25 Days Of Christmas Celebration # 25B - Grande Finale : Interview With Raluca Of TinyLoveGifts

Merry Christmas!!!

For the grand finale of our 25 Days Of Christmas Celebration, this afternoon you will get to meet our lovely leader Raluca of TinyLoveGifts :-) 

Raluca is the trendy author behind our very popular Eye On Fashion mini-series and our weekly Fresh Finds column!

   When I was about 8-9 years old my mother taught me and my sister how to knit. She wasn't an expert herself but she loved knitting and she would always make cute things for us. After playing around with yarn and needles for a couple of years I put them aside and I completely lost interest in knitting.

  Until... I become a mother myself. When I was still in the hospital and my husband brought our brand new daughter from the nursery for the first time she was wearing the cutest little knitted hat. One of the ladies that worked there as a volunteer was a knitter and she had put it on her head. It was purple and had a lavender brim...nothing special...and yet incredibly special to us! 

When my daughter was a little older and I had a little more time to spare I took up knitting again and I decided to make hats for babies in the hopes that some of them would be as special to someone as that little purple hat is to us!

That's how I came up with TinyLoveGifts.

I knit for the love of knitting and because I like to make cute things. Even if I were never to have a sale on Etsy I would still be knitting. I like doing it and it relaxes me tremendously.

What is your favorite tool or craft supply to use for your products?

I love working with natural fibers : wool, cotton, silk. However, since I make things for babies I decided not to work with wool because it is not always very soft and it can be itchy and uncomfortable. So I picked cotton instead. It is a lot softer, it's easy to work with and I love it just as much! 

What inspires you for your designs?

I have a passion for fashion. I always know what's in trend ; I read fashion blogs, magazines, I watch fashion shows... I take inspiration from there.Why can't babies be fashionable as well?! I never make anything that I would not like my baby to wear.  

What is the strangest thing you have ever created?

The pattern was for a poncho for myself. While knitting it I kept modifying it... another decrease here... few more increases there... It ended up being a gorgeous eggplant tunic with a cable motif. I would not know how to make another one! :)

Best Time For Creativity - Morning, Afternoon, Evening

I craft mostly in the evening, after my daughter is down for the night. But even before I had her, I have always been a night owl. My brain seems to function at its best in the evening and during the night. The earliest time for me to go to bed is 1 am.

If I could have, I would ...

...learn how to crochet! But it's never too late to start! I might even teach myself one of these days!

Raluca, Thank You so much for your outstanding support and kind words of encouragement which brighten the day!

Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas and joyful holiday season.

Spread Some SPST Love And Visit Raluca's Etsy Shop Today :

https://www.etsy.com/shop/TinyLoveGifts

PRESENTED TO YOU BY OUR TEAM CAPTAIN: 

Simple ideas to accent your home or brighten up your office. A Gift Of Nature features adorable miniature landscapes and aquascapes. Our love of nature brings about our vision for these mini terrariums. Easy and fun to assemble DIY Terrarium Kits perfect for holiday gifting. Experience the beauty of nature at your fingertips!    http://www.etsy.com/shop/AGiftofNature

25 Days Of Christmas Celebration # 25A - Grande Finale : Interview With Andreia Of Rolling Ideas

Vrolijk Kerstfeest! 

For our grand finale, we have another spectacular dual shop feature for you. On this 25th Day of our 25 Days Of Christmas Celebration, let's meet Andreia of Rolling Ideas and see some of her very talented quilling creations :-)

Andreia is also one of our fabulous leaders and is the New Member Manager at SPST :-) Sweet as she can be welcoming all of our new members and helping to lead the cross-promoting efforts for our Team.

I always loved handmade items. They are unique, original, special and, as opposed to industrial products, they carry something from the care and passion of the crafter who made them. And since I had my room (shared with my sister) in my parents’ home, I enjoyed doing nice handmade things to decorate it and continued to do this after I got married and moved with my husband in a different town. 

I crafted different stuff for my home and myself, but 3 years ago I saw a quilling tutorial on Youtube and I liked the amazing things that can be made using such a common and fragile material as paper. I watched more tutorials and read online articles, I bought some books and started quilling and working with paper, making cards and invitations, tags, favor boxes and other nice things that can be decorated with paper etc .

Last year I bought an electronic die-cutter machine which helped me to diversify my products and work faster.  I started sharing on Facebook and on my blog the stuff I make and soon a wedding planner lady contacted me and we started to work together. I also go to craft fairs 2-3 times a year. Craft fairs have always been a good experience and success and I enjoyed interacting directly with my customers. 

