Aim high, hit low

I had hoped that by this point in August, I'd be working just on pieces for my shop (or shops, more on that later), but no. As a procrastinator - as well as someone who isn't quite in the best of health - I should have known better. I've needed more sleep this month than any other in the last year, which usually means I'm dead asleep by 9pm most nights. My energy levels are pretty flat right now, so I've been sticking to doing less intensive work, like embroidery. And to top it all off, I get easily distracted.

So this weekend, I'm hoping to get a lot of work done, in amongst visiting with friends and family and taking care of Maddy. My to-do list is already done and ready to be ignored used to help me keep on track and get ready for what promises to be a busy fall.

Time is not on my side

Summer months are the optimal time to start planning for and getting your shop ready for the holiday season. Etsy's holiday season picks up from October through December. Harvest and Halloween seasons pick up as early as August, so start stocking up on and listing your holiday offerings now in preparation for the seasonal rush ahead
     • Media Tip: Press outlets begin finalizing their holiday issues and series in the summer. Have your holiday items listed, tagged, and available now for buyers and PR reps looking to pull items for holiday gift guides.

-From Etsy's Merchandising Desk: July Heats Up

Oh, holy crap.

I am not expecting to have anything from my shop catch the eye of any media folk and wind up in some magazine in time for the holiday season. I may be talented, but I'm not that talented.

Yet.

No, this just reminds me that the first craft sale that I want to be part of is in 3 months. Three months. Ninety days. Again, oh, holy crap.

I'm not sure what I'm going to sell at that sale, but I don't have enough stock for a sale. And trying to sell the same things I have in my Etsy shop is not going to happen, either (mainly because if I tried to do that, it would be just my luck to have everything in my shop sell online at the same time people are buying them off of me at a sale).

There's a small list in my notebook for ideas of what to make/sell at the sale (this is only the first; I'm aiming for two more, and I know there's at least one more for sure), but haven't actually started any of it. I've decided that I'm going to try to get as much product done and ready to list in my shop by the end of June so July will be when I come up with new products. What those products are is another question.

I've been debating about opening another shop, either on Etsy or one of the other online handmade sites (like Artfire or Zibbet), to see if I can sell my efforts elsewhere. But how much more time can I devote to doing things that may or may not sell? Already, it's what I think about the majority of the time; it's what I spend my 'spare' time doing; and it's an even more difficult financial commitment for someone who doesn't have an income. So, yeah... do I keep all my eggs in one basket or start spreading them out, even though it could be a waste, which is what I'm doing now is turning into.

*sigh*

Sometimes I wonder if things would have just been easier to keep working rather than putting all this effort into something that's not exactly succeeding (which is no one/thing's fault but my own)... at least by working at home, I get to spend time with Maddy and drown my sorrows in cartoons and reruns all day.

Poking the bear

I don't remember the last time we - as a family - had a chance to actually sit back and relax. I don't know if it's because we just believe we don't have any time now that Maddy's getting older or if my work is taking away what free time I used to have, but it would be nice if we - Keith, Maddy and me - could just stop all the fussing and rushing and go-go-go for a few days.

But, then again, if we did stop and relax, I think I'd have a breakdown because I wasn't doing something. I used to slack off with the best of them, but in the last few years - especially since Maddy was born - nothing drives me more nuts than doing nothing. Idle hands, devil's playground... well, not really. It's more of a 'I know I can be productive - let's see how' thing. Gets frustrating sometimes... tiring, too.

With three months of an open shop under my belt, there are many, MANY areas of this business that I need to focus on and learn more about. Promotions and marketing, for one; time organization for another. It's not enough to just produce pieces, you have to sell them to people, too... and putting pretty pictures of them online doesn't mean a damn thing. People can't see you if you don't show them where you are.

