Halloween 2017

Even when things aren't that great,  I can't miss Halloween!

Halloween pasta

Orange and chocolate cake, complete with cat hair...

Chocolate and  salted caramel cake

Pumpkin soup from last year because this year photo turned out all blurry.

Etsy Pattern website - my test

www.dinafragola.com

To be totally honest I had no intention of trying that new product by Etsy but I got a free year to try it out so I tried.
If you haven't heard of Pattern yet, it's basically your standalone website hosted by Etsy.
It costs $15 per month, it's free to list items (unless you want them to appear in your Etsy shop too, then it's the usual 0.20 per item).
Unlike Etsy you can sell anything you want there (as long it's legal)...handmade, mass produced, vintage, not vintage...

The good surprise is that it is really easy to set up...if you already have an Etsy shop that is.
It took me about 5 minutes to get mine up and running.
You can choose from several templates. I went for a very simple one. It is not working the way it should though...in the preview you're supposed to have a cool javascript shop window but it just won't appear on the actual website.
As I already owned my domain name I linked it to my Pattern site. Be warned that that part actually requires some technical knowledge but you can easily find help online.
If you don't already own a domain name you can buy it through Etsy which is probably easier.
All your Etsy listings will appear in your Pattern site. All is handled from the same dashboard.
You can't really make it easier.
If your item is listed on your Pattern site only, there's no time limit. If it's both listed on Etsy and Pattern, it'll be there for 4 months.

If you translated you shop into several languages, you can choose in which language you want your shop to be. You can also leave it on "default" settings and the language will adapt to the location of your customers.

Payment methods are the same as on Etsy, as are shop policies and FAQ's.

From a stats point of view...you're on your own. It's up to you to bring people to your website.
I have had my domain name for almost 10 years so it's hard to tell if any new views are coming from "Pattern" . And let's add that after 2 months I am still waiting for my first sale from the Pattern  site.

So in short:

The + sides:
- it's easy to set up
-it's easy to list new items
-you can sell whatever you want
-listings are free if only appearing on Pattern

The - sides:
-you depend on Etsy
-you still pays selling fees to Etsy
-you are responsible for your own promo on the Internet
-it costs $15 per month

What could be improved:
It should be possible to import items from another of your Etsy shops. In my case I have 2 Etsy shops but if I want the items from my second shop to appear on my Pattern site, I'll have to re-list all the items one by one...which is not happening any time soon.

www.dinafragola.com

Labor Day sale

LABOR DAY SALE UNTIL MONDAY
in my 2 Etsy shops!
No code required! 

My Etsy shop

My Plug shop on Etsy

OK, I set up that promo such a long time ago that I had completely forgotten about it. 

New items in all my shops

New earrings and plugs in my shops.

www.dinafragola.com
My Etsy shop
My Dawanda shop
My Plug shop on Etsy

My little tent

 Ever since I was a little kid I've had a passion for tents. Funny as I've never been camping and have never been  a scout either.
Every summer we'd build the tent in the garden...and I'd bring my toys and books in , and have my meals in lunch boxes in there too.

 I decided it was time for a tent again...so I got  the cheapie one from Decathlon. It was crazy easy  to build...took me about 20 minutes all by myself.

It's nice to be able to go in the garden even if the weather is not very warm...nor very dry.
The tent has become my little bubble of peace, away from the real life..which is not very pleasant at the moment.
Also,  I cannot seem to enjoy the garden the way I used to. I miss Pepita who'd follow me around.
I've barely stepped outside other than for mowing the lawn ever since she passed away.

Cats are fairly indifferent...only Bunny (who's technically not my cat) joins me for cuddles and late afternoon naps.

Diego doesn't like Bunny so he won't come inside

 It's nice to be outside again...and it's nice to have all those childhood memories come back...

News

Dreaming of unicorns

I thought it was about time for an update.
When I'm not happy, I don't blog. I'm not happy.
Life is currently a long unpleasant drag. I cross off days on a calendar (make that 4 calendars)  like an inmate doing time.
Yeah, I hate my dayjob. I no longer even care if the boss come across this. Not that there's much chance with the carp IQ  the aforementioned person has.
My colleagues are cool. I even made a real friend there. But the way we get treated...blaaaaaaah
I can't get into details here obviously. One day I'll vent...LOL

Feeling close to extinction

At home it's not much better. I still  miss Pepita so much. Mom is a lot of work, to be totally  and brutally honest she is exhausting.
My health is declining too...ears and eyes going...Good thing I still have ears as there's a lot of stuff hanging from them, hearing aid, glasses...earrings ;)
My only hobby these days is sleeping. Seriously.

I had some fun last month with  US friends visiting for a week. But it also painfully reminded me how much I miss my old life and how much I hate my life right now.

On the shop front, very oddly though I hardly ever list new things  or promote...no change. No drop in sales at all. Which is mind boggling because it was almost a 24h job before.

Oh well, I'm miserable but at least I have money huh?
10 months and 3 weeks to go!


DAWANDA
DINA FRAGOLA ETSY
CAPTAIN COSMOS ETSY
ALITTLEMARKET

Bugs

 Strangely my view of insects (and spiders) has shifted 180° as I grew older. From being terrified of them (you should have seen me running from a fly or a ladybug when I was litte) I now really like them. I think they are pretty and fascinating...except maybe from cockroaches which are still a little bit disgusting...(sorry, cockroaches...)
Available in  my shops as earrings and plugs for stretched ears (I'm slowly listing them...)

DAWANDA
DINA FRAGOLA ETSY
CAPTAIN COSMOS ETSY
ALITTLEMARKET

NEW YEAR and a look back on a bad year

2016 was an extremely tough year. I lost so many cats  that I spent most of the year grieving. The passing of Pepita was is extremely difficult to deal with. I love that little cat so much and she left such a big gaping hole in my life...I  find it almost  impossible to find anything positive in that last year.
Fleur died in April, Gazette in May, Pepita and Daget in August and Bruno the Fabulous lost his battle against cancer only last week.
To try to fill the void they left, I adopted  new cats. Little Chloé was abandoned pregnant on a parking lot. She gave birth to 2 kittens, Pookie and Floki. I adopted the 3 the last week of September. They settled in fine...Chloé is still terrorizing the  poor Diego though. I have no idea why he is so scared of her as he is 3 times her size...and usually gets along well with everyone.
Bruno was a little jealous but he liked the kittens, he would eat with them and check on them. He was a kind cat.
The kittens are very rowdy. I've never had such destructive kittens before...but they are very sweet and do enjoy a snuggle or 2.
I didn't travel as much as I had hoped for. I only went to Scotland in August...when Pepita died. And it rained the whole time so the whole trip is just like a blur in my memory.
I got myself a day job...which is incredibly boring but pays well and is close to home...and it is fortunately temporary...so I make do.
My ear issues are just getting worse and worse and I ran out of doctor options.
But my shops did pretty well despite the lack of attention I gave them in the last months.
Financially I've never been this comfortable...but not being very materialistic, I'd happily give that away to get my kitties and happiness back :(
I hope 2017 is less harsh and that I get my drive back...because right now everything seems tough...too tough.
I hope I see more films this year, that I read more books...and that I start enjoying traveling again.

Pookie, the silky one

Floki, the coarse one

Mom Chloe