During my last post, I did not mention that my father had been battling Lung Cancer, diagnosed around Thanksgiving of 2009.
On July 16, 2010, he lost that battle.
We had hoped that, since he was doing so incredibly on his treatment, that would not come to pass. Unfortunately, in some kind of freaky reaction, a cancer nearly in remission attacked, faster than even his doctors could believe possible. Within a month after stopping Chemo to start a pill form of treatment, he was gone.
Since then, I have tripled my efforts to get word out about my work, and started research on how I can donate a portion of my sales to cancer research and cancer charities. Considering that the few sales I get, this is saying something, however, as since opening my Etsy shop, I have had only 6 peices sell, 3 of them to personal friends.
However, I am also hoping to bring my work to a local flea market - For those of you in the Savannah, Georgia area, I want to try to get space at Keller's - this holiday season. With any luck, this will give me sales from holiday shoppers, and with more luck, I can not only cover things I need to, but also be able to start sending to charities with the start of 2011.
With that said, I have been working like mad to stock at least 2 bracelets each of every color I have (37 in all; 12 birthstones, 25 others) with a pair of 1-2-3 drop earrings to match every one of them. I have brought out a new line with my niece's help. Beth and I came up with the Dizzy Drop one afternoon over fondue... and now that is part of my line. I am working right now on Breast Cancer Awareness items to celebrate Breast Cancer Awareness Month this month (after a delay in some supplies). I have made Lung Cancer Awareness pins for my family, with more to do, and would love to spread those as well, hoping to get an order for some of those and the Breast Cancer pins for a local hospital, if I can. The World of Warcraft phone tags are done - one set each only right now - and can be viewed here. Not all of them are photographed right now, but I'm working on that. I also have been poking at bridal work, and have one set up on my Facebook page too, currently in the Sets section.
I am trying to spread the word of my work further than ever, working on my Facebook Page and also posting my work on deviantArt, where I'd had an account for some time, but never thought to post my jewelry until recently.
So I work, and keep plugging away, and with luck, manage to do better, not just for myself, but for those who honor those who fight cancer, past, present and future.
