Virginia Is For Lovers

I've really been enjoying my stay in Shenandoah, Virginia. My grandma and I have been going through a lot since losing my grandpa but together we are getting through it. My heart has always belonged to the valley and I have been seriously considering a longer stay. I have the advantage of running my own business online. This means that I can pack up whatever I need to and go where ever I feel like going for as long as I desire. This freedom has allowed me to help my grandma in her greatest time of need. It makes me glad that I decided to follow my heart instead of submitting to the idea that the only way to make a living is by going to work for someone else in a retail store (or something like that).

So far I've been doing very well for myself. My collaboration with another Etsy shop is continuing, albeit with a few disadvantages with the distance but we are working it out through trial and error. There are many people that pass through this house and my grandma loves showing off everything that I make. She's my best promoter! Many of the people that I've met are interested in lessons. I'm sure that I could teach them in the house. It would be really great if I could get that part of my life back. I really miss teaching.

The landlady for the house also owns all of the buildings on the block. There are a lot of empty business spaces available in the gorgeous historic town of Shenandoah. I would very much love to open a yarn shop. It would be perfect in keeping with the aesthetic of an old train station town. She seemed to be really into the idea of having a yarn shop in the area. With all of the crafty people around, I should have no problem having people consign a few of their pieces. This will also be a great way to bring awareness to some of my favorite charities involving yarn. I really hope that this can happen!

I do have to be realistic. The chances of this shop coming to life are slim to none. I have no collateral for the bank, I have no money saved up, I don't have a business license (I would need a new one for the shop anyway), and I have no credit. There are a million things working against me right now. That doesn't mean that this dream of mine is impossible. I'll look into all of my options before I give up.

Top 6 Apps I Use For My Business

Here's a quick list of apps that I use everyday for my business. I'll give a brief description of each and touch on what I like specifically. Some of these are pretty standard and some of these I've mentioned before in other blog posts. Some of these apps are available on both smartphones and tablets, some are not. For simplicity's sake, I use these apps on my Android phone exclusively therefore I will include links to each app from the Play Store.

6. Kies Air by Samsung Electronics

If you have an Android phone, then you'll need to have this app in order to share files on your phone and computer with each other. I like the Air version best because I don't have to connect my phone to the laptop and wait forever to be able to save pictures onto my laptop. Everything is organized as it is on your phone, so navigating is simple. I take most of my photos with my phone since the camera is really boss, so this makes things more convenient for me.

5. Pages Manager by Facebook

I run a business page on Facebook and a lot of the time I'm trying to share content from my phone. This allows me to keep track of how my page is doing when I'm not near my laptop. I can fulfill orders easier, communicate with customers easier, and post photos of WIPs and finished products directly.

4. USPS Mobile by the United States Postal Service

This is great for when people don't give their full nine digit zip code when placing an order. A lot of people aren't aware that they need the extra four digits when shipping something, but alas, you do. It makes things simpler for the post officers to organize the massive amounts of mail they receive daily and pin point the exact location of your address. It gets especially more necessary when shipping to a customer living in an apartment complex. Really, this is more for helping the post office than myself, but I do use this app a LOT!

Aside from finding the extra four digits, I calculate shipping rates very frequently. With the steady increase in international shipping, this helps me prepare for what I should expect when paying for the shipping.

3. Time Sheet by Florian Rauscha 

I love this app so much that I made a special blog post for it. Just to reiterate, I enjoy being able to keep track of my progress on how quickly I create an item. Also, it gives me an idea of how much I should charge for my time.

2. The Official Etsy App by Etsy, Inc

This one's a no-brainer. If you have an Etsy shop, you need the Etsy app. I can relist items, create new listings, look at other listings - the works. It has a very simple page setup that helps you keep track of new favorites and likes, sales, and how much money you've profited without having to swipe a lot or jump between pages. Plus, there is a very satisfying *cha-ching* sound every time you sell an item.

1. PayPal Here by PayPal Mobile

I sell at a lot of conventions and farmer's markets. More and more people are now coming to expect local artisans to accept credit cards at their booths and tables. Be prepared to have either the PayPal Here or the Squared Up apps. Both are relatively the same. They charge the same percentage from every transaction and have virtually identical accepted forms of payment and policies. The only main difference is that the PayPal credit card app accepts PayPal payments as far as I know.

