Hawaii Women's Expo

My husband, Landry and I had a great time at our first weekend expo. Expos are a lot different, in my book than the one day craft fairs I have been doing. First of all at this particular show I was one of the few vendors that made all my merchandise. It was hard for my prices to compete with other big companies that are not making their things. The next expos I am looking to do I will try and see what type of other vendors will be there. Also the days are long, so I think it is important to have a friend or your spouse to keep up your spirits. We packed snacks and waters which helped us not spend money eating all weekend.

Friday night was from 5-9pm and it was really slow. We did not have much traffic and I left feeling discouraged because the booth fee was pricey and I was wondering if I would be able to break even. I had stayed up late all week sewing inventory for the show, because I was not sure how much to have since it was a 3 day show and I was exhausted. So friday night I slept good and woke up Saturday morning with a fresh outlook.

Saturday was much busier and we had several friends stop by to see us, which was very encouraging to me. About mid-day we made back all of our booth fees, so we were excited that the rest of the weekend we would be making a profit. My husband Landry was a huge help to me. He watched the booth a lot so I could just go walk around and take a break.

I am so thankful that my husband supports me chasing after my dream of sewing and selling my things. One time when I was walking around I saw a cute booth where you can buy stamp kits for cards, table settings, banners and just about anything you could imagine. I met a lady running the booth and we really connected. She said she had seen my booth and liked the display. She sent several of her friends throughout the weekend to my booth. Also after the weekend she introduced me to her daughter who does videography and photography. I was able to exchange some of my goods for her to take some photographs of my things.

 I say all of that to say it is important to keep your head up because even if your sells are not what you had hoped meeting people can be just as beneficial for your business. Don't just sit in your booth, get out and meet the other vendors. I applied to be in 3 events in the month of November so its time to get back to work. Thanks for following me as I follow my dream.
Aloha

 

Whistle While You Work

My mom, brother, and his friend came and stayed with us for 3 weeks this summer. I don't know if I have mentioned it before or not, but we live in a 515 sq. feet apartment. So needless to say we got close litterally and figureativly speaking :). My mom is a school teacher and brother just graduated highschool so it was a good time for them to come visit. The only challenge is I work from home. My family slept on our couch and air mattress in our living room, aka my work space.
But it actually turned out to be good timing for my mom to be in town. I was super slammed with work and feeling overwhelmed at times, but my mom is always the person to calm me down and help me out. So we spent her vacation working. My mom has sewn a little, but does not feel very confident. I taught her how to use my serger and how to cut out clutches. I had to sew a lot of hats for my friend/ surfing partner and I had to make 34 more clutches for a boutique here. Then on top of all that 2 days after my family left I had my second craft show, so I was also trying to stock up for it. Almost everyday the boys went to the skate park down the street and mom helped me sew. It was nice having someone here to talk to while I was working and I was able to get way more done with her help.


Mother/Daughter sewing team!
 

Like I mentioned before I had a craft show right after my family left. It was a small show with around 60 vendors. After my previous one I was anxious to try another. This one was a cheap fee to enter so I didn't think too much about it. I split the booth again with my friend anna, who I sew for.

Landry and I got there early to register and set up.

My mom bought me this shelf for my clutches while she was in town. It is perfect because it folds up and makes it easy for loading and unloading at the show.

My mom also brought an old suitcase from home, my mother-in-law had given me. I put my bobby pins and earring inside of it.

 

 

I still have a lot to learn about selling my things and doing craft shows, but I am trying to enjoy the process of growing my little business. I did not do as well as I had hoped at this show, but I met a lot of vendors and customers who encouraged me and gave me good advice so it was still worth the effort I put in.

 

 

After the show Landry took me to my favorite resturaunt Aloha Salads and then we headed to the beach to relax. It is a lot of work loading your car and setting up and selling all day and then breaking it all down again. I am so thankful God gave me a husband who supports me in pursuing a job I love. He is my rock and he always believes in me.
Aloha, Kristina

What I learned from my first craft show

My husband Landry and I had a blast at Moiliili Summer Fest! It was a very succesful first craft show for us. But there is always room for improvement and no one is perfect there first time doing anything. So I thought I would make a list of things I learned this time that I will do again next time and things I learned that I will change for my next event...

1. If it is your first couple times ever doing a craft show try out your display at home a couple of days before the event.

