Getting a Lot of Spam Comments, and Other News

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!

Random News and a Tutorial Sale

HI all!  It's been awhile, I know.  Sometimes the blog suffers when things are busy!

So here are a few updates....

First, I am having a tutorial sale this week.  Until May 10th, all of my tutorials on Coloraddiction are 30% off!  This includes the pumpkin tutorial.  Just use the coupon code MAYSALE when checking out.

**this does not include tutorials by Kim, or tutorials listed on Etsy.  Only the items under "Kandice's Tutorials" on the page linked here are included.


Next, just to let all interested parties know, the reveal date for the Bead Soup Blog Party has been moved to next weekend, instead of this weekend.  The coordinator moved it for medical reasons, and I wish her a speedy recovery and lots of love!

I have finished my jewelry pieces for the blog party/hop, and I am really happy with them.  It was a serious challenge for me, since I am first and foremost a glass beadmaker, and have only limited experience designing jewelry.  But I had a lot of fun stretching my creative muscles!  You'll see the results next weekend, and I will talk more about my process then.

Another piece of news - I have finished May's Bead of the Month Club beads.  They're purple and green, some of my faves for summer.  I'm now taking orders for June and beyond. Click the pic to see previous months and info on signing up.

As far as glass testing goes, I haven't done a lot lately.  I did run tests on the new CiM color Flax, but it's so pale and transparent that pictures of it just didn't turn out.  Plus, the color itself is way better as a layering color for cream, pale green or yellow, so pics of beads don't really show just the Flax color.  Sooo, I decided that it wouldn't be a fabulous color to write up.

I can tell you that it's lovely for what it is - a very, very pale transparent yellow-green.  I used it to enhance the cream color of Hazelnut Mousse in these pink and cream beads. As you can tell, any green that Flax may have when looked at by itself goes away when you use it for layering.  It's really, really light.  I may buy some to use in place of Effetre Light Brown when I need a paler cream color, but that's about the extent of its use for me.

Last but not least, people have been wondering where the beads are lately!  Mostly because I haven't been listing as many of them on my website as I used to. I have been making other beads to sell, but instead of posting them on the website, I have mostly been listing them as auctions on a couple of new Facebook groups.

If you're interested in getting some of my beads for a really great price, join one of the Facebook groups to bid. You will also see lots of other great lampwork artists posting their auctions. Lots of eye candy! My auctions are usually 24 hours long, so if you don't see anything from me, it just means I haven't got any to post that day.

 Lampwork Bead Market Group

Yes, I will still be listing beads on the website - just maybe not as many as before. I will continue to try and do both for awhile and see how that turns out.

Thanks for reading, and have a wonderful weekend!  :)

Bead of the Month Club - Floral Earring Beads

I just finished updating my website Lampwork.net...I'm doing a Bead of the Month Club.  It's for earring beads in flower designs.  I'm excited because I have never offered anything like this before, and I think it will be a lot of fun.  Flowers are my favorite - and a favorite of many of my customers!

Last year I had several people ask me about earring pairs.  People wondered why I don't offer them more often, and why my sets don't include matching beads for them to make earrings.  I vowed to try and fill that request - and I think this is a great way to do it.

Each month I will make up a batch of flower beads in a great color scheme inspired by the season.  Some months they will be raised flowers, some months they will be surface flowers - etc., etc. 

Customers who sign up will also get a matching pair of lampwork spacers, and a little surprise - crystals, or silver beads, or findings, or....?  The price also includes shipping!

Unlike most clubs like this, there won't be any commitment - people can buy one month and cancel if they want to.  Or, they can buy several months up front and save a little bit of money (there's a discount for the 3 month and 6 month subscriptions).  It will all be handled by PayPal's subscriptions, which makes it easy for me and for the customer.

More information about the Club is on my website - just click the pic below to go there. I hope you will check it out!  :)

Nope, I'm Not Flattered - And I'm Not Going Away

For those who have followed me and my work for the past decade or so - you've likely heard this all before. So feel free to skim or skip as you see fit.  For those who don't mind a bit of ranting, stay here and get ready.

This morning, several people alerted me to yet another website that has stolen an image of mine.  This one is slightly different than the dozens of other sites that have stolen my images to use to sell their copies of my beads - but I will go into that later.

This website - Indian Bead Store, aka Dev Exports has taken the below image and used it on their main website.

Midnight Mermaid bead set, made in June 2009

I can, of course, prove these beads are mine, because I have several other photos of them that aren't published online.  I also know what they're made of, how they're made, and can point to the fact that they carry my artistic voice.

