{Quit Your Day Job, featuring Oh, Sweet Joy!}

Editors note:
It has been 8 months since I quit my day job to work on Gussy Sews full time — and to help celebrate the anniversary of this little dream of mine, I’ve put together a {Quit Your Day Job} mini-series.

Coming up: many more stories of encouragement, inspiration and how-to.

Bio:

I’m Kim Davis, the voice behind the blog, Yellow Songbird, and the seamstress/designer behind the shop, Oh, Sweet Joy! I am a native Texan living in colorful Colorado with my handsome husband (no kiddos yet!). He’s the logical thinker & I’m the right-brained creative one, but we’re both dreamers. We just set up our roots in Boulder, CO and we are so pumped to be in a community that is creative, supports indie businesses, and has mountains as scenery.

I believe that we’re all created to create, and some of us are blessed to get to embrace & foster that part of us. I learned to sew my sophomore year of college & haven’t been able to stop since. I’ve recently found my niche in design and textiles and nothing brings me more joy than seeing a gal wearing something I created.

The Interview:

1. What were some ways you prepared to become a handmade biz owner {your day-to-day schedule, financially, emotionally, etc.}?
When I started Oh, Sweet Joy, I already had a serger & a great sewing machine from a previous entrepreneurial pursuit. I started out really small and only put $50 into some eco-friendly felt, better thread, designer fabric scraps, and poly-fill. I made owls at first, and only spent money to buy supplies when I made profit…not a dollar more. I feel like that was crucial for me. It kept my head on my shoulders and kept me from getting ahead of myself. Also, I loved making the owls, but I have always loved fashion & accessorizing, so I started making clothing, jewelry, and headbands for myself. When people starting asking for them, I was thrilled to oblige…because that meant I could buy more designer fabric. ;]

2. Share with us a positive “ah-hah” moment from this process.
Honestly, the biggest “ah-hah” moment was when demand started to increase and I had people all over the U.S. & Canada that were *excited* to purchase & wear my products. I realized that I needed to be either be in or out and nowhere in between. That’s when I decided that I would put in a minimum of 5-6 hours in my studio daily. This meant designing, developing new products, weeding out “blah” products, and of course, lots & lots of sewing.

3. What was the time frame from when you decided you were going to quit to when you actually put in your notice/took some serious steps toward becoming self-employed?
Long story short: I opened up shop November 2009 and closed it July 2010 when we left to go overseas. In that 9 months, I built a great network and some incredibly loyal customers. I cannot wait to reunite with those customers, learn from my mistakes, and improve what I did right when I open back up on January 14th, 2011.

My husband is incredible and always made sure I knew that if I had a job outside of my handmade business, that it was my choice. He is the main provider in our household and has always been so great about encouraging me to pursue my dreams. I nannied throughout last winter and when I had a great few weekends at some farmer’s markets last summer, I realized I wanted to do this full time and that it was actually feasible for me. Soon after that, we left to go overseas and so this is my first “go” at doing this full time. I feel like this is the time to do it & if I don’t try now, I never will.

4. What was your first day like as a handmade biz owner? Describe your feelings, were you really excited? did it seem soooo weird to be home/self-employed? Share this moment with us.
As I mentioned before, my husband and I were overseas from August through November teaching English and testing out missions. We spent December in Texas with our families, and are getting settled into Boulder at the moment. This gave me plenty of time to create new designs and products, and get extra motivated to do this for real. I’m all in! My first day completely dedicated to Oh, Sweet Joy and my blog, Yellow Songbird, was Monday (January 10th). I can’t even begin to explain to you the giddiness I had getting started. I’ve been self-employed part time for a while, so it’s nothing really new, but it’s so fun to see where the Lord wants to take this venture. I have two words to explain what I was feeling: excited & thankful.

5. Do you write out a “schedule” for each day? How do you divide and organize your time?
This is actually a new goal of mine for 2011. Previously, I had a “to-cut,” “to-sew,” and a “to-package” list on an almost daily basis, but I am wanting to be more organized as far as time frames go. This way, I am shutting the door to my studio when my husband gets home and actually setting hours for myself. When I get a schedule that works for me consistently, I’ll certainly post about it!

Ideally, I would also like to designate a week day to cleaning, grocery shopping, meal planning, and laundry. I cannot neglect my role as a wife and helper to my husband. This is a role I signed up for when I said “I do” and it’s a blessing to be able to work at home so that I can do these tasks.

6. What is a current challenge are you facing, and how do you plan to overcome it?
My current challenge is trying to narrow down my product list. I genuinely love to sew anything & everything, but I get the most satisfaction out of accessories & apparel. I’m trying to build my brand and get my name out there to stores, etc., but I want people to think certain products when they hear “Oh, Sweet Joy” rather than just a lot of handmade “stuff.” I plan on discontinuing products that don’t sell well in my handmade markets/craft shows. I also want focus more on my online shop & getting wholesale accounts that are a good “fit.”

7. What are three tips you can to pass along to someone that’s ready to make the leap? :]
-Make sure you have a support system. This could be your family, your husband/significant other, friends, an online community of crafters, or a combination of all of these! If someone isn’t behind you, being your cheerleader & encouraging you, it can get really tough.
-Love what you do. You can’t make a gratifying business out of something that you aren’t passionate about or don’t legitimately want to do full-time.
-Inevitably, there will be a lull of sales at some point. Don’t focus on that! Use that time wisely to offer discount codes /sales, make new product, build inventory, etc. Get people excited about your product and those sales will return.

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