CMWrapNShipSupply

Member Spot Light, www.etsy.com/shop/CMWrapNShipSupply

I thought we would switch it up a little this month.
Who wants to see an awesome shop full of supplies?!
Please welcome David of CMWrapNShipSupply

Berry Baskets

Etsy Paper: Tell us a little about yourself.
David: My name is David and I am a retired police officer. I am married to Shelley (she has MissBettysAttic here on Etsy). I have 4 children and 1 granddaughter. I live in central Iowa, but right now we are in the process of sell our home and moving to a farm in north central Iowa.

Etsy Paper: When did you open your shop on Etsy? 
David: I opened my shop in September of last year about the time I retired. 

Etsy Paper: Tell us about your shop: www.etsy.com/shop/CMWrapNShipSupply
David: I sell a little bit of everything when it comes to paper. I have packing and shipping supplies as well as paper and plastic bags. I sell a lot of gift/hang tags. I have a large selection of gift boxes and bags and washi tape to top it off.

Washi Tape

Etsy Paper: Why did you decide to become on Etsy seller? 
David: My wife thought I would enjoy it and keep me busy.


Etsy Paper: How do you create the perfect balance between family, house-hold duties, work and paper? 
David: Etsy is my job and that is what comes first in the morning. I work on that until noon. After that, I check my shop, but I have a long honey - do list. We are empty-nesters so there are not a lot of pressures here at home.

Library Cards

Etsy Paper: How do you package your items? 
David: I go to the local grocery store and snag boxes early in the morning. They are great boxes and they are free. I like to reuse packaging. I recycle as much as possible.

Etsy Paper: How did your shop get its name? 
David: My wife was having a bad day and she wrote on in the Homespun Society chat thread here on Etsy that she needed a date with Captain Morgan. The ladies thought the she was talking about me instead of the drink. The name stuck to me and when I opened the shop, it was meant to be. CM stands for Captain Morgan.

Gold Doilies

Etsy Paper: What has been your most successful marketing technique to date? 
David: Team promotion and treasuries. It is a must here on Etsy.


Etsy Paper: How much time do you devote each day to your shop? 
David: 6 to 8 hours a day. Mondays it is more like 12 if I don't do anything on Sunday.

Want to read more about David?  Check out his About Page! It also has the link to his wife's Etsy shop.  Take a look at what this amazing couple has to offer.
www.etsy.com/shop/CMWrapNShipSupply/about

I never stop being shocked at the diversity of Etsy.  The Etsy Paper team has such a great mix.  Who knew a retired police officer would be selling such great supplies to people all over the world.  I love that David is able to do that.

Until next time, 
Jenni
Etsy Paper Team
Captain

SilvaWare

Member Spot Light, SilvaWare.

Alright ladies, step aside, we have a highly-talented man coming through. 
Please welcome Walter Silva!

Fisherman Pin or Magnet

Etsy Paper: Tell us a little about yourself.
Walter: I'm a freelance Artist / illustrator and DIY guy living in Providence, RI.  I work from home in a spare room.

Etsy Paper: When did you open your shop on Etsy?
Walter: In June it will be 5 years.
www.etsy.com/shop/WalterSilva

Etsy Paper: Tell us about your shop.
Walter: My shop items are a reflection of what I like to make aside from illustrating.  I love the art of decoupage.  I provide DIY Tutorials for many blogs like modpodgerocksblog.com/ > Podgy People > Contributors > Man Podgers
In my shop I offer personalized items, like Boxes, Frames and Magnets.  I make my own papers.  Also offer some Art assemblages, which I love creating.

Wall Art

Etsy Paper: Name top (3-5) items (for crafting purposes) that you cannot live without.
Walter:
• Papers, all sorts... Handmade, scrap-booking, Maps and ephemera.
• Any Mod Podge
• Golden and Folk Art Paints
• My Cuttlebug
• Dies for the Cuttlebug (I love using these shapes in my Fine ART Collages.)

