It's our one year Etsyversary!

Oh happy day!  At the end of this month we will be celebrating Lazy Owl Boutique's one year Etsyversary (that's our Etsy anniversary, just in case you couldn't figure that out)!

One year ago this month I was going through a lot of changes.  I was just beginning a well-deserved vacation at the beach away from my hell job when I got a wonderful offer for a new job.  I debated for a few days, scared out of my mind.  I had never actually quit a job before.  I always just had to leave because I was graduating, leaving to study abroad, etc.  I returned from the beach well-rested and at peace with my decision and put in my two week's notice that Monday morning.

Over the next few weeks I created, created, and created on overdrive, along with taking lots of photos and figuring out how the heck to get started on Etsy.  By the end of May, Lazy Owl Boutique officially opened for business!  It was definitely slow going at first, but it has been a very rewarding experience and I'm delighted to say that in less than a year we have reached over 100 sales!

We've made some mistakes but learned a lot along the way in just one year.  Check out this awful product photography for example:

Ay yi yi!  Talk about gloomy.

We've fine-tuned the creating/photographing/listing process and even begun to sell in person at craft shows!  We are even in the process of joining with a handful of other local handmade artisans to open a unique handmade boutique in Houston (stay tuned)!

One year ago I would've never thought I'd be capable of doing all that I am now.  And I have all of you to thank!  So thanks to all my family, friends, fellow artists, and customers who have supported Lazy Owl on this journey.

To celebrate our one year Etsyversary, we are giving away hairpin freebies! Get one freebie hairpin with a purchase of $10 or more, and two hairpins with a purchase of $30 or more! Check out Lazy Owl's facebook page to pick out your favorite hairpin(s) and include your top four preferences in the note to seller during checkout!

You can also view the hairpin selection below:

Free hairpin choices!

Spring Craft Show Display

As I mentioned (not sure if I did actually, let's pretend), I did a craft show last month in Katy, Texas.  Setup was all day the Friday before the show started.  My craft show adventure weekend started out pretty stressful.  It was a really busy week at my day job, and my husband ended up having to work late on Friday (and all day Saturday) so I was flying solo nearly all weekend.  I left work as quickly as I could to go home to grab my tables and inventory and head out on the 45 minute drive out to Katy, during rush hour AND during a terrible thunderstorm.  Of course when I finally got home, my puppy had peed all over her crate.

By the time I made it out to Katy, I had about an hour to set up as much of my booth as I could all by my lonesome.  After check-in I found out my booth was not actually IN the main arena, but in a hallway...directly outside the MEN'S restroom!  The show director promised me this would be a preemo (primo? premo? is it even a word?) spot, so I decided to put a smile on my face and make the best of it.

Anyway, it wasn't a super wonderful show, but it was my best yet (out of 3, still a craft show newbie here), and a great experience.  I met some other wonderful vendors, made some good sales, and handed out almost all my business cards.

Plus, I got to debut my new and improved show display!  I graduated from 2 to 3 tables, with the addition of my vintage china plate tiered displays (that's a mouthful!), and all my new titanium post earrings.  I also made a handful of colorful yarn wreaths to sell.  AND I got to try out my new VistaPrint banner!

One side of my display

Oh hello, men's restroom!

Antique shutters, antique plates, yarn wreaths...

Handmade earring card display for my plated stud collection

Birdhouse display and antique printer's tray display

Check out my tutorial for how to make my DIY ring box display here, and also an explanation for how I built my DIY earring card display here.

I'll be setting up my display again May 19 at the Friendswood Fine Arts Institute's Art in the Park!