Yesterday was Labor Day but today is also labor day. Uhhh, whaat?!

With The Creative Connection happening NEXT WEEK, I’m going to be spending the next few days laboring around my sewing room. I thought it would be neat to do a recap of “Gussy stuff” from the past year. Only a few things have happened, and since it excites me to no end to see something written down, I thought this blog topic was most appropriate ;] My stats tell me that many of you are new to my blog and so I welcome you with a big, warm hug.

The short, typed version of my story: In November of 2008 I decided I was going to be BFFs with a sewing machine. I had zero experience when I started sewing… Things were going well, so in March of 2009 I had branded my products Gussy. In February 2010 I went to Blissdom and received a lot of business growth from the conference {high five to the Nester}, and 3 short months later was a self-employed Gussy girl.

* August 2009,

Zack and I have moved to Minneapolis from Detroit — in 1 weekend

* January 2010,

Gussy was asked to make laptop bags for the gals of (in)courage for Blissdom — here’s the fun post with the big reveal

* February 2010,

Blissdom — a blog conference that helped my business G R O W!

* March 2010,

moving from Blogspot to WordPress

Gussy was linked by the LA Times Daily Dish

* April 2010,

I did it! I did it! {quitting my day job}

Gussy Biz Series: part 1, 2, 3

Etsy vs. Big Cartel :: the business of handmade

* May 2010,

The Nekkid Story…

SURPRISE! Zack treats me to a weekend o’ fun to celebrate being self-employed

How I quit my day job

* June 2010,

one month since I quit my day job

Gussy now offers wholesale orders

* August 2010,

Budgeting your family’s money part 1, 2; Budgeting your business’ money part 1, 2

…and now that I’ve spent the last hour reading through old posts I want to crawl in a hole and sit there for a few days until you all forget how silly I was “back when”. Having a blog is great, but it’s like reading through an old diary. That has been publicized… Hah!

How did “the last weekend of summer” get here so quickly? Seems like Zack and I were just begging & pleading with Winter to L E A V E so Summer could come. We were ready to be warm… Minnesota winters are NASTY! We both want more warm weather!

There are many things on our schedule this weekend: family is visiting, we’re having a photo shoot with these peeps {I’ve been wanting to include balloons in our shoot for MONTHS now}, we’re having a cookout at our place, and then Monday I get to steal Zack for the entire day! He’s been working so much lately that I’ve hardly seen him since we moved in. Almost 2 weeks ago.

But I’m not counting ;]

Once Labor Day passes I’ll be doing my own labor day{s} — The Creative Connection will be here, in Minneapolis {yay!}, in less than 2 weeks and I’ve got LOTS to do before. Not only is Gussy going to have a table at the handmade market, but I’m going to be getting my learn on at all the awesome panels. Sew pumped!

I’ll be a little MIA for the next few days but will definitely pop back in to show you progress of all the things I’m making and finishing up. Molly and I can’t wait to meet you all! If you’re coming to the handmade market, STOP BY!

I can’t wait to show you pics of all the product I’m making — say a little prayer that I get all the items made that I am hoping to make, ok? ♥ Many thanks.

{photo credit 1 and credit 2}

PS. Did you see the cuuuuute things I added to the shop yesterday?! Click the image below to see more!

Hi again! This is the second installment of…

Gussy Girl, a line of sweet Gussy items just for girls.

I’ve got two headbands {just for girls} that are copies of current headbands found in the shop for women. I made the ruffles on the Gussy Girl headband a bit smaller and added them to white headbands — so sweet + dainty!

{Each ruffle measures approx. 2″ x 1.75″}

Gussy Girl ~ Purple Leaf headband:

Gussy Girl ~ Purple Floral headband:

Want even more Gussy Girl product?

Click here to see the full collection.

xo.

I’m so excited to share a new product line:

Gussy Girl, a line of sweet Gussy items just for girls.

Finally, a Gussy purse that’s just *her* size! These little purses have two hand straps and include the signature Gussy ruffle in a new, mini size. Each purse is lined with cream fabric and closes with a coordinating zipper. Darling.

What can you put inside this Gussy Girl purse? All sorts of things: chapstick, plastic elephants, a secret note, perhaps a cell phone? {for pretend play}

Strawberries — so sweet.

Polka dots & stripes unite! Click here for the full product description.

Pears! Yum.

Simple grids and tiny dots… Click here to see the full product description.

Hearts ~

All lined up… Click here for the full product description.

More Gussy Girl products coming this afternoon.

Hmm…

Ideas?

{Quietly steps out of the corner…}

Hello. Ummm, I’m here to show you some projects from Home Ec — remember that class? It’s an online 5.5 week class just bursting {literally} with projects. And I’m a little behind. Oh, you weren’t keeping track? Whewwwwwww.

I finally photographed some projects I’ve made, so here they are. If you blogged with your Home Ec projects, link up below!

Project 2 — gift pouch

This project is by far one of my favorites. It has so many purposes — I would even use it as a little garment bag for when we’re traveling.

I love the parallel stitch lines {what is the proper name for this?!} — so pretty & simple.

Project 3 — reusable grocery bag

I can definitely see myself using this bag, but not for groceries ;] It’s toooo pretty! I made a little doily on the front, which I’m now wishing I made in a different print so it stood out more OR made it a little fluffier.

