Did you miss us?

Wow, its been a long time! I can't believe we haven't blogged since October - I bet you all thought we died at the Great Craft Festival. Well, we didn't die but it was definitely an experience! One we thought we were prepared for but as it turns out, we weren't. 3 days is a loooooooooonnnngggg time.


Overall, it was a great experience and we learned a lot. Especially about displaying our work, communicating with potential customers, etc. The other vendors told us that they loved our work and they felt bad for us because it was the worst year they had ever seen for customer flow and sales. Its also a huge upfront cost for the booth. We were on pins and needles the whole time until we broke even, which wasn't until the last day! So, we made enough money to pay off all of our supplies, display (Thanks again Jeff!), the booth fee, and just enough extra to keep us from bursting in to tears. But, if you consider labor for 3 people for 3 days - there is no way. Not even if we're talking about labor costs in China!


So, we've decided the new strategy is to do smaller craft fairs with smaller booth fees and try to save enough for our business license. In the mean time, there's always Etsy! We've added a bunch of Valentine's stuff so check it out and tell us what you think. We'll keep chugging away at Paper Dolls - its one of our collective dreams and something we love. If patience truly is a virtue, these three girls are the most virtuous trio on the planet! Talk to you soon and thanks for reading!

The GREAT Craft Festival!!!!

Hello faithful readers,

So, did anyone other than me read the title of this blog and instantly think of Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin? Its fitting for the season that's for sure! Not to mention a classic.

The Great Craft Festival is being held at Cashman Center, November 4th - 6th and Paper Dolls is going to be there! We are super excited for our first large craft fair but also exceedingly nervous! The booth fee was not a meager amount for our little business and we are all having nightmares of no one showing up, not being able to process credit cards due to a freak internet connection mishap, selling nothing, and any number of other mini craft disasters you can imagine!

We have been working away creating all kinds of crafty art with a conscience - the sweatshop is back in business. Also, we have enlisted the help of family and friends for making us an awesome display fixture, assisting with set-up, and just begging them to attend and pass the word on. We've ordered bags, tissue paper (because that makes everything pretty) and new business cards. I tell you, there has never been a time where I've felt more official or more broke!

So, please plan on coming to the Great Craft Festival in a couple of weeks and tell all of your friends! Here are the details, we hope to see you there:

Great Craft Festival
Cashman Center Exhibit Hall
November 4th (10-6), 5th (10-6) and 6th (10-5)
850 Las Vegas Blvd N
Cost: $8 for adults (but we have a $2 off coupon - see below!!!!)

Back to School!

Tomorrow's the first day of school! I need to return to work just so I can keep my days straight! It's my 10th year, and I know it'll be a good one.

I've been wracking my brain to come up with back to school gift for my friends at work.

A while ago, I saw a Valentine's Day gift idea for teachers here, and decided to use the idea to make gifts for my co-workers.

1. You'll need chinese take out boxes, fortune cookies, tissue paper, glue, ribbon, a 4" scalloped paper punch (I used the "Accent Essentials" Cricut cartridge), and this print out.

2. Cut out the print out, and glue to the scalloped black circle.

3. Add tissue paper to the Chinese take out boxes.

4. Add fortune cookies to the boxes.

5. Glue scalloped circles to the boxes.

6. Tie a bow to the box's handle.

7. Glue gun 2 pencils to the tops of the boxes for chopsticks :)

Ta-da! :)

Happy first day of school!

"I'm not lying, I'm just stunnin' with my love-glue-gunning"

It's true, I like Gaga... even more when I was playing "Rock Band" a few weeks ago and finally paid attention the lyrics to "Poker Face" with Lauren. During the part,

"I won't tell you that I love you

Kiss or hug you

Cause I'm bluffin' with my muffin

I'm not lying

I'm just stunnin' with my love-glue-gunning"

We looked at each other and thought, "BLOG TOPIC"! haha. Yes, we are nerdy and are easily amused by silly Lady Gaga lyrics and are thinking about our little business all. the. time.

