Well, another Cupcakes, Cocktails, and Creations party has come and gone. It's kind of weird reflecting that it's already behind me when for so long I have been looking forward to it. Overall, the party was a very fun and energetic time. Between myself, my friend Kay who sold her fabric creations, my friend Janice who sold embroidery items, my friend Sherri who offered $5 massages and paraffin hand waxing, my cupcake server Lennea and my husband and friend Darryl who served as our in-house bartenders, we delivered a larger than life party to over 60 people! Here is a photo-recap!
Lurking deep in our basement was a party ready to happen!
There was much to do with an unfinished basement that looked like this:
But after awhile we managed to make it look like this:
Getting everything organized was harder than it may look, as it included placing items in terms of genre or price and then adding price tags to each one. Thankfully I had a great husband who was willing to loop each annoying little tag onto each piece of jewelry, my least favorite part!
The husband and I made this pink screen display thing by hand. More on that in an upcoming blog post!
This was a re-furbished Salvation Army find. More on that in the same upcoming blog post, too :)
I sold-out of these super fun Tiffany's inspired bracelets :)
I put my mom to work while she was in town and had her paint this sign from Vistaprint - got it for free but didn't like how small the fonts they offered appeared - so decided to paint it on by hand!
This was the earring rack that I bought for less than a dollar at Salvation Army and spiced up! Another Salvation Army find -- more on this creation in a following post!
A Bead Up first - DIY earrings kits!
Bead Up Check out ;)
And once Kay's "Kreative Musings" table was up, and Janice's embroidery table was set (which I didn't get a chance to photograph - oops!), we were ready for business!
And what is a Cupcake party without... cupcakes?! Right before the party started, I iced the Oreo cupcakes with whipped topping, white icing, and crushed Oreo's!
And did the same for the Raspberry Lemonade Cupcakes -- whipped topping, white frosting, lemon peels, lemon flavoring and yellow food coloring!
And Kay brought Red Velvet cupcakes:
And Lemon Drop cupcakes!
And of course there were drinks, too!
...And massages!...
...And hand-waxing!...
...And my lovely bartenders - my hubs on the left and our doggie-sitting friend Darrel. 
The key to a successful party is in the details:
Haha - I couldn't' resist using this hilarious ribbon! Too random!
Though I start my new job tomorrow, I am going to do my best to list as many products as I can to Etsy within the next week or so. And am scheduled to show in a church fair and also a charity event next month - game on! Wouldn't want it any other way! Thanks again for everyone for another successful party!
The journey hasn't always been metal roses and birds nests, however. Though I technically opened my shop for business on August 19, 2008, I initially only put up a measly 2 items for sale: a glasses lanyard and these green earrings, made of pearls I bought in China. And though I posted them for sale in August, it took me over 2 months to make my first sale (of said green earrings)! I was SO thrilled that the earrings finally sold that I still have the little "thank you" note the buyer sent with her payment (before the days of Paypal)! And come to think of it, my mom is the only one who has ever "bought" the glasses lanyard. Figures!
Now, 2 years and 200 sales later, I am thrilled to say that I consider my work on Etsy both fulfilling and successful, if you will. Though my sales aren't in the thousands, my ratings are a unanimous 100% satisfaction, which is one of the few things I take great pride in :) Add that to the hundreds (literally, hundreds) of sales I have made in person and off of Etsy, plus that one order of 200 custom necklaces from earlier this summer, and you have an average of about an item sold a day. I like those odds. 
