(I won't be shipping sale orders until January 2nd, so if you end up ordering more than once, just use coupon code COMBINE at checkout on subsequent orders to avoid getting charged shipping multiple times!)
I'm also offering intention-setting pieces again this year - you give me a word or a phrase that you want to hold onto in the coming year, and I'll make you something that feels like that word or phrase. Signups are here.
And lastly, time is running out to get in on Pretty Rocks Club 2024!
I hope you all had peaceful and happy and healthy holidays!
]]>As of right now, your options for holiday gifts are a gift certificate or a bigger gift certificate! (Or a gift subscription, but the recipient won't get anything in the mail until January.) I'm officially on much-needed vacation until the end of year clearance sale starts on December 26th. I will be doing my New Year intention-setting custom orders again and signups for those will open when the sale starts.
I hope you have (or had!) a wonderful and healthy holiday, and I'll be back at the workbench in January to bring you new shinies once the inventory bins get emptied out a bit.
(In the meantime, you can still sign up for Pretty Rocks Club 2024!)
]]>Today’s bonus deal is the Earring Club and it’s available to both new and existing subscribers! If you sign up this week, your first shipment will contain a second pair of custom earrings.
Bonus perk of being a subscriber: you can get unlimited free shipping as long as you’re willing to wait and have your shinies sent with your next subscription shipment!
New subscribers: just do the clickity credit card thing and fill out the preferences survey and you’ll be all set.
Existing subscribers: you’ll need to have me cancel your current subscription and then you can sign up again. Just email or message me to get started.
(I switched to a new subscription management service last month and haven’t migrated any of you over yet because that is A Hecking Process so yes I’m totally bribing you with additional shinies in hopes of not having to actually do the migration at all.)
]]>Wyrding Studios just turned 18! The anniversary sale is starting off with these deals, all of which can be stacked:
• Save $18 on $50+ or $36 on $100+ - no code required!
• All Victorian Circus earrings are buy two get one free.
• All remaining Morning Wire Meditation pieces are $9.
You can also get an exclusive rainbow hematite anniversary giftie (your choice of earrings or pendant) free with any order of $18 or more - the offer will appear in your cart. Limit one per person, while supplies last.
I will almost certainly get up to more shenanigans as the week goes on... I'm hoping to attempt an Instant Gratification session over the weekend, and I'll definitely be doing markdowns towards the end. Keep an eye on social media for additional announcements!
The sale runs through midnight eastern time on Sunday November 5th and orders will begin shipping on Monday - if you order more than once, be sure to use coupon code COMBINE to get free shipping.
OTHER NEWS THIS MONTH:
Intent Pendants are back at a lower price with more choices than ever before - you can select up to 3 individual intents or choose from 12 curated combinations.]]>
If you live in the US and/or are having things sent to an address that is in the US:
If you live outside the US and/or are having things sent to an address that is outside the US:
I will happily scribble "do not open until WINTER_HOLIDAY" on the outside of packages if you ask (replying to your order confirmation email is the best way to do that) and giftwrapping is also available. I do not use packing slips or anything else that would reveal your identity or how much you paid for something, but I will happily include a personalized note upon request.
If you're planning to order a bunch of neckvines or intent pendants or open edition earrings or $5 surprise earrings/pendants (in other words, stuff that I need to make) it would be a really good idea to not wait until the deadline.
]]>
🎵 99 bugs in the code on the wall 🎶
🎵 99 bugs in the code 🎶
🎵 you take one down, pass it around 🎶
🎵 106 bugs in the code on the wall 🎶
Thus far this week I've tried and rejected something like seven different subscription apps. The latest one currently isn't working at ALL but their tech support is outstanding so... hopefully this will be the last attempt?
(Apparently I have encountered a bug that shouldn't exist. The tech support guy who's been working on it for the past hour and a half has bounced it up to the app devs and says I should hear back within 24 hours. I am impressed enough that I'm pretty sure I'll be sticking with this one if they're able to fix the problem.)
I'm going to take a nap and then head to the workbench. Big autumnal update coming next week!
]]>Everything should work normally now, although there may still be some broken links or weirdly formatted pages floating around. Subscriptions are now live on the new billing system and that's getting tested tomorrow - if you have an active Earring Club or Six Months of Shiny subscription, you'll be getting an email from me in a couple of weeks plus a reminder note in your next couple of shipments. I'm aiming to have everybody transitioned to the new system by the end of the year.
