Birthday Party in the Tent at LIC Flea!

How do you celebrate your 24th birthday when
you own a jewelry company? With a sign and a tiara...

...and mini cupcakes for customers... 

...with vintage charms on gold plate chains...

in little handmade pouches! at the LIC Food and Flea! 
Happy Birthday Natasha!

wink and flip ;)

Confessions of a Renegade

Oh, boy. I was in my first outdoor show last weekend, the Renegade Craft Fair. For those of you who have done it, you know I jumped into the deep end on this one. Held over two days at East River State Park, with 300 other vendors and the Flea next door, I found myself facing the heat, the wind, stanky port-o-potties, shoppers overwhelmed with choice, the threat of rain, a match.com style share (she was fantastic), a new tent, a new display that was only superficially conceptualized because I was so busy making inventory, a long trek over many surfaces to move all the aforementioned items to my assigned space (#103), a husband increasing feeling like a pack mule, kids neglected, and a sneaking suspicion that this was maybe not going to be my crowd anyway. Whew! 

                                             

 Does he look disgruntled yet?

Well, like much in life, it wasn't transcendent and it wasn't a disaster, either.  My display did suffer from lack of detailed pre-thought, but it was okay. Some pics:

    

Ikea Hack!

    

Gussied up Ikea Hack

 

Happy shoppers dazed with choice

 

With a smile on our faces and sweat on our brows, my share partner and I worked together for two days to pass time, get to know each other, keep cool, and help the crowd notice our fine wares among all the other really interesting and talented vendors. The neighboring handsome dudes from Columbia chatted us up about the existence of mermaids and later asked my cousin out on a date, then a girl came into the tent like she meant business and asked my partner if this tunic on sale was used as a dress would it make her look like a skank, and the last customer to enter our tent before closing came in, kinda looked at me, darted his eyes around, turned back out and crisply informed me on the way that he knows what he wants when he sees it and buys it only if he wants to after I asked him if there was anything in particular he was looking for. Guess not! And even if I may have spent most of my profits on freshly squeezed orange and ginger juice over the span of the two days, I'm thinking it was a pretty good time all in all.

 

That said, at the end of the evening, back at home, late, hungry and tired, I got serious and considered my experience. How did I do? Respectably. Would I do it again? Maybe not, considering set up and the kind and amount of hours put in. But, I had to ask myself, what if? What if I had understood the layout and been assertive about requesting an area? What if I didn't do a share? Would I  have actually done more business by myself with a different front-facing set up? Enough to justify the higher fee? That is something I'm going to have to think about. That night, I was inclined to say no. But like childbirth, the pain fades and only the sweet part remains. I made some fantastic friends, met some really interesting people, had a wholesale inquiry already moving forward, and in general got my name out there. Maybe it's not just about the bare bones of selling at my stage in the game. Maybe it's about creating a presence, getting the name out both in the real and virtual worlds. But that kind of value takes time to assess. And what is that value in real dollars and real time spent? Hard to say right now. And that's okay, I got another year to figure it out. :)

 

As always, thanks for reading. Take care. :)

 

Melissa

Prairiefunk

 

 

 

Free: Make Coasters on Governors Island June 22, 1 pm

Jean of  La Muse Kalliope will return this weekend on Saturday June 22 to the Better Than Jam shop in Nolan Park on Governors Island to teach you how to stitch coasters from recycled scraps. This project is great for beginner and experienced sewers alike!


Hope to see you there!

When: Saturday, June 22nd 1-4 pm
Where: Better Than Jam, #16 Nolan Park, Governors Island

When: June 1st, 1-4 pm
Where: Better Than Jam, #16 Nolan Park, Governors Island - See more at: http://thenewnew.blogspot.com/2013/05/free-jewelry-making-workshop-61.html#sthash.NGCWie5b.dpuf

When: June 1st, 1-4 pm
Where: Better Than Jam, #16 Nolan Park, Governors Island - See more at: http://thenewnew.blogspot.com/2013/05/free-jewelry-making-workshop-61.html#sthash.NGCWie5b.dpuf

When: June 1st, 1-4 pm
Where: Better Than Jam, #16 Nolan Park, Governors Island - See more at: http://thenewnew.blogspot.com/2013/05/free-jewelry-making-workshop-61.html#sthash.NGCWie5b.dpuf

Freelancer vs. Employee: What You Need to Know

This guest post is brought to you by Outright.com, the alternative to Mint for business and the easiest way to manage your small business finances online!

Sometimes you just need a little help with your business so you set out to hire a freelancer or contractor for a job or two. It helps you get caught up without having to hire an employee who may run out of work to do. They’re great for a quick job and then they’re headed off to find more work elsewhere.

Hiring contractors is becoming even more commonplace in the small business world. While hiring is slowly climbing after the recession, hiring freelancers in the meantime has helped many a business grow. The freelancers also enjoy the work, especially if it’s continued throughout the year.

But therein lies the problem. Just when does this freelancer cross over from being a contractor into being a full time employee? While the line seems obvious, many business owners have gotten into trouble recently for crossing that line.

The IRS is Mad

Hiring a freelancer who actually acts like an employee may not seem like a huge deal, but to the IRS it’s a tremendous problem. It’s not just semantics; it can affect benefits, status, and of course, taxes. Since the way freelancers and employees file taxes is totally different, it could mean you and the freelancer aren’t giving the IRS their fair share.