A couple of days before I got stressed out thinking I do not know what to bring for my display. I called my mom, who always has the right words to calm my nerves and she suggested trying out putting together the things that I have laying around the house that would work.  It is important to having a good display that will catch the eye of people walking by your booth.

2. Try to use things you already have at your house so you don't have to spend a lot of extra money.

A few things that come to my mind are picture frames with a picture of someone wearing your merchandise, cake plates and dishes work well to display smaller items, furniture that is lightweight and easy to carry, glass jars, chairs, a rug makes the booth feel inviting and comfy,and boxes and baskets work well to carry things in and can also be used to display items.
Back home in Tennesse I have several pieces I could have used to make a very cute display. But when my husband and I decided to make the adventurous move to Hawaii we only brought two suitcases with us. So our tiny apartment has been furnished by generous friends from church and salvation army finds. If I was at home I would use an old dresser, some vintage suitcases my mother-in-law has given me, cute cake plates or dishes...and the list goes on and on. Since that is not my current situation I had to make due with what I could find.
I went to TJ MAXX and found 3 really cute different sized wooden boxes that have chalkboard on the front to write on.

They can be turned upside down to put things on top of or you can fill the inside with things. I bought a table at Target that folds in half and has a handle for easy carrying. I found two frames at Salvation Army on sale half off. I knocked out the ugly picture inside and tacked down twine to the back of the frame to hang my bobby pins and earrings from.

I had a small and a large frame, but ended up only having space to use the small one set up on my table inside the booth.





3. Clean out and load your car the night before your show.

We made the mistake of cleaning out our trunk, filled with everything you could ever need at the beach, the day of the show. Then we had to take several trips on the elevator down to the car to load it. We live on the 14th floor of a highrise apartment building which does not make loading and unloading a very fun task. I was sweating and getting stressed out that I was not going to have adequate time to shower and get ready before we had to leave. This problem could have been easily avoided and made the day of the show a lot more stress free.

4. Buy or make some kind of snack to share with your customers.

My husband has a family chocolate chip cookie recipe that is so yummy. So my good friend Fran came over the night before and we made 3 batches to set out in my booth.

It is hard to see them in this picture, but when the show started we emptied the ziplock bag of cookies into that brown bowl and everyone loved them. It is a great way to show people your kindness and make them feel relaxed to come inside.

5. Split the booth with a friend.

The cost of renting a space for a show can really cut into the profits you make selling your things. If you have a friend or family member who is interested it is a great idea to share a booth. Not only does it help with the cost, it also helps with your sells. If you sell different things you can help bring in customers that may not normally come into your booth, but might end up buying something from both people. Also it is great for loading and unloading, bathroom and food breaks, and helping check out customers if one is busy selling.
I sew for my friend Anna from Mamanukids and we shared a booth. She sells children's clothing and adorable reversible hats. She brought in lots of mom's and then they would stop by and look at my adult items which worked very well for me.

 

6. Wear your merchandise.

I wore a headband, scarf and bracelet that were all in my booth for sell. Lots of people asked me to try on different scarves to show them how they would look on. Also the bracelets I made did not display well and I had to show several people how to wrap it around their wrist and when they saw it on they loved it.

 Amelia, my friend Anna's daughter wore one of my kid headbands and her mommy's dress.

7. Bring lots of business cards.


Everyone won't buy something from your booth the first time they see it, but they may decide when they get home they wished they bought something you had. I had a lot of people asking me if I sold in any stores and then I would give them a business card and tell them to go on my blog and check out my etsy shop. I also put business cards inside of the sack when people bought items. Some people even just picked up a card and said they had a daughter who would like my things. Put them in something cute and visible on your table. The more you pass out the more your name gets out there!

8. Share your story and be outgoing.

I met lots of fellow crafters and really enjoyed hearing their background and how they got to where they are now. People will like to hear your story so they can relate to you. My husband was a huge help talking to everyone who came by our booth. Let people see your excitement when they buy something. Tell them how thankful you are for their purchase. You never know who you will meet at a random event that can help you on your journey.

9. Bring a credit card swiper.

 We bought an "intuit" card swiper, you can find one online or at best buy or most cell phone companies sell them. It worked really well for us. You can plug it into your smart phone or ipad. We used our ipad and if you have one it is easy for customers to sign their name on and enter their email or cell phone number for a receipt. My friend Anna used "square" and plugged it into her iphone, it did not work well the whole time. She had to manually enter in every time their card number. Another vendor suggested the paypal version. She said it worked great for her and money goes straight to your paypal account. A lot of people now do not carry cash, so if you do not have a way to charge things you will lose lots of sales. About 65% of my sales were by credit/debit card.

