voting for the October EBW Challenge

Voting for the October EBW Challenge Inspired By Picasso started yesterday!  You can vote on the blog by clicking here from today through the 15th.  The challenge entries are all in the clickable mosaic near the top of the page.  If you can't see it, click here.  Voting is on the right side of the page.  Please check out all of the entries and vote for your favorite.

Here is my entry again.  It's still available for sale here.

If any beaders are interested in making it or something similar for themselves, the pattern is available here.

As always, there are so many stunning entries for this challenge.  Some challenge themes result in a lot of entries with similar colors or styles, but this is a challenge where there are so many different pieces.  I love how many different pieces of art work people chose for their inspiration.  Here are just a few of my favorite entries.

Autumn / Fall Agate Pendant inspired by Picasso by WingSmith2010

Blue - Beadwoven Necklace Asymmetric OOAK Picasso Inspired Black Grey Bead Embroidered by BlissWorksStudio

Beadwoven Abstract Bracelet "Inspired by Picasso" by lostaloha

Asymmetric Beadwork Bracelet in Autumn Colors: "Picasso's Dance of the Veils" by AsteropeBC

double treasury round up

Please help me thank the curators who included my items in their treasuries the past couple weeks by visiting their shops!

Natalia (ByCrina) included my Button Charm Bracelet - Black and White (small) in her Black and white :) treasury.  I love the mix of items and patterns here.  Please check out the trees in the upper right corner.  They are really awesome.

Wool collar

Bonniescraftcorner included my Beaded Bracelet - The Leafy Series - Fall Autumn in her Falling in love with autumn colors! treasury.  How can you not love a treasury with this many leafy items in it?

Handmade Halloween Card Purple Monster

Mariya (atossf24) included my Beaded Bracelet - Button Embellished - Metal Buttons in her Maestro, music!  Let's dance! treasury.  This is such a fun collection.  I especially love the bangle and the links bracelet.

Art Wood carving Hand Made Jesus Christ Woodcarving Icon jewelry Woodworking

theflowerpatch included my Beaded Cuff Bracelet - Dagger Fringed - Fall Autumn in her October Orange treasury.  This is a perfect collection for this time of year.

Country Dried Flower Grater Table Arrangement

Margaret (SplendidLittleStars) included my Beaded Dangle Earrings - Pink Leaves in her Think Pink treasury.  I'm really proud to have inspired this treasury with my Think Pink section.  Be sure to check out the other items for more Think Pink promotions this month.

This fits right in with the pink theme.

SILK Scrunchie, hand dyed, soft for hair, pink

Amy (Funamals) included my Beaded Cuff Bracelet - Multicolored - Inspired by Picasso in her Autumn Bright treasury.  I love this notion that autumn can still be just as colorful as summer.

5 Assorted Blank Note Cards

Sandra (BlissWorksStudio) included my Beaded Cuff Bracelet - Cookies 'n Cream in her Black and White and Beadwoven treasury.  I'm always honored to be included in an EBW treasury.  There are so many awesome pieces here!

Purple Rain - Beadwoven Bracelet Phlox & Black

Margaret (SplendidLittleStars) included my Beaded Cuff Bracelet - Red Striped Embellished in her cheery cherry red treasury.  I never get tired of red!

BANDANA, tie dye, large, colorful

Saturday Link List

Welcome this week's edition of my link list.  Enjoy!

Running An Etsy Sale But No One Knows? Tips For Making Your Sale Visible!

I promise that this is the last post that I'll link from Handmadeology for a while.  This one walks you through a couple different ways that you can promote your Etsy sales on Facebook and Etsy itself.  If you've never used some of the Facebook fan page tools before, this will be helpful.

postcards.com

Postcards are a cheaper alternative to regular cards for numerous occasions: sales announcements, thank you cards, save the date, etc.  The bulk prices through this site are pretty good.  I originally researched this idea when I was thinking about ordering cards for Jake's med school graduation.  I ended up making my own, but I kept this link as well as a couple others in my bookmark list for future reference.  You can also check out 123print.com and vistaprint.com.

