And more than a month later…

I finally post again!

At least I’ve been working on stuff?

I had a show on Valentines Day at which I sold exactly nothing. So that was fun.

More unicorn hats have been made. Two have been sold, two have not. I need to put together the listings and shit.

I vacillate between wanting to just shut down my business and read all the time like I used to before and wanting to really get serious about this shit. Right now I’m in serious mode, lol. I even bought a book from my FB friend Luca at Creative Enabler because I could honestly use some help getting my shit together to do this.

I’m trying to decide if I want to invest my tax refund in my business or if that’s useless (considering I made – according to the calculators on Turbotax – $2 off it last year) and I should just save it. Currently I’m just compiling a list of stuff I think would be awesome to have. Then I’ll have to identify the difference between the few things that are worth the initial outlay because they’re likely to pay off and the things that I should only worry about once that payoff actually happens.

Anyway, I’m tired and I need to put my unicorn hats up on my Etsy. Or maybe open them up for sale on my Facebook page?

I learned a new thing today!

When I first started selling my kitty hats on Etsy, I was one of very few doing ears on hats and the only one using the technique I developed back in 2005. (I don’t know that I’m the first to do it this way, but I didn’t see it anywhere else online until after I started selling them.) Since then a lot of people have adopted my method because it’s easy and awesome and I don’t blame them one bit, but it does pose a problem for me to have so much competition now and so little time in which to make things. Especially since so many people have gotten so much better than me at it!

So today I took a little break from my to-make list and decided to experiment with decorative stitches to add a little something more to what I offer. The result was this pretty blue cabled hat I just listed.

I have gotten a couple things on the list done, though. Here’s the updated version:

• black stripe monet done
• black neon ears done
• dark brown done
• black & grey tabby done
• black rainbow stripe done
• Hello Kitty done
• Luna
• hot pink done
• light pink
• medium pink blue stripe
• purple
• red

I skipped Luna for now (even though I was watching Sailor Moon Crystal on Hulu while I worked) because it’s a pain. But I’ll get back to her eventually.

Today I also went through and lowered prices on most of my hats. So go check them out!

Okay, seriously.

I really need a day by myself at home so I can do these fucking photos of the scarves, lol.

Got a little bit of work done on a scarf on my lunch break today, but other than that I’m still trying to rest my freaking hands. It’s difficult.

Last night I was whining to my boyfriend about how I’ll never be able to stop having a day job because I can’t work on my business because of my day job. And this is one of those things that’s been going on for years, except now the problem isn’t that my at-home hours are mostly taken up by a child (he’s 16 and has a girlfriend that is much more fun than I am) it’s that my at-home hours are taken up by pain. I actually used to get more done when my son was little because I could work through exhaustion after he went to bed. I can’t work through this kind of nerve entrapment, arthritis, bursitis, etc. crap without crippling myself to the point where I can’t make anything for days or weeks. I can’t work to the point where all the above issues start seriously impacting my ability to perform at my day job because I need it to feed that 16 year old since I can’t make money on my business.

All the vicious. All the circle.

Wait, what?

I had to do up 6 months worth of financial records, and I’m going to try to keep up with that.

^ That is the WTF part.

I’m terrible with that kind of stuff. The only reason I can balance my checkbook is that I have no checkbook! I don’t even have credit cards (anymore) so all I need to keep track of is on my online banking and Paypal account. I get email reminders (that send me alerts on my phone) to pay rent, electricity and cable while everything else just sends an email to let me know they took the money already. I barely have to think.

None of that lends itself to responsible spending or, dare I say it? “Saving.”

Oh, oh my. I think I just jizzed in my pants.