Timesheet - Time Tracker App Review

A friend of mine let me in on an app that he's been utilizing with keeping up with his projects. We both run Etsy shops and spend a lot of time creating things. Sometimes we crafty types lose track of the hours spent and aren't exactly sure what to charge for the time we put into our amazing products. Thanks to this app we can now use a simple timer to help keep track of that time for us. There are timer apps out there, but what really sets this app apart is that it separates your projects to help you track your time and you can add how much to pay yourself per hour. You can make several projects and it will organize it all for you and even export it to Microsoft Excel.

Here's what the product description says on the page:

Timesheet allows you the recording of your work with a simple push of a button. You can easily add breaks, expenses and notes. Manage your projects and export your data to Microsoft Excel. Clear overviews and statistics will give you the best working experience.

Here's where the app falls a little short; the app can be a little confusing to navigate around. When I first started playing around with the app it seemed like I could only create one project. When I realized that I had a spelling error that I wanted to fix it took me a few minutes to figure out how to edit the project. After completing the project I wanted to start a new one. I didn't realize that I needed to tap on the top drop menu and select Projects, then hit the add project button. The confusing part is that the add project button is seen on the top of both the Projects and Timesheets pages. Whenever I was on the Timesheets page and I wanted to add a project it wouldn't allow me to edit the name of the project. 

It didn't take too much time to figure my way around the app. I tried tinkering around with the Export, but was unable to e-mail the file to myself. The other options for Exporting are AT&T messaging through the cloud, Bluetooth, E-Mail, G-Mail, LAN, and Wi-Fi Direct. 

One thing that could really bring this app together is an option to take photo progress along with the description of progress. You can keep track with your overall happiness with your projects which I'm not really into. I can see how it may be useful for other people, but for me it seems a little useless. 

The best part of this app is that it's FREE! It's available in the Play store for the Android and Tablets. Check it out here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rauscha.apps.timesheet

New Dress Form

I just got this new dress form today! I've been wanting to get this for years. I named her Circe. <3 

I plan to take Circe with me to my craft market on the weekend and to have her pose for my Etsy listings. She's going to look great wearing my wraps and scarves. I'm really excited to start this new friendship! 

Buttons?

My mom told me the other day that one of my relatives wants to give away a bunch of buttons and ribbons. She then asked me if I wanted them or not. I gave her a look as if to say, "Duh" and she said "Oh, right. Why did I even ask." Then she wondered about whether or not I'd like them or not. I told her that it didn't matter because whatever I don't like I could just sell on Etsy or Ebay. She nodded and told me it was a good idea.

So, basically where I'm getting at is that I may come into possession of some buttons and ribbons. If I decide not to keep them then I will make them available for people to buy online. I was thinking about making some "Mystery Grab Bags" because those are fun! I have no idea what these will look like, but I hope that people will be into them!

This will help put me one step closer to my goal of how I wish to run my business. I'm so excited! :D

RIP Hero of Canton Hats

A few people have already heard, but I wanted to make an official statement regarding the situation involving a certain network banning the sales of a certain hat. If you haven't heard, read this (http://io9.com/fox-bans-the-sale-of-unlicensed-jayne-hats-from-firefly-471820413).

Here's what I have to say:
I depend on making these hats to afford to eat. I depend on these hats to keep my business running. No one really buys anything else from my store. Out of the 125 sales on my Etsy shop 76 of those are Jayne hats. That's roughly 61% of my sales.

When fans want to buy a Jayne hat (oops I said it!) they want to buy a handmade one made by a fan for fans. They don't want a machine made hat from a company that hasn't even seen the show or claim to be a fan. ThinkGeek is not at fault here. Too many people were requesting the hat to be sold on there. They were just giving the people what they wanted.

Here's what I don't get. Why didn't they just get a bunch of people who make the hat already with love and passion for the show and pay them? Haven't we taken away enough jobs? There are too many people who make this hat that would love to work for a company like ThinkGeek and provide these hats to true fans of the show, but no we have to manufacture them with a machine. We can't have independent contractors make the hats for a retail website because that's just too complicated.

Here's what I don't get with Fox. Why after ten years do they just now get around to telling people not to sell these hats? Because someone bought the license for it? Because they realize how much money they're losing not having this licensed? To protect the company that bought the license? Because they're tired of hearing people beg them to bring the show back? Because they're Alliance? Whatever their reason, they still have a legal right to protect, but that only goes so far.