Cat Art Panel

Etsy Paper: What inspires you?
Walter: Good question, a lot! Trips to Antique Malls, Walks at the park, coffee shops my vintage fisher price pull toy collection!  And visiting Brimfield! Brimfield Massachusetts is the site of the largest outdoor antique show in New England, with over 5000 dealers from all over the country.  I have spotted some famous celebs there like Martha Stewart, Ralph Lauren, HGTV and many bloggers.  It's impossible to see it all, I am lucky if I see 1/16th of the show. Exhausting but so inspiring!
More info here: www.brimfield.com/

Etsy Paper: What is it about paper that draws you to create with it?
Walter: The feel and look of paper is just mind blowing. You can draw on it, paint on it, fold it and use it to decoupage.  Make Cards, Art, sculpt and collage... Just endless opportunities!  I love using found pieces too, like when I walk at the park.  You never know what you will find on the ground.

Etsy Paper: Is there something that you've never tried with paper that you'd like to try?
Walter: Yes! I love quilts and want to make some using papers that I have collected.  And, I will be incorporating some drawing too. And, this is where the Cuttlebug comes in handy, I can cut out shapes of papers that I have and sew them up.

Photo example from a Graffitti Artist Walter admires.

Etsy Paper: When do you find/make time for your crafting?
Walter: My artistic senses are on all the time, I am practically always seeing things in an artistic way, constantly observing.  I find that I am mostly "On Full throttle" in the late evening when its quiet.

Etsy Paper: How did your shop get its name?
Walter: I was enrolled in a illustration class at Rhode Island School of Design and asked my classmates for suggestions and they were all excited to help and Voila SILVA WARE was born. Never be shy to ask for help or suggestions.

Etsy Paper: What has been your most successful marketing technique to date?
Walter: Not sure? I get some free shout outs from my Facebook, Tutorials, twitter, in the beginning have paid some bloggers (do not suggest this), word of mouth.  It all takes time, every year the business grows.

Pill Box

Etsy Paper: What is your favorite thing about Etsy?
Walter: I love selling my Art and Crafts! It blows my mind that I sell all over the world! I just recently had my first in state sale, I was so excited! What took so long, LOL!

Walter leaves us with these kind words:
Good luck to all! Remember to "do what you love and $$$ will follow"

Keep in touch with me here:

Walter Silva
Illustrator
waltersilvaart.blogspot.com
www.pinterest.com/waltersilva/
twitter.com/WalterSilvaArt
www.facebook.com/SilvaWare
silvaware.bigcartel.com/
society6.com/waltersilva

WOW!  I am amazed at the variety of items in his shop.  Anything from cute to scary to vintage, I love that.  I am delighted to have been able to share one of the many talents on the Etsy Paper Team with you.
Until next time,
Jenni
Etsy Paper Team,
Captain

VasariahCreations

Member Spot Light, VasariahCreations

This month I wanted to change focus to a paper shop that some might see as unexpected.  You may even be amazing at the fact that these items are made of paper.

Let me introduce you to Ombretta from VasariahCreations

Brooch

Etsy Paper: Tell us a little about yourself.
Ombretta: My name is Ombretta, I am 30 years old and I was born in Italy but I have been living in France for 2 years with my boyfriend and my dog. I am an illustrator specialized in school books. I like very much drawing and playing with paper.

Etsy Paper: When did you open your shop on Etsy?
Ombretta: I opened my Etsy shop in May 2013.

Etsy Paper: Tell us about your shop.
Ombretta: In my shop you can find many items realized with paper, handpainted cold porcelain, wood and sea stones; they all are totally handmade. There are mostly jewels, but I’m working for adding home decorations, like the 3D origami paper owl you can already find in the shop, and DIY-tutorials (like how to make round paper beads).
www.etsy.com/shop/VasariahCreations

 Dangle Earrings

Etsy Paper: Do you remember the first item you made, and if so, do you still have it?
Ombretta: I do remember the first item I made.  It was a beautiful triangular stone found on the beach. I decided to drill and paint it for making a pendant. It was only a try and the result was so bad, but I really liked the idea and so I went on working on it. After 2 years I was willing to improve my art with paper jewelry.

Etsy Paper: Why did you decide to become on Etsy seller?
Ombretta: The great opportunity Etsy gives me is to share my art with people of all over the world. I can show my items, get comments, suggestions and critics and I can do this using a well-made platform.

Etsy Paper: What is your favorite technique/ your "specialty"?
Ombretta: My favourite technique is recycling paper to re-create beautiful beads and jewelry : I think it’s a good way to make special something that -generally- is considered as not special. Then, each jewel is different from the others.