In all of my years of crafting, I have had a healthy phobia of glue guns. True story. Stop laughing. (Raise your hand if you've ever had a blister from a glue gun burn! Yup, you probably sucked it up, healed, and continued to use the gun to make pretty things.) Not me! I could give you a list of other adhesives that I've used to avoid the dang gun... Tombo Aqua liquid glue, Aleene's Original Tacky Glue, ZOTS clear adhesive dots, Amazing GOOP Craft Contact Adhesive and Sealant...

This summer at the sweatshop, I decided to give the glue gun another chance. It's cut down on drying time for projects, and I've probably gone through 200 glue gun sticks making exploding cards! May I recommend one? Here's the one I've been using:

It's the SUREBONDER Hi-temp detail mini glue gun. It's got a fine nozzle for detail work and a built in stand. :) I never thought I'd say it, but I love it.

Take a peak at what I've been working on:

What pretty things have you been making?

P.S. We sold another item on Etsy! Shout out to Candy from LV! Thanks for your support, it means a lot!

(Owl hoop made with felt, embroidery floss, and buttons)

P.P.S. Happy birthday (8/18) to an honorary Paper Doll, my Paper Mama, Mama Baula!

(She's still got it... I got it from my mama.)

So you better treat her right!

Paper Dolls has reopened the sweatshop. With a minor adjustment thanks to a Mitch Hedburg solution - air conditioning! We have registered for the Great Craft Festival, November 4, 5, and 6th at Cashman Center. Seeing as Santa's elves have been uncooperative in previous years, we don't really feel as though we can rely on them so, its up to us! We are breaking out all of the fall colors, papers, stickers etc. and the winter holiday supplies as well! Gracie has been burning her fingers to the bone with the glue gun making exploding cards, Ruth has been felting all the live long day, and me? I've been making wreaths. LOTS of wreaths.


Also, we are super official - we just got our EIN number! You have no idea how excited we were to see a legitimate document from the IRS that says Paper Dolls on it.

Finally, Ruth and Gracie attended the Department of Taxation Basic Training Workshop yesterday. They learned:

1. Document everything, keep all financial documents separate! Don't mingle business and personal.
2. Use your resources - there's a lot of information out there and its free. (http://tax.state.nv.us/ for starters!)
3. You don't want a visit from the tax man.
4. Everybody wants a piece of you - don't get attached to your money, its not really yours. Well, at least not all of it.

That's been our week - what have you been up to?

Monday - Not just for The Real Housewives anymore!

I am, actually, watching the Real Housewives of New York - not the same since Bethany moved on, I must say. However, this Monday's blog is going to be about finding the comfort in moving slowly. I know, its a tuffy!

Hello, loyal supporters, friends, and "lurkers"! Paper Dolls just celebrated its third sale on Etsy this weekend...cue the confetti. Honestly, we are genuinely excited and truly appreciate the support. I can't imagine a time when every sale that comes in doesn't result in a squeal of excitement and a round of text messages chock-full of exclamation points. However, there are other women in our Etsy group that have sold 750, 1000 and even multiple thousands of their crafts. I'd be lying if I said we weren't even the slightest bit jealous.

What I have to keep reminding myself is that while we have been crafting our whole lives, we just posted our first item on Etsy a couple of months ago. Furthermore, we just purchased our first showcase a little over a week ago. It seems to be working and we are going to keep trying different things: adding new items regularly, reposting items so they show up in searches, and continuing to blog, Pinterest and Facebook the heck out of our work.

At any time of day, I am bound to have at least one of the following phrases running through my head:

1. Take your time and do it right.
2. Just because something works for one person doesn't mean its the right way for us.
3. No one said it was going to be easy. Or quick!
4. Stay focused and work towards your dreams.
5. The moment you commit to something, the universe conspires to assist you. (Believe me, Universe, we're committed! Bring on the assisting.)

