♦♦♦♦ Alberta Street Team CHAT THREAD for October 26 ~ Nov 1, 2015 ♦♦♦♦

[#1]

Hello and welcome to the Alberta Team Chat Thread for October 26 ~ November 1, 2015. Posting here counts towards your team participation and is the main place to get up to date on what we are doing as a team!

Post your New Listings in our promo thread:
www.etsy.com/teams/5084/alberta-street-team/discuss/16866629/

Post your Treasuries or social media links here (posting in this thread counts toward your team participation):
www.etsy.com/teams/5084/alberta-street-team/discuss/16866657/

WHERE TO FIND OUR TEAM & PARTICIPATE:
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/AlbertaStreetTeam
TWITTER: twitter.com/etsyalbertateam #EtsyAB
PINTEREST: www.pinterest.com/ABStreetTeam/
INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/etsyalbertateam/ #etsyalbertateam

If you have any questions about the team or how to get more involved please contact Ann, the Team Captain, at www.etsy.com/shop/MagpieQuilts.

Previous thread:
https://www.etsy.com/teams/5084/alberta-street-team/discuss/16946548/

[Former_Member]

Good morning, it's 3:00am and I'm up again... Tonight's excitement is crochet legs for a unicorn and watching tv for companionship. Right now the program is, "Tiny House Hunting." I can see the value of small homes, and I am fascinated with all the tricks to create storage space and to use each living space for more than one thing, multitasking is a given. But where would I put my yarn?
;-D

[lampworkbyjulie]

Just back from a long weekend in Victoria! Had a fab time shopping, eating and drinking with a long lost girlfriend/ex SIL. Awesome to reconnect. Pedicures and massages were also in the mix. I can see that happening again when seat sales come up!

I really don't envy you all with your upcoming shows. I guess with 25 plus years of doing trade shows with my blind business and lampwork, I just got burnt out. Having my studio set up for demos and a permanent place to sell, has been the saving grace for me. My two scheduled Studio Tour and Sales this Xmas season are Nov. 7 and Dec. 5 if any of you find you
are out in the Edson area at that time.

I do hope you ALL have marvellous, successful shows! If I happen to be
out and about for any of them, I'll be sure to stop by and say hey!

[Former_Member]

Oh the insanity. Of. life.

About shows - I'm up to 4 confirmed and 1 I'm still thinking about - all within 5 weeks end of Nov to mid-Dec. Late in the year for me, but I need to get out there.

Even a mediocre show is better than etsy right now. I always fight frustration with etsy this time of year - I do not typically see the Christmas spike that many of you have.

About life - a dementia care facility called with a bed for mom so this morning we (the sisters) are going to case the joint and make a final decision. This part is stressful because 2/3 of us see things the same and 1/3 doesn't - but the 1/3 holds signing authority. And she is the one whose comfort is most threatened by this whole process. I just can't wait for this to be over - I've been closer to the edge of breakdown this fall than any other time in my life, and if you know my history, that says a lot.

[Former_Member]

Life is insane. I'm dealing with similar stuff- insane and stressful.
Here's an article that I just read that recalls the concept of "it could be worse" (black humour)
http://paleofuture.gizmodo.com/another-day-another-story-about-how-america-almost-sta-1738998649

[minibytes]

Morning all, I sympathize with everyone's stress at the moment. Have my fair share of it too. Super bummed I'm not going to be in any craft shows this holiday season, just can't fit it in at the moment. :(

But at least I will be popping by to shop and say hi to fellow teamies when I'm out and about. :)

Hope everyone has an awesome day! <3

[lampworkbyjulie]

Donna, I hope the 1/3 will see the light; before she injures herself or worse. The variables are endless as so the consequences of her not being in a care facility.

[Former_Member]

My Mom is waiting for a bed too. She has a reversible form of dementia caused by a lack of the enzyme in your stomach that processes B vitamins. It occurs in old age but it is rare. Every month she gets a B-shot injection delivered by the homecare nurse. The week leading up to the shot is scary, so its an insane monthly thing.(My husband used to accuse me of an insane monthly time, in my younger days)
Over the past few years, our house has been lots of fun- my husband had heart issues, back surgery and a knee replacement & my daughter had cornea transplants. Its funny how people think that the transplants are like lasik surgery- Ha! The doctor informed us of the cornea donors, the first eye was from a child that was in a car accident, the second eye was from a young man also a car-truck accident. She is on the mend and will take a few years to heal up, and we are grateful for the transplant donors.
I think the black humour started when I was in my late 20's and was in a plane crash-in the winter, in northern Sask. We were all in ICU in Saskatoon where they treated the injuries and thawed us out- actually I was crying for a blanket all the time ( couldn't have one) and Dave in the next bed just kept crying, "oh, my ass, my ass"- you see he was in pain with a badly frost-bitten posterior.



