Feature Friday- Lisabees

 *Disclaimer: All images in this post are from Lisa at Lisabees. I claim no credit or responsibility for any of the art or photography in this post.

This week's Feature Friday is about lovely lady named Lisa (I have a bit of a thing for alliteration lol) who runs an Etsy shop named Lisabees. She is a fantastically crafty and creative woman! She makes and handpaints original wooden signs and other home decor. And they are SO GORGEOUS! And apparently I am not the only one who thinks so, because she has over 4600 sales on Etsy! (Most of the sellers I've worked with so far had 100 average.) 4600 is amazing!

Take a look at one of my favorite pieces, this star ornament. I know its meant for Christmas, but I think it would work all year round. I love it! Its so simple, yet powerful.

Believe Star Ornament

And this one is just adorable. Imagine hanging it in a little girl's room! Or put nails in it and hang pictures on it for a 'family tree' anywhere in the house! (Lisa's suggestion btw! :) )

Curly Tree with Birds

She has items for every holiday and season as well. Like these:

Spring Block Set

Standing Easter Block Set

This last one is my absolute favorite. The price is a bit too steep for my budget, but I can dream can't I? The 3 hanging pieces are interchangeable, and it comes with pieces to represent every month! You can buy the sign and each month set separately if you want of course, as well as others like a birthday-themed set and sports-themed sets. Now, I'm normally not one for decorating for every holiday, but I think that would so adorable to hang on my door and change out each month!

Full Year Set of Monthly Welcome Decorations
(pictured is June)

Amazingly, as busy a woman as she is (they get so many orders that she and her husband made it their full-time jobs!), and she's been moving this month and had her daughter's birthday to boot, she still took the time to answer some questions for yall. What a sweetheart! So here they are (I'll call her LB for LisaBees :) )-

Where do you get your inspiration?

LB ~ When I first started creating I would get designs out of wood craft books. I started making them my own by changing different parts. Occasionally I would come up with an original idea. Then one day I made a commitment that I could no longer depend on anyone else for my creativity. When I started selling my own personal designs sales really took off. For me, inspiration comes from a variety of things such as paint colors, nature, kids clothing etc. One of my favorite things to do is when a customer wants me to make a custom design to match their child/s bedding. With all that said, I feel like my inspiration really comes from God. I remember being in a place in my life many years ago where I actually worried; “what if my creativity goes away”. I remember thinking; “what if I run out of ideas“. Soon after I learned an important lesson that forever changed the way I create. I learned that I am a piece of God, and if God is creative and endless then why wouldn’t I be the same. The moment I realized this, everything changed. I found that all I had to do was quiet my mind and the finished product would be placed in my mind. I would doodle out the image and then make patterns to be traced on wood. Nothing is more satisfying than watching the doodles come to life in a finished product. Even after all these years, it still does not get old for me. I want to add one more little tidbit. I really believe that every single person has the ability to be creative in some form whether it is gardening, decorating a house, glass work, etc. I believe there are two elements to tapping into this creativity: 1. Quieting your mind enough to hear the inspiration. 2. A belief in oneself. When you believe in yourself, opportunities just show up, ideas are given, and a fulfilling sense of connection to everything and everyone around you is placed in you. 

How/why did you decide to start selling on Etsy?

LB ~ I had been selling at local craft shows and shops for years. Every Friday or Saturday I would hop in the car with my husband and often small children to go restock. Then when my last son who is three now was born 3 months premature we started rethinking our long eight hour road trips each week. When we got to bring him home from the hospital he couldn’t stand to take long drives. Maybe it is because he spent his first three months of life tied up to cords and wires and wanted to be free from the car seat. One of our friends that we were wholesaling to had a store on Etsy and told us about it. It started out slow and then with some trial and error and asking people for advice sales started snowballing. Little by little we pulled out of every store we were selling at and stopped doing local craft shows all together. Now we sell full time on Etsy and don’t have to leave our house unless we want to.

What is your favorite thing you've made and why?

LB ~ This is a little hard to choose because I have been making things since my oldest son who just turned 18 was only 17 months old. I have over 350 items listed as available to purchase on Etsy. I probably have just as many designs not listed not to mention hundreds of designs that are still in the form of a doodle. I think two of my all time favorite designs are my Welcome Pumpkin and Hanging Flower Pot.  

Welcome Pumpkin

Hanging Flower Pot

What an inspiring story Lisa! Thanks so much for taking time out of your hectic schedule to share it with us!

If you've seen anything here you like, or even if you didn't, head on over to her shop and check out the rest! She is running a special for spring, if you hurry you can get 15% your order using the code SPRINGBEES! It ends mid-April though, so if you're like me and you've dragged your feet or couldn't decide or didn't have the money at the time and time ran out, she's given me another code for yall to use, BEELUCKY, that is good for 10% off year-round! Oh and one more thing, if you saw something you like but want a different color, or if you have an idea what you want but can't do it on your own, contact her about it! They specialize in custom orders. As she said above, she loves to make custom items to match kids bedding or room themes, so if you can describe it, I'd bet she can make it for you! And be sure to send pictures of anything you get, I want to see! Call me living vicariously through you all hehe :p