At what point is it just a leap of faith?

azsandy

nametags: Sorry, I wasnt sure if you were addressing me or kelliann74-new to this forum stuff. Im in a "sort of" rural area, yet not far from major city; and have access to tons of people. I really was thinking that perhaps there are "too many" moms with machines but now I think its just a matter of growing a business, even now, that will seperate me from the moms with machines. I think you are on the mark with your last statement, and I appreciate your comments very much. I will be sure to send you a message if I have more questions.

EnMartian: Thank you so much for your post. I value everything you and others are saying, and believe me, it is a help. I know it will take time and perseverence to be successful, and I believe you eventually can't just rely on one source of income either. There has to be some versatility in what you do or you may get left behind.

Again, thank you to both of you!

kelliann74

THank you all for such great advice. I'm still looking for a machine. Waiting for the school year to be over before I make a serious commitment. I live in an area that would probably be considered oversaturated. No doubt, you could easily go to the mall and have whatever you wanted embroidered. I'm hoping that what will set me apart will be my background in sewing/craft making.

nametags

OH, and try to do hats,,,,I know many don't like doing them, but, it's a good foot in the door thing.

SunEmbroidery

Having a niche can make a big difference when gaining new customers and asking for a good price. Unfortunately, many people provide baby/youth items so you may have to specialize even more such as organic baby wear or choose another area. Also, you might want to check on the new CPSIA laws regarding clothing for youth.

If you can talk up clients such as retail stores ahead of time that might lead to regular orders. If you decide to provide business wear consider contacting printers, promotional products distributors and sign makers.

__________________
Jennifer

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karen_1988

I am sorry to hear you story.I know something about embroidry machine.as we all know,different kind of machines have different prices.the most important issue is what kind of machine you like?how about the price?If you really need i can give your some advice.

deanna2

Hi Kellian74
I know you posted this some time ago but I felt that maybe my experience can be of some help to you. I had always done some crafts and sewing but had never done embroidery before. In December of last year, I purchased a baby lock professional embroidery plus machine. it was costly but the salesman provided software along with 2 of every hoop including the hat hoop and attachments.
Not knowing anything about embroidery, I started reading every forum and website that I could find and practicing on t shirts and hats.
This is my fifth month and I do this evenings after work but this week alone I have done over 50 hats so far. I got these orders by giving a couple of hats out free and talking it up at work. I like doing hats for women mostly and they love them. It is very rare to find a nice pastel hat with nice embroidery for women since most hats are geared to men.
I also do a lot of hats with the cancer ribbons on them or different cancer symbols.
I agree that there is a demand for hats and most small teams cant afford a big company who want minimum orders before they will embroider for them. This is the niche I find myself in and I dont mind one bit. You will find your niche and if you enjoy crafts and being with your family, then you will enjoy what you do and your love of your work will show in everything you set you hands to.
Good luck and you know the leap of faith is just that..faith in yourself..