Project 5 — supplies roll-up

NOT my favorite project. First, I don’t have supplies to roll-up, secondly I had a hard time with the instructions. I read, re-read, and re-re-read them and still felt confused. Oh well, this is how I roll{-up}…

I’m working on the round bunting project next — CAN.NOT.WAIT to buy me some felt! Yeow!

What project are you working on?

***

Click the “Add your link” blue button below to share your project with us.

If you link up, please visit other people’s links, too. ♥

Many times throughout the day, I sit myself down in this chair and work, work, work away. Do you SEE all of my yellow sticky notes?!

* Also, please note that cream “thing” on the wall above the awesome green file organizer. That’s our light switch “button” — looooove! All our light switches in this house are like that, except for the one in the dining room. That one is more like a knob that you turn. It makes a loud click sound when you turn it. Looks like I’ll have to snap some pics of this home’s character.

I also sit at this desk and pull inspiration out of my wavy-haired blonde head and do my very best to transfer it to the computer. Or, I sit here and edit Gussy photos. {Or I edit them and then decide they aren’t good enough.} Speaking of “not good enough,” I was recently at a Seth Godin conference and Seth spoke about good enough being good enough.

I love how simple that is, and how it helps us to take confidence in ourselves.

There are many sides to running a business, especially one run from home. I love that my office is still a part of our home, but it’s sort of tucked away in this parlor. This home that we’re renting was built in 1900, and I L O V E that it even has a parlor! L O V E.

I’m still working on getting my space designed exactly how I want it. I’d like a side desk — maybe a coffee table turned side table? — and of course some inspirational items to hang on the wall.

This post is part of Centsational Girl’s Where Do You Blog? Party.

The winner from the August sponsors group giveaway is Michaela. She wrote,

Yay for Michaela! I’ll send you an email with all the info soon! :]

Here’s a tiny preview of what’s coming to the shop…

A week ago Sunday, Zack and I met up with another couple for brunch. We went to this cuuuute restaurant called Cafeteria, and hello! it was decorated just like a cafeteria inside. Loved it! :] It was so hard not to sit and think {quietly to myself, of course} about all of its darling-ness. So I just took photos of everything.

Why didn’t my school’s cafeteria have cute lunch trays like they do? Ugh. So not fair ;]

***

For an appetizer the four of us shared corn dogs on a stick + syrup. So different but so good! The batter was like eating a pancake — yum!

Another photo I had to take was of the cute carafe my creamer came in. And the cupcake + dessert area — drool.

One of the best parts about Cafeteria was that it was open to the outside! There weren’t windows, and it was such a gorgeous, breezy Sunday morning — perfect for brunch with friends :]

What’s your favorite restaurant in your area?

After brunch we went on a walk, and ya know, found the house we were going to rent just five days later. We were walking the neighborhoods and looking for the Rose Gardens {see below} when we literally walked up to our {now} house.

It’s been a little clear this past year that God stands firm in that He has great plans for us. Last year, it was on a Friday that we found out we were moving from Michigan to Minnesota. We drove home to Michigan to pack and on Sunday night we were back in Minnesota with everything we owned.

And now, one year later, something similar has happened. We found the below house on a Sunday afternoon. Fast forward a few days to Friday — we’ve signed the lease to move in. Later that afternoon we decide that we are moving TODAY and we start packing/making arrangements. Sunday morning arrives and we’re all moved in, every single item and piece of furniture we own. But this time Zack and I did it all, just the two of us. Yeowwww!

Do you see the pattern here? On Friday we receive the news and by Sunday it’s 100% complete?

God has really been showing us patience when it comes to big life changes and then BAM! He answers our prayers. I’m afraid to write this {what if it comes true?!} but I have to share it: I’m afraid I’ll find out I’m pregnant on a Friday and then hello! it’s Sunday and it’s time to deliver our healthy baby.

…Can I get a chair, please? I need to sit down.

Happy Birthday, sweet Jane!!!

Your pal Walter emailed me recently and asked if I could write you a special HAPPY BIRTHDAY message since today is your day! Yeowwwwww, of course I said yes! :]

So let’s do something fun! I’d love if the Gussy community could leave a comment to our sweet Jane reader, wishing her a happy birthday. Jane is exploring photography and these photos are some samples of her work. Since this blog is all about supporting the handmade community I know you all will support Jane as well by helping me to wish her a happy birthday :]

Many, many warm wishes to you, sweet Jane!

I’m saying a little prayer for you that you’ll always pursue your passions and will enjoy life to its fullest! Kindness is such a desirable trait to have, and I know you must be bursting with it! Your friends are so proud of you!!!

Thanks everyone for your help!

xoxo,
Gussy
{& Walter}

Our mom’s have been asking to see photos of our new house — and so have you all! When we have things the way we want them I’ll take more photos and share…

It’s so exciting to be all moved in and working away. And cooking dinner… except that’s only happened 1 time this week… Yikes.

Every time I call the back work room “the sewing room” Zack corrects me and says “the Gussy room”. He’s so sweet to say that and give me a room for all things ruffled. And a separate room for my ruffles… yes, I realize I’m spoiled. Ahem.

I couldn’t wait to sew, so Monday morning Zack found me in there before I drove him to work. Call me crazy, but I love this house! {And my new workroom!}

Things are picking up and I need to stay organized. I’ve found myself making shopping lists here and there. Lots of things for the office: sticky notes, paper trays {printer paper & shipping label paper}, hanging file folders, etc.