It doesn’t have to be on purpose, and many of these business owners who are getting into trouble likely had no idea they were creating a scandal. But it’s a problem nonetheless, and the IRS has been cracking down on it lately. If you’re not careful, your business could be next on the chopping block and face big fines.

So how do you know if you’re an offender? There are several criteria that separate freelancer and employee, so let’s take a look.

Freelancer or Employee?

Occasionally you work with a freelancer you like so much you want them to return. Week after week, month after month they send you written works or graphical content or what have you. Eventually you switch from paying them per job to a weekly or monthly basis.

Bam, you’ve just switched them to being an employee without even knowing it. Freelancers must be paid by the job every time. They can itemize jobs on the invoice so you pay all at once, but it’s still listed per job. Otherwise they’re an employee and you have to hire them officially.

Another common mistake small business owners make is not getting a contract with the freelancer. Even if you work for years with a certain person you should still get a contract every time. If there’s no proof they worked per job for you and knew what the conditions were the IRS could raise a fuss.

The IRS also considers freelancers to be “immediate” workers, which means they require no training. If you have to bring them in to train them, they’re likely going to be considered an employee. Also, contractors typically work outside of your office, so if you have them regularly come in and work at your desks you may want to change that.

Lastly, check to see if the freelancer has their own business set up. They may not have a fancy 50^th floor corner office but they should have business cards or at least a name like “Bob Bobberson’s Freelance Writing & Tackle.” If not, combined with the other stuff, the IRS could think you’ve hired them full-time.

Have you ever run into this issue?

Risky Business

When people think of MBA-style “risk analysis” they are probably not thinking about the sale of unicorn horns,

Unicorn horn from BrooklynOwl, $15

or light switch covers. But why not? At Etsy New York our businesses may be small, but risks to them? Not small at all.

Vintage Barbie light switch, $12 from LuCrafts

As owners of a fashion jewelry company, Wink and Flip undertook a major holiday market last season without performing a risk analysis on the business before the market started. This year we are working smarter. Risk analysis in business is a technique used to identify and assess factors that may jeopardize the success of a project, or achieving a goal.

The best way to go about organizing a risk analysis document for your business is to address one business area at a time, topics similar to those in a business plan. In large businesses, a computer system called a facilitated risk analysis process is often used. But small businesses can grab a basic entrepreneurship book and a pencil to create a list of the systems, applications and segments of their business, and then work on their own shoebox-style risk analysis. (See list of business systems below.)

After identifying and categorizing risks, a business owner must come up with controls that could lessen possible pain, or mitigate a risk, should it occur.

When friends of ours made thousands of ice cream sandwiches for a spectacular multi-day event in the summer, they were prepared for success. When the event was cancelled at the last minute, their risk analysis work saved them. With hundreds of ice cream sandwiches on their hands, they needed to find additional deep-freeze space to preserve their inventory. They’d already spoken to a restaurant with extra freezer space about renting that space if it should ever be necessary. When the event was cancelled, the owner made a phone call to the restaurant and his inventory was safely moved to the restaurant by the end of that day. Over the course of the season, the inventory was placed with wholesale accounts and supplied the business’s other events.

Risk analysis can help define preventive measures that might reduce the probability of risk factors from occurring.  Last September, when we went to purchase our favorite holiday bags – a white organza gift bag with silver stars on it – our usual supplier was sold out. This is the gift bag style we’ve used for ten years at the holidays, and now it was nowhere to be found. This year we will take a preventative measure to buy what we think we’ll need but do it in July, when organza bags are still available in all colors.

In order to avert possible negative effects on the company, risk analysis technique can also identify countermeasures to successfully deal with constraints when they develop. So what if we run out of our signature gift bags and it’s December 10^th? By having the name of a reliable mail order vendor (much larger than the store where we purchase the bags), we can place an order for additional bags and have them mailed overnight to us.  We can also identify three to four other bag colors that work with our color scheme.

The decision as to what controls are needed to avert risk lies with the business owner. She identifies what risks exsist and what controls are needed along with a related action plan for how to put the safety controls into place. 

But owners often overlook the most important risk to the business: what if they themselves cannot run it due to accident or injury? Disability insurance for the business owner, or event insurance that covers the wages of the owner and the cost of inventory, should be investigated for any sizable craft business.

Can we ever eliminate all risk? Probably not, but some forethought can go a long way toward turning a crisis into …whew,  a big save.

Susan 

winkandflip

Here is a list of areas to be covered from a standard business plan outline created by BusinessTown.com LLC. It can be adapted to areas of concern for a risk analysis document.

Summary

Business concept
Current situation
Key success factors
Financial situation/needs

Vision

Vision statement
Milestones

Market analysis

The overall market
Changes in the market
Market segments
Target market and customers
Customer characteristics 
Customer needs
Customer buying decisions

Competitive analysis

Industry overview
Nature of competition
Changes in the industry
Primary competitors
Competitive products/services
Opportunities
Threats and risks

Strategy

Key competitive capabilities
Key competitive weaknesses
Strategy
Implementing strategy

Products/services

Product/service description
Positioning of products/services
Competitive evaluation of products/services
Future products/services

Marketing and sales

Marketing strategy
Sales tactics
Advertising
Promotions/incentives
Publicity
Trade shows

Operations

Key personnel
Organizational structure
Human resources plan
Product/service delivery
Customer service/support
Facilities

Creating the financials of the business plan

Assumptions and comments
Starting balance sheet
Profit-and-loss projection
Cash flow projection
Balance sheet projection
Ratios and analyses 

Free Workshop on Governors Island 6/15

Scent your drawers this summer with a special sachet that you will make on Saturday June 15 at the Better Than Jam shop in Nolan Park on Governors Island. Jean Lin, of La Muse Kalliope (who is also our team's Executive Director) will be at the store from 1-4 pm to lead the workshop.

