Crossroads......help!!

I have spent a great deal of time lately thinking about what direction I want to go with my etsy shops. I started with cards and photos, dabbled in upcycled jewelry, added journals, and gift tags, started making cake stands, then wood and paper decor, then coasters and light switch plates, now aprons and soon tote bags and reusable lunch bags......

So, now what?

The cards don't really sell and I don't find them very rewarding to make. I could lower the price on them and see what happens. I charge $5.00 for them, but then by the time you add the shipping, that' a pretty pricey card. It's a nice card, but I don't think people want to pay that much for a card.

I might discontinue my cards and only carry the photos in FourDogDay. Our photos are not "fine art" prints...they aren't signed...they are just neat every day snapshots taken by untrained people that like to take pictures. We don't sell a lot of them, but I do love them.

MyOtherShop is starting to look like FourDogDay use to look, and I'm not happy with it. Too many unrelated things packed into one shop, but I am not opening another shop. I could have FourDogDay be things for the house, and MyOtherShop be things for you....but that wouldn't be until after I run out of business cards...and that will be a while. :)

I'm thinking about not making any more wood and paper stuff. Not a big seller on etsy or at the two shows I've done. It's fun to do, but it isn't "the thing" for me.

That would leave cake stands which I really enjoy. I love looking for old plates and would like to start finding more unusual things to use besides candlesticks for the base. People seem to like them and I enjoy making them.

My coasters are so darn cute, but I have sold so few. They are heavy and expensive to ship, but even at the craft shows they get looked at a lot, but they don't get bought very often. I priced them lower at the shows than in my shop and only sold a couple sets on Saturday. Any idea why that might be? Not sure what to do about them. Could I live without them....yes...but they do attract attention at the shows.

The light switch covers are a pain to make, but they are cute and people seem to like them. I don't sell many on etsy, but at the shows they also attract a lot of attention. I am thinking about expanding on those and making some double ones and some other styles. A number of people said they wanted one but they needed a double one, or a push button one. I did give them cards and told them to contact me and I can make whatever they want. Not sure if they will, but that was an indication to me that I need to expand that line.

I am really enjoying sewing and I think that is the direction I am leaning, but if I am going to continue with the aprons and add the tote bags and things I will eventually need a new machine.

I am at a crossroad right now and haven't quite decided what direction I am going to go. I know for a fact that I will be crafting forever...now I just have to decide what to craft and what not to craft.

I know it's all a matter of what I love to do, but what if I love to do a lot or what if I don't know what I love the most? Then what?

Have you ever hit that place? What did you do? I am open to any and all suggestions.....

It's Getting Better

Well, we are back from the craft show and I am exhausted so this is going to be short. It actually went pretty well. Once again the sales weren't super, but I used Tresa's suggestions and definitely saw a difference. It was a pretty good show too. There were people around all day long. I wasn't in the main area, but still had plenty of traffic.

I sold a few cake stands, a pillow, a couple of sets of coasters, some switchplates and even some pin cushions! I either have to get a nice display stand for my cards, or not even bring them. People won't take the time to flip through them in a display box. Not sure what to do about the photos either.

My next show is an indoor show in September. Irv and I talked today about what kind of displays we want to create. It will be entirely different than the outdoor shows under a tent. I'm thinking, dog eared cedar fence panels painted white for a oouple of the walls so we could hang shelves on them. The space at the next show is only 8 X 10....that isn't a lot of room.

Well friends, I have got to go get my jammies on and chill out for a while. We are going over to Michael and Bernadette's house tomorrow morning. They closed and moved in on Friday. It's their first house and they are so excited! I am so excited for them!!

Have an awesome evening and I'll chat with you tomorrow!