(Pretty Rocks Club folks, you're all set - that one doesn't auto-renew at the end of the year so if you plan to stick around for 2024 you'll just sign up again in December.)
At least the art is very pretty? The culprit is the frame on the far right, which is a print from Amanda Langford. Highly recommend the artist and the artwork, do not recommend being clumsy while framing artwork.
]]>The cart and checkout SHOULD work, although they haven't been tested. There's a new thingie in the cart that lets you pick what type of sticker and/or giftie you'd like, and that hasn't been tested yet either but it seems to be working. If you place an order and DON'T get the normal email confirmation within a few minutes, poke me and I'll figure out what went wrong.
...aaaaand I still have to update all the email templates. *adds to never-ending list*
There are undoubtedly broken links and I know at least two pages are a complete mess right now but I'm too tired to fix it tonight. Filtering by type of product is wonky but I think semi-usable. And you can't actually sign up for any subscriptions at the moment - that's actually next on the list to be fixed.
(Existing subscriptions are unaffected for the moment, but I am switching all subscriptions to a new rebilling service because the one I'm using has annoyed me one too many times AND had the audacity to more than double in price, so...YEET. Once I get things working properly, you'll get an email from me with details on switching.)
]]>I am far enough inland that things shouldn’t be too bad here, but widespread flooding and power outages are expected throughout the region and I’d rather keep packages safely here than risk them getting lost or water-damaged in transit.
I will also be offline September 24th and 25th for Yom Kippur.
]]>
|
|
||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
December is upon us, which means signups are now open for both Pretty Rocks Club 2023 - for year four we're doing a deep dive into the feldspar family - and where do we go from here, my annual batch of custom intent-setting shinies for the upcoming year.
(I've finally gotten around to putting up individual months from most of 2022, if you aren't a current or past subscriber and want to check it out before you sign up for a whole year...)
Also! Today is the last day to order if you want your shinies to arrive by the first night of Hanukkah! Christmas/Solstice/Yule folks, you've got another week, until December 11th, but I'd encourage you to order sooner rather than later if you're buying gifts.
($5 earrings and $5 pendants are always great for stocking stuffers or last-minute gift exchanges, or there are quite a few of the little $25 pendants left... and don't forget that you can always drop subtle hints to spouses and relatives by sending them to your wishlist.)
The end-of-year clearance sale will start on December 26th and run through December 31st. All orders placed during the sale will be held until shipping resumes on January 2nd, because I plan to spend that week moving into the new studio!
This photo is from November, before the new windows went in (love the new windows!) because it's currently a huge mess of power tools and sawhorses and cases of flooring, but it's coming along nicely and is going to be such a marvelous workspace.
I have a bunch of stuff in the works for 2023, including offering beautiful dyed silk ribbons and custom-length sterling chains... but right now I'm off to figure out where I left my tea and get some sparkly new leaf earrings up on the website...
- Kyth
]]>[actual photo of me waiting in line at the post office during December]
It's that time again! These dates are based on a combination of the official USPS deadlines and my current turnaround times, but I highly recommend NOT waiting until the last minute because *gestures at everything* so:
If you live in the US and/or are having things sent to an address that is in the US:
If you live outside the US and/or are having things sent to an address that is outside the US:
I will happily scribble "do not open until WINTER_HOLIDAY" on the outside of packages if you ask (replying to your order confirmation email is the best way to do that) and giftwrapping is also available. I do not use packing slips or anything else that would reveal your identity or how much you paid for something, but I will happily include a personalized note upon request.
If you're planning to order a bunch of neckvines or intent pendants or open edition earrings or $5 surprise earrings/pendants (in other words, stuff that I need to make) it would be a really good idea to not wait until the deadline.
Also, this is your annual reminder that I don't do Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales. My normal prices are already pretty low, and if you're on a really tight budget or just enjoy bargains (who doesn't?) I'd suggest checking out the clearance rack or the stuff in this section.
]]>Me, every time I go to write the date at the top of a planner page: “…April? August? *looks at watch* WHAT DO YOU MEAN TOMORROW IS HALLOWEEN?”
Also me: “Why am I almost out of this medication, that was a 90 day fill that I just picked up… *looks at bottle* during the first week of August. Never mind.”