And here’s a picture of our living room –

{Haha — looks like I have a stray lamp to put away.}

I’m so in love with the colors paired with the hardwood floors. And the 22 windows {compared to the 3 that were in our apartment!}

Share with us: What do you love about your home?

This giveaway is now closed!

Each month, Gussy sponsors have the opportunity to participate in a group feature &/or giveaway promotion. This feature is a great way for sponsors to show off new products and bring extra attention towards their shop. It’s always fun for me to see which items sponsors pick to showcase…

This group giveaway will run through Friday afternoon {8/27} — it’s open to the US & Canada, and one winner will win all 5 items! I’ll announce the winner on Monday {8/30}.

To enter in the giveaway: please leave a comment & say hello.
If you love what you see, consider visiting their shop/blog and saying hello there as well :]

{Want to see your shop featured on Gussy’s blog? Click here for more info.}

The weather is becoming more cool and there are soooo many upcoming Holidays. Sign up as a sponsor and let me help you spread the buzz about your wares. Please email gussysews@gmail.com if interested.

xoxo.

{photo credits}

This is the final post in my budgeting series. You can find the previous posts here: budgeting your family’s money, part I; budgeting your family’s money, part II; budgeting your business’ money, part I.

I wanted to be sure and give you a few days to put your new budgets into practice. Practice makes perfect, right? It’s been a week, and if you’ve started your budget you should be seeing some of the benefits already. Try and bypass the few extra minutes of work it’s giving you and focus on its rewards.

A few things that come to mind:

* by reviewing your budget every few days/weekly, you’ll stay on top of any items you forgot to write in your checkbook register
* having a budget allows you to foresee upcoming expenses and will completely remove the “SURPRISE!” feeling you may have experienced before
* save all your receipts! You can organize them by month, but be sure to keep personal and business receipts separate

Does this sound familiar?

I’m going to put on my Mrs. Obvious hat again and say, Having a budget frees you from the “what ifs” and bonds you to the “I wills…” Instead of worrying how you’re going to purchase materials because you overspent in advertising, for example, you’re able to make more product for your shop {because your time is now spent being productive instead of worrying} which in return will provide you with more income, which will allow you to advertise more, which will increase your sales, which will allow you to hire an employee.

DO YOU SEE WHERE THIS IS GOING?

And I have to type this out: I received an email about “not needing a budget.” And of course I welcome all comments, however I was kinda feeling like this mini-series isn’t about whether you want a budget. It is about making one and using one. If you don’t want one then you don’t have to have one. But saying one isn’t “needed” totally defeats the purpose of this mini-series. Because, and sorry to have to say this, budgets work and my business is successful proof. If you want to discuss this then we can chat off the blog.

{quietly walks off stage.}

Let’s chat a bit more…

I want to make this post special by asking you to leave any questions you have in the comment section. I’ll then go through and answer them in there as well, so we can all read the answers.

But before I do that… a few final tips on budgeting your business’ money:

* Be sure you are charging state sales tax

* File all sales as income

* Be sure you have a business checking account

* Know how much product you sell a month {# of orders, # of items, and $ amount}

* Know how much money you make in ads/month — also know how many items you have to sell to cover that expense

* If you’re ever unsure, call a local accountant. Many offer free consultations and this is a great way to get started!

Maybe you think this mini-series was too easy?

It’s OK if you did — the truth is having your budget work for you is easy! What makes it difficult is creating your budget & sticking to it. But let’s not focus on that, mmmk? Let’s focus on having a budget meaning you put more money into your bank account :]

Leave a question/comment below and I’ll answer it soon-ish!

PS. August sponsor feature/giveaway post — coming this evening!

I told you I’d be back with more Gussy customer photos — and here I am! Better late than never, right? Or no?

Since so many of you have sent me photos of you and your Gussy item — and they are pure GORGEOUSNESS — I decided to create a photo set with my Flickr account. Check it out? There are some photos in the Flickr set that I didn’t include in this post.

And please email me if you have some you’d like me to include. I’ll do my very best to keep it updated! :]

This is the first of many posts — so much has happened since Friday and I’m getting behind:
* orders
* new products
* HomeEc projects
* Budgeting your handmade business, part II
* Sunday brunch — a new restaurant
* our move — yay, we’re moved in!

xoxo.

Hi all,

Zack and I are in the middle of moving. Last night, while packing, there was a small kitchen fire in our apartment complex {NOT OUR UNIT}. Everything is now very hectic because water is turned off in the building and we’re busy packing.

All Gussy business is on hold until Tuesday afternoon. Thanks for your patience and please email me if you have questions, etc. Thanks for understanding, too :]

xoxo.

Tuesday night I hopped in the car with Allison of OMyFamily and we drove to Prior Lake, MN to meet up with dozens of other fabulous bloggers! The event was LoveFeast Table, hosted by Chris Ann & Kristin, and it was amazing and fun and encouraging to attend.

Kristin is on the left with the sassy black shoes, Camille is in pink in the center {the event was hosted at her antique shop}, and Chris Ann is on the right in the floral dress {brown hair}. OK, writing that made me feel like I was in middle school giving a presentation. Sorry! I just wanted to introduce the women we spent the evening with, because they are fun!!!