Hope to see you there!

When: Saturday, June 15th 1-4 pm
Where: Better Than Jam, #16 Nolan Park, Governors Island

When: June 1st, 1-4 pm
Where: Better Than Jam, #16 Nolan Park, Governors Island - See more at: http://thenewnew.blogspot.com/2013/05/free-jewelry-making-workshop-61.html#sthash.NGCWie5b.dpuf

When: June 1st, 1-4 pm
Where: Better Than Jam, #16 Nolan Park, Governors Island - See more at: http://thenewnew.blogspot.com/2013/05/free-jewelry-making-workshop-61.html#sthash.NGCWie5b.dpuf

When: June 1st, 1-4 pm
Where: Better Than Jam, #16 Nolan Park, Governors Island - See more at: http://thenewnew.blogspot.com/2013/05/free-jewelry-making-workshop-61.html#sthash.NGCWie5b.dpuf

Enough Already!

This is how I felt for the entire month of May, and things haven't gotten better now that June has arrived. If memory serves me, it rained every weekend in May (except the first weekend.) I don't know about other crafty folks, but I make most of my money during the month of May (except for the Holiday season.) This was not the case this year. I mean, who really wants to go to a craft show in the pouring rain? It turns out that most do not like strolling through a rainstorm....just to get some handmade goodies.

I try to look at the bright side....at least I had my tent this day at the 5th Ave Fair in Brooklyn. I felt kind of bad for this girl that was set up across the street selling little blow up toys for kids. Sure my tent was leaking, my shoes and jeans were soaking wet, and it was FREEZING...but I was trying to stay encouraged and celebrate the small things....like the fact that my tent did not blow away in the 20-25 mph winds!

So, please join me as I do my anti-rain dance this weekend. I am just so tired of the rain!
Until next time....happy crafting!
Nordea
nordeasoaperie

Hello Etsy Recap: "Good Jobs, Good Business, & Good Markets" - Good Economics According to Stewart Wallis

Stewart Wallis, Executive Director of the New Economics Foundation, and a jovial Brit, was one of three 30-minute presentations in the first opening session on Saturday, March 23rd, titled  "Reimagining Economy."  Mr. Wallis's presentation was the first of the three panelists and was not just a great intro to the day, but a great follow-up to Mr. Rifkin's keynote address the night before. In other words, anyone who may have been lost in Mr. Rifkin's session the previous night, got a lot more clarity the next morning thanks to Mr. Wallis.

Now, he talked more than just economics. He talked about environmental concerns, climate change, and the impact we have on these through the current state of our economics.  So lets get the economics over with. I don't think you really want me to go on and on about economics (I should note, I didn't do too well in my college economics class, but that's because I was tired and had no clue I would be in the business world to the extent that I am now. Age and wisdom is an amazing thing, no?), especially when Hello Etsy covered a great mix of topics and I'm itching to share those with you, too!

Stewart Wallis's main presentation was on what he calls, "the four U's" that are interlinked and causing systemic problems in our economies: Unsustainable, Unstable, Unfair, and Unhappy.  As any good Economist, he threw out the following data to back up these U's:

• We've been on the planet for 175,000 years;
• In 1975 we were using what the planet had to offer. Now, we've exceeded it by 50%;
• Over the last 23 years, 80% of real new income created in USA went to the top 1%;
• Top 400 Americans have more wealth than bottom 155 million Americans;

Daunting to think about isn't it to read this?  I mean, how is it possible that 400 Americans have more wealth than 155 million Americans?! (Readers outside of the US, I am sorry to be honing in on America's problems, especially when we can look all over the world and see employment and economic concerns for humanity as a whole.)  Even more so, how is it that we've exceeded the Planet's offerings by 50% in 38 years?

Mr. Wallis went on to say that we've moved beyond "trickle down economics." No longer is it feasible to even consider the idea that tax breaks of other economic benefits provided by the US government to businesses and the wealthy, will improve the economy, or benefit the poorer members of society.  The reason why we've moved beyond this is according to Mr. Wallis because economics doesn't recognize resilience, not to mention the way it is currently being practiced is morally and ethically corrupt. To drive it further, he said, "currently, markets are considered a religion and that's bad!" Amen!

He went on to explain that everyone should have a living wage and that corporations, if you work for one, should be providing that.  Instead, we live in a society where salaries reflect scarcity and scarcity creates over consumption and lack of opportunity in everything (education, medical care, food, and money).  If you've ever watched a show about obsessive couponers or hoarders, you know what I'm talking about. It's why Walmart and Dollar stores do so well.  When people believe that things are scarce, their actions mimic that belief.

These beliefs and actions are what is spinning our commodity driven world to chaos and why we now, have exceeded the limitations of the planet in the last 38 years.  It is why our oceans are with dangerously low levels of fish, polar bears are dying in the Arctic, bee populations are dying, and we, humans, are besieged with medical problems. Our systems are polluted thanks to our actions.

