I’ve finished listing the items from yesterday‘s photoshoot, so my shop has now expanded just a teeny bit more. My friend Jenn of Art By Zahrt told me she’s heard that having 50 items in the shop seems to be a magical number. We’re both a little skeptical, but I want to see if it’s true! I only need to list a few more things to hit 50.
Praia eco-friendly yoga mat tote
Maintaining the shop is so much more work than I expected when I started. It’s a grand adventure, and I do enjoy it and take a lot of pride in this work, but it takes a lot of time. Here’s a rough sample breakdown for a single item, let’s say a yoga mat tote like the one above:
- Plan item (choose fabrics, tweak design) and prepare materials (iron, measure, cut): 2 hours
- Create item: 4-6 hours
- Photograph item and edit/select photos: 1 hour
- List item: 1/2 hour
That’s somewhere between 7 and 9 hours just for one item, and that doesn’t include sourcing the fabrics, washing them, cleaning the vintage buttons, or coming up with the original design for the item. Making multiple items lets me streamline the production process a little, but not a whole lot — we’re talking half-hours saved here and there. And then there’s also my work space to organize and keep tidy. Shop maintenance and publicity take even more time. I could do the bare minimum, ignoring marketing and taking only indifferent photos, but my personal standards won’t allow me to do that. Much as I’d love to see brisker business in my shop, I’m thankful I don’t rely on it for my livelihood. I’d probably collapse under the stress!
That said, I am deeply grateful for this little spot of crafting time I’ve carved out for myself this month. I turned in my VONA manuscript on the 7th, and the residency doesn’t start until the 27th, so that’s about 3 weeks of June that I resolved to dedicate just to the shop, to my personal crafting projects, and to sketching when I’m out and about. Previously, all concentrated periods of crafting happened right before shows, and then the pressure to produce in quantity made me feel crazy. It was tough, spending so many hours hunched over my sewing machine (or spray-gluing binder dividers in the garage), knowing I was neglecting my writing and drawing projects and everything else in my life. But this month I feel nicely balanced, if busy, and that is a blessing!
satsumabug.com | Lisa Hsia 
ahhh i love to hear when someone achieves balance!!! it’s something that doesn’t come naturally to me. i’m always obsessively doing way too much of one thing and not enough of others. it’s a constant juggling act (consisting of a lot of wishful thinking on my part…) to achieve the ever elusive balance-nirvana :).
i’m rooting for you to reach 50! gogogo 3 more, so close!
I know! Balance has been a big challenge on this creative path, and I’m glad it finally seems to be working — though I’m sure it’s only temporary. ;b As are all things!!
I have some decoupaged magnets I could list, but they won’t stick on our stainless fridge so I’m trying to think of some way to photograph them that will seem like “natural habitat.” 🙂 I also have some single binder dividers I could list. Failing these, I’ll just have to make more items. We’ll see what I decide!
Yay! I’m so glad you’re feeling balanced and productive! It sounds like you have lots of exciting, creative things on your plate right now, and good for you for scheduling them in such a way that they’re enjoyable and not stressful. 🙂
🙂 We’ll see how long it lasts! 😉