What Stops Good Ideas From Happening?

Creating an award-winning, top-ten blog is fairly formulaic.

Step 1: Start the blog
Step 2: Work your tail off

But if the process of creating an amazing blog seems so simple, why don't we all do it?

I have a feeling it's similar to working out. You know how when you first start a new exercise program it feels energizing and rewarding? And then at some point (when we get sick or hit a plateau) we take a little break or stop working out as frequently. Then months go by and we're back where we started, debating whether to buy larger jeans or start a new, more exciting regimen (not that I'm, ahem, speaking from experience or anything).

For example, how many times have you seen (or written) "I know it's been a while since I've posted, but…."

At my previous job, one of the questions we frequently asked ourselves was "what stops good ideas from happening?" We found that starting a project can often feel like a sugar high. Everything is "go go go!" Then something happens (funds run out, life changes) and the sugar low hits. You sink into that valley and instead of rising back up, you back up or switch directions.

I hit the low point with full-time-piddix about six weeks in. Sales just weren't coming in like I had planned and our financial situation was getting a little scary. Then I took a good look at the options: head back to my previous job and see if they had any work for me, or recommit myself to making a go of full-time-crafting. I weighed my options and decided to move forward (and haven't looked back since).

I think the moment when we're first truly tested during a new undertaking--whether it be a business, blog, or new body--is absolutely critical, and where so many of my own projects falter (new jeans, here I come). In part it's the sugar-syndrome of newness. Crafty "Sister Diane" has a great podcast with Scott Belsky, author of Making Ideas Happen. In it they highlight why it's so exciting for creative individuals to start new projects, but equally difficult for them to complete them. Belsky's solutions include increasing focus, making goals public, creating opportunities for feedback, and plain "old-fashioned passion and perspiration."

If you look back at the top of this post, you'll notice I said that starting an award-winning, amazing blog is formulaic. I didn't say it was easy. As one of my favorite sayings goes, "if it was easy, everyone would do it." My own blog definitely does not fit into the top-10 category; nor do I have plans to make it happen. When starting any project, it won't always be easy. You will have ups and downs. There will be failure, as well as success. The trick then becomes how to sustain, how to persevere when roadblocks occur.

Over the next few weeks I'll be checking in with some crafty folks who are in various stages of their own endeavors, asking about their own goals and how they addressed--or plan to address--the critical moments that make or break a project. And of course my sneaky, ulterior motive is that by making their goals public, we can help provide that positive peer pressure and feedback that I think can be so essential for success.

So how about you? Have you ever felt that make-or-break moment? What do you think stops good ideas from happening? And what can we personally do to find and sustain success?

The Great Divide

One of the more difficult tasks put forth in my small business class was to create a divide between my business and personal life. I've failed miserably in most areas. My office has moved backed to the middle of my home. I have no set business hours. I drag Declan on all my business errands (not that he minds trips to craft stores too much, but still).

I have learned one trick that works amazingly, though. I set up a separate business phone number. It's through googlevoice. It's free (which is awesome). I can forward it to my cell phone, set up a separate voicemail, create different responses during different hours. It even emails me a text translation of any messages I receive. And I feel way more professional being able to hand out a business phone number when needed. Now I'm sounding like a commercial. But hey, it does rock, so I thought I'd pass along the tip. Here's the details.

Full Time Crafting Six Months In

Two months before I "Quit My Day Job" in March 2009, piddix had its biggest sales month ever. At the time I had lunch with an etsy friend and told her my goal was to double those sales within a year, and I had enough savings to act as a safety net during the growth period. She commented that it might take the full year to reach my goal; but I inwardly scoffed that it would take that long. After-all, my sales had been climbing steadily for a while, I had taken classes, I was prepared (or so I thought)...

Then "Wham!;" I ran into four months of fairly low sales, which were both scary and depressing. To top if off, my husband was laid off from his job at the beginning of June. It was looking bleak for piddix. I immediately went to my old non-profit organization, one that I sill love and admire, to see if they had any work for me. See, they still had my old position open, and I always had it in the back of my mind that until they hired someone new, I could always go back, with hat in hand, and help out there. Fortunately for both of us (and you'll see why in a minute), they were in the middle of a hiring freeze. They could offer some contract work, which would help me pay the bills for a bit, but nothing permanent.

