What a week!

So...it's been kinda hectic around here lately. I'm still busy with work, of course, because I'm always busy with work. :P 

But also...last Wednesday we had two sections of our fence blow down in a storm. :P Usually the storm misses us...it either dies down before it gets here or it goes north/south of us. But Wednesday night it actually hit us (actually...it was really early Thursday morning but whatever). Anyway...there was a lot of wind and I was worried about the outdoor umbrella we have on the table blowing away because I forgot to tie it down. By the time I thought about it, there was already a ton of close lightning and it was pouring down rain...so I just went to bed thinking about the fact that I was probably going to wake up and have to search the neighborhood for the umbrella. I woke up to the umbrella still in its big, heavy base with the table just moved a few inches. Instead...the entire west side of the fence was down and a 30 foot section in the middle of the east side of the fence was down. I would've rather gone looking for the umbrella. :P 

So...I spent the next day contacting fence companies on Facebook. Most of them were able to give me a ballpark estimate right away. One guy here in town wanted to actually come look at the fence. He came out on Thursday and said he would shoot us over an estimate. Johnny liked the guy so we were waiting to see what he came up with. I asked the guy on Saturday if he had even a ballpark number ready...he said he'd have it by the end of the weekend. Almost noon on Monday I asked about it again...and he was like...what was the phone number again? Oh yeah...I came and looked at it. Seriously?! Then he finally sent the estimate which was about $2k higher than the highest estimate that we'd already gotten. So we waited all that time for nothing. So I immediately went back to my second choice and Johnny met with him to go over all the details. So hopefully by the end of next week we will have a new fence! Well...at least most of the fence. We're not replacing the north side of the fence yet. Eventually we'll get around to replacing that too...but not right now. 

Luckily we'd put up some metal wire "fencing" attached to the posts on our side of the fence between our yard and the neighbor's to keep our dogs from hitting the fence when barking at the neighbor's dogs...and it stayed up. Then on the other side...right now we just have a long baby gate (the kind you can attach together to make a big octagon playpen) across the other side of the fence. It's really just a suggestion...the dogs could totally just knock it down or jump over it, but luckily they don't. So it's working well enough for now. The fence guy said they'll come out one day and tear down the existing fence and set the posts (so we'll be without a fence at all for that day) then the next day they'll come back and put up the pickets...then it should be all done. Hopefully it all goes smoothly! I'm just so ready for all of it to be done and over with. :P 

We did celebrate our anniversary this past weekend! It's hard to believe that Johnny and I have been back together for 12 years already...and married for 7! But actually...we've been in love with each other for 19 years! It's interesting how the 7 years we were apart seemed to go by so slow but the last 7 years that we've been married have seemed to go by so fast. Funny how time seems to work like that. But we celebrated our anniversary with a lowkey weekend at home...just the way we like it! We used DoorDash to order Johnny a big cheeseburger from Applebees and I was in the mood for breakfast from Village Inn (usually we just pick one place but we splurged and each got what we wanted). We also got a slice of Lemon Supreme pie to share. :) We used to do that all the time but we hadn't gotten it in forever! And we watched a couple more episodes of Once Upon a Time. We're almost halfway through Season 4 now. Rumple is still my favorite character by far. There was a point when he "died" and I had to check and make sure he was still listed in the cast for the rest of the seasons because neither one of us wanted to keep watching the show if he wasn't going to be in it anymore. :P Our second favorite character is Hook...but I like Snow and Charming as well. I don't know though...there's just something I love about Robert Carlyle and his portrayal of Rumple. 

This weekend is the air show. We live not far from the Air Force base here so we can see them practicing and a lot of the aerial show from our backyard. This year, the Blue Angels are performing. It's the first time they've been back since 2007, I think. The rest of the years it's been the Thunderbirds. Yesterday around 3pm, the Blue Angels went by SUPER close next to the house. I didn't have my phone ready to take video...so I missed it. :( I was hoping they'd be there around the same time today...so I waited outside hoping to get video this time. I got a video of them going across the sky above the neighbor's house but they were pretty far away. Then the neighbor started mowing...so I decided to go back in the house for while. And about 15-30 minutes later...I heard them REALLY loud (much louder than the rest of the time we've heard them) so I assume they went right by the house again and I missed it AGAIN. :P But we'll see if they fly by this weekend. Mom is planning on coming over to watch, too. It's nice being able to watch from our house instead of dealing with all the people and traffic. Not to mention the fact that it's going to be over 100 degrees this weekend so it's going to be even hotter on the Tarmac. No thank you! 

But...I should probably get back to work. Hope everyone has a good weekend! 

Always busy!

I've still been super busy working on updating my Etsy shops. It's taking me a long time to get through editing my listing photos. It's going a little smoother now that I've found my groove. 

