BESTeam Feature: Sandy's Handmade Soaps & Things

This week's team shop is Sandy's Handmade Soaps & Things.  Based out of Connecticut, this New England shop is stocked with the perfect items for pampering yourself.  Indulge in one of her "melt and pour" or cold process soaps, both beautiful and stimulating for the senses.  The Lavender, Oatmeal, & Honey bar for only $5.95 is the perfect way to finish of a long day, cleansing your pores and your spirit with soothing scents.

The Brown Sugar Scrub Soap, pictured above, $4.95, looks good enough to eat.  Acting like a pumice stone, it is made to gently exfoliate on one side and moisturize on the other.  Or try a Lavender Bath Bomb, pictured below, $5.95, to add a little color to your bathroom until you're ready for a soak in the tub.

ABOVE: Knitted Sock Monkey, $25.00.

For the children-at-heart, try a classic sock monkey or Harry Potter inspired stitch markers.  Brighten your sitting room and your knitting projects!

ABOVE: Gryffindor House Stitch Markers, $8.95.

Take a break and stop by Sandy's Handmade Soaps & Things!

For more about Sandy and her shop, visit her blog!

Business Notes: Short and Sweet

I am getting real custom orders from real people I don't know!  Exciting!  It's a great feeling to build business relationships with people all over the globe.  It does, however, remind me that I do indeed own my own business.

That's really amazing!  I am one of the Small Business Owners of America!

Which means that when it is time to do my taxes...  

So before the holiday season hits and hopefully we are all swamped with orders, let me pose a question:  How do you deal with your finances?  Do you have Quicktime?  Do you hire a CPA?  Or are you just really organized and great at math?

Have a crafty weekend!

Finishing orders for the week.

My goal for the day is to finish two of the three orders I have in progress.  The coptic stitch journals should be done in the next hour.  The kits I need to buy needles for and make the instruction cards.  The lined journal (components pictured above) is sewn, but I have a few things to get before I can finish putting it together.  This will be my first journal with lines and pockets!  I'm pleased with how the picture turned out as well.  

In order to prepare for the holidays, I will probably re-photograph many of the items in my shop.  I am also working on a few examples of customized coaster sets, to be listed soon.

BESTeam Feature: love, elycia

Self- proclaimed engineer-turned-crafter Elycia is my feature for the week.  I have to say that her shop is perfect for my NaNoWriMo mindset.  Elycia's shop, love, elycia, is whimsical, fun, and full of character.  She even includes original drawings of her muses.

Above: Every Girl has a Story - Derby Print, $5.00.

Elycia's shop is a comfortable mix of vintage and handmade items.  Recognize the one below?  It's her Say Anything - CUSTOM Word Bubble Headband for $12.00 that was featured on the front page.  Make a statement, and be cute while you do it.

For those of you who love vintage, the vintage clothing is just as much fun as the handmade pieces.  I particularly like the dress pictured above, Frills and Lines, for $30.00.  I find it rare to stumble upon great vintage pieces at that price.  And who loves the roller-skates in the photo?  I know I do.

Above: CUSTOM Headband Incognito v.2 - Moustache Headband, $10.00.

Let's be serious for a moment.  Elycia is participating in a cool event this November--Movember.  Movember is that time of year when men around the globe are encouraged to grow mustaches to raise awareness and funds for prostate cancer.  Ladies, don't feel left out: You, too, can rock the 'stache this November, and a portion of your mustache sales will go towards Prostate Cancer Canada.

I love a good crafter supporting a good cause!  I wish I were technically advanced enough to put a little heart here for you, Elycia.

For more, find Elycia on facebook, twitter, or follow her super cute blog.

Treasury Tuesday

~Dancing in the Rain~, curated by soycomfort

When Rita sent me a message this morning telling me she had included my journal in her treasury, she wrote, "Let's pay it forward and share it with others!"  That got me thinking.  I may not have many sales under my belt, but I have been fortunate to have many supporters of my shop--friends, family, and kind strangers who feature me in treasuries and on their blogs.

The theme for today's treasury is "Pay It Forward."  Let's all take a moment to appreciate the people who appreciate us.

NaNoWriMo

One of my primary missions with my Etsy shop is to encourage creativity.  This month is my favorite time of year for imagination.  Something exciting is happening all over the world this November: NaNoWriMo.

For those of you unfamiliar with the acronym, National Novel Writing Month is the time of year when thousands of writers worldwide aim to write (at least) 50,000 words in 30 days.  I'm doing it, and you can follow my progress on my (other) blog, How to Survive Writing a First Draft.  This will be my fourth year of writing madness, and I have a story I'm itching to write, so hopefully it will be a successful month.  I highly recommend participating.  Busy?  Even better!  I look forward to setting aside the hour or two for myself every morning to work on my book.  A cup of coffee, a bagel, and a blank page.

For those of you also participating (and I'm using the honor system--you don't have to send me a Word document of your novel), I'm offering 10% off all journals in my shop for NaNo participants during the month of November.  Just convo me with "NaNo" as the subject line.  If you sponsor my writing with as little as $5, you get the Good Citizen's Discount of 10% as well, and you get the satisfaction of knowing you helped a good cause.

Happy writing!

NEW! Customize Your Own Journal!

There's a new option in my shop to request a custom journal!

I enjoy making personalized journals for my customers.  Most of the orders I have filled thus far are from friends and family, but I have enjoyed tailoring each journal to fit each individual's needs.  And though the listing is specifically for a hardcover casebound journal, I also make softcover casebound, softcover coptic stitch, and you-tell-me-what-you-want-and-I'll-see-what-I-can-do.  The more creative the request, the more I enjoy my assignment.  I love a challenge!

Since I opened the shop in June, my sales have primarily been customized items.

My mother was my first request (Thanks, Mom!), asking for two journals (for her and her friend) with a photo collage of their trip to Alaska on the front cover.  She emailed me a series of photographs from the trip, and I chose the best six for each cover, printed the collages on bookcloth, and bound the two journals.  These two were my first attempts at printing on bookcloth, so there were a few mishaps with the printer and more than a few choice words muttered when the finally-printed-perfectly cover slipped in glue and had to be redone.  

It was worth the heartache to see my mother's expression when she opened the package.

My second assignment was a Miss Piggy Fan Journal for a friend of mine.  She is a muppet enthusiast and educator, diving into her own business venture with Sock Drawer Puppets.  How many variations on pink can one journal accommodate?  A pink spine, pink endpages, pink bookmark, and a photo collage of Miss Piggy's evolution may have sparked the pink striped journals that I made a week later.

Then there was the trade, of course, which is pictured at the top, and now I have an order to fill for a friend and his business partners.

It's a great feeling to know that my journals are part of a new business venture or a trip around the world.  One went with a college freshman to her first year at school.  One is full of sketches from a musician.  Tell me your story, and I'll make you a journal.

Visit the listing here in the shop, or convo me for more information.

I begin construction of all custom items the day payment goes through. Please allow 3-5 work days for construction time. Shipment time varies based on location, but most orders should arrive within 2 weeks of purchase.