Archive for 'business'
housekeeping! more kits, giveaway reminder, and a partay!
Posted on 30. Jul, 2010 by Princess Lasertron.
- Just restocked the felt flower kits. A lot of people were having trouble understanding how to use the new Princess Lasertron store…if you can’t figure it out, I re-loaded some of them back on Etsy.
- Today is the last day to enter the kit giveaway for a kit in one of my favorite colors. It’s open to international readers too.
- Tonight is the CAMP open house party! Drop on by!
Now I’m off to finish getting ready! I hope to see you.
xo
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making it work as a working mom
Posted on 29. Jul, 2010 by Princess Lasertron.
I received a thoughtful question in a past post.
“I am amazed that you can get work done with a newborn around. How do you still make progress with caring for Alice at the same time? I have a home business too, but it’s hard finding time for work AND the baby…does Dave watch Alice so you can work? Please send me an email with some tips if you have time…I’m getting frustrated and afraid I might have to close shop until baby is older!” -T. Bride
Planning and luck.
Tuning into baby.
Leaving my schedule for hers.
I wanted to be a stay-at-home mom since I was little. Maybe it’s only because that’s the example I was raised with. Throughout high school and college I never saw myself becoming anything other than a mother. That’s not to say that I rushed into motherhood or spent those years looking for a husband or didn’t cultivate my own interests and passions–I mean look at me now, I’ve been a workaholic for five years. Although the dream of being a mama never went away, I sort of subconsciously reframed my goals in the context of the reality of my life.
It is unrealistic to expect that anyone can go from a busy career–especially as a businessowner–to doing nothing but mothering. I know now that that’s not how I’m built. I like to juggle too many things at once. I don’t have any example to look to of a mother who doesn’t really stay at home, doesn’t really work at home, but is somewhere in the middle. So it’s easier to make it up as I go. If there were no commitments, no customers, no meetings, but just me and my daughter and my work which I love, how would I fit it all together? That is what I asked myself.
Growing up I saw my mother’s devotion to her family and love for homemaking and I interpreted that as who she was. She made lunches, she built forts, she brought us on all of the family errands, she watched my plays and read my stories and helped me hold an art show in my bedroom. Her life as I knew it revolved around us. But now that I have a child, I can better appreciate all of the dimensions to my mom, to any mother.
She is a volunteer in several organizations, she is a very talented writer and photographer, she is sort of a foodie and loves to travel. She didn’t abandon her passions when she became a mother, she made them work within her life as it changed and evolved.
So that is what I have done. I am continuing to live my own life and, at this point, Alice is along for the ride. I hope that she will look back and see that I was an encouraging, inspiring representation of A Woman Who Has Many Roles and that she can remember the point when she herself veered away from me onto her own path.
So.
I am lucky that she is an easy baby. Very predictable and easy to communicate with.
I am lucky that my parents and grandparents are nearby and supportive. I often work at their house where they help me by making me dinner and entertaining Alice.
I am lucky that I was able to move my studio out of my house and form the coworking space. It was perfect timing as I now have a place to bring her when I work at night.
I am lucky to have the flexibility to adapt to Alice’s schedule instead of forcing her to live within mine.
I am lucky to have an assistant who can lessen my workload.
I am lucky to have a husband who does the cooking and cleaning and laundry.
Generally I am just lucky. I can’t rationalize it.
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headbands for sale + looking for an assistant
Posted on 18. Jun, 2010 by Princess Lasertron.
I finally got time today to upload 18 new headbands to my new online shop hosted by BigCartel. There are some you’ve seen and some you haven’t.
A lot of wonderful opportunities and projects have come my way this year, and I am finding my plate full with more work than I can take on myself. I need a part-time assistant (10-15 hours/week) who can help me manage my business and lighten my workload.
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“You have a lot of balls up in the air.”
Posted on 23. May, 2010 by Princess Lasertron.
Two-week old baby (already!). Developing and promoting a line of party dresses. Fulfilling around 10 bridal orders every month. Stepping out a project and planning a photoshoot this week for an upcoming book. Managing the buildout of CAMP and looking for furniture (not to mention finding tenants!). Working with my friend Eric to make sure all of these projects have a website and awesome branding…
Yesterday, I spent most of the day with my mom and her parents who are here for the summer from Florida. They were excited to meet their great-granddaughter for the first time and came bearing sage advice and pink onesies. I love them so much and miss them during the year–summers are the best since they started coming up here.
My grandpa drove Alice and me home. I hadn’t talked alone with him in years and as I explained everything I have been doing, everything I have going on in my life, I realized how much I have grown in the last few years. Last time I really hung out with my grandpa I was a high school brat and all I wanted to do was text my boyfriend. What a difference in the things we have to talk about.
Welp.
We have billions of OLD peony bushes at this new house with the most colorful, fragrant blooms. I can’t wait to split some of the bushes up and plant more.
Dave’s parents are over here visiting, helping him build a square foot garden.