I decided that I'm going to update my shop my section...I started with my chronic illness stickers since they're my most popular. I also decided that I'm going to wait on my ruler photos. I already have my size comparison photo which shows all three sizes (2", 3", 4") in the same image with a quarter to show real-world size...so the photos with the individual sticker next to the ruler to show size is just supplemental. It was taking a lot longer to get through the photos when I have three additional photos for each design...so I decided I can wait and add those later as I get them done. That way I can get my shop updated without further delay. I've gotten two sections done so far...and I'm working this weekend to get as much done as quickly as possible. I'm hoping it'll be the last weekend I work for awhile. Next weekend is our anniversary so I'm definitely going to take a break and spend some much needed quality time with my husband. It's hard to believe we've been back together for 12 years already and married for 7! :)

I also took a short break last weekend so we could celebrate Johnny's birthday. We went to Village Inn for dinner with my grandparents. Johnny had the All World Triple Cheeseburger which used to be a double. It was pretty funny...another customer at the restaurant was joking with Johnny about his super tall cheeseburger and ended up getting one himself. ;) Mom and I both ordered breakfast. I love their French toast. We didn't save room for pie, though! After dinner we went over to my grandparents' house to play Hand & Foot (I also just learned that it's actually a version of Canasta). 

Oh! And I noticed last week that my custom name labels listing in my CandiMakerPlanners shop has the bestseller badge! It's the first I've noticed for any of my stickers. It just means that I got a lot of orders for it in a short amount of time. I've sold 40 sheets since the middle of June. :) I've marketed them mainly for back-to-school so that's the main reason for their jump in popularity. So that's pretty exciting! 

I don't really have a whole lot to update other than work stuff. We do still make time to have dinner together every night. We've been watching a new show lately, though! Actually...it's a show that I'd started watching before Johnny and I ever started dating but then never watched beyond the first season. I've had Manifest playing in the background while I've been working...and I remembered that Josh Dallas was also in Once Upon a Time. So one day I decided to start watching that again since I never finished it. Johnny was leaning on the back of the couch after work when I was on episode 3 or something...and he started asking questions and got interested in it. So we started over from the beginning. We're already in the middle of Season 3! Rumple is my favorite character. There's just something kind of adorable about him despite being the dark one. lol. Maybe it's the accent. ;) 

Well...I'm going to get back to work. I hope everyone is having a good weekend! :) 

August Already?!

It's hard to believe that it's already August! Of course...the weather is definitely giving August vibes. I'm so tired of this heat. A short thunderstorm came through last night and it felt nice and cool for a short time...but it's hot and humid again today. UGH. 

I started my morning with updating my spreadsheets for the month of July. It was a very good month for CandiMaker. :) I broke my record for the number of orders in one week. My previous record was 34...my new record is 36 for the week of July 14-20. I also broke my record for monthly orders. In June 2024 I had 97 orders...in July 2024 I had 137 orders! I also hit my goal of 1000 sales in my CandiMakerStickers Etsy shop on 7/16/24 (and then I hit 1050 on 7/26/24). So my new goal is 1500 sales by the end of the year. :) 

I've been pretty busy working on making changes in my shop. My mom has been coming out and helping me with taking new product photos. I have new backgrounds and it went so much more smoothly with mom pulling the stickers out of my binder and putting them back. I bought a wooden 3-d watermark and logo ruler that I'm using in my photos...I really like it. :) We got most of the photos taken, now I'm editing them. I finally got Paintshop Pro put on my new laptop so I'm correcting the perspective and cropping the photos and getting the listing photos laid out so they're ready to upload. I'll probably update my shop by section when they're ready. I don't know...haven't quite decided yet. It's a big undertaking, that's for sure. I think I'm really going to like the new "feel" to my shop when it's all done...it's just getting to that point. 

So...back to work! 

Breaking more records!

Last week, I broke my record for the number of orders in one week with 34 orders...and last week I broke my record again with 36 orders! :) I'm pretty sure I'm going to break my record for monthly orders this month too. My record high for orders in one month was 97 last month in June...but I'm already at 96 orders after yesterday and there's still 9 days left in July. :) So I'm pretty excited about that! 

I finally found all the backgrounds that I'm going to be using for my new listing photos. I wanted some images that have real-world textures that also match the colors of my branding...which are peacock/galaxy colors. Our wedding was a peacock theme so that's where it comes from. :) Anyway...I found some images I like...a lot of it has a painted cement look to it. And the one I'm going to be using for my size comparison photo is actually called "Rustic Peacock" which I really liked. :) I got some very white, very smooth 12x18 cardstock and I printed the images then covered them with matte laminate. I'm going to attach them to a piece of sanded plywood that my mom has...making my own photo boards that'll last through constant handling when photographing new items. Mom is coming over this week to help me photograph all my existing designs. It goes so much faster when I can have someone handing me the sets of stickers and putting them back while I'm taking the pictures. So we're going to make a day of it, have lunch together, and just hang out. :) 

I also revamped the infographic listing photos to match my new backgrounds and updated the information. Today I'm working on my main listing images. I'm also going to be updating my listing descriptions and things like that. I hope to have my entire shop completely updated no later than the end of this weekend, but hopefully sooner! I do wish Etsy had a better way to do bulk updates though. :P 

Well...I better get back to work. I have a lot to get done before tomorrow!  

