Sleepy Robot 13

Sleepy Robot 13 Valentine's Day Releases!

2012-01-18T04:53:00.000-08:00

http://that-figures.blogspot.com/ did a really Nice write up on two Sleepy Robot 13 Valentines releases. Click here to check it out!

Sleepy Robot 13 Retail Location Coming Soon! How you can help!

2011-12-26T08:23:00.000-08:00

SLEEPY ROBOT 13 NEEDS YOUR HELP!!!
Sleepy Robot 13 Store Project

Its official! Sleepy Robot 13 will be opening it's retail location @ 13345 Madison Ave. Lakewood, Ohio early 2012.

The Sleepy Robot 13 will carry all of my handmade robots, figurines, toys, jewelry, buttons T-shirts and totes. In addition I will also be selling Robot themed novelties, jewelry, plush, art prints, vinyl toys and more!

The lease is signed and the wholesalers are confirmed, but I still need a little help!

Store fixtures, cash registers and printers are very expensive.. I currently have a lot of $$$ invested in the store and will need a little more for it to reach it's full potential.

I have created an Indiegogo campaign to help raise funds. Please visit tinyurl.com/sleeprobot13store
for more info, to donate and receive a few cool exclusive items too!

Don't forget to share the above link with your friends!

Thank you for taking the time to read this. it is greatly appreciated :)

Happy Holidays!

2011-12-25T11:52:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Robonukah and Robanzaa too! Whatever it is you celebrate Happy Holidays to you and yours from Sleepy Robot 13!

Holiday Orders

2011-12-18T13:58:00.000-08:00

Just a reminder today is the last day to get orders in to ship in time for Christmas delivery. After today I cannot guarantee any package will reach you in time for Christmas unless you upgrade to priority, express or overnight shipping.

Cyber Monday Sale!

2011-11-28T02:13:00.001-08:00

Click HERE to shop now!

Holiday Shipping Schedule 2011

2011-11-19T05:13:00.000-08:00

Please be aware that I CANNOT guarantee holiday delivery if your order is placed after the following dates:
December 18,2011 (Domestic)
December 7, 2011 (International)

Also please remember due to order volume I am not able to accept custom orders during the holiday season. Once I have more space/help this may change.

CONTEST TIME! Enter to win a Sleepy Robot 13 Prize Pack

2011-09-24T07:22:00.000-07:00

Enter to win a Sleepy Robot 13 prize pack by linking to www.facebook.com/sleepyrobot13 on facebook or twitter or create a video about Sleepy Robot 13 with the link in the description.

What you win:

-A Sleepy Robot of your choice* from the shop
-Keychain
-cell phone charm
-Robot necklace of your choice
-sticker/button pack

Contest begins 09/22/2011
Contest ends 10/08/2011

*If you win Sleepy Robot chosen must be available in the shop currently. It cannot be a custom or a discontinued item. Item chosen also cannot be someone else's custom item that is currently in the shop.

Please STOP Stealing My Designs!

2011-09-21T08:47:00.000-07:00

As I am seeing an increasing number of copies of my robots popping up on Etsy and Artfire I must reiterate that Sleepy Robots are copyrighted and reproducing them in anyway for sale is copyright infringement. When I say copying I don't mean just the shape and style. I have found several shops on Etsy blatantly reproducing them and claiming them to be their original designs. I don't mind if you are making copies of my bots to keep for yourself as I have seen on a few other sites, but if you are planning on selling them keep them off Etsy, Artfire... in fact keep them off line! If I don't see them myself someone else will point me in your direction. I get at least 2 or more emails a week from loyal customers with links to shops selling rips of my bots. I don't mean to sound like a jerk, but this is becoming increasingly frustrating. I spend a lot of time coming up with my designs, reading suggestions and creating customs just to have them stolen and claimed by someone else. Outside of the creative aspect this is my livelihood. I do not have another job. I devote all my time to Sleepy Robot 13. I love making them, but they are also how I pay my rent and bills.

I understand that there are a lot of people "borrowing" each others photos on Etsy (Which is bad), but blatantly stealing someone else's work is just wrong.

Sleepy Robot T-shirts are here!

2011-09-01T13:10:00.000-07:00

Sleepy Robot 13 logo Tees are now available in the show in very limited quantities!

Available in unisex sizes sm, md,lg and xl. 2xl coming soon!

Click Here To Get Yourself One Now!

Sleepy Robots13 Gift Certificates

2011-08-24T10:14:00.000-07:00

I recently received a few messages asking if I was going to be offering gift certificates for sale in my shop this holiday season. I'm wondering if there are more than just a handful of people wanting gift certificates. I have created a poll to find out just that!

Sleepy Robots Now Available @Breakneck Gallery

2011-08-15T11:02:00.000-07:00

Sleepy Robots are now available for sale at Breakneck art in Lakewood, OH. Breakecnk will have its soft opening this upcoming Saturday 08/20/2011. Their grand opening will be in October. Only a select few Sleepy Robots are available in store currently, but the selection will be growing over the next few months.

Breakneck Gallery
17020 Madison Ave.
Lakewood, OH 44107

http://breakneckgallery.com
http://www.facebook.com/breakneckart

Custom Items Update

2011-08-15T09:31:00.000-07:00

Hi guys! I just wanted to give everyone a quick update regarding custom orders. Due to the high volume of orders I've been receiving and the upcoming holiday season, I will not be taking any new custom item requests until mid January 2012. This includes wedding orders of all kinds. If you sent me a request before 08/04/2011 and confirmed that you were ok with the time frame/price you have been added to the waiting list and will be receiving your custom item(s) by September 15, 2011. I apologize to everyone who has sent me requests over the last week and to anyone who was planning to order custom items for Christmas gifts. Unfortunately I am only one person and there are only so many hours in a day:(

Sleepy Robot 13 Is Ready To Grow!

2011-07-24T06:59:00.000-07:00

Please visit indiegogo.com and search for Sleepy Robot 13

Even if you can't donate you can still help out by doing the following:
-Print/cut out a few fliers and leave them at your local coffee shop, art gallery, alternative clothing store, craft show/art fair, concert venue, community bulletin board, ect...
-Post a link to the page on Twitter
-Spread the word about this campaign on Facebook, Myspace or your personal blog
-Talk about it on your favorite message board
-Use the share tools located on the indie go go page.

Please Vote For Sleepy Robot 13!

2011-07-07T12:42:00.000-07:00

Hello everybody! I really need your help! Sleepy Robot 13 has been chosen as one of the finalists of the 11th Idea Cafe Cash Grant! Voting for the 1st round ends July 31st!

http://www.businessownersideacafe.com/small_business_grants/11th-grant-voting.php?profile=6479

My goal right now is to expand Sleepy Robot 13. Over the next year I hope to accomplish the following:

*Hire 2-3 interns
*Rent a store front/office/studio space
*Fulfill wholesale orders
*Begin offering Sleepy Robot 13 products to retail stores & sites
* Travel to other cities for conventions and industry functions
* Offer craft business seminars locally and online
*a children's book based on Sleepy Robot 13 Characters
*Produce a Sleepy Robot 13 Calendar
*Sleepy Robot 13 T-shirts
* And soooooo much more that I can't even get into right now.

The one thing all of the above takes is money... which I do not have much of. I have been very fortunate to get my business off the ground with very little start up cost, but now in order to grow I am in need of capital.

This particular grant is only for $1000, but it is a start! So if you can take 5 minutes out of your day to vote I would be truly grateful!

Thank you so much :)
Lisastarchild
Sleepy Robot 13

Canadian Shipping

2011-06-18T07:15:00.000-07:00

As of 06/17/2011 I have been made aware that after this date there will be no more shipping to Canada due to the recent postal strike there. I asked a worker at my local post office how long this hold on Canadian mailing would last and she said hopefully only a week, but she wasn't sure. If you have placed an order to Canada after 06/17/2011 please be aware I will ship your order as soon as US postal is accepting Canadian mailings again.

Radioactive Zombie Toast Available Friday!

2011-06-01T08:38:00.000-07:00

The Glow in the dark Radioactive version of "Zombie Toast" We be available for a limited time in the Sleepy Robot 13 Shop Starting this Friday 06/03/2011. The cost will be $15 + shipping

"You carelessly left him sitting on top of your microwave to mold. Over along period of time he began to absorb the low levels of radiation, now he is back to seek his revenge on you and your kitchen!"

He has broken out and is attacking everything in site! The jar of Smuckers on your counter has had it, as he claims it's sweet jelly brains for his own and proudly displays them in his moldy hand!

"Zombie Toast Need Grains!"

Each 3" body is hand sculpted from vinyl clay and hand painted. The faces are printed on plastic to ensure the continuity of each figure and placed in a handmade, signed and numbered boxes.

Custom Orders

2011-04-24T09:33:00.000-07:00

Since my waiting list is starting to get impossibly long, I will NOT be taking any new custom item requests until further notice. Yes this includes wedding orders. Once I begin taking requests again I will post that information here.

New Items!

2011-04-19T15:25:00.001-07:00

If you haven't checked out the Sleepy Robot 13 Shop in a while there are a few new bots fresh off the assembly line!

