New products! I just love creating!

If life were a cartoon, I'd probably have stars in my eyes all day - with those eyes being right above the bags underneath them.  *yawn* 

BUT - I have completed about 30 new designs - not all posted on etsy just yet, but here's a preview of some!  I'm pretty excited about my new method of taking photos too... I love the carrots! 

Are you in love like me?  Yeah.  I thought so...  It's hard to resist their cuteness! 

Ok.  I'm off to bed before it gets to be 1 am and here I am... typing away... again. 

Dinnetta

Seriously a WONDERFUL cleaner! Earth friendly! YAY!

I am a Frugal Franny (most of the time....).  And I also like to clean (most of the time....).  And I like to do what I can for the Earth (ALL of the time!).  So when I was in Wal-Mart and I was completely out of all-purpose cleaner and I had NO coupons, it was like a halo over the bottle of cleaner that had a coupon hanging off of it.  *angels singing*  A bit overdramatic?  One might think, but I like to pinch those pennies until that penny spits out another one... Laugh if you must... I'll wait. 

So what I got was Nature's Source natural glass and surface cleaner.  Interesting sounding?  Yep.  That's what I thought too.  It confused me when it said that it had the power of Windex though - since windex has never really been advertised (and we ALWAYS believe advertisements, right?  Right?) as earth friendly.  So... moving on...

I read the bottle and it says 99.9% Natural. And remember, there IS a $1 off coupon attached to this bottle, so I may be a bit jaded... But I read the bottle more and it says that the product uses plant-based, biodegradable cleaners. And, after reading the ingredients, it only has a miniscule, tiny, ittybitty amount of stabilizer and fragrance... Hmmm.  Interesting!  I buy it.  It comes to $1.04 with the coupon.  I'd be a FOOL not to buy it!  I'm a bit skeptical, but after using it on EVERYTHING in the house, I'm sold.  Now, if only they had a refill bottle... wow. That would be awesome.  But, we can't have it all can we? 

So I get a clean house (and it's not too overwhelmingly strong either.  Nice light fresh scent!  Nice!) and an environmentally sound product?  I highly recommend steering away from those harsh chemicals that are not safe for your family or the environment, not to mention not good for your septic system and drains.  But probably the health of your family overrides those things! 

Check it out!!  Just a good Earth friendly tip for you cleaning mama's out there! 

http://www.naturesourcecleaners.com/ 

Day in the life of an overworked perfectionist.

Create.  Sleep.  Work at full time job.  Create.  Oh yeah, fit time in with family.  Create.  Eat (too much lately apparently).  Gain 7 pounds (how? I'm blaming chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream at midnight...).  Stay up until 1:20 am.  Get up at 6:30.  Get boys ready for school.  Create.  Drink Spark.  Go to day job to make my good full time income.  Think about creating.  Eat.  All day... Take photos of new products. Gripe out working during the day but learn to love it.  I think that it's common to gripe about a job in one breath and then say "oh yeah.  This is what we DO!  Career.  Career is good...

Repeat. 

That's my life.  Albeit a busy one, I have to realize that I am only ONE person.  I need help!  I need to hire someone to do my marketing for me.  I need to get a website... functioning.  I need to go grocery shopping - all at ONCE... not this 456 time each week bullcrap that I've been doing since I started this "exciting opportunistic job" that I took last year. And it IS a great opportunity.  Don't get me wrong.  But the hours.  Whew the hours.  We take for granted 2 days off a week to actually get things done around the house.  Can't tell you the last time I clean the spare bathroom toilet.  Ew. I know.  I think that the only thing that has really pushed me to do something with my business and start creating and sewing, and really getting this thing to take off - however - the career puts a damper on things.  The hours are just long.  Long hours at a day job career can burn a person out.  6 days a week?  Shew.  I barely have time to have a family life... But it's the price we must pay to stay living a good lifestyle!

So, the admission of "I need help" is the first step in my relinquishment of control.  *gulp*  Control.  Something that I need.  Something that I am used to. Something that I need to give up if I'm to GO ANYWHERE with my business.  I'm one person.  I can't do it all (can I?).  *shaking head*  No no no. I can't (can I?).  GRRR!  Yes.  I have arguments with myself.  Fault?  Perhaps.  Perhaps it's just a part of my charm.  *bling* 

So here's where I am and what I have done in the past 2 weeks. 

