We came up with the term, Straight Fistin', on the car ride. Kinda means like if you are happy, partying, getting your groove on, or ready to get crazy, you're straight fistin', however, if you are tired, or trashed, or sick, you are straight fisted, implying that you had at one point been having a great time, and now you are paying.

So we are a 1/3 into our tour and so far things have been getting crazy and amazing. First show was in Boston at The Western Front, we played to a crowd of roughly 40 people along with some amazing local acts including H.W. and Emoh Betta, got a lil too tipsy for the set and blew my voice, don't worry it was healed by the next night.

So we drive back to our tour mates house that night to sleep, just over an hour, wake up in the A.M. and we have a flat tire. You fucking kidding me? Tour just started and we already got a flat? so we went and shelfed out 100 bones to get a new one and made our way to burlington vt for our next show at Radio Bean Coffee. People were awesome. We show up and everyone is just hangin in there booths and on their stools, we get going and instantly get a good response. Everyone participated in the crowd participation aspects of our show and helped to donate towards our new tire fund. next day we head out to NYC!

We get there and instantly check in with the venue. Walking in the place is massive, decked out with tons of halloween paraphanalia and awesome lights, we ask about the show and they tell us it's downstairs, we're all like "awww but its so cool up here". Walk downstairs, into a midevil dungeon lounge, something like you would only see in NYC. So pumped playing in a dungeon we go out and hook mister Nobody Cares up with his first taste of "Real New York Pizza". Show was amazing Both Kuan, and Sea Monsters rocked and we had an amazing time. stayed out til around 3 am at a swanky wine bar, the type you might see a vampire at, and had an amazing bottle of wine. Sea Monsters bass player, Janelle, let us stay at her place and treated us with amazing hospitality.

Headed out a lil early the next morning for New Hope PA, were we find one of the most amazing costal towns ever. So many nice and amazing people we met. We walked around and ate at a few places, had some snacks and drinks, it was hannah's birthday afterall, and went shopping at some awesome shops. Going into the venue, "John And Peters" we get ready for our next show. Played with two bands, Faster than Fate, and Of Fate and Chance. Show rocked, minus the 2 heckling bitchesfor N.Cares and us, but we both got an amazing response from most everyone in attendance and sold a very healthy amount of merch. We were taken in for the night by Elaine and Toni whom upon waking wisk us to a local diner for breakfast and onto explore a haunted high school. This place had been burnt down, rebuilt, and burnt down a second time! While scowering through and around we came upon a family of deer with baby mama and a papa, no pictures of them unfortunatly.After saying our good byes we travel once again and into the welcome loving arms of Mr. P.T. Bernum!!

Both N.Cares and Bernum shared with us someone of similar interest, mr MC Homeless. Stories flew out from all angles and inspired a new song which i'll post once we mix it all down. we went and played our show in Baltimore at Side Bar Tavern, along with locals Reg and Iron Soul. the smallest crowd of the tour with a whopping paying crowd of 3 along with the 4 people working and the 6 band members we performed to roughly ten people since 2 were on stage at all times haha. Apparently, according to an innebreated N. Cares, our set was so good he wanted to cry, maybe cause there wasn't many heads there, or because he was fucked up ;).

Headed out and came to our next area here in Virginia where we are staying with the ever kind Observa! Tomorrow nights show will kick off the 2nd leg of our tour in Harrisonburg VA at The Blue Nile. Come out and see us with CBZL, Masked Queens, and Astronomers. PICTURES AND VIDEOS COMING SOON!!!!

A Creative Nook

This is my first crafting nook. I am so excited to share photo's of it with you. Even though my jewelry is the only thing that's made it out into the world, my nook also holds supplies for all my other hobbies. Photography, Knitting, Painting and Sewing. So here it is, a first time look.

This is my wall. It's how I keep tract of whats for sale. The top to rows are on my etsy and the bottom row is my "works in progress" row. Pieces in all stages, from just an idea to finished just needing to be photographed and put online. I always feel so accomplished when I look at that wall.

My desk, inherited from my grandparents, makes a wonderful universal work station. I also have a gift wrapping and packaging station, which I will photograph for you in the near future.

An inside view. I'm never going to be a very organized person. But I have found a system that works for me. It's not complete chaos but it gets close sometimes.

The mother load, my tackle box stack. I can find almost anything I'd ever need in these little compartments. I'm always discovering new thing's I never knew I owned. It's very fun to paw through when I feel like wasting a little time. It doesn't take long before I'm inspired.

This is my most recent creation. The crescent moons were going to be part of a necklace. Luckily my sister was on hand and suggested earrings. I think they ended up making beautiful earrings.

I got married, late update

Married at city hall on August 10th 2009.

