Etsy Shop is Closing

www.etsy.com/shop/fizzyparty

In 2013 I started a new venture and opened an etsy shop.  It all started with tulle wreaths I was creating for party bloggers to use in their parties.  I expanded the shop to include tulle poms, felt banners and glittery items.

I opened the shop because I like to craft, it's fun to see my items at peoples parties, you know  I love parties and it would be a way to make some money for Fizzy Party.

I've been fortunate that all my customers have been happy with items they've ordered and have received 5 star ratings from them all.

So why have I been struggling with the decision of whether to keep the shop open or close it?

• I've been told by other bloggers that it doesn't really fit and it's confusing because it doesn't match my blog. 
• The shop has been open for almost 5 years and I've made 77 sales. That's 15 sales a year. 
• The shop is the only place I make money for Fizzy Party and with just 15 sales a year, I'm not bringing in much money.  It covers my etsy fees and blog domain fees and that's about it. 
• In order to really have a successful shop you need to really work at it.  Pushing the shop consistently, adding new items weekly and having professional photos taken. 

I've been waffling back and forth between really focusing on the shop and pushing it hard, adding new items and re-doing all the photos or just closing it so I can focus on something else. If I keep the shop open I have to seriously push the shop which will eat into the time I have to bring you party inspiration.  If I close the shop I feel like it would open up space for new opportunities.  Is keeping the shop open holding me back from pursuing something I was meant to do with Fizzy Party?

I've been thinking this over for a year, longer than I should have.  I kept it open because all those 5 star ratings meant happy customers throwing fun parties and weddings.  I've decided to close the shop January 1, 2019.  I'm hoping to sell all my remaining inventory by years end.  So fair warning ;) you'll be seeing a lot more of my shop across social media until the shop closes.

Some of you may be wondering if I feel like I've failed with my etsy shop.  I really don't.  I know I didn't put as much effort into it as I should have to really make it a success.  I had fun crafting items for peoples parties and knowing lots of fun and memories were had at those parties.  I got to create things I enjoyed creating but it's time to close this door so another one can open.   And I'm not ruling out the possibility of opening the shop again with different items to offer.

Thank you to all the customers over the years.  I truly enjoyed making your items and was so thankful for every purchase made.

5 out of 5 sta

August Recap

August Recap- Enjoying Summer 

Was anyone else's August busy?  When I looked back at my August it was packed full of fun.  No wonder the month just flew! 

I kicked off August with the re-opening of my etsy shop.   I closed it for the month of July so I could do a little revamping of the shop, glittering up a lot of new items and creating a lot of tulle poms in a variety of colours. I love creating items for peoples parties.  

The first weekend in August saw a visit from family who live out of state. It was great to spend time with family and celebrate my cousins birthday.   I feel so blessed to have a large family.  There was 16 of us at dinner.  That's just my parent's, aunts and uncles and cousins.  

The birthday dinner was followed by a weekend of goal setting with three local bloggers.  This was a BIG goal setting session.  We weren't talking about how we were going to grow our social media numbers.  We were talking the BIG goals that would take our businesses farther.  Of course I had to set up a little party table.  We had no idea after this session that we'd end up collaborating on a workshop together.  More to come on that later. 

The next week was the Portland Street of Dreams.  I love touring these houses with an eye on the party spaces.  I wouldn't want a house as big as the ones at Street of Dreams but I do get ideas for how to improve our little house. This year we're re-doing the front yard. It needs it bad.  My man says it's like four-wheeling with the lawn mower.  There's so much moss and lumpiness and just all around too much grass. 

An exciting event in August was the solar eclipse.   Of course I had to throw a little celebration.  It's not every year that the solar eclipse happens.  What an exciting event.  My man wasn't excited about it and just worked right through it.  I of course stopped what I was doing and watched the eclipse happen with a couple of friends. They say opposites attract right 😉

At the end of the month I had a great phone chat with Christa Graham Wedding & Events.  I met her in a Facebook group and me being the extrovert I am, as soon as I found out she was a wedding planner I reached out and said, hey, we should chat sometime.  We ended up having a great conversation and bounced a lot of ideas off each other.  Stay tuned for those ideas to come to life later this year and into the next. 

Phew! August was a busy fun filled month.  How was your August? 

Social Media - Why I'm thinning the herd

Social Media- You're Driving Me Nuts! 

I'm going to let you in on a little secret. I'm about to un-follow a bunch of sites I enjoy following. Why would I un-follow sites I enjoy?

Repetitive content. Have you noticed? The exact same content will be posted on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. The exact. same. thing. I'll be flying around Twitter, pop over to Facebook and then over to Instagram and ...wait. Didn't I just see that post already? 
Now I get it, it saves the blogger time to autopost across all social media channels. But here's my thing, you give me no reason to follow you on all your sites. My feeds get filled up with posts I've already seen and I miss other's posts that I want to see. I'm missing out on valuable party inspiration. 

You should totally follow all my sites though 

I don't post the same thing across all social media. Ok, sometimes I share the same photo's, but, not at the same time and generally not the same day.

I respond to all your comments. And if I don't, rest assured it's because I wasn't notified. Not because I'm ignoring you. 

All my social media is a little different. Let's take a look:

Twitter: Little tidbits into my day. What's happening at the moment, what I'm working on, random thoughts, re-tweets of things I think are super fun! It's me being silly

Facebook:  I share my blog posts, really cool parties, amazing party food or articles I see I think you all would be interested in.  This is where I share the majority of my party information. 