"Although characters have an identity, persona, and other expressive elements, clothing, by itself, is considered a useful article, unprotectable under copyright (a principle that's proven a major irritant for clothing designers). In a 1989 case, a court of appeals refused to protect costume designs even though the company had registered its costumes as "soft sculptures" with the Copyright Office. Other decisions reinforced the rule that costumes are not protectable. There may be instances where a movie company that owns a series such as Indiana Jones could complain that your costume sale -- for example, hat, jacket and whip -- could violate trademark laws if you used the name of the character in your advertising... To be safe under trademark principles, avoid any advertising statements that imply endorsement or an official connection with characters or films." - Posted on Whedonesque.

 With this information it seems that I can still sell the hat so long as I use terms that aren't used in the show. But hold on, here's what Fox told Etsy to tell me.

 Etsy received a notice from Kasimira C. Verdi (foxip@fox.com), Director - Intellectual Property for Fox Group Legal. The notice said that Fox is the owner of copyright, trademark and other intellectual property rights in and to the television series FIREFLY (the "Series"), which currently airs on the Science Channel. These rights also include characters, images, designs, slogans and/or other distinctive creative elements of the Series, and the exclusive right to license merchandise in connection with the Series. According to the notice, use of various trademarks, characters, images, designs and/or other distinctive creative elements is not authorized. 

The letter stated that these listing(s) incorporate designs, symbols, language, images, or photographs that infringe upon the concerned party's copyright or other intellectual property right.

So who's in the right here? And who do I talk to so that I can find out? Here's part of the FAQ that they included with the cease and desist letter.

------------------------------

-Q- May I change the design or wording of my listing(s) and
reactivate them?

-A- Etsy cannot offer advice on how to change the listing(s).
Please address any questions concerning this matter to the person
who contacted Etsy (see contact information above) or an
attorney. Do not reactivate these item listings or relist these
items until the issue has been resolved.

------------------------------

An attorney. Because people trying to make a living on Etsy have easy access/can afford those. Oh, but I can try to contact Fox about this matter? Fine. They've been so great about settling this in all of those interviews they've been doing - oh wait, they haven't actually responded to anyone about this situation? Huh.

Here's part of the letter that I found downright insulting and pissed me off more than anything else.

This is a confidential matter, and we request that you not discuss this issue in the Etsy Forums or otherwise violate the confidential nature of this email.

They just took away something that I depended on to provide for myself and keep my business afloat and they expect me to keep my mouth shut? Fuck that. To these corporate asshats a $20 hat might not mean much of a loss for the people who made them. Just like how a certain retro-futuristic sci-fi show didn't mean much to them. All they see is the dollar signs and how they can profit. They don't see how this really affects the people who made the hats.

I've been looking for a job for the past two years and you know how many people actually gave me an interview? One. I got the job, but I only get to work EIGHT FUCKING HOURS A WEEK!!!! I also teach a knitting class every Friday, but I only have two students that actually show up every week and then there are weeks that they can't show up. Not a very stable income. What if these students decide that they're done learning or get to a point that they feel it's too complicated and stop coming to classes? I'm screwed. That's what happens. Does Fox care about my situation? No. Does anybody? It certainly feels that way sometimes, but I do know that I have people in my life that actually gives a shit about me.

I've been paying attention to how the fans have been reacting to this situation and it really fills my heart with pride to be a part of a fandom that genuinely cares for not only the show, but the people who also love the show. The overwhelming support of the Browncoats show that we really are unified and I feel like together we can achieve anything. To anyone reading this, Browncoat or no, thank you. This has been a very stressful couple of weeks for me and my mind is spinning trying to find a way to make this work. There's been a lot of screaming and a lot of tears. Now that I've seen how the fans have been reacting to this I feel like I'm not alone and I might actually be able to find a way to continue making a living.

Contest for Mystik Designs' new logo!

Okay, so I was going to make a video for this, but I think I'll just make a blog instead since I'm all camera shy and stuff. :S

I'm not really happy with my business logo. The background is dark and the letters are too dark for the background. The silhouette has absolutely nothing to do with what I make. It was more of a promise to myself to start making more Victorian Goth/Steampunk looking things which never happened. I still plan to make some things that might be used for that like my cameo chokers, but I digress.

So, the purpose is simple. I need a new logo. I'll be using this new logo for my business cards, buttons, a background for this blog, my business' Facebook profile pic and any tags or displays that I'll put on my products. This is to help establish myself as a brand and make my business actually look like a business and not a hobby. Because you know... it's not a hobby.