So yes, life can be insane and I quite often just laugh at things & that makes everyone think I'm strange, so maybe I have flipped into the surreal category. Or just say a lot of strange things.

[Former_Member]

sounds like we are all busy with life, etc. good luck with house hunting, Donna and happy shows for all..

[quirefly]

Terri- all I can say is O My Gosh. A plane crash! Wow.
I can certainly see where a good sense of life humor would be in need.

Hope everyone is having a good week. It is crunch time for me at work again- seems to always be that these days. I was supposed to have a day of relaxation today, and maybe a little craft therapy, but no.... No such luck.
Ok- break time is over, now back to my grind...

[Former_Member]

"if you want a rainbow, you must put up with the rain."

"Generosity and perfection are your everlasting goals."

"You will have a very pleasant experience."

"A single kind word will keep one warm for years."

"Love always and deeply."

So...there's today's dose of fortune cookie wisdom for you. I've been working with stocking stuffers and party favours, and one of the items I'll be selling are Forever Fortune Cookies. Hand crocheted fortune cookies, complete with a fortune. Or, you can take out the fortune and substitute your own magical words...maybe even something like "Marry Me?"

Anyway, today it dawned on me that the first show I'm in is next week, so its time to stuff cookies, label and price toys, and organize show stuff. Wow, where did October go? How did it get to be almost November?

"Ideas are like children; there are none so wonderful as your own."
:-)

[MagpieQuilts]

Anyone with Halloween plans out there? If you have a market, will you dress up?

[nanabrowns]

Halloween Party @ my daughter's school tomorrow and trick or treating Saturday. I am festive but not dressing up.

I am going through all the supplies and goodies in my sewing room and making changes and making room. Would anyone be interested in giving a new home to some fabrics, patterns, notions and other such goodies? I will likely have lots to share before I am done. :)

Happy Halloween

[Former_Member]

T.G.I.F. Today is jack-o-lantern carving day. We always put out 5, one for each member of our family, but then again, usually the kids are here to do the carving. This year it will be Ed and me making them. Should be fun! Depending on the weather, we can get well over 100 children on Halloween, starting with the youngest around 5:00pm through silly teens closer to 11:00pm. Our lights go out at 11:15pm. Then we get out popcorn and watch scary movies.

[Former_Member]

Halloween is my least favourite holiday, so nope - no plans specifically related to that holiday. Since Sunday is my birthday, I'll be out at a family dinner on Halloween and will be doing lunch with friends on Sunday.

The rest of my weekend will be spent: getting my picture for my new drivers license (my present to the Government of Alberta), running errands, the usual chores, purging and cleaning. Maybe I'll go out and buy Christmas decoration for my office - totally gonna decorate next weekend. It's a little early but it will drive my coworkers nuts for a few weeks which has it's own benefits :)

And if I'm lucky I'll get to spend some time starting the prep for 5 christmas markets in 4 weeks. Those don't start til after mid-Nov so I still have some time...

So mom moves into the care facility on the 13th. That gives us 2 weeks to prep. Need to buy a single bed (check). Figure out the furniture that goes with her (mostly check), take her to the dentist and get the dr to write new prescriptions, and start figuring out which stuff of hers goes and which stuff stays. The 1/3 of the sisterhood is already playing the drama queen, but she's going to have to figure out how she deals with the separation. My personality is such that I'm happiest when I have marching orders and a deadline, so this part of the transition is a piece of cake for me.

[Former_Member]

And Terri - I totally get the morbid sense of humor. Sometimes I have to keep a tight lid on my inside voice cause it seems to want to say all those things.

[Former_Member]

Terri - I get it too, my brother and I are actually the worst for cracking jokes during really stressful or tragic times, luckily since we both do it, we just keep it between the two of us. It really is a coping mechanism.

Halloween is a total gamble for us - some years we've had no kids, and some years we've had 75-100. So I always buy enough candy for the latter. We usually go hard on the scary movies this time of year.