Check back in the next week as tons of new robot buddies are added!

Unfortunately to make room for new bots, we have to say goodbye to some old friends. Check the last chance/discontinued section of the Sleepy Robot 13 shop for items that will soon be no longer available. Once they're gone they're gone!

2000 Sales!!!

2011-04-19T15:21:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday I made my 2000th sale on Etsy! It has been a year and a half since starting Sleepy Robot 13 and opening my shop and I want to thank everyone who has helped my business grow over that time. Without all of you I couldn't do what I love for a living and that means the world to me!

Etsy Expert?

2011-04-19T15:04:00.000-07:00

So over the weekend I set up at a 2 day craft show. On the morning of day 2 before the show started the individuals who put on the show brought in an Etsy "expert" to do a presentation for us. I was a little disappointed. Not to say that the speaker was not good or qualified, it just seemed that the seminar was only helpful if you were not already running a shop on Etsy or you had just started in the last few months. I was hoping for tips on drawing more people to your page, Elaborate details on SCO (search engine optimization), how to use Social Networking Correctly (There are many Etsy sellers currently spamming Twitter into oblivion!) and so forth. There was very little of this. He mentioned he had written a book and interviewed over 40 top selling Etsy sellers, including a woman who has 40,000 sales selling soap on Etsy. The fist thing I thought when I heard this was..."Wait...What? 1st how do you sell 40,000 pieces of soap and 2nd how do I sign up for HER seminar???" I do believe this was great seminar for some of the older vendors who were at the show who only sell at craft shows and fairs and in consignment shops, who have not yet ventured into online sales. It offered little for us that have been there for a while and looking to take the next step.

OOAK Robot Auctions!

2011-02-09T15:39:00.000-08:00

Sometime in mid to late March I will be hosting several auctions on Ebay for one of a kind, limited run (5 pieces or less) and discontinued robots. There will also be jewelry, stickers, buttons, non robot figures and more up for grabs! All robots and other figure auctions will start at just $5! Stickers, jewelry, buttons, ect will start at just $1! These will be 1 day auctions. Once there gone there gone for good! Keep checking back for a preview of items to be auctioned off and a firm date.

Get Your Valentine on with Sleepy Robot 13!

2011-01-15T08:04:00.000-08:00

With Valentine's Day Right around the corner , love is in the air at Sleepy Robot 13!

Theres something for everyone in the Holiday Section of the shop. From gifts for the one that makes your heart go pitter pat, to friends that have been gone far too long... Heres a quick preview below of items now available:

Robot With A Big Heart Necklace

Sweet Heart Robot

Love Robot

Kiss Me Robot

"I Miss You" Robot

Robot In Love

Just a funny Robot Picture...

2011-01-12T14:20:00.000-08:00

Geekcrafts.com Feature

2011-01-10T15:12:00.000-08:00

If you shuffle on over to Geekcrafts.com you can check out a short write up on the "Get your nerd on" robot, but also you can check out a bunch of other nerdtastic crafts!

Happy New Year!

2010-12-30T19:53:00.000-08:00

Another year gone by... and what a year it was! Keep an eye out for tons of new robots and more from Sleepy Robot 13. Wishing you all a happy new year, have fun and stay safe! See you in 2011.

~Lisastarchild

Enter to Win Twibots!!

2010-12-27T16:44:00.000-08:00

Some of the gang over at Twilight wiki are giving you a chance to win a Team Edward or Team Jacob robot! Click HERE for official contest rules and your chance to win!

Happy Holidays To Everyone From Sleepy Robot 13!

2010-12-24T16:28:00.001-08:00

Yay We're open!

2010-12-07T18:05:00.001-08:00

The Sleepy Robot 13 Shop has re-opened. I have made a good size dent in the orders received while I was out of town. I should have all pending orders shipped by the end of the week (hopefully, the weather has been horrible where I live the last few days). Thank you all for being so patient. Can't wait until the craziness of the holidays is over so I can get to work on creating some new products!

Shop Temporarily Closing

2010-11-30T14:55:00.000-08:00

The Sleepy Robot 13 Etsy shop will be CLOSED starting tomorrow morning (12/1/2010) through the weekend while I try to catch up on the orders received while I was out of town. If I make a decent size dent in my current orders I will re-open sooner. I apologize to everyone hoping to place Christmas orders this weekend.

Black Friday Sale!

2010-11-25T05:16:00.001-08:00

Designer Con Re-cap

2010-11-22T00:46:00.000-08:00

Woo! Designer Con came and went in a blur! I kind of feel like I set up my booth and in a blink of an eye it was over. I had an amazing time. D-con was my very first convention, so I wasn't really sure what to expect. I made a few mistakes as far as planning and expenses (I had to travel from my home base in Ohio to Pasadena, CA for the show). I definitely know what to do differently next year.

The reception was great. A lot of people stopped by the booth and I even met a few celebrities. The highlight of my day was finally getting to meet Buff monster who is one of my favorite artists. I was taken by surprise by the number of people who walked up to my booth and handed me their sketch books. I guess sketches are the new autograph lol! I loved it though. My boyfriend Bobby was kind enough to help me out in the booth through out the day and I think he really enjoyed himself.I will turn him into a toy person yet!

Below I have added several pictures of the booth through out the day. If you would like to see pics from other exhibiting Designer Con artists click Here.

Designer Con 2010!

2010-11-19T11:58:00.000-08:00

Sleepy Robot 13 will have a booth at this years Designer Con. I will be selling all of my robots as well as several one of a kind handmade toys and figurines.

Sleepy Robot 13 Booth #222

Saturday, November 20th, 2010
10 am to 5 pm
Admission: $5 (free after 3 pm!)

Pasadena Convention Center
300 East Green Street
Pasadena, CA 91101

Now in its fifth year, Designer Con (formerly Vinyl Toy Network), is an annual art and design convention that smashes together collectible toys and designer apparel with urban, underground and pop art.

Some of the Designer Con 2010 events include the Spoonful of Star Wars™ Art Exhibition, Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School, World's Biggest "Blindbox Time", So Analog Custom Show, our famous DCon Goodie Bags, live painting, and more!

If you are in California make sure you stop out and say hi!

ALL Halloween Items On Sale! Buy 2 Get 1 Free!!!

2010-10-21T13:58:00.000-07:00

All items listed in the Sleepy Robot 13 Halloween section are now Buy 2 Get 1 Free until Sunday 10/24/2010. Just add 3 or more items to your cart from the Halloween section and check out as normal. Once your order/payment has been received you will be issued a refund for the cost of the 3rd item. Sale includes items from the Halloween section ONLY. Order must contain at least 3 items at time of check out to participate in sale.

Custom Item Update- LAST CHANCE!

2010-10-21T07:56:00.000-07:00

Hey guys a few emails I received this morning kinda prompted me to post this reminder. I will only be taking requests for custom orders for about another week and a half. After Nov. 6th I will not be taking any further custom orders. This includes Christmas custom requests. If you were wanting a custom item made to give to someone as a Christmas gift, the request needs to be sent to me no later than Nov. 6th. Nov./Dec. will be extremely busy with me leaving for Designer Con in California and Christmas. If your request is in by the 6th you will definitely have it in time for Christmas.

Custom items start at $15+ Shipping and go up depending upon size, qty and details. If you are interested in a custom item please email me Lisastarchild@yahoo.com or send me an Etsy Convo. If you would like to see some of the past custom items I have made please click on the links below:

Custom Items

Pirate Wedding

Vlog Featuring Sleepy Robot 13 & A few other Etsy Sellers

2010-10-04T17:06:00.001-07:00

I wanted to share an awesome Video blog sent to me from Tamara A.K.A "Ipukeglamour". I have been a big fan of Tamara's Make-up Tutorials for years and recently sent her a custom made robot holding a banner with her screen name on it. in return she included a a short piece on Sleepy Robot 13 in her latest Vlog. The video also contains a few other amazing Etsy shops and online apparel sites. I definitely recommend subscribing to her videos on Youtube(:

Photo Shoot!

2010-10-01T10:45:00.000-07:00

So I found a few cool backgrounds for $.25 each at my local craft store this week and decided to have a small photo shoot with some of my robots.

Copy Cats: UPDATED

2010-09-19T09:20:00.000-07:00

I been getting several emails/etsy convos regarding shops that have popped up that are selling robots similar to mine. I have received the most messages about this shop: TNZsculptures. Yes there are clearly a lot of similarities between their bots and mine. Thank all of you who wrote me giving me the heads up. My figures are copy written as well as trademarked so I'm not too worried. They do say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!

Theres:

Mine:

Theres:

Mine:

Theres:

Mine:

Theres:

Mine:

Theres:

Mine:

Theres:

Mine:

*UPDATE: Someone today after reading this post sent me to this shop: SweetMelodys Her bots as far as the shape of the head and the big black eyes do bare a little resemblance to mine, but not by much!

