Sac Etsy Team Feature ~ Prairie Primitives Folk Art

NOw it's the new year and the crazy rush has gone, it's time to get my butt back into gear and start working, bloggin & listing again!

So I though I'd go for an easy blog to kick it of with! I say easy because this lady is easy to write about. She has a fantastic store on Etsy and Artfire with some very very cute things in them, just take a look at these clothes pin magnets!

Anyway please meet...  

  Prairie Primitives Folk Art

So as with all team mamber features I try to get up close and personal (not too close ;-))

Tana has been on  etsy for about 4 1/2  years which makes her one of the veterans (etsy was est. 2005)

Tana told me that she likes to draw inspiration from her imagination of what life must have been like for settlers on the Midwestern prairie in the early and mid 1800s. This would be an interesting thing to discover too, you can just imagine the wagons and caravans of that time, although I am sure it was far from the depictions of the John Wayne movies we are all so familiar with?! I might have to dig deeper in to this myself at a later time?

Isn't this fabric covered box darling?

If you own an etsy or artfire store you know it be hard to get the word out! especially as there are SOOOOO many talented store owners out there! so Tana tells me the best advice for other fellow etsy members is just to hang in there! Success doesn't come overnight! Also, don't put all your eggs in one basket, keep getting the word out as much as possible i.e business cards, twitter and facebook! With twitter and facebook you  can set them up to automatically post new listings, and also blogging is another way to get the word out an keep it interesting (you hope) so Hang in there, Hang in there, Hang in there!

 I asked Tana what changes she would like to see esp with etsy?
" I'd like to see Etsy not require shoppers to create an account in order to make a purchase (Artfire doesn't require shoppers to have accounts). I would like etsy to go back to the narrower screen width; since they "went wide," I now have to scroll horizontally on EVERY page. Also, as manager of the Sac Etsy Team, I would like to see some of the suggestions made by various team managers incorporated into the new Teams page." ... So etsy people I hope your reading this??? some great suggestions that we would alll like to see!

One of my favorite questions to ask is who would you most like to meet... the answer from Tana was not typical, you know Shakespeare, Aristotle or Martha Stewart! it was TheBlackApple Another fellow etsy memeber! Why I hear you ask?  well read her answer... 

 "Hands down, it would be TheBlackApple! She has had more than 32,000 sales in the five years she's been on Etsy! Although much of what she sells is prints of her original artwork, I'd like to know how she manages the orders, inventory, shipping, etc... "

What an inspiration for all of us etsyians! wouldn't it be nice to get at least one sale a day!? 

Well enough of the chatter, check out some of her work dotted throughout the rambling, I hope you enjoy!

Thank you so much Tana for your candid answers, you are a great team leader an we all appreciate your hard work!  Go Sac Etsy Team! 

Sac Etsy Team Feature MissTeaWinkie

Etsy is a constant struggle with few rewards other than knowing someone else loves your products as much as you do. Certainly none of us are to get rich from our stores, but ask any member and we will tell you that is not really why we do it! And that's the honest truth. For most of us  it is a release, a release from our "normal" jobs and lives.

Creating (however you do it) felting, knitting, drawing, sewing etc... the list goes on and on... Takes us to the place that makes us feel safe and free (it's a cliche´ for a reason) the times we feel good (other than when your son or daughter strokes your face and tells you how you mean the world to them and how much they love you) These good feeling-free times are few and far between, BUT!  etsy keeps these rare moments available, available to share with the rest of the world and these moments that we capture in the privacy of our home spur us on to keep creating new and exciting things. How thrilled we are to see our name featured on a blog or in a magazine or even when we have someone contact us to say how we have made their day or how they LOVE the items! ahhhh  utter bliss!

With this in mind I am trying a new thing... scary I know ;-) I want to  get up-close and personal fellow etsy store owners particularly from the  Sac Etsy Team   I want to find out what keeps them going, what and where they draw their inspiration from and what advice would they give any member? embarrassing moments are also welcome ;-)     

First up is: 

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MissTeaWinkie
She has been on etsy for about 8 years now and has found that nothing comes to those who sleep! in fact the opposite.


She tells me that making dog clothes is no easy task, she knows that every time she sews an outfit its a reflection of you-the owner and how much you love that little baby! her outfits are cute and funny! She tells me how old movies are especially inspiring to her... Calamity Jane, Gone with the Wind & GiGi anyone?? also her love for animals keeps her equally inspired, how satisyfying to see your item on a pet that is loved so much they are spoiled rotten with love & outfits!


MissTeaWinkie joined Sac Etsy Team recenlty in the hopes to promote her site, she also does local craft events and generously donates clothes to some small dog rescues and animal related fundraisers.  When I asked her about what advice she would give she said to "Hang in there!   It does not happen overnight that is for sure.  Also, love what you are doing.  If you don't love it how do you expect others to love it enough to pay for it!" so true when you love something you get so excited about it and have a need to share it with the rest of the world.

So for you small dog paperers check out her store and bring a smile to your face with a cute little outfit!

A huge thank you to Cyndi for answering the many questions I submitted!