camp + quarry turns two!

I feel lucky that I caught this date before it snuck by me. It's been two years since I opened my Etsy shop, and (how many jump rings opened and closed?) I'm still here to write about it. I want to celebrate this birthday by showing you one of the beautiful cakes my friend and fellow indie business woman, Camilla has made (the same Camilla that made our wedding cake). I really want to celebrate by eating this cake, but that's not gonna happen because Camilla lives in Montreal and this cake is long gone, I'm sure.

So instead I'll take the time to say this: I hope that making things for C+Q continues to make me happy for years to come. I hope Jeff doesn't get sick of taking packages to the post office for me. I hope you'll hang out and see what happens here. And, above all, I hope that we all continue to make things for the sake of making things, because making things makes us happy. I hope that we make many things that are never for sale and I hope that we all receive gifts made especially for us by others. 

Let's make 2012 the year of making stuff for the sake of making stuff! Now I have an apple tart to put together! What are you working on these days?

getting back into the swing of things

It's been nearly two weeks since the holidays ended and I still don't feel like I'm back on track! Perhaps it's just all of the changes around here that have overwhelmed me a bit, but getting organized and motivated after all of the Christmas madness has been a challenge. As I mentioned before (and as you might have seen if you follow me on Twitter or Intagram) I've brought a lot of amazing new stones home with me from Alberta and I absolutely can't wait to start working on new Camp + Quarry designs for the spring. But, it's still winter (though I've seen the first signs of spring bulbs this week) and dark and I keep spending my evenings hanging out on the couch watching Breaking Bad or just reading for hours.

I do have my studio space somewhat prepped and ready to go though. A new awesome lamp (an OttLite) lets me take decent photos in the evening, without having to make or use a DIY lightbox (with a little extra help from Photoshop, of course...shhhh). And refined black curb chain is my true muse these days; I want to use it in every piece I make. You can see it in play in these new raw stone quarry necklaces, now available in the CQ shop. That jumbo piece of black tourmaline is the only one of its kind. Black tourmaline is my favourite stone right now, and this is the chunkiest piece I've come across yet. I love the way the crystals form in planes, giving the stones a naturally faceted texture. Raw rose quartz, amethyst, prehnite, and citrine stones on long black gunmetal chains are also available.

Finally, thank you all for your patience while I iron out the details of this big change. I've gotten a lot of positive feedback about Camp + Quarry and I am 100% convinced it was the exact right move and that it is the exact right name, too. I'll be back on Friday to share some of my current favourites, and next week there will be a giveaway here on the blog that I am very excited about. You're going to love it!

What have you been working on lately? Or are you taking it easy, enjoying some post-holiday down time?

welcome to camp + quarry!

Welcome to Camp + Quarry! After two years of calling my creative project Sadie Designs, it's time for a change. Sadie has been a labour of love and it has, with my interests, changed over the past two years. As I take on new challenges I want to work under a name that reflects my aesthetic and interests more accurately, and Camp + Quarry is just that name.

Camp + Quarry will focus even more on the awesomeness that is the Pacific Northwest, the amazing things that people make with their hands, think with their brains, and see with their cameras. Yes, in 2012 this blog is going to feature even more prominently the outdoors, brain thinking, and picture taking.

I will be renewing my summer guest post series, sharing a lot of my creative projects and (hopefully) titillating you with my West Coast adventures. If you knew how many tries it took for me to spell "titillating" correctly you'd know why I feel the need to include an emphasis on brain thinking here on the Camp + Quarry blog in 2012. Yes, I will learn new words for you, dear readers!

I hope that we coalesce here often, to share chronicles of captivating experiences and to celebrate our successes. ("Coalesce" was a bit of a stretch just then, perhaps...) In the meantime, I leave you with a new Camp + Quarry soundtrack to consider. Thanks for joining me in this evolving endeavour!

