shop update – Elizabeth Smillie

6 years

February 1, 2016 Elizabeth Smillie

Today our little Etsy shop celebrated 6 years of business! 6 years of following a “path less traveled”, taking twists and turns that we didn’t expect {but that have been a wonderful blessing} as we “live creatively & celebrate every day”. 6 years!

6 years ago we were living in a little {uh, yes …quite little…not our littlest ever, but still, quite little} apartment, living from one slim paycheck to the next with an almost 1-year-old {and another baby due that summer} and gratefully taking advantage of any opportunities to earn an extra dollar that we could. We had opened a shop on another selling platform the year before {you can read a bit about that story here and here} and, as pennies were getting pinched tighter, the time had come to mix things up a bit and see if something else would work better – and lo, our Etsy shop was born. Our first sale came over 2 months after opening our virtual doors – and it was a welcome one! 6 years later, our shop bears very little resemblance to what it was in early 2010: we are in a different city, different state, we have a house {with an actual yard!}, our family has grown to 4 precious little ones, John is the one mainly running the business now {there’s a good chance he’ll be the one answering your emails} and I have taken more of a back seat while I homeschool the littles, we have 3{!} employees and every single item in the shop right now was birthed sometime in the last 5 years.
A few things are still very much the same – every single thing that we sell is hand made right here in our home, we still make sure that each new product fits within “live creatively & celebrate every day”, and we do everything we can to make your visions come to life. The custom orders that we fill are always a fun challenge!

We are so, so immensely blessed. This “path less traveled” is not the easiest thing, but it is well worth the rewards. {Our 3 year old cannot remember a time when her Daddy wasn’t home every day – he may be busy, but he is home, and it is wonderful. :D} You – each and every one of you – are a huge part of where we are today. Without you and others like you, our shop {and lives!} would look very different! Your orders and feedback are always, always deeply appreciated. Our second hire celebrates her 1 year anniversary with us tomorrow, so we rolled both events into one and celebrated with a lunch – and cake {of course!}! It was a fun time to take a few moments to mark the occasion, to celebrate how far we’ve come – plus, a great excuse to have cake. :D

So … here’s to another “Etsy-versary” in the books, and looking forward to whatever new and exciting things this next year holds.

items featured: Monogram Cake Topper (6 in Gold Glitter)

Sparkly Star Cake Toppers

Customizable Letter Banner in Gold Glitter

Sale!

July 27, 2015 Elizabeth Smillie

We’re preparing for some fresh additions to our shop, and to that we need to make room – by having a sale! Our sale section has some terrific deals on items that are being discontinued, and some of them are even one-of-a-kind.

Once the discontinued items sell out, they’ll be gone for good, so don’t delay if you’ve been wanting to get your hands on any of these!

the office, version 2.0

July 18, 2015 Elizabeth Smillie

As promised, here are photos of what our second office space looked like when we moved from “version 1.0“{I loved so many things about this one!}.

After a couple of years in our first studio {really it was “my” studio, since John’s role in the business at this point was mostly childcare, moral support and a listening ear}, the business was growing to the point that it was clear we needed a bigger space! So the next logical spot was this room swap with Emma Grace and Ian:
The doorway into the room. I decorated this entry wall with gold foil vinyl decals and loved the faux wallpaper look they created. The room we used for this larger version {it was twice as big as the room moved it from – which shows just how small that room is!} is the same one the our oldest two were sharing in this blog post. And then we swapped them over into that tiny room where the first office had been – they were super flexible! And this time period made me grateful time and time again for just how well our children get along together.Just behind the door. I spray painted a thrift store bulletin silver, covered the cork part with some decorative wrapping paper {from the Dollar Tree!} and then stretched bakers twine back and forth across it to provide a place where I could pin up the extras I had on hand. {“coffee” print from recipeforcrazy} Kept them tangle-free and filled my need for visual order! Speaking of a need for order …. :) I had been using some large bins and boxes to corral the papers I was using for a while – and for a while, it worked just fine. Of course, with a bit of growth in the shop, our need for paper selection and “on hand” amounts grew, and we were able to fine these terrific store-style paper racks. They have been amazing!
the shipping station – this is where all your lovely packages get wrapped in tissue, tied with pretty twine and sent on their way! The lovely work spaces that John build, as well as one of my favorite deals from Sam’s Club ever – I scooped these metal bar stools up for under $10 each! And the sewing machine where “sew” much of our business was built. Two printers {and yes, we use them both!} – a color Canon for custom work and a work horse b&w Brother for everything else. John made the stand so we could maximize the counter space on top of the dresser, and it has worked quite well. And then of course, what would a post about our office be with a few photos of it “in real life” {i.e. messy and being used :D}One of my favorite things about this room is the way the sun streams through the window throughout the day – in the late afternoon, the packing table gets bathed in light. Always so lovely!A package getting all its pieces put together {note the stack of packages on the left? Those were all on their way out the door to you!}a toddler selfie :) that shows some more of our storage in useOne of the older kids wanted to “take a picture of YOU, Mommy!” and it came out just of my hands. I kind of like it :)

