Maing Progress Crafting Sock Monkeys

I have LOT of photos posted on my Sock Monkeys By Cheryl FACEBOOK page!


SOCK MONKEYS FOR SALE

 

 

I also have posted a few of the socks I have on hand to be made into Sock Monkeys, Sock Bears, Sock Bunnies, Sock Cats, Sock Owls, Sock Piggies, Sock Hedgehogs, Sock Dogs, etc!  There is no limit to the Sock Pals I can come up with!!

Future Sock Pals

 

This is only the beginning!  I still have a lot of socks not pictured for the other smaller projects like Owls and Piggies.  I will soon be on more of a regular blogging schedule, but my facebook page will be getting the most attention!

 

 

 

 

 With my first fair coming up at the beginning of next month, look for lots of posts on how it goes!

 

 

New Sock Creations

So I have been trying in my every so minimal spare time to make more Sock Monkeys, stock piling them in fact, in hopes to try my hand at selling some at a craft fair this Summer/Fall.  Still looking for a table, but am not really too worried.  I figure if I can't find one, we can use sawhorses and plywood with a lovely cloth to cover it if needed.
While searching for new ideas on line, as I often do during downtime at work, I discovered how much I LOVE doing Sock Owls, Sock Pigs, and a different style of Sock Kitty!!

These pictured are my prototypes!  I love this pic of my sewing table cause you can see the Sock Monkey Mayhem going on behind! I have made about 5 more Sock piggies and 6 or so Sock owls, perfecting their look more each time.  I will put them up in my Etsy store as soon as I have about 10 or so each ready fro sale.  http://www.etsy.com/shop/SockMonkeysByCheryl

I know it seems odd that I bring my Sock Monkey box with me just about everywhere I go to work on, but last night someone asked if I sold them & wanted my number to possibly buy some!  So even though I do seem a little (a lot) eccentric in my habits, I still think its a good idea.

I do think one reason I've been making more Sock Creations is this week has been a moody sad week for me.  I can't tell you the reason, as I have no idea why, but there are a lot of sad memories that Spring up this time of year.  So I am trying to stay positive, and stay busy, (the latter has been very easy). 

I do put a lot of love in each and everyone.  I am going to have a hard time letting go of a lot of them, but I have sold quite a few before when my daughter was in middle school, and enjoyed the joy it brought those who took them home.  As long as I take lots of pictures of them before they are "adopted"  to remind me just how awesome and cute they are, I will be okay. :)

This weekend is a Fair that I did not have enough Sock Monkeys to try to sell at, but I do think I will be going if the weather holds up!

New Facebook Page

I finally decided that if I was going to start going to craft fairs to try to sell my Sock Monkeys, then I must have a Facebook Page.  I have already posted lots of pictures, and will try to keep posting more as I make more Sock Pals, but I am also trying to get a whole bunch done before I feel I am ready to commit to a craft fair.
Feel free to come like my page to help spread the word!

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sock-Monkeys-by-Cheryl/556046834415484

In other news, I had decided to test the waters a little more on other Sock Animals and have come up with some good results!  I have revamped my Sock Cat, make quite a few little Sock Piggies and learned how to make a Sock Owl.  All of these were much easier than I had expected, so I will definitely be adding them to my inventory!  I will post pics of the new Sock animals soon!  As it gets closer to the Holidays I think I may even dabble with Snowmen, but that is still a few months away.

I am definitely shooting for a big festival this September as my first, but hoping I will be doing 1 or 2 before that.  Life, after all, comes before Sock Monkeys unfortunately, as well as my full time job and my 2 teen aged kids.  I did manage to get a woman custom order a Sock Monkey from me recently who had been watching me make my Sock Monkeys while waiting in an office.  Yes, I make my monkeys everywhere I go if I can.  I even embroidered a name on for her which was a first for me, and not as difficult as I had thought.

I have big plans for the future of my Sock Monkey "business" but Etsy sales are non-existent, so we will see how the fairs treat me.  I was selling quite a few when my daughter was in middle school I was selling at least 2 a week to her friends and teachers, so I know they are loveable enough!  I do think that since I have only 2 listings on Etsy and the price of shipping is so high that most people would rather buy something so loveable and cuddly in person.  I will definitely keep the Etsy store going in hopes that the craft fairs will put the word out too.

