The Power of a Marshmallow

If you've read my blog before, you know I'm a totally incompetent photographer.  As my daughter has grown older and settled comfortably into the terrible twos, her modeling career has swiftly ended.  Enter Betsey Darley Photography.

The woman is amazing.  Her photographs are beautiful and she somehow wrangles her two children (curiously the same age as mine) into slowing down and actually posing.  I'm in awe and a little jealous.  Her kids are either angels or she is a genius (or both).   If the above photo is not enough evidence, check out her Facebook page.

She recently photographed my Stay Puft Costume and I couldn't be happier.  In talking with her, she pointed out that a child well supplied with marshmallows will cooperate.  In all the photography advice I've read, no one has ever mentioned a sugar/model correlation.  Clearly we've all been missing a major element in the field of photography.    

Im Partial, But Really???

Everything you read about running a successful Etsy shop stresses the importance of great photos.  Something that always strikes me is the focus on models.  The help articles consistently mention getting models for your clothes/jewelry/bags.  Below is my most recent experiment, the R2D2 costume. 

                                                                                R2D2 Costume


I've used professionally shot and modeled photos, unprofessionally shot and unprofessionally modeled photos and  flat product shots.  Every time - without a doubt the flat shots get up to 10x more views than the modeled products.  Even when sitting side by side, people purchase the items that use the flat product photography.

                                                                                 R2D2 Costume

I think my daughter is adorable (albeit unprofessional) and I acknowledge my bias.  I also realize my photography skills are lacking.  But if the universal advice is "use models", why doesn't it work for me?  Even my professional and BEAUTIFUL shots are passed over for my bland, unprofessional flat shots.  What's going on here???

On The Martha Stewart Show

Yes I was!  I was on The Martha Stewart Show back in October.  It was an amazing whirlwind of a trip that left me wondering, did that just happen?  Luckily for me, it happened very quickly and I had no time to run away.  I'm what you'd call...shy.   

How did this all happen?  I'm not entirely sure.  Around Thanksgiving I received an e-mail from a Martha producer showing interest in maybe, possibly having me as a back up for a Halloween segment.  She ran into my Sushi Costume on Etsy and was was curious if I might want to demo it on the show.  I was told they probably wouldn't need me, I was the "just in case".  Phew, I dodged that one!

Wrong!  I got a call on Monday that I needed to be in NYC on Wednesday.  I called my husband and gave him every reason why I couldn't go.  Bless him, he changed my mind.  That night we made a terrible video of my step by step process and sent it off to the producers.  I spent the next two days making "swap outs" and rehearsing (and sweating/biting my nails/panicking/more sweating).  Then we packed our bags and drove down I95.

When we got to NYC, we met with the producers and my crafter (what's up Figgy?) in the elusive craft room.  This thing was packed floor to ceiling with meticulously maintained and organized craft supplies.  Someone was spraying dye on a crazy witch costume to my left and another crafter was floating around playing with supplies to my right.  That's when I heard it...

Crafter: How long is this segment?
Producer:11 minutes
Crafter: Ooh, that's looooooooooooooong
Producer:Yeah it is
Me: Um, (cough, sweat, fidget), what?
Crafter/Producer: Oh don't worry, you'll be fine

That did not calm me down.  How was I supposed to fit the 400 nightmare scenarios I had created into 11 minutes of air time?  Would I have enough time to faint?  Fart?  Have a heart attack?

I left all my crafting supplies to be buffed, shined, squared and made TV beautiful.  Then, we went to the hotel to relax?  Nope.  I slept a total of 4 hours.  In the morning we headed over to the studio where something (thankfully) changed.  I was a disaster until Martha's handlers got a hold of me.  One yanked my hair into place, one painted my face, one checked my clothes and a handful told me how wonderful I was.

We went through a dry run (which was incredibly short and not at all how I rehearsed it 7 billion times) and then I headed back to the dressing room.  My hubby was there (and so proud).  One last word of encouragement and...it was go time.  I was on the first segment.  Right before I walked on, a calmness came over me.  My dad said something to me earlier in the week that suddenly resonated.  "Do the thing you fear the most, the most you fear is dead"  Brilliant!  It's just TV!  Just 200 people checking you out in the audience.  Just a million people watching the Hallmark Channel.  Just, who cares, go for it!  This was a once in a lifetime opportunity.  If I wasn't going to enjoy it, why the heck did I do it?  

The rest is history.  And now I'm famous (like Brad Pitt famous).  Right?

Wrong.  But I have an awesome party story.  My sales when up "like whoa" and my confidence was boosted big time!

Thanks Martha!  I heart you.

Yaay Photography!

My house is great for growing moss.  That's because it's the darkest damn house this side of the Mississippi.  It's not exactly a photographers dream.  I'm not exactly a photographer, so the combination leads to pretty crappy photos.  But I do love moss...soooo I've got that going for me.

During our crazy Easter clean up session, we excavated the laundry room.  The stately 4x4 room turned out to be amazingly bright. This room gave me hope baby, photo hope.   I've had this ridiculous costume to photograph for about 3 months.  I knew that it needed a model, so I chose my cranky, teething 1 year old.  News flash, models are a pain!

Here's how the "shoot" turned out.  I threw a flat sheet up and snapped away.

Daffodil Wreath Tutorial

I made this happy little wreath for my sister.  *Hi Maren, surprise!*  She's long loved daffodils and I've long searched for a great birthday present for her.  Here is where those two things collide.  This is a very rewarding project - it truly is a happy little wreath!

To make this, you need a few things...

felt (green and yellow)
scossors
fabri-tac
12" wreath
pins
needle
green thread

The Daffodil:  I don't have a daffodil stencil for you to print out (sad face).  If you are crafty, just look at mine and you can draw one up yourself!  You need to cut out 2 sets of the petals.  Fan out the petals and sandwich a dab of fabric-tac between the two pieces.  For the "bloom" just place a line of glue on the short edge, form a tube and pin it into place (until glue dries).

The leaves:  I took a strip of felt (about 3" in height), fringed it and rounded the fringed edge.  I then sloppily tacked it together with green embroidery floss. 

The Wreath:  Cut long strips of felt about 1" wide and wrap the wreath.  Glue ends to secure.

Take the leaves and glue them to the wreath.

And finally, arrange your daffodils and glue them on!

The Easiest 4 Leaf Clover Adornment

This 3D shamrock adornment is simple and fun.  You can make it in a pinch - to avoid a pinch!

You'll need:
Green Felt
Scissors
Needle
Thread
Shamrock Template

First, print out your shamrock template.  You can do a quick google image search to locate one.  Cut it out and pin it to your green felt.

Cut the shamrock shape out of your green felt.

Fold your shamrock in half and put a few (I used three) whip stitches on the back.  Then fold it in half the other way, and add a few more stitches.

Then, use a few tacking stitches to attach your shamrock to your garment of choice!

Cherry Blossom Branch

First blooms are the most encouraging sign of spring.  This year I'm not waiting for nature, I'm forcing my own blooms in the basement (with felt, of course).  

This tutorial is very simple and the end result is beautiful. 

You Need:

Felt (baby pink)

Scissors

Glue Gun

Branch*

*I found a branch that had buds.  This is where I attached the felt blossoms.

The first thing you need to do is cut a flower shape out of felt.  Using two sizes helps to create the effect that the branch is really blooming.  

Then, put a dab of glue in the center of the flower and fold it in half.  Next, fold the flower in half again and add a bead of glue - this time wrap the center line around the branch bud. 

Start with the smallest flowers at the bottom and work your way up to the tip of the branch.  I even doubled up a few at the very top of my massive branch.