Introducing...

This was originally posted on July 17, 2008, and is the final blog entry from my last website.

Introducing...

...handmade paper resin necklaces! You can now find these fun and unique necklaces at http://www.lilmissbeyond.etsy.com/!

I am constantly working on new designs so check back at my shop often to see what's new!

That's all for now!

~Amanda

Excitement!

This blog entry was originally posted on May 5, 2008. This one was written when my main shop and business name was still Beyond the Lens Studio.

Excitement!

Exciting news, I have opened my second Etsy shop - LilMissBeyond! I am moving all my handmade paper products over to this one, and I have some other exciting items in the works for this shop, so stay tuned! I opened LilMiss shortly after I opened a shop on iCraft under the name Beyondthelensstudio. Each shop has different items so feel free to visit them all! I have listed my shops along with their links on the home page of my website, as well as my We Love Etsy, Stylehive, and Myspace links.

I am also proud to say that I have been blogged! A fellow Etsy seller - JJMFinance - featured me on his blog! He sent me some interview questions for me to answer, you can see my answers to these questions by going here www.jjmfinance.blogspot.com/2008/01/beyondthelensstudio.html

Well, that is all for now - until next time!

~Amanda

First Treasury

Originally posted on January 28, 2008...

My First Treasury!

Well, it's a brand new year and I have some exciting news (exciting for me anyway) - I was in my very first treasury! A treasury is where an Etsy member can make and display a list of other Etsy members work. They pick twelve items (plus four alternates) from their favorites, or they can come up with a theme and pick items for that theme. Treasuries are only up for a couple of days. Mine expired January 23rd - yes, I am slow to blog about things=-). You can view current treasuries by going to www.etsy.com and then choosing "Treasury" from the list on the left side of the page. If someone has featured you in a treasury there will be a gold star by the one that you are in. Here is a screen shot of my gold star.



And here is a screen shot of the treasury! I put a pink square around my item.

Until next time!

~Amanda

Light Box

Originally posted December 7, 2007...

My New Light Box

For awhile I had been wanting a light box for still life photography and product shots. The thing is that it had to be something that I could store in a small space, and I also didn't want to spend a lot of money on it. After Internet searching I found this great website http://www.pbase.com/wlhuber/light_box_light_tent .

The best part about this light box is that I only spent about $10, and I was able to make it any size I wanted. If I do want to make it a little bigger all I have to do is cut a longer set of legs. When I need to store it I just take the legs off. I did make a few changes when I made mine. First, I didn't glue anything together. I did this so that I could take it apart for storage, and so that I could make it bigger if I wanted to. Second, I had a hard time finding the right sized parts so I had to add another connector to attach the joints. I also had to use a dremel to widen the opening of the connector so that everything would fit together.

This is a photo of the extra connector that I used so that everything would fit together.

Third, I use cloth for my background instead of poster board because it lasts longer. Finally, I didn't use the PVC caps or the screws to attach the poster board, so that saved a little on the cost.

The final product, all set up and in use.

A photo taken using the light box, not to shabby. =-)

Until next time!

~Amanda

Gift Tags

Originally posted December 17, 2007...

Gift Tags!

I've been working on some new items for my shop, and gift tags are my latest introduction. I'm in the process of making them both with handmade paper and photographs. I'll also be adding full sized photo cards to my Etsy shop in the next couple of days. Posted below are a couple of examples of what the gift tags look like.




I'm in the process of a shop overhaul, so stay tuned. I have several fun, new things in the works!

Happy Holidays!

~Amanda

My Studio

From November 13, 2007...

Studio Overhaul

Wow, it's been a couple of months since my last post - I need to get better at this blogging thing =-). As I said last time, I was starting on an overhaul of my home studio. I'm very happy with the way it turned out, it's amazing what a little paint and some shelves will do.

Before - please excuse the mess, I had remembered to take my before pictures after I started painting.

After -

Elmo wanted to be in the picture too. =-)

Until next time!

~Amanda

Ideas

Originally posted August 31, 2007.

New Ideas

I am very excited about some current projects that I have in the works. Over the past couple of weeks I have been making paper and experimenting with it. I am currently making cards with layered handmade paper. I am really happy with the outcome of these cards because there is a slight 3D effect resulting from the layered paper. Here are a couple of cards that I have made.

You can see the types of cards that I currently have for sale at my Etsy shop http://www.lilmissbeyond.etsy.com/ .

I am also getting ready to do an overhaul of my studio - paint, shelves, etc... Once I am finished I will post before and after pictures, so stay tuned!

That's all for now.

~Amanda

Reading Program

This is the second entry from my original blog.

Reading Program
July 13, 2007

I had mentioned in my last post that I have done some artwork for my local library - where I had worked (part-time) for about 11 years. Every summer the library has a reading program where kids read a certain number of books and then they get a free one to keep. There are two programs, one for the elementary aged kids and one for the teens - I helped with the teen program. Being asked to do the work was a great opportunity to be really creative.

The theme for last summer was "Creature Feature". The idea was to create well known monsters, creatures, and other creepy things.

The theme for this summer is "You Never Know", and it revolves around superheros. My brother did the graffiti wall in the back - he did an awesome job!

That is all for now.

Until next time!

~Amanda

Hello!

Hello all, I am in the process of shutting down my old website (Beyond the Lens Studio) and opening up a new one (Lil Miss Beyond). My old website had my original blog on it. With my new website I wanted to use a blogging site, and that is how I came to open this blog. I didn't want to loose the entries that I had made in the past, so during the next couple of weeks I will be copying them here. This one was my introduction post in my original blog, and is from June 29, 2007...

Lost My Mojo

For the past couple years I had somehow lost my creative mojo, I looked everywhere for it (under the bed, in the dryer, etc...) - it was just nowhere to be found.=-) The funny thing was, I lost it shortly after I sold a few of my photographs. Maybe my mojo went home with one of those photos? I had always been very creative, and then one morning I woke up and it wasn't there. I am thinking that I just lost my nerve, and started to think that I didn't have the talent to sell my work; because of this my mojo hit the road.

After making a life change my mojo found its way home. I had been looking for an education job for a long time, and after doing some soul searching decided that maybe that is not what I wanted to do anymore. Top that off with being asked back to do the artwork for the local libraries' reading program (I'll talk more about that next time) I felt that I needed to revisit my art background and take it a little further.

So I have been doing research on creating and selling my artwork without loosing my sanity. A blog and a website was suggested as a way to get yourself into the publics eye. I have never been much of a journal writer, but I thought that adding a blog to my site would be a great way to record my journey.

I think that is all for now.

Until next time,
~Amanda