This post was NOT meant to make my readers go on a witch hunt to find other Etsy sellers ripping off my robots. It was meant to show that no one should be ripping off or copying anyone elses ideas or work. If you are a true artist you can come up with your own unique idea. And if you do feel the need to copy something someone else created DON'T SELL IT ON ETSY OR ARTFIRE. IN FACT DON'T SELL IT ONLINE! As you can see it's not like the original artist isn't going to see it.

Etsy Selling Tip 6: Using Paypal to Process Payments at Craft Shows

2010-09-16T12:14:00.000-07:00

I originally found this article on www.handmadenews.org/ This is something I have been doing for sometime at craft shows that have WiFi access. I feel this article explains it far better than I ever could. I usually take my laptop with me on the off chance that the show will have wifi and I can allow people to check out via Pay Pal. It is much simpler and affordable than buying a credit card machine/processing credit cards and it's safer. The following article explains how to allow customers to check via Pay Pal Using a "Donation" button. I myself have never used this method. At the conclusion of the article I will put in my 2 cents on how I usually have customers pay via Pay Pal at craft shows.

Via Handmadenews.org
If you have been looking into the options for processing payments at craft fairs you will have noticed that most require some sort of monthly financial commitment that seems a little pointless paying especially if you don't do a fair every month or you don't take many card payments.

However with mobile broadband for netbooks and smartphones it is now possible to take payments through paypal.

First set up a donate paypal button in your paypal account you can do this by going to merchant services and clicking on the link for the buy now buttons then clicking on the donate link in the left menu. Donate is best since you can enter the amount as needed rather than creating buttons for each price and having to use add to cart for customers that want to make multiple purchases.

You don't even have to host the donate button anywhere once it is created you will be able to click through to the page and bookmark that so you can get to it quickly. (if you are using a smartphone you may find it easier to temporarily host the button on a free site builder so you can click through to the link after setting it all up on your home computer.)

For blackberry users you will need to download the opera browser because the default browser automatically goes to the paypal mobile site and this feature isn't possible on that.

Now you should have your donation page bookmarked and all you will need to do when you have a person wanting to pay is go to the bookmarked page, enter the purchase amount (inclusive of any taxes) and put in the card details, if your customer is registered with paypal then they will be able to log in and pay that way if preferred.

Of course there are limits with the paypal system since they do not accept all cards and anyone that has already used their card three times with paypal will need to sign up for an account but you now have a simple and free (other than the cost of your phone/netbook) way to process most card payments. This works best for those outside the US since you will be able to have the payments in your own currency. However if the venue you sell on is in your own currency you can just process through your venue but the donate button makes things faster because you don't have all the purchase steps to jump through.

Sleepy Robot 13's 2 cents:

Ok so I use 1 of 2 methods to allow customers to check out via Pay Pal. The 1st is just using plane old Etsy. I will pull up Etsy on my laptop and if it is an item already for sale in my shop they are purchasing, I just remove the shipping charge and let the customer log into their Etsy account (If they have one) and check as normal. I like this method because it helps me keep track of sales and the customer is able to find me again later if they want to purchase something else (we all know business cards usually end up at the bottom of a purse or junk drawer).

The 2nd method I use is letting the customer check out directly via their Pay Pal account and clicking on the "Send money" tab. Now not all customers will be comfortable with this option because they are logging into their Pay Pal accounts from someone else's computer. For both methods of check out I recommend having cookies turned off on your computer so the customer's information is not saved. The upside to using this method is you avoid Etsy's transaction fees and you have a record of the sale for tax purposes.

Halloween Comes Early At Sleepy Robot 13!

2010-09-16T11:56:00.000-07:00

Since I'm one of those people that celebrates Halloween 365 days a year and I just use the holiday to stock up on supplies, you can only imagine that my little robot minions would feel the same way. Most of them have already picked out their costumes and wanted to show them off for you!

You can view more robot Halloween Craziness by visting the Halloween section of my shop HERE.

Christmas Custom Orders

2010-09-15T09:59:00.000-07:00

I know it's crazy to be talking about Christmas already, but over the last 2 weeks I've been getting a lot of custom order requests for Christmas gifts. Usually customs take me about a week to a week and a half to finish. I want to make sure everyone gets the customs they want to give as gifts and make sure I am also able to complete all of my regular orders during the Christmas season. Therefore there will be a cutoff date of November 6th for ALL custom orders. If you are interested in a custom item you MUST have it submitted to me by Nov. 6, 2010. My goal is to have all customs completed and shipped before I leave for Designer Con in CA on November 18th. Custom order requests can be sent by sending me a convo on Etsy or emailing me directly at lisastarchild@yahoo.com

While we're on the subject of Christmas I also want to mention that the cutoff date for Christmas orders this year will be Dec. 13th for domestic orders and December 3rd for international orders. You can still place Christmas orders after these dates, but I cannot guarantee that they will reach you in time for X-mas. If you place a late Christmas order you do have the option of contacting me for a faster shipping method. To all international customers, for reasons unknown to me there has been a delay involving customs/transit stations that are causing extended delays to customers in Canada and Australia(these are the only ones I'm aware of so far). Please take this into account when placing orders for Christmas gifts.

856 Etsy Sales!

2010-09-14T05:25:00.000-07:00

Today I reached 856 sales on Etsy and along with countless other sales offline it feels amazing! Next month on the 9th I will celebrate my one year anniversary of opening my Etsy shop. I am still amaze in less than a year how fair I've come. I definitely couldn't have done it without the advice of other amazing crafters, all of you who wrote about me on their blogs and having the guts to try things that others wouldn't think of, without knowing if they would be a success or I would fall flat on my face! Sleepy Robot 13 definitely put a hole in my wallet for a while, but before there can be feast there must be famine...or maybe I should just say it takes money to make money. I started Sleepy Robot 13 with 3 figurines (2 of which weren't even robots) and the hope that I could make a little money to pay my bills while I was out of work and today it's more than I could have ever hoped. My goal is to reach 1000 sales by my shops one year anniversary. 144 sales in 3 1/2 weeks, think I can do it?

Blue & Gold Golden Ticket Wedding Cake Toppers

2010-08-18T16:45:00.000-07:00

I recently made custom wedding cake toppers for Mrs. Mollie Ruth using the color theme of their wedding as well as the golden ticket design of their invitations. She was kind enough to send me a few photos of their cake and I wanted to share them with you!

DIY Robots

2010-08-18T13:45:00.000-07:00

So I've gotten several emails recently that a lot of you want me to make the blank DIY robots available again. Well you got your wish! I have made available again in my Etsy shop a few of my blank robots and I lowered the price! You can now get them for only $5.50. I have also dedicated a section of Sleepyrobot13.com to photos sent in of finished bots (it can be found here.) Below you will find a few pictures of photos that have already been sent in.

2 chance 2 check out Sleepy Robot 13 this weekend

2010-08-12T11:01:00.000-07:00

On Saturday 8/14/10 Sleepy Robot 13 will have booths set up in 2 locations. You can catch Creator Lisastarchild at Grace Park in Akron, OH 10am-6pm and a smaller Sleepy Robot 13 booth at the Lakewood Car Kulture show on Madison Ave. in Lakewood, OH 10am-6pm. So if your looking for something to do this weekend, come out for some food, fun, drinks and a lot of art! Oh and don't forget to say hi to Vanessa and I.

Not Dogs & Robots! What could be better???

2010-08-06T14:34:00.000-07:00

Hey guys if you are in the northeast Ohio area ( I know theres a couple of ya) make sure you stop by Bella Dubbi in Lakewood. Oh on Madison ave noon-4 tomorrow 8/7/10. The Cleveland craft coalation will be having a free vegan/vegetarian cook out. Not dogs for all! i will be selling my robots and all of the other little creations Sleepy Robot 13 is known for. If you can't make it tomorrow you can also catch me on 8/14/10 @ Grace parin Akronk and 8/22/10 back in Cleveland @ the Cleveland Scooter rally. I look forward to seeing everyone!

Custom Order Update

2010-08-01T23:11:00.000-07:00

A few months ago I posted that I would not be taking any custom orders due to being backed up with wedding orders and other misc. customs. Even though I had listed I wasn't taking customs I still received several custom order request and inquiries. I have finally made it through most of my wedding orders, but now I'm kinda backed up with all the requested I received when I was "not" taking custom orders lol. So instead of continuing to "not" take custom orders I've decided to take on new orders again but make everyone aware that there will be at least a 2-3 week wait on all custom requests.. I will try to get them done sooner but on top of my regular orders I'm trying to keep time frames as realistic as possible. Customs will continue to start at $15 depending upon details.

Donate $2 For Breast Cancer get a cool bracelet!

2010-07-23T06:17:00.000-07:00

I don't have breast cancer myself but the subject is very near and dear to my heart, as I know several women who do. Spencer gifts has currently teamed up with several breast cancer awareness organizations including "Boobies make me smile", "Keep a breast", "YSC", "i[2]y" and "The stupid cancer show" to educate and support over 1 million young Americans.100% of the proceeds of a $2 donation will go to these organizations. In return for your donation you get one of these really cool bracelets pictured below. To read more or donate please visit www.spencersonline.com and be sure to follow the army at Facebook.com/BoobiesMakeMeSmile

Sleepy Robot 13 Interview from zombiesandtoys.com

2010-07-12T21:23:00.000-07:00

You can read the full feature here

What were the first creations you made?
"Action figures of my friends. My first detailed creation was an action figure of my best friend Vanessa called the "Napkin Ninja."

