The level of insanity that our life has become the last few months is just not even something I can comprehend. Between the remodeling jobs my husband has had going and the insane level of orders for furniture and chalkboards we have been taking, we truly have felt we couldn’t breathe at times. I know that many can relate. We are no different than anyone else at this time of year…. COMPLETELY over extended.
We are blessed.
We are grateful.
We are having tons of fun.
We are tired.
Lucky for Zack and I, we sort of share the same internal pace clock. When we are becoming pushed and pulled we usually both feel it. And for the most part we are in agreement when we realize it’s time to do something about it.
About mid November, despite all the big holiday plans for our Etsy shop, we made a big decision. For the sake of our sanity, we pulled everything but the furniture listings from our shop. We stopped taking orders for chalkboards, mirrors, etc. right as the hustle and bustle of Christmas shopping was picking up. While this makes no sense in theory, this year it made the most sense in our real life.
Lady Lee and Drew Jones via Etsy
Eight custom furniture orders were on the schedule to be shipped between Thanksgiving and Christmas and there was just no way to incorporate keeping up with the smaller items in the down time. (Mostly because with 8 furniture orders shipping within a month THERE IS NO DOWN TIME)!
See… we’re so tired I didn’t even think to snap a proper pic of this beauty before she went on her way.
This one either… didn’t even get a pic with the hardware on 🙁
Our little operation is small by design. Zack and I want to be involved in each and every piece that is crafted with our name attached. I’m sure there are many who would let me know how “small” the thought process on this is. But what I have to say to them is that the life I envision for myself does not include managing a manufacturing company at this time. I am a creator, an artist of sorts. I need to get my hands dirty. (And boy do I get them dirty!) It’s not rocket science that the bottom line could be increased if we hired more help. We likely will when the time is right, but we refuse to allow this business to become bigger than we can handle before we are ready. If we have to dial it down to ensure quality comes before quantity then that’s exactly what we’ll do. And in this case, it’s what we did.
We have small children. This business can bust at the seams for as long as it needs to before we let it fly wide open (and I have no doubt that we will… some day)! But for now, they come first. Our family comes first. The rest will fall in line.
If you need us, we’re still here… working hard on those last custom orders, making big plans for the new year and soaking up the magic of this beautiful season. When we see you again in 2014 we’ll be refreshed, rejuvenated and ready to make it our best year yet!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from us to you!
