New Members Introductions

[#1]

Hello, and welcome to The Business of Doing Business etsy team!

As a new member, we would like for you to introduce yourself to the team. Go ahead and post a reply to this thread to give a hello to everyone and tell a little bit about yourself and / or your business.

[Former_Member]

Hi everyone, My name is silvia and i'm new here and also on etsy. I was planning to sell on etsy for replacing my day job, but yet depends on how it goes. i love swarovski element crystal and pearls, so all of my handmade jewelry are only using swarovski element crystals and pearls. still working on more new designs =) . have a nice day everyone.

[HeartSmileFarms]

Hi - I'm new to this team. I've been selling vintage here on etsy since January of this year and reached my goal of 100 sales last month! I'm happy to be here and learn about using social media as another source.

[CoconutHarbor]

Hi All!! My name is Lori and I love to crochet!!! In my shop are the scarves and hats that I adore. Thank you for allowing me to be a member of your team!!

[Former_Member]

New team, new member, officially handmade.
Mickey

[Former_Member]

Hi everyone! This seems like a really good group of people so far. I'm Mollie, the maker and owner of The Bottle Garden. I make housewares from recycled glass with nature inspired images. I've been a maker of sorts my whole life and I'm having a lot of fun making this into a real business. On the side, I do a lot of gardening and work with a pitbull advocacy group here in Austin.

[Former_Member]

Hello.. I am Kerri. I make clothing and jewelry. Recently began making other sewn items as well. Thomas is my partner and helps creating but the business aspect is all my responsibility and so far I am failing. I would love to learn from others and support others as much as I can.

[SomeKindOfPretty]

Hello!!

I am Catheryn Dallenbach. I make and sell jewelry. My store name is Some Kind of Pretty and I started it in 2011. I am a recent newlywed as of May! :-) This year, I have focuses on growing my business, because I am now out of school and working.

[PrettyPictureGiftsCo]

Hello!
Thanks for the invite :O)

I started on etsy Jan 2012 and have 2 stores. I am a full time artist selling on this platform and a few others. All my items are handmade by me in a small studio attached to the house. My profile says I am located in Seattle, but I am really located in Blaine, a small seas side town north of Seattle.

Been an artist most of my life but transitioned to full time only a few years ago. Love love love it!

[RachelleStrackeArt]

Greetings and thanks for the invitation. Glad to be here; hopefully I'll be able to hang out on occasion and learn from the team.

About me: Creator of Bath & Body Products...and dabbling in the Perfumery Arena a bit as well. I'm truly a one-woman business here.

I do admin type work at my full-time day job, have an active young son and two grown boys as well. I started messing around with recipes and products about a year ago then opened an Etsy shop in January of this year. It's a very small thing for me, but somehow seems to consume a LOT more time than I had ever imagined! Sales are a bit slow and I still get SUPER excited with each and every order that comes in.

I hope to grow my business in a slow but steady manner - something I have to keep reminding myself of...my mind races and there are so many things I want to do, yet can't.

I think I've always wanted to be a true artist, but I know I am not...I can't write, sing, paint or draw to save my life...I keep hoping, but most talent is natural and I missed out on that one. So, here I am. This is my creative break from my more routine day job.

Thanks for having me.

[Former_Member]

Aloha,

I make and sell original jewelry. It's mostly done with recycled items...sharks teeth, buttons, brooches, toys...lot's of 'cool' stuff,

I'm always looking to learn and help.

[PrairiePrimitives]

Hi and thanks for the invite!

I'm Tana and I'm a primitive folk artist. That means I make things that look very old ... mostly fabric items. Hope to get started on Christmas items (finally!) next week!

[JinnyNguiDesign]

Hey!
I'm a freelance product designer based in London. My background ceramics which is what I design and decorate for my shop.
New to this team business, but it's great to be able to support each other when working alone can drive you mad at time.
Jinny :)

[AmandaDoster]

Hi, everyone. I am fairly new to the whole business thing. I've been doing a few craft fairs here and there for the past couple years. I would like to take my art to the next level and can definitely use all of the business advice that I can get!

[Former_Member]

Hey All!
My name is Lindsay and I make things. Things for your kitchen, but more specifically, things for you to wear and/or use in your snazzy kitchen. I'm pretty sassy, but a dash of sass is always necessary.

I'm re-booting my Etsy shop after a leave (I moved and life went sort of crazy for a bit) and I can't wait to get to selling again.