Last Saturday I meet up with some of my Minneapolis blog pals {Johanna, Allison, Kelly and Mela} and I got to see them ALL again at LoveFeast. Yayyy!

So Tuesday night we had fun drinks, ate a yummy salad, enjoyed buttery croissants, and licked our plates clean of peach cobbler {complete with whipped cream. And chocolate dipped strawberries. Thankyouverymuch.} And we had hand massages courtesy of Aveda. And received swag bags… OHHH yes, so much fun :]

Of course we all chatted, floating around here & there, meeting new people and happily squeezing new friends with our greeting.

Hours later, when it was time to go home, I couldn’t stop yawning… I wanted to stay & chat more, but if we all went home then we could hang out again, and that was something to be very excited over :]

Look at the inside of Camille’s shop:

Darling, right? And look at this little ceramic rooster I bought:

Have you ever been to a blog meet-up? They are super easy to arrange — you can mention on your blog you’re going to host one OR use Twitter… social media is great for meeting new friends. Or for secretly gawking at a blogger you adore. Just sayin’.

OUR NEW HOME!!!

Zack and I are soooooo sooo sooo excited to be moving in to this gorgeous, built-in-1900 home!

Can. Not. Wait! :]

I’m in love with all the details: original hardwood floors {swoon}, original wooden built-ins, beautiful stained glass accent windows, the parlor, the living room with fireplace, the oversize wooden pocket doors, the antique glass door knobs…

We have spent weeks searching high & low for the perfect home. It has been a little stressful, but it was so clear to us this past week that God picked this house for us.

{Quick skip around our current apartment…}

Can you imagine all the skipping I can now do in our new home? We’ve doubled the square footage {yeow!}… I don’t even know how to decorate for a home this size. We’re renting the entire main floor.

Oh yes, we’re going to L ♥ V E living here :]

*

So now it’s time to pack up and prepare for our move within the city! Things are going to be a little crazeee around here — but I’m so excited to have an entire room just for GUSSY + a separate room for my office! Yeowwwww!

I’ll keep you updated!

A few weekends ago Zack and I hopped in the car and drove to a Wisconsin winery. Leading up to our summer vacation, and of course ever since we got back, we’ve been so eager to get out of the concrete city of Minneapolis. Thankfully we’re moving soon, but still unsure WHERE so don’t ask (♥), and we’ll be seeing more green grass then.

{Seriously, stay on topic Gus!}

Wine tour. We went on one. It was amazing and the entire drive out there I wished Zack was driving me in a convertible. The wind in my hair, and the fresh air. It was lovely.

Then we pulled up to this and I died and went to wine heaven:

I’ll let the photos do the talking here…

Sorry Mr. Tour Guide, I caught you in my photo!

With our wine tour came 5 tokens for wine tasting {5 tokens per person…}, a cheese & cracker platter {sorry, I ate that before taking any photos}, and a complimentary bottle of vino.

OHHH my sweet sewing machine, it was well worth being away from you for the day…

I never would have guessed that at 25-years-old I’d be this in love with trees and dirt and green grass. But I am. Hah! :]

We passed so many little lakes and ponds on our way to Wisconsin. I thought it would be fun to take a photo of each one, but then I remembered that most of you have probably seen enough green grass this summer and didn’t want to bore you.

But I had to share this pic {I love the yellow & green, and the trees in the side mirror}:

Hello :]

And hello from my handsome driver, Zack:

Share with us…Have you been on a day adventure recently?

The other day I shared some tips on organizing your family’s money {part I and part II} and it’s my biggest fear you thought it was a horrible idea and aren’t even reading my blog now.

Today I’m doing a follow-up on how to organize your business’ money. This mini-series is my advice & my experience — I’m no professional, however I do use these techniques with my budget.

The idea here is that you’ve practiced first with your family budget so you’ll have some experience when you set up your business’ budget. But don’t be afraid — setting up & sticking to a budget will provide you so much freedom. And if anything, please allow me to encourage you that YOU CAN DO THIS and it will be worth your time. You might go cross-eyed though. Sorry! ;]

I’d like to share as encouragement to you that it IS possible to run your handmade business on cash and keep it debt-free. There are times when I think, LORD, how do you expect me to do this on cash?

But He always provides, and it’s like a little hug when I see His plan put into action here on earth.

5 tips on why Gussy uses a budget:

1. Organization – I know exactly how much I spend each month, quarter, year

2. Peace of mind – Never do I want to be surprised over my finances

3. Education – I’m a gal that likes to learn!

4. Intelligence – To be honest, it doesn’t make me look good when I don’t know my numbers. However, do not assume intelligence for cool-ness. I don’t think it’s ever “cool” to do something to make yourself look better, but I do think that being educated with your business is cool. Get the difference?

5. Because. Because what reason {note I did not write “excuse”} do I have to not have one? Excuses are for kids. Reasons are for adults.

{photo credit}

Having a cash-only business…

meant that I had to invest {in the beginning} a lot of my business’ income back into the business, but once I figured out my buying patterns, selling patterns, and built up some working capital this became a lot easier. Be patience and have faith in yourself :]

In my previous post I shared how to gather your numbers {expenses & income} and turn them into a family budget. You can use essentially the same method described in that post to write your business’ budget, but there’s a serious difference:

This post is going to teach you how to organize your expenses and income to come up with a monthly minimum that you’ll dub as your SALARY! ♥

So if you were wondering last time “How do I know how much I bring in with my business each month?,” now you’ll know :]

* You may find yourself revising your budget every month as your business grows. Consider this something to be proud of instead of an annoyance. Growth = success, right?

