Welcome back to Work-at-Home Saturday, which highlights different ways to make money on the side! If you would like to share your own story, please do drop me a line at [email protected] — it’s wonderful to hear about all the different things you are doing.
Michelle’s Etsy story
I am a kindergarten teacher by day and a hair clip maker by night! My business is Looney Daisy Creations, and I create hair accessories for girls of all ages. Right now, most of my creations are geared toward babies and young girls; however, I am hoping to branch out soon.
(The name Looney Daisy is after my aunt Martha, who passed away very young of cancer. She was a big part of my life, and I wanted to do something for her — she loved loons and daisies. I always thought I would own a daycare or school with that name, but this works for now!)
How it began
My business idea started while I was on bed rest with my daughter. I was trying to keep busy, and found Etsy. I ordered some bows, flowers, and hair clips for her to wear after she was born, started watching videos on how to make them, and my business was born from there. When she was about three months old, I went to the craft store, and then got started. I started selling to family and friends at first to try them out, then opened up my shop soon after that. I got lots of feedback from these people and that helped me to make my product better. This feedback has been key to the success of my shop thus far.
Advantages of my business
One advantage of having a side business like this is the ability to make some extra money. However, my husband may disagree, because I tend to spend all my earnings on supplies! I also do try and make my items affordable so that other moms like me can buy them and not feel guilty for spending a ton of money of hair accessories; I try to give my items a fair price while still making a profit. I also try and buy supplies on sale — I am a sucker for a roll of ribbon on sale. This allows me to keep my prices low for my customers!
I really enjoy being creative, and I have for my entire life. This business is my creative outlet — I love taking pieces and putting them together to make something new or different. In my shop, I also try to offer something a little bit different than what I have seen in the stores or in other shops; I want my items to be unique and stand out.
My shop allows me to make special gifts for friends and family, but I have also been able to do some charity work with my shop. I recently offered some of my sushi clips for an auction, which was for a family who lost their 20-month-old son. I am also working on a gift basket for a silent auction which will benefit children and families affected by prematurity.
Building a business
I market my shop on Facebook and on my blog — and of course by showing off the clips on my daughter and myself when we go out! If someone asks about them, I give them my card, which includes a coupon code to save 10% off an order. Word of mouth has also helped my business grow, and I do giveaways and offer coupon codes as well.I also like to include freebies with my orders as a way to say thank you to the people who are buying my hair clips.
I try to price my items lower so that they are affordable to more people. It’s also useful to have a variety of prices, and I run sales and offer coupon codes often to draw in more business. My business started out small, with just the simple clips. Now that I am making a little bit of money, I am able to purchase more supplies, allowing me to offer more items in my shop.
My business has grown immensely from its beginning. I started out with some headbands, and then moved onto simple clips, and have branched out from there. I browse other Etsy shops to see if they offer anything I can turn into a hair clip, and several of my newest clips were created with the help of other Etsy sellers.
How you can get started
My biggest tip for others on getting started is to just do it! You can start small and go from there. I started with one idea for headbands and then branched out from there. You can also learn a lot from YouTube. I hope to one day stay at home with my daughter (and future children). I am hoping that this business will be a stepping stone to help my family get to that point.