Beads

Etsy Paper: Who is your biggest fan?
Ombretta: I think my biggest fan is my mum.  When I create something bad, very bad, my mum says « Oh, it’s beautiful! »

Etsy Paper: Are you a clean or messy crafter?
Ombretta: I think art is freedom, so I want to be free when I test new ideas. That’s why I cannot say that I’m a 100% clean crafter. Anyway I am very accurate in my works.

Necklace

Etsy Paper: How do you package your items?
Ombretta: I make the packages one by one with recycled materials (i.e. cereal boxes…). Of course I try to make them as strong as possible for avoiding problems in shipping.

Etsy Paper: How did your shop get its name?
Ombretta: Vasariah is the name of the guardian angel for people born in August, the month I was born. I think it’s a lucky name and I am very attached to it.

I'd have to agree with Ombretta's mum, "Oh, it's beautiful!"  What an amazing, talented artist.  Please take a minute to browse her shop.  What a unique gift!
www.etsy.com/shop/VasariahCreations

Until next time,
Jenni
Etsy Paper
Team Captain

StravaganzaArt

Member Spot Light, StravaganzaArt

Let me introduce you to Valentina from StravaganzaArt!

Jayne Eyre Print

Valentina had some great responses to the interview questions, and was pleasant in her conversation.

Etsy Paper:  Tell us a little about yourself.
Valentina:  Hi! My name is Valentina, I’m Italian and I live in Rome with my husband and my (criminal) cat. I’m an illustrator and a writer. Drawing and writing are my jobs, but also my greatest passion.

Cat Print

 

Etsy Paper:  When did you open your shop on Etsy?
Valentina:  I opened my shop for the first time in 2010, it was only an experiment, and then I forgot it for three long years. When I remembered I had a shop on Etsy, I opened it on January 2013.

Etsy Paper:  Tell us about your shop.
Valentina:  I sell prints of my digital and original artwork, handpainted notebooks, original paintings and more! Find my shop here:
www.etsy.com/it/shop/StravaganzaArt

Etsy Paper:  What inspires you?
Valentina:  For me, inspiration is hiding everywhere. It’s in my favorite books, movies, or in old fairy tales. It's in the landscapes of my country, in the food I eat or in the music I listen to.

Etsy Paper:  Do you have a favorite quote to share?
Valentina:  Follow your dreams. They know the way. 

Handpainted Notebook

Etsy Paper:  When your creativity gets blocked/clogged, what do you do or where do you go to get inspired and create again?
Valentina:  In my job, creative blocks are frequent. When it happens, I can’t sit down at my desk, waiting for the inspiration. I need to go out, see my friends, or have a cup of tea, reading a book. My grandma said “If you wait for something, it never happens”, and I think it’s real. So if inspiration doesn’t come, I never wait for it, I do other things.

Doll Print

 

Etsy Paper:  What is it about paper that you love?
Valentina:  I use paper for writing and for drawing, so for me, paper it’s a blank universe. I can imagine everything and create a new world, just with my pencil, acrylics colors or software! 

Postcard Set

Etsy Paper:  What was your biggest mistake you made when starting out on Etsy? How did you fix it?
Valentina:  I thought selling on Etsy was easy. Listing an item and waiting for buyers. Then I realized that selling on Etsy is really complicated, (and selling from Italy it’s almost impossible). You need to follow your activity on Etsy everyday, make treasuries, join the teams, learn from other shops. Luckily, the Etsy community is full of people who want to help new sellers with their experience. There is a great sense of community and I absolutely love this.

I love how Valentina's answers are from the heart and really show just how whimsical and creative she is.  Her shop has a great variety of cute, sweet, inspiration, and even some items on the darker side.  I love that!
Take a few minutes and browse her buy from her shop, StravaganzaArt.

Until next time,
Jenni
Etsy Paper Team, Captain

SproutLuv

Member Spot Light, SproutLuv

Let me introduce you to Jennifer from SproutLuv!

Personalized Stationery Set

Jennifer was so kind to take some time out of her busy schedule for an interview with me.  
This is what she said.

Etsy Paper:   Tell us a little about yourself.
Jennifer:  My name is Jennifer Rodriguez and I grew up and live in beautiful Vancouver, British Columbia - where it really isn't nearly as rainy as they say or X-Files made it look!