Connect with Camp + Quarry on Twitter

Like Camp + Quarry on Facebook

Check out the new Camp + Quarry Etsy shop

Camp + Quarry from CAMPandQUARRY on 8tracks.

tracks:

1. foam hands destroyer

2. ada the national

3. hand me down your love hot chip

4. after the gold rush neil young

5. river guard smog

6. (i can't get no) satisfaction cat power

7. play a slow jam javelin

8. love king the-dream

9. ritual union little dragon

10. stay free black mountain

crystals

Today I spent some time in one of my favourite rock and gem shops this side of the Rockies (which is to say, not the side I usually find myself on). Take a look at some of the amazing specimens that they have available. The stone that I discovered today that I find particularly amazing is this super lightweight, pure  matte black stone called "jet". According to the stuff I read about it, it comes from Australia and is a type of bituminous coal that can be polished. I also read that "it assists in entering and exploring your inner void of creation"...not exactly sure what that means, but the stone is lovely. What is your favourite type of stone? And how were your holiday celebrations?

***Just a quick note: use coupon code BOXING15 for 15% off everything in the Sadie Etsy shop today only!***

the cave explorers of 2011

Here they are! The final cave explorer necklaces of 2011. These guys are all listed in the shop as of today. Figures range from little children playing in the snow to a old gentleman making his way through a crystal cave with his walking stick in hand. Each stone has been chosen for its amazing shape and crystal features. Take a look at them all in the Sadie shop. 

In other fun news, last week I hit 400 sales in the Sadie shop. My 400th customer just happens to be a local blogger who I connected with thanks to Got Craft? here in Vancouver. Heather has a great blog called Tea with Me. She even wrote about her Sadie necklaces after the craft fair. In addition to her order, Heather is going to be getting a pretty special surprise in celebration of this exciting milestone. 

I know I've been saying this a lot lately, but thank you all for your support! This has been a fun year (crazy at times with getting married, graduating, and all of that) and you guys have all made it even better and gotten me through the nutso times with flying colours, too. And now we have just five more work days until Christmas vacation!

something new

Hi friends! Got Craft? was a great success, thank you so much to all of you who came out to check out the amazing vendors. It was nice to see a lot of familiar faces and some people that I haven't run into in a long time. To everyone who stopped by to say hi, from old friends to new customers, thank you. It was so fun being part of this event. I'm already looking forward to the next time I get to participate. And I really should mention the people who directly helped me with this show: Jeff, Sam, Laura, and Jacqui, you guys are the best! It was excellent having your help working the table, making piles of jewelry, keeping up with online orders, and having your company, too. Thank you!

Above are a couple of pictures of new things that have been added to the Sadie shop. Black tourmaline nugget necklace and hammered brass and vintage chain neclaces. If you live in the US or abroad and you order before Saturday I'll ship your order from the US this weekend, which means you'll get your package much faster! If you live in Canada you have until December 15th for regular mail orders or right up until the 21st for orders shipped expedited.

Jeff goes back to being a Christmas mailman next week (he'll be on a little break from school). If you live in Vancouver maybe he'll have a hand in delivering your Sadie package. Oh, and on that note, don't forget to be a bit old school this year and leave your mailman or woman a little gift. They love Starbucks gift cards but will also happily accept thank you cards, cash, and booze. I know it for a fact.

I guess it's time: Happy Holidays!

How is your holiday shopping coming along? What handmade items have you purchased?

sadie scarves have arrived

After getting such a great response to the post where I introduced the new hand dyed organic cotton Sadie scarves I've decided to list a few in the shop. These are limited edition for the holidays. Take a look at the ones I've listed in the shop and let me know what you think.

There will also be a big shop update sometime this weekend. Today is my day to photograph all of the pieces that I have ready for the last part of this busy holiday season. Check back here for more about some of the new pieces I have going on! And if you live in Vancouver be sure to stop by Got Craft? tomorrow any time from 10AM - 5PM. Remember! The first 45 people through the door get amazing swag bags! See you there, I hope!

