This won’t really take the shape of my happy lists, but I do want to highlight some of my most favorite things I’ve done and/or changed around here this year.

Blogging

1. Started blogging again. It took me quite some time but I definitely got into the habit of blogging in 2011. And I did some serious blogging. This year I published 161 posts and most of those posts were of high quality. Next year, my goal is to try and double that amount. It felt really really good to write so frequently. I did suffer from some dry spells and my start was super rocky, but I wrote at least 15 posts every month come April. In May I wrote a total of 30 posts-my highest amount yet. July and August were the runners up with 21 and 20 posts respectively.
2. Created some really wonderful series. 2011 was the year of expansion for me. I was overflowing with ideas and I got to implement quite a bit of them on the blog. I actually had so many ideas, I felt overwhelmed before even starting. I picked a few to get the ball rolling and I’ll say that this is the best decision I made. By far I think my most popular series and one I had little trouble talking about at length-to the point of writing actual articles, was Biz Talk :: Back to Basics series. That series brought me opportunities I hadn’t had prior and also brought me a lot of new supporters. Those posts were enjoyed and commented on the most. Another series, which was more personal but still got a lot of response online was my 29 at 29 list. It encouraged quite a few of my friends and supporters to do their own lists and think of things they want to accomplish this year. My third favorite series was ‘Til Monday, where I would put a list together of things I saw and loved around the internet. I am hoping to upgrade that next year, but I’m definitely continuing with it.
3. Added contributors. I thought it would be fun to add contributors to the blog to talk about things they are particularly amazing at and Megan, Mariam and Marsha joined my team. It was really fantastic to add these ladies and I’m hoping to expand that as well in the new year. I would love more than anything for this to not just be a place where I’m doing all the talking all the time. I love community. I thrive on it. What better way to have that happen than to have others share their opinions on this blog as well. If you’re ever interested in being a contributor, let me know.
4. Wrote guest posts. I got a taste of fulfilling part of my writing dreams by contributing a few posts to the Vianza blog and writing a post at Miss Moss. After reading some of my Biz Talk posts, I was asked to become a contributor on Vianza, which I accepted and I hope to really dig down deep in the new year and source some serious gems. I would love to do some guests posts at other blogs as well, so if you’re interested you can always contact me.
5. The Great Postcard Swap. Although, admittedly I was pretty lousy at updating, I have more confidence than ever that I am great at connecting people. Over 20 women signed up for the swap and while not all of them participated fully (full disclosure: myself, included…but I’ll get them out. I must after all.) most of them did and a lot of these women have become friends. It went beyond postcard writing to letter writing and chatting and befriending one another on other sites and even getting together in person if I’m not mistaken. I am so thankful to have had the idea. I am also thankful for all the new relationships I gained because of this swap. I’ve met some real amazing women and look forward to even more next year. I will be hosting another one next year some time, with modified rules.

Business

1. Shop updates. I had quite a few shop updates this year that I’m really proud of. I started really creating work again this year and it felt amazing. After taking pretty much a year off really left me in a slump. But I got my mojo back! I’m on it.
2. Added new products. This year I also added two new lines to my collection: Lithe bracelets and Amis necklaces. I have made bracelets since I started this business, but didn’t really put any up for sale because I was never really fully happy with what I made. My tastes became more refined and I found my own unique niche. I’ll be expanding on the styles available next year.
3. Invested. Not only did I take out ads on Miss Moss and I Adore Style, I did something exceedingly important and so timely it scared me. I purchased Danielle LaPorte’s The Fire Starter Session. By far, one of the best investments I made not only in my business, but in myself. It helped me to really define parts of what I feel my purpose is. It triggered my Biz Talk series. It has helped on so many levels–levels I didn’t even anticipate. I’ve done my part to spread the good word.It got me thinking about things not just when I was ready to, but because I absolutely needed to.
4. Learned new things.I spent a lot of my time reading this year. I also spent a good chunk of time learning how to use a DSLR properly and how to create things in Photoshop on my own. There is nothing better than being self-sufficient. Without it, I feel empty. I am glad that I’ve been making the time to find tutorials and really spending time learning the program. I am tons better at it now. I still have a huge way to go with using a DSLR, but I’m getting there. I’ll talk more about this next week.
5. Learning my business. I’ve always felt like I’ve spent a lot of time learning who my customer is and learning how to engage people in an effective way and I finally am starting to reap the benefits of that. There are so many hats that I attempt to wear, but with time I’ve realized that I am hurting myself by not letting go. Letting go is hard for me, but I’m getting there. The more I do it, the greater my network becomes.

