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Lowcountry Artist Market

Here are some pictures from the weekend event. It went really well. I will post more details later...

biz-ymama interview: B*lota

1. What is the name and the online contact info of your business?

The name is b*lota and my Etsy shop is http://www.blota.etsy.com/.
I also have a blog http://www.b-lota.blogspot.com/
and a Facebook page: www.facebook.com/blota.handmade
2. How did you come up with it?
It's actually a bit of a spin on the word bolota. It's the portuguese word for acorn and when my daughter was a baby I started calling her that. I decide to use it for my business as I started sewing around the time she was born!

3. What is your business?
I combine beautiful and colorful prints in simple designs and shapes to create my bags and housewares for grown-ups and kids. Caring for the environment is very important to me and so I try to use as much eco-friendly materials as possible, be it organic or vintage fabrics or sewing notions, recycled/recyclable packaging.
4. When did you start your business?
I started it officially in April this year and began listing on Etsy in the beginning of May.

5. What made you want to pursue your own business? How did you do it?
When my daughter was born I decided to not go back to work and be a full time mom. Well, actually, I did go back to work when she was 4 months and quit 2 weeks later because I didn't want to be away from her all day! I started sewing during her naps and because I love bags, I bought a few patterns and started making them! After that, I went online and found a million patterns and tutorials and felt inspired to start developing my own! At some point, I just didn't have any more friends to give the things I was making to so decided to open a shop!

6. What is your daily life/ schedule like?
On the days my daughter doesn't go to daycare (she now goes 2 days a week), my schedule revolves around her! I usually have time in the morning to check my email, blogs, etc. Then the rest of the morning we do chores and groceries and go out for a walk or a bike ride. Her nap time is really when I get my sewing done and I am lucky enough that she still sleeps almost 3 hrs every afternoon! After naptime, we go out again or play in the garden, if the weather allows it. In the evening, after she goes to bed, I do admin work. On the days my daughter is at daycare, I sew all day!

7. When do you find the time to work?
Usually naptime is my time to work and then the 2 full days I get from daycare!

8. What are your future goals?

My goal is to establish myself on Etsy and build my customer base, brand recognition and online presence. Iam going to participate in my first fair and hopefully it will be the first of many. I also want to hone my sewing skills and keep learning new ones!
9. What is the hardest thing about what you are doing?
The hardest thing for me has been finding a balance for all my responsibilities! My daughter and my family is my first priority and that means that sometimes work has to take a back seat. I have accepted this and adapted my expectations for my Etsy shop but it is not always easy!

10. What advice do you have for other working mommies?
Don't expect to be able to do everything! My advice would be to really think about what is important for you, what your priorities are and then adjust your goals to it. There aren't enough hours in the day to do it all. And if the laundry doesn't get done one day or the kitchen isn't spick and span, don't worry, happens to all of us!

Biz-ymama interview: Crystal Gayle Photography

1. What is the name and the online contact info of your business?

Crystal Gayle Photography is the name of my business.
My email address is crystalzphotography [!at] gmail.com.
I also have a blog http://crystalgaylephotography.blogspot.com.

2. How did you come up with it?
I came up with the name using my first and middle name to represent me as the photographer.

3. What is your business?
My business currently is nature and still life photography which I sell in forms if prints either framed or unframed, magnets, aceos, and bookmarks. I can put my prints on almost anything you'd like via custom orders. I've done some photgraphing of products for people to use to sell their product and also some
portaits.

4. When did you start your business?
I started having my photography available for purchase online and locally about 4 years ago.

5. What made you want to pursue your own business? How did you do it?
I decided to pursue selling my photography after receiving many comments on my work that were really encouraging and positive. I decided to work on learning different techniques and upgraded my equipment and started marketing more via a blog and facebook.
6. What is your daily life/ schedule like?
My daily life is quite care free. I have two children to take care of, I do paperwork for my husband's business, I try to stay on top of things in my home (in between renovations), and when I have a chance, I get out, with my children and put my camera to use!

7. When do you find the time to work?
I never know when a good photo opportunity is going to arise, so I try to have my camera with me at all times. When my children are napping or sleeping later in the evening is when I find time to load my newest works to to computer and online.

8. What are your future goals?
My future goals are to increase my photos available, take some photography courses, and get into portrait photography as well.

9. What is the hardest thing about what you are doing?
The hardest thing about photography is finding time to go out and get good photographs and time to work with them. My family comes before work so right now I have to remind myself that more frequently. Once they are in school, I'll have time to go out during the day on shoots and time to take courses.

10. What advice do you have for other working mommies?
Enjoy your little ones while they are still little!!! Life is too short to let them grow up without you!

