Total Art Soul - for artists

It feels great to be among other creative minds and artists, though at the same time I feel intimidated. I'm new, i'm only 22, I have only just begun down the path of hand craft jewelry and still learning what works and doesn't work and just opened shop on Etsy yesterday.

I take care of my grandfather on a 24/7 basis, and I've been doing so for nearly 2 years now. Besides what he is able to pay me so I can pay my bills - I have no income. So I had been thinking for a while on what I could possibly do that I can "earn" money and take care of my grandfather.

Sadly I never practiced my artistic talents as much as I should have in high school, so though I'm great at drawing with pencil and ink and only 'somewhat great at painting' I was trying to find something else artistic to do....and I came across jewelry!

Dozens of you are probably past the beginners stage and I admire and envy you! One day I hope to have the wide selection of jewelry, crafting skills, courage and everything that it takes to be successful such as yourselves.

Until then, I need a much better photographer than me! lmao!

Welcome, Sahetah! Your jewelry is very pretty. I love the look of the open rings in your necklace, and those earrings look like something I'd wear.

Please don't be intimidated! Nobody here bites very hard. Even those artists who are very successful and experienced had a beginning.

I hear you about the photography! Getting good product photos has been one of my biggest struggles, and I feel like I'm finally beginning to get decent at it (though I still have a lot to learn)!

Kudos to you for taking care of your grandfather. That takes a lot of strength, and I admire that sacrifice.

Thank you so much, it means a lot! At least I know I'm on the right step, I just need to promote my work and create create create!!! ^^

I guess a good camera woould go a long way. I've struggled with the fact that I have taken pictures, but they are not 'great' pictures...i can either put them up now....or have patients for another week and have a photographer do it (free for me cuz its a friend). Patience can be so hard sometimes!!!

I hope I can find some really good tips on here to make etsy work for me! ^^

When did you start your craft?

Hi Sahetah! Lovely to see you here. It must be very tough having to look after your grandfather. We'll help you all we can with tips and advice. If you take a look at the photography section of the forum, you'll find quite a lot of very useful tips on how to photograph. There's also a post about making a light box which is very useful.

Wishing you much luck and hopeyou enjoy your time here.

Hello Sahetah! Your jewellery does look great, I think you might be a bit of a natural, as you seem to have a great idea about balancing sizes and shapes I think photography is one of the hardest things to get right when trying to sell online, I have tried several different cameras, but still can't get it right, I rely heavily on computer graphics packages Can't wait to see more of your work

Hi there

Theres lots of useful advice on here, and we're all very friendly so don't be afraid to ask if you need help- we're all still learning, such is the joy of being creative

Looking forward to hearing more from you,
Karen and Rich