Facebook Referral Program

Want to win a Scrabble pendant? All you need to do is visit my Facebook fan page, "like" it if you aren't already a fan, and refer 10 new fans to the page. To refer a fan, share the link with them and ask them to "like" the page; after they like it, have them comment saying that you referred them. Once there are 10 comments with your name, you win a pendant!

I've already had 5 lucky winners from referring friends and you could be next! Good luck and get sharing!! (The direct link to my fan page is www.facebook.com/bisoubisoubeads)

New Auburn and Alabama Football Jewelry Designs

Hey y'all! I just wanted to share with you that I have lots of new Auburn and Alabama football inspired Scrabble and bottle cap pendants! I can make other football teams, too.

Visit and "like" my Facebook page to see all of the new photos!

More new goodies!

Hey everybody!

I made some great new Scrabble pendants yesterday and I just love all of the new designs. For these, I just found a bunch of cute pictures online and edited them for the pendants. They are totally random pictures but some of them include Tree Hugger, Not in Kansas, and Fish are Friends.

Check them out if you have a chance! Let me know what you think! Which is your favorite? What would you like to see in a Scrabble pendant?

New, new, new!

Well, it's that time again. Finals are just around the corner and the whole student body is going insane from too much studying and not enough sleep. I've been working in my Etsy shop these past few days to get some much needed stress relief!

How does this pertain to you, you ask? Well, I've got some GREAT new designs listed and have a ton more to come! :D As of right now, I have all of my necklaces and about half of my bracelets listed. Earrings, Twilight-inspired designs, and "other" are coming soon.

I've also been feeling pretty creative lately. I got this awesome bag of broken vintage jewelry at the church yard sale this past weekend. There is so much cool stuff in there- the ideas are just bubbling over as to what to make with it all! See the old cameo? I think that's my favorite!

I haven't done much beading lately but I'm going to have some free time soon (hopefully!) and I'll be working my little fingers off! I have so many great ideas in my head but I just never have the time, materials, or cash to make them a reality. It's the sad truth of being a college student, unfortunately.

Anyways, I just thought I'd share with y'all what I've been up to lately. Check out my necklaces and be on the lookout for new goodies coming soon!

Oh! Are you a fan of my page on Facebook? What about of the Facebook group? Join today for special discounts, sales, and more that are only offered there!

Happy Cinco de Mayo!!!

Tax-Free Weekend Sale!

Hi everyone!! While I don't charge tax at Bisou Bisou Beads, this weekend is tax-free school shopping weekend in Alabama so I'm having a sale! Receive an 8.5% refund on all purchases at Bisou Bisou Beads and Bisou Two this weekend only, through Sunday!

Photography Tips

Hello all! I am so not doing a good job of keeping up with the blog as promised so I thought I'd do a quicky today about photographing jewelry (or other small things).

If you're anything like me, you HATE taking pictures. I don't get things listed on Etsy because I hate to take the time to photograph them. It can be such a hassle and so time consuming, sometimes I feel like it isn't worth it.

Aside from getting a super awesome camera like a Canon Rebel xs or something similar (I got so fed up with my old camera that I splurged and got this baby as a happy-birthday-to-myself gift!), you need to know how to take a good photo with what you've got. I always tried to make them artistic like other Etsy users I see. I tried to add flowers or drape the jewelry across cut glass, etc and it never worked. I tried a light tent, which worked pretty well, but now I'm just using 4 sheets of white printer paper and two desk lamps.



As you can see, I taped two pieces of paper to the monitor and layed two pieces (stacked on top of one another) on the desk. I positioned the desk lamps so that light comes from both sides and doesn't create shadows. The white background also doesn't distract the potential customer, either. Play with your camera and the settings to see what works best for you. I use an extra flash and the high-detail setting on my camera to get the best results.

Need more tips? I have a tutorial for sale at my shop that you might be interested in.

Thanks for looking and I hope you learned something! ♥

Check out these before and after shots. (Twilight Inspired Apple Earrings)

Twilight Bracelet Giveaway!

Vanessa from Ohio Girl Talks has ever so kindly offered to host a giveaway from my shop. She was a winner in one of the prior giveaways that my shop held so she can attest to my greatness! (Just kidding! lol!) Anyways, visit the giveaway to read the interview she conducted with me and to enter to win a Bella Inspired Twilight Bracelet from Bisou Bisou Beads! The contest ends July 27th so enter now and tell your friends about it, too!!

Good luck! ♥

BeadStyle Magazine Offer

BeadStyle Magazine (THE BEST beading mag, in my opinion) is having a promo right now where you can get 6 issues for $26.99 rather than $33.47 (regular price).

With your subscription, you can also get really awesome online supplements, too. I'm browsing them right now and they're so cool! :)

Go to their site at http://www.BeadStyleMag.com/promo and enter the code IK97U to get the discount!

Pearl Earring Giveaway

With the creation of my newest line which is inspired by Jane Austen, I have decided to have another jewelry giveaway.

These beautiful earrings were handcrafted with faux pearls elegantly wrapped with sterling silver wire. They are on sterling plated French hooks. Visit my Etsy listing for more photos and color options.

The Giveaway: One lucky reader will receive a pair of hand twisted wire and pearl earrings in the color of her choice. (Available in dark green [as seen here], light green, cream [Swarovski pearl], chocolate [Swarovski pearl], beige, and dark rose.)

To Enter:
Visit my Etsy shop, Bisou Bisou Beads, and comment here on your favorite item. (REQUIRED) Please leave your email address so I may contact you if you are the winner.

