Facebook brings on the orders...

Facebook has been a really great way to get exposure to my etsy shop and some of the hand-painted accessories and toys I have created. As a result of posting my work in photo albums on facebook, many of my friends have purchased from Whimsidoodle. Here's a look at some of the orders I've had in the past few months and how they came to fruition:

Kristin knew she was having twin boys and wanted letters for their nursery. I was the only person who knew their names. I based the letters off of her bedding, as well as some coolorful canvas art she'd gotten with a jungle animal theme. The boys just came last week. Congrats to Kristin and Josh!

My friend Danielle had seen some of my work on facebook and in my etsy shop and she immediately thought to have a set of ladybug coasters made for her aunt. I used unfinished 6" ladybugs and put extra coats of varnish on them, so they can withstand moisture. I've had very good luck with that. Her aunt loved them. It was a set of 4.

My friend Carly wanted to get some letters for her niece Alaina. The bedding was from target and I used some of the flowers and butterflies from the patterns as inspiration. The target site is great for this, because it shows an entire collection, which may be bedding, lamps, light switch covers, rugs, valences etc, so everything has a different patten and it gives me a lot of opportunity to segue from it, but use it as close inspiration by combining components within the different patterns. I don't have that many stores near me and none with letters, so Carly found letters she liked and had them shipped to me.

Another baby on the way was Payton. My friend Kelly wanted to have them sent to her sister before Payton's arrival. They were also inspired by the bedding and nursery, which is a ladybug theme. Kelly also had the letters shipped to me. She found them on walmart.com and they are great. They were already white and very big... 8", which was the largest I'd done. They were a little challenging, because they were more like plastic, but the paint varnish took to them fine.

This was actually the order that started it all! My cousin Mary Elizabeth and I did a custom trade for our etsy shops. She sells the cutest handbags in her shop. Actually, it all started because she made me the cutest diaper bag and matching zip pouch for my baby shower. I loved the zip pouch so much, I'd been using it as a makeup/ditty bag when I traveled, but I needed something bigger. So I had her make me a custom one (which I LOVE - it's this beautiful black and white almost damask design, but funkier), but I'd also fallen in love with some of the cluthes my other cousins had, so I had her make me one of those as well in this gorgeous pink and green fabric. She also has wallets, key fobs and lareger bags in her shop! So in trade for my two bags she had me paint furniture embellishments for her daughter Nicolina. She told me the paint colors (a periwinkle type color) and I did my thing. I think they got put on the door in her room. These letters are only 3" high or so.

spring revelations... what's next?

I find myself feeling many things lately... some of them include hopeful, cheerful, and happy. Yet, for the first time in a very long time and maybe ever, I have feelings of inadequacy, lack of confidence, doubt, wondering who I am and what my place is and it started to occur to me the other day where some of it stems from. It's really great... every time I find myself in these positions I can just blame society.

For instance, after college I found myself struggling with the "next part" not happening as planned. We're raised (as girls especially) to go to school, then college, get a job, find the man, get married and have babies. So there I was living in Boston out of college, 22/23 years old and there a'int no man! I wondered what was wrong with me and why it was taking so long. I'd done everything in the right order and this was something I couldn't really control. I was living in a city I'd been in for 5 years and it was like a foreign land. Everyone I knew aside from a few friends had fled off to their new jet setter lives and careers. All of a sudden there was no longer keg parties and 20 something guys looking for a lay and no commitment. Now, every where I went I met baby factories and had to look for wedding rings. It was like the twilight zone in a matter of months. Naturally when my best friend and roommate got a job in NY threatening to leave me behind I couldn't stay. I fled, scared to be alone and went "home" to my parents where the "get a job", "exercise" and "stop going to the bar every night" notes appeared on my bed within a matter of a week.

So... I find myself blaming society yet again. Ok society.. I DID IT. I graduated from kindergarten, 8th grade, high school and college (ok, so I don't have a MBA yet, but maybe someday). I went on eharmony I found my man (a really good one btw), we bought a house, got married and had a baby. We did it all in the right order (sort of if living together is considered socially acceptable. My catholic gram didn't think so), but now I realize ... "now what?" I've spent my whole life working toward the next thing. As a child you constantly hear, "you have the whole world ahead of you... go get it!" So now I wonder "where's the big world?". I know it's there, opportunities are everywhere and I've certainly never been accused of being something other than a go getter, yet, it's so easy to become paralyzed. And once again I feel like people around me are facilitating the "what next" by the natural question....... "when are you guys having another baby?" While we're waffling over this question and it may happen, I find myself realizing that the reason to do it is not because it's the natural what's next.

I think a lot of it stems from being a master multi-tasker and having a hand in so many different things that I never feel a master at anything really. At 29 I feel out of the loop to what hip 20 somethings should know and be in the know. Do I really have time to twitter? I haven't written in my blog since January. Do I have the time to try and use every socal networking tool to get people to my etsy shop? Do I have the time to sit down and replenish my shop? Do I have to have an existence beyond being "Kelsey's mom" if that's when I'm happiest? Do I have to be in the know in order to stay in the game? I do have to work... How many questions should I have to ask myself in one day before I have the answer?

So.... what's next?

I'm not sure. I'm trying to enjoy every day and find a balance and figure out my purpose right now. One thing I am sure of is that chasing after your almost 2 year old while she tries to get puddles and knowing that you make her whole world is the most amazing feeling in the world and wow does that give you a sense of purpose. I'll take it!