Proverbs 13:11 (NIV)

Dishonest money dwindles away,
but he who gathers money little by little makes it grow.

What to do {first}:

Here are some things you need to do to write your business’ budget:

1. Compile a list of all monthly expenses. It’s a good idea to take the last few months and figure out an average for each expense. For me, sales vary each month and I assume that’s the same for you, too. Remember to think of those expenses that occur ever few months and gather a monthly average for them {think shipping supplies}! You may also notice a pattern, maybe your business is growing so expenses increase each month? {If so, yay!}

2. Add up all sources of income {but enter them as separate lines on you budget} for your business to reach a grand total. This includes sales and advertising, etc.

3. Figure out your weekly income from sales by dividing the amount you make in sales/month. Remember this is an average and it will change. Some weeks you’ll actually sell more; others you might sell less.

4. Put it all together. Here’s a sample of a business budget. I used Google Docs — I recommend using some sort of spreadsheet program so you can enter in your expenses/income, then type in that fun code to have it automatically populate a grand total in another cell. Here’s a little cheat sheet for writing the formulas.

Jeremiah 46:3 (NIV)

Prepare your shields, both large and small,
and march out for battle!

What to do {second}:

OK, now look at the Sample Business Budget sheet again. Do you see how I’ve organized my expenses into like groups? This is mainly because I’m OCD, but also because it helps me to make sure I have everything listed. I have another section for income, including how much in sales I make a month {this is in the Avg. Overall Income column}.

The Overall Expenses number {in red} is found by adding the Monthly Materials totals {in orange}.

Then I subtract my Expenses from my Income and I have a BALANCE, which is my monthly salary once all bills are paid. *Unlike the family budget I shared on Monday, you DO NOT want this number to be $0. You want to {eventually} have something here so you can enter it in your family budget sheet as YOUR monthly income.

OK, now let’s do a little happy skip…

And… we’re done skipping ;]

Put your budget into practice:

Make sure you check on it weekly and monthly so it’s up-to-date, because in the meantime you have things to track of:

1. Advertising Income: Advertising is a part of my monthly income, and since I accept sponsors 2x/month I’ve created this little sheet to easily track my advertising income. Because my salary is dependent on my income, I need to make sure I’m pulling my weight. Having a chart to easily review helps me know that my budget is on track. Note: I wrote “min” on this sheet because this sample budget requires a minimum of $650/month in advertising income to keep the rest of the budget on track.



2. Materials: Are you spending what you are supposed to be spending? To keep track of your materials, make note of your purchases with a sheet like this. Each time you make a purchase, update your materials sheet. It sounds time consuming, and it will be at first, but once you make it a part of your weekly routine it’ll be easy-peasy.


3. Actual Weekly Sales: This one is my favorite — I looooove to see what I’ve sold each week and if the number was greater from the week before {competitive, are we?!} Every week I add up Sunday-Saturday’s sales and write the total on this sheet. Remember how earlier you found your average monthly income for sales? You can take that number and divide it by 4 to find your average weekly requirement. You need to know your weekly requirement so you can stay on track for the month as a whole. ALSO: if you are getting behind you’ll know! This way you aren’t waiting until the end of the month to know that you needed to sell more product.

Yeahhhhhh. That wouldn’t be good :]

***

Final thoughts :]

* Dream high! Seriously. If you have an idea, write it down no matter how big or crazy it seems. You can start to achieve it by writing small to-do lists; simple steps are better than no steps. Do not be afraid of dreaming + listen to yourself!!!

* When working your numbers you want to work up to having enough money to cover your bills for your family’s budget but also to build up overhead for your business. Make sure you start a savings account to purchase a new sewing machine, computer software, spruce up your office as you grow, etc. Even if you ONLY put $50/month in this account it’s still $50 you have now that you didn’t have before? {Anyone agree???}

* One of my business mentors told me that not taking risks are risks in them self.Do you think not having a budget is safe? Having a budget will allow you to foresee business growth, which will help you with your questions, like the “when” and “where”, of risk taking.





{photo credits}

Final post: {Budgeting your business’ money, part II} — simple tips you don’t want to overlook regarding your business’ budget



]]> http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/budgeting-your-business-money-part-i/feed/ 11 http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/gussy-customers-wearing-gussy/ http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/gussy-customers-wearing-gussy/#comments Tue, 17 Aug 2010 23:00:23 +0000 Gussy http://www.maggiewhitley.com/?p=2465

Today’s post features some sweet shots of Gussy customers wearing Gussy headbands.

A few days ago I tweeted that I was looking for photos of my headbands on customers and Erika quickly replied, saying her dad could take some of her over the weekend. Doesn’t that make these photos even more sweet? I LOVE that Erika was out with her dad last Saturday afternoon.

I love how bold & colorful this first set is — totally Gussy style, and Erika is a gorgeous model :]









***

This next set is just plain darling. Amy recently bought a headband to use in a photo shoot featuring her products, but told me she’d send along some pics for me to see/use, too. What I love most about these photos is how sweet, playful and fun they are. Thanks again, Amy! :]







***

Guess what? I have more photos to share with you… stay tuned :]

* Erika purchased a Gussy headband but was compensated with an additional product for her photos.




