A time to sew....

I am not too surprised to discover that each season brings different challenges to Little Darlins Nursery.  Christmas is obvious.  Its the craziness challenge.  So many orders, so many details.  Daunting to just think about it.
The third quarter (July through September), people are on vacation, kids going back to school, people realizing they have to save some money up for Christmas.
Second quarter (April through June) can be a great opportunity.  I was rather surprised to find that we have had Aprils that beat out November!  Its after tax time, people have recovered from the previous Christmas, and some purse strings can loosen.  Often, people have been looking for just the right reborn, and April is the time to splurge on themselves.
But, first quarter, is an incredible toughie on us.   After Christmas, disposable income was used up.  Customers are reluctant to put out money on a non-essential item. 
Our data shows we have nearly as many visitors to our sites as the rest of the year, but no bites.  We put all our dolls on sale and hope for the best.
Yesterday, Rita had an interesting idea.  Since there are so few dolls being purchased, we need to stand out from the rest of the pack.  Our pictures have to capture that "awwww" factor.  Our pictures need to tug at the heartstrings. 
The right face, hair, eyes, etc. are all vital.  But one thing I used to do, in order to save money, was to make our own clothing for the dolls.  Doll clothes can be a considerable expense.  I could make really cute outfits for half the price.  It just took time.
In order to save time and make more dolls, we started using all store bought clothing.  Things go a lot faster, but we lost that special something that made our dolls stand out from the pack.
I am looking forward to making some new outfits for our dolls.  I have been very proud in the past of seeing the pictures of our dolls with my creations.
Ought to be fun.
A time to weep.  A time to smile.  A time to sew.  Yup.  Its time.  David