I also talked about these beads in my post about CiM Mermaid, added to this blog in December 2009 (originally written in June, and moved over from my old Word Press blog).

Now, I'd like to talk a little about how people have responded to my many discussions about this kind of thing over the years, because I just need to get a few things off my chest.

First, I know most people are just trying to be helpful - and I really do appreciate that.  However, there are a few things being said to me that just don't help at all.

"It's because your beads are so beautiful!" - This comment (and its variations) is incredibly kind, but misguided.  The people who lift my images to use as marketing for their own work do not do so because of the beauty of my beads.  They do so because it is easy.  My website is www.lampwork.net. A simple search for lampwork brings up my website and all the images therein. I think the image thieves are looking for a quick and easy way to design their websites, and my images are right there, easy to lift.

Other artists don't have this problem nearly as often, because their website URL's are often their names or business names. I have thought of changing my web address, but I have had lampwork.net for over ten years.  It's established, and I think it would hurt my business to move.  But I am still considering it.

"You should be flattered!" No.  No I shouldn't.  I get no credit for the image, my name is nowhere on the site.  The images are usually taken because it is easy (see above), and because they think they can copy the beads. Often, they do.  This not only hurts my business, it makes me feel used and tossed aside. Yes, it's true that I should grow as an artist and make beads that are harder to copy.  I know this.  It's hard to grow as an artist when things keep happening that thwart motivation, though.

"You should watermark your pics!"  Yes, I tried this for years, but people were able to lift the images, remove the watermarks and proceed to post the images wherever.  A passing familiarity with photo editing software makes this pretty doable. So I stopped watermarking my pics because I think watermarks are ugly.

"Don't let this bother you - just ignore it!" and "You're letting them get the better of you!" This is a blatant disregard and invalidation of my feelings.  If I could ignore it, I would. I am sensitive. I admit it. It's really difficult for me to just turn a blind eye when I am being stolen from, used and when I lose business to bead exporters. It hurts me as an artist, and it hurts my bottom line. As far as I am concerned, this nerve is still exposed.  Whenever I think I am over it, it happens again.

I've also had people over the years post and email me that talking about this does no good, and is pointlessly negative. To those people, I say "Bite me". Talking about it not only helps me vent the anger and frustration and hurt - it also informs others that this is happening.

Legal action is not possible for me (overseas, expensive, etc), so all I can do to get some recourse is inform others. Posting about this online is the only way I can keep the issue relevant, and maybe stop people from buying from stores that refuse to do their own work and earn their keep legitimately.

I can't offer customers beads that are as cheap as those on an exporter's website.  But I can explain that they are not going to get what they see there, at all. Not even a little bit.

Now, I promised to explain why this particular website is different from the dozens of others that have stolen my images.  Here's why - Indian Bead Store and Dev Exports also sell glass rods.  More specifically, they sell something called "Dev Glass".  Looking at this glass on their website, it seems that this might be Devardi glass - an indian glass company that came on the market a few years ago.

I am not a fan of Devardi glass - their company or their business practices, and to have my beads on a website that sells this glass really makes me sick.  Plus, as a seller of this glass, which is used to make beads, this company should know better than to steal an artist's images to use as marketing for their own stuff. It's a slap in the face.  This website - Indian Bead Store/Dev Exports seems to be affiliated with Devardi glass.  If they are not, it's a huge coincidence.

At any rate, I would like to implore you, the bead buyer, collector and user, to refrain from buying from any website that steals artists' images for use as a marketing ploy, please. And spread this around if you feel like helping me out.  I would really appreciate it.

I'm done ranting for today - thank you for reading.

~Kandice

***Note - I received a very rude email from the owner of Devardi insisting they are not affiliated with this company. I am not certain whether or not I believe him.  He threatened legal action.  However, it's completely legal for me to state my opinion. I am still of the mind that this is no coincidence, but if I am wrong, well, I am wrong. I doubt that, though. I am still not a fan of Devardi, and never have been - something which I am completely within my rights to insist. 

A Bit of News and Miscellaneus Stuff

Hi everyone!  Hope your February is going well!

Just a couple of housekeeping things real quick...

