Wait, wait, surprise!

I don't know about you, but when I'm waiting for something to happen I am just a little bit (ha!) impatient. Not that I want to wish time away, but I get so excited (yes, even about the littlest things) that I just want them to happen.

For instance, I ordered some cute little one inch button pins with our cat from our new catnip labels. I decided to start with a small order through someone on Etsy, rather than a large order through my usual Canadian company. (customs and broker fees are a nightmare for anything over $25 CDN) Anyway, the first challenge for my waiting game was that I didn't notice the Etsy person was away for one week when I ordered my pins. The second challenge is that I'm up here in Canada, and she's down there in the U.S. Every day I hopefully look in our mail box, and every day I am disappointed. Sigh. I know they'll get here, but hey, when I'm looking forward to something it just seems too long.

I'm also anxiously waiting to hear back from my jury experience. I KNOW they said they'd be calling in early June (is it June yet?) but every time the (is it June yet?) phone rings I (is it June yet?) hope it's THE call. (well, you know, I really don't think I'll get into the show, but I'm still full of HOPE:) )

However, sometimes you're pleasantly surprised by something that happens that you really weren't expecting. I ordered our new catnip labels last week. Usually these things take a couple/few weeks but they arrived TODAY! And, they delivered them right to my door without charging me any delivery fee. How great is that?

Drum roll please....here they are. Aren't they cute?

Giant Schnauzers Gather & New Dog Forum

The Ontario Giant Schnauzer Grand Slam is this Saturday. Isn't this logo great? (designed by Tracy Riley).

I found out about this event last year and would love to attend. I'd just love to see all those Giant Schnauzers running around together. Looking at the photos from previous year's events made me envious. It's just a little to far to go (4 1/2 hours) for an afternoon event without John by my side. Unfortunately, the GS event seems to fall on the same weekend as an annual golf tournament that John organizes.

Who knows, maybe it's a good thing I can't go. I'm not sure how our GS Cinder would manage with all the other GS's. Cinder has very weak hind legs. Her heart and mind are very determined though and she'd probably be running all over the place trying to keep up to the others. She'd pay the price by the end of the day.

So, we won't be attending, but I sent down some goodies to give out to all the Giant Schnauzers at the event. Have a great time guys!

There's a new dog forum in town! Photographer Suzanne Bird decided it was about time that Ottawa (and area) had it's own dog forum. All dog lovers welcome. The forum is urbandogs.informe.com If you sign up, be patient with the process. I think it took about 12 hours for my account to be registered (and I got a couple of error messages along the way). It all works out in the end. The dog forum is very new and needs your input. If you know a good groomer, pet store, artist, special event, or whatever...let everyone know!

Oldies but Goodies - Barking Biscuit Tshirts

I've been in business almost 9 years, and constantly wonder about the best way to market The Barking Biscuit. I don't believe in advertising (way too costly for a small business). Over the years, I've been contacted by various magazines, newspapers, and internet advertising sales people...some of the costs were truly amazing. I guess my website must give a good impression...some of the costs were in the thousands of dollars just for one advertisement. Yikes.

So, I've tried a few things. One of my early inspirations was to have tshirts printed with different designs, and with my logo and website printed on the back of the shirt between the shoulder blades. These weren't big money makers, but I sold enough shirts on line to pay for all the shirts I gave away. I figured this was a good way to market...it paid for itself and there are lots and lots of people walking around with my logo and web site on their backs.

However, the tshirts sold out and printing costs have gone up a fair bit. I decided to go the Cafe Press route. This is an online service through the U.S. where people can order just about anything they want with your image on it.

So far, I've added 4 of my designs on to Cafe Press. These designs would be printed without my logo and website on the back, but at least maybe I'll still get our images out there.

I'm also going to add a Cafe Press shop with our new cat image (from our catnip labels). So, all in all, there will be 4 of our original 7 designs and 2 new cat designs available on Cafe Press.

Here are the dog designs available:

You can buy "Fire Hydrant" shirts, mugs, bags, whatever by going to: www.cafepress.com/firehydrant

You can buy "Paws to smell the flowers" shirts, mugs, bags, whatever by going to www.cafepress.com/pawstosmell
You can buy "It's a Dog Eat Dog World" shirts, mugs, bags, whatever by going to www.cafepress.com/barkingbiscuit

You can buy "Joy Ride" shirts, mugs, bags, whatever by going to www.cafepress.com/barkingbiscuit2

Arg! I've been hit

Tagged, that is.
Bumbershootska tagged me the other day. The rules - Each person tagged gives 5 random facts about themselves. Those tagged need to write in their blogs 5 facts, as well as the rules of the game. You need to tag 5 others and list their names on your blog. You have to leave those you plan on tagging a note in their comments so they know that they have been tagged and to read your blog.
Hmmm....now for my random facts (oh so many, what to choose?)