UPDATE: Several of these scarves found new homes at Got Craft? but don't worry, there are more on the way soon!

got craft?

I'll be at Got Craft? on Sunday from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM. It's at the Royal Canadian Legion on Commercial Drive (just a couple of blocks north of Broadway). Remember! The first forty people to show up get a swag bag with goodies from the vendors inside. I've heard that people line up to get into this show and am looking forward to being a vendor at Got Craft? for the first time.

A couple of other things to note: I'll be able to take cash, credit cards (using my phone) and PayPal/Interac money transfers (using your phone). That should have most people covered, I hope. I'm also going to have some friends helping me out, so thanks in advance to Sam and Jacqui for hanging with me on Sunday.

Here's a little time lapse video of a previous Got Craft? event:

Got Craft from blueolive on Vimeo.

we've got a lotta lotta lotta lotta work to do

No, really, you guys are amazing. I'm a bit overwhelmed these days with my day job being increasingly demanding (and challenging, in a good way), holiday shopping well underway, and preparation for one more craft fair this Sunday. And with all of this going on it is all but impossible for me to catch daylight hours to photograph in...it starts getting dark here around 3:30 PM these days! It's been great that despite my long absences between posts, when I do check in here you guys always leave me such lovely comments or send me a message on Twitter wishing me luck with all the things I've got going on. I really appreciate it and am very grateful for the things that you've helped me accomplish this year. (I'll go into that a little more at the end of the year.) I'm looking forward to taking a little inventory of 2011 here on the Sadie blog and I will certainly be sharing my plans for 2012 soon.

Happy December, everyone! Good luck with all of your holiday preparations! Oh, and as a little thank you to my Sadie holiday customers, then next ten purchases from the Sadie shop will ship with a free pair of laser cut baltic birch earrings. I will ship ten different designs to ten wonderful Sadie customers.

Here's a little video to start your Thursday off with:

portobello west all weekend long!

I'll be at Portobello West all weekend long, so be sure to stop by and say hi. There are coupons for free admission in The Georgia Straight this week. You can find me and my friend Sam at Table 19 down the centre row. We're going to have tons of new necklaces, earrings, and a few special, limited edition hand dyed scarves to share with you. Some items will be deactivated in the shop starting later tonight as they're coming with me tomorrow! Have a great weekend everyone! See you at the market!

Portobello West runs from 11AM - 5PM both Saturday and Sunday at the Creekside Community Recreation Centre in Southeast False Creek (Athlete's Village). Come get some holiday shopping done!

meet the holiday cave explorers

These new cave explorers will be joining me at Portobello West along with a couple of other new miniature figure pieces this weekend. You might also find them in the Sadie shop this week, though the little man in the beige coat has already found a new home. These guys are really fun to make, but it takes me a long time between batches to find the right stones and materials to use. I'll be sure to let you know when more hit the shop!

In slightly unrelated news, my friend Laura came over last night and helped me do some major prepping for my upcoming shows. I have to thank her here so that you guys can all know how awesome she is! She helped me get all caught up on online orders, ensuring everyone who's ordered up to this point will get things in lots of time before the holidays, and having her and Emily here to chat with helped make the night fly by and we made a ton of stuff. So, thanks to both of you ladies for coming over to our new place! And thanks to Jeff for always taking things to the post office for me! He's the one who really makes sure you get your orders quickly! Looking forward to seeing everyone at Portobello West this weekend! I'll be at table 19, down the middle aisle just in front of the entrance! Stop by and say hi!

sadie scarves

Our new apartment is pretty great, though not entirely unpacked or cleaned up yet. One of my favourite things about it is the new paint job. Alice recommended simply white by Benjamin Moore and our landlords were kind enough to paint everything in the colour we chose. I couldn't be happier with the bright, clean feeling this white lends to this place. It is so much easier to take photos in here than in any of our other Vancouver apartments.