Rather than be sad or stressed at the news, I found myself rather relieved. At that moment I realized that I truly loved working on piddix. I loved working from home. I loved being able to scan books and play trains with Declan at the same time. Every aspect of the business--from marketing to designing new products--still fascinated me. While I had left a very nice job with wonderful people and benefits, rather than the traditional mind-numbing cubicle work that is easier to leave, I was still having more fun working for myself, on my own terms.

So I intensified my efforts with piddix (thanks Mom and Dad for the extra babysitting) and thankfully, this past August was a new record for piddix sales, and September looks good so far.

I've learned a million things in the process. The two that stand out at the moment are:

1. Know your sales trends. If I had paid much closer attention to my sales trends over the past several years, and done some additional research, I would have noticed that the February through May are traditionally a very slow time for selling supplies, since everyone has already finished up their holiday craft fairs but hasn't yet started on their summer activities. That knowledge would not only have factored into my plans of when to leave my "day" job, but also cushioned my ego, too. Now that I'm tracking the ups and downs better, I can be financially and emotionally prepared for both.

2. Try Everything. A friend of mine calls this the "shotgun approach," since I'm basically shooting a bunch of ideas out and hoping one of them will hit its mark. Or, as a member of my board of directors puts it, I'm wandering around in the dark hoping for brief moments of illumination. I may at some point write an entire post on the 243 things that I have tried in the last seven months--from the hand-letterpressed thank you cards I made to send with my packages (which are still sitting unused on my shelf), to the four different collaborations I've tried (two great, one so-so, and one still in the works). Needless to say I wouldn't suggest this for anyone else. A more surgical, practiced approach would save a bunch of time. But it actually worked well for me. Of the 243 ideas that I tried, about five worked very, very well and are responsible for my current sales record. I would never have found them without the other 238.

So, as always, wish me luck. It's been very nice to have a bit of an emotional and financial boost this past month or so. And looking forward I'm hoping that the "ups" outnumber the "downs."

A Quick Marketing Idea for Crafters

I recently scored a sweet copy of Bread & Badger's marketing e-book, which I am quite excited to thoroughly read soon. But before I do I thought I would share a quick and easy tip that I have used to receive a decent amount of publicity for piddix.

How to Be a Spokesmodel

Do you have a product that you absolutely love? I've had very good response by offering to write up a testimonial or be a media reference. If you're specific, and even give examples of what you might say, chances are it might lead to something.

For example, several years ago I took an amazing business class through MercyCorpsNW. I really can't say enough good things about my experience. I had mentioned the class in a storque article on piddix and in a blog post, and so I sent the links to my MeryCorps contacts and concluded my email with the following paragraph:

"Also, if you ever need some quotes from participants for filling out the grant reports or anything, feel free to use this: Going through the MercyCorps NW IDA small business program was incredibly helpful for my crafting business, piddix llc. I learned critical information at every class from instructors who were incredibly knowledgeable and helpful, and I came away with a concrete plan for how to sustain and grow my digital image business. Almost immediately I began seeing the results of my new focus, and within three months I had doubled my income from piddix. Thank you so much for offering such a helpful program."

By emailing them articles where I talked about their program, as well as a sample testimonial, the folks at MercyCorpsNW were able to get a good idea of what I would say in an interview. And they took me up on the offer. I was interviewed as one of their "featured business." Plus, piddix was also highlighted in the new printed MercyCorps brochure.

When looking for places to pitch your "testimonial," think a little outside the box and look for organizations that already feature other businesses. For example, both my electric company and local hospital highlight a different customer each month in their printed newsletters. Constant Contact, whom I use for my e-newsletter, publishes regular "success stories" and says they are always looking for organizations to showcase.

And the easier you can make it for them, the more likely someone would be to respond. I often include a link to my "office" flickr photos or media-ready samples. I know from personal experience working as a journalist that you're often writing at the last minute and trying to fill space. Items such as pre-written quotes or readymade photos help greatly.