[AmyEsryTreasures]

Good morning! I make and sell cloth art dolls. I'm very new at it, and its been very slow going. But I'll keep trying. I'll eventually hit my stride or find my niche, or whatever cliché you want to use here.

[Former_Member]

Hi,
Thanks for the invite. I'm an ADHD crafter---have a hard time sticking to any one type of craft for very long. I started the actual business in 2009 with scrapbooking stuff, expanded to making cards---realized that there wasn't much of a market for that, so I shifted to learning how to use my cricut to make t-shirts/onesies/applying vinyl to water bottles, and recently moved on to making hairclips and bobby pins because I had to do something with all that ribbon I kept picking up at Michaels.

I gave myself a title of being a craft consultant when I started and grew into that role by networking with other vendors in the San Diego area and have recently started branching out into helping to organize craft fairs. I hope to one day have a brick and mortar shop and teach people all the stuff I've learned along the way. Looking forward to learning more through this group. I've learned so much since I opened up my shop and hope to continue to learn and grow into a better business woman.
Thanks,
Christina

[KCFabricOrnaments]

Hi, thank you for the invite to this team :-)

My mother and I make quilted fabric ornaments for any occasion (Christmas, Halloween, all other holidays, birthdays, baby and bridal showers, etc.). We opened our shop on Etsy in September 2012, and we're doing our first local craft fair this coming Saturday and another one in November.

We look forward to reading and participating in the discussion threads.

[KimagineDesigns]

Hi!

I'm Kim, and I've been making jewelry for close to eight years. I've been selling on Etsy for a few years now and am now doing as many craft shows as I can fit into my schedule - not always easy since I work full-time as a print dept manager!

Looking forward to "meeting" everyone!

[Former_Member]

Hello! I'm Tina and while I'm still trying to come up with a tagline I like the best I can offer for now is 'Quality handmade quilted and sewn gifts or treasures'. That doesn't say much except it probably involves fabric. :)

When I started the shop my goal was to get it filled with some of the smaller, faster to make items (lanyards, catnip mats, eyeglass cases, etc) so that I would have inventory and then move on to the bigger, longer to make projects. So far people are enjoying my smaller items; so we'll see where this goes!

I work part time at a school and spend the rest of my waking hours sewing or on Etsy. :) This is my first experience in retail sales, but I do have many years experience in customer service and general sales.

I look forward to getting to know everyone.

[Former_Member]

Hello everyone! My name is Deme and I sell beautiful beads and jewelry findings. I am a new seller and can use all the tips and advice possible doing business on Etsy. I look forward to meeting and hopefully working with you guys.

[AkimaBotanicals]

Hi everyone! I've been selling on Etsy since March 2012, when I started my eco-friendly bath & body business. I have a marketing & sales background, and I'm pretty business savvy so I hope I can offer my experiences & knowledge to anyone that needs it. I'm learning new tips & tricks everyday, I don't think you can every stop learning when it comes to business.

This is my full time job. I sell online as well as at farmers markets, craft fairs, and festivals. My products are sold in 3 retail locations in PA & MA, and I've been looking to increase my wholesale accounts. However I enjoy direct customer sales the best.

[crashpaddesigns]

Hi

I'm Renee, I design mid century inspired textiles for home textiles and funky housewares. I believe coming home should make you smile.

[Former_Member]

Hi everyone,

I make hand crafted jewelry using mostly natural stones with wire wrapping techniques. I've been doing small local shows for about three years now and love meeting new people. I never would have guess I'd be doing craft shows as I never knew I was crafty before discovering beads. I am great with the names of all my stones because I was a rock collector as a kid and apparently found a way to take that hobby into adulthood.

[GrandmaTsCrafts]

Thanks for the invitation. I have been on Etsy since forever but have really started to work on selling this year. I do sewing and machine embroidery - all sorts of items.

[Former_Member]

Hello All. My name is Pamela.

I am a Caregiver and an Apt Manager and also have my shop. They keep me busy but I enjoy all of them.

My shops are Charmscottage and TheCraftersCache. I have more charms than I ever thought I would, as I started Charmscottage on a whim and it has been great fun. TheCrafterscache came along as I have so much crafting stuff I thought I would share. It seems to be doing well for the first month of operation.

At some point I would like to make my living selling things through my Etsy shops. I have more in mind.

I look forward to reading all the things everyone in this group has to say because we all have good ideas and words of wisdom.