Additional Entries:
1) Follow my blog.
2) Add my button to your blog or website.
3) Follow me on Twitter and tweet the giveaway.
4) Blog about my giveaway and leave me the link.
5) Make a purchase from my shop (5 extra entries). Use the code BLOG10 to receive an extra 10% off of your order.

*Additional entries should be in individual comments- only one entry per comment will be counted. Please include your contact info in all comments. If I can't get in touch with you, you can't win!*

Other Detals:
The giveaway will end Sunday, July 28th at midnight CST. The winner will be contacted on the 29th and will be given 48 hours to respond with their mailing information before a second winner is chosen.

Good luck!

Exciting New Happenings at Bisou Bisou Beads

Hello all! I've made some great renovations to my Etsy shop, Bisou Bisou Beads (aka Bisou Two) and I wanted to share it with all of you wonderful followers.

• FREE shipping to all countries
• Now accepting money orders
• Rings have been discounted by $2-$3 each
• 10% off sale for *new* customers
• 15% off for *returning* customers
• Special disounts for Twitter followers. DM me for details! ;)

Check out the new stuff and I promise there are many more great designs to come! Thanks for following me and supporting my dreams. :)

Social Networking: Sell Your Jewelry Online the New Way

Are you a jewelry designer who wants to grow your online business? I definately fit into that category so I purchased Social Networking: Sell Your Jewelry Online the New Way. While I've only read about 50 pages, this book has some GREAT tips that I'd never thought of! It's the best $40 I've spent!

So, check it out if you need some new ideas- it's great! ♥

Feeling Froggy

I've been feeling a little froggy lately and I don't mean sick! :) I love, love, love frogs and tonight, I've decided to make a "treasury" of my favorite frogs on Etsy!

I just purchased this little beauty from thefrogbox. She has lots of adorable frog desigsn as well as other animals. Plus, she donates 20% of her profit to save animals!

This little frog is too cute, too. If I had a baby, I'd definately buy it for him or her! Visit Danielleorama to see all of her great items.

If I were a frog, I'd want to look like this little guy. :) Check out mllamb47's other paintings, too.

Again with the kids items! If I had a little girl, there would be no way she'd be afraid of frogs! Check out their other cute bows, too.

Finally, I LOVE these whimsical frogs! I'm going to try to make a pair for myself! Check out the deisgner and see their other great items too.

Do you love frogs too? Let me know what you think of my selections! Share your own favorite frog items! ♥

Chainmaille Bracelet, Part 2

Okay, as promised, I made a chainmaille bracelet this weekend! It was super hard but once I got the hang of it, it wasn't so bad. I had to try different size loops, different shaped beads, etc but finally I got a finished bracelet I'm proud of!

What'cha think? I'm thinking of making some more similar ones and having a new line at Bisou Bisou Beads. Opinions?

Also, if you'd like to purchase this bracelet or to put in an order for one, visit my shop. ♥

New Shop!

Hey everyone!

For a while now, I've been considering opening a second Etsy shop. Well... I finally did it! It's very minimal right now but please check it out! I'll be moving all of my Scrabble Tile Pendants and DIY Scrabble Tile Images there and will be listing new custom stamped jewelry there, too. Check back this weekend for examples of my stamped jewelry.

Of couse you can still shop at my original store, too!

Let me know what you think!

Bisou Bisou Beads Jewelry Giveaway!

Simply Stacie is hosting two giveaways right now with items from Bisou Bisou Beads!

The first is for the winner's choice of a Twilight-inspired item ($19.99 or less) from my shop. Visit the giveaway to enter. The giveaway will end on April 18, 2009 at 11:59 pm EST so enter now for you chance to win!

The second giveaway is for a handmade tile pendant necklace from my shop. Visit the giveaway to enter. This one will end on April 19, 2009 at 11:59 pm EST.

Good luck and don't forget to share the great giveaways! ♥

High Time for a New "Favorites"

Whenever I do a new "favorite items" blog, I never know what I'm going to search for until I find it. Today, the blog title "high time...." made me think of "high tide" so that's what I'm looking for! ;) I searched on Etsy, Artfire, and 1000Markets with the key phrase "high tide" and these are some of my favorites that I found.

I decided to go high-tech and put photos and links, this time.

High Tide Earrings by thebijoubabe.

High Tide Painting by ArtwithLiz

Green Grass and High Tides by chilirose

Sea Scape by JanZart

Free Shipping in March!

Free shipping for all US and Canadian orders through the month of March to celebrate my one year anniversary with Etsy! I have several other 10% off sales going on too (they still apply!).

Shop now!

♥

Bouquet Brooches

I've recently learned to make wire wrapped brooches and I'm so excited with the way that this one turned out! Check it out and let me know what you think!

Pearl Bouquet- Wire Wrapped Beaded Brooch

♥

Today is a GREAT day!

I'm just bubbling over with happiness today so I HAD to share it with someone!

First of all, it's sunny and warm. My mood is directly related to the weather most of the time. Secondly, I got TWO orders today already! One of them is to France! Woohoo! Third, my Legal Studies test was easy peasy and I got out early so I had time to relax before Literature. Fourth, the order from BlueMud that I have been so anxiously awating came today. Plus the mail came way earlier than usual. According to the tracking, it was it Seatle yesterday and arrived in Birmingham before noon today. Thank goodness for Priority Mail! Fifth, and best of all, no more classes today and NOTHING to do besides bead, bead, bead!!

Don't you love great days?! Hope everyone else's day is going just as wonderfully as mine!

Check out my bracelet that has sold TWICE today! ♥

A bit obsessed...

...with briolettes. :)

Crystal Briolette Necklace
Water Lotus Earrings
Shimmering Golden Shade
Cocoa
Champaign Swirl

I'm going to design some briolette earrings this week when my order arrives so I'll share them then, too.

♥