Finally, if you do include a sample quote or if they ask you to write one up, be sure to mention the name of your business several times. Especially for online posts, this is a great opportunity for them to link back to your website.

While being featured by your electric company may not seem as glamorous as somewhere like modish, think of the thousands and thousands of people who will see your smiling face and learn about your business. Plus, there's way less competition, and you never know who may be reading it.

How Much Money Will I Make Selling on Etsy?

Call me materialistic (or perhaps practical), but whenever I start researching a new online venture, one of the first things I want to know is "How much money will I make?" It helps me determine whether the new site -- say istock photo -- is worth some of my interest and time. And if so, what are realistic goals to set for attention spent, income potential, and growth. And frankly, I can never find the answer.

So without further ado, here are some completely reliable and some completely guessed-at etsy stats.

If you are relatively new to etsy and have a nice, but somewhat common product (such as wire-wrapped earrings) with decent but not great photographs and spend 10-15 hours per week on your shop, you annual gross income from etsy will be:

$512.72

Yep, that's all. And that's before expenses. It's less than $1 per hour, and you'd make more money weatherizing your house or cutting out an extra latte here and there.

But wait, if you instead have a somewhat unique item, with great photographs and spend more than 20 hours per week, you could make up to:

$3618.13 per year

Which really isn't too bad, but again, there are much easier ways to make money. Like having a couple of great garage sales or clipping a whole lot of coupons.

Okay, okay, but what if you get really, really lucky, have a completely amazing product, work 80-100 hours per week and become one of the top etsy sellers? Can you really Quit Your Day Job and support your whole family?

Sort of.

Last year, the top three handmade sellers on etsy each grossed around $100,000. Several supply shops probably did even better. But after that, it drops off pretty quickly, with most other sellers in the top 100 making closer to $10,000. With about 90,000 active etsy sellers (according to a recent etsy talk), your odds of making $10,000 per year are better than winning $10,000 through the PowerBall, though not by a ton.

So if you're not in it for the money, why in the world would anyone want to sell on etsy? Quite frankly, it's fun. It's a community of other creative women. It's flexible--and can be done from home, as a second "job," or while little ones nap. People will pay you for your arts and crafts, which is greatly rewarding. And even a smallish amount of additional income can sometimes make a big difference. Plus, in addition to direct income, your etsy shop can help bring recognition to your goods outside of etsy, such as wholesale accounts and blog mentions.

There's been quite a bit of talk lately about whether etsy is a "female ghetto," or promoting a false sense of hope of the ability to make a living from crafts. I find that most of these articles are filled with inaccuracies and generalizations. At the same time, I think it's important to have realistic goals of what etsy specifically can do for you. Piddix is currently #6 in sales in the handmade category, and while honestly I could make significantly more money in less time at a "day job," I wouldn't trade it in. In no way is etsy a way to get rich quick, but with way too much work and hopefully an equal amount of fun, it can definitely be a way to supplement an income by doing something you find rewarding.

Going Up: Taking Your Craft Business to the Next Level

How to expand piddix is the main question that has been haunting me this past year. In other words, once you've reached a plateau, how can you take your business to the next level? In addition to taking a class for entrepreneurs through MercyCorpsNW and writing up a business plan, there were three main areas where I looked for my answer:

1. I asked just about anyone I could for advice (see my post on it here).

2. I read numerous books, articles, blogs, etc. about the major pitfalls and best practices for expansion. The book Profit from the Core, for example, really hammered home the idea that businesses who spread themselves too thin--who take on too many new ventures outside of their normal focus--most often fail. (Though the book, written in 2001, did question amazon's "new" strategy of selling more than just books. So obviously new ventures can definitely pay off if done well.)

3. And finally, I did a SWOT analysis, which proved to be very helpful in analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of myself and my competitors.

