Vacation

In less than a week, SwapDex is going on a little vacation! Disney World! We leave on Wednesday so if any of you hosts be posting a swap in the next two weeks, get your info to me by Tuesday evening and I'll get it posted before we leave. Otherwise, it probably won't get posted until October.

Other types of swaps

To bring you the latest swaps, I search high and low all across the internet searching for "swaps"! And that brings me in contact with swaps of ALL sorts. Ever wonder what my inbox looks like? It's full of email alerts for swaps, but that word means different things to different people. Here are some of the most common non-swap swaps that hit my email.

House swaps-People on vacation swap houses with another family in a different location. All the amenities of (someone else's) home while you're on holiday!

Wife swaps-Sometimes about the tv show, sometimes not.

Live swaps/Clothing swaps/Swap meets-Swap things live, in person! Swap-o-Rama-Rama is an example.

Tranny swaps-Not nearly as obscene as they sound, this is apparently a car thing. :)

Frag swaps-This was a COMPLETELY new one to me. People swap fragments of saltwater coral for their aquariums!

Girl Scout Swaps- FUN! These are the most like our beloved mail swaps, except usually are done in person. Girl Scouts from different troops swap little pins or charms with each other.

Credit default swaps-This makes me feel stupid every time I see it because I have no idea what it is. It has something to do with finance, that's all I understand.

I wade through all of these and more to bring you only the choicest, most acceptable swaps. Sometimes, it's wild out there!

Not included

Have you ever visited the SwapDex and wondered how I choose the swaps to highlight? To be honest, I try to include as MANY as I can! I want this blog to be full of swaps that ANYONE can participate in. But there are some swaps I do not include in the SwapDex.

I don't include swaps that require fees beyond what's needed for return postage UNLESS there is some other service provided by the host like binding a book or specialty wrapping. Yes, it's work to host a swap. But if you want to make some sort of business out of it, I'm not giving you the same kind of free advertising I give to those who volunteer their time and often money to make these swaps happen. Wanna share that fat swap-hosting wad of cash with me? Talk to me about sidebar ads!

I don't include swaps that require you to join a group such as a yahoo group, Ravelry or some other membership service, even if that service is free. I think those in the group probably want to keep the swap limited to those who are in the group for purposes other than joining the swap.

I don't include swaps from rude or explicit websites. I DO include adult-only swaps as long as the website I link to isn't overly explicit.

I don't include swaps hosted by people who I know have flaked on swaps themselves or that have done a terrible job hosting in the past. (Yes, I have seen people hosting swaps that I KNEW did a poor job hosting or had flaked on swaps before. I was tempted to out them but that's not the business of this website.)

I DO include swaps that restrict by region. Both swaps that open internationally and those that put restrictions on who may join based on mailing address are allowed. I think regional swaps are mainly a budgetary consideration, not meant to exclude others just for the sake of exclusion so I find this acceptable.

So now you know how I've been doing it so far. I welcome questions and suggestions!

1st Blogoversary!

Thanks so much to Teena who alerted me to the SwapDex 1st Blogoversary today!! Today is also my wonderful Husband's birthday so I might have gone the whole day not knowing, what a shame that would have been! So I'm sharing some sweets with you all today. Virtual sweets of course!


If you read my personal blog, CorgiPants, you know that July is a VERY busy time! Work, 4-H volunteering, my own fair projects, dog training, gardening, and my recent obsession with training to run a 5K have me busy from sunrise to sunset this month. But I'm still able to sneak on a few minutes for SwapDex. I welcome any and all suggestions, comments and, of course, swap submissions!

Aren't these images the cutest? They're from Daily Clip Art. And no, I didn't just get paid to type that, I just think they are adorable images, and for free!

Swap-Bot is hot!

Rachel from Swap-Bot said some really nice things about the SwapDex on the blog over there! How sweet is she? Swap-Bot is a great alternative to hosting a swap on your own. It offers automated partner pairing and the opportunity to leave feedback for great (and not so great) swappers so others will know before swapping with them.

Please Apply Within

Hi swap lovers! I am excited about a new avenue here on the SwapDex and I want your help. I'd love to add interviews with swappers and hostesses maybe once a week or so. And blog reviews too! Do you have a great story about swapping? Or a horror story? If you are a swapper, hostess or blogger who would like to be featured, please email me: swapdex at gmail dot com Hope to hear from you soon!

Site update!

Some of you have already noticed a little pick-me-up here at SwapDex and those that read my personal blog, CorgiPants, will recognize this. Yes, I am too lazy to create an all new template so it's just CorgiPants in pink! But I kinda think it looks nice. If you see anything out of place or missing, please let me know because I am by no means a blog template expert!

Another new addition is our newest sponsor, Creative Neurosis. The purveyor of this lovely Etsy shop shares a character trait with me: the NEED to create! And she creates super cute sewn items like tissue cozies, curtains and valances. Go see, here are my two favorites.

Support SwapDex (and promote your business!)

Those who visit the webpage might have noticed a new addition to the sidebar, a set of two Project Wonderful ads. If you have a crafty business that you'd like to promote, you can advertise for as little as 5 cents a day! Click the link near the ad boxes for more info.

Welcome all!

To any new readers visiting via Holly Ramer's wonderful article about swapping, welcome! Thanks to Holly for writing such a great article and getting the word out about swaps and the fantastic people that host them and participate in them! If you have any questions about swaps or the SwapDex, just let me know, I am happy to help.

