SonoSono Studio has Moved to a New Website

 

It's been a while since I've posted here, but just in case you've found me through an old blog post, I have a new website, SonoSonoStudio.com.  It is a space where you can find information about my latest artworks, energy healing, and links to all of my shops.  Hope you'll take a peek!

Now on Maternity Leave

Until this morning, I had every intention of announcing here today that you have until the end of tomorrow to place your orders... Then I walked my son to school.

The school is only a block or 2 away, and before I got pregnant, I was capable of running there within 2 minutes if I thought I was late. Uh, uh. No more. I nearly crawled my way to school, took a break on the bench before heading home, and it was even slower going on the way back. If I have something to send to a customer, I have to walk another block and a half to the post office, and that's something I just don't think I ought to be doing anymore. I'm at 37 weeks plus a few days right now, and I really want the baby to stay in there until she is 38 weeks!

So I'm sorry, but starting today, I'm putting my store on vacation mode until further notice! I will try to keep you updated as much as I can!

A "Little" Update

It wasn't my intention, but looks like I've done nothing but Etsy tutorials for the past 3 month! My apologies for those of you who aren't interested in opening a new shop. I'm not exactly the fastest writer in the world, and writing in Japanese doesn't come easy for me anymore, so I usually work on one post for about 2, 3 days. Then, I have no energy to write until it's time to start a new one.

I do want to give you some updates, though, since tomorrow is the last day of school for my son, and I don't know how much writing I'll be able to squeeze in for the next 2 months!

I posted one new bracelet shown above and have been working on another custom order. I know, that's not a lot to show for 3 months, and it's being reflected in my sales. Ouch!! But I have a good reason...

...I've had absolutely no creative energy because I've been using all my energy on creating a little human. :) I'm about 18 weeks along, and just beginning to feel some movement. He/She is quite rambunctious, actually. My midwife listened to the baby's heartbeat, and immediately said, "Sounds like a boy!" According to her, boys' heartbeats are usually slower than girls'. We shall see in about 2 weeks.

So, anyway, if you don't see me around too much, don't worry. I'm probably just out enjoying my last few months of "alone time" with my son before he'll have to share Mommy with a new sibling.

50 / 50 and a 15% Off Sale Too!

SonoSono Studio just hit a big milestone! I've had my 50th sale at Etsy this past weekend!! Woo hoo!! And not only that, I'm getting very close to having 50 listings in my Etsy shop.

That calls for a big celebration, don't you think? So, I'm having a sale until the end of January. Use the coupon code "SPECIAL15" during check out, and save 15% off of your entire order!! I'm hoping that by the time this sale ends, I'll have 50 listings in my store too. I'm at 48 right now, so only 2 new listings to go!

New New New

Hello everyone! I hope your year is starting off on the right note! I have several wonderful announcements, but first thing first...

I do apologize for disappearing during the last few months! Sometimes, life takes a few unexpected turns and you're forced to go with the flow. And the flow just was not pointing me towards this blog. But now I AM back, so let's take a look at what has been going on!

While I was not regularly posting on the blog, I did still manage to post a few new items in my Etsy store. The Mermaid Tears Earrings shown above is one of them. It's a brand new design, so I'm excited to see where they take me. I've also been working on the bridal necklace that I mentioned in the previous post, but that one is taking quite a long time to complete as it needs a lot of teeny tiny drops and a never-ending supply of jump rings! :) I actually ran out of silver in the middle of it, so hopefully, I will get right back on it once the new shipment arrives. The bridal bracelet, on the other hand, is available now in my Etsy shop.



I was also honored to have my Blue and Green Furnace Cane Glass Extra Long Necklace included in the January issue of the Beading Times eZine! If you like to bead, it's well worth your time to look through the archives as there's a wealth of information included in each issue! And don't forget to click on the Design Corner to view my necklace right along side lots of lovely cane glass jewelry.

Last but not least, SonoSono Studio is now on Facebook! Please go visit http://www.facebook.com/pages/SonoSono-Studio/107120562650245 and become a fan by clicking the "Like" button! I'm planning to announce a big sale there soon, so stay tuned!

Jewelry for Your Home

It's finally here! After years of just thinking about it, and months of procrastinating (whoops!) I'm finally introducing my new line of Jewelry for Your Home! For now, I have a Necklace for your Lamp listed, but you can expect to see more new and innovative items coming soon!

I plan on introducing 2 more different styles for your lamp, and then moving on to different parts of your home. Yup, you can expect to have a little bit of sparkling goodness all over your house! I never really thought of myself as a girly girl, but for some reason, most things I create end up being that way. Go figure!

Save the Date

A special announcement for those of you living in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia. My Everything Is Coming Up Roses Bracelet will be part of the 5th Annual HOT Latin Nights Auction on July 17th!