]]> http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/gussy-customers-wearing-gussy/feed/ 4 http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/budgeting-how-is-it-going/ http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/budgeting-how-is-it-going/#comments Tue, 17 Aug 2010 11:00:51 +0000 Gussy http://www.maggiewhitley.com/?p=2463

{photo credit}

Is that lady you?

Maybe it’s you, but without the multi-colored neck skin?

Confession: Some times I want to think like that lady — I think of how much easier it will be to shop or go out to dinner, or even take a nap without looking at our budget or checkbook balance. But then I think of all the OCD-ness inside me and I think I CAN’T DO ANYTHING UNLESS I CHECK THE CHECKBOOK BALANCE.

So maybe that sounds more like you? I was so excited to see the comments pour in from my two posts yesterday {click here for part I and part II on family budgeting}.

But before I drown you in even more information I thought it would be good to give you a break from going cross-eyed again ;]

Take some time today to review your numbers and write your budget, and I’ll be back tomorrow with part I and II of budgeting your business’ money. {Promise me that in the meantime you won’t leave my blog from boredom?}

Share with us: what are your thoughts on budgeting? Do you hate me for tell you to be a cash-only family? Do you think I’m too young to talk about budgeting {she’s only 25!} ?



]]> http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/budgeting-how-is-it-going/feed/ 25 http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/budgeting-your-familys-money-part-ii/ http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/budgeting-your-familys-money-part-ii/#comments Mon, 16 Aug 2010 19:00:38 +0000 Gussy http://www.maggiewhitley.com/?p=2453



{photo credit}

This post is a continuation of part I, which is part of my mini-series on budgeting.

***


“You can do anything you put your mind to.”

Do you believe that phrase? I was reading a blog that was hosting a recent Gussy giveaway, and the author wrote about Gussy:

The short version of her story is this: She decided that she wanted to sew, so she learned. Then she decided that she wanted to make it a full-time job, so she made it happen.

I guess when you get down to the point that’s exactly my story, however it’s the very short version. It’s also the simple version :]

If you had the opportunity to put on a shield of braveness, what would you “put your mind to”?

On Sunday I asked you to think of something you’d like to achieve financially. This can range from a simple goal — personally or professionally, or something serious like funding 3-6 months of your income as an emergency fund. The goal is totally up to you, and I’m already excited for you and what’s to come.

Keep in mind the freedom that you experience when you’re in charge of your money. If you don’t already work off a budget, I hope you’re now encouraged to start! Don’t think about the debt you have currently, think about what you’re going to accomplish by building a budget.

Focus on the long-term benefits of serving God vs serving money…

Luke 16:13 (NIV)
No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.

***


Getting started: know your numbers

This part is easy! Simply gather all incoming & outgoing expenses and organize them by type {in or out}. Be sure to think of your 401(k), insurance premiums, money allotted to savings each month, etc. as these are expenses, too, but may not arrive in the mail {or even monthly} like a typical bill.

For Zack and I, it’s easier to make a list of all incoming & outgoing expenses bi-monthly because Zack is salaried. You can also do this every two weeks if that’s how you are paid, by the month as a whole, or however your income is most easily broken down.

* side note A: One super easy way Zack and I track all expenses is to use Google Calendar and schedule our bills as an “event” one week before they are due. It’s a yucky “event” to add to the calendar, but I’d rather be informed than surprised when it comes to our money/finances. Google Calendar also lets you share calendars with other Gmail users, so Zack and I can both see our bills.

If you have Gmail, Google Calendar is already available to you. You can always buy a cute calendar from my sweet friend Emmy with Much Ado About You to track your expenses manually {REMEMBER TO PAY WITH CASH & FROM YOUR “FUN” SPENDING ACCOUNT :] }

* side note B: If you use a calendar {of any kind} to track your bills, remember to read over the past few months to make sure you don’t miss something that is a once-a-year or quarterly, etc. bill.

Here’s what you do:

1. Decide how you’re going to break down your expenses/income, then write down all expenses & income that fall into your preferred time frame {twice a month, every two weeks, etc.}

- For example, we use the 1st-14th and the 15th-30th for our time frames. We create a column for expenses and a column for income. When all of this information is gathered on one sheet of paper a person can more easily grasp an entire month’s cash flow.

- When your expense/income columns are complete, add them each of them up by type {expense, income} and write down each type’s total.

- Here’s a sample of organizing your family budget into a monthly time frame. Please read it over a few times to get a clear understanding of what I’m describing for your budget.

2. Don’t forget about the “other” expenses:
* Groceries/Necessities
* Gas/Auto
* Medical/Rx
* Entertainment/fun {you MUST include this in your budget, no matter the amount listed. I’ll explain later.}
* Savings

- This “other” expense column may create an additional column on your month-at-a-glance expense/income sheet, but that is OK.

- By organizing our expenses and income into 2 monthly time frames we’re able to see on a more realistic basis if we can pay the bills that fall into each specific time frame with the income we receive in that same time frame.

- If you find out you aren’t able to then you know you need to find money from another paycheck time frame to supplement that specific section of bills {expenses}.

- Take a minute to think about even more random, silly purchases you made over the last few months…

- At this point we have our expenses organized for the first half of the month, our income for the first half; our expenses for the second half, and our income for the second half.

