Clearing out my shop

I am in the process of clearing out my shop at http://pumpkinlights.etsy.com/

I will be opening a new shop for blankets and baby items, but a lot of what is listed now will not be relisted in the new shop. Also, I've spent a bit of time and money listing what I have now that I don't want to just relist it all in the new shop.

So, I am trying to clear a lot of it out. Currently all my items will ship for free and I have been randomly dropping prices.

I am also now offering volume discounts for anyone who purchases 3 or more listings. If anyone is interested in 10 or more items from my shop, I am discounting them by around 60% so if anyone is interested, let me know!

Free Shipping

I am in the process of clearing out my shop and moving it to a new shop. So, I have edited all items at http://pumpkinlights.etsy.com/ to have Free Shipping to the US. $2 shipping to Canada.

And the winner is.....

Thank you everyone for participating in my first blog giveaway, I got lots of great input that I can't wait to read through. There were so many replies, that instead of just one winner, I had my daughter pick two names. The winners are: lilyk and whimsical_creations!

As a thank you for everyone who left a comment, I would like to offer free shipping on anything in my shop. If you are interested, just put 'blog giveaway' in the notes to seller section. http://pumpkinlights.etsy.com

A Question and a Giveaway

I am getting ready to build my own website, but with a link back to this etsy shop. I checked domain names and sure enough pumpkinlights.com is taken. Also a few weeks ago, someone mentioned that Pumpkin Lights didn't seem like a good name for a baby boutique, as it made them think I sold candles. So I am not sure how to proceed from here.

1.Do I want to keep the Pumpkin Lights etsy shop and just get a different domain name? I was thinking of PumpkinLightsBaby?

2.Use PumpkinLightsBaby as my domain name, plus open a new etsy shop also called PumpkinLightsBaby so they totally match?

3.Or totally change it from PumpkinLights and use something that seems more baby-like? One reason I didn't want something overly baby sounding is because a lot of my items are more just for kids in general and not just babies.

That is where the giveaway comes in. I am looking for suggestions. Leave a comment with your choice, either 1, 2, or 3, before next Sunday morning, Sept. 7. I will have my daughter randomly pick a name of the commenters and they may pick anything from my shop normally priced at $20 or less for free!

Featured Artist: Lauren Alexander

I came across an artist with such adorably amazing work that I had to share it. Her name is Lauren Alexander and I found her at http://laurenalexander.etsy.com/. I instantly was drawn to her use of color as well as her animal subjects. I recently had a chance to find out a little more about the artist behind those creations.

Me: When do you first remember being interested in art?

Lauren: "For as long as I remember, I have had an interest in art. One of my earlier artistic endeavors involved using crayons on the outside of a house my family rented - fully believing my mother would be pleased. She wasn't - but has otherwise always encouraged my desire to create."

Me: Where do you find inspiration for what you create?

Lauren: "My inspiration comes from teaching, working with kids, reading children's stories, and imaginaing how I would like to illustrate a story or a character."

Me: What do you see yourself doing artistically in the next 5 years?

Lauren: "I sure hope that in five years I have furthered a professional career as an artist. My ultimate goal would be to illustrate an amazing and unique children's picture book."

I encourage you all to check out her work. You can also find her at http://laurenalexanderart.blogspot.com/

Christmas In July

My etsy shop is having a Christmas in July sale from July 21 until July 31. Just click on the Christmas in July section to find all the items for this sale.

Some of the items are older items being clearanced, but some are either newly listed or Christmas/holiday/seasonal items available now at a discounted price. I'm still in the process of adding items, so be sure to check back tomorrow.

Nothing in that section is priced over $10 so take advantage of it and start shopping for the holidays now.

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5269516&section_id=5540689

Vegetarian Chocolate Tofu Pie

I was sent this recipe, I haven't tried it yet, but it looked so good I wanted to share it. They had it marked as vegan, but I'm not sure with the graham cracker crust as I'm sure most have eggs or milk so I am just labeling it as vegetarian. Also it calls for white sugar, so check to see if it could have bone chalk.

--------------------

1 pound silken tofu
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar
1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust

*Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
*Blend tofu with an electric mixer or in a food processor until smooth. Blend in cocoa, sugar, vanilla and vinegar. Pour into prepared crust.
*Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes.
*Refrigerate for 1 hour before serving.

If anyone tries it, let me know how it turns out!

$5 Blanket Sale

I am planning on redoing all the pictures in my etsy shop using the same or similar backgrounds to get a more "together" look. I have a lot of blankets listed, so I have been putting off this job as it is going to take forever.

To try to make this task a little easier, I am trying to clearance some off ahead of time. Any blanket or blanket set in my shop (normally priced at $22 or less) can be purchased for just$5. On some sets that is over a 75% savings. Invoices will be adjusted after purchase.

Big Baby Gift Sets

Need a little more of a gift for your shower gift? I've been adding baby gift set ensembles to my line. All pieces are reversible and include: a blanket, burp cloth, changing pad, wash cloth, bib, and small plushie toy.

So far I just have a few available, but I will be adding many more designs.

Too Early For Halloween?

I know technically it isn't even summer yet and we still have tons of time before fall. I also know that I usually run out of time before the holidays and have tons of ideas with no time to complete them in.