Now on to the scarves! If you've been following this blog for a while, you know that Emily and I (and Camilla Tie Dye Ingr) have been hand dyeing everything from scarves to underwear since the summer. One of my favourite things to make are these large organic cotton scarves. They are big, nearly 2m long, and super lightweight. I use mine as a blanket to sit on in the park, a scarf, or as an adhoc sweater in the summer.

Wednesday morning I had a serious dye session in between drawing landscape plans for work and I got some awesome scarves made for Portobello West this weekend. As you can see, they still need to be ironed, but they're almost ready to go. I'm so glad I managed to pull of making these in time for the shows I'm going to be at. Any that I still have after PW and Got Craft? will be available online in the Sadie shop...except that last one...I might have to keep it for myself. 

white agate pendulum necklaces

As I said in my last post I'm going to be sharing a lot of new Sadie pieces here over the next few days. Previous pendulum necklaces were made with grey quartz, these are made with a beautiful banded white agate. One is accented with a vintage brass tassel charm, the other has a working brass fan with an etched dragon motif. You can find them both in the Sadie shop now. Thanks for taking a look! I'll be sharing an exciting new project here tomorrow morning.

they are coming

Did I mention I've been busy? Well, I've finally had a few daylight hours at home (thanks to being able to bring my office job to my living room today) and have had a chance to catch up on some photographs and projects that needed to get done ASAP in order for me to be ready for Portobello West this weekend. Stay tuned! Over the next couple of days I'll be showing you some of the pieces that will be available, like this dude above who can be found in the Sadie shop this afternoon, both online and in person at Got Craft? and Portobello West. Hope to see you at one or both of these events, Vancouverites! Happy Thanksgiving to my American pals, too!

it's dark

Dear friends, I've been busy! And more than that, it's been dark here. I leave my house in the dark every morning for work and I leave my office every evening in the dark. It's not that I'm a workaholic (far from it) but it's getting dark so early now. So, in lieu of beautiful, daylit photos of my new apartment, I hope you'll accept this video for now. It's my favourite song from the new-ish St. Vincent album.

A few more things: I'll be at Portobello West all weekend long with new necklaces and earrings for you to peruse if you live in the Vancouver area. Portobello West is now located at the Creekside Community Recreation Centre at the former Athlete's Village. Which is to say, formerly the 2010 Olympics Athlete's Village, not the village for former athletes.

And finally, last night Jeff and I and Lola (on the upswing, thanks for asking!) were sleeping soundly when we were awoken by what could only be described as the sound of a dump truck plowing through our apartment walls. Turning the lights on in a panic, we realized that it was nothing that bad, but that our closet bar and shelves had all pulled out of the wall and crashed down along with everything we'd just unpacked. Adventure mess! Lola believes she was nearly killed, though that's far from the truth. I think the whole thing might have a small relation to an accident that did happen on our street last night. Someone drove through a fence and knocked over a traffic light. Perhaps that impact was just enough to jolt our closet bar free of its tenuous moorings and send it crashing to what was likely its inevitable fate, overloaded as it was.

Excuse the drama. I've been stressed. We are slowly making our way through the giant mess that is created when you move from one home to another. The move has been a good one for us. Pictures soon!

DIY Crystal Collection

Jeff and I were in Whistler not too long ago and we stopped in to check out a rock and gem shop. Although their selection of stones was pretty limited, they did have a wall of collector's kits that was kind of awesome. Inspired by these little boards with a variety of stones glued on them and interpreted in various ways (metaphysical stone collection, dinosaur fossil collection...) I've made my own mini crystal collections as swag for Got Craft? at the beginning of December. The first 45 people through the door on Sunday, December 4th at the Royal Canadian Legion on Commercial Drive will get swag bags, and each one of those will have one of the bedside crystal collections that I've put together. And yes, making 50 of these things did take a few episodes of Breaking Bad.

