Hall of Fame {Perfect Sentiment}

Before I begin, I must say how much I enjoy doing these interviews. I love to see how each individual interprets my questions and answers them in their own, unique way. It's like getting to know a new friend every week. What a blessing! Thank you to each of you for making this possible.

Today, I'm so happy to introduce you to my friend, Erin, the lovely lady behind Perfect Sentiment. It all started a couple of months ago when I happened upon the Perfect Sentiment blog through the b-line. I was immediately taken in by the bright colors, articulate posts, and overall cheeriness. Naturally, I became a follower so that I could stay up-to-date. Later that day, I was contacted by Erin herself to tell me that I was her 100th follower, and she so graciously sent me some of her beautiful notecards. Now, her inspirational blog has nearly 200 followers. You wouldn't expect any less from a woman whose motto is, "Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle." She did, indeed, lift me up when I was feeling down. Thank you, Erin!

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Tell us a bit about yourself.
I'm a wife to an incredible man, a mom to two awesome kiddos (6 and 2 years old), and have a loving extended family on both sides who claim me. I love my life and consider myself one blessed gal.

Where do you call home? Are you from there originally?
I'm a Texan, born and raised.

What made you decide to open up shop?
After my daughter was born, I could not wait to send out one of those Christmas cards with her picture on it. When I couldn't find what I was looking for (for a price I was willing to pay), I decided to make my own. I fiddled around on the computer for a while and came up with my first card. I honed my newly acquired craft on her birthday card and some others, I started creating birth announcements and Christmas cards for friends. There wasn't ever really a plan to turn it into a business, until a friend of a friend (or so) asked me to make a birthday invitation. I decided I might should at least set a price. A few other word of mouth orders came in before I very loosely started Perfect Sentiment. Up until about a year and a half ago, PS was very neglected. I love, love the creative side of things, but I'm not a natural business person. I just recently decided to start paying some overdue attention to it and stop waiting for the perfect timing/line/idea. While most of my business is local, the blog (and some encouraging friends) gave me the confidence to open my Etsy shop. It's still evolving and I'm definitely still learning, but I'm fully enjoying the journey. I've just recently started offering downloadable print-your-own goodies and have more in the works. I have so many ideas... I hope to expand my shop some more in the near future.
What's the significance behind the name Perfect Sentiment?
I got stuck on the letters P.S. I love how they are casually added to the end of a handwritten letter to say one last thing. It adds such a personal touch to a note. I started brainstorming words that could play off of those two letters. I came up with 'sentiment' right away. I love the way it sounds and looks written, and Merriam Webster sold me on it with the meaning: "an emotion. a refined feeling: a delicate sensibility, especially as expressed in a work of art".Then I just needed a 'P' adjective to go along with it. When I looked up 'perfect' in the dictionary and saw these two definitions I was sold: "completely suited for a particular purpose or situation" and "excellent and delightful in all respects". When you put them together you get, a delightful, emotional work of art completely suited for a particular purpose: the Perfect Sentiment!

Name your favorite thing about selling handmade.
It's definitely the company I get to keep... I am continually amazed and inspired by the shear amount of creativity out there and the people behind the crafts.

Do you have a day job or sell on Etsy full-time?
Right now being a mom to my two kiddos is primary. I love that I get to be creative through my little business. I feel fulfilled by getting to tap into that on a daily basis. Prior to kids and Perfect Sentiment, I was a teacher and an educational travel consultant.
You write a beautiful blog. Where does your inspiration come from?
Thank you so much! My blog just sort of took on a life of its own. When I was creating my website there was a space on the first page where they suggested I link to my blog. A blog? That was way outside my comfort zone, but I decided I could start one and just post things related to my business. I took a few baby steps outside the ole comfort zone, and it just sort of grew into what you see now. It's kind of a happy little spot for me. The people who leave comments are inspiring to me. Occasionally I get this strange feeling like, "Oh my goodness. I have a blog. And people read it. Why in the world would they do that for?", but I thoroughly enjoy it and and love the positive vibe that I feel from it. I think that's the inspiration: to be positive and spread that around. And I think I get it back ten-fold by the folks who share their thoughts with me.