SWOT -- Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats

My simplified version of the standard SWOT analysis essentially compared piddix to my competitors, look at my business assets, and tried to come up with a way to address my weak areas. It went something like this:

Strengths: My images are legal and a very high quality.
Action: When several competitors came on the market a while back with illegal, cheaper, and lower quality images, I wrote a blog post about how I research copyright. I also changed my shop announcement and item listings to reflect my research and restoration process. This seems to have worked well.

Weaknesses: I'm a slow designer. I take a very long time to research copyright and restore images. I'm also darn stubborn.
Action: I took several graphic design classes and learned a new software to be able to make the collage sheets more quickly (and be able to respond to custom requests). That's been mixed. I've learned a ton of great new techniques, but I'm still so much slower than others. For example (and this is where my stubbornness comes in), I know that I probably should just repeat more images in each collage sheet and not worry about lining everything up perfectly, since it's the quick little happy sheets that are selling well for my competitors right now. But I am stubbornly holding onto spending hours and hours making each new sheet--little tiny tweaks sometimes that may not even be noticed. I justify this to myself by saying that my customers appreciate the high quality and that's why they come back. At the same time, though, it's tough to see others' "quick sheets" selling three times as fast. Hmmmm.

Opportunities: Even though I sell mostly smaller images in the one- to two-inch range, I have thousands of larger scans just sitting on my computer. I also have many of the original colored plates that I have removed from books, vintage postcards that I've scanned, and vintage ephemera just sitting on my shelves.
Action: I put some of my original ephemera for sale on etsy with only limited success. And I don't think my assemblage sets have sold once. I have also started an area on my instant site for as-scanned larger images as well as a commercial section. With all of these ventures, I think I would need to put more energy and time into building up these new products, but it may also pull me too far away from my "core." We'll see how these develop.

Threats: This is the scary part. Collage sheets (which are my main product) are relatively easy to create poorly. You can grab a bunch of images off of websites and fill up a store quickly. Even shops that create legal, original designs can bring hundreds of items over from an ebay store or other venue and go from newbie to top seller within a couple of months. The very precarious nature of selling on etsy, and the fact that almost all of piddix's income is based on etsy sales, is worrisome.
Action: I am slowly diversifying where I sell, adding other online venues that may add some cushion. Again, I hope this won't spread piddix too thin. And since most folks who try piddix once become repeat customers, I am working to thank and further support my repeat customers through things like my newsletter and subscription.

Wow, in the end I've put way more personal and business information into this post than I had intended. It's obviously something on my mind quite a bit. Though I sometimes worry that I'm giving too much information away to my competitors, I figure it's what you do with the information that counts. Hopefully you can create your own SWOT and see which ventures may help build up your core.

The piddix Board of Directors

Before I left The ReBuilding Center to work on piddix full-time, I went out to lunch with two friends who both had run their own businesses for several years. I asked about working from home, and whether they had any regrets about leaving a more stable income. The advice and support they offered was invaluable.

One of the challenges of running a business by myself has been the lack of an immediate sounding board. I can't turn to my co-worker and say, "which one looks better," or "what do you think of this new idea?" To compensate, I've gotten pretty good at asking anyone who will listen--from best friends to the man sitting next to me on the airplane--for advice on whatever question has been plaguing me at the moment.

During this process I've come up with two tricks to help get the best advice possible while also not wasting anyone's time.

First, I have a pretty good "elevator" speech that summarizes piddix. This includes:
1. What piddix does.
2. The mission of piddix.
3. My products and pricing.
4. Who my customers are.
5. Who my competition is and how piddix is different.

This summary can be said in anywhere from one to 45 minutes depending on the situation. Once the person has a basic idea of my business, I then ask the one question that I'm wrangling with, which lately has been on the subject of the best ways to grow piddix as a business.

This brings up my second trick:

Ask about your weaknesses and their strengths.

If you are great with color, don't bother someone asking about different combinations--you'll just get advice that you won't necessarily agree with or need. Instead, ask about areas where they are by far the expert.

