[studying]

That's pretty much all I've been doing lately. Oh, and going to the doctor. I spent this past Friday night in the ER with severe abdominal pain; the diagnosis from the ER doc didn't make any sense to my own doctor when I went in for a follow-up on Tuesday, so we're still working on figuring out the cause.

BUT. I have been knitting while watching the study lectures, so I have several scarves and hats waiting for my B. to photograph, and then I'll be able to list them on my Etsy store.

I have had several commissions lately:
- a hat for a co-worker
- banana and apple cozies for one of my knitting group girls (she's actually a crocheter)
- a scarf for a co-worker's sister

The cozies & sister's scarf are still in progress. The hat got rave reviews when the co-worker went to Atlanta recently; he said it was exactly what he needed while he was there and made sure to promote my store to his friends there.

I've been working on the business side of this Etsy thing lately. Ordered new business cards with my store's actual name (prior versions had an incorrect French translation); downloaded QuickBooks Simple Start (I would love to have the full version like we have at work, but I am not forking out how ever many hundreds of dollars it would cost me); set up templates for product labels; and have been researching the best way to deal with making this little thing legal. I think for now, I'll just register a fictitious name entity and report it on my Schedule C; I need to register with Florida for sales tax purposes and start filing those reports. Since I'm a tax accountant, I don't really have the ignorance excuse - to say the least!! I'm thinking of getting some postcards from the site I used for the business cards (www.123print.com) to distribute at work, craft shows, restaurants, and other places where I can advertise.

In yarn news... the cozies I'm making for my group member are cotton yarn, which I have never really worked with in the past. It's interesting since I've been using so much wool. I have some delicious buttery-colored alpaca that I'm planning to use for a Branching Out scarf for myself or for a gift. My friend KD and I figured out that the Noro yarn she gave me would be perfect for a belt! I love interesting belts since I wear grey, black, or khaki pants all the time. I saw a picture of the Forest Path stole recently, and that inspired me to find a lace pattern that would work for the belt. I have to do some more digging in my stitchionary, but I'm confident I'll find something soon. KD suggested crocheting - but the hook scares me! I'll stick to my needles.

Life is interesting

Things have been a little crazy in my little corner of the world. Work is good. The husband is good. The cats are good. Knitting is good.

I have had a recent spate of interest in my Etsy shop! I knitted a baby blanket for a co-worker & his pregnant wife and was able to have it finished in time to give them at the firm-sponsored baby shower. When other co-workers realized I had made it myself, many of them asked about other things I could make. I was able to distribute business cards and show people other projects on my Etsy site. My officemate LF bought a scarf this week to give to a friend who lives in a colder climate, and another co-worker has commissioned a beanie. Yay!

I'm beginning to work towards incorporating my little store; as a tax accountant, I can't really claim ignorance about collecting & remitting sales tax or paying income tax (if I ever actually make a profit!). But being a tax accountant will make the process easier, since I'm familiar with the process and the consequences.

I have plenty of scarves in inventory; I've whipped out a few hats recently and am going to work on some mittens & arm-warmers soon, I think.

OK, that's all I have for now - I have to get back to the CPA exam studying. :-(