Happy New Year!

Today is the last day of the old year. Tomorrow is the day for fresh starts and resolutions. Have you made yours?

Typically, people do not keep their resolutions for more than a week after the New Year. While the resolution is good intentioned, sometimes it is too difficult a task. After all, people can't change overnight.

One of my main resolutions is not to buy yarn unless it is needed for a project I am working on that moment. For example - last night I realized I would not have enough yarn to finish my brother's Christmas present. So, today was a practice run in my resolution. Could I stay the course and only buy what I needed? Regardless of sales or coupons, I was able to only buy the one skein I needed. Success!

Now, I am a complete yarnaholic - I have so much yarn. I wouldn't say too much yarn because you can never have too much yarn. But I have a lot and a little apartment. I also have a lot of patterns. Once again, not too many, but it may be safe to say that I will not make them all in my lifetime. And I'm not even 40. That's saying something.

So, like any addict, I have to take it one day at a time. Resist temptation whenever possible. And when I do slip up, don't give up.

That's the important thing to remember with any type of resolution - don't give up. If you slip up, get right back on the horse and keep going with your resolution. Pick up right where you left off and keep moving forward one day at a time.

Best of luck to you and Happy New Year!!!!

Brand New Monday

Today marks the return of Brand New Monday. Mondays I go through Zibbet and find fresh new listings. Let's begin.


This beautiful necklace comes from Beading by Jenn (http://www.zibbet.com/BeadingByJenn). Only $25, this root beer bead necklace is another addition to Jenn's squiggle necklace collection.


Next is this gorgeous pair of Sunflower etched champagne flutes from Brad Goodell (http://www.zibbet.com/bradgoodell). Only $76, these flutes can be personalized on the base with your names and your wedding date.


Finally is this stunning rose smocked dress from Christening Couture (http://www.zibbet.com/christeningcouture). As the designer says, every little girl needs a smocked dress. This is an original design and sells for $110.

Thanks for joining me on Brand New Monday. If you would like to be featured on my blog, please feel free to contact me.

Fresh Start, New Selling Venue, and New Years Resolutions

Hi Friends:
I am back after a long hiatus. A lot of things have changed and a lot of things will continue to change.

In case you haven't noticed, I no longer have my own stand alone website. Traffic wasn't coming, and honestly, it was too much work to try and maintain it and the E website. And frankly, I didn't have the time. Also, I have distanced myself from E and have set up shop on Zibbet. I no longer agreed with E's definition of handmade. I am no longer angered by it, but I no longer want to talk about it and give E more publicity by talking about it. Because every time I publish E's name, I give it more power on Google and such. No more. I will still support the handmade artisans there, but whenever possible, I will ask to purchase something offsite and through Paypal.

So, I am now on Zibbet and I couldn't be happier. There is sense of community and a pride in the co-founders for their product. They have wonderful customer support and a chat room that allows you to engage other sellers on the site. I have already made friends in the short months that I have been there. And I have already had sales, which is wonderful. It will take time to get all my listings up on Zibbet, but that's okay. I am doing this correctly and making sure my listings and tags are correct, and my pictures are good.

New Years Resolutions - concentrate on the shop and get as many things listed as possible. Work on the blog and get more followers. Work my butt off to promote and get more sales. I have Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Tumblr. Promote other Handmade artists on Zibbet. Get the name of Zibbet out there and help make it bigger than E. I am one person, but one person becomes 2, then 4, then 8, and so on.

Who is ready to come on the journey with me?  I can't wait to see you all there and see my friends grow.