Friday, January 27, 2012

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Live, Laugh, Love

Yay!  I got my piece finished up last night.  This is the scrabble-inspired piece I was working on over the IHSW. 


The pattern is now available in my shop. Just click on the picture and it will take you through to the listing.

I'll also be listing my finished model for sale in the next few days if you're interested in that.  It would make a great gift for a Scrabble enthusiast.

Next up on the stitching schedule...a horse for a Round Robin I'm participating in.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Emailed Newsletter Now Available


Well I’ve been talking about starting a newsletter for the past year, and have finally done so.  The beginning of the year I took the plunge and started setting everything up.

I’m on Facebook on a regular basis since that’s where more people seem to be, and neglect my blog more than I probably should, but am trying harder for 2012 to have read-worthy posts.

I’ll use my newsletter to announce new patterns, fabric of the month and VIP only sales.
If you’re interested in any of these, feel free to sign up here

And for those of you that are curious, I'll be finishing up my Scrabble-inspired piece tonight and will have the pattern available in my shop in the next few days.
Happy Stitching!

Monday, January 23, 2012

Stitching Progress

It's bright & early the Monday morning after our IHSW.  I know I'm supposed to be posting pics of what I worked on over the weekend, but can't do that.  Why you may ask?   Because I decided to work on a Scrabble-inspired piece that will be a new pattern in my shop and am at the point that I have all the words done, which I don't want to reveal until the piece is completely finished.  Here is a picture of where I started on Friday night:


Since I took this picture I was able to get all of the words done, more of the white backstitching that will separate all the different spaces on the "board", as well as more of the individual blocks.  When I went to bed last night I had only 21 more blocks to go and am hoping to have it completed by Wednesday or  Thursday night of this week with the pattern being released in my shop by the weekend.

If you're interested in seeing other pics of my WIPs (works in progress), I have an album I've been doing on Facebook titled 365 Days of Cross Stitch - 2012.  I may not post my pics each day, but do take them and upload them just as quickly as I can.

Until we meet again...Happy Stitching!


Wednesday, January 18, 2012

SURPRISE SALE!!

I've decided to run a SALE!!!

Use coupon code JUSTBCUZ for 25% off your entire order in either of my Etsy shops:

OR


Hurry and don't wait BCUZ you never know when it might end! <3

January International Hermit and Stitch Weekend

So I heard about the IHSW from another stitcher last month and decided to schedule them on my calendar this year.  My goal is to have a MINIMUM of 12 new patterns released in my shop this year and I won't be able to do that without dedicated stitching time.

Wondering what the IHSW is?  Check it out this link for more info and be sure to check out my blog after Sunday night to see what I was stitching on over the weekend.


Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Reality Check

As I'm becoming more involved with online cross stitch groups, I see more ladies posting comments about how they'd like to have their own business.  As you all know, this is my dream also.  I DO already have a cross stitch business, but I would love for it to be my sole source of income and my ONLY full-time job (because I do have another one...the one that pays the bills).

Thinking about this this morning I decided it was time for a reality check, not only for me but for all these other ladies also, to put things into perspective.

As a single woman supporting a household and maintain my same standard of living (which is not extravagant and currently paycheck-to-paycheck) I determined at my current pricing I would need to sell the following:

500+ cross stitch patterns PER MONTH
OR
375+ piece of hand-dyed fabric PER MONTH
OR
1,000+ sets of buttons PER MONTH
OR
various combinations of any or all of the above

Running a business I've already figured my supply costs along with fees to Etsy, PayPal, etc.   But what you really don't think about when you're all excited about being able to have your passion as your sole source of income...you'll no longer have employer sponsored health insurance (much cheaper than buying your own), you'll no longer have a 401k with employer matches, you will now be responsible for paying 100% the taxes your employer pays (social security at 100%, unemployment taxes, etc.).

So, how many of you are totally depressed now that your dream may never be your reality?  NOT ME!  I will NEVER give up on my dreams.  One of the things I did when I started making "lifestyle changes" about 2 years ago is got my one and only tattoo...Vivi Con Passione...live with passion.  Cross stitch is my passion and even if I never get to have it be my sole source of income it will always be a source of happiness in my life.