Swirls and Swirls

It's a miracle - the Christmas rush is over and I can finally sit back and relax a little... bah ha ha ha!

There is no rest in my world. :(

After a record Cyber Monday (but I really only have last year to compare it to), and an insane amount of orders after that, I have been doing nothing but making jewelry, sleeping, and eating. I've neglected many other administrative duties yet luckily have not seemed to have missed any major deadlines. I've decided it's time to bring on some help. For reals. And most likely move this circus out of our house and on to greener pastures... or perhaps just a small studio. Just gotta decide what I can afford in this town where I won't get mugged after dark.

Here's what else that's been going on:

* Bought a new car! Bye bye, hubs '98 truck. Hello, sexy Sonata.

* Got baby girl baptized! It was a great family weekend, full of warm fuzzies and friends.

* My 2000 Explorer seems to be breaking down in a major way... do we have to buy another car? Bye, bye income earned during 2010.

* We're going to Orlando for the very first ACRE wholesale show in January! Being a guinea pig is always scary and I have very low expectations but at least we'll be in Florida if it totally blows. Harry Potter World, here I come.

* In light of trying to save money, I'm tossing the idea around of not printing a catalog for the next round of shows. Is a printed catalog really necessary? Should I just print a catalog teaser then direct people to the website for the full line? Decisions, decisions.

* Got Zero a "Thundershirt" to help with his separation anxiety. He hates it and now shakes whenever he sees it. Thundershirt fail. I'd return it but I lost my receipt. :(

* Going to Atlanta tomorrow to deliver most of our fabulous new wholesale display to the warehouse for Atlanta Gift. I have all the pieces to the puzzle of my new display but have no idea how it's really going to turn out. Hmm.... We're also going to Ikea while we're there. This may be a really bad idea, being only three days before Christmas and all.

* Christmas is coming! Baby's first - can't wait to see her reaction to her new toys. Not that we got her many and not that she has any idea what's going on but it's still fun. That reminds me, I need to watch Emmett Otter's Jug Band Christmas special this year!

So that's my brain - swirls and swirls and swirls. I have so much to tackle and so little time. I tell everyone "I'm pretty much busy from November to after Valentine's Day". And I can't WAIT for February 15th!

Free Shipping - all the time!

I'm still working out the kinks in my shopping cart, but I'm ready to announce my new free shipping policy!


So shipping is free on ALL orders if you don't mind First Class. If you want to speed it up a bit, you can still upgrade to Priority Mail although the way my cart is set up to do that is pretty silly and I have to find a better way... Anyone out there use Cart Manager?

Anyway, I've been absent from the blog because I've been so. So. Busy. Wholesale is rockin' and rollin' and kickin' my butt. I think I'm about to start teaching the hubs how to make jewelry. It's a slippery slope to driving an RV and wearing tie dye as the crafts business becomes the family business. Yikes!

Fall is here - finally!!

It's getting very fall-like around my website! I changed the background to a brown pattern and took some photos outside today on my deck for a print ad. I liked them so much, they already made it onto the home page. They look a little too orange on the website, but whatev. It was heaven to be outside in pants and feel the cool breeze. Let's hope 90° weather is behind us!! Welcome fall!!!


In other outdoor news, Greggars and I went to the TACA craft fair in Centennial Park today. Kinda funny that on my weekend off, I went into the office, so to speak. It was great to see my crafty friends including Lisa Norris, Bebo & Betty, and Karen Fincannon, and introduce them to my extended family (Zero and baby) since I don't bring either to craft shows. And I scored a sweet wooden brownie spatula, so I guess I'll have to make some Trader Joe's brownies again - yummy!

Renegade Craft Fair Chicago 2010

We just got back from the Renegade Craft Fair this afternoon.  It was our fourth year doing it, and what can I say? It was awesome!  Fabuloso!  Best ever!  I love Chicago.

We went up on the Skydeck on a clear day.  We don't usually do the tourist thing, but Greg suggested it and it seemed silly not to!

 It's so real that it looks fake!

We used a new earring display made from louver blinds that the gracious owner didn't need any more.  It think it worked really well and made it easier to see the earrings.

I modified my branch display to better showcase necklaces, and it received many complements.

And we got to see Mucca Pazza up close and personal.  They were fantastic.  I wish they would come to Nashville - that is a live show I would pay to go see!

We were so busy that we didn't get to talk to many of our crafty friends, and from the sounds of it, they had awesome shows, too!  And for the first time, I was too busy to really shop my heart out.  So sad.  I did manage to sneak in the purchase of another Nate Duval t-shirt (Greg's 5th shirt by him) and an Urban Posture t-shirt that I am currently wearing.  People and events such as Renegade remind me how much fun my job is!