Instagram: Pictures! and fun emoji!! Who doesn't love emoji's. Get party inspiration, tasty treats and sneak peeks of new products coming to my etsy shop. Come PARTY! 

Picture courtesy of Bird's Party 

Oh and you so don't want to miss out on my newsletter. why? Because this is where the VIP, Very Important Party, is.

 Coupon codes, exclusive info on all the parties I'm working on, and coming this fall, the Fizzy Party Bakery club. So join up already!! 

Tiki High-Light

It's ALL about the printables today. 

Two wonderful printables ladies helped bring some island flavor to this year's Tiki party. 

Sunny By Design added a luau touch to the favors with her island flower party labels. My guests paid a little more attention to the favors with that pretty label there. Sunny was such a joy to work with.

Sunny by Design can be found:

Etsy 

Blog, Facebook, Twitter and Google+, Pinterest

Itsy Belle did a fabulous job of creating Tiki Luau printables. She didn't have any in her shop before but she does now :) And they are great! I forgot to take a picture of the invitation but you can see the whole set here in her shop. 


The black smudges are totally from my old free printer, NOT from Itsy Belle

 Itsy Belle created just what I was looking for. The colours were perfect and working with Christy was so easy. In fact, she's having a vow renewal this weekend so pop over to her Facebook page and wish her a happy one. 

Itsy Belle can also be found at:

Blog, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest 

Printables add that custom extra little touch to any party your hosting. They're so easy and both these ladies were wonderful to work with. 

Party Break

I took a party break to visit a crafty friend of mine who moved to Florence, Montana. You may know my friend's work, she runs Bubble Off Plumb on Etsy and has a fun blog about a city girls adventures of moving to the wilds of Montana, Suddenly Surrounded by Taxidermy. It's a fun little blog and I can't wait to hear more of her adventures.

Multnomah Falls on my way out of Oregon.  This is a great hike if you ever visit Oregon.  The Multnomah Falls Lodge has a great blackberry cocktail in the summer.

On the road.  Just me and my friends china in the back there.  While I was there she busted the china out of their box's and we had Okonomiyaki on it.  It's a Japanese dish and her china was made in Japan. We thought it was fitting.

We took a short hike out their backyard which butts up against the forest. At the end of the hike we were greeted with the sounds of Sweeny Creek.

This is UNHEARD of in Portland which I live near.  Not even 45 degrees and all I'm wearing is a long sleeve tech shirt.  And I'm NOT freezing!!! Was it chilly, sure. But I could have stood out there all day with no coat and no gloves.  You've all heard of dry heat, well there's dry cold too.  And I'm proof of it.

Living the dream. My friends yard. Look at that view. After visiting my friend I am even more invigorated to pursue my man and I's dream.

Hope you enjoyed the mini vacation. Back to parties on Wednesday!!

Small Business LOVE

Over on Fizzy Party FB I'm giving shout-outs to small businesses. The Saturday after Black Friday is Small Business Saturday.  Where you can show your love and support of small businesses with the 'ol mighty dollar.  Here's some of my favorite small business sites and the products I especially like from them.

Great Big Beautiful Dog  I don't have a dog but I do know people who do and this site has just what you need for that stocking stuffer.  Collar Cozies allow you to make your dog the fashionista they are. You can change out the look of the collar without having to buy a bunch of collars. Brilliant! 

New to the site, Treat Tote Pocket Protector's. I love this idea. Now your pockets won't stink like dog treats and no crumbs in the pockets. A must for anyone with a dog. 

Jaco'lyn Murphy takes every day products you can find in any store and makes the cutest invitations and other party items. Here's a few of my favorites. 
How cute are these invites for a pizza party? Your friends are sure to join you for pizza when they receive an invitation they can use later. 

These cards spoke to me as soon as I saw them.  What a fun idea to have friends over every weekend in December for popcorn and a Christmas movie. 

These are just two of my favorite small businesses. I'll be posting more all week. Let me know what you think of these sites and if you place an order I'd LOVE to know what will be arriving in your mail box soon. 

Christmas Lists

Do you make one? A Christmas list. My man doesn't really like the list idea. Oh he'll make one, but he doesn't really like them.  He says you aren't surprised when you make a list. You know what you're going to get.  True, but you don't know what on the list you're going to get. Unless of course you only have 2 things on the list.

Normally the list exchange with my family occurs on Thanksgiving.  One can take advantage of the Black Friday sales that way.  I never have trouble making a list. So much FUN stuff out there!  Yummy smelling body washes, lotions, make-up and clothes always make my list. 

Party goods are always a good thing to receive too. Here's some fun stuff you may want to get the party diva on your list or add to your own :)

Sparkling sugar sprinkles to top those cupcakes with. The Bakers Confection has so many items to chose from. Cupcake liners, paper straws, treat bags etc.

Why not add something on your list for your furry friend too. A Collar Cozie so they can be stylin on their trip to the dog park. Bubble Off Plumb makes a variety for your big dog.

I have an addiction for snowmen and I LOVE Christmas so of course I have Christmas goodies on my wish list. Like these snowmen

Thanksgiving while I'm waiting for dinner to digest so I can make room for dessert I'll be pouring through the Black Friday ads making my list and checking it twice. How's your list coming along?