happy friday, friends!
so glad the weekend is here, aren’t you?!
i kinda have a lot to do though…i’m taking more etsy photos tonight and tomorrow, so i’m kinda preoccupied with thoughts of getting all that accomplished…
it’s a little overwhelming, actually.
i literally have so much vintage, that i’ve put myself on a thrifting freeze.
you know it’s pretty bad when you have to ban yourself from buying a $2 shirt or a $5 dress.
not only that, but i’ve had trouble letting go of a lot of the items. hoarders…here i come.
i have sticky notes everywhere! with questions like…
1. wtf do i do with all this great stuff besides keep it and wear it?
(2. oh yeah, sell it.)
3. but WHEN do i find the time to photo, edit, price, measure, post on etsy, then talk about it on the blog?
4. do i post randomly or have a theme?
5. can i mix summer items with fall items when i post? does it really matter…vintage is vintage and most things can be worn across all seasons, right?
6. do my followers/buyers/people in general, prefer to see the item styled or just on the model with not a lot of fluff?
7. why don’t some things sell? because it’s ugly? overpriced? not styled well? out of season?
8. do my blog readers like to see me actually wear an item before i sell it?
9. do i need a new background? stucco is pretty bland, yeah?
i just feel so…disorganized!
i think i’m being a tad overdramatic, but taylor starts school in a few weeks and i need to push it into high gear. i simply won’t be able to post every single day once the homework, after school activities, etc…start up.
i’d like to be a stay at home mom (and work on the blog and shop all day), but who would pay the bills and put food on the table?? and that’s NOT to say that blogging moms only work on their blog/website all day. i’m fully aware of the laundry, housecleaning, errands, grocery shopping…
*deep breath*
i’ll figure it out, i know that. i think i need to put myself on a posting schedule. and besides that, i’m just overwhelmed with all the stuff i gotta get in the shop.
before i go from 0 to 60, i need some answers…so i set up a poll!
i’m just curious and would love your feedback.
in the meantime, i’m adding this lovely dress to the shop, as well as the purse, today!
several of you expressed interest, so to be fair…first come, first serve!
perfect for fall and winter with ankle booties, a cardi, and maybe a belt, yet obviously cool enough for the warmer months of spring and summer.
anyway, have a fantastic weekend!
xo
paige
UPDATE – I SOLD THE DRESS!! yay!
barefoot & vintage 
Deep breaths honey!! DEEP breaths!! you can do it!!! There’s just too much stuff to do when you’re a momma hey? I honestly don’t know how women do it all and work outside the home. i feel overwhelmed and busy all the time and I’m at home full time!
On the Vintage stuff, if I was you, since you’re time crunched and a bit stressed, I’d just photograph it all as quick as possible and list it up – so that it doesn’t eat up too much of your free time. To be honest, The way a piece of clothing is styled doesn’t make a huge diff to me when I buy on Etsy. Sometimes it helps me notice a seller for the first time, but once I’ve found a seller I like I tend to just check their store a lot. I’ve bought from people who have modelled it, put it just on a mannequin, laid it flat, hung it on coat hangers. For me it always comes down to whether its something i love, fits me and is reasonably priced. And honestly I think all your stuff is, and your photos are excellent!
ps sending hugs your way!
Ahhh! I love that dress.
I would love to be able to offer advice on the etsy stuff, but I’ve never bought anything online before (except for, like, Target). I should really broaden my horizons.
Keep taking deep breaths! A nice glass of wine wouldn’t hurt, too. :)
Oh Paige, I feel like we are on the same wavelength. Just like in Avatar, our weird pony tail stringy things are attached… hahaha OK that’s weird, I’ll stop now.
But honestly, my post this morning was just about money/etsy/life and stress and all that caca.
I would LOVE to be a stay at home (non)mom so bad. I’d love to blog and sell vintage items and walk my dog and just enjoy my damn life you know? UGH we need to marry millionaires hunny.
I often wonder why some of my items don’t sell… they are nice/one of a kind/cheap… who knows, maybe they are just waiting for the right person to find them?
For me, I’m usually looking for something specific on etsy. I won’t spend a shitload of money and I like feeling like I got a good deal (read=ripped off the seller haha) I think good pictures help for sure but only get you so far. (I think yours are great btw – having a gorgeous lady in those pics helps!)
Paige this dress looks gorgeous on you! I have no doubts one lucky person is going to snag this up right away! (and it would totally be me if I weren’t between paychecks… le sigh).
Regarding selling your finds in your Etsy store, as you get busier and busier maybe shift your focus to showing off one piece, styled, each day on your blog. Like Megan said, just post them all when you find them, then slowly replace the mannequin photos with the styled ones for items not selling. That way they’re ALL there already so you won’t have to stress about styling each piece all at one time. Also, if something isn’t selling that you really want to sell I say show it off! Make that your featured piece of the day. Some people are interested in buying vintage but have no clue how to wear it. Lucky for them you’ve got great style and can show how it’s done :) Hang in there!