For example, I went out to dinner recently with a group of High School friends, many of whom have MBAs from fancy-pants universities and have in-depth knowledge of businesses practices. I know piddix pretty well: what images my customers will like, how to write about my products, and so on. But I have never taken a college-level business class. What I wanted to know from them, after they had heard about piddix, were basic business practices for growth; "rules of thumb," if you will, about the best ways to expand into new markets or increase product offerings. Once again the advice was unbelievably helpful, perhaps even more-so since this large group was able to bounce ideas off one another and brainstorm on the spot. Honestly, if I had paid to bring them all together as professional consultants, it would have cost me thousands of dollars. But by having my quick speech and question ready, I received great tips that are shaping the direction of piddix's future.

These amazing groups and individuals--whom I consider my informal Board of Directors--have become an essential part of piddix and I couldn't do it without them.

Building Sandcastles (or how to turn my craft business around)

I can pinpoint the exact moment that things started to turn around for piddix. I was sitting at my computer in Hawaii (long story) thinking about all of the pros and cons of running my own business. Things were looking pretty bleak. Then something happened: As I was tallying up all the positives of working from home (including being in Hawaii) I decided that this is what I want to do. I committed to piddix. Even if that meant postponing student loans and eating a lot of rice while things got off the ground.

In many ways that moment of commitment was exactly what I needed. That day I taught myself a new graphic design program and started a whole new line of more modern collage sheets. I sent out my then-quarterly newsletter and have continued sending it out every week or two. And I also started doing some advertising--something that, despite my preconceptions, has actually worked pretty well for bringing in new visitors. Oh, and I threw my to-do list out the window and have instead started listening to my gut about how to prioritize each day.

Piddix is far from safe. I feel like I'm building some massive structure out of toothpicks, ice cubes and the occasional sand bag. I keep adding different parts, shoring up others, all while the tide is rising. But for the moment the precarious structure that is piddix is holding off the floodwaters--hopefully for long enough to find a long-term solution to making piddix work.

I'll leave you with a Henry Thoreau quote that was on my office wall for many years and seems especially appropriate at the moment:

"If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost. There is where they should be. Now put foundations under them."

Full-Time Crafting Six Weeks In

I had a friend ask me this weekend how running my own business full-time is going, and honestly I have to reply that it's somewhat mixed. It's been about six weeks since I left my non-profit job to work on piddix full-time. I of course had dreams of 1) making enough money to support my family, 2) getting to spend more time with friends, 3) working out more and eating healthy, and 4) having a better work-life balance. So what's the reality? I feel like me two-year-old when he says "It's haaaaaaard."

Around the time I left my "day job," piddix's sales dropped dramatically. We questioned whether to still go ahead with piddix full-time and decided to take the leap, betting that the increased hours I'd be able to put into it would make up the difference and we could live on savings while things grew. February and March are typically my slowest months and this was especially true this year. Savings were getting eaten up more quickly than planned and it's definitely on the scary side.

Since then, I've come out with several new lines of collage sheets, different items in the shop, and a couple of marketing campaigns. Things are sloooowly coming around. Whether it will happen before savings run out is still to be determined. To make up for the lower income we've also cut back on a ton of expenses and this will be hard, especially, on my family as things like new shoes or a dentist appointment become luxuries. I feel very supported but also don't want to be selfish in my pursuits of new challenges.

On the other hand, I've actually made it to bed before midnight a couple of times--which was unheard of while I was working two jobs. I feel significantly more rested and have discovered that I'm a better mom and a generally more happy person when I get 8 hours of sleep. I've been seeing friends and neighbors more. And the funny thing is that now that we have less income it actually makes me rely on other people more (in a good way). Since we can't afford to hire any extra help, I'll be trading babysitting, nights-out, dog sitting, extra produce, and hand-me-downs with friends and neighbors.

Other highs and lows come and go. I miss my former co-workers much more than I expected and working from home can sometimes be challenging. At the same time I'm so excited about the new work I'm doing, a new book coming out with piddix images in it, the design classes I'm taking, a potential article in USA Today, my new twitter account, and on and on. It feels great to be able to focus on one kind of work instead of spreading myself too thin.

What's next? That's the big question. At this point my main goal is to stabilize income and expenses so that we're not hemorrhaging savings. If that can be accomplished within the next couple of weeks then I see great potential for future expansion. As always, wish me luck.