Little did we know that when we started this business over 5 years ago where it would take us! We are humbled when we see what God has done, and you haven’t even seen version 3.0 {you’ll love it!} and heard about our ride of the last year yet – it really is amazing to see where this path has led.

the office, version 1.0

July 17, 2015 Elizabeth Smillie

If you’ve been following along with us on Facebook for a while, you might have heard that we have a new office space! Before I show it to you though, I thought you might like to see where we moved from {before we moved to what was our first “new” office :)}. I promise it won’t take too long! When we first moved into this house back in 2011 {hard to believe it has been that long already!} our shop was just starting to really picked up momentum and make its value felt, and John kindly set up our “guest” room as a work room for me to putter around in and fill orders. Little did we that the shop would quickly grown beyond what this small room could handle! Having a space to work in that wasn’t our kitchen table or our bedroom made “the Path Less Traveled” seem much more of a reality, that the thing I was doing during the kiddos’ nap time and in the evenings was an actual business, and not just me playing with the sewing machine. And it was also great{!} to have a place where I could leave a project out past mealtime or bedtime, and close the door when I wanted to keep little hands from helping.

Having the pretty prints from Katie Daisy and Lindsay Letters {and some vintage ones as well} and photos of our babies and John was a way that I kept my spirit refreshed when things got a bit hectic. Also, this room is one of the bedrooms in the house that gets the best light – I found that the combination of pretty things and lots of natural light was essential for me to deal with stress! {have you found the same to be true for you?}

And the office usually looked a bit more like this: well used, full of projects, orders to filled and little “helpers” {and this photo of Olivia shows just how long ago it was since our office was in this room!}.

Coming soon – photos of where we moved this office too! {it was the kids’ room I showed you here}

our Nordstrom adventure

February 24, 2015 Elizabeth Smillie

I’ve had a bit of a love affair with Nordstrom ever since I was a small girl. My grandma used to take me there for lunch every summer when I visited her, and I have wonderful memories of the man playing the piano on the first floor, the gorgeous displays, and the amazing floor to ceiling mirrors in the ladies room {seriously, I would LOVE to have a dressing room/closet that looks just like it someday!}. These days I limit my love to mostly window shopping, and about once a year hitting Nordstrom Rack for a pair of shoes …. but I still love that store.

So, last summer I received an email from a guy who was setting up a photo shoot, and he needed 40+ of our large Origami Hanging Stars in shades of pink, and he wanted to make sure we’d be able to get them to the shoot location on the specified date, etc. Yep, that was no problem at all, and I went through all the steps of getting his custom listing prepared for him. Then he ordered, and I found out from the address that the stars were for a Nordstrom photo shoot! *squeals*

November catalog, page 24

Once I stopped squealing we got the stars ready, boxed up {18 huge boxes – they filled our family room} and dropped off with FedEx. We heard the stars arrived safely and that they were enjoyed, and then waited. And waited. Months later, we found out our stars were for their winter catalogs and ad campaign{!}, and they were gorgeous and perfect.

November, page 17 (and also in an email!)November, page 9

Now we can add “featured in Nordstrom” to our list of media features – definitely a dream come true for me!

Photos of our stars in this post were taken by Missy Reno and associates for Nordstrom

we’re growing!

January 5, 2015 Elizabeth Smillie

As you might have gathered, our business has been tremendously blessed this last year! God has been incredibly generous to us, and we are humbled every day as we see Him pour out blessing after blessing. We are {of course} seeking to be the best stewards of these blessings as best as we can, and right now that looks like hiring another person to help us grow further! {we already have a part time helper who is wonderful (thank you all who prayed for her to come!) and who I still need to introduce to you!}

Some of you who follow us on Facebook might have seen my post from this afternoon {if you didn’t, I’m so glad you’re reading now! And if you did – enjoy the photos :D}. And no, we’re not employing child labor ;), just encouraging young industry. No, really, we DO have a new part time employee!