XD

Anyway, since my boyfriend is being turned into an accountant I figure I should get my shit together at least a little before he grows up enough to judge me. Also… if he’s going to be an accountant when he grows up (23 now, I’ve been sewing since he was in diapers) then at least I’ll have someone to help me keep my shit together, right? I just have to get it together in the first place or I’m gonna feel like one of those stupid bitches that can’t do anything without a man’s help. >_<

The way I’m figuring it, I’d like to someday have a brick-and-mortar shop. Just a little one. Just my own stuff and maybe some local indie designers but I don’t want a co-op. That’s for dirty hippies.

Anyway, I don’t think I’ve done my sales tax stuff for a few months and in Sept I actually sold things to a person in AZ (almost never happens, which means I almost never need to collect and hand over sales tax) so I should really get that done. Tonight, hopefully. After all, I’ve got all the records!

Oh, money…

My financial situation has been, well, “interesting” might be the best word that isn’t “fucked.”

But I’ve finally got a handle on what has been a complicated situation. I’m super grateful to everyone who’s bought something from me (I doubt that you, Dear Reader, were actually one of them but I still love you) because it’s helped me do things like keep my internet on and buy beer.

That said, I’m gonna be raising prices to my normal Christmas “sale” rates soon. So get stuff while the getting’s good. Renewing all the expired stuff in BethSophia is on my to-do list for the evening, but it’s gotta wait until I get these custom orders done. It might not even happen until I’m finished making the shower gift for my boyfriend’s sister. Oof, I kind of over-extended myself on that one. At least I decided against the applique collage wall-hanging. My son and I did one for his dad years ago and while it was awesome making a dragon attacking a village (the fire was 3D, tulle gathered and twisted) I think I might wait until after the kid is born and I’ve seen what theme the nursery is.

I’m hoping to get back on a schedule that includes more posting here. We’ll see how that goes.

I’m one broke bitch.

Didn’t really sell anything at the show last Saturday. And I’m currently filling out paperwork regarding some outstanding debts I have. Whee.

I need more beer.

Took long enough…

Yay! Finally sold another thing! I hate when sales lose momentum. Hope shit picks up.

Next weekend I’m going to be getting booth space to sell at a local roller derby bout. So that’s going to be interesting. I’ve got a lot of friends who play but I’ve only been to watch a couple times. Hopefully they buy shit, lol.

If you’re in the Phoenix area check it out.

Other links to click:

Arizona Roller Girls

Riotous Rags (my buddy Dan/Pat Riot will be selling there as well)

Clearance sale!

I’ve added a clearance section to my BethSophia shop! Everything is priced at $5 in there, and any coupon code will still work.

I need to clear out space because an empty work-room is an inspiring one. 🙂

“Hope is not a strategy.”

The CEO at my job is kind enough to give us updates on the economic climate in the US and state of Arizona as it pertains to our business and therefore our jobs.

And Dave’s right, hope really doesn’t work well as a strategy.

Like I said in my last post, I’m going to be doing a craft show in November. My in-person sales are really really small compared to my online sales, but I’m going with a much more targeted approach to products this time. There are a couple of types of hats that sold really well last time (and online afterward) so that’s where I’m going to be focusing my energies.

Of course… If I was so sold out of products that I couldn’t get enough together to do the show… that would be pretty cool.

Wow, I actually sold some stuff this week!

Sadly, I don’t sell nearly as much as I’d like to. Or nearly as much as I feel like I deserve to, lol!

Part of this is that I don’t have the budget for advertising, the time for much marketing, or the desire to give up other things (like sleep, or exercise, or time with my kid) in order to make this business more profitable. Everything I’ve ever read on the subject makes it clear that a person has to make some sacrifices in order to get their business off the ground but at this time in my life there are some things that I just can’t give up. I’m playing the single-parent card here; I do not have the kind of support structure that would enable me to spend still less time with my son than I already do.

As mentioned last week, I’m really hoping that the embroidery machine and Yudu will help increase my profits, and maybe even the number of sales. Cooler stuff should equal more sales, right? And higher prices. Jeez, I hope so. The school my kid is going to this year has no uniforms, so I’m going to have to spend money on school clothes for him. Booooooo!