One Question: How to Submit Your Jewelry and Crafts to Magazines

This week's "one question" goes out to the lovely Jes of Junque Revival, whose jewelry has been featured in several national publications, including three different articles in Belle Amoire Jewelry Magazine. Jes also has a blog and a weekly column on Indie Public called "She Dreams of Art."One Question: "What advice and tips would you give to someone who wants to submit their jewelry for publication?"

Answer:
JUST DO IT! No seriously. For the longest time I put off submitting with excuses, "I'm just too busy right now," or "I just don't feel like I'm there yet." My online artsy friends kept telling me that I should and I'd give them the same old tired lines as well. I know I thought I wasn't good enough, and I know a lot of artists struggle with this as well. I was lucky enough to have the editor of Belle Armoire contact me and ask me to submit, but I should have done it long before. Not everything I submit gets taken, but I just look at that as part of the job. You can always build your confidence by starting a little smaller. There are some wonderful art-zines out there that are always looking for new art. Just google "art zine" and find what's best for you.

I think that if you believe in yourself and your art the rest will follow.

TIPS FOR SUBMITTING:
1. Look online for magazine guidelines and submission dates. Copy and hang it in your studio.
2. Please be sure your work is unique and that you are not sending in pieces that are similar to other artists.
3. Go the extra mile. Your piece is looking fabulous. You think it might be good enough to submit, but is there one more little tweak you could do to put it right over the edge?
4. Read and follow all guideline submission directions carefully.
5. JUST DO IT!

Using Collaboration to Widen Your Market and Increase Sales

Collaborating with a fellow etsy seller can be a very effective way to diversify your market and product line. I've had a full range of partnerships including one very effective scrabble tile tutorial with littleputbooks that increased my sales by 30% last summer, a collage sheet with beautiful photos by doubleyouEm that sadly went nowhere, a glass pendant tutorial launched today with AnnieHowes, and a super-secret one in the works with one of the top sellers on etsy. But where do you start? Read on for my step-by-step tips on how to make it work for you.

Glass pendant tutorial by Annie Howes with images by piddix

Finding Your Partner
Some of the most natural combinations involve shops with similar styles but different products. This could be licensing an artist's image to make into mousepads or pendants, or commissioning embroidered custom bags for your dog treats. Perhaps one shop makes scarves to match another's earrings. What makes these stand out as collaborations is first, there was an intentional discussion between two makers of how to create the final product. And second, each shop promotes the other through the item description.

Monkey Coasters by MirrorGirl with Art by Matthew Porter

When looking for someone to partner with, think about what you make and what would go well with it (like Chocolate and Peanut Butter, as Annie Howes says). Avoid a shop with items that are too similar. Two journal makers, for example, would simply be promoting to the same audience. But one person who makes handmade paper and another who fashions journals might be perfect together. Look for a shop with a similar theme or style to make sure that the customers of one shop will be interested in the items of the other. Also, since your reputation will in some ways be tied together, check out their feedback and number of items sold before contacting them.

Ryan Berkley illustrations on TinyMeat wallets.

There's even some shops, such as TinyMeat, that have an entire process for how to submit your custom images.

Tips for First Contact
Once you've come up with some ideas, make a prioritized list of potential collaborators. Starting at the top, send a convo that lays out your idea, how it might work, and links to your blog, shop, or articles. The more detailed your proposal, the more seriously the person may take you. But also be sure to allow or flexibility. After all, this is a partnership, and some of the best ideas may come down the road as you plan together. If you haven't heard back in a week, send a polite "just checking in," then move on to number two a few days later.

Mouse pad by MyFavoriteMirror with image from TheBlackApple.

Get it in Writing
Now that you've started a dialogue, the fun part starts. Open communication is key to your success, so be sure to discuss all of the details and specifics up-front such as:

• Payment
• Link trading and other cross-promotions
  
• Setting a time limit
• Exclusivity
  

And if you've discussed your details over the phone or coffee, it's best to confirm them all in writing via convo or email. Then if something comes up later you'll have a record of what you've agreed upon.

