Farewell, Happy Delusions

About four years ago, I was eating dinner at a neighborhood Italian restaurant. The waitress was a very nice  woman that I really liked. It came up that we were both knitters, we both lived in Renton, and we both loved Harry Potter. She introduced herself as Mary and told me that she just opened a small gift boutique around the corner and that I should come by sometime. The area was new to me so I could not locate her shop, Happy Delusions, in my mental GPS. After desserts and a signed credit card slip, we said our goodbyes and we promised each other to meet again at Happy Delusions.

A couple of months go by and I take time out to wonder around Downtown Renton to look for this shop. Sure enough, around the corner from the restaurant sat a fairly large looking store with a big sign that read Happy Delusions. I walked in expecting Mary not to remember me because I can only imagine the number of people she meets at both jobs. She greeted me as I walked up to the register and I quickly remind her of how we met and our love for Harry Potter. Mary chuckled and said that she remembered me and was glad that I came by for a visit.

We chatted about knitting and she knew that I was experimenting in making knitted bags to sell. At the time, I had only made a handful for friends and thought it would be fun to sell some. I looked around at the cute store and saw all the wonderful gifts that were crafted by local artists and businesses. Mary asked for a photo sample of my purses, now called the Checker Collection, and that we would work something out. I rushed home to make some purses and had some photos done. I sent them off to Mary and soon after she asked for me to bring some in. After making a couple more, I came in with a handful to display. She signed me up to rent a wall space to call my own and I was able to decorate it anyway I wanted.

Months go by and in between making more Checker bags, I came up with another line which is now known as the Formal Collection. After my hard work and creative energy flowing, I was happy to have a full wall of two different lines of bags that I designed and created. However, the reality of losing money every month on renting the wall space and not selling bags began to add up. One bag sold here and there but during first six months of selling at Happy Delusions, I was losing a lot of money very quickly. I decided to bite the bullet and end my time at the store but Mary, believing in me and my products took me off that contract and began a consignment contract. During this time, we also became good friends and I occasionally joined her in a knitting session outside on a sunny day.

Three years later the hobby is now a small business in hopes to become a bigger production of unique handbags. Thanks to Mary and Happy Delusions for getting this ball of yarn rollin'. Good luck with your future happy delusions,

Mt. Ties

About a month ago I decided to start shopping on eBay to buy used ties in bulk because I knew of a fellow small business owner/professional crafter that was successful in purchasing bulk ties on eBay. I found a couple of listings within my price range and found a seller that was shipping from Everett. Once I was successful with the bid and my random selection of ties were sent to me, I awaited for my first lot of ties to arrive. Upon opening the box I found a note from the seller offering more ties from their inventory. I contacted the seller and learned that they were in Monroe, about an hour away from Seattle. I found myself in Everett this previous weekend and made an appointment to swing by their place to check out the stock. I figured I could not go wrong when I heard that they have over 1000 ties.

Along a main road in Monroe is a cute lavender house that you cannot miss. The couple, Lisa and George, were very nice and welcoming as we entered their home. Lisa took out bin after bin of ties that she had collected for a quilting project which she gave up on. Each tie was bagged and coded by size and length. I spent about an hour shuffling through ties, with Ryo (my silent business partner) keeping track of how many ties I was picking out. George provided garbage bags to store my ties in for easy transportation. In the end I decided to finish off at 400 for a good number. We excused ourselves as we ran to the ATM to withdraw money since the couple did not have a means of taking credit cards. When we returned, Lisa pointed out that she forgot to show me a stack of ties she did not categorize. In 10 minutes I found 30 more that she was glad to be rid of. On a hot summer evening, we left the lavender house with three bags full of 430 ties for a bargain. Thanks to Lisa and George for helping this crazy purse maker in making more Formal bags.

Coffee with CASH

Special event on Thursday, September 13 from 9-10AM at the Ventures store in Pike Place Market.