Etsy sellers and buyers are changing this, though. The Internet is helping to change this. Think about the shift we are part of, that is helping give back that sense of value to others.

So how do we change all of this? 

According to Mr. Wallis change comes in three ways. The first being, the critical challenge of - "how do we provide enough good jobs while remaining within planetary limits?"- the remaining two fold into this challenge. 

The answers to his critical challenge are many, but fairly simple:

1. Shift in values - we must become stewards not consumers
2. Shift in goals
3. Shift in measurement
4. Strong local economies
5. Replenishing and enhancing natural capital
6. Public service reform
7. Strategic Governance
8. Banking Reform (Markets as servants, power in markets, and tackling inequality)

All of these can be answered in how we see work. If you work for a company, that becomes how you are treated by that company. If you own your own business, that becomes how you treat yourself, your customers and business partners, and should you have any, employees.  This also means how you see your own relationship with money and the economy.   Mr. Wallis's list of what makes a good company, good includes the following:

• Maximize returns to scarce ecological resource
• Good job creation as a goal
• Employees are seen as an asset and equity holders, not costs
• Value of company is reflective of value created or destroyed

As for the changes necessary for the long term, to save the Planet, to get us back within planetary limitations, and to save ourselves, our values, and our happiness, we need to demand the following:

• Countering Short termism
• Changes to taxes and incentives
• One bottom line that includes social and environmental as well as economic
• Structure and diversity changes
• Banking and finance reform

What is your part in making these changes?  You can begin by paying attention to you:

• Your work
• Your lives and communities
• What you buy
• What you demand

With those four points, Mr. Wallis ended with saying, CREATE A MOMENT OF CHANGE!

This may seem impossible, but it isn't. He's absolutely right! We can create a moment of change within our own world which will impact all those that we come into contact with, do business with, and share our products with (if you are an Etsy seller, or a buyer of Etsy sellers).  These actions will inspire others and before you know it, we're all humming a similar tune, a tune of change.

While doing research for this post, I came across a recent (today!) TEDxExeter talk that Mr. Wallis did much like his presentation at Hello Etsy.  I highly recommend you watch it, especially if you're interested in hear more than reading bullet points.


Next month, I'll cover another presenter from Hello Etsy. Until then, I hope you'll join me in becoming a steward!

As always, if you have any comments, or suggestions, leave them below.  Lets do this!

//Sara
S2 Stationery and Design

Book Review: Watercolour for the Absolute Beginner

My First Still Life from Watercolour for the Absolute Beginner

In high school I had to choose between the music and the art track. Since my art career at that point had consisted mostly of C's and D's, choosing the music track was obvious. However, decades later I'm still trying to tell my inner artist that it's safe to come out now. After discovering some gorgeous watercolor journals and wanting to capture some of the spirit of my blooming garden, I decided to dig out my daughter's watercolors and give this medium a chance.For guidance I turned to Watercolour for the Absolute Beginner by Crawshaw, Finmark, and Waugh.

Learning how to work with shadows

This book is really a compilation of three separate books. Alwyn Crawshaw begins by teaching the fundamentals of watercoloring. He covers different painting techniques, mixing colors, and adding shadows. From there he proceeds to apply the techniques to paint a series of different objects: fruits, vegetables, flowers, skies, landscapes and so forth. Sharon Finmark focuses on painting people and Trevor Waugh explains how to paint animals.

I'm still at the very beginning of the book (page 40 out of 224), but feel like I've already learned a lot. The instructions are fairly clear and I'm having fun mixing colors. The exercises change frequently enough to make this endeavor very interesting and engaging. Whenever I have trouble, I turn to YouTube videos for further explanation (I think washes need a lot of practice). Most importantly, this venture is serving as a confidence builder allowing me to move from copying exercises to documenting my surroundings. Sooner or later I will want to move on to an in person class so I can learn from peers and get some feedback on what I am doing. But as an introduction to this art, this book has been a great inspiration for me.

Are you learning a new skill this summer?

Simone
groundsel.etsy.com

Figuring Holiday Sale Inventory

2012 Union Square Holiday Market

The applications for large holiday fairs come out around this time. Last year Wink and Flip had a booth at the Union Square Holiday Market and what amounted to a holiday season pass at the Brooklyn Night Bazaar in Williamsburg. Taking on the responsibility of a sizable holiday market can be both terrifying and gratifying.  

Big business begins buying inventory for the holidays anytime from now until August. For smaller businesses, such as those that belong to the New York Etsy Team, product is handmade and ramping up for holiday inventory may have already begun. Talking to other designers, it seems the worry about having enough inventory can be a major obstacle to booking big holiday events.   

How can you be sure you’ll be able to make all those holiday customers happy? One way to figure the amount of inventory you’ll need for the holidays is to work backwards: Decide – in a dream world – what you would like to make in terms of gross holiday sales. Then look at your best single sales day for 2012: Where was it, what were the conditions? It may very well have occurred during the holidays of the previous year.   

