We decided NOT to participate in the recession

I can't be a victim of the recession. Several months ago we borrowed this as our official statement regarding this: “We have decided NOT to participate in the recession”

Now, here's a few things we think are important to running a successful business and life in these times.

- Make yourself daily business AFFIRMATIONS. Waterproof them and read them in the shower – our best marketing ideas happen in the shower.

- DO NOT watch the news about the economy (or not even at all). I can’t tell you when the last time was that I watched my local news or National/world news. Many months ago I decided to change my home page. It is no longer MSN, Yahoo etc. and I don’t miss it.

- Avoid negative people including your own ‘DEBBIE DOWNERS’. “Hey did you here about that fatal accident on Highway….” Um, sorry I gotta go.

- Surround yourself with POSITIVE sights, thoughts, sounds, and even smells. Yep I said sounds and smells! Get a new alarm clock. Buy some handmade soap from someone on Etsy. MAKE yourself happy.

- ACT don't wait to be ACTED UPON - be Proactive. Remember that definition of Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

- Make some mistakes along the way - you’re entitled. Fix them and keep going FORWARD.

- Connect the dots. Look back at how you got where you are today. Be GRATEFUL to the good AND the bad.

- GIVE BACK. Give back to community, family, and God.

Think some of this sounds foolish? Good! I know we’d be foolish if we didn’t do these. Good luck and keep your chin up.

Giving Back

HomeStudio was honored to help out with a fundraisers for Cora Paige and Tuesday Whitt. Little Cora and Tuesday passed away just recently both from Neuroblastoma stage 4, a form of childhood cancer. We created these pendants in order to raise funds for each family's cause. Thank you Tuesday and Cora for your lives inspiring others in the fight against cancer.

Love Bomb 2009?

We got an "Etsy Love Bomb" in the mail yesterday! Apparently Etsy sent out New Years Gifts, these random gift boxes of goodies to various sellers. It actually arrived to our PO Box a couple of weeks ago, but I didn't get a chance to go by until yesterday. It included a nice hand signed card, a tote bag (different than the one pictured), a button badge (scissor one) and a silkscreened poster of a tree. How nice is that! Thank you Etsy and have a great 2009!

Scrabble Tile Pendants?

Late February 2008: On the same day, for some odd reason, two unrelated people suggested Etsy was something to look in to. I had done pretty well selling my paintings on eBay, in galleries and local commissions. Etsy was becoming the new buzzword among artists/crafters. So in March I opened an Etsy shop selling my art and even some custom furnishings (only for a couple of weeks). After a few paintings had sold, Stef and I decided to look for something both she and I could do together. So we focused our efforts on something small - smaller than a postage stamp! We had about $15 in our pocket as funds were very tight and “invested” it into some scrapbooking paper and used Scrabble game pieces. So was the origins of the two of us working together making jewelry necklace pendants. On Cinco de Mayo 2008, HomeStudio, our home - now a studio, began its adventures in the world of Scrabble Tile Pendants.

We do need to publicly thank littleputbooks, and other forerunners for their ingenuity, drive and resourcefulness into this Scrabble world. Good karma to them always!

Mark+Stef
HS