There's been a debate - for lack of a better term - in the Etsy forums for the last few months about why sales and views have been down. If you told me that without any back story (or accusations), I would think that a lack of sales would be because:

• the economy still sucks. The government and banks and economists can all say it's getting better, but all those people who were unlucky enough to lose their jobs 18 months ago are not going to be spending money on luxuries; they're going to be paying off bills or putting away some extra money just in case this happens again.
• the handmade fad is starting to wane a bit. A couple of years ago, when the economy started to nosedive, lots of people turned back to homemade/grown/produced products to save money. Lots of those people sold their products, too... and now everyone and their dog makes something to sell. Add in a flooded market and you've got the perfect storm as to why no one is buying anything.
• there's a lot of crap out their and people don't have time (or the desire) to sift through it all. I went to the big local craft show last fall and wasn't impressed at all. There was a lot of amateur "crafters" who really should have just kept their work in their garages or basements to save themselves the hassle. I'm not saying what I do is the best in the world and that everyone loves it, but there's a reason Regretsy exists. 
• people got lazy and expected Etsy to do everything for them, including promotions and marketing. And solve their problems. Surprised some didn't expect Etsy to also tie their shoes and brush their hair.

I'm in the 'I don't blame Etsy' camp, mainly because I see Etsy as no different than the facility hosting a craft sale. It's my job as a show owner to make people see that I exist. I am in charge of promoting my shop and making people want to stay in my shop to make a purchase. Sure, it's nice when people find me through Etsy, but based on what Google Analytics is telling me, very few people do. I get more visitors from Twitter, this blog and other blogs I comment on than through Etsy.

Does that bother me? Nope.

Why not? Because the internet is a big place, and I count myself as lucky everytime someone finds me through Google or Craftgawker or some other method. I refuse to blame others for my failings, unless it's completely justified and provable. If I want people to see my work and buy my work, I have to do the work to get them, their eyes and their wallets to my shop. It's as simple as that.

And the internet is ever-evolving. People need to realize that. Things change, and usually it's for the better. What's the harm in letting people do their jobs and accepting that sometimes, "fixes" can take a little longer than expected because, well, they just do.

I know it's quite possible I'm going to end up slammed for what I have said and I really don't care. It's what I honestly believe and would have loved to say it in the forums, but anytime someone tries to say something like this (ie. it's not necessarily Etsy's fault you have no sales), they get ripped apart by the complainers. I'm willing to learn my lessons and try new things to get people's attention; I refuse to let other people force me to stand idly by and wait for "fixes" that I shouldn't need to operate a successful business.

So, yes... marketing and promotion. Need to work on that. And tweaking my photos, as well as gearing up for fall craft sales. I may be trying to come up with some new products soon and hope to post about them as they come along... although, based on my posting history thus far, there's no guarantee. Perhaps there's someone I could blame for that...

(the marigold pictured above is one of many that I picked up today at the best garden centre in the area - The Green Spot. I hate marigolds as a rule - something that dates back to when I was 5 or so and ate some of the seeds... pointy damn things going down... but these marigolds are going to be used in my battle against mosquitoes and aphids. Wish me luck:) )

Stepping back

I've had a sketch for this wallet in my notebook for a while now. In my head, it seemed really simple - a classy exterior panel, and three interior pocketed panels - two for cards, one for change/receipts/cash. I actually made a pattern for this project and measured everything really, really, REALLY carefully, taking seam allowances into consideration - for a change. I cut my chosen material, pinned it all, and ironed it to the specifications I needed. I put different weights of interfacing inside for stability (but not weight) and sat down to put it together.

If you look really closely at the centre panel - the gorgeous floral print on the cream field - you can see where I've had to rip out stitches. Twice. You'll also notice the botton is larger than the top - they're 2 different pieces because I apparently measured incorrectly, not taking a seam allowance into consideration for that piece. Don't get me started on how badly I cut the exterior panel...

I've put this project aside for now, for fears of destroying it completely. I like the concept and I know I can finish it, but just not now. Instead, I'm going to go back to what I know - small pouches and card wallets, with a few shoulder bags thrown in.

I'd love to expand my repertoire but time isn't allowing it. I'm working on retooling my banners/avatars/backgrounds for everything, again... no one has told me that they need to be, but I'm a graphic designer. I need to design something besides wallets. I've got a couple of ideas I want to get working on, but there's a pile of material that's constantly calling my name to get sewn up, too.

*sigh*

For the time being, I'll stick with what I've been doing. As I mentioned before, I'm planning on incorporating embroidery into more of my work - something that should make what I do more unique and put it into it's own niche, because according to some, that's what you need to sell anything on Etsy. Mostly, I like to do it and think it looks cute. If people like it, great; I know some people won't, but they probably weren't going to buy anything in the first place.