Which do you prefer, toast or robots?
"Hmm, that's actually really tough to answer. They are both items that should really not have personalities due to the havoc they could wreak upon the earth... I think that's why I like making them so much! It's definitely a tie."

How did you first get the idea to create zombie toast?
"A friend of mine has toast every morning for breakfast. Wanting to try something different one day, she put a piece of dark rye bread in her toaster. When it came out, the 1st thing that came to mind is that it looked like zombified toast. After that, whenever she made toast I'd ask her if she was making "Zombie Toast". A few weeks later I made my first zombie toast figure and gave it to her as a birthday gift. He still sits in her kitchen to this day."

Most influential zombie moment?
"Dead Alive! Not much beats killing zombies with a lawnmower!"

Favorite zombie book, movie, game?
"Zombie Book: World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks
Movie: Shaun of the dead (I love comedy and I love zombies)
Game: I really liked the Resident Evil games up until the rail shooter..."

If you were bitten, would you want shot or left to change?
"I would change but then I would want to be shot just so I can see what it feels like."

If we were making a toy of you, would you be a zombie or survivor and what accessories would you come with?
"I would be a zombie and my accessories would include a turkey baster, licorice intestines and a clown with no head."

No Comic-con for Sleepy Robot 13

2010-07-12T00:01:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I started getting quite a few emails and direct messages on Twitter asking my booth number for this years Comic-con. I'm not sure how the rumor got started, but sadly I will not be at Comic-con this year. I just couldn't afford a booth, maybe next year. I am however 99% sure I will have a booth this November at Designer Con in Pasadena, CA. I want to apologize to everyone who emailed/messaged me that were hoping to check out Sleepy Robot 13 merch at Comic-con.

4 Day Only Sale!

2010-07-11T08:38:00.000-07:00

I've been getting a lot of emails from you guys wanting me to run more sales, well here ya go! July 11 through July 14th get 20% off your entire order from Sleepy Robot 13. Doesn't matter if it's one item or 100 your entire order is 20% off! Just type the word "Summer" into the order comments and 20% of your order total will be refunded. Tell all your friends!

Click here to visit Shop

*20% is applied to order subtotal(excludes shipping cost). 20% of your order subtotal will be refunded via Pay Pal once payment has been received. The code "Summer" must be typed in either the order comments or Pay Pal message to receive discount. If the code summer is not present somewhere in your order the discount will NOT be applied. Offer only valid on orders placed 7/11/2010- 7/14/2010. Discount applied to regular online orders only. Discount not valid for custom orders.

Click here to visit shop

Synergy Magazine Article

2010-07-11T06:30:00.000-07:00

Recently Sleepy Robot 13 was featured in an issue of the Australian magazine Synergy. You can find a copy of the article below on page 142.

Synergy magazine is an unusual publication dedicated to the exploration of the diverse world of cinema and entertainment. We are one of the largest sources of genre cinema reviews in Australia, offering content from around the globe. Synergy is packed with articles, features, news, reviews, and commentary. They also offer regular reviews of music, unusual toys, collectibles, Urban Vinyl and Plush, books, magazines – all sorts of strange and intriguing things you won’t find anywhere else!

Synergy is available in a print and digital edition. The digital edition of Synergy is free and released in Adobe Acrobat every two months.

Open publication - Free publishing - More horror

Win a Zombie Robot as part of the Undead Bazaar

2010-07-09T20:00:00.000-07:00

I recently had a chance to take part in the Zombies & ToysUndead bazaar. Zombies and toys are featuring several amazing handmade artists and giving you a chance to win some of their items. Currently you have a chance to win one of my Zombie Robots.

To enter follow this link or send an email to sleepyrobot13@zombiesandtoys.com. Entries must be received by July 23, 2010.

While your there Please check out the feature/Interview I did for the site Here!

Etsy Selling Tip 5:"Tag Your it!"

2010-07-09T10:30:00.000-07:00

Tags! Tags are one of the smallest, but most important ways to get someone to find your items. There are so many tags that can be used to describe your unique item(s) on Etsy (as well as flickr.) Usually when tagging an item I first browse the suggested tags listed under the chosen category for my item. I post a lot in the Geekery category. My top 3 tags I select from the suggestions are: Robots (duh lol), Toys, and weird. After I have selected from the suggested tags I add my own. For example lets say I was adding tags to the item listed below, my "Happy Birthday Robot.

Tags I may include for this item would be Birthday, Gift, Silver, Cute, Fun, and Unique. I always recommend adding the main color of your item as a tag. You'd be amazed how many people just search by color. If your item is on of a kind (OOAK) add that as a tag! You should also put your shop name as a tag as well, It makes it easier for people to find your items via search engines like Google shopping.

Everyone has their own unique way to tag. The best thing you can do is look around at other established sellers and see what type of tags they are using on their items.

Crafty Advice Youtube Channel anyone? Send me your questions!

2010-06-25T10:14:00.000-07:00

Hi guys sorry for the lack of updates lately. I've been busy preparing for craft shows and making wedding cake toppers. I hope to next month put together a post to show you all of the custom toppers I've made this summer in a special wedding segment. I've also been working on putting together a youtube channel where I can put up video containing crafting/small business advice. The main reason I wanted to start the channel was to answer all the questions you guys have been emailing me. I will still continue to post selling tips and advice here, but I figured that somethings make more since when you see them. As soon as the channel is finished I will post a link here, but in the mean time I would love it if you guys would submit questions for me to answer in my videos. Please send your questions to lisastarchild@yahoo.com. Also as soon as I get the software working correctly I plan on posting short animated web comics featuring many of my Sleepy robots. I'll keep you updated!

Etsy Selling Tip 4: The Price Is Right!

2010-05-30T14:29:00.000-07:00

I frequent a lot of craft forums and I see this question over and over again: "Do you think I am charging too much/too little for my items?" I think the best answer to this question is another question, "Would you pay that much for the item or a similar item?"

We all know that money is tight these days. When I price my items I always ask myself how much I would pay for a similar item from another seller if I were buying online or at a craft show (I'll talk a little more about craft show pricing later in this post.) Now this is just my personal opinion and it has worked for me. Never sell yourself (or your craft) short if you put a lot of time, effort and love into something you've created you should by all means get paid well for it, but remember to be realistic. Also take into consideration that most people buy handmade because they are looking for a unique item...without the heavy price tag of something mass produced.

What it really comes down to is you know your price is right if you'd pay it yourself. If you wouldn't pay the amount you are charging for a similar item, no matter how unique and well made it is, you are charging too much.

Now, how do you decide if your prices are too low? Ask yourself this, Are your making a reasonable profit over your supply cost? Can you cover your Etsy fees at the end of the month? (Assuming you haven't spent all of your money visiting other awesome Etsy shops lol!) If you answered no to these two questions, then your price is probably too low. If you are at this point don't be afraid to raise your price a little. The price of your item can reflect the quality of your item just as much as the photo. If a price is too low buyers may think that the quality is low as well.

Craft Show pricing

The most important thing to remember about a craft show is that it is a craft show not a flea market, therefore do not drop the price of your items to unreasonably low prices. I have been to shows where fellow Etsians are selling their crafts for half and sometimes less than half the cost they sell their items online for. I am all for giving a price break at a show, but once again do not sell yourself short. Knocking a few buck off mid-level and high ticket items is a great way to get people out to a show you are participating in. I post information about shows I am doing in my shop announcements and on my blog. I often let buyers know I will be discounting some of my items during the show as well as selling items not listed on Etsy. This not only brings potential buyers out to the show but also to your table/booth.

Now, how do you decide if you should keep your pricing during a craft show the same as in your Etsy show or slash the prices. This should be gaged on the show it'self. I say always start out the first 1-3 hours(depending upon the length of the show) as close to your original price as possible. As the day goes on base your pricing on the following:

Hows the crowd? Is it large, steady or very thin?
How many other vendors are there selling items similar to yours?
Do buyers really contemplate an item after learning the price or do they walk away immediately or shake their heads (I see this a lot from older buyers)

One thing I've learned is to stay firm on a price if a potential customer really ponders and it and comes back several times to look at it again or see if it's still there. This usually means 1) They may be a fellow vendor and need to make a few sales of their own before they can buy anything, they saw something at another table they liked and are trying to figure out which item they like best or if they can afford both and finally if you are going to drop your price. Remember it is not a flea market or a swap meet. Your not just cleaning out your garage and throwing the items on a table. You worked hard on your creations. Do not be discouraged if the person ultimately walks away. Their going to be the ones on the ride home kicking themselves because they didn't buy that item from you they really liked. On several occasions a few days after shows I have gotten orders/convos from people who saw one of my items at a show and didn't buy anything then, but when they got home decided they really liked it and should have bought it.

