Summer Goals

I am recommitted! This summer, I am going to transform my businesses. To wit:

• I will continue to gain private label clients for my handmade soap business.
• I will rewrite my three books on soap making.
• I will ghost write a book on roller skate maintenance.
• I will sell my roller derby necklaces at Rollercon and have the time of my life, for one week.
• I will travel home to Iowa for 5 days, and visit my family. 
• I will garden, exercise, skate, swim, and generally relax.
• I will work for a friend on her new project. Top secret!

I will do all of this starting on Monday. Until then, I must make it through this week. See you in a few days.

(Want to know how I got out of my funk? Read this blog post.)

Small Craft Business: Tuesday To-Do

You get my to-do list today simply because I forgot to do it yesterday. I'm on spring break! 

• market for roller derby soap fundraiser
• place ads for books on groups
• pack soap orders
• make face lotion
• DO TAXES
• take Wednesday off

Small Craft Business: Vendor Tuesday

Today's vendor is Staples! Seriously? Yes! My printer at home is just ok, and I have recently begun creating digital artwork for my new crafty project. I needed to print things out perfectly. 


Enter Staples! They will print out one sheet on cardstock for a dollar. I can fit nearly 50 circles for my pendants on one sheet. That's a cost of $0.02 per circle. Take that, finances!


You might consider signing up for their email list--I get coupons and announcements of sales, daily. 

Small Craft Business: Monday To-Do List

• Print artwork for B's necklace
• Make B's necklace
• Do publishing retail taxes
• Arrange necklaces in organza bags, etc.
• Send emails re: wholesaling

Small Craft Business Friday: To-Do List Update

• Make necklace for Seek (order)
• Make artwork for B's necklaces (order)
• Print artwork for B's necklaces
• Make B's necklaces (One is already done--and sold to her on Friday)
• Gather things for vending on Friday
• tablecloth
• banner
• necklaces
• Squareup and money bag w/change
• charged phone
• receipt book
• business cards
• jewelry care slips
• silver polishing cloth (p.s. Everything from necklaces on down fits in one backpack.)
• Make Valentines (Monday night)

It's been a productive week.

(Also, I don't know why I put a To-Do list up on Monday, and don't update it later on, for you. I think that's the natural Friday post. We'll see if that works better than my previous plan.)

Small Craft Business: Monday To-Do List 13 February

Week of 13 February To Do

• Make necklace for Seek (order)
• Make artwork for B's necklaces (order)
• Print artwork for B's necklaces
• Make B's necklaces
• Gather things for vending on Friday
• tablecloth
• banner
• necklaces
• Squareup and money bag w/change
• charged phone
• receipt book
• business cards
• jewelry care slips
• silver polishing cloth (p.s. Everything from necklaces on down fits in one backpack.)
• Make Valentines (Monday night)

(When I look at it, I really don't have too much to do. Gathering things won't take long at all, as I've already procured the things--it's just putting them in one place.)

Business Blogger: I am very busy and important

When I'm actually functioning, I blog here about business and crafting, yes? And now I've got another gig! 


I am happy to announce that I am the Biz Tuesday blogger for Horseshoe Craft and Flea Market's Blog! Hooray! Twice per month I will share insight over there, about business and crafting. 


Yipee! 


So, what should I write? What do you want to hear on Biz (every other) Tuesdays? Here, here's a more specific question:


What vexes you most about starting a craft business? What is holding you back?


If you have a craft business, what stuff always throws you for a loop?

Neglectful

I have been ridiculously neglectful of this blog! The reason? I've been blogging every day at:


derbyfitness2012


which tracks my progress on a 90-day fitness challenge.


It's a reason, not an excuse. There is no excuse for my actions. 


To atone for my absence, I will today photograph my new necklace project, and post the photos here. They are amazing. You will want one.


Yes, you! Trust me. To get you in the mood for these necklaces, I offer your daily belly laugh in the form of a YouTube video. Enjoy.

Random Tutorial Generator

Click here for crafty fun times! Happy weekend!

Small Craft Business: Vendor Tuesday: LYS

LYS = Local Yarn Store.


Check out your local listings. Yelp is a good place to start. Find your local yarn store, and check out what they've got. JoAnn Fabrics doesn't count as an LYS. It has to be an indie place. 


Feel new stuff. Look at new colors. Try something made of cotton or bamboo, or both. 


Buy local, and support an independent business.

Small Craft Business: Monday To-Do List

• pack Fae's and Ashlee's orders for Tuesday night derby practice
• wait for email from Juno about necklace
• update soap website for out-of-stock items
• make ref necklaces
• update supplier list for recipes book
• begin new formatting for first book
• find photos for book
• wrap gifts and mail

Vendor Tuesday: Fancy Tiger

 Fancy Tiger is a local craft shop that is quickly becoming legendary. We can all take  a lesson from Jaime and Amber. They have amazing style and a great sense of what the community wants and needs. Their shop offers classes, supplies, and they host the most popular craft show of the year here in Denver--Holiday Handmade. 


If you are in the Denver area, I command you to shop there, just once. ONCE! You will be converted quickly. If you aren't in the Denver area, I command you to shop at an independent, local craft shop this holiday season. Just once! 


Buy local. Buy handmade. Save the economy, one crocheted slipper at a time. 