I very much meant to write about this life update a month ago.
And I'm sorry you are all finding out about it so late.
Brandon (my very new husband) and I ended up officially(legally) tying the knot a month early.
You may wonder why one would want to rush such a large life step.
I'll be honest, It was because we had to register our car... and the car insurance is much cheaper if your married. No joke :)
We were planning to do it all at a party with our immediate family on September 5th. Our practical sides got the best of us and we upped the date.
We still had a lovely party of the 5th.
Here are some photo's to let you in on how it really went down.
Documentation graciously provided by my mom-aratzi
She really wanted to document the reason we were getting married that day (the car)
Funny back story, My parents were also married because of a car. My grandparents didn''t want them living together out of wedlock, so they bribed them with a car.

Standing in Line at city hall.
Found out you can't get married there and had the paper work signed at a family friends house who was happy to be our last minute notary public. My parents even baked her a thank you raspberry pie.

We even did vows and exchanging of rings. It was far more ceremonial then we had expected.
I'm very happy with how it all turned out.
Lastly, Leaving city hall after turning in our paper work and officially being married.
Didn't feel any different :)

Jewelry Photo Shoot by Samantha Marie

I had such a wonderful experience working with Samantha. She organized the models and location, all I had to do was show up with my jewelry. The photo's are beautiful. Better then I could have done. I would definitely recommend her if you'd like some professional photographs.

A girls search to find a market place that is right for her

To find ones ideal market, one must first know who their customer is.
Here are some simple questions I compiled to help you figure that out.

- What do they look like?

- What age and sex are they?

- What is their income levels?

- Where does your customer like to go, visit, shop?

- What values does your customers strongly associate themselves by?

- What are the values they least associate with?

- What about your company/product appeals to them?

- What is on the top of their impulse buy list? ( mine is white t-shits)

You must by now have a pretty good idea of who your marketing to. Now, what venue will bring you in direct contact with your customer?

I've chosen to use my business as the example, for I happen to already know the answers to all these questions.

My customer is young, college aged to early 30's woman. She considers herself an individual, artsy, unique, environmentally conscious, and creative. She loves to own vintage, recycled, or one of a kind things and impulsively buys bizarre stuff as long as the price tag is $10 or less.

In hunting for places to come in contact with my future customer, I'd hit a wall of anxiety every time I approached the idea of doing a craft show. I couldn't afford almost all of them, my inventory was small and I felt like an ugly duckling in comparison to jewelry smiths. So I would always find myself passing on registering for them.

I instead tapped into a market I had belonged to for years. The indie music world (which I had been knee deep in since I was fifteen). I had finally found a place where my crafts an I fit in.

It seems so obvious in hind site. Sometimes the answers are really right in front of you.

So here's the success part. I took my jewelry on the road with me in July when I went on tour with my band Crunk Witch. I had high hopes and no evidence to back up my excitement. I'll admit I was scared at first and chickened out of setting up my display at our first 3 shows. I quickly got past the "putting myself out there" jitters and to my hopes... I was instantly met by my "Ideal" customers. They were drawn to me because I was certainly something different, something they had never seen before. I offered them everything they were always looking for in a place they didn't expect to find it. They got to meet me personally and hear my bands music. They knowingly contributed to us making it to our next destination.

the photo is of my first jewelry display set up in Richmond VA.

At the end of it all, what we walked away with in profit, was the exact amount I sold in jewelry. If I hadn't put myself out there, we would have walked away from three weeks of work with $0 in our pockets.

It is always said it is easier to find success if you walk in the opposite direction of the crowd.

So after sharing with you my story of finding my ideal customer in my ideal environment. I really hope this inspires you to really think about where your customer is, not where they "should" be.

Good luck and I would love to hear other stories about finding your ideal market.

This photo is of our tour mate MC Homeless and My band mate and husband Brandon

"I would feel more optimistic about a bright future for man if he spent less time proving that he can outwit Nature and more time tasting her sweetness and respecting her seniority."
E.B. White


I recommend to all at some point in your life reading the book Ishmael. And if you have read it, then I suggest maybe re-reading to remind yourself. I often for get my place in this web.

"I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain."
-- Frank Herbert, Dune. Bene Gesserit Litany Against Fear.

For year's I had been afraid to put my self out into the world. Well at least an honest version of myself. My art is about as honest as I get. When I put that on the table for the world to see, I feel exposed. It took me 3 years to feel ready to sell my jewelry in a store and two more years to sell it to a bigger audience online.
Even though the fearful thoughts still creep in. I pass them buy for a life that is truly satisfying.

On tour in July I'd set up an old suitcase with all my jewelry inside and sell it at all of our shows. This was an over whelming experience at first but proved to be my most profitable business venture yet. I sold more jewelry in three weeks then I had in 5 years. I got to preform, have fun, meet new friends, and make my own mark in venues that had never seen such an intriguing merch table.

I can't wait to get back on the road in October. My suitcase will be there will me. With some minor improvements, like better lighting and a mirror(how did I ever forget that one). The photo's are of my suitcase.