Biz-ymama interview: Ultimate Organic Soap

1. What is the name and the online contact info of your business?

The name of my online business is Ultimate Organic Soap and the address is: http://www.etsy.com/shop/UltimateOrganicSoap
My blog is located at: http://ultimateorganicsoaps.blogspot.com/
I do a little bit of Twittering: http://twitter.com/ultimatesoaps
I have a Facebook Fanpage where I offer deals once a month or so: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Ultimate-Organic-Soap/234145014137?ref=ts
And I have started producing YouTube videos about soap making:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oegUOvCWms
(As I start harvesting more herbs and natural ingredients this summer, I will be producing more videos).

2. How did you come up with it?
I have always been the type of person to want to be busy with her hands. I do a little sewing (usually winging it without a clue of what I'm doing), I crochet, knit, garden, I love cooking, help my husband build porches (which involves everything from making cement, hammering frames, nailing boards) and paint cabins, and I really like trying new things. I could really like to try my hand at painting and ceramic work some time in the future. In any case, I had a textile shop on Etsy for a couple of years but could just never keep up with the competition from the other great knitters and textile workers on Etsy. And if I am to be honest, I could not really develope a style that I felt was true to my heart. I did make some great stuff, but not all of my stuff was wonderful.

It then happened that my husband suddenly had problems with his skin and a cold winter (I work outside for hours daily) was causing me to have problems with my hands. I started buying handmade soap and this helped a great deal. And being someone who likes to save money where she can, I started making it. The more I made soap, the more I started asking questions like, "Why is everyone making soap using only the Cold Processing method when really that should be just the beginning of the journey?" After a lot of reading and research, I could not come up with one good reason why someone should not take soap one step further. This is where my journey began.

3. What is your business?
The essence of my soap is to be as organic and back to basics as possible. I use the French Milling Process, which makes a much more concentrated soap that lasts longer. It is also important to note that this process does not alter or destroy any additional ingredients (spices, herbs, flowers, etc) as the chemical process was completed during the Cold Processing stage. And considering that the skin can absorb up to 70% of nutrients/medicine placed upon it, this is important to consider.

I also harvest everything I can, I buy organic when I can (living in Norway with incredibly short growing seasons where much of the food needs to be imported can present some problems), and I have just entered into two contracts with other European women who will be growing organic herbs, plants and flowers for me. This is what I want to stick with, the 'Less is More' concept. I am totally against fancy colors, regardless of how harmless they are proven to be, as well as perfumes. I do use essential oils, but not in an overwhelming quantity.

4. When did you start your business?
I started selling soap soap to my friends and collegues on the European Street Team found on Etsy in October 2009. They are great friends, but they are also dead honest and do not 'play nice' because their opinions might hurt someones feelings. Their response was almost 100% positive, and with some minor changes I had an official grand opening of my Etsy store in January 2010.

5.What made you want to pursue your own business? How did you do it?
I've always had an itch to be very independant, make my own decisions and be in 'total control' of something, although when it really comes down to it one can be as 'in control' of a business as one can be 'in control' of a child. At best we can help to steer the direction of what happens, but it will never be 100% in our control. Having said this, selling online was a nice way to explore this itch of mine. Soon after I moved to Norway I started selling Norwegian products to Norwegian-Americans, and did really well at this. But as my children got bigger and I returned to the workforce, it was no longer possible to balance life as a reseller. But that itch was there and instead of wanting to sell on a smaller scale, I wanted to move towards and be apart of something so much bigger, but wasn't quite sure how that was defined. I then was made aware of Etsy and knew that this was for me. As mentioned, I didn't start off with the right product, but after trial and error I found my niche and making soaps in my method is now something I believe whole heartedly in and am extremely proud of.

6.What is your daily life/ schedule like?
Wake up between 6 and 6.30. Usually a little computer work, sometimes 30 minutes of exercise, waking up my kids and getting them ready for school and then heading out to work myself which can start anywhere from 7.30 to 9.30.
Work 7.5 hours at a job involved with adolesent child care in the Norwegian School System, which I love and would never trade for anything.
Pick up the kids, come home, make dinner, on various nights I drive to karate or gymnastics lessons, 30 – 40 minutes of housework (done in a fury of course).
At the moment I'm squeezing in 1 hour of elipse machine training (not necessarily all in one go) as I'm involved in a district wide step-counting competition with my workplace. Out of 300 people involved, I'm currently in 5th place, right behind a semi-professional soccer player and 3 others who have no families, children or other responsibilities to distract them from exercise. I'm very proud of this and am working extra hard to keep this position.

7.When do you find the time to work?
I wish I knew myself! I seem to just fit it in, here and there throughout the evenings. Usually I do an hour or two of soap work a night. (At the moment because of my commitment to this exercise competition it has been cut down to about an hour a night) This can involve anything from dealing with customers, fixing my store, making large amounts of base soaps, cutting and drying plants, etc. The work is quite varied and I always make this work the reward I get for keeping the house generally clean and making sure my kids have gotten a more than average amount of quality time.

