Etsy Shops, Small Businesses, CPSIA, HELP, and other Ramblings . . .

I LOVE Etsy. Let me just get that out of the way right now.

Once upon a time, I had my very own Etsy shop, and I loved it.

I loved sewing, I loved taking pictures of the items, I loved listing, and I really loved selling.

But, last February the CPSIA laws came into effect {and then were put on hold until August}, and being that I mostly made items for babies and children, these laws affected me. And I'll be honest, I was confused! So, I closed up shop. I miss it, and would love to re-open, but it all seems so overwhelming to me. Luckily, most of the items I made are exempt from lead and pthalate testing. But I am still required to label. Labels for all children's items by regulation of the CPSIA, AND labels for the FTC, on any and all items. And my embellished and appliqued onesies, some of my favorites to make, are completely a no-go, as each and everyone would be subject to testing due to the snaps. I'm sorry, but it seems silly to me that the onesies are deemed safe enough to sell "plain", but if I add an applique to them, they no longer are {???} But I'm getting side-tracked. This post was not meant to be a rant {and it's quickly turning into one, isn't it?} It was meant to gain more understanding, and some guidance from you pros! ;) I know that many of you have your own Etsy shops, and some of you sell on your own sites online. If I may be so bold, what have you had to change? How are you handling the labeling? Who do you recommend as label-makers? Have you had to have any of your items tested for lead or pthalates? Help a girl out, would ya? I would love to be able to open up shop again. That is, if I ever find a spare minute to sew!

*If you don't feel comfortable discussing here, please feel free to email. I'd love to hear from ya!

sugarplumfraijo@yahoo.com

Who Knew . . .

. . . that this little pumpkin, this sweet, peaceful-looking sugarplum (look at those adorable little tootsies! Ooops, getting off track) could make such a racket! I mean, I know all about the set of lungs on Kameryn. She spends many an evening giving those lungs quite the exercise when she can't get settled in for the night. But typically we're easy-going during daylight hours. Not so yesterday.

We've ventured out before, just the four of us, though not often. Usually my mom tags along. But since Mom's birthday is Sunday, and the purpose of the outing was to pick out a gift for her, we had to leave her behind ;) We waited until Kam was good and sleepy, loaded her up, and away we went. By the time we got to town, she was awake. A little background info, in case you couldn't already tell, Kam is not content to hang out in her car seat. She's not content to hang out, period. She doesn't like the swing or the bouncy seat. The only way you can get her to stay in the carseat is if she is asleep (and that happens less and less as she gets a little older).

No problem, she'll surely drift back to dreamland. All the while, Sierra and Makenna had chosen the "big cart". You know the one? It has two plastic seats attached to the already large cart. It's impossible to maneuver, especially with a four year old and six year old occupying the seats. It's like driving a bus, I tell you. Normally I stay as far away from those carts as possible, but apparently I was feeling overly optimistic yesterday. So, here I am driving the bus down the (very narrow) aisles while Kameryn proceeds to scream. and scream. and scream. No problem, you say, just whip out your sling and be on your way. I do a quick search of the diaper bag and find no sling. Nope, it had been taken out of the bag, and hadn't been put away (shame, shame on me). Good news, though, I do find my brand new freehand mei-tai. Surely she will love this pouch, snuggle right up, and go back to sleep. It looks so inviting and comfy. I put it on (this takes a few minutes as I'm new to the contraption) Um, no. No, she doesn't love it. No she doesn't snuggle right up and go back to sleep. She proceeds to scream, even louder than before. By this time she's gotten herself quite worked up, and I have yet to find even a card for my mom, let alone some of the groceries we stopped there for in the first place! It became clear that the carrier was out of the question (though I'd like to clarify that I *do* love it, and know that she will too ~ once she's a bit older), the car seat was out of the question. The only thing left to do was hold her. Of course, she's still a little wiggly, and doesn't have complete head control (she's only 11 weeks, 6 weeks if you consider she was born 5 weeks early). AND have you forgotten, I'm driving the bus?

It was an absolute miracle that we made it out of the store only a little worse for wear. Kam stopped the crying once I held her ~ sans mei-tai, Sierra helped me steer the massive cart, and by the time we made it to our next stop (no, we didn't go running home in fear), Kam was back to her easy-going self, hallelujah! We even managed to get a few groceries home, AND find some extra cool stuff for Mom. And, of course, Kam slept the rest of the afternoon (partly in the carseat, wouldn't ya know!)

Next time, it's Etsy. I found this and this for Mom on Etsy for Christmas. Need.to.be.better.prepared. (Repeat this mantra to myself)