10. Pray, Pray, Pray!

I am a Christian and I strongly believe in the power of prayer. The last several months I have prayed a lot about my small business. Is it the right time? Is it going to be a good decision for my family? Can we afford for me to quit my full time job? And in the weeks leading up to this craft show I prayed for success. I prayed that if this is what God wants me to pursue that he makes it clear to me. I prayed that this show would build up my confidence. Having never done a craft show before I had lots of fear that I might not sell anything. But I felt a peace towards the end that it is in God's hands and whatever comes from it I will have an answer as to whether or not to continue in this direction. God answered my prayers abundantly. I met a lady who owns a boutique here, Cottage By the Sea and she bought 9 of my clutches to put in her store. We are planning to meet soon to look at fabric options and hopefully for her to by a whole line of my clutches. God is so good! I believe God does not only give us what we need so often in my life he has given me what I want. God loves me so much, that he cares to give me blessings that bring happiness to my life on this earth. As I continue growing my business I plan to continue growing my prayer life and trusting in God's plans and not my own.

Thank you for stopping by and reading my new craft show knowledge. I plan to do as many craft shows as I can this year, so stay tuned for more wisdom from this craft show rookie!

Craft Show Craziness

Finally Finally Finally! I am doing my first EVER craft show yay! I have wanted to do one for atleast the last 5 years, but always felt I didn't have enough extra time to make things and I have always been intimidated to put my stuff out there. BUT not anymore, I am so excited. I have been working on building up my stock for a couple of months now. I have made clutches(with and without a chain strap), leather wrap bracelets with earthy stones wire wrapped to them, covered button bobby pins and earrings, scarves, and flower headbands. I am ready to share my crafty side with the world.

Moiliili Summer Fest is the name of the event. It's a night fair with live music and yummy food, so I think we will have a good time no matter how much I sell. I am spliting a booth with my friend Anna from Mamanu Kids. My husband took off work to help me set up and he is also great at meeting new people so that will be very helpful.

I will be posting pictures from the show next week and a typed out list of all the new things I am learning.
God has shown me so many beautiful rainbows this week to encourage me to push on.

Aloha from Pearl City,
Kristina

Photo Shoot Fun

After several long days of sewing I finally had my first photoshoot for Bicycles and Buttons! Yay!

My etsy shop is officially open and I feel so relieved and happy. My friend Anna and I took photos at her house. She has business called Mamanu Kids and sells super cute children's clothing and hats. Check out her etsy shop...www.etsy.com/shop/mamanukids and her website www.mamanukids.com. She is starting a new line for the mom's of the kids she sells to. Comfy, knit skirts and dresses. So we shot a combination of her things mixed with my clutches, scarfs and headbands. One of my good friend's little sister was our model for the day and as you can see from the pictures we had a lot of fun!

 Browse through all my new photos at www.etsy.com/shop/bicyclesandbuttons. I hope you like what you see:).

In the Beginning

After I began sewing from home for a couple of ladies I thought to myself I should try to make some things of my own to sell. One late night as I was browsing through pinterest ideas I saw several cute clutches I liked. My favorite was a foldover clutch with leather on the bottom half. So in a moment of insanity without any fabric to use I decided I wanted to make one. I was looking around to find any old fabric I had around the house and I remembered an old shower curtain that was made of cute fabric. Then I was trying to figure out what I could use for the leather piece. I read a blog where a girl used the leather off of goodwill purses, so I began to sort through my old purses and found one that matched perfect with the curtain.

It was alot of work taking the purse apart, but it was worth it because I was even able to use the zipper and leather tassel from it on my new clutch!
The next day I rushed to salvation army to find some cheap leather purses to make some new clutches. I also went to walmart to find some fabric since the fabric stores are really lacking in Hawaii.

 

I found this grey polka dot fabric at walmart for $1.27 and I couldn't believe how cheap and what good quality it was. I already had the chevron duck cloth that I used for the lining and the black leather is from one of my salvation army purse finds. The hardest part of making these clutches for me was working with the leather. But I am excited to be trying new things and expanding my sewing skills.

