Today I am happy to be featuring Wilde Designs.
Wilde Designs is a shop full of interesting pieces. There's so much variety and so much to love, so I'm just going to start introducing you to my favorites:
From the Limited Time Prints section, I chose this photograph as my favorite. I love the shapes and shadows on the wall.From the Art Prints section, this piece is my favorite. I LOVE the colors and for some reason it reminds me of a good friend of mine. It was definatly the first thing I saw when I first looked at Wilde Designs shop.
The next section features The Barbie Murders. A very interesting set of artistic photographs depicting the Barbie in various murdered states. I've chosen to show the least "graphic" of the collection for those who may not like this, but I'd encourage you to go and look at the others.
From Wilde Design's Original Artwork I've chosen this art card
I love this heart necklace from the Punk Princess section
You'll find colorful magnets in the Stuck Up section. My personal favorites are these blue lovelies.
The colors and shapes in this Dallas Skyline notecard, from the Texas Treasures sections, are fabulous.
And finally I love the quotes on these Oscar Wilde bookmarks from the Wilde and Wonderful section.
Wilde Designs also has two sibling shops Tacky Fab and Power Ups
My Favorite Item from Tacky Fab are these earrings
And my favorite item (and picture!) from Power Ups is this coaster
Check out Wilde Designs Blog
Follow Wilde Designs on Twitter
"Like" Wilde Designs on Facebook
And now read more about Wilde Designs from the owner:
How did Wilde Designs get started?
I have been crafting alone and with my grandmother and mom since I was a little girl. I even used to hold my own little craft sales in the house. In 2006, I started hearing about Etsy, and after giving it some thought, I decided to try my hand at a shop of my own.
You have an interesting array of items, where do you find you inspiration?
It's as simple as making the stuff I want to make. Certainly I think about my customers and what appeals to them, but if I don't think something is interesting, I won't make it or put it in the shop. I like to experiment with my art and crafting. It thrills me to know that there are people out there who enjoy watching me do it!
Looking back on the first day you opened your shop on Etsy, what is one piece of
advice you know now that you wished you knew then?
I probably would have had quicker success if I understood how to promote myself online a bit more expertly, but I don't think that's something I could have been taught. I needed to learn it through trial and error and tips from other awesome sellers - and I'm still in the process of doing that. I find ways to improve all the time, and it's a lot of fun.
Aside from Etsy how do you promote or sell you items?
I do sell some prints through DeviantArt (http://wildemoon.deviantart.com/prints) and other miscellaneous designs through CafePress, but most of my selling is done through Etsy. I use my Twitter Account (http://twitter.com/wildemoon), Blog (http://wildedesigns.blogspot.com) and Facebook page (http://wildedesigns.facebook.com) to promote myself and what I sell. It's fun getting to know other sellers - and potential buyers - through social media. I also make use of free ads through Project Wonderful, which has brought some nice additional exposure.
With three shops total, how do you manage keeping up with everything?
Carefully. In all seriousness, it can be hard. I try to keep my craft room organized and everything in its place so that it's easy to get orders ready. That means having ready made items organized, my shipping supplies all together, and photo paper and ink ready to run new prints at all times. I also have a spreadsheet on Google Docs to keep track of what I've sold each month so I can compare it to past performance. My goal is to increase sales over the previous year every single time - and I usually succeed if only by a small margin.
In your own words, how would you describe each of your shops?
Wilde Designs is probably the most eclectic, and I'd have to say it's probably also the most "me". It's where I give people a glimpse into what excites me in terms of art, design and jewelry making. I make no promises about what might show up, so it surprises me too sometimes. Power Ups is a collaboration with my fiance where we both exercise our geeky demons. I'm a huge "fannish" sort of a person, so doing the items for this shop is sooooo much fun. Tacky Fab is my place to share the overflow. This is where jewelry, clothing, and other vintage goodies that I just don't have space for or opportunity wear/use go. The items are all great, I just unfortunately can't keep everything or I'll drown in my own stuff!
