Meet Etsy Seller Melinda Bryant Photo

Today we would like to introduce you to

Etsy shop Melinda Bryant Photo

Melinda Bryant Photo has been selling on Etsy since September 2011, they sell party items, such as invites, decor items etc, plus some lovely photo art prints! Today they are going to give us a little peak behind the scenes of their Etsy shop.


What motivated you to start your shop?
My kids!
Our rowdy boys shared a bedroom and it just wasn't working.  We decided it was time for them, and us, to get some sleep.  They weren't happy about being separated so I offered to decorate their bedrooms in the themes of their choice.  That got them excited!  One son chose animals and the other chose dinosaurs.  So the three of us set out to take some pictures, which eventually became the first of many products offered in my shop.

What is the story behind your shop name?
I had already built a photography business under the decidedly un-creative name of Melinda Bryant Photography.  Titles aren't my thing.  When I went to open my Etsy, I decided to take advantage of the internet presence I'd already built.  Unfortunately it was too many characters for Etsy, so a truncated "Melinda Bryant Photo" was the perfect solution.  I kinda like it better anyway.

What surprised you most about having your own craft / online shop?
I think I have been more excited than surprised.  The idea that I have the freedom to create anything I can dream up, and offer it to the world is so thrilling!  The possibility inspires me.

What is your favourite creations from your shop?
I love my party animals.  Back when I only sold prints, I used to look at my ferocious dinosaurs and imagine them with monocles and top hats.  One night, as I lay in bed, my T-Rex wandered into my head wearing a party hat.  I loved it!  The next morning I put together the first of my birthday invitations.  I quickly realized that any animal is adorable with a party hat on :)

What do you find most challenging about being an Etsy seller?
My biggest and best challenges are the custom order requests.  People have great creativity!  It used to worry me when I first started, that people would ask for things I didn't know how to make -- so of course it happened all the time.  I'm so glad!  It forced me to jump hurdles I would have avoided without the pressure of expectations.  Some of my best products have been the result of custom order requests.

What's your personal philosophy behind your shop / products?
Foremost I want everything I sell to be of the highest quality.  If I wouldn't buy it, I won't sell it.  Most of my products are print-at-home items, so ease of printing is also at the top of my list.

What do you do when you aren't working?
I'm a mom.  I drive carpool, volunteer at the school and church, and shuttle kids to games and practices -- meanwhile we eat ramen noodles for dinner and the clean laundry never gets put away.

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Re-Growing Vegetables Experiment

I was inspired recently by an article from  Wonder How To about how to re-grow vegetables.  It looked like a fun and easy experiment to do at home with my girls.

 We often have left over onion pieces at our home that I don't end up using so I thought this was a great opportunity to reuse it .  Other vegetables we have successfully re-grown in our home are celery, garlic, and romaine lettuce.

 There are several others examples for regrowing vegetables in the article such as carrots greens, mushrooms, and ginger that you might want to give a try.  The article has great photos of each vegetable so take a look if it's hard to imagine what the re-grown vegetable might look like.

Dorinda's shop, Raising Green Kids, offers eco-friendly products for your family. Follow her on Facebook and twitter and at her blog.

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June Design Challenge. It's time to Vote!

For June our Design Challenge theme was "Hold my paw and let's be adventurers!"
We have lots of lovely entries from our team members, browse down and vote for your favourite item!
Voting is open until 27th June.

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Meet Etsy Seller Baby Delights: A Children's Store

Today we would like to introduce you to

Etsy shop Baby Delights

Baby Delights has been selling on Etsy since October 2011, they sell unique baby gifts such as washcloth lollipops, bodysuit sundaes, and washcloth cupcakes! Today they are going to give us a little peak behind the scenes of their Etsy shop.


What motivated you to start your shop?
As a new stay at home mom, we had a tight budget and I wanted to make some extra cash, so I made a few items to sell at a craft show.  By the end of my first day, I had sold out on almost everything I had brought.  People were asking if I had a website and asked for a business card...neither of which I had at the time, since it was my first experience selling crafts.  I remember writing my email address on scraps of notebook paper...things developed from there!

What is the story behind your shop name?
I chose my shop's name with the intent of helping shoppers at craft shows know what I sold, so I wanted to put Children in the name.  I was drifting off to sleep one night and the name Baby Delights:  A Children's Store came to me.  I can remember being so excited that I jumped out of bed and wrote it down!

What surprised you most about having your own craft / online shop?
I am always surprised by the amount of time spent on the seemingly small stuff, like promoting online each day, or how long it takes to carefully package and ship items!

What is your favourite creations from your shop?
I love the washcloth lollipops.  Even after making hundreds of them, they still make me smile.   I love setting them out on my candy display at craft shows and seeing people stop and coo over them.

