First Friday Success!

I hope I don't drive everyone completely crazy with my posts about my new little adventure, but I can't help it. Last night I got to set up my little table infront of Butter Toast Boutique once again for Phoenix First Friday. I was a little concerned at first, one major reason was I compeletly didn't think about bring light! Duh Kat, it's night time, meaning DARK! Oops. Thankfully Traci had some string lights in her car and and between everyone we made it work. The lovely ladies of Vulpine Collective even let me borrow a lamp! I'm so thankful for that.



It was a slow start, not going to lie, but it really pick up towards the end of the night. I don't know why it was so surprizing to me that there were so many people out at 10:00pm on a Friday. I really am getting old! I learned a lot during the night. Things that I thought would never sell, people loved, and stuff I thought would fly, sat on the table untouched. I get pretty nervous about actually selling stuff, but I'll get there. You'd think after working retail for over ten years I'd have this down.



I have so many new ideas spinning around in my head and I'm trying to stay focused and not get ahead of myself. I woke up super early this morning for no good reason and lay awake thinking of all the things I want to create, it made my head spin.

Thanks to everyone who came by the Butter Toast Boutique last night! I loved talking to everyone, and I meet some really awesome people. I hope to see you all in the future!

Oh, and again, special thanks to the ladies of Butter Toast! Traci rocked it last night and the beautiful young lady (I didn't catch her name >.<) working in the shop last night really did a great job with the extra traffic from us crazy outside vendors! You all are sweet hearts, thanks for being so supportive of this newbie!

I know I keep talking about these events for my like "shop!" Sorry if I'm beeing annoying about it. Thanks for all of YOUR support! Seriously, everyone has been so amazingly supportive, I don't think I would have done it without you!! Lots of love guys!

and now for something completely different.

Thanks Anna!

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I am a Cheeto!

If you'd like to come see me in all my Cheeto glory I'll be set up at First Friday infront of the lovely Butter Toast with some other fabulous vendors. I hope I see you there!!

Have a great weekend!!

Overcoming my fear of…

the sewing machine.


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I consider myself a pretty crafty lady. I’m not the best at everything but I’ll try anything at least one time. I really enjoy finding new outlets for my creativity, and I’m really still trying to find my niche in the crafting world. Back in the days of Home Economics I was a wiz kid on the sewing machine. I made just about everything and I really enjoyed it. I was a “tom boy” though, so sewing wasn’t supposed to fit into the things I did. I stopped soon after those classes ended and never touched a sewing machine again. New that I’m older I wish I never would have stopped. I received a really nice sewing machine from my parents two Christmases ago and it still sits in it case. I’ve attempted to use it a few times, but got frustrated and gave up.


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Traci and Jasmine over at Butter Toast has decided to create a lovely bunting banner to decorate their already beautiful shop. I then began to think of my fear of my sewing machine and home many amazing projects I’m missing out on because I’m too scared to use it. Really, I’m afraid of making mistakes. If I can’t do something perfect the very first time I do it I tend to give up on it. It shouldn’t be that way and I definitely don’t want my kids learning from my poor example! So I’m going to take out the old sewing machine and for the next couple of weeks really give it my best. I have some time off from school, and even though I have a million things on my “to do list”, I think I need to try something new. Who knows what will come of it!


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If you have any tips or sewing machine ticks PLEASE let me know! I’ve been perusing the Burda Style website for some ideas but I can use all the help I can get.

Oh, and thanks to Traci for inspiring me to overcome my fear! (Good luck with the Bunting!!)

AZ Blogger Meetup Recap!

I've said it once and I'll say it again, this month as totally flown by! All of a sudden one day I realized that the Arizona blogger meetup was right around the corner. I have been excited for this event for months it feels like! What a great event it was too. Chelsea, Danielle, and Kelsey did such a great job. Because this month has been so crazy for us I decided to give myself, and my family, a little break and I only attend some of the daytime activities. I couldn't have been happier!