Y’all, time has lost all meaning. I know it’s autumn because my yard is covered in leaves and I had to turn on the heat and find my hoodies, but I could swear it was July like… yesterday? I am stubbornly attempting to ripen the last few tomatoes on my plants even though that means tossing an old sheet over them when there’s a frost warning, and (as is the tradition) scrambling at the last minute to figure out what I’m doing for the anniversary sale, which starts at midnight tomorrow.
In other news, after eight years of taking in lodgers (like many an impoverished gentlewoman before me) I am pleased to say that as of tonight Magpie House will revert to being a single-family home, and WS will soon be relocating from its current corner of the living room to an entire two rooms (!!!) upstairs. I’ve already moved my computer desk and shipping table up to a small room that had previously been used for storage and is now serving as my office, and once I paint and put down new flooring in the room that’s currently being vacated by the former occupants, that will be my studio. (With glorious western-facing windows!) I am looking forward to having an actual workbench again, and enough space to store ALL my supplies, rather than just the ones I use the most.
(I will also be turning my driveway into a vegetable garden come spring, which I’m sure will scandalize at least one of my neighbors, but personally I think it will be a vast improvement and am gleefully plotting how to build all sorts of trellises and cold frames and raised beds.)
The anniversary sale will start automatically at midnight tomorrow - pretty much everything will be 25% to start, no coupon code required, and I’m plotting some sort of $17 special in honor of WS turning 17. Expect mushy ramblings and assorted shenanigans as the week progresses!
]]>So I got covid again (because hiding zombie bites covid symptoms is just a super normal part of life in America now, apparently?) and while it wasn’t nearly as bad as my 2020 infection thanks to vaccines and antivirals, it still knocked me on my butt for over a week. I’ve been mostly symptom-free since Monday, and am theoretically back at work today, but I keep having to stop and rest every couple of hours. Zero stars, do not recommend.
(Edit, June 4: …aaaand then my body went LOL NO and I relapsed badly enough to land me back in bed at least for the rest of the weekend. THIS CAN STOP ANY TIME NOW I AM VERY TIRED OF IT)
Shipping-wise, it’s my understanding that the risk of covid transmission via surfaces is so minimal as to be effectively non-existent - but just to be safe I will be quarantining all packed orders for 24 hours before handing them off to USPS, to ensure that the contents have at least 72 hours between being handled by me and being handled by you. (If you would prefer, I can also wait to pack your order until I’ve tested negative twice over the span of 48 hours - just reply to your order confirmation email if you’d like me to do that, and I’ll be happy to hold it until then.) I’ll continue that for at least the rest of this week and next week, but should be able to get back to normal after that.
I’m finishing up a wholesale order today and tomorrow, and once that’s done I’ll be able to tackle the commissions that have been sitting in my queue - if I owe you an email, please give me until the end of the week, but then feel free to poke me about it if I haven’t been in touch; I’m trying to make sure nothing slips through the cracks, but, well *gestures vaguely at everything*
Happy Pride Month to my fellow members of the alphabet mafia and our allies - I utterly failed at engaging in rainbow capitalism remembering to release a Pride collection this year, but there are a handful of Stealth Pride pieces already up on the site if you rummage around, and it's entirely possible you'll also see some ridiculous rainbow pieces popping up over the next week or so.
...and it's apparently naptime again because how very dare I want to remain upright for more than an hour at a time? If you need me, I'll just be trying to convince Zoe to let me have my pillow back.
]]>I've put it off as long as I could, but... postage prices keep climbing, so as of today, first class shipping is going up to $4.25, with free shipping kicking in at $40.
(As always, you can use coupon code COMBINE if you already have an order hanging out in my shipping queue, or if you have a monthly subscription and don't mind waiting until your next shipment to get whatever you're ordering.)
]]>I've put it off as long as I could, but... postage prices keep climbing, so as of today, first class shipping is going up to $4.25, with free shipping kicking in at $40. That brings me back to just about breaking even on shipping expenses, which is where I've always tried to keep my rates.
(As always, you can use coupon code COMBINE if you already have an order hanging out in my shipping queue, or if you have a monthly subscription and don't mind waiting until your next shipment to get whatever you're ordering.)
]]>It's Monday, I'm underslept and undercaffeinated, and... mostly I have been busy getting orders out, so there's not a whole lot going on at the moment, but:
Hello world! I've spent most of the past two weeks hiding in a dark room pretending my head doesn't exist, so with the exception of Pretty Rocks Club, there's not a whole lot to report at the moment.