Please note that none of these swaps are hosted by me, I merely research, catalog and post them for you to peruse. Visit the individual host's blogs for more info by clicking on the link in each post.

SwapDex is so honored!

The Faerie Wysperer was so extremely kind to award us the Brilliante Weblog Award!

I am so humbled. It makes me smile every time someone lets me know they appreciate and really get some use out of the SwapDex. Here are the lovely things she had to say about the SwapDex:
SwapDex Blog - My hats off to Jenna Z. for her dedication and hard work that she contributes to Swap Dex. A "Swap-central" blog that advertises current swaps and a link to Host of the swap & details. You have to be organized, detail-oriented, multi-task, and have great communication skills (you have to be able to update and fix typos.), and patient. Jenna Z does it all. I love this blog as I have found numerous swaps that I'm taking part of.

She is right, it does take does take some time and organization. Sometimes there are a LOT of swaps at the same time and I feel like I will never get them all posted before it's too late to sign up for them. Other time it is very dull and there is hardly anything to report. I am lucky in that now people are starting to email me ahead of time so I can get their information up in advance! Thanks to all who notify me!


The rules of the award are:
1. The winner can put the logo on her blog.
2. Link the person you received your award from.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4. Put links of those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs of the girls you’ve nominated

So, I think I will award this to those bloggers that handle the other end of the swaps, the hosting. These are all Hostesses that preside over ongoing rounds of swaps, a project I don't think I could ever take on!

Lesa, who keeps the Swap Swap Gals going month to month.

Crochetoholic, who hosts themed monthly swaps that are always fun and creative!

Joanne, who hosted monthly inchie swaps for what seems like ever, but will be taking a bit of a break from it. Understandable after coming up with those awesome themes every month, I bet she needs some time to think up new ones!

Oh My Stinckin Heck who heads up the Color Me Happy Swaparooni monthly swap group on flickr.

Lucy definitely deserves this award for hosting the fantastic seasonal Sassy Apron Swaps!

And Shawnee for her Flirty Apron Swaps! Love the apron swaps!

The Mail Art Collective hosts inventive art swaps that always surprise me with their themes.

I think that's seven and I think that's all I can think of at the moment! If I missed you, don't think I don't appreciate your dedication and organization skills. I just have a poor memory. :)

Blogoversary!

It is nearly SwapDex's 1st Blogoversary. I had big plans to host a swap to celebrate but I am a little busy at the moment. However, it is also nearly my personal blog, CorgiPants' Blogoversary too and I am having a little contest! Enter and win a little crafty prize pack, winner chosen at random but you have to post your guess to my question to enter.

Moving Day!

We are moving to a new (to us) house this weekend! It is a bit of a rush and there is a blizzard upon us but we are nearing the end and will just have some painting and then setting up the whole house, my favorite part of moving!! So if the SwapDex falls a little behind, please forgive me. I don't know when I will make time for everything that needs to get done but it usually all work out in the end. I will try my best to get to a computer at some point within the next few weeks. Thanks for your patience!

200 posts!

That's right, there's been over 200 posts here at the SwapDex! And in honor of this momentous occasion, I'd like to hear from you. Tell me what you like and don't like. Annoyed by the format of my posts. Should I post more hand-selected Swap-Bot swaps? Or maybe no Swap-Bot swaps at all? Are my posts too dry and staid? Or maybe they're too chatty sometimes? Let me know!

I haven't had nearly enough feedback about the SwapDex and I'm ready for it after 200 posts! I've been called a spamblog (by people who obviously don't know how well swaps can hide out here on the interweb) because yes, I do regurgitate what others have already posted so maybe they have a point. I've also had some very nice people tell me they appreciate the SwapDex and the security it gives them knowing they haven't missed an awesome swap! Whatever your opinion, shout it out here in the comments!

Long Weekend!

Hello all! I am back from a long weekend of Dog show/Visiting family which you can read about on CorgiPants. I have about 10 new swaps to update with but am nursing a headcold (vacation sickness!) so I'll have them up ASAP.

Far-flung visitors

The SwapDex got a nice mention on Craftzine and was also mentioned on Indie Crafts the other day. (Thanks to both!) Visitor numbers have gone up and one of my favorite things about that is seeing people from all over the world pop in. I love to see where everyone is coming from! Iceland, Australia, France, Japan, South Africa, Turkey, El Salvador! It's fun to think about crafty people on so many different continents! Hello to all!

About SwapDex

What is SwapDex?
For people who love swapping their handmade goods or fun finds, there are lots of options. There are several good sites, such as Swap-bot and Craftster, which offer participants a forum on which to post swaps. There are also lots of individual bloggers that host swaps on their own blogs. I find these individual swaps offer a lot of great variety and usually some higher-end products, but they can be hard to find unless you read a TON of blogs frequently. SwapDex was created to help you find the greatest variety of swaps so you can choose the ones you most want to sign up for.

Why include old swaps/swaps where sign-up has passed?
It is my hope that including mentions of these old swap will give you ideas and inspiration for new swaps and I also hope these hosts will be able to host more swaps in the future.

Who are you? How long have you been swapping?
My name is Jenna. I am a midwestern gal who has always enjoyed creating things and experimenting will new craft mediums. My very first swapping experience was in grade school , swapping stickers with my best friend Denise. I still regret giving her the most awesome rainbow unicorn watching tv sticker but at least the one I got in return was scratch and sniff. I have been swapping online since 2004 when I joined Nervousness.org. But now I am most involved in swaps on Swap-Bot.