Scrabble pendant by Home Studio with image from JOYPOPstudio.

Payment
There's many different ways to go about this. You may buy the rights to an image or a custom supply with payment upfront. Perhaps you agree on a percentage basis or dollar amount per sale (say, $1 per pendant or wallet). Or even offering the same items in both shops, with each person responsible for their own order fulfillment, such as these lovely pendants from Irene Suchocki and Heartworks by Lori.
Cross Promotions

Cross promotion can include links or mentions in item listings, item names, shop announcements, newsletters, blogs, tags on the item itself, and so on--so it's best to be as specific as possible about what each person expects. For me, I've found I get the best exposure from being in another person's shop announcement. Something simple like "check out my new collaboration with piddix here...." can send hundreds of views to my shop. I ask for a minimum of two months where we both link back to each others shops, with a possible extention if all goes well, plus my shop name in the item title and a link in the description. Keep in mind the possible ramifications of wholesaling as well. For example if your customized doll clothes will be sold on handmade dolls in brick and mortar shops, consider asking for a link to your shop on the hang tag.

Dark Hamlet necklace by JenniferRydinDesigns with image by Immortal Longings.

A Few Last Tips
Other items to consider include whether you'd want to set a time limit on your collaboration, or at minimum a set time down the road (three to six months) where you officially reevaluate the relationship to make sure it's working for both of you. Also think about how hands-on you want to be. Do you want to evaluate every posted item that you collaborate on before it goes live? And finally think about exclusivity. If you hand dye slips that another artist then silkscreens, do you want them to work with other clothing sellers as well? What about other fabric collaborations? Would you work with other silk screeners? There's no right answers to these questions, but it's helpful to be as upfront as possible to avoid bruised feelings down the road.

Tutorial and pendant by AnnieHowes.

Above all remember that collaboration is not only be a way to increase sales or make some extra money. It should also be creative and fun as you bounce ideas and techniques off of other crafters and come up with something that neither of you could have created on your own.

Kiss magnet by RunAliceRun with image from CindyG.

Eating Dessert First? How I prioritize my day.

I'm a big proponent of eating dessert first. Here's my flawless logic: I look at my plate and eat the thing I like the most first. Then I look at it again, and then pick (from what's left) what I like the most and eat that. That way, I'm always eating the absolute yummiest thing that's available right away. Makes sense, right?

But this doesn't work so well for running a business. I'd be surfing lots of fun blogs all day long and checking out other etsy stores while my taxes, health insurance bill, and messy desk would be left on my proverbial plate.

So instead what I have to do is the old "eat your broccoli first, then you get dessert." Borrowing a trick from the Four Hour Work Week, I come up with a list of one to two major items each day to finish. I write these down either the night before, or perhaps even laying out my whole week on Sunday night.

This way, I can jump right in and get the most important tasks done for the day, and if there's time left, I can do the more fun aspects of my job. It keeps me focused, but also makes me work faster and more efficiently since I'm trying to finish up.

For example, here's my to-do list for today:

1. Send out at least one press release.
2. Write a blog post.
3. Create new sampler sheet for super-secret distribution.

And if I'm able to finish up quickly, then I can eat my yummy dessert and current addiction, the weekly "Quit Your Day Job" post on etsy's blog. I can't wait!

So I Quit My "Day" Job

Today is my first official day as a full-time, work-from-home crafter. When I tell people I left my nice, non-profit, part-time job (with benefits) in this economy, most people seem to think I'm a smidge brave and mostly insane. If you've read the etsy Storque article on piddix, you know that I've been trying to balance two 30-hour-a-week jobs plus be home with my son four days per week. It had finally reached the point where something had to give.

Over the past two years piddix has grown from a hobby to a real, grown-up business with Quickbooks and all. Designer AshleyG has said about her amazing etsy shop "our time is directly proportional to our income." During the next 30 days I'll be sharing different tips that I've learned along the way, plus try to answer the question of whether, by putting more time, energy, and resources into my crafting business it can take off and thrive.

Wish me luck.