If the day has been slow and and the crowds haven't been great, you may want to drop your prices a little. Your goal should always first and foremost be to make back your table/booth fee and your supply cost, because everything after that is profit. Even if you don't make a profit at least you are not out any money and you got your name and your product out in the public. My 1st show I didn't even come close to breaking even, but several people saw my stuff and looked me up online.

Finally it's important to take into account the area of the show is in. Potential customers may not have as much disposable income to spend as those in other places in your city. Keep that in mind as you are pricing your items.

Wow! Sorry this one was so long. I probably started rambling there for a bit.

Etsy Selling Tip 3: Flick It!

2010-05-30T11:19:00.001-07:00

UPDATE 5/31/2010:
I just wanted to clear up that I am in no way telling you to try to sell items through your Flickr site. I am just reminding you that it can be a way for more people to see your crafts and connect with artists you may not have found out about via Etsy alone. I do not think that you should blatantly try put "find me on Etsy" in your description or anything, but to remember to put links in your profile. Also you should put photos of yourself in your Flickr account. I think it is always great to get to see the person behind the craft.

As Etsy sellers, especially when we are first starting out we don't have a lot of money to spend on advertising. Therefore low cost and free advertising is very important! Over the next few entries I will discuss several forms of advertising that I use. Today I'd like to discuss Flickr. I think Flickr is one of the best free to low cost advertising opportunities available that a lot of Etsy sellers do not use to their advantages.

How to use Flickr to promote your shop/items:

1) Fill in your profile!
I find photos of awesome handmade items on Flickr often. The 1st thing I do is click on their profile to learn more, only to find it blank! Think of your Flickr account as an extension of your Etsy shop. As it is against Flick policy to link to your Etsy shop in the description and title of an image, it needs to be in your Flickr profile. You should also link to your personal site and blog if you have one.

2)Take a look around
Do searches for pictures of items relating to your craft. This can give you more ideas on making your items more photogenic, using color schemes, background props and placement. Searching also helps with finding new tags for your photos(for use on Flickr and Etsy.) I have found several new terms to tag my photos with that I never thought of (I will focus more on tags in a later post.) Descriptions are another great item to look at. A great description can really make your photo stand out and your item(s) seem more interesting.

3)Get Connected
Add fellow crafters on Flickr as contacts. This is a great way to keep track of users you may want to find again as well as creating a network of friends that may have tips and advice to offer.

4)Group Therapy (Possibly the most important)

Search and join groups pertaining to the items you make and the materials used. As the majority of my items are created using polymer clay, therefore I joined several polymer clay groups. Next was themed groups. One look at my Etsy shop and you will notice an overwhelming robot theme, so joining groups for fans of robots was the obvious next step. I try to add at least 1 or 2 photos 3 or more times a week to the groups I've joined with the most activity.

Below I've compiled a list of my favorite Flickr Groups

Toysaholic Anonymous (1,868 members)
~ Toys =D (JOIN Contest : MAY) (569 members)
Etsy Artists Rule: 1 Million Picture Pool (2,585 members)
Etsy.com love (11,599 members)
Craft Revolution (7,092 members)
I Made it Myself (19,666 members)
Kawaii D.I.Y (1,370 members)
Etsy - Look and Learn (6,389 members)
CraftGossip.com Crafty Reviews (967 members)

Cuteable (3,510 members)
CRAFT (10,244 members)

The Secret Life of Toys (13,625 members)
Character Design (5,908 members)
Artisan Jewelry on Etsy (1,992 members)

Monsters and other creatures (2,546 members)

polymer clay (1,981 members)
MONSTER CLAY (107 members)
Monster Art (25 members)

Etsy (1,655 members)

get crafty! (8,335 members)
Arts & crafts fairs & shows (1,890 members)
Kawaii Collectors (966 members)

Handmade Goodies! (6 members)
ROBOT (946 members)

Anything Polymer Clay (1,253 members)
Kawaii Crafters (172 members)

Toy Robots (515 members)

Handmade Kitschy Jewellery (419 members)

iheartcrafts: cute & colourful (171 members)

Etsy Packaging (1,696 members)

Etsy Selling Tip Part 2: Time Is Money

2010-05-19T09:10:00.000-07:00

So I've been slacking lately on put up Etsy selling tips, so I'm going to make an effort to put up 1 or 2 a week for now on.

Selling tip: Time is money!

Now that there are SOooooo many sellers on Etsy when you post a new item it can be pushed from page 1 to page 10 in a matter of minutes in your given category. I noticed that there are better times of day than others to post a new item(s)and have them sit on the 1st or 2nd page of your given category longer. The longer your item(s) are visible on the top pages the more people will see your item. Most Etsy customers will usually on browse through the first 5-7 pages of a category before moving on, therefore it is crucial to stay in that page range as long as possible. I post a lot in the "Geekery" category. I have found that posting new items or re-listing items is best done between 11am and 1pm. I'm not exactly sure why posting thins out during these hours. The 2nd best time to post or re-list is 8:00pm-9:30pm. This makes sure you get all those night owls who have just hopped on etsy after a long day at work/school and are winding done for the evening. When I post/re-list during the 8:00 hour 7 times out of 10 I'll wake up to an over night order placed. Maybe not for the item listed, but it did draw the customer to visit the rest of my shop.

Don't get discouraged if no one buys your newly listed or re-listed item right away, even if it sits in the 1st 5 pages for an hour. The more people that see your item the more people who will probably mark it as a favorite. You have to remember that many customers on Etsy don't have a lot of free cash. They may really like your item but they have to wait for a pay day to roll around to purchase it. So keep in mind Favorites=Future Sales.

Themed Robot & how about you come out & see me?

2010-05-07T16:47:00.000-07:00

With Craft show and wedding season beginning, I have been super busy, but I wanted to share a few of the new robots I have been working on. I really wanted to work on some pieces with themes. A few are movie themed and a few are a based on fairytales. All of these bots are available now in my Etsy shop here. I will also have these and other figures on sale at Oddmall located in the Clarion Hotel, Hudson this upcoming Saturday 10am-6pm. I'll be in booth #62. Stop by and say hi!

BOGO 1/2 OFF EVERYTHING SALE 5/5/2010

2010-05-04T12:26:00.000-07:00

HUGE 1 DAY SALE! BOGO 1/2 OFF EVERYTHING ALL DAY 5/5/2010!!!
Starting at 8:00am to midnight Wednesday 5/5, Add 2 items or more to your order, type the code:THANKYOU into order comments during check out and receive half off for every 2nd item. Half off will be issued via Pay Pal refund after payment is received. Code:THANKYOU must be typed into comments during checkout to receive the promotion.

Sleepy Robot Shirt. YOUR OPINION NEEDED!!!

2010-05-04T08:08:00.000-07:00

So I've been working on this shirt and I wanted to know what you guys think. If I were to put it up for sale in my online shop would you buy it? Let me know (:

Quick Update and some photos

2010-05-03T06:19:00.000-07:00

I've been super busy lately, juggling craft shows, art shows, orders, custom orders and making huge quantities of robots to send out to charity and promotion events. Since everything has been so nuts lately I decided not to take any more custom orders until the end of May. This was a hard decision because I LOVE doing custom orders. The ideas people submit are just amazing! Other than being busy I don't really have any new news to report. Below I have attached a few photos of the massive amount of robots I made to send out to a private charity event and the loopsandpluto.com clothing party for their swag bags. Later!

I so cook like this! "Whats wrong with this crisco???"

2010-04-25T16:31:00.000-07:00

A customer shared this cute video with me So I thought I'd share it with you as well.

A Few New Robots

2010-04-19T10:22:00.000-07:00

I had a chance this weekend to work on a couple of new robot designs including a few customs. This will probably be the last new batch of robots for a little while. I currently need to make 80-120 robots for an event as well as two sets of custom robot wedding cake toppers, as well as a few other custom orders. Enjoy!

Robot in a monkey suite(custom order)

Skeleton Robot

Splish Splash Robot

Bride of Frankenstein Robot

Kawaii Robot

Big gulp Shake Robot

Wizard Robot

Pin Wheel Robot

Strawberry Ice cream robot

"I want Candy!" Robot

Finally Some Booth Pics!

2010-04-13T11:13:00.000-07:00

I have forgotten to take pictures at almost all my recent shows(I received a few emails recently reminding me of this!)I finally remembered this time! Sorry no pics of me in my booth ): But you don't want to see me anyways lol! The following pics are from the "Art Is Alive" in North Canton, Ohio this past Weekend. Friday was a looooooong day. I got up at 6am to finish up last minute items and parts of my display. The show didn't start until 5 but I had to be set up by 3. I got to there at around 1 and was done setting up by 4:15 (I would have been faster but I had a mishap with my table, I really need to get a new one!) I had a lot more space than I was intending (as I had a corner spot) I should have brought a 2nd smaller table so I could have spread my items out more, but it all still worked out ok. The show didn't end until 11pm. There were a lot of big crowds so by 11 I was exhausted! I finished covering up my table and left around 11:30. I got home about 12:15, but it wasn't bed time yet! I still had 3 custom orders people had placed during the show to complete that they were pick up the next day during the 2nd part of the show. I finally went to bed around 2:45 in the morning, but it wasn't the best sleep due to butters snoring all night. I got up around 6:00am the next day to finish painting and glazing my custom orders (I usually don't do much painting, but someone requested a robot wearing a Lebron James jersey. I had to paint on the name as well as the numbers. I left for the show at around 9:45. The show didn't start until 11 this day but I wanted to be a little early so I could re-set up what I had to take down to cover up my table and to get coffee. Oh sweet, sweet coffee! All in all it was a great show and there were some amazing artists there. I can't wait until next year!