I showed up late to the event meeting up with the group at the GROWop. Thankfully Chelsea was kind enough to text me and let me know where everyone was. It was a little akward at first, so I just kind of poked around checking out the GROWup and The Butter Toast Boutique (on a side note I can't wait to go back to Butter Toast and pick out some super cute vintage kids clothes!) I finally butted my way into a converstation and things felt a little more comfortable from there. I've always felt socially akward and since I've gotten older I've learned that running into walls or smashing a cake in my face isn't really an exceptable way of introducing myself. It's to bad though, I enjoy all of those things, leave it to an EX-theater major!

Everyone gathered at the GROWop
I heart this store! Can I live there?
Some of the ladies being creative.
Flowers? Yes please!
Coming from someone who works with faux flowers all the time, real flowers are totally different! I give all the florists in the world a ton of credit.

After the fun and festivites down on Roosevelt Row, everyone headed to Frances Boutique. I've never been that far into Phoenix before and I'm really glad I got the chance too. Even though it was just a short drive it really gave me an idea of how different Phoenix is from Pittsburgh. Everything is so spread out and still fairly new. I saw some beautiful articture as well as some more interesting sites. I just could believe how different it was from the crowded city I grow up by. I can't wait to go on more adventures!

Did someone say candy?! Smeeks Candy shop is so awesome!
I got so excited walking in, I can't wait to take Aurora there, she is going to go CRAZY! I've never seen a kid react to sugar quite like little Miss Aurora and this place is loaded!
YUM!
After a stop in the candy story everyone slowly made it over to Frances. This boutique is so beautiful. You walk in and it just smells welcoming. I was seriously inspired just by walking around this places, it gave me such an itch to open my own shop. It also made me realize how much work it takes to do that!
I can almost smell the fragrence again just looking at this picture. I could spend all day there, is that weird? ^.^
Of course I stopped at the adorable kids section!
Love Phoenix or Leave Phoenix. Seriously? Love this shirt.
Anything with words or phrases on it catches my eye! It's a wonder I didn't come out of there spending a ton of money. I was a good girl though!

We were so so lucky the Short Leash showed up and happily opened early to feed all the hungry bloggers. I was so excited to see them pulling up. I heard great things about them from Chelsea and I didn't think I'd ever get a chance to try them. It's amazing what happens when you leave the house. The owners and opporators, Brad and Kat (love the name ^_~) are amazing! They have increadible food too!

A hot dog to this pregnant lady is like gold!
I wasn't sure how to even begin eating this thing, but it didn't hang around long after I did. YUMMY!!!

After we had stuffed our faces, Kelsey and Chelsea presented us with around gift bags given to us by Frances!
How cute is that? It almost made me cry! Stupid hormones.
Inside was a gift box from Smeeks filled with Taffy (that is now gone!), an adorable pair of earrings, a container of the most luscious body butter, and a luxury bar of soap. Wow, seriously, how sweet?!

I'm so glad I made it out to atleast part of the event. I know that everyone had a great time at dinner! The great thing about blogger is that I still felt like I got to experiance atleast a piece of it from photos and stories I've read. I can't wait to see everyone elses posts and photos! I hope that this can happen again, if it does I would love to help in any way I can. It was such a boost and a really high point for me. I feel so lucky right now. I'm so glad we moved to Phoenix, it has been such a great experiance for me, I don't regret it at all. I came home from the event floating on cloud nine I think. Holy inspiration overload!

it was a beautiful sunday...

I couldn't have asked for a better day yesterday for the Phoenix Art Detour. The weather was cool and it was cloudy, but it was way better than baking in the hot sun. The ladies of Butter Toast set up a nice tent for us to set up under. I had some great creative neighbors to share a space with. Foot traffic was a little slow; it was perfect for my first event though. It was a lot less nervous once I got there. It was also really nice to be out sharing what I love to do and getting to know some really cool people. There were several musicians that played that made the day very relaxing and fun. I'm so glad I go this opportunity, it was seriously a blast.

My little table from the side.
I had a lot of fun planning this table set up. I wanted to to be very "spring."

The front of the Butter Toast Boutique and the Vulpine Collective table. These girls are awesome!

More of the Vulpine set up. They are a group of about 9 girls supporting and encouraging eachother in the Phoenix area, which I think is pretty great.