Now, work backwards and figure out what that day looked like in terms of product breakdown. In other words, how many pieces of your product (necklaces/sewn animals/candles/soaps) did you sell that day? Then, further break down the day as best you can so you are able to see exactly what comprised the sales in each category within your business. For instance, for a jewelry company, how much of a $2,000 sales day was done in rings, bracelets, and headbands? Divide each of those sales totals into the $2,000 sales figure and you now have a breakdown of percentage of sales for each category. So, you might find that on a $2,000 day, 60% of sales were necklaces ($1200), 20% were bracelets ($400), 10% were rings ($200) and 10% were headbands ($200).    

The next step is to choose your sales, apply and cross your fingers that you are admitted. Analyze each show. How many days does it run? Brooklyn Night Bazaar was eight two-day events, or 16 nights. Union Square was about six week, or 42 days.     

We took the company’s per day figures and multiplied them by the number of days those markets were held. That would give us a feel for how much inventory we would need. But since not all days are anyone’s most successful day, we would round down, so we didn’t make too much excess inventory. Of course, there is always the problem of not getting into the shows for which you have produced inventory, but most designers running a business at this level will get into some serious holiday shows.    

Most people who run handmade businesses are also producing product during the holidays, usually to catch up with sales. But it’s not easy to run and business and produce its inventory at the same time.    

While it’s true that we have not yet sunk our teeth into a single cob of 4^th of July corn yet, the time for crunching Christmas numbers is upon us. Good luck!

Susan/WINK AND FLIP

winkandflip

FIRST NY TEAM WORKSHOP OF THE SEASON ON GOVERNORS ISLAND

  

 

Our first workshop at Governors Island was a great success! Despite the heat outside, we enjoyed a steady stream of lively, fun and enthusiastic jewelry makers!

This workshop was focused on making simple, pretty single bracelets. I created a few dozen starter "kits" to choose from that included an overlapping round of bracelet-sized memory wire with one side bent into a small loop, in either gold or silver, along with a half strand of stones or two frosted, cut-to-fit jelly tubes for those who might want a quick fix. With these, it's string one jelly tube, some focals, and another jelly tube and done! For those who wanted stones, I included various colors and types, and I have to say, purple was the overwhelming favorite with all ages. :)

For the stoners (ha), I asked them to bead just slightly less than halfway around for a basic center-accented bracelet, and then they got to pick through another stash of various slightly larger focal stones to their liking. After choosing and stringing those, they beaded the rest of the base of the bracelet. It was at this point that they got to decide whether they wanted to complete the clasp and try out some basic wire work. The task was to bend the open wire end over itself and squeeze to round it off, and then to move a few millimeters in and bend the wire to a 45 degree angle, almost back on top of the beads, to serve as a hook. We had a few takers and a few naturals, but I have to say, memory wire is some tough stuff to work with. This is why it's ideal to work with too - it really holds its shape and gives one a great result without a lot of fuss!

Here's a couple of samples:

Decently simple, right? It was wonderful to watch everybody get creative. Many went totally asymmetrical, some spent a lot of time thinking about it, doing and redoing, and some sharp cookies were digging into the awaiting kit bags to mix it up when I wasn't looking. A little bootleg bracelet-making. It was awesome. There was plenty and it's usually best to stay out of the way of any budding artistes if you can help it. Ha.

On that note, I'd like to thank my daughter for coming out with me and for placing personally drawn notebook pictures at every seat, for everyone who sat down. By the end of the day, I think she told Kelly she was going to charge twenty bucks for them. 

She's five.

And on THAT note, I'd also like to thank Kelly, Karin, Suzanne and Ruby for their patience and helpfulness. Lorelei was so excited to be with you gals, and I was so happy to meet and talk with you all!

So, that's it for last week's workshop. Stay tuned for next week's. There's great stuff happening every weekend!

Take care, Everybody.

Melissa

Prairiefunk

A Crafty Life: Angeliki Jackson And AstrODub

This is Birdy27 and I'm stoked that June is finally here! I'm ready for warm summer breezes, free kayaking on the Hudson River, Shakespeare In The Park, skating season, and hanging outdoors all day. And I hope you're ready for another intriguing installment of the in-depth interview series "A Crafty Life." I'm having a great time interviewing talented artisans from the Etsy NY team and helping them share their stories. I try to mix things up a little, so this month I decided to focus--pun intended--on photography. Angeliki Jackson of AstrOdub immediately came to mind. The exotic Angeliki--with her trademark bangs--is a exceptional photographer, fine artist, DJ, and graphic designer. Through her photography and fine art, Angeliki explores the gritty yet beautiful world of urban decay and street art. I finally met the statuesque photog during the holidays and immediately loved her spirit. I knew that Angeliki had an interesting story to tell and I'm elated she let me into her world.

Like many New Yorkers, you weren't born here. Where were you born?

I am from a small island in the Aegean Sea in Greece named Chios. It is a great off-the-beaten-path destination with beautiful beaches, medieval villages, and amazing food. It has a population of around 50,000 people. My town is the second biggest on the island with 3,000 residents.

Wow! It must be incredible there.

It's pretty amazing as far as beaches and nature go. It's a great island to visit when in Greece. It's very close to Turkey, so you can kill two birds with one stone as there are day trips to Turkey daily.

You were surrounded by so much history and culture. How do you feel your formative years in Greece influenced your aesthetic sensibility?

My aesthetics are heavily influenced by my upbringing. In my fine art, the Byzantine influence derived from religious imagery. This imagery is very evident in the ornamentation of many of my pieces.

