An Interview with Vickie from Booger and Tash

As many of you know, EtsyBABY team members are extremely talented.  We wanted to take a peek at the person behind the creativity.  All throughout May we will be interviewing shop owners, to get a glimpse of the designer behind those adorable baby products!

 

Meet Vickie from Booger and Tash

What inspired you to begin a shop featuring your own designs?  I first started my shop when my youngest daughter (my middle child) was 2 1/2, I was looking for children & baby items that were cute, but also trendy & unique, and I just wasn't able to find that in the stores/ malls. I knew that I could make the things that I wanted & I figured that others were probably looking for the same things too, so I opened my shop.

  

 

 

 

What is your favorite material to craft with?  Fabric of course! I do especially love minky as it is so soft & cuddley.

How long have you been practicing your art/craft?
 I have been sewing since I was 10 years old - so over 20 years!

  

 

 What training have you had or are you self-taught? My Nanny first taught me how to sew on her sewing machine, which she then handed down to our family & my mother helped me from then.

 

  What has been the hardest aspect of creating a hobby into a business?  I am a mother of three young children (1 1/2, 5 & 8) so I would have to say finding the balance between working & doing 'mom' things :)

 

Any advice for other Etsy sellers?  Do what you love & the sales will follow!

 

 

What do you enjoy doing in your off time?  I love to read, I just recently got a Kobo Vox and am loving it! I also love playing with my kids, relaxing on the couch with my hubby & shopping (I can't resist a good sale)

 

 

 

 

Describe a typical day in your life...  I wake up at 7:15, get breakfast for the kids, drop the oldest 2 off at school, come back home & check my e-mail, package up any orders that need to go to the post office, shower, tidy up the house, get some sewing done while my youngest child naps, run errands, eat lunch, check my e-mail again, check the mail, bring orders to the post office, pick my oldest 2 kids from school, make snack, tidy the house, make dinner, tidy up the kitchen, make school lunches, read stories with my kids, tuck the kids into bed, & relax for the rest of the night! My youngest has swimming & gymboree each one day a week, so we fit that in too :)

   

Where can we find your products online?  In my Etsy shop & I also have a facebook fan page

 Thank you Vickie, for taking the time out of your busy schedule to grant us an interview!

An Interview with Amy from Little Hip Squeaks

As many of you know, EtsyBABY team members are extremely talented.  We wanted to take a peek at the person behind the creativity.  All throughout May we will be interviewing shop owners, to get a glimpse of the designer behind those adorable baby products!

 

Meet Amy from Little Hip Squeaks

What inspired you to begin a shop featuring your own designs?  I was inspired by wanting to create something bright, unique and fun while pregnant with my son.

 What is your favorite material to craft with?  I love working with organic jersey. It's unbelievably soft.

 

 

 

How long have you been practicing your art/craft?
 I design my own fabrics and have them printed especially for use in my shop. I've been a graphic designer for 6 years, and have been turning that into baby blankets, hats, burp cloths and other gifts for just 7 short months!

 What training have you had or are you self-taught?  I learned to sew in the third grade via 4-H. I didn't really fall in love with it until I got pregnant, and the maternal instinct to CREATE kicked in.

What has been the hardest aspect of creating a hobby into a business? My "hobby" got really difficult when I couldn't juggle my regular 9-5 job at Teen Vogue magazine. Financially, we're finally able to make the transition of me doing Little Hip Squeaks full time, and I am SO excited to be able to spend more time with my son.

Any advice for other Etsy sellers?  My advice to other sellers is have something unique that you absolutely love. If you love it, and believe in it, it will show.

 

 What do you enjoy doing in your off time?  In my off time, I love to run. Nothing clears your head and recharges you like a nice long run.

 

 

 

 Describe a typical day in your life...  In a typical day, I get up and go for a run while my husband gets our son ready for the morning -- my husband works from home as well, so it's really an interesting dynamic. I usually take our little guy out for a walk, or to the park, or to a museum so my husband gets some quiet time to work. Then at nap time, I get to sew and pack up orders. At the end of the day my husband will take my son back out, and I can get a little more work done!

 Where can we find your products online?  Little Hip Squeaks

 Thank you Amy, for taking the time out of your busy schedule to grant us an interview!

An Interview with Ida Mae from GPlay

As many of you know, EtsyBABY team members are extremely talented.  We wanted to take a peek at the person behind the creativity.  All through May, we will be interviewing shop owners, to get a glimpse of the designer behind those adorable baby products!

Meet Ida Mae from GPlay

What inspired you to begin a shop featuring your own designs?

My children

How long have you been practicing your art/craft?

We are brand spankin' new and have just been up and running for about a year.

What training have you had or are you self-taught?

Self taught :)

What is your favorite material to craft with?  

Organic cotton, but anything natural and pure intrigues me!

What has been the hardest aspect of creating a hobby into a business? 

Trying not to take everything personal - because it is!

  
Any advice for other Etsy sellers?

Have fun with it, it shows in your work.

What do you enjoy doing in your off time?

Playing with my boys, camping, music and food!

Describe a typical day in your life...

Oh boy I have a one and three year old so my day revolves around them.  They wake early and are ready to eat of course - two boys!  Then I pretty much bounce between keeping them occupied and making sure the house doesn't catch fire.  If I can squeeze in anything work related it's a miracle.  Luckily, I've employed my eldest as the artist for my designs!  I'm really excited about our next print which will be a compilation of of his water designs - my little Pisces!

Where can we find your products online? 

gplay and Simply Lovable Organics

Thank you Ida, for taking the time out of your busy schedule to grant us an interview!

Welcome To EtsyBABY!!

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Organic vs Regular

The Top 10 Reasons
Why Organic Should Be On Your Shopping List

With so much discussion about things like carbon footprints (the amount of Greenhouse gases that we are emitting), it is understandable that there has been so much focused on buying organic. Organic food for our bodies, organic fabric as our clothing and organic farming practices to sustain our world.

In order to better understand the power of buying organic, here is a list of the top 10 reasons why it is so important:

1. IT REDUCES PESTICIDE USE - Which is increasingly threatening people, our wildlife and our environment.

2. IT HELPS PROTECT YOUR CHILDREN - A baby's skin is more porous and thinner,which means that your child is at greater risk of pesticide related health issues.

3. IT PROTECTS FARM WORKERS - The farmer is not exposed to pesticides and chemicals.

4. IT PROTECTS WATER QUALITY - Hundreds of gallons of pesticides is not being introduced into our environment.

5. IT IS STURDIER - Organic products has a higher quality cotton and is stronger.

6. IT SAVES YOU MONEY IN THE LONG RUN - Even though clothing from conventional cotton is cheaper to the consumer, the cost to us, our wildlife and our environment is not calculated into the price.

7. IT HAS A WONDERFUL FEEL TO IT - Because less chemicals are added to the cotton after harvest, it is much softer.

8. IT LASTS LONGER - On average, garments made from conventional cotton start to wear after about 10-20 washes, as opposed to 100 washes for organic.

9. IT SAVES PESTICIDES FROM BEING USED - Buying one organic Tee keeps over 4 ounces of pesticides from being used.

10. IT SAVES CHEMICALS FROM BEING USED - Buying organic would eliminate the use of many chemicals, such as ammonia and formaldehyde.

As with any consumer issue, you should research and decide what is best for your family on your own. This article was written to shed light on the benefits of organic products and hopefully it has given you at least one reason to consider it!