8.What are your future goals?
My immediate future goals are to explore various areas of what 'organic' means. As illuded to above, this particular summer I am working with two women who will be growing over 20 different types organic herbs and flowers for me. (Even I can see that I cannot accomplish everything and need to network and outsource to make my dreams come true) and I really look forward to producing soaps with these herbs. In addition, I will be harvesting different types of seaweed from my seaside cabin and making soap with this. I have had many requests for shampoo bars as well as soaps for pets, but this will have to wait until next year.

9.What is the hardest thing about what you are doing?
Absolutely the hardest thing in the beginning was to keep a balance between all my types of work (day job, house, kids, being a good wife, being a good mom, etc) and to learn to prioritize. I use to panic when I felt like I wasn't in control of getting everything that needed to be done, done. I actually had to set down and write a clear list of priorities: family, job, Etsy. Now that I have good priorties, I don't begin to get overly stressed if I can't make soap for a week. The fact that my kids want me to read to them every night (still) is much more important.

10.What advice do you have for other working mommies?
Let go of the guilt of not being able to get everything done. You can't. Nobody can. If you have a good business and your customers will have to wait a week or so because your kids are sick (or because you want to give them a great birthday party), or because you're having your 10th wedding anniversary, then your customers will have to wait. The ones who will do the most for your business over time will respect you and your boundaries and will come back to you because if it.

sewing room inspiration 1

Just had to share some AMAZING sewing spaces..

Trying to decide how to redo my studio space. Right now its in my playroom... dare I show pictures? I found these pictures while browsing flickr and provided a link to their location under each one. I know I have to have some sort of cutting table, so most show that feature. I like being in the playroom- its secluded, the kids can be in their with me- but the lighting is truly awful...

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2711/4080712718_25bc0a9c00.jpg

I think this table is made up of storage shelves from target...

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This is a Pottery Barn space

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http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2457/3586778090_97eeb6f9fb.jpg

Another handmade table....
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So stay tuned... I just may post some more inspiring pictures... and I need to update you on my June 5th show progress. I'll have some craft show setups from around the web to share as well.

Biz-ymama Interview: Felted Friends

1. What is the name and the online contact info of your business?

My business is FeltedFriends, and the website is http://www.feltedfriends.etsy.com/

2. How did you come up with it?

I figured that since I made mostly fluffy felted companions it was an appropriate business name!

3. What is your business?

I produce handknit and felted stuffed animal creations, and children's sweaters.

4. When did you start your business?

My webstore on Etsy started in early spring of 2008. I had done a few local craft shows but it wasn't until I started on Etsy that it felt like a real "business"

5. What made you want to pursue your own business? How did you do it?

I wanted to do something I loved (knitting!) that I could do in my spare time away from my two other part time jobs.

6. What is your daily life/ schedule like?
My daily schedule is fairly insane. I'm a single mom working three part time jobs (etsy is just one), with two children who are into multiple sports; plus one dog, four cats, two guinea pigs, a gerbil and three tanks of fish.

7. When do you find the time to work?
I take my work wherever I go - doctor's offices, soccer games, pretty much anywhere I can park myself with my needles.

8. What are your future goals?
To develop my business, and attract a following of repeat customers.

9. What is the hardest thing about what you are doing?
My knitting skills are great - but my marketing ones, not so much.

10. What advice do you have for other working mommies?
Just keep plugging away.

Up-cycled...

I have been quite busy- seaching for mens shirts to turn into new garments which will be shipped to Seattle.

I love using re-purposed items in my designs, and I love how super soft they are. Everything is prewashed in hot water prior to construction, and then I cut into the fabric to turn it into pants, a dress, or a skirt. I love the process of creating- it defines me.

Interview with: Woolgatherings

1. What is the name and the online contact info of your business?

Woolgatherings – http://woolgatherings.etsy.com/
2. How did you come up with it?
It came from my mother-in-law. She raised fiber animals for many years (sheep llamas, alpacas) and taught spinning classes and sold her dyed wool as Woolgatherings. She has mentored me for years in knitting, spinning, and dyeing, and passed down the business & name to me when she retired.

3.What is your business?
I sell hand painted wool and yarn.

4.When did you start your business?
I officially took over the business in Early 2009.

