Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Etsy Progress:)

Hi all! Just wanted to pop in and share what's been going on with my Etsy store since I went "live" a little over two weeks ago (August 8). When I first launched it, I did lots of promoting on Facebook and Instagram just to get people aware of what I was up to. Fortunately I have some awesome people in my life who have looked and shared and all that good stuff, so I've been able to get some traffic to the site! At this point, I have 871 views, which is actually really good! Since Etsy is filled with hundreds of thousands of items, it's actually not the easiest to be randomly found through the site itself. They really emphasize the importance of using keywords so that people can find you when they search for certain items. Needless to say, I've done LOTS of research on it and have worked very hard to ensure this isn't all for nothing. Anyway, in just a couple short weeks, I've made three sales. Woohoo!!! A big, HUGE thank you to my sister-in-law Casey for being my very first sale! She bought these lovely little envelopes:


Shortly after Casey bought those, I received a message on Etsy from a girl in Pennsylvania who really liked one of my banners and was wondering if I could make it in a different color scheme. After running to the store to buy some stuff that fit her needs, I came up with a few options, sent her some photos, and the rest is history. She absolutely loved what I came up with, and so I was able to successfully complete my first custom order! Here are a few pictures, and I've also decided to sell it in my store to others as well!

Find it here!


She even sent me a thank you email and a picture with the banner up in her room. How fun!

Oddly enough, the same day she officially bought her banner, another totally random person simply bought two packages of my blue confetti (1,200 pieces in each pack). Because I was leaving for a long weekend, I spent my Wednesday night last week punching 2,400 circles out of cardstock. Whew, that was a long night and a sore hand! ;) I was able to pack up and ship out the confetti before the weekend though, so hopefully she will be happy to have received it sooner than expected! Below is a picture of what she bought and how I packaged it!


Last but not least, as I mentioned in a previous post, I was planning to take some items to the store called The Regal Find to see if they would be interested in selling some of my stuff. I did that last Wednesday, and she took 17 of my items to start with! I only have one item of everything made up at this point, so she cleared my 'ready to ship' stock. Totally fine by me! :) So that's craziness, folks. I have sold stuff on Etsy, and I've also got some stuff in a store in hopes that it will sell! I may go in there at some point this week to see my stuff out in the store; it's still pretty trippy for me to think about, so I'd love to see it actually happening! Below is what I packaged up the night before.

Here is a picture of all the stuff she took from me at the store. I'm still so excited! I'll find out in the next week or two if I sold anything. In the meantime, I'm just happy my stuff is out there for people to see. I'll let you know if I end up stopping in or selling anything.

Hope to keep the momentum going - may be a little more challenging because the school year will be really crazy for me in the beginning. That being said, I'm going to try reallllllllly hard to not lose site of this because it makes me super happy. Wish me luck, friends! And don't forget to PartyHappier:).

Friday, August 8, 2014

I'm LIVE on Etsy!

So, you've seen me posting a lot recently about making crafts and wanting to sell on Etsy and all that good stuff. Well, I'm doing it. It's official! I have been working hard over the last month or so to take pictures and create listings and do my research on how to hopefully make this work for me. (Well, I've been doing that research a lot longer than a month, but the process has been really amped up over the last month.) Anyway, I have a bunch of products made and am super pumped about the fact that I went 'live' with several things for others to see - and hopefully buy! I know it's not magic, and I'd love for it if a million people found my stuff and started buying immediately. Reality is, that's not going to happen. Not without a little help from my friends;). So, if you're curious about my shop and want to see what I've been up to, please feel free to check it out: www.partyhappier.etsy.com.

Here's a snapshot of some of the stuff on my home screen!

I came up with PartyHappier as my shop name because I felt like it really captured what I want my items to do. Whether it's note card sets, banners, confetti, or whatever else I come up with, I want nothing more than to brighten people's days! Nothing wrong with partying a little happier and enjoying life, right?! :) I hope you enjoy what I have to offer, and please, please feel free to pass along the word to people you think might like these items! Stay tuned, because trust me when I say I have LOTS more on the way! :)

Even if I never sell a darn thing, at least I can rest easy in the fact that I have loved every minute of creating these awesome items. Feels wonderful to tap into my creative side! :) Thanks to all my friends and family for all the support! It means the world to me. PartyHappier, ya'll!

Thursday, August 7, 2014

My Heart!

In case anyone forgot, I just wanted to remind you that I really, reallllllllly like this guy! :) We have such a great time together, all the time, and I couldn't be happier to have him in my life. No special occasion or 'reason' for this post, other than to just tell the world I'm a lucky lady! I hope everyone in life finds someone as special as I have. <3

Friday, August 1, 2014

Sneak Peek!

Hi friends! I hope you are all doing well. I am doing pretty darn good, but I will admit that I'm absolutely terrified by the fact that it is August 1 today.  One more month and school begins again. Ahhhhh. Why, WHY must the summer always go so fast?! I hate it. It's funny, I work in a school (by choice), and I oddly think I dread the start of the school year now more than I did when I was a kid in school. Weird! ;)

Fortunately for me, the summer has allowed me to really take some time and focus in on my crafting stuff. I have NO idea what will come of it, but I've been having so much fun making all sorts of goodies. I've even started making all my draft listings in Etsy, and hopefully within the next week or so, I'll be able to go LIVE! Eeeeeeeeee! I don't know if anyone will want my stuff, or if they'll even find it amongst all the other stuff on Etsy, but that's not going to stop me from trying! :) I've been working really hard on getting my listings ready to go - good descriptions, eye-catching pictures, keywords galore - in hopes that it will help people find me! You best believe I'll share the link with you once I have something to show! In the meantime, I just wanted to give you a sneak peek of some of my creations. Enjoy!


Neon Citrus Confetti (Above)
Pastel Confetti (Below)
No real name for the above one, but I love how bright and sassy it is! :)
Pink Chevron Collection:).
Rainbow Stripes & Dots!

That's all you get for now. Stay tuned for much more! :)