3. You’re almost done!!! The final task in creating your budget is to add up all income, all expenses and find a balance.

The goal is to balance out at $0

No, I don’t want you to be broke, but I do want you to tell every single dollar you own where to go. If you don’t tell your money where to go then it will be in control. Once all your bills are paid {including adding to your savings account monthly}, if you see you have money left over you need to tell it where to go. Whether you want to spend a quarter of your income on entertainment, or elsewhere, it’s important you put that amount in that category.

Here’s a thought: If you have money left over each month you could add it to your monthly savings {may be used for debt or general savings, etc.}, but remember to rework your numbers so your balance is at $0. If your balance is negative then you need to go through and re-work your numbers. Or get a second job. And don’t hate me for typing that.

Remember that entertainment expense listed in “other”? That amount should always be the first expense you reduce if you are in the negative, but it’s SO IMPORTANT you don’t reduce it to zero. You NEED to have some spending money. If you don’t have anything allotted in this category then you’ll end up spending way more than you originally budgeted for/can afford and your budget will burst.

Burst = not good.



{photo credit}

Writing the budget was the easy part… Here’s the hard part:

You must, must, must put your budget in action and stick to it! Most bills are monthly and consistent. Other bills, such as groceries/necessities, gas, medical, can fluctuate and can be hard to predict. Do your very best to come up with a solid, reasonable number/average for these bills and stick to them. If something goes haywire you can always pull from your savings account, but remember to put it back later!

But I don’t have a savings account!!!
Yes, you do. Remember one of your “expenses” above was to put money monthly towards savings?

You’re welcome.

3 tips to sticking to your budget:

1. Check on it often — are you on-track? Does your budget allow you to succeed or do you need to adjust it?
2. Remember that your budget is your friend but non-budgeted money is NOT your friend
3. Make sure you are saving! By watching your savings account grow you should be continuously encouraged to press on.

Tip: For the expenses that you purchase multiple times a month {like fuel, groceries}, keep a running total of what you’ve spent each time, leading up to your maximum monthly total. Let me explain…

Say you allow yourself to spend $400/month in groceries. You know that’s an average of $100/week. To stay within your budgeted amount, each time you go to the store keep that amount in mind. Then, when you get home, write down how much you actually spent and subtract it from the monthly budgeted amount. Next time you go out you’ll know how much you have left in that category.

This is another great way to help yourself stay within your budget. Use a simple chart like this to keep track of expenses you pay each month, like groceries, to make sure you’re not over spending.

***

Remember:
* Inconsistent monthly expenses can be “found” by dividing the total yearly amount by 12.

* If you don’t know an amount, make your best educated guess and adjust as you learn more, even if this means adjusting your budget every month.

* DO NOT let this overwhelm you. Don’t focus on every single dollar; focus on the bigger picture, which is not going into debt and growing your savings account. If you find your budget is off, sit down and re-work it. And when your done, think to yourself, Gussy is super proud of me.

* Maybe you aren’t able to save much because you have a lot of past debt to pay off? Please read Total Money Makeover. Dave Ramsey has a great debt-free plan, called Debt Snowball, that you’ll read about in the book. This plan teaches you how to put money each month towards minimum payments with the idea that when you pay off one debt you use that minimum payment amount and put it towards your next debt. It’s fabulous, but you must read the book! Dave explains it in much greater detail than Gussy does :]

* Use cash. This one is huge and the only way you’ll move forward with your budget. If for some reason you aren’t able to pay your bills with cash from your income, you may need to consider finding supplemental help. There should be programs within your state or county to assist you. When you continue to use credit you’re treading backwards on a one-way street. It’s nearly impossible to succeed with credit and the point of a budget is encouragement, education & success.





Questions?

Leave a comment!

Up next: {Budgeting your business’ money, part I}



]]> http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/budgeting-your-familys-money-part-ii/feed/ 14 http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/budgets-organize-your-familys-money/ http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/budgets-organize-your-familys-money/#comments Mon, 16 Aug 2010 11:00:39 +0000 Gussy http://www.maggiewhitley.com/?p=2441

Budget, noun: an estimate of income and expenditure for a set period of time.

No, don’t run away. Come back here — budgets are actually incredibly awesome and not that hard. Honest! Remember how I quit my day job 3 months ago to sew on Gussy exclusively? Yeah, that was because Zack and I made a family budget and stuck with it!!! When you create a budget you KNOW where your money is going and you TELL your money where to go. It’s a super awesome, powerful feeling.

Yay, budgets :]

Besides, I don’t want to be slave to a paper bill. I want to be a princess. That sews all day long because she wants to. Amen.

It’s OK if you’re scared to write a budget — sometimes Zack and I are scared to write a new budget when we get off track or our income changes.

But guess what? Non-budgeted money is even scarier — it can take you on a wild roller coaster and it’s like a dirty pile of poo if you aren’t the boss. Zack and I have Dave Ramsey’s The Total Money Makeover, but I’ll be honest: it took some convincing to get me on board. Having read about the benefits of living as a cash-only family, I can now say that this book has changed our lives. It taught us many things, the main thing being no debt!

{woo hoo! quick skip around the apartment!}

Zack and I were 23 and 22 when we got married — we were young {we still are young :] } so we weren’t fully molded in any one way, especially when it came to money.