Etsy Paper:  When did you open your shop on Etsy?
Jennifer:  I opened up SproutLuv near the end of January 2013 and am very excited about my 1 year anniversary which is coming up right around the corner.

Etsy Paper:  Tell us about your shop.
Jennifer:  SproutLuv is all about handcrafted paper goods, with a focus on custom stationery. What can I say? Maybe I'm old fashioned, but I just love giving and receiving handwritten notes so the cards, jotters and notebooks I design and make are really just a natural extension of what I love.

I'd been giving them away to friends and family and after much coaxing, the people I love convinced me to try my hand at selling the pieces online. 
You can find me here:
www.etsy.com/ca/shop/SproutLuv 
or on my site at sproutluv.com/ 
or on Facebook www.facebook.com/pages/Sprout-Luv/397791826980559

Thank You Cards

Etsy Paper:  How did your shop get its name?
Jennifer:  The "l-u-v" in SproutLuv represents a time in my life when, as a young teen, I could be creative without being overly critical. When all of my ubiquitous little handmade gifts and notes were unabashedly signed off with “luv, jen.”

I think all of us have at some point in time, given or received a handwritten note signed off with “luv." Some were three sentences and others spanned messy pages. Some were silly and some were surprisingly reverent. Others arrived in the mail from loved ones far away. I have a shoe box full of these notes which will always be keepsakes. The name of my shop is a reflection of that.

Etsy Paper:  What inspires you?
Jennifer:  This may seem a little strange for stationery, but my favorite designs have actually been inspired by items in my closet that I just love.

One of my all-time favorite prints was inspired by a now worn-to-death set of tights that were my go-to pair come fall and winter. I have since had to retire them, but they served me long and well and at least I have a design to commemorate them! I also literally own 11 items of striped clothing (not counting 2 pairs of striped flats I picked up in the summer) so of course stripes are featured as a design. I mean, I even created lace typography... Me? Over-coordinated? Er. Well. Sometimes.

Personalized Cards

Etsy Paper:  What is it about paper that draws you to create with it?
Jennifer:  My fanaticism for handwritten notes (the "NOTED!" section of my website is devoted to them) coupled with the fact that I'm just a VERY tactile person who loves the feel of good paper makes it my medium of choice.

How my notebooks and stationery feel in your hands and against your pen is just as important to me as how they look. For example, I only use 70lb paper in my notebooks and jotters. If you're not a paper geek like me, that's over double the weight of your typical printer paper! My cards are made from a dense and luxuriously textured art board stock I can't seem to run my fingers over enough! And I actually spent over 6 months testing three different cover stocks before I went with the kraft version I use for my notebooks and jotters. I ended up choosing the kraft board I use now because I just fell in love with how the covers wore into this soft, almost velvet-like texture after a while, but still remained sturdy and retained its heft.

Like I said, I'm a sucker for how paper feels and you'll notice that with all of my handcrafted goodies.

Etsy Paper:  What has been your favorite comment from purchasers about your product?
Jennifer:  Great reviews truly make my day and anything referring to my customer service and the quality of my goods always makes me happy. I think my very favorite reaction from a client receiving my goods came from a lovely woman who took the time to email me as soon as her notebooks arrived. She couldn't wait to tell me that she was both extremely happy with the books AND extremely UPSET that the new Etsy feedback system wouldn't let her leave a review for her purchases yet! She said she would have to wait a week, but that she'd mark the date in her calendar so she didn't forget.

Of course, I didn't expect to get the feedback on my shop because it was the holidays and people are so very busy, so after I emailed her back thanking her for the glowing email, I forgot about it. I'm sure you can imagine my surprise and delight when exactly a week later, on the date she mentioned, I got one of the best reviews my shop has seen!

Personalized Notebooks

Etsy Paper:  Who is your biggest fan?
Jennifer:  That has to be my lovely mother. Or wait. My 16 month old nephew? Actually, I think they may equally love my goodies, though for different reasons: my mom loves my design tastes and my nephew loves the taste of my papers!

I can really relate to many of those answers, and I'm sure most paper-lovers can too.  
Such a beautiful shop.  Be sure to take a peek at SproutLuv.
You'll be amazed at all the wonderful options she offers.

Happy New Year from Etsy Paper!

Until next time,  
Jenni  
Etsy Paper Team, Captain