I finally did it – my Etsy shop is OPEN!

After three years of daydreaming about it, talking about it, over-thinking it, over-analyzing it, over what-if-ing it, and basically stalling, I finally, FINALLY opened up my Rural*ish Etsy shop! To say I’m just a little bit excited is an understatement. What a relief to get over this first hurdle. There is still lots to figure out and do, but it feels so good to see my little shop open and full of the quilts that I’ve been working hard sewing over the last couple of months!

Lots of family and friends have encouraged me over the last few years, but this year was a tipping point thanks to a few key people.

First, PIA got an idea that he wanted more mountain biking trails in our town. First he started a blog, then a Facebook page, and basically just put one foot in front of the other. In less than a year he has built tremendous local support for his cause and his first trail project is in the works! It’s been so inspiring watching him work on something that he is passionate about and turning a little pipe dream into a reality. It’s kind of hard not to feel like a slacker with my own little pipe dream when I’m around him, haha. Most importantly, I saw first-hand that you do not have to have everything “figured out” to move forward…you just figure out the first step, then move on to the next. PIA also nudges me when he knows I’m stalling…which I get mad about until I realize that he’s usually right, haha.

Watching PIA work to get new trails in our town is inspiring. He didn’t have things “all figured out” when he first started.

Then, there’s my friend Danielle, who hosts the cutest, most ah-mazing kids birthday parties ever. She and her friend had this little idea to open a local party prop business. These two girls worked their booties off, and Pinwheels and Polka Dots was born. Danielle also sews and is a die-hard Etsy fan, so having her around to bounce creative ideas off of is invaluable.

My friend Danielle is is so creative and inspiring! She turned her creativity into a party prop business. She also loves Etsy!

Then there’s my friend Abby, who is my only live-and-in-person friend who has an Etsy store. “Hukapino Baby” sells the cutest, softest burp clothes for your little one. Abby is so matter of fact about running an Etsy store (well, about everything actually, haha) and has this “get over yourself and just do it” attitude that made my stalling seem utterly ridiculous.

My friend Abby has an Etsy store and a “can do” attitude that is contagious.

I reached my tipping point a couple of months ago when my baby sister asked me to sew a baby quilt and matching big sister quilt for one of her besties. I hadn’t had an excuse to make a quilt in awhile, so I was excited! At first I was most excited to pick out pretty fabric, because you all know how much I loooovve pretty fabric – any excuse is a good one! I had so much fun with my sister, not only picking out pretty fabric but also sewing it up and keeping her updated along the way on Instagram. I realized how well this business fits in with my life as a stay at home mom, and it was enlightening to see how she responded to the process along the way. My sis was so excited to see it all come together and to finally receive it in the mail (she didn’t even want to unwrap it because it looked so pretty and she didn’t want to mess it up)! When she passed it on to her friend it was like I had my first real-life customer. And. It. Felt. GOOD.

When my sister commissioned some baby quilts from me it was like I had my first real live customer – and it felt GOOD!

I am a big believer in signs, so with all of these signs coming at me, it was hard NOT listen up, get over myself, and finally open my shop!

Now let’s go sell something! I’ll keep you posted along the way as I figure things out….

P.S. Family and friends, if you at any time over the last three years got to listen to me yammer about “maybe someday” (probably more than once if you’re around me enough!), thank you so much for listening and for your support! It means the world. 🙂