Linen Lovelies table and her adorable daughter, Violet. She had a great day, I was really excited for her, and her daughter was so good! I was really impressed. ^_^

The Butter Toast Boutique.
The GROWop handmade and vintage collective.
I loved this band! Pick and Holler was great!

I hope this is just the first of many events I get to take part in. Even though I'm shy and a little awkward I love interacting with people. There’s something about talking to someone face to face about a product that you just can't get online. I'm still planning on opening my online store (crossing my fingers for early April) and I'm really jazzed about that. Who know, maybe I'll be out in front of Butter Toast again with my little table peddling hair clips.

Thanks again to Traci and Jasmine! These ladies seriously inspire me to make my dream business happen, I'm so glad I could be a part of this past weekend Art Detour!

Journey to Etsy: My First Art Event.

Well, tomorrow marks the beginning of my Journey to Etsy. As I mentioned a little while ago the lovely ladies of Butter Toast Boutique have kindly asked me to set up a table in front of their vintage shop during this year’s Phoenix Art Detour. I have been over excited and busy getting ready or the event. I made a bunch of new hair piece as well as a small amount of new jewelry. I’ve been scanning over some of my favorite crafters blogs to see if they had any insight for craft fair booths. I have been seriously inspired by several lovely ladies in the crafting world.

{Bug Miscellany}I love her metal board for magnets! I wish I knew where she got it from. Not that I have any magnets but it’s a cool idea!

Going Home to RoostI discovered this site on a Google search and was completely drawn to this booths layout. The colors are amazing. I’m going for a spring theme so this really inspired me.

Peach ParlorJody is an amazing crafter and photographer. Her shop was one of the first I discovered on Etsy. I would kill for this picket fence set up for her wreaths! I wish I could have taken the time to make some custom wreaths for this event, so sad.

The City Birds NestIsn’t she a doll? I love the multiple layers and layout of her brightly colored table. It seems she had a lot of success at the craft fair she was attending in this photo. I hope I have just as much luck!

I really hope I remember to bring everything I need. I’ve been having nightmares that I forgot all my products or I didn’t wear pants, crazy things like that. It’s like getting ready for a speech in High School all over again. I thank God right now that I have worked in retail for so long. I really feel like it prepared me for an event like this. I never thought I’d be thankful for slinging lattes or booking appointments in a hair salon, but I think all my experience is really going to come in handy and makes me less nervous.

If you’re in the Phoenix area stop down at 6th Street tomorrow, Sunday March 20 and see me! I’ll be there with all the flowers hanging out in front of the gorgeous Butter Toast Boutique!

I can’t wait to fill you in on how everything goes! Keep your fingers crossed for me!!! ^_^

getting one step closer.

About a week ago I wrote a post all about my little big dream. I’m really excited about starting an Etsy shop, and as promised I will be taking you step by step through the process. The awesome part is, that very same day I received an e-mail about an event that will hopefully take me a little bit closer to my goals.

The city of Phoenix is once again putting on their Art Detour. Although I have never been to this event, it looks like an incredible weekend. I’m so happy to announce that I will be taking part in the festivities! The lovely ladies of The Butter Toast Boutique have asked me to set up a booth on their patio and show off my little hair goodies. I cannot begin to express how overwhelmingly honored I fell that Traci thought of me. I admire them so much for creating such a wonderful shop, for me, it’s a dream come true. I think I might have even gotten a little choked up when I read the e-mail. I’ve been putting my hands to work making new pieces, gathering supplies, and trying to not get too excited. I’m also working on some new products to try out. I don’t care if I don’t sell a single thing. For me, this is a step in the right direction and no matter what the outcome this will be positive.




So, if you are going to be in the Phoenix area March 19th – 20th you’re going to want to stop by 6th Street! I will only be there on Sunday March, 20th though. My little girl is growing up and will be turning 3 years old on Saturday March 19th! I couldn’t miss her birthday!





Thanks again to the wonderful women of Butter Toast!!

+Blog+Etsy+

It’s a special time of year, spring is almost here.

my little big dream.