This is an event that benefits VOLUNTEER Hampton Roads, a nonprofit organization that promotes volunteerism in the Hampton Roads area by training members of other nonprofits and helping them connect with volunteers.

As an added bonus, there's a raffle for an Apple iPad!! You don't need to be present to win, so you can contribute to this worthy organization even if you are not in Virginia.

For more information about VOLUNTEER Hampton Roads and the HOT Latin Nights, please visit http://www.volunteerhr.org/

My Etsy Store is A Year Old!

Holy Molly, how time flies! Exactly one year ago today, I signed up for an Etsy account and started listing items. To celebrate, I created this fun and colorful bracelet! It was inspired by the colors of confetti.

And of course, you can't have an Etsyversary without a sale! I'm offering free shipping on all items for the month of April, even for international customers, so please stop by my store and browse around!

But wait! There's more!! (I've always wanted to say that. LOL) For this weekend only, I've marked down ALL of my spiral chainmaille bracelets! So you can get the Confetti bracelet above for 20% off. Or my Everything Is Coming Up Roses bracelet shown in the banner, or my Something Blue bracelet, or any other spiral chain bracelets. If you don't like the color combinations you see, get the Custom bracelet and choose your favorite colors! But only through April 4th, so hurry!

It's official!

When I announced that I'll be closing my shop for a month to make improvements, some of you might have wondered why I would even need to close it. Why not just keep the store open and make improvements little by little, right?

Well, THIS is the main reason why I shut it down completely... I applied for my business license!! With all the things that happened in September and my bad habit of making mountains out of molehills, it took a little longer than expected. But it's here!

I'm officially a business owner!! Whoo Hoo!

For those of you in New York state like me, it's a 2-step process. You have to first file a form at the county clerks office to register your business name, and then you can apply for the Certificate of Authority to Collect Sales Tax (That's the official name) with the state. If you don't want to display your Social Security Number for all the world to see, you'll also want to apply for a EIN with the federal goverment, but you can do that along with the state application if you do it online.

Now, I just need to wait until November 2nd to reopen the store, since that's the date that I gave them. That's just one more week!

Quick Update

Oh my, how time flies by! I know that I promised to come back in October, but with all the things that happened last month, I am literally a month behind on my plans!

I’ve only made 2 (yes, only 2!) new items so far, and have only managed to do a few things off my To Do list. I’m waiting for an order of beads right now, so hopefully, once that arrives, I’ll be inspired to create again.

I mentioned that one of my major projects for the month was potty training my son. I’m happy to report that he took a big step in the right direction just a few days ago. Although I can’t say that he is potty trained yet, I’m hopeful that he’ll have it down before he turns 3.

We also took a quick trip down to Philadelphia in September with my parents, who were visiting from Japan. I’ll talk more about the trip in another post, but I can honestly say that my son thoroughly enjoyed having someone’s attention every second of the day, and my parents thoroughly enjoyed spoiling their grandson every second of the day!

This post is not going to be easy to write... I keep erasing what I've written, but I know it's part of a process that I have to go through... So let me explain why I've been missing for almost 2 weeks.

A little over a week ago, I was ready to tell you all about a new project. But then, my family suffered a very sudden and shocking loss. He was still very young - the sweetest 8-year-old I've ever met. And I've been trying to process this devastating loss ever since.

It's been the longest week of my life. I've gone through so many emotions and states of mind, that it really is surprising to me that it happened only a week ago. There's still a part of me that wants to deal with this privately, but there's also a part of me that wants everyone to know how special he was.

He was the type of boy that everyone couldn't help but love. He had the brightest smile, and looked just like his daddy, my cousin. He was easy-going and kind, and he was very deeply loved. He never showed the world the burden he was carrying and went to Heaven with a smile on his face.

We will miss him dearly, and my heart aches for my cousin and his wife...


Obviously, I haven't been able to do any projects because of this. I did crochet a scarf for myself, as I needed an outlet for my sadness. But I didn't want to make any jewelry to sell while I was grieving, and I wouldn't want to sell something that personal anyway.

So that's why you haven't heard from me. It may take a little longer for me to come back. But please bear with me. I will be back...

Announcement About My Etsy Shop

Hello everyone,

After much thought, I've decided to close my Etsy shop for a month starting September 1st. Don't worry, it's not a bad thing at all! I need the time off to make lots of improvements to the store!!

I'm thinking about reworking some of my pieces, as well as making lots of new designs. I also have a couple of other projects that I've been wanting to get to! I will keep you posted on my progress right here in my blog.

My biggest project of the month will actually be potty training my son! But with Grandma and Grandpa visiting in the middle of September, I wouldn't be surprised if I'm not successful with that one! :)

Hopefully, without the obligation to go check on my Etsy store once every couple of hours, I would get a lot more work done. Because in all honesty, I spend way too much time doing absolutely nothing on the computer!