Weekend Wrap Up ~ Easter Weekend

This weekend is for celebrating and spending time with family. Blair and I spent the weekend together doing just that since we are officially FAMILY now! So exciting! 


This weekend we also did a little house hunting. We have been looking for a house to rent for some time with very little luck. Since we are in the Coast Guard and won't be around for too much longer, it's not very safe for us to purchase a house so we are renting because we have totally outgrown our apartment- especially with all of my yarn and equipment I have acquired while starting my business! This weekend we may have found a winner! I'm not getting my hopes up too high or going to go into describing it too much because nothing is set in stone as of yet but I can't say how excited I am to have FINALLY found a place we are remotely interested in putting an application in at. Fingers crossed all goes well and I can have a much better suited office and have the kitchen space to put out all of our new great appliances we got as wedding gifts. They are still in boxes and I regularly drool on them preparing for the day their great exteriors can meet the fresh air and get used!


I am proud to say that this past week I submitted applications to craft shows for the first time and have chosen a few more to apply for in the near future. Although I am not guaranteed any spots as of yet I am hoping to hear from some of them soon - fingers crossed again. I've got a lot of finger crossing going on these days.


Last but not least I did a little photography for the newest addition to my store with a very fun little man! Here's a sneak peek at how they turned out.

Speaking of modeling, I am putting together something very fun and extra special for my modeling participants. I am in the process of earning my photography certificate through the University of South Alabama and have decided that I want to take as many of the photographs for my store and business as possible instead of contracting the job out. I enjoy taking them and think it adds a little something special to my store that the entire process is a work of my own! I am always looking for local models (Southern Alabama area) to wear my work and am putting together a special program/incentive for those that would like to participate. It is still in the works but it you would like to be included or know/parent someone who would please feel free to contact me. It's going to be a lot of fun. I need males and females of ALL ages!

Treasury Tuesday ~ Picture This

So last night my HUSBAND and I got to see the all of our wedding photos from our wedding on March 12th. It really made our night. We absolutely love them. Now that I have all these pictures on the brain, I need a good way to showcase them all in my home thus this week's treasury!


Treasury: Picture This





I really enjoy all of these and can't wait to get a new home to hang our new photos in! I will most certainly have to buy one or 4 or 6 of these when we get all settled!

The Worst Mistake is Being Too Afraid to Make One

OK so now I'm going to spill some of the beans and let you guys in on a little secret of excitement I mentioned this morning on FB. 


As many of you know I recently took a webinar by the wonderful Michelle Ward - the When I Grow Up Coach about my Effective Escape (AKA effectively preparing to leave the lifestyle I have now to follow my real dreams of running Innov8ive Knits full time). Having a solid plan gave me some serious courage! The courage to do a lot of things I would have never imagined I could do!


One of the things I've recently gotten the juice to do is spread the Innov8ive Knits love BEYOND Etsy. I am officially starting to apply for local craft shows right here in southern Alabama!!! A goal of mine this year is to participate in at LEAST one craft/art fair although 2-3 would be even better. It all depends on how the cookie crumbles, and who accepts my applications. I've never done one before and am filled with enthusiasm (and a healthy helping of fear to be honest) about it!

Little Chunk of My Application

 To subdue the fears I will say that my Etsy community and close friends have been beyond words helpful and encouraging about it. More so than I ever expected and it has given me the much appreciated ammo that I needed to go through with it. No one likes being told "No" which is definitely a possibility, but "the worst mistake is being too afraid to make one" (That's not my quote BTW I found it floating around online so I'm officially not taking credit for it LOL) and I'm not going to let that hold me and my blossoming business back. 


I'm cramming for application deadlines as I type because the season is fast approaching. And if accepted (fingers mucho crossed) I'll have to start knitting in my sleep in addition of just before I go to work, when I get off, on my lunch break, and in my car before work starts haha! I'm not announcing which ones I'm applying for yet because I have a couple on the table but I will of course make a humongo announcement if/when I get accepted. I'd love the chance to really put my stuff out there here locally where people can see & touch my hard work; meet customers face to face; and get some real time feedback.


Well there she is- my special surprise. The possibility of great new things, a leap of faith, and hopes that I hear back from good prospects. Here's to sucking it up and going for the gold! Keep your prayers, hopes, wishes, and all other good juju flowing my way through this new adventure. There's so much to learn and so much work to be done if it's going to be a success! On that note I better get to it! ;-)

Mrs. Doten has arrived!!!

Happy day!!! I'm back from my wedding and honeymoon and am just glowing with all of the excitement. Now I am officially Mrs. Doten!! We had a small and personal wedding on a golf course (Blair's favorite activity). Of course a billion things went wrong (wrong flowers, wrong cake, etc.) but it was still wonderful and I wouldn't change a thing! Here's a few pics that we have gotten access to by our AWESOME photographers since then!

http://www.yourstorytellers.com/?p=7162

This next pic is one of my favorites! This is an idea I found on Pinterest and absolutely fell in love with it. Blair and I were both traditional in believing that he shouldn't see me before the wedding... didn't mean that I couldn't see him though!

http://www.yourstorytellers.com/?p=7162

I wanted to be able to get that private moment that a "first look" shot has but without ruining the surprise before the aisle. This ended up perfect. We held hands and talked about our hectic morning of getting ready apart and had a small break of relaxation and shared our happiness before our big moment. It was one of the most fun moments of the day to see that big cheesy grin on his face to hear my voice, he totally rocks my world. 


After the wedding festivities we went home and prepared for out honeymoon where our plane left at the butt crack of dawn in the morning the next day... and I have a guilty confession to make: we so watched "Pretty Little Liars" on our wedding night because we thought it was the season finale and wanted to see who "A" was before spending time in the Caribbean. Season finale was the next week and we totally missed it anyway. Thank goodness for DVR! 


In a flash it was morning again and we headed out to the beautiful St. Thomas! It really was something else, more incredible than I could dream of and a description wouldn't really give it justice. I will say though that our hotel room was right on the water. And by "right on the water," I'm not kidding. We literally could open our hotel room door and 2 steps later we're on the crystal clear blue beach.

This picture was taken right from the balcony/porch area of our room at sunset.  Just about every sunrise and sunset looked like this. It was so amazing. 


Like all good things our honeymoon had to come to an end. But on the bright side that means I'm back home and running the store again! After some much needed vacation time, I feel so refreshed and have some extra spark behind myself to really take Innov8iveKnits to the next level. I've got some extra drive and passion behind me that I lost a little while juggling a full time job, my true passion (Innov8iveKnits), and planning a wedding. 


I am so proud of where my new business has gone in the small amount of time that I've been running it and feel now that I really have it in me to tackle all of the things I want to do with it this year. I won't spill it all in just this one post (so you'll have to follow me to hear all about it) but this year will be full of tackled goals, new product, and fun things for all! That means YOU too!


I know this post doesn't have a ton to do about the business, but all of you who follow me feel like close friends and I wanted to share these special memories with you because you guys are the ones who make my dreams of being a business owner possible! You rock by the way!


My new life as Mrs. Doten is bright and full of possibilities. This year I start a new family and build my new business of my own. - Dreams really do come true.