Weird Etsy Things

So, I'm very confused and perplexed by the Etsy crowd. People actually do sell things on Etsy. You can see what has been sold. There are people out there, all over the world, purchasing things from Etsy. I have people looking at my products. I have one hat that has been viewed 161 times. I have 15 people who claim me as a favorite. I'm advertising on two different blog sites, specifically for moms (as my products are for cute kids and their moms!), and in the last month since I started, I've made one sale (ok, I've made two sales, but the first was to my friend Meghan who bought a cupcake from me just to give me my first sale...). Personally, I think my stuff is pretty darn cute. Others have told me so as well. People have hired me to make baby hats for them. In other words, this is not all in my mind. And yet, I cannot get anyone to purchase my products.

Now, this is what gets me. I like to look at Time Machine 2 on Etsy--it's a list of the most recently posted products, so you get to see a huge variety of what's out there. On Time Machine 2 I ran across home-made maxi pads. And the description, well, it defied description. As Meghan put it, "way to go green, crazy lady!". First of all, these things are machine washable. Now, I have a brand new front load washer and dryer. State of the art Whirlpool Duet with a sanitizing feature. I use this sanitizing feature at least one each laundry day (yes, I have laundry days--I can't do a load every day like my friends do) to wash towels and my kids' underwear. I would not ever wash my maxi pads in the washing machine, even on the sanitizing setting. Those are items that are meant to be thrown away. The creator of these ingenious products goes on to say that, if you hose them off in your garden, it makes great plant food. I'm just picturing my neighbor, Walter, poking his head over the fence for a chat, as he often does, and seeing me hosing down my maxi pads in my rose garden. I think he would move away. And how do you tell people what you do? "Oh, all of this cute fabric I'm buying? Why, I'm making my own maxi pads! Would you like to order some?"

My point is this: she has sold 25 of these things. I am making the most adorable baby hats, felted bunny slippers, plush cupcakes with beaded sprinkles....honestly, my stuff is precious. And no one wants it.

Mike thinks I should start to knit my own maxi pads. Then I'll be sure to make them the right size and he will never again come home from the store with the wrong product. And then I will finally get some sales!