Howdy and happy Friday! We are happy these got done in time for our weekend markets – since I can’t really help with the bees, I can do things like keep up with the social media, some emails, phone inquiries, and create and edit print materials such as our postcards. Those things fly off the table and they also get used a lot in our packaged and shipped merchandise. Nice to have them in and reflecting our new social media logos. I have been meaning to do a post on all our social media but haven’t had a chance to but for now, definitely check us out on Pinterest – just search for Gretchen Bee Ranch and there we are. I am somewhat in extreme love with Pinterest. I’d use some exclamation points there but I’d probably get carried away and scare you. That’s how much I love it. I describe Pinterest as a visual bookmarking site and I fell in love with it the first time I tried it last year since I’m very visual, as you likely guessed from all my pictures. I do best when I can see things or can at least visualize things. (If you tell me about someone, I usually ask their name at least so I can create an image in my mind.) I resisted getting GBR on Pinterest for the longest time simply because I wasn’t sure I could handle adding yet another social media “thing” to keep up with but finally realized I needed to do it. Plus the app for the phone is a huge help and it’s yet another way to connect with others and share ideas, which I do enjoy a lot. So, go check GBR out on Pinterest – it’s pretty cool. And don’t worry, the initial obsession phase eases after the first week and then you either find value in it and start your own boards (think clipboards), or you realize you will lose too many hours just looking at all the prettiness and shut down your account. That’s okay. Just come back to us on the blog or one of the other accounts! lol Have fun! And I DO try the many of the things I pin, just in case people tell you Pinterest lovers simply pin things they’ll never own, do, or try to cook. I try.
[Side note: I really wish someone would pay me to just find and teach people about social media. :)]
Yesterday we had a lovely visit and consultation with Maeve of Design Maeven out of Austin. Totally great times! We had a wonderful discussion about where we want to see our product lines and image evolve towards and how she might help us get there. Exciting!! We found Maeve online after we looked at the Sweet Cream Suds Company, which is own by a customer who bought a variety of our products. We loved the look of her shop and products and when we Googled more about things, we eventually found Maeve’s name and a few emails later, here she is.
Of course we took her to see the bees and she did great with them and vice versa. They were calm and Maeve handled them calmly and no one got stung. Good all around. We like it when the people we work with want to really know what we are about so one great way for us to see what they are like and about is to invite them to the Bee Ranch. Here they get to see us in our element and we have a chance to see how they feel about what we do. We are thrilled to have found Maeve – not sure our paths would ever have crossed with Maeve’s had it not been for all this social media connectivity. 🙂 See? I brought it all around from beginning to end. lol
Personal note: I love crafting and paper arts and paper in general. I appreciate quality craftsmanship and attention to detail. We are so glad to have a chance to meet someone who recognizes that presentation of yourself, your product and your image is all tied together and is very important. It’s important to us. So here’s to a partnership that will hopefully help us move our company on to the next level. We want to show people our uniqueness and we look forward to Maeve helping us do that. Stay tuned!
Check it out – books with samples of some lovely, lovely papers, packaging and design ideas. I really enjoyed thumbing through them. Nothing like great stock to make you want to create something beautiful and fun.
Now…off to wrap up candles for market and fold table covers. See y’all tomorrow at the Pearl and Sunday at the Quarry!
Gretchen Bee Ranch 