What do you find most challenging about being an Etsy seller?
Taxes.  I was in for a rude awakening my first year, when I had to count every extra washcloth, bodysuit, sock, ribbon spool, yard of fabric, tape roll, box, etc.    Entering numbers into Excel spreadsheets, keeping up with receipts, paperwork for sales tax...I would love to give that job to someone else!

What's your personal philosophy behind your shop / products?
Items sold online should be perfection.   That means I wash my hands a hundred times to make sure things are perfect and stay perfect.  There is no room for flaws in my supplies or in my sewing/crafting.  My customers are counting on me to provide exactly what they see in the pictures.  They are looking for the perfect baby gift and I want each of my items to be perfect!

What do you do when you aren't working?
I take care of my 3 year old daughter and often times babysit my 2 nieces (ages 3 and 1).  My daughter loves art, so we spend a great deal of our day cutting, pasting, painting, and baking (when she's not making me be a mermaid or help her "look for treasure").  I am hoping she will be my craft show partner in a few years!

Baby Delights is offering a 10% discount in her shop. To use the coupon visit her etsy store and enter code "ETSYKIDS10" at checkout. Valid until July 31st 2014.
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Treasury Challenge #36 - Natures Child

The theme for the EtsyKids Team treasury challenge #36 was "Natures Child".
Our team members created lots of beautiful treasuries featuring some amazing items, but the winner with a whooping 267 views is...

The Cutest Nature Ever! by GizusDollWorld

Girls Summer floral 60's dress wildthingsdresses £38.00	6 mo. Linen skirt with white lace and pink heart trim ailesdiaphanes $35.00	Michael Miller Hedgehog Baby Burp Cloth Set (2) Ahmelie $12.00	Three Little Birds Bob Marley Print Song Quote in Rainbow colors 8x10 by YassisPlace, Many Colors YassisPlace $20.00
Crochet Pattern, Amigurumi Pattern, Amigurumi Monkey Pattern, Tutorial, instant download AllSoCute $4.00	Baby girl shoes neon animal print shoes baby girl canvas sneakers- Personality Plus allthingsforbaby $29.00	Lamb PDF Sewing Pattern Stuffed Toy Animal Sheep Softie DollsAndDaydreams $10.00	Sweet Shoppe Straws, Candy Shoppe Straws, Candy Buffet Straws, Aqua Straws, Pink Straws, Orange Straws, Lime Green Straws, Pack of 25 Straws FiddleSticksBoutique $2.95
baby bandana bib - flowers and birds - girls LiddleBerry $8.00	Girls linen hair clips - Grey Flower girl hair clips - Christmas Toddler hair accessories PetitDeLin $9.99	Felt heart garland - heart banner -pinks, yellow, blues, purples - bedroom decor - nursery decor LullabyMobiles $39.00	Unicorn Horn Gray Headband in Original Size Costume Prop Pony BrooklynOwl $16.00
Mr. Hippo & Yellow Duck - hand painted canvas, yellow nursery, nursery artwork, baby shower, nursery decor, baby room, girls room, boys room ShenasiConcept $30.00	Quilted zipper coin purse. Quilted zip bag. Zip pouch quilted. Pink, amber green, turquoise. Folk art print. Handmade. PotatoBlossomStudio $10.00	Always Believe In Unicorns. Unicorn Wall Art. Pink. Stars. Girl Nursery Art Print. Animal Art. Girls Room Decor. Nursery Art . 8x10 Print. OrlyPea $14.00	Giraffe Decal for Baby's Room or Bursery TikitiWallDecals $72.00

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Thank you GizusDollWorld for creating such a lovely treasury!

GizusDollWorld sells cute plush toys and dolls. We love her little cloud plushies. Visit her shop to see more of her wonderful creations.

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Meet Etsy Seller Togs4tots

Today we would like to introduce you to

Etsy shop Togs4tots

Togs4tots has been selling on Etsy since December 2006, they make all things for little people and their Mom. Baby clothes, booties, Mom hats and aprons. Today they are going to give us a little peak behind the scenes of their Etsy shop.


What motivated you to start your shop?
I have always loved to Sew and crochet. when we retired I needed something to do and also needed to supplement our retirement income a little so I decided to do what I liked to do and also make some money while doing it.

What is the story behind your shop name?
When I first started I was trying to think of a name for my shop and I was then only making the girls clothing so my husband came up with the togs4tots idea. Togs for children and wanted to make it different so decided to use a 4 instead of the word for so togs4tots was born.

What surprised you most about having your own craft / online shop?
How nice it is to meet all the different folks that I come in contact with while making and selling my items.
Also something that really surprises me is the ideas people come to me with for custom orders, it is always fun creating these.

What is your favourite creations from your shop?
Baby cowboy boots and hats and also the baby onsie dresses.

