I wanted to extend a BIG thank you to all of my wonderful customers, crafty friends, loyal blog readers and all Kawartha Beads supporters in general. It truly warms my heart to hear from you and I hope you will continue to do Facebook me, email me, Etsy convo me and have tea and buttertart craft meetings in the year ahead!
My most popular Etsy listing of 2012
Kawartha Beads saw a tremendous amount of growth in 2012 both online and locally and I'm SO proud of how things have developed. That being said I must admit I struggled with time management a bit. With two very active little guys I underestimated how little time I was actually going to have and how tired I would be at night once they went to bed. For all the other mompreneurs out there struggling to "do it all" I wanted to share with you that I too felt overwhelmed at times in 2012 and once I accepted that it was OK to feel that way and let some things slide a bit then I felt much better. I've also put a fair amount of time into helping my hubby grow his own little business
Man Cave Collectibles so now that we have system worked out for that I am concentrating a little less on his stuff and can refocus my energies on my own work.
For the year ahead I am going to do things a bit differently. We used to do our "activities" in the morning but I've found the boys play better together then and I can get a bit of creating done, leaving the afternoon for visits, errands, playdates,etc. I am limiting my evening work time to one hour for the time being since a rested me makes for a more productive me! For next fall I'm going to explore once a week daycare for my youngest while my other is in school leaving me an entire day each week dedicated to preparing for the 2013 holiday season.
Other plans for Kawartha Beads:
- List a minimum of 200 items on Etsy and maintain that inventory
- Do some classes (on jewelry making, starting an Etsy shop, blogging, etc)
- Perhaps doing some beadable b-day parties
- Expand my local business by reintroducing my "buckets"
- Blog once a week (I love it but I need to focus my time so I will be limiting my posts to weekly. Be sure to follow my Facebook page for lots of other announcements, creative thoughts, sales, new products, etc.)
What would you like to see from Kawartha Beads for 2013? Where are you heading with your own business or hobby?
Kawartha Beads and Kindred Krafting are proud to bring you our first ever collaboration! Just in time for Valentine's Day this fun and affordable handmade delight is the complete gift for your little Valentine, their teacher, daycare provider or any other special person who deserves to have their day brightened♥
A beautiful handmade treat package made from quality cardstock and featuring two beautiful red embossed hearts hides a treasure of cinnamon hearts and a handmade L♥VE charm zipper pull inside. Clip the zipper pull to your purse, your little one's backpack or pencil case or even a sweater for some extra Valentine's cheer! This all in one gift is just $3.50 with local delivery available. Don't miss out on the chance to make someone's Valentine's Day extra special, limited quantity available. Contact either myself at Kawartha Beads or Beckie at Kindred Krafting to order yours by Sunday Feb. 10th (if you are local) to ensure delivery by Valentine's Day. 