Back to Work

I'm happy to be back among the blogging. Of course I'm also back at my full time job which is not so great but it's all a balance in life. Thanks to those who continued to drop in on me even when I was in hibernation mode. I didn't get nearly as much done over the break as I had hoped. The monster head cold that hit me midweek really disrupted my agenda. I got lots of reading done but not much else. I didn't even do much knitting. I made myself a hat which Mike said made me look like a bag lady. He says that about 1/2 the things I wear but this time I agreed with him so it got frogged (ripped out).

I thoroughly enjoyed my time with the kids. I think Kai and Ani enjoyed getting caught up with the girls so the round trip to get them was worth it even it Mike totally didn't get why I was doing it. The shots above are both from the old '57 Chevy truck. The top shot is completely unaltered and I love the care free nature of it even if you can't see Kate. The second one I played with a little bit and it has a more serious feel, which could be their new album cover as the kids like to say.

I've been doing a lot of thinking about the business and my goals for the new year but I just don't have the time or energy to get into them today. You could go read Nancy's post over at Nfall2rt and I could easily say ditto to most of it and save myself the effort. We appear to both be unhappy with the current state of our Etsy endeavors and hoping to get reinspired to living a creative and handmade life in the new year. I'm sure I'll have more to say about my thoughts on another day but for now I'll leave it there.

Accomplishments and Goals

So here we are in 2009. Let me take a few minutes to think about what I've accomplished with my little knitting enterprise this year.

1. Had 3 successful craft shows that made at least 4 x's their booth fees.
2. Sold or traded 73 items on Etsy.
   
3. My pictures have drastically improved since getting the new camera and getting the table set up on the porch. (I'm really happy with how the above bracelet photographed today).
   
4. Started making knitted jewelry including the wire bracelets that have been going over well.
5. Got my first large custom order for bridal party jewelry.
6. Had several other custom orders, one coming from my blog.
7. Started and maintained this blog for promotion which turned into another fulfilling hobby.
8. Made some great blogger friends and gotten more readers than I expected this quickly.
   
9. Paid to have a logo designed and got a banner and business card design as well.
10. Turned spare bedroom into craft room and set up computer for my business.
11. Started a spread sheet of my inventory.

And now for the things I need to work on in the coming year:

1. Get the craft room re-organized and the yarn stash under control.
2. Re-itemize the spread sheet and keep it up to date.
3. Get a new button/avatar to use for advertising.
   
4. Look into advertising with Project Wonderful and other blogging outlets.
5. Learn more about my camera and possibly take a digital photography course at the community college.
6. Research craft and art shows in the area. Get at least 5 shows lined up for the Fall 2009.
7. Continue expanding my line, look into more jewelry designs.
   
8. Research different boutiques in the area and approach for wholesale/consignment possibilities.
9. Open another on-line venue, possibly 1000 Markets or Artfire.
10. Look into joining the Craft Mafia for networking and exposure.
11. Promote, Promote, Promote. Get my shop out there however I can by blogging and talking about it.

Thanks for joining me on this journey. Here's to a new year filled with knitting, lots of sales, and hopefully a better economy soon.