Also, growing up on an island that flourished in the Middle Ages and then was ravaged by wars, I was surrounded by stone, aged buildings, and a lot of ruins and abandoned houses with an abundance of texture and color.

You have a great eye, but I now see why you are so enthralled with decay and ruin. You must miss aspects of Chios. How often to you go back? 

I last visited in 2006 when I went to baptize my daughter Isabella. (She's now eight years old.) My husband Stefan and Izzy met my extended family for the first time. It was very homogenized community growing up, but that has changed in the past decade.

Isabella is great in this shot. So what ultimately brought you to the Big Apple?

I grew up in a society with very limited opportunities, especially when it comes to jobs. I left Chios after I graduated high school at 17 and came here to go to college. In the past 20 years or so that I've lived in the U.S., globalization has reached the island. With the current economic crisis in Greece, even if I hadn't left in the 90s, I'd be immigrating now. 

Did any of your family members relocate with you?

My parents had been traveling between New York and Greece since the mid 70s, trying to figure out where to settle. When I came here in 1990, I lived with my father and, a short while later, my mother joined us. They lived here until they retired to Greece last month. My entire family--aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.--is in Greece, including my younger brother.


You mentioned you came here to go to college. What did you study?

I have studied Greek literature, Latin and ancient Greek, attended Queens College for a few semesters, and eventually got a BFA in Graphic Design from the School of Visual Arts (SVA).

I love that you have a graphics background to support your photography. That background is evident in the "FWIS Geometry" photo. It's graphic and personal.

Heh! My stockings always make a statement. I wanted to showcase them in an Instagram, but there was nothing but asphalt and concrete around. I work in a very industrial neighborhood and see the same landscape three days a week. This photo is a perfect example of how I shoot. I observed my surroundings, took a moment to look down and reposition myself in the center of a Con Edison manhole cover, five feet from the entrance to my office, while on a ten minute break.

I can't believe this was a spur of the moment shoot--it's like guerilla photography. The design of the stockings match the manhole cover so perfectly. I have to ask you about your moniker. "AstrOdub" is such a cool name. How did you choose it?

I have been a DJ since I was 13 years old and through the years have taken different alter egos as stage names. "AstrOdub" settled in as my DJ alias in the 90s. Since the internet was popularized at the same time, it became my email address at Yahoo and it is now my alias in all social media, including my street art persona.

You do so many things! Do you still work as a DJ?

I love music so much! But I never got paid to DJ. I did it out of sheer pleasure. (I bartered with artists, though.) I did it regularly until I was five months pregnant with my daughter. It started to get harder to fit my growing bump behind some of the DJ booths. I still keep up with new music and discover old music. I mostly DJ at art openings these days because the club hours are not family-friendly.

We have a lot in common. My day job involves music, singing, dancing, and I act a bit like a DJ. Do you feel music influences your photography?

Music influences everything I do! [The lyrics in this photo by Radiohead.]

I find it immensely important to my creativity. I whistle while I work, so to speak. And I am very glad when I am able to listen to music when I do consulting. It makes the day go by faster.

Consulting? Is that your day job?

I am a freelance graphic designer. I have a steady gig three days a week working for a textile company in Richmond Queens. I'm very proud to be living and working in Queens.


Can you tell us a little bit about your "street art persona"? 

My street art persona is my avatar. A fantasy. If we were in The Matrix, I'd be AstrOdub, a femme fatale that could kick ass! If Christopher Walken had a female counterpart, I'd be it. [The quote in the first photo below is from the movie True Romance.]

 LOL! I can definitely image you that way. I see you're heavily influenced by film, too. How early did you start thinking about being a photographer?

I started taking photographs regularly in high school. At my foundation year at the School of Visual Arts, I fell in love with photography. I entertained making it my major, but since dark rooms and prints were expensive, I went into graphic design. So my training consists of two semesters in photography back when you developed your own film. That said, I consider myself a hobbyist and ultimately self-taught.

Interesting. I taught myself the basics of graphic designing and now make money doing it. Can you briefly describe your "self-education"?


Practice, practice, practice. The more photos you take of the same thing in different angles, the more you'll find your desired angle and establish a style. Observing other photographers' techniques can be inspiring. Apps like Instagram and EyeEm offer weekly challenges, which essentially are themes/tasks/projects to get you out there and shoot. I am also part of a local Instagram community--Instagram NYC--which is basically a meetup group of like-minded individuals (i.e., photo geeks). We take photo walks and exchange tips. 

 

When did you buy your first camera and what kind was it? What were your first subjects?

My parents financed my first professional camera for my class at SVA in 1996: a Minolta X-700, which was one of my instructor's recommendations. I mainly shot  in black and white. My subjects were commuters in the subway, nature, and family and friends.

We talked a little bit about your aesthetic sensibility. What are some of your other influences?  

I tend to photograph architectural details, all kinds of textures and urban decay. Lines, geometry, symmetry, and vanishing points are aesthetically appealing and interesting to me. 

Thanks to you, I now know that a vanishing point is "that spot on the horizon line to which the receding parallel lines diminish."

I love learning new things! Please continue.

The textures, colors and shapes of urban decay--be it graffiti or a weathered structure--capture me at a deeper level because they convey the age and history of a given environment. One can't help but wonder and imagine the stories those walls could tell if they could only speak.

