Busy November & Sign up for Savings!

We've been having a busy and fun November! The month kicked off with a wedding in the family and over the weekend we celebrated a milestone birthday. There hasn't been a whole lot of time for knitting but I've squeezed in just a little bit.

THN Feature

The month kicked off with a guest blog post on the Hook Nook. I shared my strategies for selling handmade items when you also have a full time day job. Read the post.

Custom Knitting

No matter how many pairs of mittens we knit and keep stocked in our shop, someone's bound to request a custom order. This hat will be worn by a toddler during his family photo shoot over Thanksgiving! View Marion's Mittens on Etsy.

Big Sales Happening Soon!

Our best and biggest sale is always during Black Friday / Cyber Monday weekend. Marion loves a coupon and always shops on sale, so we like to extend the opportunity to our loyal shoppers! Sign up to receive our biggest promo code of the year in your inbox.

Knit Messy Bun Hats & Headbands

All of our knitted headbands are on sale this week. One style is wide enough to work as a messy bun hat or a neck cowl. Talk about a multitasker!

Shop the sale

This is the wider style of the two headbands. It has a snug fit for maximum warmth.

The narrower headband takes on a loose braided style and looks great from all angles! These headbands are a perfect match to our infinity scarves. Available individually or as a set of three.

Scarves, baby hats and afghans, and crochet shop towels are also on sale this week!

Shop the sale

Black Friday Weekend & New Knitted Headband Gift Sets

Have you been working on your holiday shopping this weekend? I wrapped up most of mine yesterday and it feels so good.  :)

Our Black Friday coupon code was emailed to subscribers last week. Did you miss it? You can still sign up here for coupons.

During this major shopping weekend we launched a new line: knitted headbands for her! These are soft, stretchy, cozy, and sure to be a favorite stocking stuffer.

Our headbands come in a set of three - one each purple, gray, and blue.

They are double knit in a chunky brioche style.

Give them all to one person on your list, or divide between co-workers, friends, family, teachers, dog walkers, and more from your list. One size fits most and everyone likes something soft and warm!

Shop hand knitted headbands

Marion's Mittens shop on Etsy

4th Anniversary of Marion's Mittens!

Yay, it's the fourth anniversary of the Marion's Mittens shop! Marion has been knitting for much longer than that... like 70 years longer... but it's been four years since we opened an Etsy shop on October 12, 2012.

Just a few weeks ago we had our 400th Etsy sale. It was amazing to meet that milestone in four years!

We have also been receiving some great feedback from our customers. Here's a review from a customer who has bought from us several times over the years including a custom order in September:

Our shop has come a long way since we started with about a dozen pairs of mittens four years ago.

Here's a sampling of what we have to offer these days:

• Mittens for adults in 46(!!!) different colors
• Mittens in a new size for adults with smaller hands
• Three sizes of kids' mittens, in 3-4, 5-6, and 7-8 (our small adult size fits bigger kids)
• An optional string that connects mittens of any sizes, worn through the coat sleeves to help prevent loss of a mitten
• Mittens for babies in four sizes, for newborns, 6-12 months, 12-18 months, and 18-24 months
• Hat and mitten sets for preemies and newborns knitted from superfine merino wool
• Knitted and crocheted baby afghans
• Pompom garlands and purse puffs

Wow, that sounds like a lot when I list it out! The shop certainly keeps us busy but we love sharing the things we knit with you. 

Shop Marion's Mittens on Etsy

Want Black Friday & Cyber Monday Deals? Sign Up Now!

I hope you have a great Thanksgiving! After the big feast, holiday shopping begins for many people.

The Black Friday / Cyber Monday time of year is when we offer our biggest discounts. This year you can take up to 40% off your purchase from Marion's Mittens!

It's not too late to receive our coupon codes. They're going out in our email newsletter TOMORROW!

Click to sign up. We never spam, and only email a few times each year.

green infinity scarf

red mittens on a string

white baby afghan

Shop Marion's Mittens

Cyber Monday Deal from Marion's Mittens - Free Shipping! Shop Unique on Etsy This Holiday Season

If you missed out on our Black Friday deal, don't be sad... it's Cyber Monday!

Today we're offering USA customers free shipping on any order of $20 or more. Head on over to our Etsy shop to browse!