Money could have wedged itself between us and taken us on a wild roller coaster. Actually, if we had been open to debt I can’t imagine where we’d be right now, because shortly after getting married {ahem, 7 months later but I’m not counting} we BOTH lost our jobs. It was horrible but amazing, intertwined as one. Have you ever been suddenly unemployed? I have. Ewww. And I say “ewww” because not having a job can make you feel icky about yourself as your income is now dropped to 60% of what was and you wonder “How God..? Where God…? When God…?” And then the low self-esteem sinks in, and that’s icky.

But guess what {again}? God doesn’t want us to feel icky because He has great plans for us.

He also wants us to put our money to good use, to use it to do great things for others and for God. And I’d like to take a moment to say that I have had credit cards {sorry Mom!} but that was in college {Mom, don’t be mad} and they are now paid off. But… what did I buy with those credit cards?

I have no clue!!! Again, that’s icky.

I found this bible verse and it reminded me of how debt can easily multiply because it becomes something we hide/deny {from others or ourselves}:

Isaiah 29:15 (NIV)


Woe to those who go to great depths
to hide their plans from the LORD,
who do their work in darkness and think,
“Who sees us? Who will know?”

Back to my original point here…
Although Zack and I both had a little debt going into marriage, we joined our bank accounts blending our incomes as one, and committed to NO MORE DEBT.

I know I don’t fully understand how powerful NO DEBT is… I don’t, because we barely dipped our fingers into its poison. But we currently don’t experiencedit because we have chosen to never allow ourselves to experience it again.

We like to think of money as a tool that belongs beneath us — we are in control, not it.

***

I wrote the other day about updating our family budget {we are moving soon so we have some new numbers to play with} and starting a budget for the business. Some of you asked to share some tips and I’m happy to help :]



{photo credit}

A few months ago I wrote a post explaining how I quit my day job to work on Gussy exclusively, but this time around I want to elaborate more on the financial side of it.

How to save money, fast!

Zack and I spent a few months leading up to my quit date saving money for a “Gussy Quit” fund. We worked up a budget that allowed us to take every single non-critical dollar and put it towards a savings account. I also put the majority of all Gussy sales into this savings account. This method allowed us to save money fast.

We knew exactly how much money Zack and I made each month, and we had a really good estimate of what Gussy brought in each month. We also new what all of our monthly expenses were.

To save the most, this is what we did:

Each pay period we mapped out every bill that needed to be paid before the next pay period came. If we had ANY money left over it went to the “Gussy Quit” fund. By repeating this method every 2 weeks we were able to map out the next few months. We had a very good handle on what our expenses would be, which was key to settling on an end date. This method also allowed us to make a chart, which we called the Count Up/Family Goal, and it was so encouraging! We could see that in two weeks we’d have ____ saved, in a month we’d have ____, and so on. I made a little box in my sidebar and kept track of this “secret” Count Up/Family Goal. Every time we added to our savings we increased the number in the box.

To further encourage this “Gussy Quit” fund I would challenge myself to increase my Gussy sales. All money brought in that was in addition to what I needed Gussy to bring in was like a little bonus to our savings account.

…And you can imagine I did a double skip around the apartment when that happened :]


We were very, very tight with our entertainment/fun spending {we did allow a little to be spent…}. Once all bills were paid and we had tithed, the rest went towards building up the “Gussy Quit” fund.

*Tip: If you don’t have a financial goal that your saving for, but simply love to save your money, this plan of only spending what’s absolutely necessary is a great way to get started on a generic savings account.

So…

How much did we save? About 3 months of my salary.

How long did that take? About 8 weeks.

And you know what kinda drives me nuts? For nearly 6 months prior to this decision we had frivolously spent all of our money on… on… I have no clue! We didn’t have a budget, even though we knew how to write one.

So, I write these things to encourage you to set some amazing goals for your family’s budget. I want you to think of some financial goals that you’re excited to start working towards. I want you to have something in mind that will motivate you to follow through with your new budget. Deal?

Up next: part II, how to write your budget.

Got questions?

Leave them in the comments section and I’ll answer them!

***



future posts:
{Budgeting your business’ money, part I}

{Budgeting your business’ money, part II}



]]> http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/budgets-organize-your-familys-money/feed/ 31 http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/budgeting-a-new-mini-series-starts-tomorrow/ http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/budgeting-a-new-mini-series-starts-tomorrow/#comments Sun, 15 Aug 2010 12:00:33 +0000 Gussy http://www.maggiewhitley.com/?p=2455

Monday morning starts another mini-series on budgets — learn how to write a family budget and a business budget!

Your homework:
* Think of something you’d like to achieve financially
* Start gathering your monthly expenses and take note of all monthly income

We’ve got some awesome things to discuss, so come back tomorrow morning and let us be encouraged! Yeow! :]



]]> http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/budgeting-a-new-mini-series-starts-tomorrow/feed/ 13 http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/headbands-done-budgeting-coming-soon/ http://www.maggiewhitley.com/2010/08/headbands-done-budgeting-coming-soon/#comments Fri, 13 Aug 2010 15:49:41 +0000 Gussy http://www.maggiewhitley.com/?p=2442



Yesterday I made a monster amount of ruffled headbands.

Today I’m working on a BUDGET post — how to make one + lots of tips!
Stay tuned…



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