1. I love to read. I usually read over 50 books each year. Last year, I only managed to read 28 because I decided to knit sweaters to give away as Christmas presents. I am not a "knitter" so it was a real challenge for me to knit 4 sweaters in one year and it really put a dent in my reading time.
2. My son (who I consider to be my biggest life accomplishment) was born on my 26th birthday, on the 26th day of the month. There's something pretty special about that.
3. I've lost 3 of my family members to cancer (my brother, my mom & my sister). Cancer scares the heck out of me, and is the reason I've devoted some of my business products to raising funds for cancer research.
4. I would love to be "an artist". I dabble in many hobbies (photography, painting, knitting, sewing, glass mosaics) but I don't have the je ne sais quois to earn a living from any of them. I would love to be creative enough and confident enough to sell my efforts.
5. I prefer to receive gifts that are hand made. I don't expect my family to make everything they give me but I'd prefer it if they would support a crafter if they want to give me a gift. I think hand made gifts come from the heart. (and I'm so glad I discovered Etsy earlier this year)

Phew!
And now to tag 5 others:
Allyson - someone I find truly creative. I love to read her blog and see her new designs.
Amanda - someone new to blogging who might enjoy this challenge.
Angelique - very talented & busy lady. Hope she has time to do this.
Lauren - who's been in a funk lately. I want her to know I like following her blog and hearing about her farming life.
Last, but not least - another Amanda - who has fabulous modern art and lives in one of my favourite parts of the world.

The waiting game

Yesterday was my presentation in front of a jury to try to gain a spot in one of the largest Christmas gift shows in Ottawa. I knew going into this that my biggest challenge would be to get the jurors to think a little outside the box.

There was a 3 person jury, which in itself was not intimidating. However, the set up was not designed to put the presenters at ease. The room had one long table set up running the length of the room, with the 3 jurors sitting at it. There was a second long table running the length of the room directly opposite with about 10 feet between. When I entered the room, no one stood. I wasn't sure what the protocol was, but I went over and shook everyone's hand. I was asked to display my products on the second table, and then to give them a verbal history of the business. I didn't feel too nervous (yes, I was nervous but just a healthy sort of nervousness) and I don't think I could have presented anything any better than I did. I've gone over and over everything in my mind, and I can't think of any "I should have said this" or "I should have done that".

However, I'll be very very surprised if I get into this show. My biggest stumbling block was that none of the 3 people were "dog people". The concept of all natural & healthy dog biscuits didn't seem to interest anyone. The concept of people eating the dog biscuits kind of horrified them, even after I explained the ingredients. Yes, I know that eating dog biscuits is kind of weird. But look at the ingredients for my peanut butter biscuits: natural peanut butter (that's only crushed peanuts...nothing else), whole wheat flour, rolled oats, skim milk, and baking soda. Seriously, it's a peanut butter cookie without sugar or salt. They're good! (yes, I eat them when I'm packing biscuits and I get hungry. So far, I don't bark too often!)

I passed around an open bag of biscuits for the jurors to smell, and one of them didn't even want to smell the biscuits. This was definitely an uphill battle. The biscuits I passed around to smell were my Crunch for a Cure biscuits (raising funds for breast cancer research). The ingredients are: cranberry juice, rice flour, rolled oats, egg, baking soda, allspice. The allspice give the biscuits a lovely smell.

Anyway, at the end of my presentation one of the jurors gave me a 5 minute speech about how if they don't accept me into the show it's no reflection on my business or my products. Hmmm. Should I be reading something into this speech? We'll see.

There are 20 open spots and 80 people applying for them. We're supposed to hear from them early in June. Here's hoping for jurors who want to try something new!

Last week Japan, this week England

Last week our Crunch for a Cure biscuits went to Japan with a woman who went to visit a friend there.

This week, our Barking Biscuits are off to England. Sooty is waiting for his new supply of Say Cheese. Sooty says he needs some more cheesey twists to keep his energy levels up, and says they are very tasty and he just loves cheese! (these are his mom's words, not mine)

I love getting photos from our customers! It's nice to "meet" the four legged people who are enjoying our dog biscuits.

On another note...tomorrow is the big day! I'll be making a 20 minute presentation in front of a jury to try to get a spot in this year's Christmas gift show. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

These came in the mail today from Miss M (a little gift for Mother's Day...I'm not her mom...I'm her Bama. What's a Bama? It's the name she gave me for Grandma when she was younger. Her Grandpa (my John) is Baba).

I thought they were appropriate in light of tomorrow's events...my seeds of hope!

Seriously, though, aren't these great? They are seed balls. You lay them on top of the garden (you don't bury them in the ground) and keep them moist, and they sprout wildflowers. They are hand rolled by people with disabilities. Here's what the package says they'll produce: Love-in-the-Mist, china aster, pink cornflower, gypsyflower, baby's breath, globe candytuft, mallow, four o'clocks, Sweet-William Catchfly, zinnia, dahlia. Wow! That's a lot to pack into those little balls.
Update to come later this summer.

Who knew dogs could garden?

A week or so ago, our dog Mulligan was going crazy digging. She was obsessed and spent quite a long time going back to her hole. She's a medium size dog (about 55 pounds) and dug the hole so deep that only her tail showed when we looked out onto the meadow to see what she was up to. She never found anything, and we left the hole the way it was.