- One way of displaying my cards at a craft fair - 

         This summer ‘fishing’ on internet for some tutorials and ideas I got to Etsy and …. wow … I  instantly loved it: crafters from all over the world, gorgeous items, socializing with people from all over the world … soon after that I opened my shop on Etsy and here I am. 

How did you come to decide on your shop name?

As quilling is often defined as the art of rolling, shaping and gluing paper, here came my shop name: Andreia’s Rolling Ideas.

Do you brainstorm better in the day or in the night?

In the day, more specific in the morning.

To make a pun, check out what a storm was on my working place, but least the coffee mug is in its place. 

       Which is your favorite social media to use and recommend to other sellers for cross-promoting and why?

I prefer Facebook  - it is easy to use and you can reach a lot of people you don’t know directly or that are not on your list of friends. Your friends or followers can share your pictures and this way your items can be viewed by people from all over the world.

      Water, milk, coffee, or tea?

Coffee, definitely coffee. I drink 4 or 5 cups per day, no sugar, just milk added.

      Does your family help you with your Etsy business?  

Yes, my husband is very supportive and I am very thankful for that. Even my tom-cat, Horthy, supports me in his way.

I wish...

I could turn my hobby into a full-time job, it would be perfect: doing what I like most at home and making a living out of it.

Different items made by me from Etsy and/or Facebook:

- Christmas tags -

- Christmas card -

- Christmas cards -

- wedding invitation -

- wedding table number -

 

- thank you card -

- kids birthday party invitation -

- keyholder -

- keyholder - 

- fridge decor with notebook-

- decorated jewelry box -

Hopefully you liked this article presenting me and my work and you are welcome to visit my shop on Etsy :

 https://www.etsy.com/shop/RollingIdeas

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/andreia.miclaus
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Andreias-Rolling-Ideas/361754643955510 !

Wish you the best holidays ever! 

Andreia, Thank you so much for your tremendous support and kind friendship that can always be counted upon.

Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas and spectacular holiday season.

Spread Some SPST Love And Visit Andreia's Etsy Shop Today :

https://www.etsy.com/shop/RollingIdeas

PRESENTED TO YOU BY OUR TEAM CAPTAIN: 

Simple ideas to accent your home or brighten up your office. A Gift Of Nature features adorable miniature landscapes and aquascapes. Our love of nature brings about our vision for these mini terrariums. Easy and fun to assemble DIY Terrarium Kits perfect for holiday gifting. Experience the beauty of nature at your fingertips!    http://www.etsy.com/shop/AGiftofNature

25 Days Of Christmas Celebration # 24B - Shop Feature With Tara Of Beechtree

Felix Dies Nativitatis! 

For our special dual feature of our 25 Days Of Christmas Celebration, this afternoon we have our lovely leader Tara of Beechtree :-)  Tara has extensive experience with craft shows and will be sharing some valuable tips with us. So be on the lookout for her new mini-series in the near future to give you an edge on Craft Shows! :-)

Hello Readers!

I am happy to introduce myself to you! Beechtree is my artisan jewelry shop. I absolutely love owning this shop and it never feels like work! Here are a few questions and answers for you to help you know me better!

 

I am married to my husband of 33 years and we have two grown children and one grandson with another coming in February. We live in Kalamazoo, MI with our two big dogs. 

I recently retired from my full time job as a Speech Pathologist for 32 years. I love to travel, take photos, read murder mystery novels and craft! My ideal day is spent on Lake Michigan on a beautiful summer day looking for Petoskey stones!

My husband and I love to build our houses. We are currently getting ready to build the third and hopefully final one for our retirement. The first house we built had a beautiful, big Beech tree right next to the house. 

It was so close that we worried a lot about whether it would survive the construction. It did and gave us shade for many years and we enjoyed the beauty of it everyday. So I named my shop for that tree because it was special and lovely to me.

It took me a while to get my shop started and then one day about a year and half ago, I said, let's just do it! I have been doing arts and crafts shows for about 8 years and really enjoyed them; however, there are not many shows here in Michigan in the winter so I wanted to try Etsy. 

I have so many thousands of beads and stones in my studio, I have to keep making and selling or the basement might cave in! (Ha, Ha!) I have collected stones and beads from my travels around the United States in my little RV.

In my Etsy shop, Beechtree, I sell jewelry created with fossils and stones and I love Czech glass beads as well. I get very excited when I collect new items for jewelry making on my travels and I just sit with my items and they tell me how they want to go together. I know that sounds mystical or silly but I don't know how else to describe it.

What is your personal favorite item from your shop? 

I have to say that it is probably the last item I just created! Most all of  my pieces are one of a kind and so I get so excited for each one that I make. Then it is off to the next inspiration!