SEO Made Easy Part 2: Choose an Effective Keyword Phrase

This article was published back in the winter, but with the new Relevancy default on Etsy, it is more important than ever.  It also includes details about using the Google Keyword Tool.  If you are not using this already, I highly recommend starting now.  I know that I have talked about it before, but I can't stress it enough.  It has been a huge help for me both on Etsy and HubPages.

Spraypainting Outdoor Furniture: A Step by Step Guide

Spray painting old furniture or pieces that you bought used it a wonderful way to extend its lifespan.  My mom bought me a used two drawer file cabinet right before Jake and I moved into our new house.  It needed to be refinished so she spray painted it.  It made a world of difference.

I was going to do a pumpkin round up here on my blog for one of my fall link lists, but HubPages did a Weekly Topic Inspiration for Thanksgiving recipes so I did it over there instead.  The good news is that you can still check it out: 10 Pumpkin Recipes for Thanksgiving.  That's my recipe link for you for today!  There are a couple of them that I've linked here before, but some of those recipes are new to me or I haven't posted them here before.

Did you use one of the resources, tutorials, or recipes from my link list?  Leave me a link in the comments or send me an e-mail (randomcreative28@gmail.com) with your photos and stories.  I would love to post them here!

Friday Feature: random

Welcome to the October random edition of my Friday feature.  Enjoy!

Of course I'm always browsing beads.
7/0 3 Cut Opaque Royal Blue Picasso Firepolished Czech Glass Seed Bead Strand from beadsandbabble

This is such a fun take on the leather wrapped bracelets that are so popular right now.
Beer Cuff Bracelet - Green Upcycled Beer Labels / Leather / Wood by ElectricPenguin

I love the use of dagger beads here.
Tree of Life Picasso Dagger Necklace by candisue

It wouldn't be a random post without at least one triangle item.
Gold Triangle Earrings Beaded and Chains Dangle by JeannieRichard

Yep, I'm still browsing rings.  I will be getting a three stone (though I'm hung up on whether I want 14k gold or sterling silver right now), but I'm also in love with the solitaires.  This is my new favorite.
Sweet Baby Blue Solitaire, SIZE 6 by onegarnetgirl

I saw this bag on the front page a couple weeks ago and was really drawn to it.  I'm still not sure why because 1) I am not really into purses and 2) I prefer neutrals for purses.  This shop has a lot of amazing designs, though.  I do love these smaller bag designs.  The traveler bags she has are very versatile, which may be part of their appeal for me.
Traveler in Red Foliage and Corduroy - Ready to Ship by jennyndesign

This design is so simple but so elegant and versatile.
Silver Loop Necklace pendant with scattered holes oxidized modern handfabricated by gonemetal

sea green and reworked continued

I finally listed the last button charm bracelet that I made over the summer.

It's available here.  I made and sold one of these a couple years back.  I finally rounded up enough buttons to make another one.  While I was searching for beads for another project, I found the sea green seed beads from this mix.  They coordinate perfectly with this button mix!  This bracelet is packed with buttons.  Each link has 2 buttons on it.

While I was hunting for buttons for my new magnets, I pulled buttons for another charm bracelet like this one.  This particular style has done well so I'm going to keep making it.  I'm planning to add beads to it this time.  I'm also contemplating a couple more of these bracelets.  They were a whim project when I first started selling on Etsy, and they've done really well.  I think it would be great to do some seasonal ones: fall, Christmas, and winter if nothing else.

I've also been remaking a few old designs to update some of my Etsy listings.  Here are the latest ones.  Click on the photos to go to the listings.

The original version of this just had a few rows of red and purple daggers with a seed bead base, but I decided to fully fringe this one with a cube bead base so I could include it in my standard dagger line.  I know, I keep saying that I'm done until I sell one, and then I add another piece to my line.  It does keep pushing the pattern, which has been extremely popular.  Hopefully one of them will sell soon, too.

I mentioned this little pendant a couple weeks ago when I shared a sneak peek of the new coordinating herringbone bracelet/necklace (it can convert to either) that I'll be releasing in 2012.

I only made a couple pairs of these "flying" earrings.  Now that I've done a lot of beaded bails, these little ones work up really quickly.  I may make a few more pairs to coordinate with new listings.  No specific plans at this point, although it's still always available as a custom option.

This is one of my favorite posts from this past week so I'm linking it up with Erika's It's a Wrap Link Party.  Join us!