Yesterday, as we were touring the yard, I noticed lots and lots of sprouts close to Mulligan's hole. If you look closely, you can see the sunflower seeds still on some of the sprouts. There are hundreds of them spread in a 10 foot range.

My theory is that she found some sort of nest (maybe a squirrel's stash?) and was going after the rodent. When she was digging, she spread the seeds everywhere and now they have sprouted.

Mulligan is now my official gardening partner! I hope some of them grow. I'm not going to water them...just let nature take it's course. I'll post an update later in the summer.

Allyson Hill Creations

This is my little bug modelling a car litter bag by Allyson Hill. I discovered Allyson's blog a month or so ago (I have no idea how I ended up there but I'm very glad I did). Through Allyson's blog I discovered Etsy (a site where only hand made things are sold) and many, many talented people.

Litter bags were selected as Radiant Magazine's most unique find on Etsy! (congrats, Allyson). Her creations are available in many different materials. Check out her etsy shop to grab one for yourself. But I warn you, it will be hard to decide just which one to buy. Since I bought this one, I bought another for a family member (you can never Christmas shop too early). Everyone's probably going to get one this year!

I have a new purchase from Allyson coming soon....a zippered card case made in the pink bubblegum color of the same fabric as my litter bag. I'm going to pop my Barking Biscuit button pins in the see through card portion and carry them with me to give out to button collectors. Hopefully I'll have some of our logos marching around on bags everywhere!

Everything's coming up tulips

Road side asparagus from a farmer: $3.50

UV filter for my zoom lens: $29.99

Ride in our Miata to take photos of the Ottawa Tulip Festival: $priceless

This is Roy MacGregor. He is a performance artist, and does his painting live at different events. We saw him yesterday at the Tulip Festival. I just loved this painting, but alas it will be a while before I can afford to have a MacGregor in my home. His paintings command a cool $2500 to $3500 a piece.

But I do have reason to celebrate...I sold my first 2 items from my little Etsy shop! Yay! (thanks Beebee Mod!)

And...a woman phoned me yesterday to arrange to pick up some Barking Biscuits. She wanted to drop by and pick up some dog biscuits to take to Japan with her to give to a friend. Cool.

Friendly Frogs & Happy News

Aren't these the cutest little frogs? These are my new stitch markers from Purple Daisy. I am a self taught knitter, and until 2 weeks ago I didn't even know stitch markers existed. Up until now, I've only made sweaters...12 sweaters in the past 13 years. Last year was my busiest year when I made 4 sweaters...for our 2 grandchildren and their moms.
I always used a pin to mark my stitches but have been reading a couple of knitter's blogs and found out about stitch markers. These are just too cute for words!
Now if I can only find someone to teach me how to knit some socks.

I had great news on Friday. I have applied to sell Barking Biscuits at a Christmas craft show...one of the biggest shows in Ottawa. On Friday I found out that I've made it through the first approval phase! Yay! I now have to make a presentation in front of a jury on Thurs May 17th. This will be my first large scale show. I told my husband I don't know whether to be worried that I won't be accepted...or that I will be! The challenge is to show the jurors that dog biscuits belong in this exclusive show. (300 vendors, and they only accept between 15 - 30 new vendors each year) Please keep your fingers crossed for me!

Need your ideas (please!)

I'm going to make some little one inch button pins using our new catnip cat image (isn't he cute?) Of course, the pins won't have the "copyright barkingbiscuit.com" across the image!

My question to you is....should I put some text on the pins? Please give me your ideas! If I use your idea, you'll receive some button pins in the mail as soon as I get them printed up. (the pins will go to the first person who submits the idea if I receive the same idea from more than one person).

Suggestions wanted. Please. (I've received a few ideas that are catnip related..which is great...but I don't know if the people receiving these pins will necessarily connect the pins with the catnip idea. So maybe a few ideas for cat lovers as opposed to catnip lovers?)

Oh, and by the way...the winner of the new catnip labels is the design using the apple green background. I'm waiting to hear back from a couple of printing companies for quotes and then they'll get printed up. It's getting more & more difficult to find a company who will print round labels. There are lots in the U.S., but then we have to pay the dollar exchange (which isn't so bad at the moment) and duties, as well as the brokerage fees. That adds up to almost double the cost of the printing! Yikes.

and the winner is...

Beebee Mod has won my little draw for my guessing game. Incidentally, she was also the closest in coming to the correct answer until I left the clue about the Canadian flag.

This is another photo of the same subject...a maple tree blossom. I actually never really noticed them before this year but I was out in our yard a couple of weeks ago with my new macro lens and thought they looked pretty funky. The photos make a good conversation piece...they sure don't look like maple leaves to me!

Something fun from Beebee Mod's blog...what kind of cake are you?

I'm Strawberry. Give it a try!

You Are Strawberry Cake

Fresh, sassy, and romantic. You're a total flirt, who never would turn down a sugary treat. Occasionally you're a bit moody - but you usually stay sweet!

What Kind of Cake Are You?