I know one day soon we will look back on this time and wish we could go back to the days when times were simpler and we were able to catch our breaths and had lives outside of Paper Dolls. If that is one year from now, or two, or even three - it will be a great day. In the mean time, I am relishing this period of learning and growth and exploration. Its our time right now. Everything for a reason and everything for good.

Have a great week!

To Etsy Or Not To Etsy... That Is The Question.

Hello and Happy Tuesday to all of our faithful readers! We hope you enjoyed your long 4th of July weekends!

Ruth, Gracie and I have been doing quite a bit of soul searching lately, regarding our Etsy Shop - asking ourselves: Why haven't we sold anything yet?, Are our prices too high?, Does anyone know we exist?, etc. We see other Etsy sellers posting amazing, exciting statistics about their shops - even one who has reached her 1,000th sale. While we are so happy for her and think its great, we know we could reach 1 million sales! So, what to do?

Well, I did some research today and I will share a few of the Etsy tips that I discovered and that Paper Dolls will be implementing - these are things that came up many times from multiple sources. We hope they are helpful! If you have any other tips for how to make money on Etsy, please share!

1. Be different - Make your products a reflection of yourself, find a niche and don't try to cater to everyone.
2. Your Photos Can Make or Break Your Shop - The photographs of your items should be professional and editorial - they should look artsy and show your personality.
   
3. The Art Of Listing - Your Item titles are very important - make them short and sweet but descriptive. Use all of your tags when you can. 50 - 100 items at a time is ideal on your shop - most people will only browse through 2 - 3 pages (and see 40 - 60 of your products). Relist, relist, relist - Etsy's search function shows most recently listed items first.
4. Get Involved - Become a part of the Etsy community by reading the Etsy blog and being active on the comment threads and forums - you get your questions answered and gain exposure with your peers - BONUS!
5. Use your tools! Read Etsy's Seller Handbook, Your Shop 101 and again, use the forum - almost all of your questions can be answered there.

I hope that is helpful - I just added about 20 new items to our shop this evening - take a look and leave us a comment. You have no idea how excited we get when a new comment pops up - we text each other IMMEDIATELY!

Favorite Things FRIDAY!

"Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens

Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens

Brown paper packages tied up with strings

These are a few of my favorite things"...

1. Crafting with my mom. Mama Baula is one, very crafty lady, but way too humble to admit it! Today, she helped me prepare mini books that are made out of paper lunch bags.

My dining table has been an extension of my sweatshop craft room these days...

Lunch paper sacks just begging to be embellished! :)

A baby girl brag book...

2. Dim Sum lunch breaks. I took my dad out for an early Father's Day lunch at one of our favorite dim sum restaurants in Las Vegas...

3. Saving moolah! After lunch I wanted to use a couple of coupons that expire tomorrow at a local craft store. People that know me know that I am cheap, frugal, broke obsessed with coupons. All of you out there that craft know that making pretty things can cost a pretty penny, and I like to keep as many of those pretty pennies in my pretty little pocket! Today, I took advantage of Joann's paper sale (5 for $1... score) and bought a bunch of card stock for future projects. I also bought a few fabric remnants and a scoring blade for my dad. (Yes, my dad! He wants to get in on this craftiness, too, and who am I to stop him?!) With the sale and my coupons I spent $53.45 and saved $105.16! Isn't that crazy? If you haven't jumped on the coupon train yet, I highly suggest that you do. Chugga chugga, Choo choo!

Happy Friday to you!

Free at last, Free at last....

... Well, at least one of us is. And only partially. So, maybe that was not the most appropriate title after all. Hmmm.... will strive to improve my blog titling skills.

What was I referring to? Gracie's last day of school is tomorrow! She is free of fourth graders for 3 whole months. But, she still has to study for her National Boards exam so cross your fingers for her. Good luck Gracie - have a great last day tomorrow!

