Getting to Know Stella B

First blog entry of 2011!! I had a wonderful Christmas and New Year season! As I get older, the more and more I absolutely love this time of year for the *giving* aspect of Christmas! My Hubs was so frustrated that I couldn't come up with a good wish list for him to look over! I was simply *MORE* excited to get their gifts and looking forward to seeing all of them on Christmas morning! It was so worth it!

Shortly after Christmas and right before New Year's Day, I went in for surgery to have my gallbladder removed. It was to be done laproscopically and I was sooo sure that I was going to be up and around in a day or two. (I'm laughing at myself as I type that). I was not anticipating the recovery to be more difficult that my experiences of childbirth recovery! Each day I'm feeling a little less pain, but am still feeling just enough discomfort to keep me on the pain meds every 6 hours or so.

I have been able to do a couple of small crochet projects, but they've been tiring, so I don't feel quite ready to open up the shop to new orders just yet. I am anxious to get on with it! I've discovered that I like doing my crochet projects more than I thought I did! I miss creating something from a little ball of yarn!

So, since I have a lot of new followers and I've been so absent AND because I often suffer from Bloggers Block, I'm going to start out with a a few Question/Answers about me! I would love to see your question/answer blog posts so feel free to leave your links in the comment sections!

WHO ARE YOU?
*Brooke

WHAT IS YOUR SHOP NAME:
*Stella B Designs

WHO IS STELLA B?
It's me! My first name is Stella, but my parents always called me Brooke, although my sister always calls me Stella B!

WHAT TYPE OF ITEMS TO YOU CREATE?
*My main focus is on crochet beanies for all ages. I try and create items that are uniquely mine, but it's getting harder and harder to come up with completely original items. I love getting custom orders and have also created scarfs, mittens, headbands and even a frog!

WHERE CAN PEOPLE FIND STELLA B DESIGNS?
*Although I work from home, I do not have a "storefront" venue. It it a completely virtual-run shop. My main shop is through Etsy. My profile name on there is "stellabs". I also have a business page on Facebook! (Just click on the bolded links). Email: stellabdesigns@yahoo.com
WHAT'S YOUR DAY JOB?
*My main source of income is watching kids in my home. Stella B Designs came into play a few years later and it is something that I really enjoy doing, but I'm still a Mommy & Wife first and Daycare Provider second. I might like to make Stella B Designs second, but have not come up with a plan to switch things around yet.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PART OF YOUR ONLINE BUSINESS?
*Making people happy! I love, love, love knowing that I've created something that people get so much enjoyment out of! I also LOVE seeing my creations used as professional photography props!!! Another thing I really love is taking someone's vision and turning it into a reality - in the form of clothing accessories! lol

WHAT IS YOUR *LEAST* FAVORITE PART OF YOUR ONLINE BUSINESS?
*Um, my current peeve is the ups and downs of the postal system. I normally don't have too many problems, but this season I had a group of trouble packages that drove me crazy! I also have a hard time when the life gets so busy that I can't get my items completed as fast as I want! I would have to say my very least favorite is getting crappy feedback from very non-communicative customers! haha

WHAT ARE YOUR BUSINESS GOALS FOR 2011?
*I hope to continue with my strong success while creating some new items and getting more use from the fabulous photographers I have lined up!

Squishy Face - Stella B's & Captured Blessings Photography

Can I get an "Awwwwww"?

These beautiful pictures were sent to me by Jennifer Rodman of
Captured Blessing Photography

This precious baby girl is wearing a cream Miss Ted E Bear beanie. Her Mommy and Jennifer added the cute little bow for the perfect finishing touch!

Here's one last photo of Jennifer's own lil man in the Barley Ted E Bear beanie!
Lookit those cheeks! What a handsome lil dude!

Thank you SO MUCH, Jennifer! I look forward to working with you in the future!

Back to School Sale

We're gearing up for school and love us some good Back To School Sales!
I also love holding Back To School Sales, so here it is!

Until further notice, Stella B Designs customers have two sale options!

Option 1:
Buy 1 Get 1 for $10!
Just mention "BOGO10" in the "message to seller" or in any correspondence to redeem this option!

Option 2:
25% off of 1 single item!
Just mention "BTS25" in the "message to sller" or in any correspondence to redeem this option!

