors, lots (but not too much) going on in the blog, and stunning beads to look at. Browsing her blog when I drop my card there everyday brings a smile to my face. She's got lots of great content on a variety of artistic and glass/bead/jewelry related topics, too. I'm most drawn to her brilliantly colored beads and her sweet, floral graphics.
Jenelle also has another section of her website devoted to the Entrecard dropping system, which brings up art and hobby blogs for me to drop my card at. This makes my day easier, and lets me see some really pretty, artistic blogs. You can join her list, and your blog will be put in her code, which when you click on it brings up ten entrecard blogs at a time to drop your card at. What I like is that the blogs listed are all hobby, art, fashion and craft related. I usually stick to those kinds of blogs when I am dropping.
Jenelle is a talented artist, brilliant marketer and colorful soul. That's why she's my fave over at EC!
If you want to enter this contest, please visit the website in the widget below. You can also visit Entrecard here to see what all the fuss is about. Don't forget to join my Entrecard webring, too!
What is your fave Entrecard blog site and why?
My favorite blogger over at Entrecard is also another beadmaker and bead blogger. Her name is Jenelle, a.k.a. Sortafloweringdesigns, and her blog is called Glass Muse.From a purely asthetic point of view, this blog is gorgeous to look at. Juicy colors, lots (but not too much) going on in the blog, and stunning beads to look at. Browsing her blog when I drop my card there everyday brings a smile to my face. She's got lots of great content on a variety of artistic and glass/bead/jewelry related topics, too. I'm most drawn to her brilliantly colored beads and her sweet, floral graphics.
Jenelle also has another section of her website devoted to the Entrecard dropping system, which brings up art and hobby blogs for me to drop my card at. This makes my day easier, and lets me see some really pretty, artistic blogs. You can join her list, and your blog will be put in her code, which when you click on it brings up ten entrecard blogs at a time to drop your card at. What I like is that the blogs listed are all hobby, art, fashion and craft related. I usually stick to those kinds of blogs when I am dropping.
Jenelle is a talented artist, brilliant marketer and colorful soul. That's why she's my fave over at EC!
If you want to enter this contest, please visit the website in the widget below. You can also visit Entrecard here to see what all the fuss is about. Don't forget to join my Entrecard webring, too!
Contest Sponsors:
Friday, January 23, 2009
Awarded - thank you!
rkdsign88 over at Handmade with Heart gave me the Lemonade award today! Such a nice thing to do - thanks sweetie!
This award is given to people who look at the bright side of life and make lemonade out of lemons. These are the rules for participating - which is totally up to you, the bloggers nominated:
1. Put the logo on your blog.
2. Nominate 10 blogs which show great attitude or gratitude!!!
3. Be sure to link your nominees with your post.
4. Let them know they received the award by leaving a comment on their blog.
5. Share the love and link this post to the person that gave you the award.
So here are the blogs I am nominating - some of my favorites!
8. Deanna Chase
9. Glass Muse
Congrats, guys! :)
Off Topic - Tag!
One of my fave blogs, Lenox Knits, tagged me! I've never been tagged before, so let's hope I can do this right. :)
The rules are easy - list 7 things about yourself - weird or random stuff. Then tag seven other blogs to play the game. Also, link back to the blog that tagged you. Sounds like fun!
So here goes....
1. I love almanacs. I love reading the little snippets of information and fun anecdotes, and I LOVE the weather predictions. I like the daily moon phase and astrological information! I collect almanacs - especially pagan-related ones. The Witches' Almanac is my favorite.
2. My hubby and I are highschool sweethearts, and our parents still live within a few blocks of eachother. We met my freshman year of high school and were in the band together. We didn't start dating until my junior year. We have been together almost 19 years now.
3. I have to turn off those commercials about abandoned or abused animals. I literally cannot stand to watch them - I cry every time they come on.
4. I think I might be tetrochromatic. It would explain a lot.
5. I am an aunt! I have two gorgeous nieces - Morgan and Maia. Maia's three and Morgan is almost five months. I ADORE them - they are amazing little girls.
6. I can't have children, and have a long history of misscarriages. Hubby and I have decided that we can live vicariously through our siblings when they have kids. Now that we have two nieces, we get the fun of spending time with them and the ability to give them back to mommy and daddy afterwards! :)
7. I am utterly fascinated by anything paranormal. I like the science aspect of it rather than the "feeling" aspect, but I think both are valid. I love the idea of trying to scientifically prove the existence of things like ghosts, esp and ufo's. So yeah, I watch Ghost Hunters. Yey!