Time on Task Thursday: Craft Fair Looming, Still, Plus my To-Do List

Since this appears to be Slacker Central, I will attempt to redeem myself by combining To-Do Monday and Time-on-Task Thursday.  My tasks today involve getting ready for the Sugar Plum Bazaar. This is the big show I will do this year, and I'd like to have good sales. 

This involves having SOMETHING TO SELL, I realized last week. Ha ha. 

So, my to-do list (that I lost yesterday, because I foolishly had it on paper) for today and tomorrow are as follows:

• garland w/lights
• small extension cord
• wrap salts and sugar scrubs with twine
• make solid lotion and label
• make face lotion and bottle and label
• get change from store
• cut fabric strips
• stamp more labels
• pack ladder
• pack soap dishes
• buy bag of mini candy canes

The ones that are crossed off are being done by my husband, who works for my soap company. Bless his heart, please, when you are doing your daily blessings. Or some such thing. 

I have to complete all of that before 5pm tomorrow. TOMORROW.

Time-on-Task Thursday: Create Something

Time to create something! Today I am on the final step of the necklace process for about 24 of them. Once that is finished, I can bag them up and mail one of them out! I had an online order already! Can you believe it? 


Your Time-on-Task directive today:  make something!

Small Craft Business: Monday To-Do List

I've done it! I've blogged every day in October. Last year I was a big loser, foregoing the project altogether, and I'm the one that started it. Terrible! This year I sucked it up and did it again.


And I'm always glad I did. 


To wit: I have figured out how to keep this blog focused and relevant, by declaring each day of the week to have a particular focus. This will help me to build an audience (hopefully), encourage commentary (Hopefully!), and keep a conversation going about small business (HOPEFULLY!). Your comments are appreciated--please let me know what you think of my plan: 


Sunday Funday -- a post just for fun. It will most probably feature a funny photo.


Monday To-Do List -- I will post my to-do list for the week, and encourage others to do the same.


Vendor Tuesday -- where I feature and recommend a craft supply vendor. 


Wordless Wednesday -- Photos of a recent project will be posted.


Time-on-Task Thursday -- Exhortations and other prodding will be provided to encourage readers to get that thing DONE.


Freedom Friday -- Reflecting on freedom and self-employment, and what it all means. 


Saturday How-To -- I will post teaser photos of my latest book project. 




What say you, loyal readers? Is there a different focus you'd prefer on any particular day? 


Oh, and since it's Monday, here's my To-Do list for the week:

• finish carving pumpkins 
• hand out candy
• finish necklace orders and mail them
• make lotion
• make bath fizzies
• get started on Sugar Plum Bazaar fabric and tags

Small Craft Business: Sunday Funday

Small Craft Business: Saturday How-To

I purport to write how-to nonfiction. I teach people how to make soap. I've had several other books in the works for a while now, and need to get cracking on them. 


Like making balms and butters.


And making lotions.


And how to run a damn craft business. 


And how to make gifts for the holidays. 


While I do publish others, I have recently  come to the conclusion that I need to publish more and more of my own things. The books from others are good, and they are going to be awesome, and I'm proud of them. 


But I need to do more of my own thing. 


That said, when I finally kick my own arse and get it moving, on Saturdays I will post sneak peeks of the tutorials I'm writing. Howdya like them apples?

Small Craft Business: Freedom Friday

Freedom Friday will be a new blog feature here at Craft e-Blog. I want very much to be free of my day job, because it vexes me. However, the health insurance (no matter how expensive it is) and retirement I've already worked so hard for, keep me there. Also, I'm not quite ready financially to take the leap into self-employment. 


What to do? 


In the meantime, on Fridays I will focus on the aspects of self-employment that make me feel liberated. To wit:


When I am selling my soap at a farmer's market, I am acutely aware of the human aspect of that form of sales, and the history of it. A farmer's market is the oldest form of commerce, if you think about it: we set up our tents and tables, display our wares, and the people come by and buy it, or they don't. Our efforts at getting them to buy our stuff varies, and technology does have an impact, but in the end, it's just me and my stuff. Wanna buy it?


I am free to interact with the public how I want. I am free to discount my products if I want to. I am free to wander away and buy a jalapeno-cheddar elk sausage from Biker Jim. I am free to give a lip balm away to a loyal customer, as an incentive. 


Nobody is telling me what to do or how to do it. Nobody is telling me what the outcome should be of my day. Nobody is telling me what a failure I am at what I do, and nobody is complaining about me in the papers. All of that bad stuff happens to me in or because of my day job. 


When I'm selling soap, I'm free. 


What about your business makes you feel free?

Wordless Wednesday: Roller Derby Necklaces

Vendor Tuesday

It's vendor of the week! I really should figure something out for each day of the week, to keep this blog both

a) rolling, and

b) relevant  and

c) useful.


So I'm starting with Tuesday, and calling it Vendor Tuesday. I will do a little write-up with a link to a favorite vendor of mine, inviting commentary about said vendor. That's relevant to crafters in business, right?

So, one of my favorite craft vendors is Sun and Moon Craft Kits.  This shop carries Diamond Glaze, which I love, and all sorts of jewelry components for Scrabble tile jewelry, and other pendant-type things. Oh, and they also have those neodymium super-duper magnets.

Did I spell that right? Yes, I think I did.

Do you source  your vendors online? Who you do like?