The BIG craft show wrap-up.

First off, BIG THANK YOU to the EtsyRain team, specifically the organizers, for making this event possible.  It was my very first two-day show and it was exciting and challenging all at the same time. The show was a huge success for our street team and customers alike. You may be able to see in my first picture the line of people waiting outside of the venue for the doors to open Saturday morning.  It was cold. They were brave. And they wanted those awesome EtsyRain swag bags!

Secondly, thank you to everyone who has followed me here on my blog and on my Twitter as I frantically prepared for this show. Thank you for the tips and tricks I learned by reading all of your blogs and Twitters and Etsy forum posts. Thank you for your words of support and encouragement.

The show was a lot of fun. Stressful, but fun.  I got to meet some really wonderful people, both crafters and customers.  I got to buy some really cool things.  And I sold a little bit too.

This was a big risk for me - sticking my neck out into the "indie" community and trying to sell my Catholic goodies among all the fine and funky jewelry, knitted comfy things, hand-sewn clothing, soaps, and other goods made by our crafty community.  My products really speak to a small market of people - I know this and I embrace this.  So this was a real test to see if I could hold my own among them. 

How did I do? I know you only want to hear about the money.  lol  Well, I made back my booth fee.  That's about it.  But I did not walk away totally discouraged.  I was paid in compliments, smiles, and kind words. I got some great ideas on how I can branch out my offerings for future shows.  I made some friends and I got my name and my business out there.  Lots of business cards were taken. Some custom orders may be on the horizon. 

I have two more shows coming up this season.  Both will be a little more focused on my target audience (at a Catholic school and at my church).  And I hope to announce some exciting additions to my Etsy shop in the new year.

Blog Feature and Giveaway!

WIN THIS ROSARY!

CherryBlossomsDesign was kind enough to feature me on her blog

and together we are offering one of my favorite rosaries in a giveaway!

Please visit her blog to enter in the contest. 

This Giveaway ends November 23, 2009 at 12 PM EST.

Good luck!!

Buy Handmade! Buy Seattle-Made!

Buy handmade this holiday season - buy Seattle-made from the EtsyRAIN team! 70 talented local artisans will be selling unique, handmade delights ready for gift-giving.

The EtsyRAIN Holiday Art &Craft Show will be held in the lobby of Intiman Theatre (201 Mercer Street) from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, November 21-22. Two full days!

The first 50 people in line each day will receive a swag bag filled with awesome stuff from our EtsyRAIN members.

The featured charity for this year’s holiday event is Treehouse, an organization for kids in foster care, providing services that no other agency addresses.

Admission to the event will be a suggested donation of $1 that will go directly to Treehouse or an article of warm clothing for a foster child in need. There will also be a raffle for a gift basket filled with amazing products from the EtsyRain team.

http://etsyrain.com/

Facebook event link - http://bit.ly/3u5WGm

Win this Rosary! Twitter contest!

****THIS ROSARY GIVEAWAY HAS BEEN POSTPONED DUE TO LACK OF PARTICIPATION. A NEW ROSARY GIVEAWAY HAS BEEN CREATED. SEE MY MOST RECENT BLOG POSTS FOR INFORMATION. THANK YOU*****


To celebrate Advent (a little early) it would be my pleasure to give this rosary a loving home. I will ship it to you for free if you win. Details about the contest are below, but first, here's a little more about the rosary you can win:

This is a beautiful, handmade rosary is made with Czech glass 6mm beads in a bright cherry red and clear crystal accents beads. Silvertone centerpiece of the Virgin Mary and Child and beautiful crucifix of our Lord. Aprox 17 inches in length when laid out end to end. Retail value $20 in my Etsy shop. Actual value, priceless!

Great care and thoughtful prayer is put in to all rosaries I make. Each bead is pinned and linked to the next with strong materials to last years of use. Please note this rosaries is intended to help facilitate prayer and are is meant to be worn as jewelry.

An organza pouch will be included for the rosary as well as a wallet-sized card with instructions on how to pray the rosary.

Contest rules:

1. Follow @prayers4theresa on Twitter

2. RT the following message no more than once per hour to qualify.

Win this #handmade #Catholic #Rosary for Advent! http://bit.ly/redrosary Follow @prayers4theresa 301st RT will #win! 1 RT/hr.

3. 301st person to RT this message will win. I will DM the winner with notification.

4. If there is no 301st RT, if the contest stops rolling, the giveaway will close with no winner and the rosary will go back up for sale in my Etsy shop.

 

Good Luck!

 

Facebooked!

I've resisted this long enough, I guess.  I finally set up a Facebook Fan Page for my shop.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Prayers4Theresa/180827847061

I don't use Facebook on a regular basis.  I find the website extremely difficult to navigate and irksome.  having people from my past pop up and find me kinda of freaks me out too.  But all the cool kids are creating Fan Pages so I should too, right?  I don't even know if I did it correctly (again, the site is a chore to make sense of!) but my items show up under the "My Stuff" tab so that's as good as it is going to get.  I don't know if I'll add any more pics or deal with it really.  My true loves are this blog, Twitter, and the handmade forums I read.  I don't really want to add another project to my plate, but I figured I'd at least create the Facebook page and get it over with.

LOL - can you tell how excited I am about this? 

So "Fan" me or "Friend" me or whatever on Facebook if you want to.  Just know I am not going to be very active over there. 

Treasured!

I'm thrilled that I have TWO items in this Treasury!  My bone hairsticks and my mini-holy medal pin.  All the items selected are a lovely reminder of Our Lady.

Yes, that is my hair, by the way.  LOL!

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=75507

Update to previous post

I just wanted to add a little extra to my post from yesterday about "Why I'll never be an Etsy Featured Seller." I hope I didn't ruffle any feathers about the One-of-a-Kind vs. Sell/Relisted comparison I was making.

It was not my intent to insult anyone who is lucky enough to have a craft that allows them to sell multiple quantities of the same item. I am honestly a tad jealous of you who do because it means less time taking photographs and editing them, less time writing and re-writing Etsy listings, and probably a larger profit because you buy supplies in bulk and at wholesale prices.

And I am not saying that my items, primarily being OOAK, are any better than yours for the simple fact that they can't be duplicated. I know that each and every person who creates something handmade works very hard to do so. I do not doubt that you work equally as hard as I do, if not more because you sell more and list more than I do. One of my idols in the handmade crafting world recently shared with me that she got an order for over 600 handmade silver rings which she wholesales to a jewelry mail-order catalog. She is a much busier and harder working woman than myself with my weird little beads in mismatched sets. I admire her and envy her all at the same time.

So again, I apologize if anyone felt I was boasting about my OOAK items. The post was meant to illustrate how I could never be an Etsy Featured Seller and that my OOAK items are a major hindrance to that goal. I did not intend to insult anyone.

Peace be with you all,
Theresa