Picture it

Standard photoshoot props - lotions, lip balms, pens, iPod, business cards, sunglasses, scissors, and lint brush. 
The toothbrush was a random addition to this particular shoot.

It's photoshoot day for a good chunk of the pieces I've had sitting, waiting, to be listed in my shop for a few weeks now. Taking photos of my pieces is my least favourite thing to do - I find it tedious and frustrating, but I know the benefit of having good photos when you're trying to sell something to someone who can't actually physically touch your product. My product photos have improved a fair bit since I started my shop in March, but there's a massive amount of room for improvement, I'm sure.

I don't have a lightbox, but Craftgossip - one of my favourite crafting websites - linked to a blog post about making your own lightbox for next to nothing.  I've seen lightboxes online for $50 or more (closer to $100+), but as I'm still starting out and only have 2 sales under my belt, spending money on any extras just isn't going to happen... so if I can make something that will help me showcase my work better for next to nothing, I'm willing to try it.

Right now, I use a large piece of bristol/poster board for my backgrounds, for the most part. I've used our living room floor on occasion, too, depending on the size of the piece (bags & purses) or the material I've used (black corduroy). I don't use any fancy lighting, just the natural sunlight that comes in through the south-facing window of our laundry room. After using this set-up for the last 5 or 6 months, I think it's time I try something new, like a DIY lightbox.

I'm planning on reshooting all of my current pieces while Keith is away for 8 days covering a golf tournament later this month, if only because I like to torture myself with tedious, painful activities. In reality, I've got a second shop I'm working on (more on that tomorrow...) and I want to spruce up the Etsy one for fall and Christmas shopping. And with Keith being gone for so long, I won't have too much time to work on making any new pieces, so why not work on my photos?

Aim high, hit low

I had hoped that by this point in August, I'd be working just on pieces for my shop (or shops, more on that later), but no. As a procrastinator - as well as someone who isn't quite in the best of health - I should have known better. I've needed more sleep this month than any other in the last year, which usually means I'm dead asleep by 9pm most nights. My energy levels are pretty flat right now, so I've been sticking to doing less intensive work, like embroidery. And to top it all off, I get easily distracted.

So this weekend, I'm hoping to get a lot of work done, in amongst visiting with friends and family and taking care of Maddy. My to-do list is already done and ready to be ignored used to help me keep on track and get ready for what promises to be a busy fall.

Green thumbing

First harvest of the year - a Manitoba Tomato. It's not that big - about the size of a ping pong ball - but it's the first one that's managed to make it through a slight blight infestation that's attacked at least one of my plants. But it's a garden tomato... mmm.

And my lavender! Oh, my sweet, sweet lavender... this is the third time I've tried to grow lavender in my many years of gardening. This is the first time I haven't killed it within a month of planting it. It's flowering - as the photo shows - and sprouting and strong... and it smells so wonderful.

I'm already making plans on how to keep it alive through our winter, which may prove to be a bit more of a challenge for me than most people. Not only do I procrastinate like a pro, the way our backyard is landscaped (and I use that term very loosely), the lavender (and my only yellow rose bush) is in the lowest point of the yard. Our backyard is essentially a bowl-shape so everything tends to collect right where the lavender is; add in the windtrap that the backyard becomes in the winter and waist-deep snow and keeping this particular lavender plant alive - and thriving next year - will be a battle worth winning.

Today's a pretty hectic day for us - we're heading out of town this afternoon for doctor's appointments (yes, I live in a city of 50,000, but my family doctor is 45 minutes away in a small town of 1,500... yay, Canadian healthcare!) and supper at my parent's, so instead of listing a new piece I don't have time to finish properly, I'm going to have a surprise deal announced via Twitter - @nisseworks - this afternoon (within the next 5 hours). Follow me on Twitter and you can have a chance for an amazing deal on something in my shop.

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And a new design for the blog! I like it, after all the hiccups last evening... clean, not flashy, simple. I give it 3 months before I change it again :)