Come And Get It!

Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding......

January is cold, so let's warm it up with a little discount.  Good now until January 31st, 2011.

SAVE 10.00 % On
All Items

Use Coupon Code:

SMOOCH

during checkout.

Handmade Christmas

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The 2nd Day Of Christmas Specials Count Down

On the 2nd day of Christmas Glasstastic Treasures gives to you a great deal on this Penguin Lampwork Bead. Read more here.

Dichroic glass is so beautiful.  It's reflective and vibrant with all the colors of the rainbow flashing in the light.

 For today only (12/23/10) you can purchase this great bead at 50% off. Use coupon code 2NDDAY during check out! Only one available, so hurry in.  Happy shopping!

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The 6th Day Of Christmas Specials Count Down

On the 6th day of Christmas Glasstastic Treasures gives to you a great deal on this Amethyst Wiggle Lampwork Bead. Read more here.

For today only (12/19/10) you can purchase this great bead at 50% off. Use coupon code 6THDAY during check out! Happy shopping!

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Get it free, now at Glasstastic Treasures

If you've been to my ArtFire Studio and browsed my sections you would have noticed a Not-So-Perfect section were you could get some really great beads at some really great prices. Not-so-perfect doesn't mean they're not usable. On the contrary, they are quite usable. And I've had people ask me what was wrong with the items because they thought the beads were fine.

Well, there may have been a nick, or something a little off center or I simply wasn't happy with the end result. And I love to offer my customers good deals, and what could be better then a great price on a bead with a slight flaw?

Well, how about FREE! Yep, that's right. I'm now offering my not-so-perfect beads free with a purchase from my Studio. Each Get-Me-Free item has a coupon code and minimum purchase details in the listing.

So go check it out, and get some goodies for free! And check back often, as I'll be listing more items that you can get for free!

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My, how time flies!

Can you believe it? One year!! I've been with ArtFire for ONE whole year! And what a great year it's been.

You know, I have always said things happen for a reason. Let me elaborate....

Way back when, I needed a job so I could take care of myself. No more being a housewife/mother. Went to school, got a job, hated it. But met some cool people, made some great friends, had a customer talk me into going to college.

At college met some of my best friends every, loved school, loved the research I did. Graduated, got an awesome job. After 6 years hated the new owner, quit, got a crappy job with awesome people and great benefits.

Had a friend at this job talk me into taking lampwork classes, found my new passion, sold stuff on Etsy. Etsy started to irritate me, I moved to ArtFire, LOVE it, met some even more awesome friends (waves to all her great Etsy, AF and Plurk friends) which brings me to my one year anniversary.

That's my life all summed up in a couple paragraphs. And because I am really happy at ArtFire, and really do love all my great friends and customers, I need to do something special!

So stay tuned...more to come :)

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Blue Moon Inspired Challenge for the Fire Divas

In honor of the blue moons this month, The Fire Divas are holding a January Blues Challenge! You can see big pictures of the entries below, then vote for your favorite on the Fire Diva Blog! The voting will be open for one week, and will end on February 7. Please go vote!

Entry #1

Entry #2

Entry #3

Entry #4

Entry #5

Entry #6

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THE TIMES, THEY ARE A CHANGING....

I have been poking around the Internet and trying to decide where I want to be. More is better, from what I've heard. But it is also time consuming, and stressful.

Etsy was enough for me when I was first starting out. It kept me busy and happy. But as it grew so did the amount of sellers, and so did the egos and tempers and attitude. Chatting in the forums brought a lot of visitors to my shop. But the volume of people joining Etsy also brought with it a huge attitude that was far from friendly. Also, it's hard to keep your items on top unless you have the ability to list an item every 2-3 hours. Which I don't.

A once restful place to chat and ask questions became a playground for bullies and queen bees. Snobbery and snipping was (is) everywhere. People became afraid to ask a question or make a comment. It was like high school all over again! I kept out of the forums, and that, along with my inability to make and list beads during the winter months, brought on a sort of withdrawal and depression as my shop sat lonely with few visitors and buyers.

To fill the void I started a web search for new homes for my goodies. I've found a couple, and have some new favorites. Now I have to decide what it is that I'd like to do. So far, my plan is to sell my completed jewelry pieces and pendants on www.glasstastictreasures.1000marktes.com.