Rewind

     I thought I would start out this blog by explaining a little bit of my background. I went to college at Harding University and graduated with a degree in Fashion Merchandising. Honestly, I chose this degree in the beginning because I had no clue what I wanted to do with my life after graduating high school. So I thought I would chose something that sounded fun and not too stressful as far as studying goes:). As I took more classes and got more interested in my degree I thought I would probably look for a job doing window displays for a company. I took one class on visual merchandising and enjoyed it. I only took a few sewing classes and I really disliked them! Prior to going to school I had never even threaded a machine, much less sewn anything on one. The first basic sewing class I took we had to make a book of samples such as a pocket, a dart, a hem, etc....As I sat down at the machine to sew my first project I made one major mistake!...I didn't realize you need to put down the presser foot before you begin to sew, needless to say I had a really hard time sewing straight lines. Luckily my teacher walked by and saw me struggling and fixed the problem quickly.
     After graduation my first job was for United Apparel Liquadators. It is a small company that buys disigner pieces and sells them at marked down prices, similar to TJMAXX or Marshalls. My job title was Shipping Manager. That might sound fancy, But believe me it was not! Basically I took in about 15-30 boxes a day of merchandise and tagged them with the new mark down prices.I also was incharge of weekly spreadsheets and anything else the owner wanted me to do such as cleaning the store windowns, bathrooms and dropping off her drycleaning. It was a very hard job physically, being on my feet 9 hours a day and lifting a lot of boxes. Sometimes I would help on the sales floor when we were busy and I began noticing a lot of women asking where they could get things altered? So I asked the owner if I could do alterations at home for the store. This helped them get more sales and me make some much needed extra cash. I began doing lots of hems on jeans and some other minor alterations and surprisingly I was ejoying it.
     I began to rack my brain for a way to leave my current job and to sew full time. At this point I still had only basic sewing skills and knowledge and I was not confident I would be able to find a place that would hire me. I brought some drycleaning to a little shop down the street for the owner one day and I noticed a little lady in the back sewing. So I got my courage up and asked the lady at the counter if they were hiring for a seamstress position. She got my name and number and said she would ask the owner. The next day the owner of the drycleaners called me and asked me if I could come try out for the position. I got the job and I worked for 2 years under a lady from Columbia, South America. We became friends really quickly. Her english was not great and I was able to help her with fittings and she taught me so much. Working for a drycleaners was a great experience for me. You never know what kind of alterations you will get each day, so it does not get boring and you get to learn a variety of different things.
    While working at Nicholson Cleaners I got married to the man of my dreams and we decided we wanted to move somewhere fun and exciting before we have kids. So he sent in an application to transfer with his current Verizon Wireless job in Tennessee to a postion in Hawaii.After several months of being very persistent he got the job. We moved in January of 2012. After searching for almost 3 months I got a job at Men's Wearhouse as a seamstress. It was a good job, but very repetitive. I think I can shorten a men's suit coat sleeve with my eyes closed now:)/ I had almosted worked there a year when my husband so an add on craigslist from a woman looking for a seamstress to work from home getting paid per piece to sew her line of nursery accessories.
   I decided to take a leap of faith and go to the interview. I got the job and began sewing her things at night and on my off days at Men's Wearhouse. I felt like all I was doing was sleeping, eating, and sewing. I was getting burnt out quick. I asked the lady I was sewing for if she knew anyone else needing a seamstress and she referred me to a friend of hers. I then got a second sewing job making baby clothes and hats. At this point my husband and I had to make a big decision. Was I making enough money from home, so that I could completely quit my fulltime seamstress job? The work from the 2 ladies was sometimes a lot and other times not enough depending on how much business they had. But we decided to give it a shot, so I quit my job and I currently sew from home fulltime.
     It has been the best decision. My husband and I were both working retail hour jobs before and rarely ate a meal together. Now when he goes into work at lunch we go on a hike or to the beach in the morning. Our quality of life has greatly increased. While ofcourse financially we are not doing as good as before we are hanging in there. Which leads me to my next adventure BicyclesandButtons. I decided if I am sewing for 2 other people making them money I might as well try and sew things myself to sell. So I am giving it a shot. I have an etsy shop and I am trying to go to lots of craft shows here locally this year. I am finding great satisfaction in designing and making my own products. Currently I am making clutches, headbands, and Ipad covers.