Busy, Busy, Busy!

2010-04-03T00:27:00.000-07:00

So I have craft shows lined up 3 weekends in a row, I'm releasing my new "Mr. & Mrs. Zombie Toast" set this week and I've got tons of customs to finish! At this point I wish I had an extra set of hands and on top of all this I have a killer tooth ache! I can't complain too much, I love doing shows! I really like meeting other crafters and seeing the look on peoples faces when they see my figures for the first time. Last week was the Cirque Imaginaire show. Great turn out for their 1st show, but we were literally packed in there like sardines! I actually had to crawl under the table to get into my booth because the tables were set up end to end. I think the planning could have been a little better in regards to set up. This weekend I have the Cleveland Craft Correlation show. This is a fun show. it is monthly and all the other vendors are awesome! Next weekend I have the 2 day "Art is Alive" show. I am really looking forward to this show. I'm also hoping to unveil a new display set up. I will try to remember to take pictures of my booth. I have forgotten the last few shows.

Aside from shows i have been working on a lot of new figures, mostly robots, but I hope to get a few new monsters done this week too. Also I just ordered a few Munnys this week to customize. I should have photos of those up later in the week as well. Below you can find pics of my latest figures. Enjoy!

Who the heck customs a dog toy???... Apparently me.

2010-03-30T09:59:00.000-07:00

I was at the a pet store recently with Butters to find him a good brush because he has been shedding like crazy lately! While in the dog toy isle I came across these "Bad/Good Cuz". I had seen these toys before when I worked in a kennel as a vet assistant, but hadn't given them much thought. For some reason they caught my eye and I thought "I need to paint those!" Vinyls, vinyl right? So I bought a few (They were actually pretty cheap. Depending upon size between $3-$10) After screwing up the 1st and a little more trial and error you can see what I came up with below. I found the surface to be kinda tacky. I had to wash them off twice before I could get the paint to really stick. I add some additional parts modeled out of polymer clay (Much like you would a munny) All in all these were pretty fun. I may make more in the future.

Som of my Favorite Custom Orders to date

2010-03-24T16:09:00.000-07:00

I began taking custom orders in early December of last year. The 1st couple I got were kinda plain, but lately people that have been contacting me for customs have been coming up with some great concepts that were a lot of fun to make. I figured I'd share a few of them here.

Easter Robot eating a chocolate bunny

Robot Earbuds (Wanted it to look like robot was crawling through her ears)

Robot lovers necklaces (Connect with magnets)

Panda Bot Holding a kawaii noodle

Super Hero Robot with glow in the dark underpants eating pizza

"Saw" Movie loving robot holding a glow in the dark dvd case

Book Reading Robot

Robot in a Dragon suite (My favorite so far)

Alice? ... The Alice?

2010-03-18T20:43:00.000-07:00

I recently posted pictures of a few Alice in Wonderland figures I had been working on. I decided to do one more. I give you "The Cheshire Robot." It was fun trying to make a cat but still keep it robot looking...if that makes any sense???. Also many people ha told me the Alice robot would look better with hair...So I gave her some hair! lol.

Stay tuned for new Robots coming soon!

Cute New Robot for my display

2010-03-15T12:52:00.000-07:00

I just bought this little guy to put on my table to greet people during craft shows and conventions.He hasn't been delivered yet but I'm already excited! He's "The Bot-ster" from Hasbro/tiger electronics. They were released in 2002 as part of the Robo-Chi series. I have been looking for one for a very long time as they are no longer in production. Luckily this weekend I found one on ebay brand new still in it's original box for $10 + shipping. He talks, sings, moves his arms and legs, and changes his facial expressions. I think he will be a great addition to may display.

FREE SHIPPING!

2010-03-15T09:41:00.000-07:00

FREE SHIPPING all day today 3/15/2010 on all orders to the continental United States. Type "Freeship" into comments/message section during checkout and receive a refund of your shipping cost via Pay Pal. TO receive free shipping you must have your order shipping to a location in the continental United States and type the code "Freeship" into the comment section. If code is not present free shipping will not be given.

Sleepy Robot 13 Shop

Your Feedback Is Important!

2010-03-11T15:47:00.000-08:00

Hey guys your feedback is very important to me. Please take the time to fill out the poll below. If there isn't answer there that you want, please feel free to leave a comment on this posting. Thanks!

Robots and Sea Monsters and Ninjas, Oh My! Cirque Imaginaire Preview

2010-03-08T09:32:00.000-08:00

On Saturday March 27th I will be a part of the Cirque Imaginaire:Traveling Art Gallery. I've been working lately on pieces specifically for this show as well as for my Etsy shop. I really love color and I felt that a lot of my most recent work has been lacking in it. Here are a few of the new figures I have been working on. Many are one of a kind. Some are available on Etsy now, but most of them will be for sale during Cirque Imaginaire.

One Eyed Monster June

Glow In the Dark Funky Panda

"Will Work 4 Love" Robot

One Eyed Sea Monster Mertle

It always rains on Sad Robot

Heartbroken Robot

The Boy In The Robot Pajamas

Death Jr. Grim Reaper Robot

Bad Kawaii Ninja

Sunshine Robot

If your in or near the Northeast Ohio Area Cirque Imaginaire: The Traveling Art Gallery will take place Saturday March 27th at the Sachsenheim Hall - Cleveland
7001 Denison Avenue 4:00pm-9:00pm (or later!).

Featuring 25+ Local Artists and Musical Appearances from:
Casual Encounters
Safari
Bafflegab
+ more!

Freebie Friday!

2010-03-05T06:52:00.000-08:00

All day today 3/5/2010 only everything in my Sleepy Robot 13 shop is Buy 2 Get One FREE!!! Just add three items to your cart and check out as you normally would. Once payment is recieved you will be issued a refund via Pay Pal for your 3rd equal or lowest priced item. Take advantage and tell all your friends! I don't plan on doing a Bogo Free sale again for a long time!

Sleepy Robot 13

"We're All Mad Here"

2010-03-02T04:16:00.000-08:00

So this past week I had some extra time so I decided to work on some more movie themed robots and to test out a new type of clay that I bought. I'm not too pleased with it. It was too soft and oily. It also didn't hold shape too well. Anyways With the release of the remake of Alice in Wonderland quickly approaching, it seemed like the obvious choice. I like the way the Mad Hatter turned out, but I'm thinking of remaking Alice. Tell me what you think (:

Mad Hatter Robot

Alice in Wonderland Robot

The following robot has nothing to do with Alice in Wonderland. I decided to make him after seeing the trailer for the movie Cop Out for the millionth time on TV.

FBI Robot

Can't Get Enough!

2010-02-27T19:37:00.000-08:00

As many of you know, I love robots! Some of you have probably seen this video, but I had to post it here because it is one of the cutest things I have ever seen. Enjoy!

Life seems like a loosing battle

2010-02-22T09:07:00.000-08:00

Usually I don't rant but today I just have a lot to get off my chest. I'm half way in tears right now. I hate money. I really is the root of all evil. I guess you learn to hate it even more when you don't have it. Right now I am out of work and the only income I have coming in is from my Etsy shop until I find a new day job. My boyfriend is working on and off as his industry is very slow right now. Currently I am responsible for bringing in at least 70% of the income of the household, so money is extremely tight. I felt bad because we spent $20 to go see Avatar this week. It sucks when $20 is a huge expense! Bills are piling up and I'm just barely paying my rent. On top of that I have 3 orders sitting in my Etsy account currently that people never paid for. My phone is about to be shut off on Friday. On top of everything I need a breast reduction. I lost my health insurance when I lost my job. While pregnant with my son last year I went up 4 cup sizes and 5 since having him. I'm currently a 38N (38jj UK). It hurts to walk or stand for long periods of time. Even hunching over my work desk to make my figurines is killing me. I have cuts in my shoulders from my bra straps and my clothes don't fit. Large bras are expensive. I can't afford a new one currently, so I have to wear two of my old ones at the same time. I've looked into getting rated so I can get the procedure done, but even with that I can't afford the monthly payments. I just feel like I'm loosing my mind right now. I have no clue what to do. I'm not even really sure why I wrote this. I guess I just needed to get it out of my head.

