We’re in the full swing of Autumn here – my favorite season of the year. Though these last few days, you’d think we’re between Spring and Summer with the 70-degree weather the last four days (no complaints here). I’m enjoying the beautiful colors along with warm (but not humid) temps.
All three of my kids are doing virtual schooling. Thankful our school district has pulled all the stops in offering classes online for our kiddos. It hasn’t been easy, but it helps a great deal with stress levels and balance. We’re very grateful for the resources we have here from technology to our teachers.
Which brings me to why I’m writing today. I haven’t been able to share here as often as I’d like. I’ve been thinking about how to build on the foundation of my business. How to serve you better.
I want to make sure I’m upholding my mission – to Spreading joy. Giving Hugs™ – as best as I can.
Going forward, I’m setting the goal to touch base here once a month. Just to say hello and check-in. Sometimes I might have more to say. Sometimes less. Ultimately, I want to make sure our community here is doing ok.
I’m not a counselor, coach, or therapist, but I truly believe personal connection is key to maintaining our level of joy … feeling seen, heard, and loved. So you should expect to see me drop by and say hello more than just once a quarter going forward.
Aside from thinking about how to better serve our community, I’ve put some time into thinking about what my shop offers product-wise.
When I first decided to start this shop, it was more about doing something that made me feel good … something that I could then share with others. Over the years I’ve wanted to grow the business bigger, but have held myself back because of fear.
Fear that what I offer won’t be good enough or won’t convey the feelings I want to come through my products. This Summer, I spent a lot of thought on this and decided it’s time to stop or grow.
My decision was to grow. So I spent the Summer playing with materials and production flow. After sharing with my newsletter community this week, I’m happy to share my next growth plan.
That I’ll be moving my business from just art into the world of home decor. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for many years now. So without further ado, I bring to you my newest product line hitting the shop – pillows.
I held back on this for years because I kept asking myself, do people really need another pillow? But I’ve realized, these pillows are my next step to Spreading Joy. Giving Hugs.™ in a bigger way.
These pillows will truly be giving hugs to everyone who has one. Who doesn’t love hugging a pillow!? With these amazing inserts, these pillows will truly hug back. It took me time to find the right pillow inserts with just the right amount of puff, but these were so worth the search. They’re alternative-down, soft, puffy and from another woman-owned small business. That’s the super exciting part for me – truly – being able to support another woman-owned small business.
I wanted to make sure these pillows had a luxury feel, so aside from sourcing just the right inserts, I also went with beautiful metal zippers from YKK. And of course, these beautiful zippers are sourced from another woman-owned small business.
I chose to print my art on 100% Lightweight Cotton Twill for these pillows. That means they have structure, but they’re smooth and soft to the touch because I know you don’t want a scratchy pillow.
What I really love about this fabric is it’s printed with eco-friendly ink and produces vibrant colors. Look at this beautiful butterfly print also designed by a woman, indie surface designer.
What makes these pillows different from any other pillows you see in any home decor shop? They still carry my hand-drawn art of Xs and Os.
Size-wise we’ll have a few sizes available, including 20″ x 20″. I’ve found this size is just right – not too big and not too small. Giving the right amount of focus to the art on the fabric.
These amazingly fluffy pillows are cut and sewn by me in my home studio of course. I’m not outsourcing these and hope to keep the production in-house.
Pillows will be available shortly in the shop! They make a great addition to your own house or as a gift for a loved one. With these pillows, I’ll continue to send hugs via snail mail for you in hopes to bring some joy to you and someone you love.
But before I sign off, I want to give you a small gift. A little printable calendar for November. I know it’s already the 10th, but I really want to give you something this month. All you need to do is enter your name and email address in the boxes below (click subscribe) and you’ll receive emails with instructions on how to grab your free gift this month.
Want to share the free printable with friends? All you need to do is share this page with your friends, have them enter their name and email address into the boxes above and click subscribe. They’ll receive the emails and instructions too.
Sending you lots of hugs.
Thank you for being you! Because no one else can be a better you.
Sending hugs and love,
Rita