Yes, I get that. When you see ancient architecture or even vintage furniture and clothes, you immediately wonder about the designer, the builder, the owner, or the wearer. It is clear your upbringing in Greece led to your fascination with the urban landscape, nature, and decay. Can you trace it to anything else?

I always had an affinity for paper collage and what can be achieved by manipulating and layering paper. In the same way, graffiti on a wall, a rusty bridge, and abandoned and forgotten structures are layers of history in the landscape of our every day lives. There is some insanely good street art out there, original pieces created and placed on a wall for everyone to enjoy.

And when this art gets weathered it becomes all the more interesting to me. In a graffiti piece the paint cracks and peels, someone tears a posted bill, someone posts or writes over something else adding or revealing layers and so on and so forth. Whenever possible I go back to see if something I have photographed is still there and whether it has changed.

Love this! What is your theory regarding composition?

Composing elements to fit an allotted space is one of the main principles of graphic design. It is the same in photography. Anyone can push a button and take a picture. Not everyone composes it. It's a matter of taking the time to study your subject, ask yourself what attracts you to it, and find the right angle to shoot so you convey what you saw to the viewer.

That is something I'm learning about as I take photos for my Etsy shop. I'm also learning that lighting is everything. 

Indeed. Good lighting and the right angle can make even the most boring subject come to life and ultimately produce a successful photograph.

The lighting in the "Industrial Workspace" image is amazing! Do you prefer natural (outdoor) light? Or do you prefer indoor lighting that you can control?

I always shoot in natural light--overcast days are the best--and do not like to use flash. That said, I would love to be able to control and manipulate light and one day would love to have the opportunity to shoot in a professional setting.

I learned the hard way that overcast days are best. You mentioned that you didn't have a dark room. How do you think photography has changed in the digital age? If so, do you miss the good ol' days or are you totally down with digital?

I never had any dark room experience besides my foundation year at SVA. I would love to have one, absolutely. I am totally down with digital, especially mobile photography. Ninety percent of my photos are taken with my iPhone. You cannot beat the convenience of an instant capture, being able to edit on the spot, and not have to schlep a DSLR (digital single-lens reflex) camera at all times. However, the phone lacks the quality of the DSLR. There are also other limitations including aperture control issues, lens versatility, etc.

I'm surprised you use your iPhone camera for so many of your shots. Depending on which model you have, you're talking about up to 8MGPs (mega pixels). Is that the minimum requirement for good pictures?

There is no minimum requirement for taking good pictures. I have seen amazing pictures taken with the first iPhone. It all depends on your style. The more MGPs, the more detail in your image. My iPhone has high-dynamic range imaging (HDR); however, my camera does not. In a low-light situation, my phone takes a better photo than my camera. For example, I took this photo when I went urbexing--"exploring urban areas generally off-limits to the general public"--at the Freedom Tunnel. Light is very limited there.

I don't have an iPhone, but when I get a new phone, I'm going to think about the camera in a whole way. And I might even go "urbexing" for my next photo shoot. When you do use a DSLR camera, what kind of camera do you use? And, for the amateur photog, what is the key to taking great photos?
 
My DSLR is the first one that SONY produced, the Alfa a 100. It is 10MB and came with an 18-70 lens. I have been faithfully using it for the past eight years and only recently bought a fixed 50mm lens for it. It's very basic, has no bells or whistles (no video capture, no LCD display). It's the closest thing to my manual camera as far as operating it, but with the convenience of digital. To the folks like me out there that want to buy a DSLR but can't afford the Canons and Nikons, just remember: It's your eye that ultimately takes the picture. Your equipment can only get you so far. A good lens is very important, using the rule of thirds, always have the grid and HDR on your device, and compose, compose, compose. Don't just shoot!
 
I'm so relieved. Last year when I needed a new camera, I wanted a DSLR badly. The cost, however, was prohibitive. But you're saying I can get the job done with just about any camera as long as I have an aesthetic that works. Excellent! What is your biggest seller?

It's probably the photo on the Woodside No. 7 train platform with clouds around sunset (Woodside Clouds). It seems that everyone who has bought that picture has a special connection to that station. It's great to hear from the customer why this photo is so special to them.

I like this one, too, even though I don't know that particular station. I like the off-center vanishing point. Where in Queens do you live? Do you have a dedicated studio? What is your work space like? 

I live in the Briarwood section in Jamaica, Queens, in a two-bedroom apartment with my husband and daughter. No dedicated studio space. I have spray paint and block prints in the kitchen, my working surface is my dining table, and I have two armoires full of working and potential art supplies. It's tough to operate as an artists when you have to lay everything out and clean it up immediately afterwards. It really messes with the creative process which is why I work in small scale.

I understand completely. My living room used to be just that. Now it's my studio and, unfortunately for my living room, I like to have my tools an projects handy. So it's taken over by yarn, projects in progress, my mannequin head, a dress form, my laptop, tools, etc. Let's switch gears a bit and talk about social media. How do you deal with it? Has it helped your business? Do you long for the days when you didn't need to spend time on all the different social media sites? Or does this energize you? 

I started with My Space then moved to Facebook, then Twitter, and then Instagram and Tumblr. I don't have much time to spend on social media. Thanks to Instagram's push feature, my posts are mirrored on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and Flickr. My popularity on Instagram has not boosted any of my sales unfortunately, but I get other perks from time to time like a free ten-day all inclusive trip to Israel last summer, a New York Rangers playoff game backstage tour, going to the MET museum when it was closed, shooting for Panasonic at the U.S. Open, an exhibit at the W Hotel in Times Square, a lecture on mobile photography at the Apple Store, and many more. 

