Random Wednesday Business Thoughts

I'm really happy with how the giveaway is going. I mainly wanted to get myself over the 200 hump and it has accomplished that and then some. It has also gotten some lurkers out of the shadows which is always nice. I really like the above picture even though it doesn't show off the scarf or headband very well. I still haven't really gotten a handle on my camera or its functions. It's been either cloudy or too darn hot every day that I've felt like taking pictures for the past few months. Yes, I am full of excuses. I have literally hundreds of items in my inventory that are unphotographed. I'm okay with it for the most part since I am feeling ambivalent about my Etsy shop right now and I'm not ready to make a commitment with any of the other options yet. I've embraced craft shows as the way to make money from my knitting and am excited about doing as many as possible this Fall.

Of the other on-line options out there I really like the direction that Artfire is going but I am unsure of the $12 a month fee. I love the customization that they've made available to the shops and how much they are listening to their sellers, something so different from the Etsy experience right now. But I am very aware that there are about 6 months of the year that I will make very few sales even with all the promotion in the world. The other 6 months would have to be much more lucrative than Etsy was last winter to make it worth it. I haven't taken the time to investigate to see if I could go back and forth between the free shop and the upgraded shop but that is something to explore.

I went through my inventory a few weeks ago to see where I stand. No, I haven't been keeping up on my records as I intended to this year. But I got everything separated out so that I could see what I needed to be working on over the summer months. As I suspected I have plenty of scarflettes and actually had to buy a bigger bin to store them in. I do so love making scarflettes and hopefully they will still be popular at this years shows. I also have more than enough of the higher end scarves.

I think there will be less people willing to make a bigger investment this year than last so I really need to focus on the lower end line. This is my least favorite knitting but for the next 4 months it needs to be my priority. I have plenty of yarn in my supply and I just need to keep finding ways to keep it interesting. I've been using my big needles with several yarns held together which creates some fun scarves that knit up super fast. I've also been using some easy lace stitches that keep me interested with the lower end yarns. I need to get my headbands and wristcuff supply up as well. These are quick knits and I will spend a weekend just doing them which makes them go fast. I'm not real sure about my pouches but I think I will try some different ideas out for little bags. I don't know how well they will sell at the shows but I think it is always good to have variety.