If You Give a Mom a Grand Opening ...

...she would have hoped to have had some bookings ...

Well, we talked to a few people - even gave out 12 of 48 cupcakes (anyone need 23 cupcakes ... like tomorrow?) ... even entertained a few kids while parents looked at info ... but alas, no bookings.

I got sick yesterday so Allan had to run the show alone.  He did great ... even talked to a few people.  But we were late opening the shop due to my getting sick and I guess we missed a lot of people.  Oh, well ... you win some you lose some.

I did get a little depressed today.  I see shops that just have opened (and one who hasn't even opened) getting business and I wonder ... did I chose the wrong thing to sell.  People seem interested, but no one is booking anything.  Either we just missed their birthdays or the ones they have are in the spring.  Doesn't anyone have a birthday to celebrate here before Christmas?

I am going to go in this week and start making pinatas ... maybe show people I am creative ... as if the design of my shop wasn't proof enough!

I sure hope that things start to pick up or I might have to say bye bye to this expensive endeavor ... Sure hope I didn't waste $13 grand on this ... and all that renovation we did ... If I wasn't meant to do this ... I sure wish God had closed some doors before we went into this debt.

Sorry if this is not the blog post you were hoping for ... just keeping it real.  At least my day job seems to be picking up ... I got a taste of it today and will get more of a taste on Wed and again on Thurs.  So I guess I can rely on that ... for a while.

Just Janet

If You Give a Mom some Ribbon ... She'll Make FANCY THAT Headbands

I saw an idea on a website and thought ... I can do that ... even personalize them for the little girl that wants it.  So I went to Michaels and bought a whole lot of ribbon and then stopped off at Walgreens for the headbands.  Then proceeded to come home and make about 7 headbands and 3 ponytail holders that are seasonal in design.  I have posted pictures here on the home page, but if you are interested in seeing more of them, check out my FB page under the FANCY THAT Headbands Album (http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2063128&id=1123486099&saved).  I even got my youngest to model for me ... they really are cuter in person, but V did an excellent job showing how some of them look in a little girl's hair.

I you like what you see and are interested in any I have made, let me know.  If you want different ones made or even sets of them, I can do that also.

Right now the headbands are $5 and the ponytail holders are $3.  They make great gifts or even just a little extra to dress up that little outfit for the holiday.

Having Fun and Making Memories,

Janet

If You Give a Mom a Season ... She will make an Event of it!

Normally in our household we have not been known to celebrate Halloween.  Being it is a celebration of the dead and most decor is quite ghastly in nature, it really puts a damper on fun and celebration.  It also usually gives the flowergals nightmares just looking around the neighborhood at the tombstones, bodies hanging from trees and arms reaching from "beneath the ground".  However, this year I am part of a bigger picture with a location in a mall, so therefore, I succumbed to the pressure and If You Give a Kid a Party celebrated with trick or treating and a FALLoween Festivity.  


All this came about because Crestwood Court ARTSPACE, with the lead from Bread and Honey, decided to celebrate a few days before with a Zombie Mall Walk.  That came about from a news report by Fox 2 stating that Crestwood Court was now a "zombie mall".  Therefore the organizers thought a couple times about the comments and decided to "show them".  Quite a bit of media coverage came from the event and also brought out the droves of small trick or treaters from 4:00 to a bit after 6:30 and then the zombies made their descent on the mall around 6:00 until midnight.  Both events brought in around 100 people each.  Reports of past Trick or Treating events seemed to only bring in less then 30 people, so both Bread and Honey and If You Give a Kid a Party, who took up organizing the T or T event, were very pleased with the turn outs.


Most of us felt the size of crowds we experienced were due to the fact we offered another safe event for people to attend that was NOT ON HALLOWEEN.  So we will see how next year's event will be attended.


Channel 2 decided they wanted to investigate the Zombie event, so zombies descended upon the Fox 2 news station a few days before.  The word got out and the zombies heard the call.  One reason the event was so well attended.  The Crestwood/Kirkwood times also covered the event with a story in the paper as well as pictures.


Show Me St. Louis showed up early the day of the event and pictures were taken as well as interviews.  Most shops were open and from that it helped get the mall another shot at an interview in the near future.  Crestwood is not as dead as was first reported.  The Show Me St. Louis segment is to show within the next few weeks.  We will see if Allan (my husband) will be as much of a draw to the interviewer as he was on Fox 2 with Tim Ezell.


So far our first event, we had a nice turn out.  Not as many people paid to do Falloween Crafts, but there is always next time.  I got to talk to a few people regarding the business, and several have birthdays before the end of the year.  So here is to praying some business starts popping in for a chance to help us make a memory (and some money).