Give us a little glimpse into what a typical day in your life looks like.
Ideally my day starts well before the kids get up. I like to have time to collect myself, have coffee with my hubby (one of my very favorite ways to spend time), and get some blog-reading time on the computer. Then the kids are up and it's mommy mode/errand running/play dates/house stuff. Nap-time is my dedicated Perfect Sentiment block of time when I create, fill orders, and the likes. Then it's back to kid focused time and dinner prep. When hubby gets home it's dinner and family time. At night, we usually each take a kid for baths, reading and bedtime. We regroup and hang out together after they're asleep. This is when I get a surge of energy and stay up way too late. I usually update my blog for the next day and work the PTA newsletter (I'm volunteer editor) after hubby goes to bed. Then it's a bit of reading before it's lights out for me.

If you had to describe yourself in a word, what would that word be?
Hmmm... That's hard. How about thoughtful? I think that works for me in two ways: I try to keep other's feelings on the forefront, and I also tend to over-think all of my decisions.

List a few of your most favorite pastimes.
reading, shopping, flea marketing, traveling (at least it was before kids!), hanging out with my girlfriends
Share with us a favorite Etsy purchase or shop.
I've been on a spending hiatus of sorts for the past 8 months, so I haven't made many purchases at all. I did breakdown and purchase this print while on hiatus and I love it! And I've been so very lucky to have won some mighty cool things from some awesome shops through a few giveaways. I've got so many items and sellers heart-ed that Christmas shopping is going to be a breeze. I'm so looking forward to making these future purchases from Etsy.

Read any good books lately?
The Last Lecture by Randy Paucsh was excellent. Right now I'm reading Bel Canto by Ann Patchett and I'm not quite ready to make a recommendation either way on it.

What is your most prized possession?
My family. That shouldn't really count as a possession, but I'm going to go with them anyway. I am just continually amazed by this little unit that we've created. It overwhelms me.

What are three of your favorite foods?
chocolate, coffee, cheeseburgers

What would you like to learn to do?
I would love to learn the art of photography. I think someday I'd like to learn how to sew as well, but I think that's a ways off for now.
What are you listening to right now?
Kings of Leon and Jack Johnson are some current faves. My daughter is really into Annie right now, so the Annie soundtrack is getting a lot of playtime. "The sun'll come out tomorrow..." has been stuck in my head for days!

Name one place you must visit in your lifetime and why.
Costa Rica. We almost went there for our honeymoon but decided we'd save it and go on our tenth wedding anniversary. At the 10 year mark, we had a newborn so it remains on the must see list. And Prague is another. We were supposed to go there while on a trip to Europe, but the rail was under water at the time. I think it would be a perfect place to just hang out. Oh, and I'd really love to go winery hopping in California. Okay, so that was more than one place, but I just couldn't narrow it down!

Thank you so much, Erin, for taking part in the interview. I enjoyed getting to know you better!

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Time for a Giveaway!

This week's lucky winner gets an adorable Little Bird Stationary Set, complete with 10 notecards, 10 gift tags/calling cards, and 10 stickers. Wow! The notecards are two-sided with coordinating backs and say "oh happy day" along with a wee bird on a branch.
{Click the photo to enlarge}

Since it's that time of year, to enter, simply leave a comment with your favorite back to school supply.

Be sure to include your name and email address or Etsy username!

For extra entries you can:
Tweet this giveaway: 2 additional entries
Follow my blog and/or Erin's Blog: 5 additional entries
Blog about this interview/contest: 7 additional entries
Purchase from Perfect Sentiment: 10 additional entries

(Please include this info, if applicable, with your comment for additional entries. You do not need to leave separate comments for additional entries. Important: Don't forget to include your name and contact info!)

Contest ends Sunday, August 23rd at 11:59 pm EST. Winner will be chosen by traditional drawing and will be announced Monday, August 24th.