(I am... as okay as a person can be, two weeks into a hellish pain flare featuring nearly non-stop migraines. No advice, please; this is just a thing that happens sometimes and short of sending my kid to boarding school - are there boarding schools that offer law degrees to argumentative pre-teens who specialize in exploiting loopholes? - I'm already doing everything I can to get it under control.)
So, let's talk about Pretty Rocks Club! We're wrapping up year two, and I've decided to make a few changes - very few people were opting for the $45 deluxe level, and I needed to make some changes to the $25 regular level anyway, so after a bunch of pondering I ultimately decided to split the difference and go to just one level for $35, right in the middle both complexity- and price-wise.
(Want to see some examples of what that will look like? I thought you would, so I made a few sample pieces, using 2020 and 2021 materials so as to avoid spoilers but aiming for an approximation of what I'll be making in 2022.)
I struggled a lot with having to raise the price above $25, though, knowing that it would probably make some people unable to afford it, so I'm also switching to sliding scale pricing, no questions asked: if you can't afford $35, it is totally fine to pick one of the lower price points. I really love doing this project, and it's important to me to keep it accessible to as many people as possible, and... there's a lot I want to say about why I believe that sliding scale pricing is an important element of social justice that I want to be able to incorporate into my business, but I can't brain well enough to articulate any of it at the moment. *headdesk*
Bottom line: every subscriber will get at least $35 worth of shinies + geekery every month. Doesn't matter how much you're actually paying, and honestly, even if everybody picks the $25 price point, the project as a whole will still be running in the black. People are more important than profit margins, and this is a thing I do that makes me happy and makes other people happy, and... look, if I end up spending a couple days a month making slightly less money per hour than normal, that is totally fine because I am still literally getting paid to play with pretty rocks and I don't even have to wear real pants.
Signups for 2022 will be open through the end of December, and... y'all, I already have most of the materials and I am super excited to take you on this deep dive through the quartz family. THERE ARE THUNDER EGG BEADS! And some of the darkest rose quartz I've ever seen, and [redacted] with smoky quartz inclusions, and imperial jasper so stunning that I literally bought TWENTY-SIX STRANDS OF IT, and... yeah, this is definitely one of the best parts of my job.
...oh, and I will hopefully be doing the 2021 Necklace Of Doom sometime next week, so the giveaway for that will happen at some point this month.
]]>
I know, I know, it's not even Halloween yet, enough already with the holiday stuff, but... supply chain issues abound, the USPS is still a hot mess a lot of the time, my health remains extremely unpredictable, and Hanukkah is annoyingly early this year, so: deadlines.
Supply chain issues abound, the USPS is still a hot mess a lot of the time, my health remains extremely unpredictable, and Hanukkah is hecking early this year, so:
If you live in the US and/or are having things sent to an address that is in the US:
If you live outside the US and/or are having things sent to an address that is outside the US:
I will happily scribble "do not open until WINTER_HOLIDAY" on the outside of packages if you ask (replying to your order confirmation email is the best way to do that) and giftwrapping is also available. I do not use packing slips or anything else that would reveal your identity or how much you paid for something, but I will happily include a personalized note upon request.
If you're planning to order a bunch of necklines or intent pendants or open edition earrings or $5 surprise earrings/pendants (in other words, stuff that I need to make) it would be a really good idea to not wait until the deadline; I'll do my best, but covid left me with lung issues that can take me out for days at a time with zero warning.
Also, please remember that I do not do Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales. My normal prices are already pretty low, and if you're on a really tight budget or just enjoy bargains (who doesn't?) I'd suggest checking out the clearance rack or the stuff in this section.
(Photo by Kindel Media)
]]>(Also a handful of other places but I don't have customers in any of those places and, well, that's definitely not going to change anytime soon.)
*stares in etailer*
...so anyway, if you're in one of the affected places and you really want me to send you something, there ARE still options, but they start at about $70 and I just... yeah, no.
*stares some more*
I can however put things on hold indefinitely, so if you live in Australia or one of the other places and there's something you really really want, get in touch with me and we can come up with a plan to make sure you're able to order them when the suspension is lifted.
]]>Wyrding Studios is old enough to drive! As is the tradition, the anniversary shenanigans will be spread out over a full week, with discounts getting progressively deeper as the week goes on.
Here's a rough schedule of events for the rest of the week:
]]>Wyrding Studios is old enough to drive! As is the tradition, the anniversary shenanigans will be spread out over a full week, with discounts getting progressively deeper as the week goes on.
Here's a rough schedule of events for the rest of the week: