Life's Roller Coaster (A Slightly Melodramatic Metaphor)

Up and down, twisting and turning, it seems like we're 21 years old and just barely hanging on as this roller coaster of life keeps throwing me (and Jonathan - he's in the seat beside me) for new loops.

We're at a hang up. Disappointed by our inventory clearance sale, tired of the nagging issues in our home life, and wary of reopening Peculiar Curiosities, Jonathan and I (Miss Kateri Joe) are hanging up-si-down in our roller coaster cart waiting on a repairman to start the ride again. Sadly, he seems to be on his lunch break. So, what can two stalled riders do?

Try, try, and try again to get rolling! It's a challenge, as it seems like we just can't get moving. But, we're going to work on a solution. Who needs a repairman, right?

Unfortunately, Peculiar Curiosities has hit this snag with us. Our shop won't be reopening as planned. It stinks, but once we get our roller coaster going again (a.k.a once we've dealt with the bothersome issues at hand), we'll start fresh with Peculiar Curiosities.

Yay for new beginnings!

Anywho, we'll be checking back as we see fit. This is not good-bye.
(hehe. See, melodramatic, right?)

With blood draining to our heads,
Kateri Joe & Jonathan

Giddy as a schoolgirl

Greetings, my friends! Jonathan manning the Captain's wheel today!

Just as the title suggests, I am as giddy as a schoolgirl! Why you ask? Well, it's 51 days til my favorite of favorite holidays!



HALLOWEEN!

Pull out your cauldrons, your broomsticks, wake the undead, light the black candles, and invoke the spirits! The haunting season is on it's way! I was never the kid who enjoyed trick-or-treating. I've only gone trick-or-treating once in my life. The other kids scared me. It wasn't the costumes they wore or anything like that, it was just them, the kids. In fact, most kids still scare me, haha.

What I enjoy most about Halloween is decorating the house with spooky things and the fact that I can be as creepy as I want and people don't stare me like I need to be removed from society entirely, haha! That has been my tradition since I can remember and only until recently I've started to watch the Ghost Hunter LIVE Halloween investigation on SciFi.

Before I depart from you all, I'd like to ask what is your favorite holiday and why?

Until we meet again!

-Jonathan

The Arrival of Yumminess!

White Chocolate Cherry Cupcake Truffles from The Fancy Lady Gourmet

The entire package that we woke up to this morning. Yummm...we had a sweet breakfast!



Thursday morning had come and gone, but Jonathan and I were still in bed. Daylight wasting, our bad sleep habits tend to get the better of us when we go to bed at 4:00 a.m. So, that morning, we snoozed on with dreams of high Etsy sales in our heads. (ha. ha.) :-P Yet while we snoozed, a kind delivery man planted a peculiar (yet snazzy) box on our doorstep.

Much to our surprise, our order from the Fancy Lady Gourmet had come in early! As soon as we realized it, we were having a breakfast of cupcake truffles. *hehe

We ordered, on Etsy (of course), a batch of white chocolate cherry cupcake truffles. (Say that three times fast!) What we received was that, and an additional sampler of the Fancy Lady's baked goodies! Now that made our week. :-D

First, we both tried what we had ordered; the pink cutsie cherry-flavored cupcake truffles. With a sweet, yet slightly tart taste, these yummies are pure delights for the tastebuds! Moist in the middle with a creamy chocolate outside, the flavor throws you for a zing of a curveball when - low and behold - you bite into a real cherry in the center. Oooh, I hope I have you drooling.

That first treat lead to the tasting of more. It was like a slow-moving sugary landslide. (We ate all of this over the course of the day, haha.) Next, we started in on the sampler items. After lunch, we each tried a pumpkin spice cupcake truffle...and then we cried with joy. Later that night, we devoured fall-themed shortbread cookies...and giggled from a delightful sugar high. Finally, for our last tastebud adventure, we conquered chocolate chip cookies. That left us in awe of the Fancy Lady's talent.

The neatest part is that despite coming to Arkansas from New Jersey, everything tasted like we purchased them at a local shop that day. Awesome, right? And see that swanky packaging!? It's adorable! That packaging made me feel like I was opening a Christmas gift.

And what a gift it was. Thank you, dear Fancy Lady!

Now that I hopefully have you drooling, tell me: What's your sugary weakness? We've now found ours! And hey, if you're just dying for that sugar boost, here's the Fancy Lady's Etsy shop: http://tabbycat13.etsy.com :-D

Until later,
(unless we run off to Candy Land)
-Kateri Joe

The Renewing Dilemma

Today felt like Fall here in Arkansas, so I couldn't resist posting this pumpkin picture that was taken last year. It's way off topic, but who doesn't love a little visual treat while reading?

Hola, little buddies of 'ze blog! It's Kateri at the Wii remote tonight.

First of all, before I even get started tonight, I must say that the Wii internet browser is fantastic. End compliment now.

Anywho, back to the topic I planned to discuss: Renewing your items on Etsy! Within the past few months, Etsiers have been questioning the profitability of renewing an item after it has gone unsold. The topic has strong arguments on both sides. Some say that renewing is worth the 20 cents, as it is a reliable source of advertisement that brings more traffic and sales to their shop. Others who argue that opposition say that it's a waste of money that burns through your potential profit.

As newbies to the Etsy scene, Jonathan and I really didn't know where to stand on this issue. But, a certain article has proven to provide an intriguing insight into the more positive side of renewing.

Angela Schade of Something Blue presented a blogpost titled "The Etsy Experiment Revealed" on her blog, http://shopsomethingblue.blogspot.com . After a LONG and highly-observed 25 weeks of experimenting with renewing, Angela found renewing to be highly beneficial. She found herself not only making more sales in a month (from nine sales a month to 42), but she also managed to land more front page spots. She also became a treasury regular. So, yay, we have a final answer on the matter, right!?

Maybe. I still would love to hear everyone's opinions on the matter. Are you a chronic renewer? Do you see benefits? Or, do you think it's worthless to pay 20 cents for a brief front page spot and a momentary higher rank in search results?

What has experience taught you?
Until carnivorous seahorses exist,
- Kateri Joe


P.s. Angela of Something Blue's Etsy page is http://shopsomethingblue.etsy.com :-)

P.s.s. I had a ditzy moment and got the terms "renew" and "relist" confused. I made the appropriate edits, so oopsie daisy on my part! Sorry for the confusion! :-P