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A word of warning....this is long. I wanted to write something short and sweet about the changes and well....all this stuff just started flowing out! So if you do read it all, thanks in advance.)
Today I officially hit 300 sales..wow! It seemed fitting that on this day, I'd also go ahead and announce a change coming to the shop. Actually, I've already started making the changes, and more will be made over the next few days.
I've loved having this shop. For more than a few reasons. I really have found a passion with sewing that I haven't had before. Sure, there are other creative outlets that I enjoy and have done well with, such as home remodeling (maybe some day I'll actually get around to sharing some of those photos!) and gardening, but nothing quite like the sewing. Maybe part of it was how quickly it all came about.... I signed up for one sewing lesson, and within days bought my first machine. I bought some patterns, and set out to start sewing my own things that I had never made before. I took one more class, and I was utterly hooked. The serger purchase soon followed. And literally, less than three months later, Noah and Lilah was born. And Lilah was born, literally, smack in the middle of all this. It's been fun, exciting, and a total whirlwind to say the least. The extra money is nice as well. We could really use it right now. We're doing some things with our finances and the extra money is a nice thing to have (and would actually be a key to success)...but of course that means I should also pare down on my fabric purchases, ahem.
But time......ahhhh. What is that? I think in the beginning it was so easy to get things done because I had a newborn who slept like a dream (or at least for some reasonably long stretches) where late at night I'd sew and sew and sew. But that got old, quick. I was tired. And I was crabby. So then I started sleeping again (phew!) and sewing nights and weekends. But then I was just missing my family.
Let's face it....I had turned my passion for sewing into a "job". Which is fine and dandy, if you have that one thing I lacked...time. I would often wonder how so many other etsians kept up....were they working late nights and weekends like myself? Were they missing out on quality time with there family just as I was? And so many other things fell by the wayside during this time....we have rentals I have to keep the books for, a house to keep clean, kids to dress, keep clean, and most importantly, love on, have fun with and just ENJOY. Enjoy this very short time in their lives which are so fleeting and I'll wish I could have all over again a short time from now, I'm sure. I'm lucky to be at home with them. Extremely. There is honestly no where else in the world I'd rather be right now. We gave up a lot, financially, for me to be home with them. But it's been totally worth it and I'd do it over if I could.
Long story short - as much as I'd love to keep going on the customs, I just can't. At least not at the pace I had been. As some of you know, I've been selling fabric for a time now, and that has been going really well. But I've also decided to start selling some of my fabric as DIY kits, perfect for beginning sewists or anyone who'd like to just buy a small amount of fabric for that one project and nothing more! I'd really love everyone who has ever said "Oh, I wish I could sew! That's so cute!" to actually try one of my kits and realize just how easy it is.
So, there it is! I've started rolling some of the DIY kits into the shop and will continue to add more as time allows. Which with this busy family, could be anytime!
And with that, I'm off to tball! ;-)