Today the plan is to go shopping to find something that FITS ME for this upcoming photoshoot.
And pick up several sets of vintage metal lockers for CAMP (thank you Craigslist!).
I’ve been kind of quiet on the blogging/social communicating front lately because all I really ever have to say is I’m working hard and OMG I LOVE THIS BABY.
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giveaway winner and feedback from you
Posted on 29. Apr, 2010 by Princess Lasertron.
Congratulations to Chelsea, or “random number 223,” who won the giveaway for a package of fun crafty goodies. There’s a headband in there, some vintage supplies, a handmade pencil case, and some other cute stuff thrown in as well.
I had a huge amount of feedback from my annual reader survey and I am so grateful to everyone who took the time to give me their opinions about their reader/user experience here. You can still respond to my survey here if you want to share your thoughts with me–I’m appreciative of all responses.
A few of my assumptions were shown to be wrong and I learned a lot about what you like and dislike as blog readers. The biggest surprises:
…You generally aren’t bored by baby posts. I always assumed that other people didn’t really care about my kid/those aspects of my personal life. Holy moly was I ever wrong.
…Most of you have been reading for at least a year, and many for over two years. I didn’t realize I had such a loyal base!
…Several of you–like dozens and dozens–asked me about teaching craft workshops or speaking about small business ownership which is a huge compliment. After the opening of CAMP this summer, my schedule will be more open for those kinds of engagements and events.
…YOU ALL LOVE MY CAT. Hilarious.
Things you want more of that I will do my best to improve:
…Posts about my home and how we’ve decorated–umm, with tons of dirty laundry, at the moment. Alice’s nursery is looking really adorable though and we also just bought some new chairs and redecorated our front room with an interior designer, so those photos will be exciting to share.
…More DIY and video tutorials–sometimes they take so long to put together that I put it off. But I do have some good ideas for easy future projects that I haven’t seen on other blogs before and I’m excited to share those soon.
…More guest posts from Mr. Lasertron. A lot of you want to hear him talk about vegan life and read posts from him about food. As the house chef I think one of those once in a while would be right up his alley.
…You want me to fill up my Etsy shop again. I need 100 hours a day for that! I really hate using Etsy because the amount of time it takes to upload and ship products is more than I can afford to spend. The user interface is extremely bulky and I also disagree with many of their policies. I need to find an easier way to maintain an online store though so I can upload more inventory. Aaaaaand this is a job for my intern. (Who you will soon meet! I found him! Yes, him!)
Rather than use Etsy, I make more money and save more time communicating directly with customers through e-mail for custom orders. If you are waiting for the shop to fill up, it will again eventually, but you are always welcome to contact me through e-mail too.
Finally, many of you still have trouble with the new website redesign because you are used to reading blogs where you can scroll down endlessly and read full posts (as in Typepad or Blogger). You don’t like the grid of posts and having to click “read more” to get to them. That was a style decision I made to fit more content on the main page and make it easy for you to skim the post titles and decide what is most relevant to you.
Thanks again everyone and congrats to Chelsea. I’ll put that box in the mail for you asap!
xo
meg
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a fun school speaking engagement and the beginning of spring
Posted on 09. Apr, 2010 by Princess Lasertron.
A few days ago I had the pleasure of speaking to a room of 8th grade students about entrepreneurship and starting a business. Each student had started writing a business plan for their own little startup (including an after-school concession stand, a beef jerky company, and a t-shirt design shop) and they were beginning to learn about market surveys, risks, and pricing.
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pictures and video from the omaha fashion week spring preview show
Posted on 02. Apr, 2010 by Princess Lasertron.
One beautifully photo-heavy post coming right up!
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Princess Lasertron is going to CAMP this summer! Would you like to come too?
Posted on 23. Mar, 2010 by Princess Lasertron.
Since last December my freelance and self-employed friends and I have been looking for a space where we can work, collaborate, and grow. A coworking space for independent creatives.
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today’s outfit and 33 weeks
Posted on 22. Mar, 2010 by Princess Lasertron.
Starting to feel like the boring lady who only talks about being pregnant. Looks like another Target outfit day!
This week I am doing a lot of work on the outfits for the March 31 runway show. I need to post some info about that this week so you guys can get tickets if you want to go! But for now, just check out the Facebook event I created for it. All the details are there!
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Thoughts on recent Decor8 post “DIY is not Duplicate It Yourself!”
Posted on 13. Mar, 2010 by Princess Lasertron.
Today Decor8 posted a very thought-provoking article written by Erika Firm, president and designer at Delphine Fine Stationery and Design about the noticeable increase in “duplicate it yourself” projects in design industries–especially among brides, wedding blogs, and the wedding industry as a whole. This issue is particularly touchy for me and there is a great discussion going on in the comments. I felt moved to post on my own website with my impressions. Peppered throughout are some photos of my most amazingly original customers who inspire and motivate me every day.