What do you find most challenging about being an Etsy seller?
Trying to keep up with the fashions. And keeping up with the different styles and colors that are popular. One month you might sell quite a few of one style and the next month it may be something completely different that folks want.

What's your personal philosophy behind your shop / products?
To present to my customers with an item which is well made. Also keep my items as economically priced as possible and I like to make useful items.

What do you do when you aren't working?
Cooking, baking cookies, keeping house.

Anything else you'd like to tell us or share?
When one of my nephews saw my children's clothing on Facebook he wrote and told me. You are your Mother's daughter. I owe everything I know about sewing and crocheting to my mother. she was a GREAT seamstress and I do not hold a candle to her

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Meet Etsy Seller AveryLane

Today we would like to introduce you to

Etsy shop AveryLane

AveryLane has been selling on Etsy since May 2008, they sell sewing patterns for dolls clothing and accessories, specifically designed for American Girl Dolls, Bitty Baby, and Bitty Twin Dolls. Today they are going to give us a little peak behind the scenes of their Etsy shop.


What motivated you to start your shop?
I've been sewing since I was a young child and sewing has always been a big part of my life. I thought it would be fun to try to earn a little money doing something that I love and it would allow me to continue to stay home with my kids. I think this is similar to many Etsy shop owners, which may be why it felt like a good fit from the start.
I first joined Etsy to buy fabric. It was over a year later that I opened my shop. I started selling children's clothes, because it looked fun. The Etsy community felt  supportive and encouraging, so I took a chance. My shop and business has evolved from that feeling and my passion for sewing.

What is the story behind your shop name?
As a teen and young adult I made lots of clothes for myself. When I started having kids, naturally I  sewed for them. Having 4 children within 6 years meant I didn't have as much time for sewing as I would have liked.  It wasn't until my 4th child was born that I began sewing clothes as a necessity.
My youngest daughter was extremely particular about what she would wear. She had some tactile sensory sensitivity, and at one point, she refused to wear most store-bought clothes. She preferred to wear her mom-made skirts and dresses, so I complied and sewed.
Several of the moms at her preschool asked if they could buy my handmade skirts--their girls wanted to wear those ultimate twirl skirts. As I began selling more and more skirts, I decided to open an Etsy shop. Since it had been my daughter, Avery, who prompted me to sew this style and it was her school mates who started me on this path, I decided to call my business "Avery Lane".

What is your favourite creations from your shop?
The Sabrina Dress pattern is my favorite dress design. The Sabrina dress was in my head for a long time, a classic, elegant style with a bateau neckline or boat neck (sometimes called a "Sabrina" neckline). I admire Audrey Hepburn for her many qualities: kindness,  philanthropy, class, and of course, her timeless style. The dress was designed with her in mind, specifically a dress she wore in the movie, Sabrina.

My new book, Sew in Style-Make Your Own Doll Clothes, is also a favorite project, but it's a collection of 22 patterns-not just 1 design. It brings back many childhood memories for me, memories of sewing as a young girl for my dolls and stuffed animals.  It's different than anything else in my shop. Not only is it a published book, but it's the first time I designed patterns for children to sew, instead of adults.
I worked for over a year and a half on my book. I spent a lot of time thinking about how I teach children to sew and how that differs from teaching adults. I wanted my book to be written in a kid-friendly language, and I wanted the patterns to be simple enough for children to sew by themselves, like I did as a young girl. This was the biggest challenge, to create trendy and stylish designs that were simple in construction.
It was a great experience, and I love my book. It's an awesome feeling to think that my book may help young people catch the sewing bug :) and feel the joy of creating something with their hands.

What's your personal philosophy behind your shop / products?
Any handcraft or art is very personal for the artist. When a person makes something with her hands, part of herself goes into her finished product. In this way, the artist is sharing a part of herself with others. If she is creating for a specific person, her feelings for that person also goes into the finished piece. It creates a connection.
When I sold children's clothing, it was so rewarding to hear how my dresses and skirts became favorites of the children who wore them. Now that I sell sewing patterns, I love when people contact me to let me know how they've enjoyed creating with my patterns, or even when they contact me for help. I could talk about sewing and fabric for hours. These conversations make the connections even stronger.

What do you do when you aren't working?
I mostly do the mom thing. Our home is very busy and often really noisy. We spend a lot of time at the soccer fields and at music concerts, doing crafts, and baking. We love watching documentaries and movies together. My husband and I like to take walks after dinner, and we all love going to the beach.
When not doing family stuff or Avery Lane sewing and blogging stuff, I teach sewing through the parks and rec and volunteer as a 4-H sewing leader. Believe it or not:  I also still sew for fun, when I have time. I love sewing clothes for my daughters and myself. My youngest still insists on mom-made clothes. She hasn't worn a store bought swimsuit in years.

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