So, I have already started listing Halloween items in my etsy shop. So far, they are just a few items leftover from last year, but by next month maybe I will start listing new fall designs.

One thing I hate about that though is it always gives me a rushed feeling. Last year I was sewing Christmas outfits in August and I just didn't like that. You can't exactly feel Ho Ho Ho jolly sewing Christmas trees in 90 degree temperatures!

Do You Yart?

What is yart? The yart sale is a seller organized sale taking place on Etsy from June 11 to June 20. It's mixing yard sale + art = Yart. The last time I checked over 400 sellers were participating (and despite the sound of the name, it's not only art that is included).

How do you find items on yart sale? A lot of us have edited the titles and tags to include 'yart', some have added it to their shop announcements, and others have added it to their avatars.

Happy yarting.

Announcement

In appreciation of the beauty of the tiger, I am curating an etsy treasury of tiger themed items. I would like these items to be sold by either Etsy for Animals (EFA) or Cruelty Free Etsy (CFE) members.

If this describes any items you have, either comment here or send me an etsy convo. Thanks so much!

Good Happy Sunny Sunday

Hi everyone, it is a very sunny Sunday morning here.

My quandry this morning is whether or not I should separate my etsy shop. Right now, I have a mixture of children's clothing, accessories, baby blankets, toddler blankets, other baby items (burp cloths, wipes, etc.).

Sometimes it just all looks to cluttered. I am considering separating the clothing and accessories from the blankets and baby items.

But then which one do I want to keep where. Keep the PumpkinLights shop and leave the clothes there? Or the baby items? It would be far more expensive to relist all the blankets than the clothes, but I kind of want to keep the clothes with PumpkinLights.

Decisions, decisions. Or I guess I could just keep it all in one shop and deal with the clutter. :)

Want to Give my Blog a Makeover

I want to change something with my blog, but I am finding myself bloggally challenged.

I want to change the header to have either my banner or some sort of graphic, but I can't figure that out. I do like the colors, but I would like to change a little something with them.

I also love the look of the 3 column blogs, but truthfully, they scare me.

Anyone have any ideas of what I can change?

My new favorite fabric

Here is my first creation with my much obsessed over Robert Kaufman/ Amy Schimler fabric.

I used the pink The Cow Says Moo and matched it with a pastel purple chenille to make a little 'lovey' security blanket. I just can't get enough of these fabrics, so I had to show it off. ;)

Cruelty Free Etsy

Cruelty Free Etsy is a team for all Etsy sellers who use cruelty free materials in their work. Cruelty free is any product that is not made from animal products or animal by products.

To Join:contact JaKRandomArt(http://jakrandomart.etsy.com) with your e-mail and a short description of your shop.

Visit our yahoo group http://groups.yahoo.com/group/crueltyfreeetsy

I am in love....

with the Robert Kaufman/Amy Schimler Creatures and Critters fabric. I've never really been that into Kaufman fabric, I was always obsessed with Michael Miller fabric. But this weekend I came across those prints and I have been in an ordering frenzy.

I've started off with the turtles and frogs for spring and summer, and I hope to move onto the snails and jungle animals for fall. Of course, I love all 3 color schemes, so I've been trying to get what I can in threes.

Here's a link so you all can see it for yourselves!

http://www.robertkaufman.com/fabrics/creatures_and_critters/

Introducing 'Little Cuddler' Security Blankets

I have finally added my little lovey security blankets to my shop. The line is called Little Cuddlers. The few added so far are like my larger blankets: made from two layers of soft flannel in coordinating prints or solids. Many are printed on both sides and can be reversible.

They will all by made with interesting prints and pictures to keep your baby or toddlers attention. Many styles will be available with matching larger blankets.

On another topic. Hasn't it been technically spring for almost a week? I don't think the little ice pellets decorating my yard this morning got that memo. Happy day everyone!

Spring Has Sprung

Well spring is finally here. The weather today sort of reflected that. It was very sunny and not too cold. I've been busy making some new springy items, like this girls 3 piece Spring Butterfly set:







I'm also in the middle of several pink and purple froggy sets for girls. I'm hoping to send those to a few brick and mortar boutiques.

Now, I am looking for suggestions. I want to have new sew in labels made with my Pumpkin Lights name and hopefully a small picture. I would love to check out any recommendations of shops or sellers you may have. Thanks for any input!

Newly re-vamped blog

Well, I am back to try to make my blog fabulous again! :) Between all the different sites I spend time on, my poor little blog gets pushed aside. BUT it refuses to be a wallflower any longer, so I am trying to give it a bit of a revamped makeover.

So I will be adding some different posts about my online shops, other shops and sellers I love, little tidbits about my life, and an occasional recipe or fun little extra.

Right now, I am thinking about spring. I love spring... right now. I usually am a fall fan, but I've had enough winter so I can't wait for spring to hit full force. We've been treated this week to a little bit of warmer weather and the sun is shining in the windows right now. I just came back from an hour long walk with my dog. She's been cooped up in the house for too long, so we had to stop to sniff every square inch of ground. And yes, I do mean EVERY inch.

I still have 60+ pictures to photoshop so bye for now. :)