Photo of Alex and Kim by Calla Evans Photography
These are the main thoughts that came to my mind after reading the article:
- Trust your vendors. We know that you want your big wedding day to be special, unique, memorable, and in this day and age, blog-worthy! You hired us in the first place because that is what we are experts at producing. As Amanda from Ruffled said, trusting your vendors is important because “…creative vendors, such as stationery designers, photographers, event designers etc. have the talent to use the unknown to create something completely unique.”
- You are creative! Jessica from Sweet Eventide wrote, “I have many friends who say point blank, ‘I am not creative’ and I just don’t believe it. I think every single person has an ability to be creative but it takes effort to learn about yourself.” Projects like making an inspiration board and identifying what kind of design moves you is the first step toward claiming you own creative voice. use those photos and clippings as a jumping-off point and try to figure out what it is that draws you to that style. Is it something about the texture in the photos, the soft lighting, or a common detail like eyelet lace or natural wood? Use that knowledge to branch out of what has inspired you and think of other things you could incorporate and claim as your own.
- There is a real person behind every design (a point also emphasized by Erika, the original post author.) My business supports my family, enables me to hire employees and support their families, represents my true passion, and was built with years of hard work. Copying the work of a designer is not only potentially harmful to their bottom line (So what to you, right? You’re on a budget, right?), it’s also emotionally painful. Our ideas are our capital and copying it results in lost revenue, lost jobs, and missed opportunities whether the copier’s intentions are good or not.
- Open an honest dialogue with a designer if you find that the cost of their work is prohibitive to you. Every friend I have in graphic and textile design is happy to do this, so don’t be afraid that you are offending them. We often have other options, we can substitute materials, we can help you visualize a lower cost option. What is offensive is asking a designer for a price quote, then telling them you’d rather do try to make it yourself for less.
- If you copy a designer, they will find out! We see you!
Photo of Mariam practicing a dance for the reception by Christine Chang
I have felt very strongly about this issue–”duplicate it yourself”–for years. The first time I found that I was being copied by someone trying to make a profit–and I’m talking cut for cut, stitch for stitch–I became so depressed. It was in 2007. I lost days of productivity and just kept wondering and worrying. What if I can’t ever make a living doing this? How many customers have I lost? How many people have seen this embarrassing second-rate workmanship and associated it with me? What if I lose all my customers because this person charges less money? I was in the ethical “right,” yet I felt embarassed and ashamed and thought it would be unprofessional to say something publicly, let alone confront the copier.
Phil and Amy’s UK wedding photographed by Pete & Sue Hanysz
And it IS hard to know what to do. I wish that we designers had more knowledge and resources to learn how to deal with copiers. What is the best way to communicate disappointment and maintain professionalism? If legal action is appropriate, what do you do then? With the internet, it’s easy to feel like a small fish hiding in a big sea but we always do find out.
Sara Jane and Meg’s wedding photographed by Sarah Maren
Like I briefly mentioned in my most recent Questions From You post, I used to get extremely privately bent when I found someone on Etsy or elsewhere copying my work and my concept. Now I feel better because I feel like I have had enough mainstream exposure to establish myself as the authority on my designs. But, I admit that I see it as a “race to Martha.” Whoever gets on that show first with the embroidered felt flower bouquet and button boutonnieres will win in my mind. And that includes you, Martha–don’t you dare show your audience how to make one of my projects without me standing next to you sweating and stumbling! 
Heather and Kevin’s DIY scrapbooking wedding photographed by guests!
The question posed by Erika on Decor8’s post is, “How do we, as a creative community, get others who might not see the difference to understand why copying is wrong (and get them to stop asking us to do it and get them to stop doing it themselves).”
What do you think?
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new sponsor: kustom kissers
Posted on 11. Mar, 2010 by Princess Lasertron.
Okay, simple question–look in the purse you are using right now, around your sink counter, in your coat pocket, maybe even right here next to your computer screen. How many tubes, pots, and sticks of lip gloss do you have? If you’re like me, they are probably EVERYWHERE!
One of my former customers, Heather (remember her awesome Cabo wedding with close friends, ocean air, and scrapbooking?), is a fellow addict and has started a very sweet business developing her own line of homemade lip balm called Kustom Kissers.
The really cool thing about this product though is that Heather uses your own photo or design on the tube of the lip balm. This is something I’ve seen produced en masse from overseas crappy party favor companies, but the care Heather puts into each order and the quality of the product is something they can’t match. If you’re looking for an easy, personal, and practical (the guys love that) wedding favor, I think this is a great choice. You could use a picture of you and your spouse, or just include a personalized thank you message.
Kustom Kissers lip balm is made of all-natural ingredients and without animal products. A package of custom tubes would be an easy, affordable favor for birthdays, bridal showers, weddings, baby showers and more. They are also perfect for a business promotional item or simply a treat for you.
So I highly recommend this stuff, and Heather is a sweetheart! Also check out her blog to get to know her and learn more about business from this fellow-small business owner. xo