Happy shopping! And, as always, remember to sign up for our e-newsletter. The sales are always bigger for our best customers!

2014 Black Friday Deals from Marion's Mittens! #ShopUnique and Buy Handmade on Etsy

Happy Thanksgiving! As you prepare to feast with your family, remember to be thankful for online shopping. No need to stand in long lines. A few taps on your phone or some browsing on your computer is all you need to do to buy your gifts.

Handmade presents are always special, even if you don't make them yourself. It tells the recipient that you took time to choose something unique, rather than a pre-packaged gift on a display in a big box store.

Here's our Black Friday promotion:

Starting now through the end of the day on 11/28 you can take 40% off of your order of $40 or more! That's kind of like buying two adult pairs and getting a kid's pair for free.  :)

Orders placed this weekend should most certainly arrive in time for holiday delivery in the USA and Canada. There's a good chance other places will receive their shipments in time, too. Head on over to our Etsy shop to browse!

Happy shopping! And, as always, please sign up for our newsletter if you'd like access to extra-special sales. ;)

Happy New Year!

As always, the holiday season has flown by. I hope that 2014 is off to a great start for you!
Here's a little 2013 year-in-review for Marion's Mittens, plus what we've got planned for 2014.

Firsts in 2013

• Our new business cards and banner came in!
• Lots of new products were added to the shop: mini mittens, solid scarves, patterned scarves, baby blankets, and socks.
• We attended our first craft fair; in fact, we attended four!
• To expand our audience we tested out online advertising.

Shop Performance

November and December are our busiest months for orders. So far this season we've sold 30% more mittens than we did last year! That is in part because of the addition of our very popular mini mittens.

2014 and Beyond

There's a sale going on at Marion's Mittens right now to help you ward off the deep freeze that's affecting a lot of the country:

There are still plenty of mittens in all sizes, plus scarves and socks in stock in the shop. (This post was brought to you by the letter S.)

Of course, mitten season tends to taper off in February, but we'll spend the off season working on some new things for next fall!

Managing Orders During the Holiday Season

The holidays are a busy time, especially for cold-weather items! Mittens make a great gift because they stretch to fit and come in many colors.

The busiest time of year for Marion's Mittens is during the months of November and December. Temperatures drop and people start thinking about holiday gifts.

I have a little system in place to help process orders quickly. I usually ship within 1 day of purchase despite working a full time job.

Everything's on sale Friday-Monday!

Inventory Management

I use a simple database to track my inventory. This way I know exactly what sizes and colors are on hand.  Later on, I can look back at the best sellers and make sure there are plenty of those in stock next time.

I keep the mittens neatly stacked and organized by size and color so it's easy to find a pair that's been sold.

During the busy season we do not take custom orders. (Well, we do, but don't promise them any time soon!) It's much simpler to keep the orders flowing from existing inventory.

Packaging Supplies

I wrote a little bit about packaging supplies once before. During the busier time of year I keep them at the ready! The basics are:

• Poly envelopes
• Printable shipping labels
• Tissue paper
• Colored paper for receipts
• Digital scale for weighing packages

Online Postage

Etsy makes it easy to pay for postage right through my shop. It's cheaper than at the Post Office and I can leave the package in my mailbox for pickup. No lines.  :)

I use my Staples rewards from recycling ink to buy supplies like shipping labels. I've found that the Avery 8126 5.5" x 8.5" labels work well in my printer.

Fall Mittens in the Shop Now!

We're back in action after a little break for the end of summer.  Had to squeeze in every bit of warmth before fall!  A few weddings, lots of family visits, and day trips didn't leave much time for the blog.  And now it's time to stock up on mittens before the real chill hits.  Shop early for your favorite colors.  :)

You can take 25% off anything in the Marion's Mittens Etsy shop by using coupon code BACK2SCHOOL.  The code expires on September 30 and it applies to mittens for all sizes, scarves, and home decor.

Here's a sampling of some mittens that have recently been added:

yellow

purple & aqua variegated

autumn red variegated

fuscia sparkle

dark country blue

There's also a gorgeous black sparkle pair plus a rich navy that haven't yet been listed.  Get in touch if you're interested in those!

And here are a few old favorites:

black

grey heather

victorian rose