Cinco de Mayo Story plus one more Dog.

Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone.  I remember on this day, in years past, arrangements would be made to meet all our friends at the nearest Mexican restaurant.  We'd gather to talk, party and drink Margarita's.  I know there is a much more historic meaning to this day.  Especially if you're of Mexican descent.  Interesting how society markets holidays. 
Several years ago, I decided to make a Cinco de Mayo design to put on my onesies.  I used my little baby face, added a mustache on him, and put the Mexican flag in the background.  I thought it looked cute.  For a couple of years I sold the design pretty well. 

Then one year a customer bought the design, but asked if I'd correct the flag.  The color sequence should be Green, White, then Red.  Mine was Red, White, Green.  Seems I'd been selling (and my customers had been buying) a Cinco de Mayo design with the French Flag on it!    How embarrassing.  
I immediately corrected the flag.  This year I offered my design about two weeks before May 5th.  I sold exactly zero.  You never know..  Maybe I should change the flag back??

Speaking of all things French.  I recently got a request from a customer to do a French Bulldog.  What a cute breed.  I did some research and found that these pups come in several different color variations.  
My customer sent me a picture of her French Bulldog.  He was black and so cute.  It was really fun working on him.  
Now I want to get busy and do another one.  Maybe a white one.  Or two tone.. anyway, here's how he turned out.  

Rhoadworks Welcomes it's first Cat!

It had to happen. You can't have Dogs without Cats.  I really don't know what I was waiting for.  Finally, a customer requested that I do a cat design for her.  I thought a cat would be somewhat more difficult to do than a dog.  What was I thinking?  Cats don't vary as much as dogs do.  There are no Miniature, Standard, or Toy cats. (are there?)  Cats  ears are typically always pointed and up. Not so with dogs.   
When I finished with my Tabby cat, I was thrilled.  I loved it.  I really can't wait to do more.  My hope is that all the cat lovers will find me.  

I have to mention my newest dog.  A Jack Russell terrier.  He turned out so cute.  There are SO many dog breeds out there. Seems as I get one breed done, I realize how many there are left to do.
I met a new friend yesterday while doing yard work.  She has three Lhasa Apso's. (am I spelling that right?)  
While she was talking to me, I was thinking "I haven't done a Lhasa yet!!"  And each of her dogs were a completely different color.  Which one to choose?  Always a problem.
Again, I have to thank my customers for their inspiration.  And thanks for being patient as I decide which kitty or doggie to do next. 

   

Etsy Kids Welcomes Rhoadworks

I'm now part of a new group of artisans, Etsy Kids.  This group specializes in all things hand made for children and babies.  A perfect fit for me. 

One of the stores welcomed me into the group today  The store is called Kookie Critters.  If you need a great gift for a soon to be snaggle tooth child, this is the place to go.
These little "critters" are adorable.  And they can be customize, too.
There several adorable designs to choose from.  Sherman (pictured) is just one.  Check them out at http://www.kookycritters.com.
I'm going to spend the rest of the afternoon working on a couple of donation projects.  One is for Breast Cancer awareness (Giveaway for the Cure on Etsy Kids) and the other is a Yorkie rescue (www.fuzzybutts.com).  Both, very good causes. 

Here are two designs that were asked for by customers.  The Cockapoo I originally did in Black.  She asked for a Brown Cockapoo, and I love it.                       The Poop Happens is sold on a white onesie and the "Poop" is Black.  But to make it show up on the requested Brown onesie, I did it in a 'poopy' green.  Now I like it better than the original!  Thank you to all my imaginative customers!                                    
 

I Wish I were a Salesman

It's gotten to the point where my supply is much greater than the demand. In other words, I need more sales.




There are people out there that possess a quality that I wish I had. Namely, Guts. Why is it that I can draw, paint, turn a ramdom idea into a product, and produce a fairly nice online store. But when it comes to facing someone and asking them to buy my product. I'm guttless.



In the beginning, my sister and I used to sell our onesies at craft shows. We set up our onesie display and spent a couple of days watching the public parade by. Moms, Dads, Grandparents, Aunt and Uncles loved our designs. I'm proud to say that we always out sold everyone around us. And we always had a steady group of people stopping to look and laugh at some of our more humorous sayings. (Poop Happens and Night, Night, See you in Two Hours!).



At the time I thought selling our wares would always be easy. The computer is wonderful. I've truly loved selling my onesies through my online store. It's frankly amazing.



But nothing beats a brick and mortor store. Where people can come in, pick up, touch, and feel my garments. I do have my onesies and tees in several stores and gift shops. And to get them in more stores it means I need to physically walk in and talk to some buyers and owners. Why is that so hard for me?



I love my product. Is the fear of rejection so scary? Yes...for me it is.