For the other two Paper Dolls, its business as usual. No 3 months off for us, suckers. But, there is still something about summer in Vegas that makes you feel free. And hot! So, its that time again -lets ramp up the sweat shop. The Harvest Festival is coming up in September and we would really like to participate. There is a lot of work involved in even registering - you have to have a photo or sketch of your display, descriptions of your product, photos of you making your crafts, oh, and a $500 fee. Sheesh! But, we're going to make it happen. We'd love to hear from any other crafters who have participated in the Harvest Festival - let us know how it went, any tips you might have, dos and donts, etc? If you don't make crafts yourself but have attended the event before, tell us what you love the most about it and what your favorite crafts to shop for are. Are you buying gifts for fall holidays or Christmas or are you just out shopping for things you love with your favorite friend?

Finally, a big thank you to all of our new followers! We appreciate you baring with us while we figure out the technical side of blogging. Have a great Thursday tomorrow, we know Gracie will. Keep crafting

Minding Our Business

Hi, soon to be loyal blog-reader-friends, I'm going to introduce you to another regular segment on our blog. It's going to deal with the steps we're taking and progress we're making in opening our own brick-and-mortar scrapbook supplies etc. shop. This highly anticipated event will hopefully take place a year from now and be appropriately and charmingly, if we do say so ourselves, called: Paper Dolls. This week, the progress we've made is in our blog. Now this is still definitely a work in progress; we're planning lots of changes and improvements. I don't think we'll continue to have Spanish captions for example, fine language though it is. So keep checking back with us and live vicariously through the many successes and failures we're bound to experience along the way to realizing one of our dreams. You are hereby given an invitation to share in our journey and a save-the-date card to our Grand Opening on July 1st, 2012. Talk to you soon and see you there!

A beautiful and crafty friendship....

Ruth & Lauren in Germany

In the beginning... there was a Gracie and some twins...

Gracie Baula, Lauren Boitel & Ruth Boitel that is. The Paper Dolls! 

Gracie as a baby in The Philippines

Lauren & Ruth were pre-mature twins born a month early, in Germany, at an Army hospital in December of 1979. Yeah, it sounds cool but they don't remember much about it. Gracie was born a month later, in January of 1980, in Quezon City! She says we knew each other in heaven but Ruth & Lauren just couldn't wait and came out early. 

Our Alma Mater - Class of '98

They reunited 14 years later in 9th grade at Cheyenne High School - class of 1998, go Desert Shields! Gracie was the only other girl in Mrs. Borg's English I Honors class who's projects were as good as Lauren's. They even fought over drawing Henry VIII for a Renaissance magazine! Lauren introduced Gracie to Ruth and the three became quite close through-out high school, followed each other to UNLV and barista jobs at Starbucks, created a Fair Trade non-profit together, volunteered for Oxfam, and are now embarking on our latest venture - Paper Dolls. 

Gracie is a elementary school teacher for second through fourth grade. She loves scrap booking, couponing, cleaning, ice cream and family! Gracie is a lucky bug and tries to keep us all positive. She's also the glue and Switzerland - keeping balance between the sisters.

Ruth's is an Assistant Manager at a local card shop. She has a perennial admiration for Viggo Mortenson and the color blue. She finds inspiration in fashion, hair, and home decorating magazines. Her favorite books are the Fountain Head, Little Women and Jane Eyre. Ruth is a realist and keeps Paper Dolls grounded. She has a tactile jones but is not a technophobe, she just gets techno-frustrated very easily!

Lauren works for a clean energy non profit during the day. She goes crazy for red shoes, displays of passion and talent, good food and cheesy love songs. Lauren brings a little business savvy to the trio - emphasis on a little.

Paper Dolls is a labor of love, and a desire to bring our passion to like minded people who appreciate the craft in art and the art in craft. That's us in a nutshell - three weird, nerdy, funny, crafty girls. So, your turn. Whats your story, faithful follower? We're dying to meet you!

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