Looking at all of the wonderful sellers on Etsy, I often remember fondly some of the other crafts I’ve worked on in the past. While I’m not about to bore everyone by discussing them all here, one in particular stands out to me, simply because it shows how long I’ve been obsessed with cherry blossoms!

Keith’s Craftworks Products Circa 2006

As you can see, I used to be in the soap and lotion business under my second shop name, Keith’s Craftworks (Mindless Pursuits was just a personal blog back then). I was obsessed with differing scents and loved making everything from lotions to shampoos to body washes. Experimenting with scents was a lot of fun, but what I enjoyed most was playing around with packaging design. Considering I have a background in graphic design/publishing and am an artist, this should be of no surprise to anyone!

My favorite scent, however as well as my favorite package, was the ‘Cherry Blossom Festival’ line.It smelled wonderful and I loved the stock photography that I found to use as the background. I still use that background on my PC today as an occasional wallpaper! I’m currently working on making a cherry blossom logo to be my brand, but we’ll talk about that in a future post. For now, I just thought some might find a quick glimpse of my crafting past to be of interest!

What is your shop?
nenuphar (www.nenuphar.etsy.com)

What is your art/craft?
jewelry - beadwoven, and chainmaille.

Describe your style in 2 words:
culturally eclectic - I am inspired by Asian art and culture, but that doesn’t stop other fascinating influences from finding their way in!

What is your favorite piece and why?
I love my Japanese chainmaille pieces (one sold, one is left, with others in production). Japanese chainmaille evokes Heian Japan, but has a modern geometrical air to it that makes it the perfect contemporary jewelry medium.

What is the most memorable piece of advice you ever received?
NEVER lower your prices. Your desperation to sell will ring out loud and clear, and is an open invitation for people to underappreciate and ignore you.

What is the one piece of advice you’d give?
Don’t change your pieces to suit a perceived market. Keep doing what you do, and promoting yourself until you find the market where your talent truly belongs. (I am still in the process of discovering my market, but I am at least learning where I don’t belong.)