Mayfest!

Sorry I've been so absent from the blog lately! I've been in relaxation and regrouping mode since Mayfest. I relaxed most of last week and then spent ALL DAY on Friday, well into the wee hours of the morning, cleaning and reorganizing my studio. The studio hadn't seen a complete overhaul for probably close to a year. It felt so great to go through and reorganize everything from top to bottom. My desk drawers and closets are much more functional now and I love it! It's so easy, especially when you work with lots of small items, to let things get taken over with clutter. Projects in various states of completion were taking over the entire studio and it was driving me bonkers! But now, everything is back in its rightful place and I feel so calm and focused and ready to get back in the swing of things.

I am expecting a busy summer ahead of me. Last summer I participated in shows every weekend (except three) from June until the end of August and I was completely exhausted by the end of things. This year my goal has been to focus on participating in fewer shows, mainly larger, higher traffic venues, and to pay more attention to my Etsy shop and to selling at boutiques locally.

I have already started to shift focus to photographing items for my Etsy shop. I have had intentions to really fill up my shop for the past couple of years. I always dread the act of photographing items, editing photos, and creating listings (mainly because I am a perfectionist). With the nature of my work, many of my designs are one of a kind or a few of a kind and it seems that I often spend so much time preparing to list something on Etsy only for it to sell locally as soon soon as it get it listed. I then have to remove the item and lose the time and money I spent listing it in the first place. Sometimes I wonder what the point is. BUT, I have so many wonderful customers who meet me at shows or find my designs at their favorite boutique and they crave and online source where they can really browse the extent of my collection. I really want to be able to provide an online shop that accurately reflects the vast number of items I have in stock at any given time. So, despite all my annoyances with Etsy, I am going to spend the next few weeks focusing on getting my shop in shape. And I'm hoping that sometime this summer I can finally get my hubby to help with designing my very own website.

This summer will be a busy one for That Winsome Girl. I hope to expand my business and see where things go. I really struggle with shyness and insecurities, and for so long I have been letting them take power over me and limit my growth. I have grown so much as a person over the past few weeks and I'm finally going to let go and trust in God and the talents and blessings he's given me. I am incredibly blessed to have an incredibly supportive husband, wonderful family and friends, and the best customers a girl could hope for. I think it's about time that I stop listening to the insecurities and consider all the generous praises I receive from others. I'm ready to jump into things wholeheartedly and just enjoy and appreciate where life leads me. I have a feeling it's going to be a real journey.

Amid all the ramblings, I've shared a few photos of my display from Mayfest. I took these on Sunday morning after customers started arriving and it was quite difficult to get any photos taken, so these mediocre ones will have to do. Unfortunately I wasn't able to really finish several of the ideas I had for my display. As you could see, I wasn't able to find time before the show to sew the ruffled tablecloths I had been envisioning. My booth wasn't quite the whimsical little space I had hoped, but that's okay. The show was a huge success despite my less-than-perfect display. I had set an incredibly high goal for myself after the success I experienced last year at the show. I was able to meet and exceed my goal and the weekend was a huge blessing! Before the rest of my summer shows, however, I do plan to sew those darling ruffled tablecloths, make some tissue paper pom-poms, and figure out some other ways to add a few more pops of color to my display. I've switched from using two 6'x2.5' tables to four 4'x2' tables, so I've been completely reconfiguring my space. It's been fun but a little challenging.