Sunday Organizational post

So for weeks I have been thinking about how to reach people through my blog. What kind of advice can I offer people? What wisdom can I impart onto my readers?

Like I’ve said before, I’ve been in retail management for 3 years (consecutively) and overall in customer service, management, and retail for 12 years. I know how to manage things when I have the resources, energy and time to do so.

When I was younger (I’m only 30, but I am much more tired than my 24 year old self) I found myself able to juggle many different things. Work, school(4.0 in college), social life. But, boy are things getting more difficult with each passing year.

I used to be able to do things, exciting and inventive things. Now I’m so preoccupied with just working and surviving I forgot what it was like to have other things going on in my life.

So I’ve decided to use this blog as and online checklist. The same way as I write a checklist every week at work and for myself personally. Something to hold myself accountable week after week. Something I can help others with organizing themselves and holding me as well as themselves accountable. A buddy system blog.

As it is, right now, I have no followers. BOO HOO! But I read my blog and I can hold myself accountable. Here it goes. My every Sunday starting from now on weekly checklist:

This week on Maraley-Vintage Purveyor

 

Sunday – off

• Talk to Jeremy about schedule. Plan what day to buy new merchandise/re-shoot of items in shop. When day is planned update into checklist
• Find free things to do in New York City/New Jersey/discounted/make plans to do it soon so you can blog about it!

Monday – Back to work

• Clean room
• Take pics of room
• start deciding how you want to organize room furniture, shelving etc.
• research cheap room makeovers – Ikea, thrift, etc.
• Take pics of work outfit – choose outfit for next day.

Tuesday – Work

• boo hoo: no new merchandise to talk about
• Blog about room ideas – storage ideas – design ideas
• Research blogs and Etsy pages for favorite shops/items
• Take pics of work outfit

Wednesday – Day off

• Give Charlie a bath and cut his hair
• blog about how to groom a Charlie
• Research blogs and Etsy pages for favorite shops/items
• pick outfit for work

Thursday – Pay day – work

• Pay bills. Save money for Etsy shop merchandise
• research blogs and Etsy pages for favorite shops/items
• Research about things to do in Rhode Island – Inspiration trip with Mom Jeans/Jeremy
• Take pics of outfit – choose outfit for next day

Friday -  work

• Fashion Friday! Blog about favorite items/shops
• pics/outfits/joo get it

Saturday – Work

• Whatever was not completed during the week. . . do it today!

Organize, Damn It print by the Anti-Bride

theantibride.etsy.com

What a productive Vacation!

Retail management, what is not to love about it? Despite the stresses and the long hours, I really do enjoy my work. It keeps me youthful and on the fore front of fashion. It also gives me hands on training on how to run a business and that is what I aspire to do one day. No amount of education can really teach you how to deal with the daily grind of customers, outfitting forms, merchandising, and selling. I enjoy it all.

As you all may understand, working full time (or in many cases for many Etsians, raising a family!), Etsy part time, and blogging is all very very time consuming and finding a way to balance it all can be a little stressful. I am working hard to find a harmony to this all.

I was on the verge of burning out! Creatively, physically, and emotionally. I had a scary faint at work one day and I realized I was pushing myself too hard and had to just get everything set up. I had to lower my expectations and realize that it wasn’t all going to happen overnight. I had to handle each thing one step at a time.

This week, I had a vacation. So I took the time to work and get everything set up and finally settled. I made myself a checklist on Word and I’ve been hi-lighting everything I got accomplished.

It looks a lot like this:

• Blog

                 Blog revamp

                 Search for blogs with common interests – ongoing

• Twitter – find people with common interests – ongoing
• Revamp product descriptions for older products
• Take new pics
• Fix up lighting on some pics
• Finish up Etsy shop spreadsheet
• New pricing
• Make a new avatar
• TREASURY! Make a few new ones for funsies. – ongoing
• Advertising and marketing. Read up on different methods – ongoing
• Business cards
• List new items

The highlighted ones are the ones that are completed. I think I did pretty good work in a week. A lot of my time was spent researching and reading. I also spent time with my family, which is something I rarely get to do. Overall, I feel refreshed despite all the work that I did get done. It was a welcomed change.

Sometimes working hard but feeling accomplished can refuel a mental battery. Lately I’ve been beaten down by many people around me. I needed to feel good about myself again. MAIN ACCOMPLISHMENT NAILED!

BTW, If you did not know, Jeremy (Mom Jeans) is obsessed with Star Wars. Our  “business” cards have pictures of Star Wars characters on one side (please don’t sue us, you have enough money!) and our names on the other. It’s mostly to grab for attention. We plan to leave them around bars and such for a bit of a “viral” campaign. It’s a cute idea!

This is what I came up with:

Maraley and Mom Jeans: Card 1

 

Maraley and Mom Jeans: Card 2

 

Maraley and Mom Jeans: Card 3

Maraley and Mom Jeans: Card 4

How does everyone else promote their blogs and Etsy shops? What are your ideas?

RE-vamp

Hello ya'll. The blog is being Updated today, April 16 2011. It may be changing throughout the day! Thank you!

I'm silly

I am a very silly person. I cannot help it. I get a kick out of life and I very much appreciate the funny things in life. There are a lot of stresses out there in this world that I cannot be distracted by. Being funny helps me cope. So if you think I am not serious you are mistaken. Being serious about life and work and being a funny person are two things that can go hand and hand. Who says you cannot inject your personality into your work. It is why I like to joke around with my Etsy shop. In a few hours I am going to show you guys the business cards I've been working on. I hope everyone enjoys them.

