Budgeting Our Trunk Show

Helllooo and what a beautiful day it is!

We knew that coming into this business wasn’t going to be inexpensive. We don’t have sponsors or investors, but we have great family and friends who have supported us unconditionally. And of course, a whole lot of creativity, innovation, and inspiration!

Other than our design/crafting life, we also hold regular jobs, go to school, and have a family life.

So we put our brains together…great minds think a like…and we managed a budget many would be surprised it even created an outfit, let alone a collection. Which concludes the reason why many of our items are affordable.

There are many concepts and supplies that are needed when it comes to creating a collection. Many of those things include fabrics, notions, thread, other materials you may need to complete your outfit, and tools. Because we also make our own accessories and jewelry – we needed beads, jewelry findings, wires, etc. The list can go on and on. This is where our creativity kicked in. Plus, we are bargain shoppers…we love sales!

It was our very lucky weekend – Memorial Weekend. Joann was hosting one of their biggest sale event. All clearance fabric was an additional 50% off (we got fabrics for $2-$4 a yard); buttons and notions were all on sale – 50% off; and we had coupons for 10% off your total purchase and 40% a single full priced item. We also got strands of beads on clearance!! Now that’s a great deal! Some things are really worth waiting for.

We also found a small fabric store that was going out of business. Of course we paid a visit and made some purchases because you can’t pass off fabric for $2 a yard. We also did some wholesale shopping, visited shops on Etsy, and made our rounds at vintage and thrift stores.

Our most creative and innovative idea was…recycling. Because we are shopping lovers and have a tendency to collect a lot of clothes, instead of donating what we didn’t want we reused them. Some items were reconstructed and some were deconstructed. If we didn’t find a big use out of them we found a small use. For example, reusing buttons or lace; or we would turn them into scrap fabrics which could then be turned into fabric flowers, ruffles, or another form of embellishment.