Even if no one is listening.

I decided that today I will blog - even if no one is listening. Journaling is good for the soul! Well, in my opinion it's good for the soul. I wrote "journal more" in my New Year's resolutions.  I guess that means I should try to follow through. I'm not sure I've ever followed through with a New Year's resolution....ever.  I'm sure I'm not the only one who can't follow through with those commitments.  If you are one of the few people who can actually follow through with those resolutions - you're awesome! I envy your dedication.

Anywho, moving on...

Last week if you had asked me how I was holding up, I would've say "I'm not."  Work has been stressful. I actually broke down and cried at work on Monday from the pressure and the stress that has built up. Luckily, this week is better.  I still have to shove the same amount of work into my week as I did last week but I'm doing the best I can. I try to stay positive when I can and right now I feel okay so I'm running with it. 

Ultimately, that is not what I want to do for the rest of my life.  My "ideal" plan would look something like this: I have the energy to build my business (WithLoveHandmade.etsy.com) while still working full time.  This means spending the majority of my time off doing something beneficial to my business. Ideally, I would build my business up so I could eventually, (a couple of years down the road) switch to working part time.  Now this next step is very idealistic but if all went well and I was making enough income, I could "quit my day job" as many Etsy sellers have been able to do.  This is my ultimate career goal.

There are a few problems with this plan. One of them being that I cannot decide what I want my main focus to be.  I'm not sure I want to continue doing baby blankets.  If I want to continue down that path, I'm considering moving into crib sets and/or quilts.  Another option would be doing the same baby blankets I'm doing now but adding the crochet edging on the blankets to make them more valuable and desirable. Also, I love knitting and crochet and have no outlet for those baby blankets.  If I moved into crib sets/quilts/crochet edged cotton blankets, I don't see those items fitting into my shop.  Shops need to be cohesive.  Otherwise, customers won't buy.  I could have a section on my shop for hand knit/crocheted blankets but I'm not sure how I feel about that yet. I will leave that option open though. Other ideas I'm still considering include: hand knit purses/bags, easy to sew children's apparel, infinity scarves and the infinity scarves you can use as nursing covers and hand knit/crocheted car seat blankets.

Unfortunately, those are all radically different ideas.  I'm involved in too many hobbies and it's hard for me to choose just one.  I want to create things using all my skills! Unfortunately, that would not be a very cohesive shop.  I need to choose a focus....

Issue with crib sets/quilts: crib sets and quilts take more investment money.  Investing in baby blankets isn't so bad but once you get into quilting and crib sets, it requires more supplies, labor, etc. Therefore, it is a big decision to make. I could invest money into making a few sets or quilts and if no one buys anything, I could be out hundreds of dollars and wasted hours!! Scary thought!!!

Issue with infinity scarves/nursing covers: there are already a lot of sellers making these.  I'm worried it would be difficult to break into that market.  It would be difficult to differentiate myself from the competition.

Issue with knit/crocheted car seat blankets: I'm not sure there is a market for these.

Issue with hand knit bags/purses: I'm not sure this is something I would be passionate about doing.

Issue with children's apparel:  I'm not sure this is a practical venture.  Would I have to come up with my own patterns? If I found a few patterns I liked, would they be copyrighted therefore not allowing me to sell my creations?  I'm just getting into apparel sewing so it's not practical to think I could just come up with my own patterns right off the bat. This would require further research. Also, what sizes would I sell? Would I sell just girls clothes? Would I do boys and girls?

A few other issues: I don't want to take away time from hanging out with my husband, cooking meals, baking and the things I love (or need) to do at home. I would have to sacrifice some time I spend doing these things but I want to make sure that I leave plenty of time to do these things because they're important.  Basically, I'm worried about my time management. I'm also worried about my energy levels! I work hard all day. I'm on my feet most of the day and I'm usually stressed as stated above. This takes a lot of out of me! I'm worried I might not have the energy I need to work on my business after working 8-9 hours at a tiring, stressful job.


It would be great to have a partner in this but I wouldn't even know how to find someone.  If I did children's apparel I really think I could use a partner.


Yet another issue: I'm not sure how to market myself. It's so overwhelming and I'm not sure where to begin!! I know I need to do local craft markets and shows but those seem like a lot of effort.  I can't keep making excuses though.  Seriously, I need marketing help.


So those are the big issues.  Writing all of those down helped calm my brain - which is nice.  I feel a bit relieved.  Now, I just have to make a couple of big decisions and the first one being: what is my focus?  Once I do that, I definitely want to change my business name.  I need to come up with something relevant to my focus...


Anywho, if you read all the way through this - great!! Leave me some feedback if you have any input or ideas.  I appreciate any feedback. 

Thanks for listening :)