Another busy week!

So...Monday I had to go in for jury duty. It was a LONG day in very uncomfortable chairs. By lunch time my back and neck were hurting SO badly. We were able to take lunch from around 12pm-1:30pm. I thought about running back home, but 1) I had a good parking spot and I didn't want to deal with parking again, and 2) the dogs were really upset about me being gone and I figured they'd be more upset if I came home for half an hour and then left again. And Boz has already been kind of out of sorts because his foot has been hurting him. He's doing a lot better...but every once in awhile you can tell it is bothering him. It doesn't help that Nova has stepped on it a couple times and made him yelp. But I guess they were howling and barking most of the time I was gone. :P 

It was pretty chilly on Monday so I just hung out in the car and read my book...because it was a lot more comfortable than the hard office chairs in the jury room. :P At the beginning of the day, I was assigned to one judge...but that case ended up not needing a jury. Since they were short jurors, we still had to stay. Finally around 2pm a group of about 50 of us were sent up to a courtroom for voir dire. It took awhile for the judge and the attorneys to come in. There was really only about an hour or so of very general questions where a couple people had some iffy answers and one person was dismissed. Toward the end of the day, I realized that I'd already known the case and saw video footage of the incident. But then we were allowed to leave around 4:45pm and had to come back the next morning. So before things got started the next morning, I told the judge's administrative assistant that I'd seen the video footage and wouldn't be able to be impartial. She let the judge and the attorneys know, so that was the first question of the day. Since I'd already seen evidence that would be presented, I was dismissed. She gave me the questionnaire and I was dismissed for the rest of the session...but there were still quite a few people in the jury room when I left that morning. 

I'd planned to come home and work the rest of the morning...but I had a horrible migraine (probably from my back and neck hurting so much) so I ended up taking a nap and didn't get started on stickers until later in the day. I'm working on making all the inventory for the vendor event that my sister is taking my stickers to. I wasn't sure how much to make...but I finally narrowed it down. We decided it would be better to take a wider variety of designs rather than multiple size choices. So I'm just making all the stickers my standard 3" size and taking 36 die-cut sticker designs plus two different sticker sheet designs...and decided on 8-10 stickers per design (about what I can fit on one page). 

I also ordered some acrylic display stands from Amazon. For the die-cut stickers, I have two 6-tiered holders that will hold 18 separate designs. Then I also purchased a pack of 4" wide brochure holders with 2 tiers for the sticker sheets. 

So the last several days I've been printing and cutting backer cards, stickers, and then putting them in the sealable cellophane bags. And then I realized I was gonna need more supplies so I had to order more glossy cardstock, cellophane bags, and sticker paper. As of today...I have all the stickers printed and I'm printing the last of the backer cards now...just waiting on my bags to be delivered tomorrow so I can finish packaging the last 6 sticker designs. While I wait on those, I'm printing the First Responder sticker sheets and then need to design and print my second sticker sheet design. I've been aiming for having everything done and ready to go this weekend in case my sister comes by to pick everything up, since the event is the following weekend. 

I keep thinking it would be so much more convenient if I had two printers going. :P I go back and forth with the decision to convert my sublimation printer back to a pigment printer. I really loved sublimation in the beginning...but I like making stickers and other paper products a lot more. So I don't know...we'll see. :P 

Right now I have both laptops in my office...I'm printing from one and cutting from the other. That way I don't have to wait for one to get done cutting before I can start printing again. Everything has been going pretty smoothly. I know a lot of sticker makers complain about Cricut...but I really haven't had any problems with my Maker 3. Even after the update...everything is still cutting perfectly (knock on wood). I think I've only recalibrated my machine maybe 4 separate times since I got it in 2021. It's really been working out well. However, I do think one of these days I will get an additional cutter to increase my productivity. But that will likely be farther down the road. What I have right now is working well for the volume of orders I'm getting. 

Well...gonna get back to work! :) 

Look at me go!