Nice perks indeed. This brings me to time management.  How do you manage your time?  Do you spend, like, 75% on the actual photography portion and 25% on everything else?

It's a wonder I can get anything done! I work 9-5 three days a week. I take my daughter to after-school activities on Mondays and Wednesdays. I also cook every day, clean, and do the laundry for my family. I wish I had more time to spend on my photography, art, and urban exploration, and I do just that whenever possible. I don't take many pictures and, with time, I learned to edit as I go along, sort of like shooting with film. I hear of people shooting thousands of photos at an event. Somehow I can't do that. I shoot what I find interesting, not everything. But everybody has their own way of doing things.

I like that. Doing more doesn't necessarily mean higher quality. What do you do when it all seems to be too much?

When life gets too much I take my camera and ride to 5 Pointz. That's how this whole "I gotta go take some pictures" startede first place.

Now I'm going to have to check out the 5 Pointz Aersol Art Center. You have a varied product line. Please tell us about what you offer.

I sell photographic prints in various and custom sizes, repurposed cigar boxes that feature my photography, journals for charity that feature my photography, tote bags, and calendars. I just debuted my new black and white 2014 calendar in my Etsy shop! (All the photos were taken on my iPhone.) For my fine art, check out my other Etsy shop, In Stitches.

Thanks for announcing the calendar debut in this interview. Do you sell at craft fairs?  If so, approximately how many per year?

I did craft fairs regularly for the past four years. I only do two a year now. The craft fair thing was not profitable for me and it was not worth the time away from my family.

That makes sense. I, too, am trying to do craft markets in a smarter way--again, quality, not quantity. I struggle with this, though, because I think that people really need to try on my hats, scarves, ear warmers, etc. They also like to feel the items and that means in-person contact. So selling online may not work well for my crochet and knit items. What about you? Do you think people are best served by seeing your work in person?

As far as my fine art goes, yes. It has to be seen and touched. Photo prints not so much. They look the same online or in person. Only the size only changes.

Yes, you're right. My handmade items sell well in person and my graphic designs sell easily online. Do you have any wholesale accounts?

I have one for my fine art and one for my photography. The product moves slow, but it's nice to have it out there.

No matter how much you sell on your own, being in a store is great validation. Marketing is challenging for most creative artists.  How do you approach marketing and advertising?

I don't have much money to spend in advertising so I market myself the best I can. I am always thinking of more ways to reach an audience online, but let's face it, it's very competitive out there and unless you have a big advertising budget it's hard to stand out. I do my social media thing, send some Mail Chimp blasts every once in a while, and did craft fairs for a while.

You offer fine art as well as photography and photo-related items. How do you approach pricing for the different arms of your business?

All my "In Stitches" cards are original one of a kind pieces of art. Each of them takes me an average of 1.5 hours to complete and I couldn't even sell them for $12! That's when I decided to try to capitalize on my photography. The overhead is reasonable and it takes almost no time to produce compared to fine art. My photography sold better than my fine art, but not well enough to make a living out of it.

Stefan and Izzy must be proud of you. How do they help you? Do you have any pets? 

Yeah, they are. I wouldn't be able to pursue any of my hobbies without their support and my husband's chauffeuring and babysitting. I am very grateful to have them in my life. We recently adopted a gray tuxedo cat that came with the name "Dante."

Nice. It's wonderful when you have a supportive family. Where do you see your business in 5 years?

It is very difficult predict an art/novelty business in a fluctuating economy. For the past 3-4 years I tried new products, vended at pretty much every market in NYC, and placed my product in consignment shops. It was not enough to get by, so I had to go back to being a graphic designer and took a 9-5 gig. Needless to say, that does not leave me much time to create. However, I am redoing my business plan and focusing on selling on more online outlets and vending at art-specific markets--which are very rare in NYC. I am returning to the Better Than Jam’s pop-up shop on Governor’s Island this summer with a pretty eclectic collection of photographs, where I will also be offering  a free workshop on making collage postcards. The new 2014 calendar will be available there, too.

I hope you do really well on Governor's Island. Well, it's time for my last question. How has being part of the Etsy NY team helped you?

It has helped me immensely as a business advice resource, a materials resource, and for vending opportunities. On a social level, I have made some great acquaintances. I love being part of Etsy NY and try to give back to the team as much as possible.


Thank you, Angeliki, for an incredible interview! I learned a lot. You are a gifted artist and a wonderful person. I have no doubt you will be hugely successful in the near future.

The fourth of July is on the horizon and so is another exciting installment of "A Crafty Life." I hope you've enjoyed meeting some of our team artisans. These interviews aren't like the four-minute fluff segments you find on your favorite morning TV shows. We go deep here at ACL! Our amazing artisans need your support, so don't just read the ACL interviews. Comment below and share the ACL series with your friends, tweeps, and family. This is Birdy27 signing off. Please support the handmade community. Successful creative artisans change change the world! Chirp, chirp!
 

Birdy27 is an actor/writer/singer/songwriter/graphic designer/
knitter/crocheter/yarn-based accessories designer/jewelry maker/entrepreneur and founder/president of Birdy27 Designs. Please join the action at the Birdy27 Designs Facebook Fan Page.