But that's a post for another day.

Unbalanced

I made that list on Monday.

It's Friday.

I've done exactly one thing on that list - a new Etsy banner. And even that I haven't actually finished completely.

It hasn't been a busy week, it's been a badly organized week. Every day I've tried to get things done, but it's been really nice out (23-28C) and Maddy looooves being in the yard, so we've been spending a lot of time outside. When we're not outside, we're playing inside. I could spend less time playing with her, but she's developing some bad sleep habits so we've been trying to wear her out before bed.

Most of that list is marketing-related, something I need to get working on much more. But I also need to make more product to market, so that's what I'm spending today doing.

Hopefully...

Finding the path

See that pouch there? The one with the super-soft faux suede exterior and cute tartan interior? The one that should be appearing in my shop later this week?

It's part of the creative epiphany I had yesterday. It's also the first thing I've ever put a zipper into, but that's not important right now (well, it is, but it isn't).

Yesterday was Star Wars Day, and as a fairly big Star Wars fan (eps. 4-6 more than 1-3), I decided to make Yoda's 'Do or do not. There is no try.' line from Empire Strikes Back my personal mantra. (If someone feels really generous *ahem, Denise*, I'd love this shirt for my birthday :).) No more piles of things I'm going to try or waste time thinking about trying; I waste enough time as it is, I need to spend what useful time I do have being productive.

And then Etsy sent out their latest Success email - making mistakes is okay, learning from them is even better - something I've needed to hear from someone besides Keith (who's encouragement I always appreciate, no matter what) and my family. I have a massive pile of mistakes I've made, but I can probably look at every piece and find something that I can take from each one and use it in the future. Kind of ties into the whole Yoda, thing, too... in a slightly indirect way.

And I finally found some patterns and designs that are just for me. I think the biggest problem I've had up until now with most of my work is that I've been trying to outdo myself at every turn. My skill level isn't much above intermediate beginner, but I was setting myself up for a guaranteed fail on almost everything I was working on by choosing designs that were geared towards experienced seamstress/seamsters. So now I've finally found things that don't frighten me by point two of the instructions and I think I can actually produce some pretty damn decent pieces at a quicker rate than I was before.

I was working on a new purse design for almost a week before I had my epiphany... I had spent four or five hours trying to figure out how to put a decorative band around the top of the bag. FOUR OR FIVE HOURS... that's just ridiculous by anyone's standards. So I've set it aside and I will return to it, just not any time soon. And that's perfectly fine with me.

Now that I've turned that corner, I can start looking at other parts of my business and figure out how to straighten them out. Like the complete lack of organization that just seems to run rampant throughout my life... I keep meaning to do something about it, but haven't found the time (or desire) to do so. With what I'm hoping will be more useful time available to me, there should be no excuse. Or, one hopes.

A week ago, I was ready to throw in the towel, I'm feeling good about where this is headed now. The only thing that can hold me back is me. Funny that it took this long to figure that out, but at least I realized it before I did just stop and turn my back on it completely.

Getting there

Check out my Photoblog for more picks like this one.

It's been a week. That's the best way to describe it - gathering with family to celebrate my uncle's life, finding out that student loans really do haunt you years after you're finished with school, trying to keep up with Maddy, figuring out what we're doing with the yard this year... and it's only Thursday.

I've gained a lot of energy this week, though, likely due to the amount of time we're spending outside with the weather being so nice. Even a half hour or so a day seems to be doing wonders, not only for me, but for Keith and Maddy, too. Maddy looooooves our backyard, especially the slight hill we've got coming up to the house. I can hardly wait until we get the fence in next month and she can run freely rather than us chasing her to the edges of the property.

And even though we've been snow-free for a month now, I'm not even going to attempt to plant anything for a few more weeks. The forecast for early next week is calling for snow and a high of only 4C (39F) on day, so there's no point in gearing up the garden only to have it freeze and die. But that doesn't mean I can't plan what I'm putting in (and taking out this year - 3 annuals and a rose bush... hopefully to other gardens) before we get it rototilled and prepped for the actual planting.