Wow...two posts in one week?! Of course...they're the only two for the month so far. :P 

It's been a somewhat busy week. Wednesday I had to take Bozley to the vet. He was lifting his left paw and limping around. We could touch his leg and foot in general with no problem but he got agitated when we touched one of his toes. We couldn't see anything obviously wrong so I went ahead and took him in. He almost bit the vet when he got to that toe--which Boz never does--so it was definitely hurting him. The vet couldn't find anything that had punctured the area and didn't feel anything consistent with a break...so Boz got a shot for his pain and we brought home some antibiotics (just in case it was some kind of puncture that we couldn't see) and some vetprofen. He's been doing better since...only favors it every once in awhile. And he's been surprisingly good taking his medicine, too! 

Then Thursday I had an eye doctor appointment. I usually go once a year and get a new pair of glasses...but I hadn't been since the pandemic shutdowns. I'm nearsighted and I could tell that my prescription needed changed...and that my brain was basically ignoring my right eye except for peripheral vision. And I was right! That's typically how it happens every time. My prescription in my left eye went from a -1.75 to -2 and my right eye went from -3 to -4...so now my right eye is officially twice as bad as my left eye. :P But I got a new pair of glasses that should be here in a couple weeks. I just picked out a pair of plain black plastic DKNY rectangle frames. They're super lightweight and fit nicely. I have such a hard time picking out glasses (and hats, actually) because I have an apparently abnormally small head. :P We had quite a lengthy discussion about how great our insurance is...which we encounter a lot whether it's medical, dental, or vision. We get one pair of glasses a year which includes up to $200 for the frame, free polycarbonate lenses that can include transitions, anti-glare coating, and basically any other coating options. I paid $83 just for the lenses because I got a lighter weight material since the lens for my right eye would be pretty thick otherwise. :P But the original price of the total frames and lenses was almost $800...so yeah...definitely good insurance! And then next year I'll pick out another pair! :) 

Oh and I got a jury duty summons...had to call tonight to see whether or not I'd have to show up...and I do. :P The only other time I've been called for jury duty was shortly after I'd had surgery and I was excused for medical reasons. So this is my first time actually going in for jury duty. We'll see how it goes. :P 

I've also been busy with work. I've made a couple sales this week and I had to print more of my packaging materials. I also took advantage of the slow month by adjusting the titles and keywords on some of my listings so they'll hopefully perform better. I work on it every few months for listings that aren't getting as much traffic. Most of my time, though, has been spent getting stuff ready for the vendor event that my sister is taking some of my stickers to. I've been printing lots of inventory and backer cards then assembling everything for individual retail sales. And this weekend I'm planning to list my new first responder stickers and sticker sheet in my Etsy shop. I was going to try making some different kinds of sticker sheets next week...but we'll see how things go with jury duty. 

I've been binging Stranger Things for...well long enough that Aubry and Johnny keep making fun of me. LOL. But it's not really binge-watching so much as binge-listening. I always like to have some background noise when I'm working on my computer...so I'm not actually *watching* the TV that much. I just look up when I happen to hear a good part coming up that I want to watch...then go back to paying attention to my computer. I go back and forth between all my favorite shows (and I have a LOT of favorites). lol. Oh! I can't wait until Stranger Things 5 is released. I'm sad that it'll be the final season...but hopefully it'll be a good one. My favorite "regular" characters on the show are Hopper, Erica, and Dr. Owens...though for the most part I really like the entire cast. I really, really liked Eddie in Season 4. The whole cast has great chemistry and comedic timing. I like watching Hopper interact with Joyce and the kids. He always makes me laugh. Some things he says and does remind me of my own dad (although my dad is a little more grumbly). lol. And I love Erica's snappy whit. She's a hilarious addition that adds a lot of character to the show. And I know Dr. Owens has such a small part to play compared to the other cast members, but I love his energy...especially in Season 4. I like the way he is with El. He's also one of the only people in the world who doesn't make me cringe when he says the word, "kiddo." Too many years of listening to my ex-husband repeat that word over and over to all the kids during softball season just turned me off of the word completely. :P But for some reason, I don't mind when Owens says it. I really hope he'll be back for the 5th season. Oh and my prediction is that 8 also makes another appearance in the last season. Vecna's abilities seem to be a mix of 8 and 11...I think that's on purpose and they'll have to work together to defeat him. 

