My 120 Challenge for 2015

Halloween has just passed. That means Thanksgiving is on its way, with all the delicious mid-century recipes that I continue to make out of pure nostalgia. 

Overnight Salad
thank you 1960s and mayonnaise for this Thanksgiving winner of a side dish

After that, I am officially allowed to listen to Bing Crosby on repeat, to watch Charlie Brown Christmas as many times as I like, and to start baking, baking, baking. 

The holiday season wouldn't be complete
without a little Bing Crosby

After Christmas, that last big event is New Year's. Bring on the holiday joy. 

This year, I've decided my New Year's resolution a little early. In 2015, I want to complete 120 wedding invitation orders through my etsy shop. 

Q: So, why am I sharing this on my blog? 

A: I want potential clients to know what their patronage means to me and my small business.

Now, I'm sharing this on my blog for one very specific reason. I want to take this opportunity to share with potential clients my motivations for growing my wedding invitation business. I currently have a day job, one that I actually love. So I do understand how completely confusing this may be. That said, I have a few bigger life goals that I want to help accommodate by building up my side business:

1. I want to start a family. Day care is very expensive, and even more so since I live in London. By building up my business online, I'm hoping to create a scenario where my return to work doesn't cause my home greater expense than otherwise. At this time, working full time and taking care of young children sounds like a tall order. So my thoughts are that I really ought to start now. 
2. I want to finish paying off my student loan. I finished a PhD, and as a result was essentially studying for 12 straight years. Whilst I'm proud that my student debt was far below the national average for my level of education, my completion of my goal in 2015 would mean that I am able to say bye-bye to monthly loan payments. Until it's gone, all proceeds from my etsy shop go directly to the retrospective funding of my education, in art history, which will also influence the form and shape of the new invites I'll have to design. 
3. I need reason to design more, and more often. Enough said. 

Next Steps

I've received a few orders in the last month or so, which is really inspiring. I only have two designs on my Etsy shop at the moment: 

Barley Wedding Invitations
available in four ale-inspired colors

Hops Wedding Invitations

First things first: I need to hit the design grindstone. My two current designs were inspired by my love (and longing for) my beer-loving home town: Portland, Oregon. I'll be breaking beyond that boundary a bit in coming designs, but still sticking within my original concept of sharing my own Love's Leftovers. 

If you're reading this post and have an idea for a new wedding design concept that you'd like me to develop, just leave your comment below.