So much!

Things have been pretty busy since the last time I updated. 

At the end of June, the dogs ended up getting sprayed in the face by a skunk for the very first time ever...the day after they'd gotten baths, of course. It was NOT fun AT ALL. So at 10pm, I was mixing together hydrogen peroxide (which luckily we had some on hand), baking soda, and dish soap and Johnny gave the dogs another bath. It helped a lot...but the smell lingered for quite awhile. The dogs and the house are finally back to smelling better now, though. 

Last weekend they got normal baths again. Nova's skin is so sensitive with her allergies and it's been bothering her a lot. We got some new shampoo that seems to be helping. And next week I think we're going to go ahead and take her into the vet to get her an allergy shot. Both her and Bozley are allergic to chicken, but she has environmental allergies as well. They usually start in the spring and ramp up in the summer, but by fall they calm down quite a bit and she does a lot better through the winter. We were able to keep her comfortable without resorting to an allergy shot last year, but her allergies seem to be worse this summer. 

Oh and through the whole skunk situation...I learned something new about my own health issues. Apparently smells can trigger my trigeminal neuralgia AND trigeminal neuralgia can cause you to have a metallic taste sensation in your mouth. Luckily it didn't trigger the nerve pain on top of it too...because that would've just been unbearable. But the whole day after the dogs had gotten sprayed...I was walking around the house tweaking like I was on invisible drugs or something...trying to figure out what the weird sensation in my mouth was from. I was like...did I get skunk oil in my mouth? What am I touching that I keep getting it in my mouth? What's happening? Why isn't it going away? It's like...if nails on a chalkboard had a taste...that'd be it. LOL. That's the only way I know how to describe it...and how irritating it feels. And it lasted for DAYS. 

That's on top of the fact that summer doesn't agree with my health already...and it's been very hot so far this summer. AND going through menopause at the same time with hot flashes is really stupid. The heat started being an issue for me ever since I was pregnant with Aubry and got progressively worse over the years. It triggers my neuropathy and a whole host of other things. It's just exhausting. I'm definitely ready for summer to be OVER. Ugh. I'd love to move somewhere that's just mild 70s year-round. That'd be nice! 

So other than all that, I've been super busy with work. June was my most successful month so far. I ended the month with 97 orders (super bummed that I didn't hit 100...but I'm sure I will soon!) which breaks my previous record of 85 back in March. I also set a new record high for daily orders...nine on June 13th! June was also my highest monthly income and highest monthly profit so far since I started CandiMaker in June 2021...so that's exciting, especially since summer months are usually slower for retail. 

It's been a successful start to July so far. :) I'm already at 58 orders for the month of July and it's not even halfway over yet. At the end of the 13th of last month, I only had 46 orders. So if I can keep up the same pace, hopefully I'll break 100 orders this month! :) And today I broke my record for highest number of orders in one week (measured Sunday to Saturday from all sources including eBay, all my Etsy shops, offsite sales, etc) which was previously 31...I am at 34 orders so far this evening! I'm all about breaking records. :) It's very exciting to see my little business growing and doing well. 

In my CandiMakerStickers Etsy shop, I hit 900 sales on 6/17/24 and then I hit 950 sales on 7/2/24. As of today, I'm already at 987 sales tonight...so I'm sure I'll hit my 1000 goal for the year soon. :) I think my new goal will be to hit 1500 by the end of 2024. Hopefully I can do it! :)

My custom name labels are doing good right now over at CandiMakerPlanners. I had my first sale on June 18th and I've sold 26 more sheets since then! So that's really exciting. :) I also finally finished the school sticker sheets that I'd been working on and got them listed on July 8th. My plan was to have them listed by July 1st...but between the dogs getting sprayed by the skunk and then my health issues flaring up, it just didn't happen as quickly as I'd hoped. And just after midnight this morning...I got my first sale for one of them! :) It always feels good to see a quick return on something I've been excited about. My sister also bought several of them...she was really excited about them! Hopefully they'll do well...I had a lot of fun working on them. I wish I would've had them back when I was in school!  

Etsy has announced some changes on the platform recently. They've made some policy changes...which are mostly clarifications to existing policies. I'm taking the opportunity make some changes to my shop. I'm going to be making changes to listing photos and some other little things here and there. There's also some new products that I'm excited to start working on. Always so much to do! :) 

On that note...I'm going to get back to work. I'm breaking my "no work on the weekend" rule, but I'm in the mood to be productive today so I figure I'll keep the momentum going while I can. :)