Let me tell you a little story…

Once upon a time there was a young girl who had big dreams. She dreamed of being a singer and a song writer. Many people thought she was crazy and had delusions of grandeur. Although she was supported by many and laughed at by most, she pressed on. Eventually her dreams faded. Life takes its toll, and that was okay, dreams do change. The now young woman decided to discover a new dream. That is when she discovered Etsy. It was a whole new world of art and creativity that she had never seen before. It gave her wild ideas and let her imagination sore to new heights! Yet she was afraid to let her dreams go too far in fear of letting herself down once again. The young woman’s dreams grew even further into the atmosphere when she discover shops in her hometown like Wild Card, a shop that sells and support local and handmade artists. This was too much excitement for one person to bear! Thoughts and ideas of opening her own store came rushing into her mind like a tsunami wave. Then as her family moved across that country she discovered new inspirations like the fabulous Butter Toast Boutique and the up and coming GROWop. People actually do this AND make it work! That’s amazing! The young woman was truly inspired by all the lovely and talented women she was discovering every day.

Okay, so, if you didn’t guess it this story is about me, duh. I’ve had dreams of owning my own business for a while. Before it was a coffee shop while I was working at Starbucks but once I discovered Etsy, my whole world changed! So, why am I telling you this? The other day I discovered the cutest little corner shop in this beautiful strip mall near my house! I would just die to open up a handmade boutique there! I, mind you, am not in the least bit business savvy. I have worked in the retail industry all my life really. I understand the ups and downs off business and have been researching every detail for years now. Someday I really do hope I can open a shop to support the artists I truly love. I want to share with everything the wonderful things I have discovered as much as I possibly can. I feel like so many people are missing out because they don’t have their eyes open to find it. That’s why I want to open a store. I, myself, am not an avid online shopper. I like to see, touch, feel, and even smell what I’m going to buy before I spend my hard earned money on it. I think a lot of people feel that way even in today’s cyber world. Sometimes I feel like I sound crazy when I think about all this, but I know other people must feel similar to the way I do or there wouldn’t be any other handmade shops out there.

First, I think it would be very important for me to start my own Etsy shop to get a good feel of business. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a while, but I think I’ve read to many horror stories about it and chickened out. I want to make sure I have everything in order before I start up shop. So, this is my call for help to all the Etsy shop owners out there: I would like to create a series called “Journey to Etsy.” I want to document the steps I take to opening an Etsy shop for anyone out there, like me, who might be a little intimidated to start. If there is just one, or a few things that you’ve learned from having an Etsy shop what is it? Any lessons you learned? Things you thought you needed but didn’t? Happy success stories? I know there are a million stories on the Etsy blog about success but I want to know from everyone else out there! So what do you say? Help me out! You’ll get full credit AND a feature post for any advice you give while I’m doing this blog series. You can leave a comment or contact me at withachanceof{at}gmail.com. I’m very excited about this whole process, was it exciting for you?

Thanks a million! Happy Thursday!

Spectacular Saturday!

Hey everyone! Just wanted to check in and tell you about the amazing Saturday I’ve been having. First off Aurora and I took an adventure to downtown Phoenix and FINALLY went into two awesome stores I’ve wanted to visit since we got here.

First off we stopped at the lovely vintage boutique Butter Toast. It’s very warm and inviting and the owners did a lovely job of decorating a designing a great layout in this little cozy home. Their prices are really great to for the choices they have. I also adore their selection of dresses! Any number of them would be great for a holiday party.

Then low and behold right next store is GROWop! I can’t help but love local handmade boutiques. It has a great collection of handmade and some vintage items from lovely local artists. I can’t wait to go back and see more. Both of these shops are a must see if you’re in the Phoenix area and love vintage and handmade!

After our trek downtown Aurora and I enjoyed an afternoon playing at the park finished with a stop for a yummy cookie and peppermint mocha… mmmm…

This wonderful day was topped off with the promised Hanson Christmas special! It was so cheesy and so wonderful. It made my season bright and my belly hurt from laughter!

I hope everyone else had a wonderful Saturday! Enjoy the rest of your weekend!!

Happy Trails!