Sugared With Spite

2010-02-22T07:00:00.001-08:00

Lately I've been so busy with Sleepy Robot 13. I have almost forgotten about my others shops. Before I started "Sleepy Robot 13" in October of 2009 my main focus was "Sugared with spite clothing", as small clothing line I started with my best friend Vanessa from High school. I would make the designs and she would handle the business aspect. Eventually I wanted to do more than just make designs for T-shirts. So in August of 2009 I decided to use the Etsy account I had just sitting around since 2008 and actually list something in it. I started "Sugared With Spite Jewelry". It began with just a few earrings and expanded into necklaces, rings and even a few one of a kind plush dolls. I'm trying to figure out how to spread my time equally through all of these shops.

It pays to read the blog! lol

2010-02-20T10:41:00.000-08:00

Since all of you have been so awesome over the last few months I decided to do a blog reader only sale. Until midnight February 28th just type the code "thankyou10" into the comments of your orders from the Sleepy Robot 13 Shop and receive 25% off your order! Just check out as normal and when payment is received I will refund 25% of the subtotal of your order. Remember this is for blog readers only!

Zombie Toast Vinyl Update!

2010-02-19T13:34:00.000-08:00

Sorry guys no Zombie Toast vinyl any time soon ): All the companies I've contact about turning my guy into a vinyl figure are way more expensive than I can afford right now or anytime in the foreseen near future. I've received a lot of emails over the last few months from people inquiring about or requesting a vinyl, but for right now it's a no go. I'm still working on the mold making process to produce a few resin Zombie Toast figures but it's a very slow trial and error process. I haven't stopped looking into companies, but have not been successful yet in finding one that will do the small run I am looking for (Most companies I have talked to will only do runs as small as 3000-5000 pieces because of the size.) I will keep you guys posted as more develops!

Pizza Love!

2010-02-18T19:57:00.000-08:00

Today my little Pizza Robot was featured on the Tilt Treasures blog. I love the the title of the feature "Pizza...ok,so I was hungry..." Along with my robot she featured other amazing pizza themed items by other great Etsy sellers. I would also advise checking out the blog owners Etsy Shop "TiLT creations". There you will find several unique and lovely bags, purses, clutches, back packs and pouches!

Movie/Music Inspired Figures

2010-02-18T13:50:00.000-08:00

So lately people have been asking me to make music and movie themed figurines. I figured this was simple enough, but with my mind I had to make them as goofy as humanely possible. Heres what I've done so far. Let me know what you think...

A Clockwork Orange Inspired Robot

Inspired by the character Alex of the classic "A Clockwork Orange".
Complete with a glass of "the old knifey moloko" (i.e., drugged milk)and a cane.

Twilight Toast Figure

With this one I decided to get really silly. I had been getting a lot of requests for Twilight stuff and I wanted to make something that none of the other Etsy sellers had... and for some reason that was toast...that had Edward Cullen's hair.

Kanye West Inspired Robot

I really, really, REALLY don't like Kanye West, but I think his graduation bear logo is cool. This little guy was inspired by that.

Next I think I may do something involving Lady Gaga, but I'm not sure yet.

Sleepy Robot 13 on G4TV

2010-02-17T18:29:00.000-08:00

So it was brought to my attention today by sakiwaki that you could see my Super hero robot for a brief second during an episode of "Attack Of The Show" which airs on cable channel G4Tv. Unfortunately I haven't had cable in 3 years, so I missed it ):

G4TV did an entire segment on Etsy (well mostly about the etsy shop "thechopshopstore")None the less it's awesome that one of my items made it's way onto tv even if it was only for a split second. G4 has since posted the segment on their website. You can view the video below:

Video Games - E3 2010 - AOTS Exclusive

Direct link: http://g4tv.com/attackoftheshow/exclusives/69800/threads-etsycom.html

UpStage Artisan Alley Pics

2010-02-15T16:58:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd share some photos of my booth at the Upstage Artisan Alley show this past weekend. For it's first year it was a great show for a great cause. If anyone has the chance they should definitely check it out next year. This is actually a smaller set up for me. I decided not to take as much jewelry with me and I usually have a second smaller table of one of a kind figurines. I also had a backdrop to put up but there wasn't enough room for it. I was a little bummed because I ordered a new vinyl banner for my booth but it didn't arrive in time. i ended up making one by hand out of poster board.

Robots Need Love Too 20% Off Sale 2/14 ONLY

2010-02-14T06:55:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day 2/14/2009 10:00am to Midnight ONLY, everything from my Sleepy Robot 13 shop is 20% off!!! During check out just type "Robots need love 2" into the comment section and 20% off your subtotal will be refunded back to your Pay Pal account after payment has been received. *Subtotal excludes shipping cost.

Remember as always all orders $40 and over to the continental United States receive Free shipping. *Order total must be at least $40 After 20% discount is applied and before shipping cost to receive free shipping.

If figurines aren't what your after and Jewelry is more your fare, check out my Sugared With Spite shop. All items in the Sugared with Spite shop are buy 3 get the 4th free. Everything in this shop is $12 and under!

Sorry you cannot combine items from the 2 shops.

What would you like to see in the Sleepy Robot 13 shop?

2010-02-10T07:34:00.000-08:00

What new products would you like to see from Sleepy Robot 13? More rings & necklaces or how about key chains & cellphone charms? Make-up purses, t-shirts, stickers? If there is anything I don't sell now or anything you'd like to see more of let me know!

Indiesmiles.com Interview

2010-02-09T15:15:00.000-08:00

I recently had the opportunity to fill out a a few interview questions regarding my Etsy shop and my handmade lifestyle for http://www.indiesmiles.com Columnist Devin aka Oooohshiny wrote a great introduction and article. You can read the interview titled "Robots, Zombies and Squids Oh My!" in it's entirety Here

Upcoming Show

2010-02-04T11:55:00.000-08:00

I will have a booth set up at the UpStage Artisan Alley
Saturday, February 13, 2010
9:00am - 2:00pm
15335 Waterloo Rd.
Cleveland, OH

I will be selling some items from my shops at discounted prices as well as items that are not available online. Also I will be selling many unique Valentine's day gifts. So if your in the are or feel like taking a road trip come on down! (Wow... that felt really Price is Right-ish lol!)

Baby Milestone!

2010-02-04T11:53:00.000-08:00

Yesterday my son Giovanni took his 1st steps! This is a big deal to me and I am so proud of him!

2010-01-30T14:15:00.000-08:00

I Love Zombies Day

Who needs a Hallmark holiday like Valentine's Day when you can profess your love for the undead? "I Love Zombies Day" will be celebrated on February 13th.

What? You've never heard of I Love Zombies Day? That's because this is the first. The folks at imaginedaily.com are celebrating the occasion by giving away shirts to a few lucky folks who send in pics of their celebration. So regardless whether you will be reading a zombie book, watching zombie movies, playing zombie games, or walking around your neighborhood like a zombie; capture the moments and email them for a chance to win a shirt.

Click here for full details.

Not Juried In...

2010-01-27T18:41:00.000-08:00

I always get a little bummed out when I'm not picked for a show, especially one I am really looking forward to. I applied for the Bazaar Bizarre Valentine show over a month ago when I first heard about it and had already begun making stuff for it, then WHAM! Today I get an email stating I wasn't admitted to the show as a vendor and my table fee would be refunded. I have been a little depressed about this all day because I really wanted to do this show and it kinda made me feel like my stuff wasn't good enough ):

Sprucing Up Booth

2010-01-24T13:49:00.000-08:00

So I've only done a few craft/art shows so far and I haven't really been too pleased with how my booth has looked. Over the last few weeks I have purchased a few things to make my booth stand out and not look so cluttered. I usually take a lot of stuff to shows, my figurines and jewelry.

I didn't have a lot of cash to spend so I tried to find some cheapy alternatives. Hopefully some of my ideas will help others trying to spruce up their booths!

1)Backdrop- So I got this idea from going to conventions where many of the booths had colorful backdrops that stood out in the crowd of mostly black. I figured I could use this during shows where I am in a space against a wall. Backdrops can be very pricey, so I bought bed sheets... that's right I said bed sheets! I bought these on ebay for $17.99. They are "Morgan's Kids" twin sheets. They are very bright and have an awesome tattoo influenced pattern screened on them. Their light weight and can be thrown up quickly (If you have some help) with a few tacks.

2)Display stands- This one is really cool. I wanted a way to display a few of the different variations of my "Bad Brian" figures. I was able to find a solar powered rotating display stand for under $12 on ebay. Doesn't need batteries or electricity which is great for outdoor shows! Even though it is solar powered it works indoors under regular light bulbs. I was actually able to but 2 mini spotlights at a local dollar store to attach to the sides of the display to keep it turning.

3)Risers- I learned when looking for a display stand, you don't always have to look for a display stand...did that make any sense? I was able to search around on the web and found nail polish racks that are perfect for displaying all of my robots. It was under $20 and holds almost 35 of my figures. It is made out of thick plastic.

I did buy one actual table riser. It was about $25 on ebay and it is made of cardboard. I bought a card board on because it was light weight, breaks down easily and lays flat. Eventually I plan to start doing some shows out of state an this would be easy to ship if necessary. It is very sturdy and the seller also had available cloth slip covers that go over the riser to make it looks more professional. I tried making one of these myself once and it fell apart by my 2nd show...

I have a show coming up soon so hopefully I can post pics of the new booth layout!

