Marvelous Mom Weekly - ByNichole

This week's feature mom is Nichole from ByNichole (http://www.bynichole.etsy.com/). An etsy shop full of love! Nichole will be sharing her story with us on how she started with Etsy and why is this store so special to her. Her story touches me and I hope it touches you too!

Etsymom: Nichole, ByNichole (http://www.bynichole.etsy.com/)
All my life I have been a crafter; from the time I could use safety scissors and elmer’s glue I explored every medium you can possibly pick up at Joann’s and Michaels craft stores.

When my daughter was born and diagnosed with a chromosomal abnormality I immediately thought about her future. Will she ever become a self sufficient adult, will she be able to get a job? We don’t know what Angel’s future holds, but I decided that I want to own my own business by the time she is an adult, so that she will always have a place in the family trade. She is only nearing her 6th birthday, but before you know it she will be in high school and I will be ready.

It was natural for me to start crafting and selling online. I got my start with tutus. Angel is so tiny that I could never find any dance clothes to fit her for class. I ended up making tutus for the whole class and my friends daughters, so I thought I would try it out on EBay. It didn’t become an income, but a hobby I did on the side.

Last October I became an American who was laid off from a corporate job. It was my job to hire drivers for Swift Transportation, and they stopped hiring drivers, so they didn’t need me anymore. And so I was at home worrying about what would happen next. Just before Thanksgiving Angel had three seizures in one day. It was at the point that I realized it was God had a plan for me and losing my job allowed me to be home when she had the seizure, instead of at daycare. At that point I got serious about looking for a way to stay at home. I closed up my EBay store and jumped into Etsy with a lot of faith and prayer.

It took 3 weeks to get my first sale, but on February 1st my cousin bought 4 things from me. With a boost of confidence I started stocking my shop more and more. The Lord has been good to me, I have reached 20 sales in the month of February!

Everything in my shop is based on kids: my kids, my friends kids and all those parents out there. I have been focusing on three categories right now, but I have a lot up my sleeves!

My tutus are all hand cut and tied to carefully picked ribbon.

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=41082761
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=38016531

My toddler bathrobes are on my mind a lot. I match fabulous flannel prints with bath towels. The hooded robes are completely lined with actual bath towels, making a warm and cozy transition from tub to pjs.

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=38016956
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=38198427

Stuffed animals have been a new avenue for me, but I am loving creating huggable creatures. There are many more animals to come, but I can only sew so fast!

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=41435409
 http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=40263745

I’m still a newbie, but watch out Etsy: Nichole is on the scene!

http://www.bynichole.etsy.com/