Manifest will also be returning for the second part of it's fourth and final season. I believe it's coming to Netflix in June...so just a little bit longer. And by then, our regular shows (NCIS plus Law & Order, SVU, and Organized Crime...and Blacklist but this is the final season for that show) will be on summer hiatus so it'll be nice to have something to watch. I really hope the last season of Manifest is good. I loved the first couple seasons...but Angelina really got on my nerves in Season 3. And then Season 4 kinda felt like a dud. Ben was annoying and I disliked Angelina even more than the previous season. At this point...I'm mostly watching because I just want to see the final conclusion and hoping it'll be better than expected. So we shall see. I'm at least relieved that they renewed it to be able to actually have a conclusion...instead of being canceled without any answers before Netflix picked it up. 

Well...gonna get some more work done before bedtime! 

Already the middle of April?!

I say it all the time...but the months still seem to go by so fast! 

This month (and last) has been full of a lot of doctor appointments. Johnny had an appointment last month with a wonderful ENT and then at the beginning of this month he had surgery to remove a pretty large tumor and a lymph node in his neck. And then he ended up with bronchitis...the day after surgery his chest was hurting more than his neck! The following week he had his follow-up appointment to get his stitches out and get an update on the pathology results. Luckily it was benign, so that's a relief! 

Then today was Johnny's last scheduled day off work and we had an appointment with our regular doctor for medication refills and stuff. I got the results from my full spine x-rays, which showed that my curvature is at 18 degrees. I think the last time we had them done it was 15 degrees...so it progressing but very slowly...and it's still considered mild curvature. We also talked about the Ehlers-Danlos genetic testing. Since there's not a geneticist in the area that has knowledge about EDS, we're just going to order a kit that sequences the entire genome along with the rare disease report which includes every EDS variant (except hypermobile, because its genetic origin hasn't been discovered yet). Then we'll know if it's one of the variants tested or if it's hEDs like I suspect. I'm very interested to see the results. I'd already analyzed what little DNA information is in the raw data from genealogical websites, but that very small sample didn't really include anything having to do with Ehlers-Danlos. But I enjoyed going through the results and finding evidence in my DNA of things that I've already known other family members to have...plus some things I already know I have (like scoliosis, sun sensitivity, myopia, blue eyes and blond hair, etc.). I find it interesting to see what things I have an increased or decreased risk for...but I don't worry about any of it. I've always had a very realistic view when it comes to future possibilities that may or may not ever come to fruition. But...I think dealing with chronic health issues--including some that haven't had definitive answers to--helps that. I learned a long time ago that regardless of whether there's a name for it or not, I'm still going to feel the same. However, having a diagnosis does help to prepare for future possibilities if it's something that's progressive. So I'm glad we're moving forward looking into what my DNA specifically says about Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. 

Other than that, I've just been working on CandiMaker stuff, as always! I got my wholesale and custom text/name stickers added to my Etsy shop. I also have some more funny animal puns to add this week. And the vendor event that my sister is helping her friend with next month is a First Responders festival...so I've created several new designs for that including my very first sticker sheet! :) I definitely plan to make more sticker sheets to put in my Etsy shop as well. The sticker sheets are generally smaller stickers and they're not laminated...so definitely a little different than my normal laminated die-cut stickers that are water-resistant. 

Things are slow on Etsy right now for a lot of shops, mine included. I think it's a combination of many things including the state of the economy right now and people are generally spending less. But I still keep working on my shops and products. :) I'm confident that things will pick up in the coming months. And on that note...gonna get a little bit more work done before I go to bed. :) 

Three posts?!

Here I am...third post of the month! But...it's another post about work again. :P I have some exciting things coming up though! 

My sister is going to be working a vendor event with a friend of hers in May...and she's going to be taking some of my stickers to sell alongside the stuff that she and her friend are selling. Since it's kind of a combined thing, I went ahead and prepared some retail packaging that has my branding on it so that it's set apart from their stuff. I'd already started printing my text logo on the back of my stickers. But now I'll also have specific retail packaging. I am printing and cutting the backer cards myself (figured out how to use print and cut to make double-sided cards!) and then I have cellophane bags to put them in. I also have a t-slot hole punch so that the backers can be used as hang tags for display, too. Now we just need to figure out which designs to take! 

