Should I Quit

You may have noticed that I have a bit of a big mouth. When something bugs me I tend to lay it all out there and I like to use a lot of big words while doing it. So after I made a big deal out of folks complaining about a lack of sales in their etsy stores( see here), I felt like I just have to suck it up now that my sales are in the toilet. I had all the familiar thoughts, it's the economy, my newest items aren't any good, nobody likes me, maybe I should just throw in the towel.

Then I came to my senses. Look, my sales are nonexistent right now and while I could very well blame the economy and I wouldn't be entirely wrong doing so, the truth is, I know exactly why I'm not selling. I figure there are two options at this point. I can quit or I can go into extreme business mode. I know what I need to do, but I'm simply not willing to put out the effort needed to make the sales happen. Why? Well, I have more important things to do with my time, than spend hours networking and advertising. Many people have spent their free time outlining their successful strategies and I thank them for their time and expertise, but I just can't get that invested.

So, do I think I should throw in the towel? No, I think I'm going to opt for secret option three, continue doing what I'm doing and not stressing out about it. I was making things long before I found etsy and I don't plan on stopping any time soon. The only real difference is now, my pieces aren't gathering dust or being given to unresponsive relatives for Christmas and birthdays. I was always spending money on my crafts, only now I occasionally make my money back. The worst case scenario is I never make another sale, all my listings expire and I'm stuck with all my unsold inventory, which I will give to relatives.

I'll keep on tatting new designs as long as there are people who at least like to look at them. I've used my store as an excuse to try things I never would have attempted otherwise because I just couldn't justify making all this stuff if I didn't have a potential outlet for its dispersal. I imagine that I would go into creative hibernation without my store, sales or not. So for now, I'm gonna stop stressing about sales and enjoy creating, because when all is said and done I think that's the real reason artists, artisans and crafters create. Ars Gratis Artis!

On a completely different subject, I finished my black cuffs and I will be posting pictures tomorrow, so don't forget to come back for them.