We’re in need of another, though, and here’s the ad that I shared with our Facebook followers this afternoon:

We are looking for help!
The Path Less Traveled Market is looking for someone who can help us continue to grow. We are looking for someone with an enthusiastic personality, who communicates well and enjoys social media. Helping to make our customer’s dreams become a reality will be at the center of the position’s responsibilities. This will include: customer interaction using email, the use of social media, some product manufacturing/packaging, and shipping.

– Need to be able to work 5 days a week (Mon. – Fri. = 30-40 hrs.) out of our home studio.

Are you interested? Contact us for more information and details! Do you know someone who would be a great fit? Please feel free to share!

Christmas deadline!

December 17, 2014 Elizabeth Smillie

Hello, dear ones! Just a quick pop-in to let you know {if you haven’t already seen on Facebook or our shop notices} that tomorrow, December 18th is the deadline to select standard USPS shipping and still get your order by Christmas {and the 20th is the deadline for Christmas delivery for orders with Priority shipping}. After that, of course we’ll still be making and mailing orders, but we just can’t guarantee a Christmas delivery :)

I soooooo want to share a few photos of our house decorated for Christmas, and I might actually be able to before Christmas this year. In the meantime, if you want to link photos of your decor, I’d love to see them!

I’m baaaaack!

November 7, 2014 Elizabeth Smillie

Olivia is always a joy …

…and LOVES to “help” with all things related to the shop ….

…especially when it means she can ham it up for the camera. :)

Our new Autumn Leaves Garland (inspired by a special request from one of you lovelies!)

Autumn Leaves Chair Banner

How do you jump back into a game when you’ve been absent for so long? The good news is, this corner of the web has been quiet because life has been very, very good. So good, so full, that all my “little grey cells” are getting used up every day, all my energy poured out, and there really hasn’t been anything left to share with you here (because, really, you lovelies deserve so much more than the dregs of me!).

Anyhow, life keeps moving (meaning, there is much to catch you up on!) and changing, and it’s beginning to look like one of those changes might be me returning to this little space a little more often! I’ve missed you all so.

Geometric Banners

August 8, 2014 Elizabeth Smillie

If you’ve been following us on Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest you might have noticed this already, but we’ve been working hard to add some new items to the shop! I’ll let Olivia show you. :)

Isn’t she just the cutest thing ever?! And now don’t you want your own (garland I mean, not baby girl ;D)?

We have these available in vintage map (some of you saw the preview here), vintage music, vintage book and colored cardstock (shown in white, but available in all colors). And we have them all available in the chair garland length, too!

I love how these can be customized almost endlessly, that they echo the current geometric-loving trend, and that they resemble the classic white fabric buntings (remember them from the village celebrations in Downtown Abby, anyone?) – there’s just so much to love about these! So far I’ve already used them as ceiling decorations and photo backdrops/props, and Emma Grace has requested a “triangle party” for her next birthday (she likes to plan her birthdays far in advance). Imagine how gorgeous a bunch of them would be at a wedding!

hello {again}

January 28, 2014 Elizabeth Smillie

It’s been …. awhile. Life just keeps moving, doesn’t it?

We’ve been quite busy around here since the last post {Christmas!} – adding new things, figuring out new direction to take with the shop {and if we are taking a new direction – the answer? “Sort of”}. The littles are growing {Olivia is talking!} like crazy, and I’m trying not to blink and miss this precious time.

Here are some photos of the newest additions to the shop {and some fun custom projects, too!} that I thought you might enjoy :)

new cupcake toppers in the Etsy shop! {inspired by the toppers for the barn wedding} new First Birthday High Chair Garlands in the Etsy shop {and now I’m wondering why I didn’t think to make these for our own little ones’ first birthdays!} a custom version of the New York Subway toppers – too cute with the “All Aboard!” flags a personalized cake garland – such a sweet hybrid of the Name Bunting and the Confetti Garland!

Hopefully I’ll be able to get you caught up to speed soon {with lots of photos!}, but in the meantime,how are you? I’ve missed chatting here with you. Did you have a lovely holiday season? Make New Year’s resolutions? Are you snowed in {or experiencing 80 degree weather?}?