You can order via Etsy or email me at stellabdesign@yahoo.com.
If you order via Etsy, your Sale credit will be refunded via Paypal within 24 hours!
If you email me, we will discuss your beanie choices and I will invoice you via Paypal with the adjusted sale price.

August Giveaway Contest!

Happy August!

The summer has almost past! The kids are about to go back to school! Fall is just around the corner!
Did it go as fast for you as it went for us? It seemed to pass us by at lightning speed!

This month, the Stella B Designs "Fans" chose something they'd like to win that is a little more grown up! While it can still be made for a child, you can see it looks fabulous on the older crowd!

Introducing:

The Michele Headwrap by Stella B Designs

Color will be completely customizable by the winner(s).

The Michele features a removable/re-positionable "Bubble Flower" on an alligator clip.

It is NOT too soon to think about Christmas gifts!

Thank you to Brittney Wood Photography for these gorgeous pictures!

To enter:
1. Tell me your favorite Childhood School Memory!

2. "Like" my Facebook Fan Page (link is to the right) - you need to leave me a separate comment below if you do this one!

3. RSVP as "attending" to the Stella B Designs August Contest.

4. Tweet this (leave me an additional comment).

5. Blog this. (leave me an additional comment).

6. Share this on Facebook. (Leave an additional comment!).

That is SIX ways to enter (but you MUST leave a separate comment for most of the ways above)!

July Giveaway - WINNERS ANNOUNCED

CONGRATS, WINNERS!

Happy July!
I hope everyone had an excellent 4th of July!
We have been busy, busy, busy with birthdays and holiday and church activities!
This time of year can be so busy, but so fun!

The July Giveaway item is the:

Ted E Bear beanie!

The winner(s) will get to choose their size, color and bow options.

The more entries into the giveaway, the more winners there will be!

This makes the perfect gift, photo prop or head-warmer!

To enter:
1. Tell me your favorite BBQ food item by leaving me a comment on here!

2. "Like" my Facebook Fan Page (link is to the right) - you need to leave me a separate comment below if you do this one!

3. RSVP as "attending" to the Stella B Designs July Contest.

What I Make

Morning!
I've been a reader of Kelly's Korner for quite sometime!
She has an adorable daughter name Harper that I've been able to watch grow through her blog!

Kelly hosts a weekly "Show Us Your Life" blog where she asks her readers to share how they do things in their lives!

This week is "Show Us What you Make".

So if you're visiting from Kelly's page... Hello, my name is Brooke! I make and sell Crochet Beanies and accessories! I realized the last few posts have not included my actual craft, so I'm posting a few pictures of my favorites!

I sell them on Etsy and also have a Fan Page on Facebook.

My Letter to Canada

Dear Canada,

Let's start out by acknowledging that I don't know much about you and you don't know me. That much is clear.

Things that I do know about you:
(yes, in bullet form)

• You're anthem starts out with "Oh, Canada" and I can't get it out of my head
• You're situated north of the equator and my wonderful country
• You have really big mooses... no... mose? er...moose?...
• You are home to some really cool ladies that I consider myself privileged to know!
• You have much snow that bugs said ladies
• Both French and English are spoken
• I hear your health care is something to behold
• You stole my Patrick Marleau from the Sharks to play for you in the Olympics
  
• Your customs process is really putting a kink in my shipping schedules!

It is this last bullet point that I'd like to address in detail. Actually, I'd really like to discuss the last two, but for now I'll keep it short. Alls I have to say is, "What the heck, man?" 21 days minimum is my experience. Twenty. One. Days. This seems a bit excessive to me.

Let me just note that everything I ship in the US takes 5 days TOPS. Yes, that includes ALL THE WAY across the United Sates! I won't even bore you with my mileage and time factorage calculations that I don't actually have, but let's just say that I'm thinking it's ridiculous.

I won't get into the "why would you even consider holding your countrymen's purchases for that insane amount of time" topic... I just want to respectfully request that you maybe might come up with a new system that will cut down on the arrival time by... a week? At the least?

Don't get me wrong... some of my best friends are customs workers... I'm not a hater. I just think something else could be done.

Please?!

I'll be here. Waiting for your response.

Thanks so much,

Helpless US Shipper