5. What made you want to pursue your own business? How did you do it?
Initially, it was a hobby for me. I was a stay-at-home / homeschooling mom, spinning and knitting for fun and dyeing for a few select clients and one retail store. I really enjoy the dyeing process, and working with color, but I create so much more than I can ever use that it just made sense to sell it. In the summer of 2009, however, my husband was laid off and the fiber business became more of a priority for both of us. Not only was the income more important, but having him at home freed up a lot more time to really develop it. I used that time to open up my Etsy shop, learn as much as possible about running a business, and focus on ways to operate more productively. My husband eventually returned to work, so I am now doing most of it on my own. It has been a really great experience all around.

6. What is your daily life/ schedule like?
My schedule is very fluid and changes a lot from day to day. Because I homeschool my kids, I have to be really flexible in order to take advantage of different learning opportunities at home and in the community.
I typically set aside a block of time as soon as I wake up (o.k. after I make tea) to work on the computer, respond to inquiries, and pack up orders. Some days I get a few hours, and some days I get a few minutes, so I just try to make the most of it.
The middle part of the day, from about noon-5 is usually set aside for kid activities. Sports, classes, playdates, clubs, and that sort of thing. Many of these activities involve a drive, so if there are orders going out, we stop at the post office on the way. While we are out and about, I carry my iPhone, and sometimes my laptop, which makes it easy to check in with business stuff. There is a lot of built in down-time (like when my kids are playing sports and I’m just waiting for them) when I can easily answer e-mails and check up on things – if I’m not knitting, anyway.
I find that the evenings are the best time to do my dye work. I like working without time constraints, and I have the added support of having my husband home to help with the kids. My husband is also great cook, so he typically makes dinner, which is a huge help.

7. When do you find the time to work?
My children are with me most of the time, so I can’t just work during school hours, but they are old enough (7 and 9) that their needs are pretty easy to attend to, and they are very good at amusing themselves. If we are home and I need to work for a few hours they are quite happy just to go play, and they know they are welcome to interrupt me at any time. The challenge is that so often we are not at home, so I try to make the most of my studio time in the evenings and weekends.

8. What are your future goals?
I am pretty happy with the way things are going right now, but I guess the dream would be get the business to the point where my husband could stay home too!
9. What is the hardest thing about what you are doing?
I think every working mom feels the pull between work and the needs of the children. Years ago, I worked outside the home while my oldest was in daycare and I left because I felt like I really couldn’t be the mom I wanted to be or the professional person I wanted to be at the same time. Working from home feels a lot more balanced, but it takes a lot of effort and organization to keep it that way.

10. What advice do you have for other working mommies?
Obviously keep your priorities straight. Beyond that, I highly recommend bringing your kids into the business by really showing them the details of what you do and how you do it. It’s a great opportunity for them to see what’s involved with running a small business. There are lots of ways to have fun with it - for example, my kids love keeping track of where our packages go. We put stickers on a big map, and the kids often speculate about where our wool is going – is it cold there? What language do they speak? How far does the package have to travel? Involving them with the business, even in a small way, helps them feel personally invested, and helps them understand those times when your work makes you less available. They know what you are doing, and why.

Biz-y Mama Interview: Milk Money

 
1. What is the name and the online contact info of your business?
 
milkmoney
http://www.soniamccutcheon.etsy.com/


2. How did you come up with it?

I started my shop when milk prices were outrageously expensive and thought it would be a fun name for my shop.

3. What is your business?
 I design and knit infant, toddler and childrens hats. Some items in my shop are made from patterns from other designers but I have permission to sell those items.

4. When did you start your business?
I launched my shop right after Halloween about a year and a half ago

5. What made you want to pursue your own business? How did you do it?
I am hopelessly addicted to knitting and all things fiber. Family and friends were saturated with more hats etc... than they can ever use in a lifetime so my sister called me one afternoon after she had shopped on etsy and told me about it and suggested that a shop on etsy would be a good fit for me. I looked into it and decided to give it a try.

6. What is your daily life/ schedule like?
Daily life is a bit chaotic, I have two small children and split my days taking care of them, our home and all that is necessary to keep my business running.

7. When do you find the time to work?
I have recently started going to bed no later than 10pm and waking up at 3 or 4am. The kids don't get up til 7:30am so that time before hand is wonderful for working on orders, packaging up orders,doing laundry etc.. and planning what needs to get done that day.

8. What are your future goals?
I would love have more time to spin my own yarn, not sure when that will happen but it's a goal. I don't have a particular goal for my shop, I will keep doing this for as long as it makes me happy.

9. What is the hardest thing about what you are doing?
The hardest thing for me is managing my time. Sometimes I tend to feel as though I am being torn in a million directions.

10. What advice do you have for other working mommies?
The best advice I can give is forgive yourself for not being super mommie, my house is not always perfect, dinner is sometimes late- I have learned that everything always gets done. I don't fret if I don't stick to my schedule, sometimes it's more important to hug my kids and be there for them. I don't base my success on dollars but on the happiness of my family and my sense of peace about it all.