For those of you who aren't able to make it to Got Craft? I thought I'd share how I made these little boxes so you can make one of your own, with stones of your choice.

Supplies (and where to find them):


kraft paper box, I used 3" x 2 1/8" x 1" (available online here or at local beading supply shop)
clear-drying craft glue (I used Beacon 527 multi-use glue)
1/2" wooden cubes (optional - I used one for each stone)
Avery 5667 clear labels (or equivalent)
label template
various stones (look for mixed lots online, be sure to check dimensions, like this one)

The real key to this DIY is this list of materials. After that, it's all pretty self-explanatory.

1. Design your labels in Word or Indesign and print out one of each of your labels to see if you like the scale of the text and if they will all fit in the box you're using. I had to trim the labels in order to evenly space them inside the box. My text refers to some of the properties that some people believe these stones possess, you could also list things like the name of the stone, the type of crystal formation of the stone, or a full description of the physical properties of the stone.

2. Place all of your labels inside the box.

3. Glue in wooden cube plinths (if you're using them). It's a good idea to use this glue near an open window or in a room with good airflow. Let the glue set a little bit before adding the stones.

4. Place one drop of glue on the top of each cube and drop your stones into the glue, trying to position any flat side of the stone down for better contact.

5. Decorate the lid of your box however you'd like. I used a simple Sadie stamp and then tucked a mini card into each box.

That's it! You're finished! If you make one, please send me a picture!

some decorating advice, please

As you guys might have read, Jeff and I are moving next week and our new apartment has a gas fireplace in the living room. A fireplace requires some nice art to go over it and we currently only large black and white photographs that I got plotted at a local print shop that would suit that space, but we are thinking we'd like something a bit more colourful. So, if the above images were framed in a 20.5" x 20.5" frame, which one would you prefer as the focal point of your living room? Most of our furniture is neutral or dark wood. I was thinking the frame would be black, but perhaps white would be worth a try, too? All of these photos I took with either my Diana or my Holga. They were taken in Merritt, B.C., Vancouver, Millersylvania, WA, and Portland, OR, respectively. Thanks for the help, friends!

new sadie mini cards

Two weeks ago I ordered some new mini business cards from Moo and they have finally arrived! I now have six different cards to send out with holiday orders, each one featuring a different photo from our amazing Lighthouse Park photoshoot with photographer (and friend) Ryan Mathieson. I'm excited to start shipping them out and to show them off at Portobello West here in Vancouver on the weekend of November 26th and 27th at Creekside Community Recreation Centre at the athlete's village.

In other Sadie news, I am updating the shop regularly. There are many new pieces listed as of yesterday, including my new favourite (pictured in the second photo in this post) which mixes vintage brass chains and charms to make a delicate, minimalist necklace. I'm going to have to make something similar for myself, I think. I'm also planning on getting a few new cave explorer necklaces made to keep this guy company as soon as I can. Now back to packing for this fast-approaching move... Have a great weekend!

core samples

Can I just say that this week is going by waaaaay too fast? Jeff and I are moving in about ten days and we are nowhere near ready! Sure, we have like six boxes in our apartment, but they're pretty much all empty, and the ones that are packed Jeff took care of. I have been busy busy busy making things for the two shows that I have coming up at the end of November and beginning of December (check out the sidebar for more information about Sadie holiday events). Part of my pre-holiday updates included adding new silver dipped amethyst core samples to the Sadie shop, including a listing for a special deal on two amethyst core sample necklaces. This evening I just wanted to share a couple of photos with you of these new pieces. I'm really happy with the way the top image turned out. It's given me some inspiration for how to set up my displays at Portobello West and Got Craft.

Oh, and I picked up Mindy Kaling's new book (normally I'd get it at the library, but I'm kind of boycotting the Vancouver library right now because they keep finding bedbugs in their books!!!) and I'm really enjoying reading it everyday during my seabus commute. My favourite line so far:

There is no sunrise so beautiful that it is worth waking me up to see it.