As far as my Etsy stuff goes, I had a really frustrating week. I always struggle with my photos - I usually take them in my dining room against the white wall in natural light. The problem is, I need the perfect time of day to do it, and I never seem to be home during that time. So the aprons sit in a big pile just waiting. My husband has a big lighting setup in our basement for his eBay product photos, so I figured I'd give it a try. The colors on the aprons turned out great, so it was no fault of the lighting at all, but the overall photo set up just did not do the aprons justice at all - it's hard to explain, but they looked very "product-y" - not styled at all, which I think is what Etsy buyers are most attracted to. We tried some different things, like hanging a quilt as a backdrop, or just a plain fabric sheet, and even just the concrete wall, but same results. So I decided I'd just go back to the old natural light photos. But instead of against the white wall, we're going to try building a wood slat wall with pallets that I can move right in front of the big patio doors, so I will have more time with the good light. That's tomorrow's project - wish me luck! Long story, but the point is - what works best for you?

[stufd]

Happy Friday!
I love Halloween, creepy movies, creepy snacks. This year though, as I was sewing Sherman's costume, I realized how fast my kids grew up!
Pictures are my nemesis Meg, lighting is a nightmare in my house too. Varies on the time of day, I have a light from costco that I like, but it varies. Grey monsters are hard to do I find too. Meh ;)

[Former_Member]

Ya, sorry I lost it that day! I usually do keep a lid on it, but after my rant I can't help but think about Dave and what ever happened to him and the sound of him calling out about that part of his anatomy and what ever happened to that part of his anatomy! He was a skinny guy too- not much padding anywhere.
I have the North Mount sale coming up and Okotoks has an event going on, plus the ACC wants a few more lamps. Trying to get into retail sites and that is a challenge. Reading about marketing (slowly) (zzzzzzz......)

[Former_Member]

hi everyone!
I'm done markets for the year so hopefully i will still get a bit sold online but that will only happen if i actually get some listings up!with the second job i think i'll be closed for custom orders until at least january (except family and friends who pay me... they get special treatment hehe) until i get settled into a new routine and work out a schedule.
i thought i would be more sad to be done markets but honestly... i'm actually kind of excited to have the time to work on gifts and personal projects instead of the crazy hectic non stop working to keep stock up for shows.
Hugo is so beyond excited about halloween... he has changed his mind so many times for his costume that i ended up not making it this year. he wanted to be a shark for months then since his birthday he has changed his mind constantly.
now he has an optimus prime costume that we bought yesterday and that is what he's being. too late to change his mind now.

[WireExpressions]

Halloween... We plan on taking the kids out, then coming home to watch a movie. Plan is to throw the candy int he middle of the room and have a free for all. Get the sugar high over with in one day! The rest of the candy we'll buy off them. Yah that's our Halloween party!!

Photos...I have good luck shooting on a grey background with my light box in the basement. It's only taken a year, but I finally figured out the sweet spot with my camera settings, so I don't have to edit the photos as much. That saves a lot of time!

Insurance...Ann, you can ask your insurance provider to add a rider to your home policy. Then you get the liability and some coverage for inventory.

[MagpieQuilts]

Insurance is on my list -should have done it long ago - but, I'm really great at procrastinating! I did go in this summer, but my insurance agent was up to her ears with flood claims (Chestermere was hit so bad!) and was having trouble adding it to our farm policy, something about selling to the US was a bigger risk & she was going to look into it further as it was a much larger sum that it should have been. I didn't hear back and I didn't hear back and it turns out either she left or was fired or something and I haven't been back! It sucks when you're finally building a relationship and they know you and your needs and then you got to start over.

Halloween here is a quiet affair. No kids at the door in the country these days and the hubby is not a party guy, so we'll just eat our token bag of candy between the two of us, put on a movie and pop some popcorn.

[Former_Member]

Hi guys! Just checking in to say hi! It's been a busy few months! We are so excited to have been accepted to do our first market collective in Calgary this year!
Well hope you all have a great Halloween and stay safe!

[nanabrowns]

Happy Halloween!!

[Former_Member]

Happy Halloween--will be waiting for the arrival of The Great Pumpkin!

[Former_Member]

I've been out of it for a while on etsy other than listing a few things. Is this shop update new? Any links for reading up on what it does?

We don't make too big of a deal about Halloween. We have a big dress up drawer so the kids pick something there and we go to the neighbours we know. They love it and I don't stress out about costumes 😊