Stay tuned for a post on CiM Reds coming very soon. I've been testing some of the new reds and an old favorite! I also get help from Kimberly with some of these reds since she loves red glass much more than I do. The testing was really enlightening, so check back to see the post later this week.
An update on my book on color theory - it's coming along slowly but surely! It's probably going to be a lot larger than a normal tutorial from me, because I have a lot more information to get out there, so it's taking longer than I thought. My best guess for release is sometime in June.  Hopefully it will be worth the wait!  :)

And finally - some pics of my latest beads! I've been having fun with cubes and lentils this past week. These are on Etsy at kseeber.etsy.com. Enjoy! :)

News and Some Major Decisions

Warning - this post is long, but important for anyone interested in my beadmaking career. 

As many of you know by now, I have been going through some major life crises over the last year or so.  I won't go into the details of those - you can read through older posts if you haven't already, and are interested. 

I've been doing some heavy thinking for months now and have finally come to some decisions about my life and about the future of my career in beadmaking. 

At the end of this month I will begin applying for some jobs outside the home.  I've got a couple in mind at Costco main office, where my husband works.  Both jobs sound challenging but will offer a couple of really needed changes in my life. 

Working outside the house will reacquaint me into being with people on a daily basis again, something I badly need.  Being self-employed, I have been relatively reclusive for the last 8 years. Making and selling beads is a one-person thing for me, so I've spent most days alone either in my studio or in my home office.

For the most part I have enjoyed this alone-time.  I am an introvert at heart.  But after so many years, one longs for daily human contact.  My husband, of course, is always there for me.  And I have always had great friends that I keep in contact with and see occasionally, but there is nothing like daily contact with peers - even for just a little while. 

I of course can't be absolutely sure I will qualify for any job, but I will be applying and interviewing until I find one, and it may happen quickly or might take awhile.

Here's what will happen with my current situation:

Air & Earth Designs, my main website which features my handmade beads, will stay online until I find a job.  I will be removing the custom order element soon, because honestly there hasn't been any demand for at least a month, and I find myself dreading the idea of doing any more custom work.  The Beads For Sale page will feature any beads I make between now and when I get another job.  Once I have another source of income, the bead selling part of Air & Earth Designs will go on hiatus indefinitely. Air & Earth Designs will remain only as a gallery and portfolio of my work, as well as a place to announce classes and shows.

That doesn't mean I won't be making beads anymore - I don't think I will ever quit making beads.  I want to somehow recapture the joy and bliss I once felt when creating.  I think that if I turn it back into a hobby that will happen.  Beads I do make will go into my inventory and will be sold when and if I register for any shows, and gives as gifts to family and friends.

Bead shows I do will likely be only in my local area for awhile, due to financial concerns.  I really want to do the ISGB Gathering in 2012 when it comes to Seattle.  Before that, I am sure I will do some smaller local shows and maybe even the Puget Sound Bead Festival or some other show in Washington, California or Oregon. I will have to wait and see as to whether I will end up participating in any larger, national shows, as travel is really too expensive for me right now.

As for Coloraddiction, the tutorial website I share with Kimberly, that will stay up, probably for a long time.  I will likely continue to do the occasional tutorial, and I know Kim has some in mind as well.  I know I want to continue teaching skills to other beadmakers and I am sure Kim does as well. 

As for teaching in person, some things are already in the works for me.  I will try and teach as a side job, taking trips to teaching locations on occasion when the opportunity presents itself.  I will announce those locations on Coloraddiction and on Air & Earth Designs.

I have loved creating for myself and for my customers - I really have.  The floundering economy and the depression and anxiety have just made that almost impossible this last year, so I need a change.  Will this change be permanent?  I honestly don't know.  It may be that I might not be able to reintegrate into the work force - I might just not be personable enough.  I may not be able to handle working outside the home. Who knows.  But I want to try, in the hopes that it changes my financial situation and my emotional well-being for the better.

As for those who might wonder whether this is in part because of the lawsuit against me (and a group of other artists) that I have previously mentioned.  The answer to that is yes, but only in part.  The stress of being continuously defamed and erroneously reported for fraud is incredibly debilitating.  The lawsuits and what has come with them has taken a serious toll on me creatively, emotionally and financially.  However, something tells me I might have come to these decisions eventually anyway - this just speeds things along somewhat. 

I know, however, that I have done nothing wrong, and I have proof of that.  But the lawsuit remains and I have to continue to be involved until it's settled, and that takes away from what I really love to do - which is create gorgeous things. 

Creating in general, for me, replaces my ability to have children.  It's something I need to have in my life - like water or air.  Hopefully these life changes will enable me to get back to the joy of creating soon.

If you've read this far - thank you.  I really appreciate your time and concern. 

All my love,
~Kandice