So these are some of my most poignant moments and lessons online this year. I am so looking forward to growth in 2012. I am excited about the shape my business will take next year. I am excited to grow a community.

How was your 2011? Did you accomplish any or all of what you had hoped for? What have you learned? Let’s talk about it in the comments.

Hi lovelies!

I’ll have a full shop update later today. There will be new necklaces and bracelets for sale.
The preview on Sunday went really well. I’ll be back later on with more.

I mentioned yesterday, rather off-handedly that I was working on some new jewelry for the shop. I found out yesterday that I’ll be able to vend at the Black Magic Woman Festival here in Amsterdam and I’ll be having a one day pre-sale on the site as well as in person.

Sunday, all new necklaces (and hopefully bracelets if I can get the pieces from the store this week) will be available as a pre order at a discounted rate. On Tuesday, November 15 the prices will increase to their regular price. So if you see something you like, I would order it right away if I were you. I’m hoping to crank out more combinations as well, and they are at different lengths.

Pre-sale price on November 13:

$30 for the small beaded necklaces  or  $50 if bought in pairs (they are my take on BFF necklaces)

$35 for the necklaces with larger stones

Current colors available (pictured above L-R):

Translucent grey with coral
Emerald green with pale green
Blue with pink    SOLD!
Navy with opaque pearl blue
Grey with onyx
Pale green with emerald green
Pink with blue     SOLD!
Opaque pearl blue with navy

Previously, I’ve covered comparison living, branding yourself with a minority label, and even my I am not a sweatshop post could be added to the mix.  Continuing with this standing in your own way series, I want to take a cue from The Dramatics and apply this song title to how we inadvertently shape our image based on very obvious things.

The most obvious of all, especially as an online seller, is photos. I feel it’s safe to say unless you have a budget set aside for quality photos or know someone who will do a smashing job in some sort of barter agreement, chances are your photos have looked like crap at some point. I know mine have. They have gotten better over time, but really went from ehh to BRAVO! yesterday. See, I spent a few hours shooting some new jewelry and re-shooting a bit of my old stock and I’ll finish the rest this week. I finally FINALLY have proper photos.

It’s been a long time coming and you know what the number one change was?

An amazing camera. D showed me how to use his Cannon 550D a few days ago and I was blessed with some good natural light and then I went in and color corrected my photos.

Here’s a before and after of some bracelets I currently have in the shop:

Although my new home has more natural light than my house in Brooklyn, I still seem to suffer from a lack of decent enough lighting to take great photos off the bat. I’ve also been prisoner to having too much texture in photos. It’s an addiction. If it’s one thing I’ve noticed over the years in other brands that I admire is a simple background is key. Same with a blog. I won’t read a blog if I go to their page and they have ridiculous fonts and hard-on-the-eyes backgrounds. If I’m not completely turned off, I’ll RSS them. So if I’m like that with others, what made me think it was okay to do that myself? K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Sweetie)

No more crazy backgrounds for me. Just solid light colors, or at least solid colors that work well against what I’m photographing. I still have work to do, but the difference is night and day so far. I’m pleased as punch!

Another interesting note I want to touch on is the added perceived value of inventory based on photography alone. Here’s an example:

Person A and Person B make exactly the same product. Let’s say it’s knitted scarves. Let’s also assume they are on an equal playing field: they know no one and are both just starting out. They don’t happen to be BFF with a magazine editor or sitting on piles of cash or e-friends with all the right people (whatever that means).

Person A has access to a photographer friend and sets up a little studio somewhere with a model (you could be the model or it could just be a friend that’s photogenic and willing to help out for a free scarf) or takes on location photos and models the scarves in scenes.

Person B has a camera and takes photos in their house (which is TOTALLY FINE) in bad lighting and settings (which is NOT totally fine).

They both want to charge $75 for their scarf. Who do you think will sell first? Who do you think will sell more? Just by looking at the photos and not knowing either person, we tend to automatically assume that Person A has better quality product, when in reality it could be the other way around. We just can’t see it. We could be robbing ourselves of customers and promotional opportunities based on our photos. What a tragedy.

So awesome photos actually change the title to: what is see, is much more than what you get.

What are your thoughts? Do you suffer from the same illness as me? Have you improved your photography? Do you have links to share that can help others?