I think that every artist whether they admit it or not has a part of them in their work. So a rejection of their work is, in a small way, a personal rejection.



So, wish me luck. I'm going to try and put myself out there this Spring. After all, they say when one window closes, another one opens.

Here are some of my latest designs.

   

Fresh New Year = Fresh Designs

Happy New Year everyone!  Am I the only one who is SO HAPPY the Holidays are over?!  This year we traveled, and parts of the Holidays were hectic.  Don't get me wrong..I loved seeing grand kids and family.  But boy was I glad to get home to my boring routine.  I'm sure it won't be long before I'm complaining about that very routine!

I actually feel like it is a fresh new year. Spring is a great thing to look forward to. And everyday it gets closer.   I feel inspired to come up with new designs, and ideas.  There are always going to be a handful of designs that seem to me timeless.  But I want to come up with a few more top sellers.

There are a sprinkle of holidays coming up.  Valentines Day and Easter.  Then Mother's Day and Father's Day. I'm going to dust off the designs for these holidays and bring them out early.
Oh..I almost forgot!  And this is important.  Because of the sales of my Dog Brother and Sister sales, I am able to donate $206.00 to the SPCA!  I can't tell you how happy that makes me feel.  Paying the bills that keep my site afloat is nice.  And frankly, using some of the profit to buy an airline ticket here and there is great.  But being able to donate to a good cause, makes it all worth while.

Thank you to all my customers for that.  Everyone enjoy this fresh new year!

Thankful for November..But now it's December!

Granted..I've been busy.  And I am not a consistent Blogger.  But when I checked my Blog I was embarrassed to see that my last post was about Halloween!  I did like most of the retailers.. I jumped past Halloween and went straight to Christmas.  Sorry about that.  I'll just have to get into the habit of posting to my blog.
This last month there have been ups and downs.  
I have received the most wonderful praise from some of my customers.  When I thanked my customers for their business and support on my site, I really meant it.  You have no idea what a few kind and sincere words can do for a business owner.  Or anyone for that matter. Instantly you feel like you are making a contribution.  Like you are doing something worthwhile.  Like your time is not wasted. 


Just last week a little restaurant up the street went out of business.  I really loved that restaurant.  I tried to make a point of going in at least once a month.  But, my husband decided he didn't like the food that much.  So for a long while we just didn't go.  Now that small business, that was owned by a group of regular people, is out of business.  Makes me wish I'd gone in for lunch just a few more times.  You never know if it would have made a difference.  
So..I guess my  message is to support small businesses when you can.  That parents, aunts, uncles, and grandparents find me and buy my onesies and tee shirts...makes me so happy.

There are some glitches along the way.  Just this week I am replacing a onesie with a tee.  A communication slip. But I never mind making a customer happy.  It's part of this business as far as I'm concerned.  Another customer washed a newly purchased onesie to find that the design ended up with spots on it.  In 4 years, that has never happened.  Of course, I'm replacing the garment.  And I'll want to do some hands on research on that one

Ok..the fun part.  New designs!  Here are a few of my newer and way older designs that I'm going to add to my site.  They may not all make the cut..we'll see.    

Good Bye Doggies..Hello Baby Magnolias

It's time to say good bye to the old (things that aren't selling), and say hello to the new (things you hope will sell). 
On my site, my listings expire after 30 days.  It might be longer..I don't remember.  Anyway, when they expire, they drop off your site unless you renew them.  Most times I renew them. 
If my designs get looked at on a fairly regular basis, I renew them.  Even if I haven't sold any.  I'm always shocked at how many times I'm just about to let a design go, and it suddenly sells.  You never know what the public is going to want.
But if a design isn't viewed that many times, I have to realize that it's just not going to sell.  It just kills me that my beloved dog portraits are apparently not going to sell.  At least not on my web site.  I have to admit that I myself would much rather view a print or painting in person before I bought it.
So, as the dog portraits expire, I let them. 
But when a window closes, supposedly another window opens.  Enter my new Baby Magnolia designs.  Recently, I realized I didn't have that many designs for little girls.  I guess my last two grandsons "over" inspired me. 

Here are three of my Baby Magnolia designs..hope you like them!

I decided to come up with some very definite Southern sayings.  I consider myself a Southerner. Almost 15 years in St. Louis was as close to North as I've lived.  I was born in Texas, but have spent more time in Mississippi.  And now I live in North Carolina. 
My granddaughter is a very girly girl.  Pink is very prominent in her 6 year old world.  So I've come up with some cute sayings.   I'm going to pair them with flowers and lots of pink.  So far, I'm pleased with what I've designed.  These will replace the dogs.  And lets hope there are customers out there that can relate to them.  I don't mean to exclude my Northern customers.  But you have to go with what you know.  And I don't know Yankee.  At least not yet..