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Five years ago, if you said the word ‘blog’ to me, I would have wrinkled my nose at you. Before we traveled to China to adopt our daughter, my husband announced that he had set one up for me, so our friends and family could follow our journey. I shuddered at the thought of becoming a ‘blogger’. By the time we returned from China, I was hooked. The adoption blog took on a life of it’s own, wait, no. It took on my life, and kept going and going. Last Christmas, I made my daughter some dress up costumes. Those pieces spawned many fights at playdates, and I found inspiration for a new business, sewing that is, not referee. For almost twenty years I’ve been a professional theatre costumer. If I could make costumes for actors, why not kids? Friends had already opened shops on Etsy, now it was my turn. I was a business ingénue, and looked to the resources on the Etsy site for guidance. Sure I could sew, but what did I know about marketing or finance? That’s when I discovered the remarkable EtsyKids Team. Here was a group to offer support and advice in my new venture. A year ago, I had no idea how valuable this team would become to my fledgling business. In the past few weeks, there have been many changes in the team’s staff. The team’s founder, Shannon, of The Clever Kitty, and new mother to baby number two, has stepped down from her leadership position. Marci of Lillikins and Jocelyn at The Little Love Bug have moved up from their previous positions to become Co-Leaders of the EtsyKids Team. All of this change has opened a new place for me on the Etsykids Team, and a way to contribute back to the team that has done so much for me. It is a bit ironic that role is as Blog Captain, for someone who ridiculed blogs five years ago. With the help of the other staff writers and team members, we hope to allow our artists and customers to get to know each other better. We will continue to offer craft advice and How To Projects from team members. For our team, we will help with business advice. Stop back soon to see what the artists on the Etsykids Team are creating for you, and don’t forget to look for us on Etsy.

Lisa