A lot has changed since the last time I worte here. Last week my mom found another lump in her breast. She's been cancer free for 4 years now and so this was hard news to take, especially since she just recovered from the open heart surgery 2 months ago. It's so hard to see her go through these things. Sometimes I wish I could trade spots with her because I hate seeing her suffer like this. I also found out my assignment for next school year last Friday. It is a set up for failure. I'm not going go through this mess again, so yesterday I turned in my letter of resignation. I'm going to try to do this craft business full time. This will free up my schedule to take my mom to her doctor's appointments and I am stepping out in faith that I'll be able to make enough to pay my bills from the profits off all these crafts at weekly farmer's markets and at the weekly show in Downtown Escondido. It won't be easy, but I have to get it done.
This Saturday I will be at the Vista Elk's Lodge in the morning and at Downtown Live in Escondido in the evening. I did the show in Vista back in February. It was the first show where I made the booth rental fees. It was a huge boost to my confidence. I think with all the new t-shirts, purses and products I just made this past week it should be a really good show. Next weekend I'm not doing any shows at all. My Brother in law is becoming the new commander of the Yuma Proving Grounds and we are going out to see the change of command ceremony. My in-laws are supposed to come out and visit after the ceremony. Next Wednesday will be my last day of work at the school and June 21st is my first official day trying to sell my crafts full time. If it doesn't work out, I may take a part time job until I can make ends meet. It's scary and exciting at the same time. I'm so glad I will be able to be my own boss, but at the same time I hope and pray that I can actually make this work.
Here are the latest creations I've made. These t-shirts are so easy to make. Find some vinyl (I used vinyl contact paper), and cut it out with your cricut. Take the cut image (stencil) and place it on a t-shirt. Make sure that all the air bubbles and bumps are out and the image lays completely flat. Place a foam sheet on the inside of the shirt, so the liquid doesn't seep through to the other side of the shirt. Then take a spray bottle filled with bleach and water and spray the bleach water directly on the shirt. Remove the excess water with a paper towel. Next, remove the stencil and rinse shirt under cold water and let it dry. If it worked out right, the image will appear on the shirt. It takes some practice. I've found that darker shirts work best. The lighter colored shirts don't always leave the images. If there are any bubbles, the bleach seeps under the material and the image is distorted.
I made some last week, as an experiment. I made the Downtown Live shirts as a promotional item for the coordinator. I was going to give it to him free, but it was the wrong size, so he gave me his blessings to sell it at the show. I sold one and had another order for 3 more. It's a fun, quick, and easy project to do. There were a quite a few guys that actually came in and looked at the shirts. I need to make more Extra Large shirts. I would have made more sales if I did.
Happy crafting. I'll post the pictures of the diaper cake I made for my friend's shower next time. I also have some CD/DVD cases I need to post. I'm getting backed up on things to do which is a good thing. I can't wait to be done with school so I can catch up on everything. One more week---hooray!!! Hope you have a great week!!!