Learning

There are so many things to learn about a new business, until you hit your first year mark I think a business is still very new.

I like to think that I did a good job with keeping every receipt that I ever got when it came to business stuff. I understand a lot better how to arrange them all now than when I started, which is a good thing because there are a lot of them!

Then there's marketing. Whew, marketing is something that I don't think I'll ever be anywhere close to perfect with. I have a facebook page, a tumblr, a twitter, an etsy shop, a blog (you're reading it).... I'm thinking about a Pintrest account too. Still playing with that though. It's really a lot to keep up with! Do any of you use Pintrest? What do you think of it?

Tea Balls

Also known as "tea steepers" or "infusers" this nifty little tea balls are a great way to brew loose leaf tea.

Especially when they're decorated with handmade lampwork beads! 

Cranberry Pink with Goldstone designs. Available on Etsy.

Metallic shades of gold blue and purple over a magenta base. Available soon.

Periwinkle blue swirled with grass green and encased in clear. Available soon.

Deep pink overlaid with metallic blues and purples. Available on Etsy.

Organic ivory yellow with shocks of purple and green. Available on Etsy.

Purple with mirrored silvers and golds. Available on Etsy.

Ivory and blue. Available on Etsy.

Things I've Been Doing

Here are some of the things I've been working on:

Kickstarter #2 successfully finished.

Started a Tumblr.

Working on all sorts of Etsy stuff for Dryad Tea.

Getting ready for holiday tea parties.

Lots of cleaning.

Sewing. Less than I want, but more than I was.

Finally!

I haven't been so happy to be this close to the end of a project in a very long time. Tonight I finished all of the things for the Kickstarter. Yes, that Kickstarter. The one that came to life back in April and promptly ate my soul.
Well there's the end of the tunnel. After 7 total supply orders, countless cursing and test tasting, getting opinions and running around like an insane person. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. Tomorrow I finish packing the boxes.

See, I managed to get most all of it done in stages, up to the $60 rewards. But when looking at what I had left, I couldn't do it in stages. I had to put nose to the grindstone as it were... and I packed and packed and packed. I blended and prayed.

It's really exciting to be honest.

Will I do it again? Probably. I have too many ideas swimming in this brain not to. Will it be soon? Probably not. Maybe in two months? Maybe next year? Who knows. All I know, is that I have SJ Tucker songs on my brain, screaming to be brewed into tea. Oh yeah, and I have her permission. :)

Faerie Market

Once upon a time there was a market in Faerie. In this market you could find almost anything, from keys to glitter to scraps of fabric fashioned into bits and bobs. Then there were the jewels, the broaches that could only have come from the highest royalty's clothes, and sometimes, if you were lucky you could find an item of true magic.

That market faded away with the changes of the tides of time, and I was sad to see it go... 

Missing it has spurred something new in me though; the possibility of creating a new market, one made of magic and whimsy. One that you could get the shiny bits of Faerie even in the mortal world.

I'm sure that I have enough baubles that I could easily start this market all on my own, from beaded bits to glass, to keys that I rescued from abuse in Faerie. It's going to be an interesting start, and I really really hope that all of my friends will take a gander and pass the magic on when it starts up!

With Love,

Rubiee

Busy!

Well, let me tell you that life isn't slowing down at all!

From gigs to work to kickstarter and back. Crazy days have come and gone and I hope that they're winding down... knowing full well that they most likely are not.

This weekend Pandora Celtica heads to Beltania. This is where I will be... camping. Imagine it with me now, this Pooka... camping. I'm not going to fib, I'm kind of worried about it. I don't so much do camping, I haven't in the past because I don't consider anything but sleeping in a tent to be camping. I've been sewing, broke out my new serger and everything. I thought that maybe I was crazy yesterday- see, I'm making coats... and then the rain started, and I saw the forecast for this coming weekend. More rain. So! I refuse to be a wet Pooka. Coats it is!

Gearing up for Scarborough too... and then there's the Kickstarter.

So, I officially have so much tea to make that my head is threatening to spin right off my neck. I am sooo grateful for the people that have offered to help keep me sane. You all are so amazing!

And the band's kickstarter... I'm hoping that's going to go up... tomorrow? Don't hold me to it though :)


Time to run!
<3

Choices

In the last post, you found me at the brink of realization. I ran with that realization... right into a wall. Which I scaled, and found the other side full of... choices.

The past month has been so very full of choices it isn't even funny. I have made many of those choices gladly, and some I have made begrudgingly. Regardless, the choices have been made and I can not and will not look back. ....Growth can really suck sometimes.

But then! I reach the other side of these choices, and look at the vast field between where I am and where I might want to one day be- and let me tell you, it is breathtaking. 

I have started a new business venture. Inspired by three things, my once best friend and forever sister, my love of tea, and my band. This was one of those choices that I made that I wasn't fully aware of the.... path it would take me along.

But, I am there. No use looking backwards.

There is a Kickstarter to start the project off right. And after the Kickstarter you will be able to find the teas at Pandora Celtica shows. I am very excited about this.

And a new chapter starts.