So has anyone quit their day job to bring their handmade dream to life?

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Permalink Reply by Meredith on December 13, 2007 at 1:38pm

I'm a stay-at-home mom and I haven't had a job outside of my home in awhile. I would LOVE to make a career out of selling my handmade things though! That is definately a dream of mine!

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Permalink Reply by AriDesigns on December 13, 2007 at 4:01pm

I do not want to work full-time again doing anything I detest but I need something to fill in the gaps between jewelry sales. I have worked full-time for the last 27 years but I'm so used to going full-steam ahead and busting my ass all the time that I don't know how to slow down. I have put everything into my business from the minute I left my job. It helps to know people in the business (retail, advertising, etc) and I'm still looking to make contacts. I think a lot of luck, hard work and perserverance will get you where you want to go regardless what that path is. You really have to put your heart & soul into your passion and believe it will happen for you. That's all I know right now! Keep The Faith.....

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Permalink Reply by Cheryl Millard on January 9, 2008 at 11:27am

With that atitude you WILL make it, When I had a store front business I worked 60-80 hours a week, now that I had to close the business due to a bitchy landlady I have just started to sell on ebay full time. I still don't know if it will work but it is going good right now.

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Permalink Reply by AriDesigns on January 10, 2008 at 10:14am

what do you sell on Ebay? I heard that it's hard to sell arts & crafts on there.

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Permalink Reply by Chris Anderson on December 13, 2007 at 10:58pm

I was going to quit, but then i got fired, so i guess i had no choice?
So far so good.
-Chris

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Permalink Reply by AriDesigns on December 14, 2007 at 1:29pm

I believe things happen for a reason. I have heard so many people who lost their job right when they were going to quit, or were thinking about leaving for whatever reason. So maybe this is just the push you needed to move forward and allow yourself to be happy in your life!

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Permalink Reply by Cheryl Millard on January 24, 2008 at 5:23am

Hi Chris, Where can I see more of your rings? Please let me know. Cheryl

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Permalink Reply by Mark Noll on December 15, 2007 at 6:54pm

I just dove in and went for it. Of course, I have help from my family or I'd be living on the street. Hopefully sales will pick up and I can get some stores interested in my work. I also am trying to get some investors to help me get some more equipment for a few products that I can't currently make without some very expensive equipment, not to mention some advertising money.

I feel confident that things will work out.

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Permalink Reply by 1000roads on December 16, 2007 at 1:34am

I love making my own jewelry and small gift items.I never did a sale party or try to sell my work to any one.But my colleges asked me to do something to sell them .From then I started to consign my jewelry at an antique shop.(I am regular customer to this shop)

One day , a friend of mine showed me a new small shopping arcade near my office.The rental fee was half of my salary.I was thinking that if I could not sell I still can pay the rent with my salary.The first 2 month were bad.Thanks to my friends who works at a woman magazine , she featured my jewelry.I received a lot of calls and visits after the magazine came out.Everything seemed to be so good.Suddenly , there was a coup in Thailand.Everything turned down.Thai people were hopeless .I was hopeless too because I was so close too quit my job.I was really unhappy with my job.

A few months after the coup , I 've quited my job.My shop was stable.I consigned my jewelry to 2 boutiques .The money came easy .I didn't save money for the future.Thai economy was so good.My customers easily made profit from stock market every day.it is good to have a shop with just 2 steps from stock market!

2 year later , Thai economy collasped and this effected to our neighbor countries too.You may have heard of tom yum koong crisis in Asia.Our currency was weak.From 25 Bahts =US$1 , it came down to 59 Bahts= US$1.Many rich became poor.46 banks and finances were bankrupted.Many people loose thier money saving.

I could not sell my expensive jewelry to Thai customers any more but my sales at tourist shop increased.I came up with small price jewelry with ethnic looks.I presented my collection at Duty free shop and they have accepted me.It took 6 months !Nothing was easy for me.I am designer not a saleman.I am not good in dealing with tough buyers.

One thing I learn from economy crises is cut ting all expenses first. I moved my shop to cheaper area then I realized I didn't need a shop because most of my income came from consignement.So I use the rental fee to pay my home loan!

Remember life has 2 sides:succes and failure.You can not succes all the time .Like me now,I 'm facing another crise!

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Permalink Reply by Jamie on December 16, 2007 at 4:34am

Thank you for sharing your stories! It's hard to run a business but with determination and support, the sky's the limit. :)

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Permalink Reply by Cyndi Hansen on December 16, 2007 at 9:42am

After much deliberation I quit my job of 10 years back in August. I started my own freelance design business almost immediately, however, it just started taking off in November. Luckily I have a husband with a decent income to fall back on, but it was a shock to our system nevertheless.
I am much happier doing what I love for myself & not being in the corporate world. Since I started my business I've done projects for 2 craft leaflets with Design Originals, computer artwork for a real estate company, made & sold crafts on Etsy, had an Open House Sale & cleaned out most of my craft items, helped out a friend decorating homes for the holidays, & am currently developing a line of artwork for another company.
As you can tell I have a hard time sticking to one creative area!
While decorating houses I realized how much I enjoy floral decor and decorating so I accepted a part-time position as a visual merchandiser at my friends shop. This will allow me to make more contacts, bring in some regular cash, and still allow me to do other work.
One thing I did learn is that you have to be persistent and be willing to stick your business card in anyone's hand. Get noticed by being available and going the extra mile.
This next year I will concentrate on building my customer base, and honing in on just a couple of mediums ( I think!)
Cyndi Hansen

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Permalink Reply by Anice McNamee on January 9, 2008 at 2:35am

This is a really interesting thread it's great to hear how other people took the plunge. My story is that I was a manager for an IT company when I was taken ill. To cut a very long and boring story short I was diagnoised with MS and was off work for 5 months. During that time I was very bored so my Mother suggested that I take up card making. I had never done anything like this before and resisted abit to tell you the truth but once I gave it ago I was hooked. Anyway I started to design my own backing papers because I couldn't always get what I wanted. Crafty friends started asking me for copies and I realised that this was something I could make money at. Luckily for me my other half is a web developer so he could get my website going and do all the techy stuff on my CDs to give them an easy navigation etc. Anyway it ended up that I didn't go back to my old job and I started Funky Hand (name comes from a nick name my Dad gave me after I was ill as MS has left me with a slightly disabled right hand!) Nearly two years on and I can't say it's been all plan sailing but recently things have really taken off. I love being my own boss, doing something that I love and I never dreamed that I would be able to do it. Life is good!!
Anice xx

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