Okay, there you have it! Now - tag, you're it! It's okay, of course, to decide not to play, especially if you've played before. Here are the tagged blogs - some of my faves!
1. The Copper Cauldron
2. Sweetwater Designs - Fire & Glass
3. Crafting Bliss
4. Geek Mom Mashup
5. Judith's Bead Lounge
6. BeadsMe
7. Cen's Loft
The rules are easy - list 7 things about yourself - weird or random stuff. Then tag seven other blogs to play the game. Also, link back to the blog that tagged you. Sounds like fun!
So here goes....
1. I love almanacs. I love reading the little snippets of information and fun anecdotes, and I LOVE the weather predictions. I like the daily moon phase and astrological information! I collect almanacs - especially pagan-related ones. The Witches' Almanac is my favorite.
2. My hubby and I are highschool sweethearts, and our parents still live within a few blocks of eachother. We met my freshman year of high school and were in the band together. We didn't start dating until my junior year. We have been together almost 19 years now.
3. I have to turn off those commercials about abandoned or abused animals. I literally cannot stand to watch them - I cry every time they come on.
4. I think I might be tetrochromatic. It would explain a lot.
5. I am an aunt! I have two gorgeous nieces - Morgan and Maia. Maia's three and Morgan is almost five months. I ADORE them - they are amazing little girls.
6. I can't have children, and have a long history of misscarriages. Hubby and I have decided that we can live vicariously through our siblings when they have kids. Now that we have two nieces, we get the fun of spending time with them and the ability to give them back to mommy and daddy afterwards! :)
7. I am utterly fascinated by anything paranormal. I like the science aspect of it rather than the "feeling" aspect, but I think both are valid. I love the idea of trying to scientifically prove the existence of things like ghosts, esp and ufo's. So yeah, I watch Ghost Hunters. Yey!
Okay, there you have it! Now - tag, you're it! It's okay, of course, to decide not to play, especially if you've played before. Here are the tagged blogs - some of my faves!
1. The Copper Cauldron
2. Sweetwater Designs - Fire & Glass
3. Crafting Bliss
4. Geek Mom Mashup
5. Judith's Bead Lounge
6. BeadsMe
7. Cen's Loft
Monday, January 5, 2009
Completely Off Topic - Entrecard
I've been using this traffic program for a couple of weeks now, and I really like it. There are a few things I would like to say to all those who are using Entrecard, and for those who are thinking about it. (Click on my widget to the right if you have no idea what this is).
First, I personally think it's really fun to use - and I have run across several interesting blogs which I have bookmarked. Dropping my card is easy, for the most part, and being able to advertise for free is a nice added perk. I spend about an hour every day while drinking my coffee just checking out blogs, commenting and dropping my card.
There are just a couple of constructive criticisms I would like to offer other bloggers who are using this program - maybe it will help you increase your traffic and the usability of your blog.
1. It's a huge pet peeve of mine to click on a blog from the Dashboard at Entrecard and have it load fully and not be able to find the widget at all. If your widget is no where on the landing page, I can't drop my card, and I will likely not take the time to read your blog. Please, put the widget somewhere on the landing page. Even if it's at the bottom - that's fine. *Especially if you participate in the web rings or special lists for Entrecard users.
2. Do not automatically load sound or video on your blog! Nothing makes me want to leave it faster. It not only taxes my system - it's rather annoying, because I am often listening to something on my own system. If you want sound on your blog, give the user the option of playing it or not.
3. If you have so many widgets, advertisements, images, etc that are randomly scattered all over your blog, I will likely leave without dropping my card. Too many widgets and ads reduce the effectiveness of the ads anyway. It's mind boggling to me why a blogger would want to clutter their pages up so much that it's hard to find anything. I won't stay and read your posts if I am overwhelmed by the sheer volume of distractions.
4. Make sure your scripts all work and that your blog actually loads. I've clicked on many a blog link only to find that script errors are making it impossible to load. Please make sure you check to see if your blog is actually loading.
Now, with the criticisms, I would like to add a few positive things.
I love blogs which.....
1. Are pleasing to the eye. Pretty images, organized pages, subtle but interesting graphics - these all make me want to stay and read your content.
2. Have interesting and engaging content. Posts on how to make money online are so prolific that I often just leave. But posts which contain information that draws me in and makes me think will often get my bookmark. I realize this is a personal thing, though. Just, you know, blog about something you think might interest the masses.
