Valentine's Day

On this Valentine's Day I am indeed in love! We went out for a nice meal on Sunday and this evening we just had pizza but it feels good to love and to be loved. Today I did a nice random act of kindness. I found myself alone at lunch so I decided to treat myself to fish and chips. I went to this little hole in the wall that has delicious f&c. When I got there I saw this lovely, elderly couple that had just arrived before me. They were obviously out having a little Valentine's lunch. They sat at the same side of the table and were clearly enjoying each other's company. I got my meal quickly (it was delicious) and I ate it quite quickly too. I was done before the older couople and when I went up to pay I told the waitress to add their meals to my bill. I told her I didn't want to make a big deal. I just wanted to treat them to their Valentine's lunch. She was very touched. She told her boss and her eyes actually welled up. I asked her to tell them after I had left. I didn't want acknowledgement, I just wanted to do something nice. On another note, I finally bought the Adele cd, 21. It is FABULOUS. I can see why she won a wack of grammys! Her voice sounds like it has been marinated in scotch! It is rich and velvety. This CD will definitely get a lot of action in my studio.

And just like that...

Business has picked back up! I love being creative. I love making jewellery. I love having some freedom with my schedule. I love buying beads and supplies. I hate the uncertainty of sales and money in :( I guess the pros out weigh the cons though. Life is good. I am really looking forward to Florida and hoping to find a bead shop while there! I am toying with the idea of renting a little studio space as well. It would be nice to have something more professional to set things up in and consult with customers. I hate having to bring them to my house. I do love having very little overhead though. If I was to rent a space it would need to be pretty cool and also pretty cheap!! Lately I am loving memory wire. I just love putting together a wild mix of beads!

In one month...

One month from right now we will be in the midst of our Florida getaway. I am so excited! Sun, sand and good times are just what we need! Piper is a bit young for Disney (or so everyone keeps telling me) so it looks like we will do the Florida Aquarium (which I am stoked about) and Busch Gardens. Tonight I actually looked up photos online of the Tampa area. I can't wait to go!!

It's been a loooong time

I am a rotten blogger. Often times I will think of something to write about or even play out in my head how I will verbalize what's happening in life but then I never actually get around to doing it. Then what happens is I feel like I have let it go for so long that I don't even know where to start! Will this ever change? I have no idea. I am going to try to blog a little more. Promise. So, right now we are in the dead of winter and I hate it. I hate everything about winter. I hate the cold and the snow and the poor driving conditions. I really wonder why I live where I do. It would be so much smarter to live in a warmer, nicer climate. And I know I would be a lot happier. I guess that I just don't see it as a real option so I can only dream about it. My daughter is awesome. She is so smart and has such an awesome sense of humour. She's really developing her own perosnality and already doing me proud! Business was great before Christmas and absolutely awful in january. It is picking up again now but it has really made me think about how badly I want this. There are simply some days where I just don't want the hustle and hate the feeling of not knowing where the next order will come from. I definitely think it would be waaaay easier to just get a job where I know every week how much money I will have in my bank. The problem is, I really feel that once I got that job I would be sitting there wondering if I didn't give the business a fair shake. I do still LOVE creating jewellery and my idea bank never runs short (unlike my bank account!)

Christmas Blues?

I am down in the dumps this evening and I have no idea why. I have had a really great few weeks in business, my daughter was ultra sweet today, my husband is great, my new dishwasher rocks but somehow still feeling a bit sad at the moment... I think that I am worried about being in business for myself. My husband has been really supportive and my sales have been scared but I am scared that things will fall through the floor after Christmas. I know that I should have confidence in myself and stay positive but right now, in this very moment I am filled with self doubt. Sometimes I think I am my own worst enemy :(

Life is good right now. I have rolled out a new line of bracelets, the fabric cuff! I am really pleased with them so far and I am enjoying designing them. They are made with aluminum base so they are adjustable but not flimsy. I have been adding different fabrics and embellishments (flowers, cames, rhinestones etc) and I really enjoy how creative I can be with them. I think they will be popular sellers. Guess I will just have to wait and see! My legs are killing today. It's for a good reason though. I recently started riding again after a three year interruption. I absolutely love horses and I never thought I would be on the back of one again after havung broken my knee very badly. Horses are good for my heart and soul though and I am really happy to be around them again. Business is good. Of course this is the season for gift buying and I have been quite busy! My biggest seller this year is the customized, stamped jewellery. I have been making dozens of pieces a week. I am thrilled with how many repeat customers I have been getting as well. Over the years I have really tried to pay attention to what wasn't working with my designs and how I could improve my craftmanship. I will never say my learning is done in this area but I know I have come along way. It is really nice to have customers keep coming back because they are satisfied. I would say that is one of my favourite things in business! I want to take a new direction in 2012. I am thinking that I would like to change the types of shows I am doing. I like the Maker's Market/Art Crawls in Hamilton and would like to participate in the Handmade Market in Niagara but outside of that, I may look at a few Art in the Park shows and that is it. The smaller craft type shows tend to attract vendors who aren't actually crafting, they are importing goods and calling them hand crafted. The ones that are actually making their goods tend to be in categories that don't compliment what I am selling. For that reason, I don't think I am reaching my target market with these events anymore. I think I will sit down early in the new year and really make a plan of action for my show calendar. With a few changes, I am sure it will pay off.

Bursting with Creative Excitement

Happy Halloween everyone! Just a short post today. Lately I have been dreaming about jewellery. Bracelets in particular. I have ordered supplies and will soon be releasing a new line that I am soooo excited about. It will be different from anything else I have made. They will be big and bold. Stay tuned, they should be ready to go in about 2 weeks....