Also, I AM on bloglovin’! Guess I’ll have to make that button bigger ;) Here’s a link to follow me there: http://www.bloglovin.com/en/blog/1812249/ordinarily-urbane/follow
xo
The one thing I love about summer is that the kids have a much more flexible schedule.
I have faith that you will figure out what works and is most managable for you and Taylor.
I agree with Megan on maybe styling one item and featuring it. Styling doesn’t really influence my decision to buy it’s mostly the price(although I do love seeing things styled).
I would love to stay home and pursue something creative. I’m actually trying to figure out how I can do this. Doug and I are trying to have a baby(crazy since I’ll have in college in two weeks!) and I would really like to be able to stay home if or when it happens.
Seasons don’t matter. The internet is everywhere, and the weather is everywhere is highly variable. List what you want to sell when it’s ready to be listed and you’re ready to sell it.
Modeling doesn’t matter. Whether you style it or not, if it’s a good photo and a good item, someone will buy it.
LASTLY
I hope you are going out for a cocktail since you’ve already got the dress on and all. (and it sounds like you could use it!)
*the weather IN everywhere
Yes, I’m one of interested ones and 1st- I loved the length, shape and the styling here, even more! 2nd- I like seeing the items on you, and since they’re vintage, I’m glad they’re even more loved before I got them. 3rd- I really want it! But once again, I hate living so far and having so high shipping rates (I’ve bought a dress today for 13 $)… So I think I’ll pass it for now since there are other people interested in it and I’ll have an eye on your shop for later… :) You look awesome again, wish you luck with the school term. I’m sure you’re a wonderful mother so I guess you’ll be a superwoman then :)
yes you look amazing in this dress (but what the heck DON’T you look amazing in?). and i was a stay-at-home mom for a while and i don’t recommend it. yikes, it was rough for me. so is taking my kid to work but whatevs. i am right there with you about the etsy stuff. i just can’t get super excited about styling all of it right now. i know that will change for me though. as soon as the weather turns cooler i’ll get it done. and as for me, i’ll have a bit more time to do it once the kiddo goes to school (two weeks!!!!!). and in the past it’s been easiest for me to do only like 5 things at a time. i love the styling part but it’s the measuring and the actual listing that makes me crazy. seems so tedious (can you tell that i’m lazy?). but i really do love etsy and am going to get back to it. but maybe not for another couple weeks. you’ve got great stuff. i’ve always loved a lot of what you sell, but either someone snatches it before i can get the funds to make it happen or it doesn’t fit etc. i think there are lots of reasons something doesn’t sell. but yeah i don’t think you have to go so far as having a theme or anything. a lot of people are getting into that and making it more professional and it looks great but they are doing it as their full time job. it would be interesting to see if their sales have gone up as a result. hmmm. anyway, i shoulda just emailed this. it’s very long.
i love this dress. super duper.
i thought i’d elaborate on my answer for you.
i selected ‘price is right’ – basically my philosophy (which only exists mind you cos i had to set SOME rule to curtail my etsy spending)is that if it is an item that was likely thrifted and did not require any alterations by the seller to make it wearable, I have to think realistically whether I might be able to find something similar myself from a thrift shop.
Oftentimes I give myself a week to see if I do find something comparable, and decide to make the purchase from etsy. This often has the outcome of the item already being sold (like the black leather mini you had listed not that long ago, grr!.
Also, I generally need to be able to find at least 2 items that fit my criteria in a store because, being international, I really like to combine postage (i.e. paying $15 for one item feels ridiculous, even though that is how much it costs to send!! ack.)
Having said all that, I only buy the ‘more expensive’ stuff – read, not dirt cheap – from etsy sellers whose blogs I read and admire, and whenever such bloggers have ‘etsy sales’ or special offers or whatnot I really try to find something to buy as a show of support.
Extras… styling doesn’t affect me too much… measurements, pfft, I don’t even know how to really check these on myself :/ I just like the XS/S/M estimates and appreciate it lots when the model has their description somewhere in shop policies i.e. height, weight, size… i’m lazy like that you see.
Also, I wouldn’t necessarily stress about season, keep in mind there are always people on the other side of the world with something different going on weather-wise! So having a couple of select items may pay off you never know!
Alllrighty I think me and my humble opinion have outstayed our welcome here :D
Haha! You crack me up! I think the styling helps, but for a seasoned thrift store shopper, it has to be really special, something I wouldn’t be able to find myself, for me to purchase it. Your prices are perfect I think, but that is another thing that makes me decide to purchase, and hence why I selected it in the poll.
On another note, I really REALLY appreciate your sweet words on my post the other day. I love knowing that you are reading my blog, having a talented and lovely style sister such as yourself to share things with makes it all worth it :)