3. Are updated more than once every few months. I struggle with this too, but I promise to work on it if you will!
4. Have contests - I love entering contests - just make sure the rules are clear!
5. Have a graphic Entrecard and not a text Entrecard. No real explanation for that one - it's just my preference.
That's pretty much it! And if you have never heard of Entrecard and you have a blog, I highly recommend it. Even if you don't have the time to drop your card, etc., you can buy the credits to advertise. There are a lot of art/hobby/fashion related blogs there, which really is attractive to me as an artist who likes to keep up on art-related discussion. And the color inspiration on some of these blogs is astounding. :)
First, I personally think it's really fun to use - and I have run across several interesting blogs which I have bookmarked. Dropping my card is easy, for the most part, and being able to advertise for free is a nice added perk. I spend about an hour every day while drinking my coffee just checking out blogs, commenting and dropping my card.
There are just a couple of constructive criticisms I would like to offer other bloggers who are using this program - maybe it will help you increase your traffic and the usability of your blog.
1. It's a huge pet peeve of mine to click on a blog from the Dashboard at Entrecard and have it load fully and not be able to find the widget at all. If your widget is no where on the landing page, I can't drop my card, and I will likely not take the time to read your blog. Please, put the widget somewhere on the landing page. Even if it's at the bottom - that's fine. *Especially if you participate in the web rings or special lists for Entrecard users.
2. Do not automatically load sound or video on your blog! Nothing makes me want to leave it faster. It not only taxes my system - it's rather annoying, because I am often listening to something on my own system. If you want sound on your blog, give the user the option of playing it or not.
3. If you have so many widgets, advertisements, images, etc that are randomly scattered all over your blog, I will likely leave without dropping my card. Too many widgets and ads reduce the effectiveness of the ads anyway. It's mind boggling to me why a blogger would want to clutter their pages up so much that it's hard to find anything. I won't stay and read your posts if I am overwhelmed by the sheer volume of distractions.
4. Make sure your scripts all work and that your blog actually loads. I've clicked on many a blog link only to find that script errors are making it impossible to load. Please make sure you check to see if your blog is actually loading.
Now, with the criticisms, I would like to add a few positive things.
I love blogs which.....
1. Are pleasing to the eye. Pretty images, organized pages, subtle but interesting graphics - these all make me want to stay and read your content.
2. Have interesting and engaging content. Posts on how to make money online are so prolific that I often just leave. But posts which contain information that draws me in and makes me think will often get my bookmark. I realize this is a personal thing, though. Just, you know, blog about something you think might interest the masses.
3. Are updated more than once every few months. I struggle with this too, but I promise to work on it if you will!
4. Have contests - I love entering contests - just make sure the rules are clear!
5. Have a graphic Entrecard and not a text Entrecard. No real explanation for that one - it's just my preference.
That's pretty much it! And if you have never heard of Entrecard and you have a blog, I highly recommend it. Even if you don't have the time to drop your card, etc., you can buy the credits to advertise. There are a lot of art/hobby/fashion related blogs there, which really is attractive to me as an artist who likes to keep up on art-related discussion. And the color inspiration on some of these blogs is astounding. :)
Thursday, December 18, 2008
New Home!
Hi everyone - welcome to the Coloraddiction Blog's new home here on Blogger. I decided to move over from Wordpress because I like Blogger's capabilities more, and because I have been having technical issues over there for awhile.
So pardon the dust while things get settled. I have manually imported all the posts from the Wordpress blog over to here - but please be aware of a couple of things. First, all the posts have the wrong dates on them - I imported them yesterday and today, so they all say December 17th or 18th. Most of these posts have been written over the last year. Second, there's no way to import the comments made on those old posts, so if you did comment on a post, I am so sorry. Please post your comments again if you like.
I will also be updating the links and resources throughout the next couple of days.
We do have a very detailed Glossary and a Resources page for beadmakers over at the Coloraddiction.com main site, though, so that can tide you over 'til we are finished here.
Anyway - if you have any suggestions, please feel free to comment! Thanks so much! :)
So pardon the dust while things get settled. I have manually imported all the posts from the Wordpress blog over to here - but please be aware of a couple of things. First, all the posts have the wrong dates on them - I imported them yesterday and today, so they all say December 17th or 18th. Most of these posts have been written over the last year. Second, there's no way to import the comments made on those old posts, so if you did comment on a post, I am so sorry. Please post your comments again if you like.
I will also be updating the links and resources throughout the next couple of days.
We do have a very detailed Glossary and a Resources page for beadmakers over at the Coloraddiction.com main site, though, so that can tide you over 'til we are finished here.
Anyway - if you have any suggestions, please feel free to comment! Thanks so much! :)
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