Rules:
1. Don't make it look too dark. See what I have now? That's too dark. Don't make the new logo that dark. Anything lighter would look tons better.

2. Don't use artwork from someone else, unless the artist has given express permission to you or to everyone on the internet. We need to respect artists for their time and talent.

3. You can use whatever font you want so long as it's legible. Creating your own font for the logo is highly encouraged.

4. It needs to have both an image and the words "Mystik Designs" and "Magic in every stitch!". You can use the logo above as a reference.

5. Don't make a copy of the logo above. I don't like it. No silhouettes.

6. Make a copy of the logo that can be used for a profile pic. If you want to earn some extra credit you can optionally make a design for business cards, buttons, this blog, or whatever you think I'll need the design for. If you do this, keep in mind that whatever colors you use have to stay uniform. If you make a business card design, I don't need you to enter the info but I will need to see a sample of text.

7. You can enter as many times as you want to. Submit all entries to my business page in a private message. (www.facebook.com/magicineverystitch) I will create a folder on the page that showcases all of the entries.

I encourage all of my artist friends to take part in this and get all of their artist friends to take part also. Usually I have people make submissions and have people vote on it. This time I will be choosing the winner. The contest starts now and will end on June 30th. I will make a decision and announce it that night or on July 1st. The winner will get to choose a hat from my shop up to a $45 value. My cosplay hats are off limits though. Sorry. :(

Here are some size requirements for things that I'll be using the logo for. Keep in mind you only have to make a profile pic and the other things are optional.

Facebook Profile Pic: 180px by 180px and less than 4MB

Facebook Cover Photo: 851px x 315px

Etsy Banner: 760px x 100px and less than 2MB

Blogger Background: 1440px x 720 px  and resolution of 72px per inch.

Price Tags: 2" x 1"

Business Cards: 3.5" x 2"

Happy designing! :D

Meetup

I started going to a group called Athens Area Crafters Become Awesome Business People. It's designed to help people like myself learn more about the business side to running an Etsy shop or crafting business. So far it's been very helpful and fun. I've been taking my very good friend Teenie with me. She helps me with certain things with my business so I figured that it would be just as good for her to go too. Teenie really enjoys these meetings. We get to sit in a coffee shop and listen to great advice while enjoying awesome coffee. The people in the group are really nice and talented.

Today we had Missy Kulik as our "mystery guest speaker" come in and share her story of how she got started making her products and how she grew into the business that she has today. I felt like I learned a lot from what she and her business partner Raoul had to say. I'm very excited to start using their advice and I feel pumped about making some new changes to my business.

I've been wanting to make more clothing. Missy suggested making things that look vintage. She mentioned a place where I could sell it aside from Etsy. Everyone loves vintage on Etsy, so I know it will be a hit. I made a dress yesterday that I'm very proud of. I saw a dress at Wal-mart that I really liked and it was gone when I came back to buy it. I didn't let that keep me from not getting the dress though. I went to Joann's where the patterns and fabric just so happened to be on sale at the time and bought enough stuff to make two dresses. Since the patterns were 5 for $5 I went ahead and bought more stuff for work clothes. The lady that checked me out hooked me up with every single coupon in the sales ad. Even the one for custom framing. They don't even do framing at that location! I wanted to give her the biggest hug for saving me so much money! I felt so loved. <3

I worked really hard on the dress this weekend and I was very proud with the end result. I can't wait to make the second dress. It's going to be black with white polka dots. I love polka dots so much!

Zombie Prom!

I will be selling my wares at the Zombie Prom in association with Indie South Fair. I can't wait! I've been making a lot of Valentine's Day things and hats for guys and gals in preparation for this event. I need to finish a lot of things before hand so I hope I get it all finished in time.

During December I sold a lot of Jayne Hats from Firefly. January I sold a Dr. Who scarf and so far this month I've sold four Harry Potter House scarves. Therefore, February is the month of Potter!

Ravenclaw seems to be the most popular of the four houses. Gryffindor is the second, with Slytherin third and Hufflepuff fourth. I've been thinking about making separate listings for each house and then the alternate first movie edition. I've been making these things for years I just haven't made the listings. 

I know I sound like a broken record when I say this, but I really, really, really need to do a new photo shoot for Etsy, Deviant Art, Ravelry, Facebook and here. I feel like my business could be doing better if I had better photos up. It seems like every chance I get to actually take the pictures it's always raining, foggy, or the people who said that they would help can't. 

