It’s been a wild ride since we started Craftedmoon back in 2017. I had just given birth to baby Willow, and we took a road trip down to Florida to see family. Scott, my best friend and husband, was the ultimate brainstorming partner for the 8-hour drive. During that trip we came up with a fun niche brand geared towards the Crafty Homebody. Those first ideas became the cornerstone of Craftedmoon! We launched at Quiltcon in February 2018. My nerves at starting something new turned into elation very quickly. We were a big hit!
And we had an incredible 3 years. I was so excited. I was a new mom and figuring out ways to still have an outlet for my art passion. We were able to generate enough business to bring my husband home so we could have a nice work/life balance. Things were running pretty smoothly.
Until 2020 happened.
Without going too far into 2020 territory that we’re all familiar with by this point, I switched my focus to teaching. Supply chains, customer habits, and even my growing family’s needs changed. It made me a little sad to stick Craftedmoon on the back burner, as it were, but I have always been really proud of my scrappiness and my ability to pivot. I haven’t let that Craftedmoon dream go though. I’ve done some product drops here and there and tested out new formulas for how I could get this business back to what Scott and I dreamed up back in 2017.
And that’s not to say that it’s all been sad since 2020. It turns out that teaching is another huge passion of mine, and has enabled me to bring on a team of people to help out. At a certain point, I realized that I could simply allow myself to accept help and, in turn, give that growing team of people a pleasant work experience. By continuing to grow the business, I was giving myself and my family more freedom. At the same time, I was fostering a fun, creative community not only for my students but also for my employees. Their dreams and growth are important to me too.
I am in a new phase of my career, emotionally. 2024 has been a year of inner work. Coming out of a few difficult experiences this year, I can very clearly see what my “why” is. What is the drive behind all of this? I crave that vibrant community more and more. I treasure those relationships that I have built over the years. I crave slowing down a bit and having a little more fun. I value less hustle and more joy.
And part of what brings me joy is Craftedmoon. After much ado, we have finally found what we’ve been looking for. We are using print-on-demand methods to avoid housing inventory, which also reduces waste by only making what is purchased. Having the majority of our production printed on demand has the added benefit of freeing up some space for even more fun projects and products.
So join us for a new adventure! We continue to be focused on slow, community-driven growth. We want to collaborate with our customers on ideas, and we want to collaborate with other artists. Life is more fun with our community! Stay tuned, and we hope you enjoy this wild ride with us.
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