I decided to make SKU numbers for all my die-cut stickers. I don't necessarily *need* them right now...but I figure it will be easier to do it now before I add even more designs. I never thought about it until I was researching wholesale marketplaces. A lot of sticker makers in a FB group that I like are also selling wholesale so I was seriously considering it. Having unique SKU numbers that match products across multiple platforms is the basic idea. And...it would come in handy if I decide to start doing more vendor events and invested in a point-of-sale system and using barcodes to track inventory and purchases. I'm not at that point yet...but I figure it's easier to add numbers as I go rather than wait until I have even more designs that I would have to go back and add them to. Once I came up with a logical system for assigning unique numbers that I'd be able to easily keep up with as I add designs, it wasn't too difficult. Now I'm just going through all my Etsy listings and adding the numbers in. 

I ultimately decided against joining one of the wholesale marketplaces, though. The more I looked into the options available, the less I liked the details. Between higher commissions and some that didn't allow for the seller to control shipping providers...it just started to seem less appealing. So for now, I've created a wholesale listing in my Etsy shop. The 9.5%+.45 that Etsy takes and being able to make my own shipping decisions is better than 15-25% and/or little to no control over shipping. 

I'm also not as active on social media as I need to be...especially since I don't have my own website. Social media is one of the things I need to work on this year. I always think about it...then just don't get around to it. 

I'm also going to be listing some custom text stickers in the very near future. I'm going to start working on those next weekend, I think. I'm excited to design those...I think they'll be fun. And hopefully people will like them. :) 

Oh and I got another order for a sublimation transfer. Every time I think about converting my big printer back to a regular pigment printer and not selling transfers...I get another order. :P I'm still selling "He is Risen" sublimation digital downloads pretty regularly as well. They're generally just a seasonal item so after the week of Easter, those die down. I think I said it before...but I need to decide one way or another if I'm going to keep up with my sublimation shops and if so...start putting out some more designs. Decisions, decisions. 

ALSO...I actually have ANOTHER Etsy shop that I'm thinking about. It was always part of my plan in the beginning. I even created the email address and Etsy account for it. I started thinking that I would add it to my sticker shop...but I've got OCPD and I have too many sections in my sticker shop already to add more for a separate product. :P I know I'm being vague...but I am still very much in the planning phase. I'm excited to start, though, so hopefully I'll have more to share about it soon. :) 

Well...gonna get back to work! 

Twice in one month?!

Wow...I am actually making my second post of the month! Last month I only made one post toward the end of the month and January was just my annual "year in review" survey on the first of the month. :P There have been many times I've started to write a post but then never get around to finishing it. It also feels like a lot of times, I'm just saying the same things over and over again because...well...my life is mostly doing the same things over and over again. :P 

Most of my days are spent working on my Etsy shops. I say shops...but it's mostly just my sticker shop that I'm working on at this point. I haven't made new sublimation designs since I opened CandiMakerStickers in January. I've even considered shuttering CandiMakerTransfers and converting my sublimation printer back to a regular printer to use for CandiMakerStickers. Of course, the day I started seriously thinking about that...I got an order for a 10-pack of transfers. So I took it as a sign that I should wait. But...if I'm going to continue, I should really start putting out more designs and working on my SEO, etc. 

Honestly, I think a big part of the problem is that I refuse to create anything that violates trademark and copyright...but that's what a lot of people are looking for. So many people make/sell things that are based on what's already popular like TV shows, movies, songs, celebrities, sports teams, brands like Disney and LV, etc. I used to follow SO many sublimation groups on FB...but at least every other post was IP infringement. So that really limits my customer base...especially when it's already limited to people who make/sell their own items instead of the general public buying finished products. 

I think part of the reason why I enjoy working on CandiMakerStickers so much is because I belong to a great FB group that keeps me motivated. While there are some sticker makers who sell infringing items...most posts are helpful tips and tricks for making as well as selling stickers. We talk about all the different kinds of equipment, tools, supplies, etc. and everyone is always so helpful with answers to questions and willing to share what works best for them. It's just a nice little community and there's SO much variety with designs...I love seeing everyone's work. It's inspirational and makes me excited to work on new items. 

And on that note...back to work! :)