My beads and A la Carte pendants/necklaces are still on Etsy. I've tried to switch over to Handmade Fuzion, but they just don't have the traffic they did when they first started. And the economy isn't helping at all. I also have a shop on Shophandmade.com, sold one item and was ecstatic, but I don't see that venue as being the place for me, so I will close that one down as well.

Coming soon: Artfire? Still thinking about this one.

So, in short, I am on the hunt for a new home to share my bead and A la Carte goodies with everyone. I'd love to hear all comments and suggestions!

:)

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What can you do with a handful of beads?

Oh, you totally asked the right person!! Do you know that's the same exact thing I said to my friend Sarah when she asked me to take a lampwork class? Cuz really, at the time, what the heck would I do with them?

Well, she bugged me forever! Finally she just brainwashed me into thinking it would be totally cool to do, because next thing I knew I was signing up and handing over all my hard earned cash for a lampwork class at Peachie's!

Well, it was so much fun that I was hooked. Her brainwashing really worked, too. Because I forked over about $120.00 for my very first kit for bead making! Except my kit was way better and Gretchen gave us an awesome deal on a book by Cindy Jenkins, who is totally awesome and REALLY good at lampworking.

Alright, enough blabbering about others, and back to me. So, anyways....I took my little kit home and practiced my little heart out. Then, I ended up with a HUGE pile of beads. And then I was really saying, "now what am I going to do with these things?" I think Sarah's brainwashing was wearing off.

So I brought the beads to work to show off, and my other friend, Rosy, she starts talking about jewelry making and how fun it would be to work with my beads, and she got me all excited about making jewelry and totally brainwashed me into thinking I wanted to do that too!! My god, now that I think about it, what kind of friends are they??

I really do enjoy making my beads, brainwashing or not. And I enjoy being able to offer them to others. Designers buy my beads and make some really cool items. Like my friend Verna who owns Dammas. Hi Verna! I love what she did with Nemo, he's blowing bubbles. He's so cute!!

But what if you wanted to create something of your own? And you just don't know what to do? Oh, have I got something to show you!!

My Etsy shop is chuck full of great items which are sold A la Carte. That means you buy the components separately, and you save $$! How cool is that?

Here is my absolute favorite find. A changeable pendant post. It screws apart, and you can stack beads and large hole findings to create your very own one-of-a-kind pendants. Just this little post and some of your cool beads, which you can buy from me, lol, and you are styling and ready to hit the town! Or the shopping mall, or my shop! Either one is fine, but my shop is best ;)

So, how does this work? Easy, buy the pendant post (hint, hint) and some beads (even bigger hint). Unscrew the top ball of the post, stack on your awesome goodies that I sent you cuz you love my stuff so much (subliminal brainwashing, please stand buy...) and add to your favorite necklace, or you can get the whole shebang all ready to go!

Here are the instructions for great jewelry at an affordable price:

1. Buy
2. Stack
3. Wear

Three easy steps, really great prices. You can't beat that! Oh, and buy (more subliminal brainwashing) the way, for today only you can get this awesome black and white heart for 50% off. So if you are lucky enough to read this blog on 4/18/09, get on over to my shop before it's too late!

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Holiday Treasures For Someone Special

Wondering what special gift you can get someone for the holidays? It can sometimes be a struggle. So, since I love window shopping, I thought I'd bring some great gifts to your attention.

Today, I was at my Dad's watching a movie. I don't remember the name, but in it was Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn. Wow, what a pair. It was a great movie, and I thought of my Mom. Her and I love old movies, and she adores Audrey Hepburn. And so does Artisticflair! And here is her artistic take on Audrey Hepburn called "Breakfast at Tiffany's". What a wonderful movie, and what a wonderful treasure this would make for that special someone.

Another great treasure would be this awesome Gemstone Tree Ornament by BYAPRYL.
Byapryl has some wonderful tree designs in her shop, but I love this one.
It reminds me of the Tree of Life, protected in it's little globe. The best thing about this tree is that byapril will customize it with your favorite gemstones. Wow, just imagine this in Peridot, my birthstone! Hmm....

Hurry now, to get your Gemstone Tree Ornament. They are custom made, and will take some time. But you know what? This tree is so special, that you could even get it early for next Christmas!

Put a smile on that special someone's face, with a great handmade gift. Handmade makes gift giving personal, don't you think?

Click on the links, or pictures and visit these great shops today!

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