Carded by Carla

 

So I call it "Carded by Carla".. It is my fledgling venture to market my handstamped greeting cards and note cards. The CPA in Joe had a nervous twitch every time I donated a batch to this worthy cause or that. And so he came home one night with my confirmation to be a "vendor" at a Business Expo. He bought me my own little table for the opportunity to network and sell. He was, of course, in his element, networking his way through the room. I had to step WAY out of my comfort zone to participate. Talk about my cards? Explain stamping? Try to get sales? AAArgh.

But in the end it was a nice low-key event. All kinds of businesses were represented -- I had a Custom Builder on one side and an optical boutique on the other. Plenty of hors d'oeuvres and drinks for the guests. Door prizes galore. Loads of people to meet.

I didn't breathe for the entire two hours. But when it was over I had a chance to think about what I learned.

-People like my cards. They really do. Just call me Sally Field.

-No one could believe there is a soul left crafting things from ink and paper and glue.

-I have now stamped for profit. Well, initial sales can't be called profit since all I ever do is use the proceeds to buy more stamping stuff so I can stamp more stuff!

-Despite all the complaining about the storage requirements of the crafting supplies, my dear husband believes in my little hobby and seems to even support it. The CPA in him would probably like it a lot more if it was profitable. But for now he is my venture capitalist -- with benefits.

So come on -- get Carded by Carla!