This week we are getting ready for the Artstravaganza that will be happening at Crestwood Court ARTSPACE this weekend ... we are teaming up to have our Grand Opening the same time.   Seems like a good idea since the mall will be a buzz with people looking for interesting things to buy.

So until next week, I think I will go play like a kid and plan more crafting ideas for the event.  If you want to come check us out ... come Friday from 5-7, Saturday 11-7 or Sunday 1-4 ... enjoy some cake, punch and a fall craft or two.  It's gonna be another great memory made!


Janet

If You Give a Mom a Business ... She needs a GRAND OPENING ...

If You Give a Kid a Party

GRAND OPENING WEEKEND

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 5th

5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.

 &

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 6th

11:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.

 &

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 7th

1:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

 Stop by for a party in action!  

Cake, yes!  Ice cream, we'll see!  

Punch, you bet! 
 

Get a sneak peak at some of our themed ideas!

If You Give a Mom a Business ... She will need to Open it!

After much hard work (and still more to do):

If You Give a Kid a Party's Official Opening Day ... SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23rd

11:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.

Come by and see what we have been up to ...

If You Give a Mom a Season ... she will plan FALLoween!

FALLoween Festivity

October 29th

Ages 3-12

$5/child or $15/family

4:00-8:00 p.m.*

FALLoween crafts, activities, snacks 

& child-friendly holiday movies

in IF YOU GIVE A KID A PARTY (615) 

*Child drop off for 1 hour of fun (sign in/out system with an assigned number).  Parents/Guardians can visit other mall patrons or participate in the Zombie Mall Walk. 

Also join Crestwood Court ArtSpace in

Mall Trick or Treating

4:00-6:30 p.m.

If You Give a Mom a Plan ... She'll Plan a Party

OK, so it has been way too long since I posted to this site and I apologize.  For all my fans who read this (yoo-hoo ... are you out there ;-) ) ...  I have been under the weather, over the top working on the shop and well just busy.  I hate going on people's blogs and they haven't updated in ... years ... I swore I would not be like that.  So there I confessed and now I am rectifying it.

So we busted our boots (bootie) to get the shop ready for my oldest's 10th on 10/10/10 at 2:00 p.m.  My husband even sacrificed sleep and stayed up all Saturday night until after the party on Sunday to finish the floor.  You see we have slide by with so many blessings, and then we hit a brick wall ... then it takes us a bit of time to re-coup.  1st it was the walls.  It's not partical board but something that is odd enough that they stained in the previous store so we had to prime with 2 coats and then almost 2 coats of the paint.  My husband likes the stripes on the wallpaper of this blog, so we chose colors very similar.  Some Enchanted Evening (by Disney, of course, in Behr paints) is the light purple and the base of most everything in the shop.  Then to spice it up we added stripes of Majestic Violet (love that since my youngest is named Violet), which is a slight darker.  The base is down for the 10/10 party but the stripes were added this past weekend.  Then to top the stripes we added chair rail ... of course over that "stupid" wood wall that are "not even" but we made the best of it.  We've got TONS of compliments and it has really lightened the room.

Now on to the most stubborn floor removal of a lifetime and brick wall #2.  So as the time is ticking away from us on that Thursday before the party, we decide to just forget pulling up the stupid stuff and just get flooring we have to GLUE DOWN.  This job is not for the faint of heart ... I know because I laid a lot of it.  Then to make matters more interesting, I get sick ... thinking at first it is just a cold, my chest is burning when I walk any distance from breathing in and out ... I wait until after the party ... but it is a sinus infection with bronchitis.  Lovely!  Oh and I have laryngitis.  Nice, huh?  You are right!  Anyway, we push forward, most of the flooring (except around the walls) goes down for the party and we are seeing a finish line.

So through it all, we had my daughter's 10th and even with some people not coming she had a blast.  Said it was the best party she has ever had.  I am going to start a Portfolio Part of the blog, so check there for pix (or FB).  I will warn you the walls are a bit bare, but very soon (like in the next 2 days) the retro toys and wall fixtures will go up and we will be looking more and more like a real party store.

Also, made friends with some neighboring shops and even in talks with partnering with them for parties.  Anything to generate revenue.  One bright spot is I made 50 brochures and they are all gone, so here is to praying I get business very, very soon.

I am also considering some retro party fare to resell.  I saw a site that offers this.  It is so cool I am considering offering that.  I seem to love all things retro now!

So that is where we stand.  Lots of brochures gone and the place is just about done.  So please continue to keep us in your prayers.  If you know me, you know how I depend on prayer!

Keeping the Kid Alive,

Janet