Life is too short to always be so sedate. Try living and laughing a little. Try having a lot of fun. I promise you will feel a lot younger when you keep your heart light!

Grumble Grumble

I swear I have the shittiest blog editor ever. I've gotta get a better one. Anyways, here is my updated outfitting information!

Blouse- Lucca Couture – Urban Outfitters

Dress – Kimchi Blue – Urban Outfitters

Fedora – Staring At Stars – Urban Outfitters

Belt – UO

Blazer – Vintage J-crew – Tuxedo menswear

Boots – Vintage find

Dress – Vintage find

Boots – vintage find

Shirt- Ya-Ya – Urban Outfitters

Belt – UO

 

I Feel OLD!

I knew it was going to happen sooner or later, my 30^th birthday came and went. It wasn't/isn't so bad. The thing with me is that I keep myself very silly and youthful. I cannot be bothered with all that acting like a grown up bullshit. It is not fun! Who says I have to act a certain way to be mature? I can still be silly and dance around at the same time as paying my bills and holding a job. There is nothing wrong with that.

The week before my b-day, Mom Jeans and I went to Beacon's closet in Williamsburg to search for some good vintage (for ourselves). The trip was a bust! We ended up going to the bar across the street (Brooklyn Bar) and having Newcastle in a can and a burger. I traded one item in at Beacon's and got 5 bucks. Woo!

God bless Mom Jeans. As I was tweeting and trying to make plans for the night he reminded me that I made plans with my best friend Fiorella and her husband John. I swear, my memory is so shot lately. I left Jeremy and ran off to meet up with Fiorella and John for our Karaoke date. Fiorella has been my best friend since I was 10 years old. I don't have many friends and it isn't because I am incapable of having friends, it's because I am very bad with keeping in contact with them. I'm not your typical female that calls her friends up and sits on the phone talking for hours. I just don't care to do that or I forget. Like I said, I have a bad memory and I like being alone. I'm a strange person. Fiorella has been one of the only ones that has understood that and not really cared about our contact/no contact situation. She has a life too. It's our agreement. My other friend who understands that is Tara, that gorgeous soul. I'm trailing off topic though. Okay, back to Karaoke.

We bar hopped in New Jersey trying to find the perfect spot. After 3 bars we finally settled on this bar/restaurant in Fairlawn, I believe. John sang "OPP" and I sang "Oochie Wally". It's like what we are known for. I got pretty drunk and it happened too long ago for me to actually tell a great story about it. But hey, this is what I wore:

 

 

Then it was time for my birthday party the following weekend. Boy was that a shit show. It was 90's themed and so many people showed up my head spun. I felt like a little princess in a grunge outfit. I wish I took more pictures but I was having way too much fun. The cops came and told us to keep it down. That is how you know that was a crazy time. Sorry people I yelled at to shut up. . .

The 10^th was my nephew Juan's 4^th birthday. I got up early, after a night of partying, cleaned the empties around my apartment, swept and mopped, and off I went to the little shindig. I wore a super cute blue dress with a white lace blouse over it. Again I felt like a princess, less 90's grunge. We ate pizza and cake. I slept over there and spent time with my brother and his family. I love those little boys. I miss my sister's sons, my other nephews. I can't wait to see them soon! I got to see her daughter, baby Gabby. She's such a cute little nugget!

 

Well that's been my weekend and vacation so far. Tomorrow Mom Jeans comes over for some Etsy work, dinner, and the last few episodes of season 3 of the Sopranos. I can't wait for this upcoming weekend! I promise to take more pics of myself and my life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A quick post

OMG I turned 30!

It was a pretty spectacular event. But I don't want to get into that right now. I just wanted to update on my progress with the shop.

As you may (or may not) know I work in retail management. My job is surprisingly very demanding, and I pretty much put in about 45-50 hours a week. On top of that, I try to stay up and get this Etsy thing a-going. Basically, I work very hard all the time and I am pretty tired very often.

I'm currently working on re-pricing some things in my shop and working out on some financial spreadsheets to get everything tidied up.

I'm also trying to get partnered with Jeremy to get some new pics taken and that is almost impossible because both our schedules are pretty inconvenient and when we do find time together, we spend it watching episodes of Soprano's and just relaxing from working all day. BAD BUSINESS PARTNERS!

SO, as I always do, I made a list of things I need to do/improve on.

Blogs - I need to update more often and start reading other people's blog as well. I have a blog loving account and I need to use it

Twitter - need to connect with more vintage shoppers and other vintage sellers and build a community. Help out others, while helping myself. I am a very generous person and unfortunately not very competitive. I like to help!

Revamp product descriptions for older products - I made a template for my research and my product descriptions that I used for my new products that I need to use for my older ones. Update descriptions.

Take new pics - I was very happy with my new round of pics and very so-so about the first round. I want to redo some shots

Finish up etsy shop spreadsheet -done!

New pricing - I wanted to make things a little more affordable for my customer base and less for my own pocket. Again, there is my nice-ness talking

Make a new avatar - the one I have for the shop was really thrown up there last minute.

TREASURIES- I enjoy making them and I need to do them more often

Advertising and marketing - as a former marketing major, I really should put to use the very few things I learned. HA!

I am still so 100% behind this thing and I know I can make something of it. It is just the "having energy" part that is so damn difficult!

Well wish me luck!



Jeremy and I love animals. This is my room mates kitty cat, Quinn.