Classes are now on Fridays!

I'm going to start doing knitting classes at Hobby Lobby off of Atlanta Hwy in Athens every Friday from 3 pm to 5 pm. I did a demo last Saturday to get the word out there. I got a lot of people to notice me since I was sitting at at a table knitting, but most of the people who talked to me thought that I worked there and asked me where things were. I tried really hard, but only got three people to actually sign the sign up sheet. Several people said that they weren't sure if they could make it, but would try their best. They legitimately seemed interested, but usually it's a nice way of saying "no thanks". I would much prefer it if people said what they really felt. Telling me your opinion won't hurt my feelings. Pretending you care and giving me hope will.

I made a cute flyer for my classes! These will be at the front of the store, so it doesn't have the location on it. I don't really plan on having these flyers anywhere besides the inside of the store that I'll be teaching in.

I've been preparing for the con season that is coming up. Hopefully I'll do as well as I did this past year. Momo Con is coming up and unfortunately I didn't get accepted into the artist alley. Sukoshi Con is next month and they haven't even opened applications for the artist alley yet, but it's pretty scary since the event itself is so close. I've been getting ready for it just in case. AWA is a really big event and it takes all year to get ready for that.

I got a lot of stuff done today. I finished a lime green and black elf hat, a Knives Chau scarf, and a Jayne hat. One of the things that I wish is to actually have a Jayne hat or two available for cons. They're my best seller on my Etsy shop so I know a few people would be interested in buying one at a con. It would be ideal to have a Dr. Who scarf available as well.

First knitting class!

My very first knitting class will be tonight from 5pm-7pm and I'm really nervous. I'm trying to think of ways to teach the class without losing control over everything. Hopefully I'll have a full classroom with really nice people in it. I was thinking of things to give to my students and really drew a blank. I can't give them a starter knitting kit because the whole point of having that class is to have people buy from the store. It's how they make their money. Also, I'm not sure when to collect their money. Before or after the class? If I teach them and then collect their money there's the chance that someone might not have the money and they just got a free class.

Again, I hope it's a bunch of really, really nice individuals. Maybe next week I'll have an idea of what to give my students. I was thinking of a charm bracelet and then adding a charm for each week they show up, but that would be way too expensive. Cute, but costly. I could try to make the bracelets. I'll have to see how much that would be.

Doctor Scarf

I just sold yet another Dr. Who scarf. My shoulder is going to fall right off. This is going to be me for the next few days.

I don't mind it though. I could really use the money. Gotta pay them bills. And eat. Eating's important too. I just wish sometimes that people would commission me for clothing every once in a while.

Shipment Received!

I finally got a hold of my new choker findings! I just added the ribbon clamps to several chokers and they look amazing! I love how my chokers are evolving into perfection. After I perfect these little guys I'll start coming out with various patterns.

I can't wait to start taking pictures and listing these on my Etsy site. So many new colors and new cameos. The bronze findings look amazing! The new gun metal findings are gorgeous! As soon as I sell some I'll order more parts.

More chokers soon to come!

I did a little shopping online and bought some more resin cameo pieces for my chokers. They did so well at the last show I did that I have no choice but to make a ridiculous amount for the next show. I want to play around with a bunch of different designs on the cameos. One request that I kept getting was for bronze findings for the Steampunk enthusiasts. I kinda came out with the choker idea a little late for AWA and didn't have a lot of time to buy a lot of variety. This time I'll make a special effort to appease the Steampunk crowd.

I bought some red and lavender crochet thread as well. I figured that I should play around with the lace color too and not to limit the variety in the resin. Unfortunately, the Joann's in my area doesn't supply a lot of variety so I have to make a few stops around the city to find some other colors. I love buying at Joann's because of the value, but I always end up having to go to the more expensive hobby stores for the variety.

I found a great Etsy store that sells nothing but ribbon clamps! It's called Twilight Fancy. The prices are at wholesale level and she even sells pliers for ribbon clamps. I'm so excited to do business with her. If I could favorite her shop a million times I would.

These anchor cameos have been calling my name for a while now. I'm so excited to actually work with them.

By the way, Wholesale Flowers is the shop that I've been buying all of my cameos and settings for my chokers. The prices are crazy awesome. If you ever need resin cameos, this is a great place for them.