But today I've got work to do. Lots of work. Tonnes of work. Will I get it all done? Heck, no, but I figure it's better to have a list to work with than try to do it without any sort of organization at all.

What I need to do:

• finish the new bag design I started on Tuesday. To do this, I need to get to the store to pick up a pack of fasteners. Once I've got them, though, it shouldn't take me long to complete it... if I don't screw it up. I've learned to take my time and that the iron is really a good tool, so if I can keep from going at this all willy-nilly, it should turn out well. *fingers crossed* 
• finish the embroidery work on a couple of pieces. It's not really embroidery work, per se, but it's work with an embroidery needle and floss. I'm trying to add a bit of uniqueness to some of my pieces by finishing them by hand. Not sewing machine, but hand, as the lovely calouses on my thumbs and right middle finger can confirm.
• keep tweaking my branding. I'm still working at getting everything I have my name on (like cards, Etsy and Twitter, so far) to have a similar look. For the most part, almost everything uses the same fonts, but doesn't necessarily look the same. I've got an idea of what I want to do with the banner here, but can't actually do anything until the battery for my camera is charged. Then there's the question of redesigning this particular blog, especially when I own nisseworks.com. Decisions, decisions.
• marketing, promoting and networking. I feel like I've plastered my business everywhere, but I know there's still a lot of work to do and that it's never ending. Yay.

And I've got my month-end to do tomorrow, as well as catch up on all the rest of the paperwork I've been slacking off on for the last month, too... necessary evil and all that. Once that's all done, I imagine there'll be some changes I have to make to my shop and decisions that will be made about opening a second shop somewhere else for the other crafts/arts that I've been thinking about doing. But for now, I'll stick to doing the creative stuff... it's what I'm relatively decent at... I think.

Taking missteps

Things are... progressing. Slowly, but surely... I'm having issues finishing anything I've started, usually because I get lost halfway through. This week, I've learned the benefits of reading - and following - instructions, SLOWLY, as well as trying to keep myself from becoming too overwhelmed. Of course, both of those lessons went in one ear (eye?) and right out the other. Yee. Haw.

I've started half a dozen projects this week and I think I could theoretically put on in my store. That's not only a lot of wasted time, but a lot of wasted material. I figure that within the last week, I spent close to 20 hours working just on these projects - that's just the cutting and sewing, keep that in mind. And I've got one semi-reasonable piece to put in my store. Yikes. At this rate, I'm going to have a lot - A LOT - of 'flawed' pieces to give away to family and friends.

But I'm trying to stay positive by looking at different designs and procedures that might make my job - or my attempt at it - a bit easier. I'm not a professional seamstress by any stretch - I'm a recreational one, if anything. But I know my limits and don't want to start thinking I can do things that are well beyond my abilities (which usually results in... that's right, wasted time and materials). There's also that risk of boredom if I stick with doing one thing, over and over again.

Which is why I was quite happy to find two books in Chapters' online store that I could finally use the $30 gift card I got for Christmas on.

Bags of Inspriation and Carry Me were the two books I ended up choosing. There were hundreds of others I may have liked, but these two seemed to be the ones that would (a) help me come up with some new ideas and (b) teach me some new techniques in the easiest and simplest ways possible.

 A few of the projects in Carry Me.

I haven't had much of a chance to really go through either of them, but from the brief glimpses I've had, these books are going to help me a lot. There are some things that I'm just not interested in in both books, but for the most part, they both are definitely worth the price (and Carry Me includes the pattern pieces for each project in the back... big, BIG help).

For the time being, I'm going to keep plugging away at what I've started to branch out into this week - wallets (not just for carrying cards anymore!), laptop sleeves and brush/pen rolls. I wish that I had more time - or at least more consecutive time - to do my work. The start-stop work pattern that exists for me is very, very challenging and I'm finding that my to-do list is just getting pushed back every day. It's a daily battle - work on projects or attempt to get some business stuff done?

Sigh... maybe sleep is overrated...

I'm still here!

I'm the only parent at home right now (Keith's away until late Sunday/early Monday), so posting here falls pretty low on the list.

But come Monday... oh, then I'll have a few posts. Perhaps even a photo (or dozen) of what I've been working on. If - and that's a big 'if' - I get them done.