HUGE SALES! BOGO anyone?

2010-01-20T07:47:00.000-08:00

So tomorrow Thursday 1/21/2009 noon until midnight EVERYTHING in my Sleepy Robot 13 Shop will be buy 1 get 1 1/2 off! Just add 2 or more items to your cart and after checkout a partial refund will be issued back to your Pay Pal account for the equal or lowest priced item(s).

If figurines aren't what your after and Jewelry is more your fare, check out my Sugared With Spite shop. All items in the Sugared with Spite shop are buy 3 get the 4th free. Everything in this shop is $10 and under!

Sorry you cannot combine items from the 2 shops.

Please also check out these other AMAZING shops who will also have BOGO deals all day long Thursday 1/21/10

Rocky The Zombie Punk Rock Zombie Shop
aNGrYGiRL Gear
Indiscretion
Night's Requiem
Headless Tess DIY
Photographizer
sohokitten
Chyld's Crafts
Smarmy Clothes
Black Kitten
DREADFUL THINGS by RAVEN
SyntheticSeduction
It's A Swindle
PLATIPUSES™ →Plus Size Love.
xannabotx
WickedBadNaughty Glass
Kisszombies DIY
Jen Ell's Revenge
Vicmes
inverness studios
dead things grrl

That's Just Wrong...

2010-01-18T15:07:00.000-08:00

So I came across this on Etsy the other day. There is a gentleman who owns a farm in Greenwood who has taken up the hobby of taxidermy. "What's so wrong about that?" you say? Well, He does a special sort of taxidermy. He takes still born baby lambs from his farm and turns them into unicorns and sells them on Etsy for $600-$1000 a pop...Yes I said UNICORNS!

I don't have a problem with taxidermy if the animal died of natural causes, but turning one animal into another seems a little wrong. Oh! And don't worry if unicorns don't do it for ya, in this same shop you can also get a sleeping squirrel or a baby goat.

Now while we're on the subject of turning one animal into another... Let me introduce you to Url. I also found Url for sale on Etsy. Url is a taxidermy fish in a squirrel suit, And for the mere price of $1,000.00 you can bring Url Home!

This one is just out there!

Don't worry if you can't afford the taxidermy sculpture You can bring home a T-shirt with Url immortalized on it! Now available in both Guy and Girls sizes.

Other gems this shop has to offer include:

Amazing Young Graffiti Artist

2010-01-18T11:32:00.000-08:00

I wanted to introduce you to Kim-lan a 22 year old graffiti artist from France. I first saw Kim-lan's work when my friend Vanessa and I launched our small clothing line "Sugared With Spite" in 2007. At that time Kim-lan was still spray painting pictures of Tom and Bill Kaulitz of Tokio Hotel on walls around her city (She is a big fan of Tom and sometimes emulates his dress). Celebrities are a huge influence on her art. She has painted Tokio Hotel, Rihanna ,Aaliyah and Tila Tequila to name a few. In a few short years she has expanded into so much more. She has started her own clothing line "Kim-Lan 78", custom shoes, posters, paintings and much more. She has been featured in magazines in France and shows no signs of slowing down. It makes me happy to see a young level headed artist that is more concerned about her art than her rep. I wish her luck in all of her future endeavors and hope to collaborate with her soon on a logo. Please scroll through the photos of her work below and don't forget to check out her spreadshirt shop Kimlan78.spreadshirt.com

Ghetto? I think not...

2010-01-16T11:15:00.000-08:00

Ok I don't rant that often, but I had to today. Don't you hate those people who act ghetto or describe themselves as ghetto when they live in the suburbs or they live in a city, state or even country that doesn't have ghettos??? I can understand trying to portray a certain image because you like it or you respect elements of it, but I don't respect pretending to be something your not! Fine whatever act like your ghetto, but there is a big damn difference between "being" ghetto and "being" an idiot! Speak fucking English! When having a conversation, typing an email, blogging, filling in information on a website, writing a letter. Please try to be grammatically correct! I can understand a few misspellings here and there and maybe the wrong use of a word, But don't make up your own words or shorten them so much you can't understand what the fuck your saying!!!! Outside of texting this is not okay. Oh and guys not every woman is a shorty or a baby girl. We sure as hell aren't your "Ma". I'm tired of opening email that begin with "Waz Good with it Baby gurl?" Really? I mean really? I know most people will say that's just how people talk. Yes is how "some" people talk, but me I still value actually intelligent conversation.

An All Around Awesome Week!

2010-01-15T14:02:00.000-08:00

So this week was pretty cool. I'm going to be featured in an issue of Synergy magazine, I have a Radio interview in Florida at the end of the month, I'll be apart of the Cirque Imaginaire Art Show / Bazaar in March and I just saved a bunch of money on my car insurance! lol (I had to throw in that last one, it just seemed appropriate.)Now if the weekend is as good as the rest of the week has been I may go into awesome overload!

Very Cool Feature on a Very cool Blog

2010-01-15T12:31:00.000-08:00

Today my work was featured on The Meandering Musings of a Consummate Shoppper. They posted an article on my shop and robots that was very complimenting and well written. When you have a moment I'd advise you to check out their shop Bits n' Beads. They have some amazing Jewelry and Accessories. I love their use of color. Tell em' Sleepy Robot 13 sent ya! (:

Final Robot Idea Contest Winners

2010-01-15T08:29:00.000-08:00

Here are the final winners of the Robot Idea Contest:

Carmen Miranda Robot (head dress with a few gadgets thrown in along with fruit)-(Samantha Bathija)

You Complete Me Robot....plug and socket-(guurrrl)

Congratulations! and I will be contacting you shortly for your mailing information.

There were no 1st, 2nd, or 3rd place winners in this contest. I was top 3. Originally 14 ideas were submitted and I narrowed those down to 9. To be fair I posted an open voting poll to pick the top 3. Here are the results of the poll.

I really enjoyed reading everyone's ideas and making these robots. I'm sorry that not everyone was happy with the design of their robots, but again this was an idea not a design contest. Someone on twitter and in their blog said that I robbed someone of their idea for my own benefit. The only benefit I got from this contest was to make one of a kind figures for some awesome people based on their ideas. I paid for the supplies, I took the time to make the figures and I'm mailing them for free. I am not going to remake these robots and sell them, so I am unsure what "Benefit" this person was speaking of. Art is about interpretation and these were my interpretations of the ideas submitted. This will not detour me from having contests like this again in the future, if anything it has just reiterated that "You cannot please everyone" (:

Oh and on a related note the Dj robot created for this contest has found a home. Another blog reader has emailed me and said she would love to take him. Thank you to everyone who emailed wanting to take in this little orphan.

I didn't really win did I?

2010-01-15T06:38:00.000-08:00

The following comments were left on my previous blog entry from the 1st announced "Winner" of the Robot Idea contest.

"yeah well done me ...NOT! Or tho your Design of a DJ Robot looks kinda cute and all, this Robot is not " Im the DJ" Designed by Kayleigh Doughty at all. So technically I didn't win - my idea was just robbed! An the people who voted to see the design brought to life where also.

Bit of a un-fair contest by a self proclaimed artists, last time i enter any more of deez! If anyone cares to disagree feel free to hit me up at kayleigh_doughty@hotmail.com - An let this be a lesson to all up and coming artists! Peace.

Ps - don't bother sending me the Robot, im cool"

This kind of confused me as the person posted this comment after direct messaging this to me on twitter

"ok cool thanks, its a shame you didn't stick to my design! It looks completely different, but still rad never the less!"

That had mad me think they thought the robot was cool but were a little upset that it wasn't completely their original design. When I first read it I felt a little bad and started to remake the figure like the original drawing submitted.I had only added more to it because I liked the idea, but the design seemed a little light to me. I was also amazed to find that this person after this continued to slam the contest on twitter and their personal blog(here).

I will say that they have every right to be upset that the figure was not their exact design, but art is about interpretation and this was my interpretation. Also As I said from the beginning this was a robot Idea contest not a robot design contest.

I have since emailed the "winner" and offered to remake the figure exactly like their original drawing. So well see what they say. Anyways moving on....

The point of this contest was to have people submit ideas for robots and the top 3 would get a one of a kind robot. I was not going to take the ideas and remake them over and over to sell. Staying true to that instead of selling the DJ robot I already have made I am going to give it away Free to the first person that emails me stating they want it lisastarchild@yahoo.com.

1st Robot Idea Contest Winner Announced

2010-01-14T00:39:00.001-08:00

Voting in the robot idea contest has ended and the 1st winner is:

"I'm The DJ" Robot By Kayleigh Doughty

This is the image that was submitted to the contest:

This is my sculpture adaptation. I tried to keep it close to the original submission but add a little more too.

I will be announcing the other winners and the adjoining figures over the next week. So keep checking back.

What would you like to see from Sleepy Robot 13?
	More Movie Themed Robots
	More Monster figures
	New Toast figures
	A female zombie toast
	Food themed figures
	Robot zipper pulls
	More robot jewelry
	Robots in different colors
	Other (Please leave in comments of this post)

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