 Thank you for letting me share a little about myself and my shop. I love the community spirit on Etsy and seem to have found a home here with the fantastic SPSteam!

Tara from Beechtree

Tara, we love having you in our Leadership Team and thank you so much for joining us this holiday season for the 25 Days Of Christmas. We can't wait for you to share with us those wonderful tips for a successful craft show :-)

Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas and happy holiday season.

Spread Some SPST Love And Visit Tara's Etsy Shop Today :

https://www.etsy.com/shop/Beechtree

PRESENTED TO YOU BY OUR TEAM CAPTAIN: 

Simple ideas to accent your home or brighten up your office. A Gift Of Nature features adorable miniature landscapes and aquascapes. Our love of nature brings about our vision for these mini terrariums. Easy and fun to assemble DIY Terrarium Kits perfect for holiday gifting. Experience the beauty of nature at your fingertips!    http://www.etsy.com/shop/AGiftofNature

25 Days Of Christmas Celebration # 24A - Shop Feature With Angela Of Amievoltaire

Buon Natale! 

For the 24th day of our 25 Days Of Christmas Celebration, we have a special dual shop feature scheduled for you. This morning, Let's meet Angela of Amievoltaire :-)

Angela is one of our sweet and amazing Blog Leaders and author of Your Holiday Audience Two Part series. Be on the look out for more engaging articles from our lovely leader this holiday season!

My goal as an Etsy seller has always been  to build a full time shop.

My lifetime goal began as a journey to get my PhD and have a professional career. I made it to my Master's Degree, and employed several careers all of which I enjoyed while I did them but none of them "completed me." By the time a finished my masters I had 4 kids in the house, gas prices sky rocketed and I decide my life, my time and my kids were top of the list. I decided working for myself would be the best way to get my life back.

I began reselling clothes and then toys and finally decided I needed my own product market. I then began a new education process focused on sewing skills, supply sources and marketing tactics. Phew, I started Ebay reselling in 05, and joined Etsy in 08. It's been quiet the 5 year ride on Etsy.

With so much to learn I sought all the help I could get from other sellers, first on Ebay where I found HereComesTheStork which first only focused on Ebay but then branched out and Ebay forums dedicated to handmade sellers. I connected with fabric co-ops where I learned good and fashionable fabric brands and how to get them.

It was through the storks and other Yahoo chat groups that I found other sellers making and marketing handmade clothing. Many of these gals have moved on to bigger and better places or at least different places.

One group of gals from HereComesTheStork forum started making and marketing their patterns which turned into YouCanMakeThis.com. Some I still see selling on Etsy and some I am friends with on Facebook and we are chat focuses have transformed from fabric to education and family. It was through HereComesTheStork that I found Etsy.

On Etsy

 At first we were just a "Circle of Friends" who hearted each other. I opened my store in February 08 but didn't do much but play heart my shop until October of 08. I made my first sale in May which was encouraging...

But about October, Ebay decided they needed to up their fees and many small sellers argued that they were being pushed out. This little push gave me the incentive I needed to move away from peddling handmade goods at auctions starting at .01 and often ending between 5-10$, thanks to sister storks who "slimed" my listings :<) Pretty heart breaking giving away a skirt or dress that I put so much effort into for less or as much as the fabric cost but I chalked it all up to a learning curve and learn I did :<)

In the early days handmade sales were all about Disney Vacation items and holidays.

 

These marketed goods were safe products, items commonly searched by Ebay and Etsy buyers. The next step in developing my budding business was moving beyond safe product marketing to developing my own style. This task marks my biggest challenge, an ongoing challenge for every business, deciding what searchable products, items people will look for or can be encouraged to look for, that I can make. A continual challenge in an ever changing fashion industry. My niche is to create classic styles with ever changing modern touches. As we know "The more things change, the more the stay the same." :<)

Where did you come from and where are you going? 

Angela, thank you so much for joining us this holiday season for our 25 Days Of Christmas Celebration Event. Your story will touch the hearts of many crafters around the world and your gorgeous dresses will bring much happiness to many little ones this Christmas :-)

Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas and happy holiday season.

Spread Some SPST Love And Visit Angela's Etsy Shop Today :

https://www.etsy.com/shop/Amievoltaire

PRESENTED TO YOU BY OUR TEAM CAPTAIN: 

Simple ideas to accent your home or brighten up your office. A Gift Of Nature features adorable miniature landscapes and aquascapes. Our love of nature brings about our vision for these mini terrariums. Easy and fun to assemble DIY Terrarium Kits perfect for holiday gifting. Experience the beauty of nature at your fingertips!    http://www.etsy.com/shop/AGiftofNature