1.  I have contacted several online stores that are interested in my products!  YAY!  Downside?  I wasn't prepared.  *sigh*  I didn't have a line sheet.  I didn't have a brochure.  I didn't have products.  I didn't have PACKAGING for my products (pretty stinkin' important if you ask me).

2.  Got my packaging figured out (yay!).  Could have used help on this, but hey... control freak/perfectionist alert. 

3.  Got my brochure finalized.  Could have hired someone to do this, and probably still will have someone revamp it.... but it works. 

4.  Created a total of 30 new designs.  I know!  AWESOME!

5.  Spent WAYYY too many hours on the computer.  Got a few backaches.  Cussed a lot.

6.  Had 15 conversations with my boys on how NOT to pee all over the sides/back/front/seat of the toilet.  Yeah.  15 is a CONSERVATIVE number... Make no mistake... it will happen again...

So all in all it was a productive two weeks.  Even the cussing was productive.  Really cleansed the soul.  So I'm overworked.  My wise words of today (even though I gave some already) would be to GET HELP and relinquish the control button... it's ok.  Hand it over...

Nite nite.  Gotta post some EARTH FRIENDLY stuff now!  My fave!!

Oh so tired!

I have been working my tail off lately.  So sleepy most of the time.  The only thing that has really been helping me through this is Advocare's Spark.  That stuff is fantastic and it's been one of the sole reasons that I've been able to stay up and work my fingers to the bone.  Oh the life of a wannabe work at home mom....

So, I have been doing my research and and contacting several websites that would benefit from my products.  And, wonderfully, I have some bites!  So I have been putting my creative juices to the test and came up with my own brochures, order form, signed up for an efax number today (with http://www.myfax.com/ - AWESOME PRODUCT!), and got my line sheet together.  It's been  a busy week.  That's for sure! I also went to office depot to put my information into in a nice little presentation folder that holds everything.  I'm sure that the presentation folder is overkill, but hey - better to be as professional as possible and maybe overdo it a little bit rather than be "underwhelming".  One thing that I've learned in this adventure is that it's adventageous to stand out from the crowd.  (Wise words of the day... - STAND OUT!).

I purchased the line sheet from http://www.handmademarketer.com/shop.  Good stuff.  Great content and Justine is seriously a sweetypoof.  Really helpful.  Knowledgable. Inspirational.  Hey, if she can do this business thing, so can I.  So can you!  Just gotta put your mind to it.  Mompreneurs, unite! 

So if you need a line sheet or some advice on etsy, etc.  Head over to her blog and check it out.  I'm REALLY glad that I did! 

So, now off to tap out some more blog posts, post some photos of new products and I'm going to bed tonight WAYYYY before my typical bedtime of 2 am.  *yawn*  THANK MY LUCKY STARS....

I was sort of missing cuddling with my amazing hubby!! 

Cottonelle Sweepstakes!! Over or under? Great Debate

I'm a complete over person.  Oddly enough, I recall that I was an under person at one point and every time someone would put the TP over, I would change it.  I was a very particular child.

So when I came across this contest on the MomBloggersClub (http://www.mombloggersclub.com/) - it won me over!  In my adult years, I'm still VERY VERY VERY particular (even moreso than I was as a child... I supposed old habits are hard to break!).  The contest is for me to win a month's worth of Cottonelle (I have to say, I love free stuff and I love contests.  Oh, and I love to win... PERFECT!!)

A cool thing is that YOU can win something too!  Win Win!  I know you love free stuff too!!

I am now an OVER person.  I can't IMAGINE what I was ever thinking when I wanted everything under!  I pretty much solely put the TP in all the bathrooms when it runs out.  And I'm ok with that!  So vote over!!

http://www.cottonellerollpoll.com/

Leave a comment and enter to win 1 of 10 Cottonelle gift baskets - randomly chosen on January 29th!! 

Working Working!

Oh I'll be back blogging in a couple of weeks.  Full time.  I've been working on wholesale accounts all.  I think that what I'm going to be doing is compiling a lot of my information that I have learned from amazing people and TONS of research that I've been doing and possibly do some consulting work.  OOLALA!  I've always wanted to teach and I think that teaching what I've learned will not only benefit me, but others. 

I'm going to make a living working at home - why not help my fellow mama's do the same?!  Stay tuned!!

Love,

Dinnetta