So true. Have a great week, everyone!

my etsy tips

This kind of post is totally out of the ordinary for me, so let me start by saying that I am by no means an expert Etsy seller, nor have I quit my day job, been featured very often on the ever-coveted front page, or been able to break out into the design blog world in a big way. What I do have is a successful small (tiny?) business that allows me to do something that I really love (make things) and share them with other people. I have customers that have become friends and important contacts and I am still passionate about what I do two years later.

I’m pretty happy with where I’m at, though I’m not confident (ever) that things will stay this way, and I’d like to share a few of the things I’ve learned from my experience as an Etsy seller with you as the busiest time on Etsy approaches. If you’re also an Etsy seller please feel free to let me know if you agree or disagree or have some tips of your own to add!

Don’t give up, but do change.

This is the single most important thing that I’ve learned in my nearly two years of being an Etsy seller. The first six months were especially depressing. Like a lot of sellers, I was totally obsessed with checking out my shop and dismayed at the small number of sales I was seeing, despite the effort I was putting in to making the pieces I was listing. I began learning more, branching out, and making new things. And some of those new things caught on and some even became popular. Had I just stuck with the original materials and methods I was using, my shop would likely still be stagnant. Diversifying, improving, and changing brought me both customers and creative satisfaction. Build on what is working best for you and your customers and you won’t be disappointed in the results.

Kill them with kindness.

We all have customers that can’t be satisfied or that ask for unreasonable things. I try to remind myself that while it is hard to deal with tough customers, it is much harder to be someone who is often dissatisfied and ready to do battle. When a customer contacts you with a legitimate concern or otherwise, they are likely on the defensive. If you are kind, no matter what the situation or whether you’re saying yes or no to their request, they will understand that you are not against them. This is so important that I might someday do a whole post about online business customer service. Bad customer service is the worst! I am not talking about giving the customer whatever they want or that “customer is always right” nonsense. I am talking about giving the customer respect and not getting defensive or taking customer comments personally. It really works! I promise!

Use your time to move your business forward.

This means thinking about whether you’re spending a lot of time looking at your Stats or Google Analytics or engaging in other time sucking activities and choosing to use that time in a more productive way. Browsing Etsy listings can turn into treasury making time (a small way to promote your own shop and show appreciation for others), checking e-mail can turn into taking the time to e-mail a blogger or Etsy seller that you admire and tell them that you appreciate their work. Finally, stalking your shop stats is time better spent making things, organizing your supplies, filling orders, blogging, researching upcoming craft fairs, and so on. When you find yourself (as I think we all might) going into that black hole of internet paralysis force yourself to walk away and do something relaxing or productive.

Take time off.

This is a big one for me. Twice in the last year I have put my shop into Vacation Mode to take time off to finish my graduate thesis and to get married. Time off felt really good! It gave me a chance to truly focus on the important things happening in my life and also to get some perspective on my business and make some things that I might otherwise have not had time for had I been filling orders or answering convos.

Make things for the sake of making things.

Maybe this isn’t the most succinct way to put this one, but not everything I make ends up in my Etsy shop. Making gifts for friends, one super special item for myself, or something made with a new material or using a new technique does not always turn into a new business venture. In fact, it rarely does. I find that making things for the sake of making thing is hugely fulfilling to me and reminds me of why I started this all in the first place: I like making things. I don’t just make things to sell things and that is important. To put it another way: keep some things just for yourself and you’ll enjoy making them a lot more! Give something special to a friend and they’ll appreciate its uniqueness and the thought you put into making something just for them

As I said earlier, I’m by no means an Etsy expert, I was just interested in sharing some of the things that have made a difference for me as we approach this busy holiday season. Let me know if you agree or disagree or what your best tips are! How does this all sound from a buyer’s perspective? Thanks for reading!