I have bought a pop up canopy and even a folding chair to ready myself for the oncoming fair!  Now I just need a table and a few signs made up.  I am so excited!

How To Make A Sock Monkey

I made this video just for fun!




Any suggestions are appreciated! I do hope this video inspires others to tap in to their creative side!

Making Sock Monkeys

So far this year I have already made 17 Sock Monkeys.  Four were  requested and bought, two more were purchased, so the rest, including another10 or so that I have had are the start of my stock pile of Sock Monkeys!  Someone suggested that if I wanted to sell at a craft fair, I should have at least 100 Sock Monkeys ready before I go.  I have no idea how realistic that number is, but I figure why not?  I have about 23 Fuzzy Christmas Socks, around 20 or so Fuzzy Socks, and 10 Red Heel Socks so far to make Sock Monkeys, Sock Bears, Sock Bunnies, and whatever else I come up with.  I am hopeful that my Sock Monkeys would sell, but honestly if I only sell 10, I would be happy with that.  Most of the fairs around here, the "booth" rentals for the weekend are usually about $40 more or less depending on the event, so if I can make that plus a little for my time, I won't complain.  I know my Sock Monkeys are adorable and I do think that seeing them in person, touching them, hugging them they would literally sell themselves.  Pictures do not do them justice!  I found some cute little mini fuzzy socks and made all 6 of them into Sock Monkeys.

 They are SO CUTE!  My daughter kept one of them, and I think I am going back this weekend to buy more of those mini socks.  I think they would make the BEST mini Sock Bunnies for Easter.  I also made a How to Make a Sock Monkey Tutorial video with still photos, so as soon as I get it on YouTube, I will post it here too!  I didn't like the Tutorials I found even though I did get a few good tips from them, I still think my Sock Monkeys look better.  I know it seems kind of like shooting myself in the foot when I'm trying to sell mine as well, but at the same time, I don't really make them to make money off of them.  I tell everyone I who sees me making my Sock Monkeys anytime I'm at the Doctor's office or waiting for a long time that this is my therapy.  And it is.  Making these cute little Sock Monkeys, Sock Bears, Sock whatever makes me happy.  It has brought me through a tough time.  I put a lot of love and care into my Sock Monkeys, I hug them, I play with them a tiny bit to make sure they are durable, and they always make me smile.  What craft or hobby do you have that you pour your heart into?

Sock Monkey Videos

Just for fun I made a video montage of photos of almost all the Sock Monkeys I have made in the past 3 years.

They are just too cute!  I am trying to organzie my time right so I can make enough Sock Monkeys for a Craft fair this year.

Now these are the ones I have for sale online.  With so many people selling Sock Monkeys, it seems that without the right kind of promotion it is diificult to sell a lot online.  Still I am not gettting discouraged becuase I absolutely LOVE making my Sock Monkeys.  Serisouly, even if they don't sell, I will still make them.  My Sock Monkeys have helped me through so much.  I did neglect them last year, though with all my time spent packing, moving, unpacking and then organizing, I barely made any!  But now I am settled (mostly) and ready to start creating more cute Sock Monkeys!

Halloween Sock Monkey

Always adding more, always making Sock Monkeys!  I know it is WAY off, but I figured why not?  I added these Halloween Sock Monkeys to my Etsy store! http://www.etsy.com/shop/SockMonkeysByCheryl

Over the weekend I went and bought a bunch of new Fuzzy socks at the local flea market.  I have decided to give a craft show/festival a try.  Realistically, though, to be able to do one, I should have at LEAST 50-100 completed Sock Monkeys (Bears, Bunnies, Cats, etc) before I put that money down for the fair.  Everyone else seems to think I will do really well, so I figure why not give it a shot.  I don't want to spend too much money out for it though.  I still need to buy a folding table which we need at home any way, and of course one of those tents.  I guess if selling at the fairs doesn't pant out, we could use a tent like that in the yard occasionally, so it wouldn't be a waste.  So lots to think about and plan to really get this going.  If it doesn't work out, at least I will have had the experience, but I have also been reading othe blogs and forums and realize that what may not do well in one show, might sell out in another, so I should try at least 3 or 4 this year.  Of course, if I did sell out completely that would be amazing!  I do love each and everyone of my Sock Monkeys, so sometimes I have trouble letting them go to new homes, so doing a show might be harder than you think!