Artfire

So, running a small business is sometimes really hard. I think most of you would be REALLY surprised if I ever told you how much we really spend on materials for this company each year.I think you would also shed a morose tear if you saw how much we end up giving the government in taxes when tax season rolls around. While lots of you out there are rejoicing at getting your $1500 checks in the mail, we're coughing up a hideous amount. However, I'm not here to expound on the evils of the IRS, I'm here to ask for the support of my customers on something that my company wants to do.

It has of come to my attention that Satan has started infiltrating the inner workings of the Ebay corporation. For that matter, it might be Satan and a whole cast of his minions, because I'm telling you guys, they are NOT being very good to their sellers....you know, the ones who are the reason they exist. To the customer, it might seem like a great harmless place where you have a great profusion of wares to peruse, however, coming from the selling end of the spectrum, it's not pretty. Ebay has been a good friend to Damsel in this Dress in the past. In fact, when I started this company, it was entirely through ebay. My 17-year-old fingers were producing many amateur, but decent little renaissance bodices and onto ebay they went! Through my ebay sales, plasma donations, and my joy-sucking job as a waitress, I was able to pay cash for my first car. Thus, in this regard, I truly appreciate the exposure and the great start that I got from ebay. Alas, after 6 years, they have changed a lot, from where I stand. I don't relish going into details, but let's just suffice it to say that they are power-hungry, controlling, policing, nazis from the deepest pits of hell. We are a good, honest company who believes in good business policies, and when we've hard serious concerns, we've sent ebay emails, and to our dismay, have received bland form letters that basically say "We'd love to help, but screw you."

Now, don't get me wrong, nothing "dirty" is going on, we're just a little frustrated with giving them 14% of our sales by the time all of the fees from both them and paypal are done. Thus, I wanted to encourage you all to make a move to our store on www.artfire.com or http://damselinthisdress.artfire.com

We are SERIOUSLY psyched about this rather new and marvelous venue through which we can sell! We will actually get to keep the dang money we make, and they're working on a great advertising campaign so that they can actually help their sellers. If everyone who purchased from us on ebay could move over to purchasing from us on artfire, the world would be a MUCH BETTER PLACE. It's WAY easy to sign up to purchase things off of www.artfire.com and they do use paypal, so it will be the exact same type of experience. So, help me think of some incentives that you guys would like to see for people who purchase off of our artfire site, rather than off of ebay. I can't give corsets away for $20 or anything, but I certainly could send out great coupons along with artfire purchases or something along those lines. I just WOULD REALLY like to see our business move over to a site who deserves to make money off of its efforts and who has a good honest business plan. Give me your thoughts on this! I've realized that my customers are usually right on when it comes to questions and suggestions that I'm needing, and your input has helped me succeed! ;) So, go check out our shop at artfire and see what you think!

The Heinous Slaughter of Innocent Suitpants

Yes, I have been sidling into thrift stores again, exchanging money for innocent victims, and harboring them home to where the rotary cutter of death awaits. Then again, who can blame me for wanting to maul these shameful pieces of attire forged in the early nineties, where profuse pleats on pants reigned over the fashion world! Seriously, some of these things are the sole reason that "What Not to Wear" exists on TLC.

Plus, it's so much fun to go to thrift stores and look at the out-of-fashion clothing in a new light. I try to pick out the pieces that I strongly believe shouldn't even adorn another flesh and bones body in their present state, and in that way, I'm doing the world a favor by taking those things off the market! I'm well aware that my husband, who does all the cutting and grommeting in the corsets, loathes cutting the suitpants corsets! He's used to just pulling out a 54" bolt of upholstery fabric, folding it in half, and laying the corset patterns over it. With the pants, he has to carefully lay the patterns around certain elements of the pants, and generally, we aren't able to cut as many plus size corsets out of the pants, because, remember, these are generally tapered pants that just don't have enough room for the corsets built for women that have curves!

Instinctively, I feel like I should lavishly adorn the suitpants corsets, even though there's a little practical voice in my head that suggests that if I leave them alone, then they'll be able to transcend more easily into modern day wear, rather than all of them looking like costume pieces for the extremely fashion forward individuals who have the confidence to wear these out in public with jeans. However, I have a hard time controlling the urge. I want to make ostentatious adornments! I want to vicariously live through the vibrant women who wear these around while I stay at home sewing all day in jeans and a t-shirt.

Anyhow, I did just make a large purchase at the thrift store yesterday, and I promise to make some toned down "wear to work" type of corsets as well as the bold ones! I just want to say thank you to the bringers of "steampunk" fashion who have helped forge another appropriate and inspirational way to wear corsets! Thank you to the men who bought these pants in 1992, wore them to church a few times, threw them in their closet for 15 years, and then finally got rid of them, where they went from the trash bag to the sorting department to the hanger on the rack to my hands to my car to my sewing room to the cutting table through my sewing machine onto the mannequin into photographs onto etsy through the US Postal Service and INTO SOMEONE'S HEART! *Ahhhhh*