At the moment, what is your favorite item in your shop?
My Barbie Murders photos in Wilde Designs are a perennial favorite for me, but at the moment I'm especially proud of my Doctor Who prints in Power Ups. They amuse me, so I hope they amuse everyone else too.
Is there anything about yourself or your shop that you want to share with us?
Just that I'm really excited by the connections, the possibilities, and - obviously - the extra income that have sprung from running my shops. Imperfections, errors and all it's been a truly amazing experience for me.
I have been crafting alone and with my grandmother and mom since I was a little girl. I even used to hold my own little craft sales in the house. In 2006, I started hearing about Etsy, and after giving it some thought, I decided to try my hand at a shop of my own.
You have an interesting array of items, where do you find you inspiration?
It's as simple as making the stuff I want to make. Certainly I think about my customers and what appeals to them, but if I don't think something is interesting, I won't make it or put it in the shop. I like to experiment with my art and crafting. It thrills me to know that there are people out there who enjoy watching me do it!
Looking back on the first day you opened your shop on Etsy, what is one piece of
advice you know now that you wished you knew then?
I probably would have had quicker success if I understood how to promote myself online a bit more expertly, but I don't think that's something I could have been taught. I needed to learn it through trial and error and tips from other awesome sellers - and I'm still in the process of doing that. I find ways to improve all the time, and it's a lot of fun.
Aside from Etsy how do you promote or sell you items?
I do sell some prints through DeviantArt (http://wildemoon.deviantart.com/prints) and other miscellaneous designs through CafePress, but most of my selling is done through Etsy. I use my Twitter Account (http://twitter.com/wildemoon), Blog (http://wildedesigns.blogspot.com) and Facebook page (http://wildedesigns.facebook.com) to promote myself and what I sell. It's fun getting to know other sellers - and potential buyers - through social media. I also make use of free ads through Project Wonderful, which has brought some nice additional exposure.
With three shops total, how do you manage keeping up with everything?
Carefully. In all seriousness, it can be hard. I try to keep my craft room organized and everything in its place so that it's easy to get orders ready. That means having ready made items organized, my shipping supplies all together, and photo paper and ink ready to run new prints at all times. I also have a spreadsheet on Google Docs to keep track of what I've sold each month so I can compare it to past performance. My goal is to increase sales over the previous year every single time - and I usually succeed if only by a small margin.
In your own words, how would you describe each of your shops?
Wilde Designs is probably the most eclectic, and I'd have to say it's probably also the most "me". It's where I give people a glimpse into what excites me in terms of art, design and jewelry making. I make no promises about what might show up, so it surprises me too sometimes. Power Ups is a collaboration with my fiance where we both exercise our geeky demons. I'm a huge "fannish" sort of a person, so doing the items for this shop is sooooo much fun. Tacky Fab is my place to share the overflow. This is where jewelry, clothing, and other vintage goodies that I just don't have space for or opportunity wear/use go. The items are all great, I just unfortunately can't keep everything or I'll drown in my own stuff!
At the moment, what is your favorite item in your shop?
My Barbie Murders photos in Wilde Designs are a perennial favorite for me, but at the moment I'm especially proud of my Doctor Who prints in Power Ups. They amuse me, so I hope they amuse everyone else too.
Is there anything about yourself or your shop that you want to share with us?
Just that I'm really excited by the connections, the possibilities, and - obviously - the extra income that have sprung from running my shops. Imperfections, errors and all it's been a truly amazing experience for me.
Lovely blog and very inclusive feature! I gotta take a look at this shop. I'm following you now <3
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for the feature! It's always absolutely wonderful hearing what other people think of the shops. :: hugs ::
ReplyDeleteI love her shop, it's been in my faves for a while :)
ReplyDeleteI'm still selling, though I'm no longer on Etsy. Now you can find all my work at http://www.wildeshops.com!
ReplyDelete