the start of something good

This lil guest post of mine has been floating around blog land, and I wanted to give you guys a chance to read it to. :)

I want to tell you guys about a little endeavor I started back in March: my Etsy shop.

I have always been a creative and crafty individual who loves to make things, so when I was drinking a glass of wine one night, I thought to myself: this can really use something. That was two years ago, and I really didn’t jump on it. I did however make my step-brother and his wife some glittered champagne toasting flutes and decorated the wedding party glasses, but I didn’t see my hobby as profitable.

At the beginning of 2014, I was doing a swap box, and the lady told me that she loved wine. I didn’t have a whole lot of money at the time, so I took to Pinterest (the holy grail of DIY) to figure something out. What I came up with… my painted wine glass. I showed my mom, and she LOVED it. She told me that it was unique and maybe I should try to sell them. I decided to do a “cheers” themed wine glass and a polka dot candle holder for my partner, and she LOVED it.

After my swap, I painted some glasses for friends and other swap partners, and I realized that I enjoyed painting wine glasses. So in March 2014, I finally got the courage to open the shop and listed a few painted wine glasses and an array of jewelry. I had already been blogging for about six months, so I thought I had a great platform for free advertising. My idea was to put my efforts into the jewelry- since they were easier and less time consuming, but little did I know, the wine glasses would be the money maker. Truthfully that statement is coming from a business standpoint of view, but don’t get me wrong- I absolutely LOVE painting the wine glasses.

I currently feature over five designs (including the Love, Dream, Blog wine glass you have seen floating around bloglandia) and get all warm and fuzzy inside when someone asks for a custom variation of them. To keep costs down, I do everything myself- and that includes hand painting EVERYTHING. Yes, that means that I don’t use decals. But don't worry, as I heat-cure everything I paint, and that means that your custom design WILL NOT wash off as long as you hand was gently.

I also love coming up with new designs that I know I would love. And that's how the new Princess Wine Glass collection was born!

Shipping is also another area I do myself. Each glass is wrapped in bubble wrap, then in tissue paper, and finished off with curling ribbon. My view is that I want my customers to view me as a friend above all. A friend that is sending them a very loved item. Which is why I still hand address every package, and make weekly trips to the post office.

Are you interested in a custom wine glass or coffee mug? I am currently offering a sale to celebrate Fall, so use code HELLOFALL25 for 25% off your entire order! I also announce sales on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, so be sure to follow me!