No Time To Stamp?

I’ve had the pleasure of running into Joan Fricker twice in the last month, and seeing as she is from Indiana and I’m from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula well, that’s pretty amazing! On our second visit we had much more time to sit and talk, and I learned so many fun things about Joan.

Joan has a long history in sales that I found quite fascinating. She’s done a lot of what I would consider *fun* things along the way, requiring hard work and dedication, leading up to where she is today — just having fun in Blogland, creating, posting, making friends, and still — selling!!! Yes, Joan has anEvery Monday Sale on her blog — low key, easy to manage and, most importantly, a project she considers fun!!! More detailson her Every Monday Sale will follow, but first, a bit aboutJoan.

• Joan’s first job was at age 5, selling potholders door to door
• As a school girl Joan worked in her parents grocery store attached to their home in Teegarden, IN
• After marrying at age 17 and adopting a daughter,Joan sold Avon for 7 years
• After DH’s motorcycle accidentJoanneeded more income, soshe began selling toys for a season, which was her start in the party plan business
• Joan’s love for interior decorating led her to a company called HODA (similar to Home Interiors), where she managed 30 women for about 14 years, always placing in the Top 10 in sales (#1 in sales 1 year!). Joan had found her niche! Interior decorating was her love!
• Joan purchased a Decorating Den Franchise and became a full fledged interior decorator selling draperies, furniture, wallpaper, carpeting and accessories. Within 2 years Joan was ranked #2 in the state of Indiana. Her 80 hour work weeks were fun, but extremely stressful.
• 6 months after purchasing her Decorating Den Franchise, Joan’s husband was diagnosed with cancer and passed on 18 months later. Joan continued working, but the joy was gone. She sold her business by the time it was 4 years old.
• Still needing an income, Joan started selling jewelry for a party plan company, shortly becoming manager with 30 girls under her. Joan did this job merely for an income, not for love of the job.
• After a few years, a new manenters Joan’s life, they were married, and he asked her to quit the jewlery job and be home evenings, much to Joan’s delight!
• Joan and DH now become involved in a company selling natural products and together they developed an organization of over 200 people.
• Joan became tired of trying to keep 200 people motivated and felt she needed a hobby. She started making soap, and soon decided she needed to sell some of it to support her habit (sound familiar — LOL!)
• In short order, Joan had 11 employees in her soap business and had accounts across the nation as well as internationally. Candles and other toiletries were added to her line. After 9 years of again 80+ hour work weeks, the fun was gone. Once again, it was time to sell her business and take control of her life.
• Joan is loving the stress-free days of her retirement. She enjoys canning, flower gardening and making cement leaves. Thecement leaves are AMAZING – check them out here. She also started scrapbooking, fell in love with digital scrapping and spent time learning Adobe Photoshop. Then enters card making, rubber stamps, etc. — and I think you can all get the picture after this point — LOL!!!

No matter how busy Joan stays, her love of selling just won’t quit! She loves going to trades shows (thus her CHA trip) and searching out new and exciting things. Joan has an adorable little shop at her home (pictured above) and this fall she plans to develop that into a small local business where card makers can gather, create, share and enjoy those simple pleasures that are inherent with this hobby. And given Joan’s history, I just have a hunch her latest venture will be a smashing success!!!

Joan is slowly, but surely, stocking her little store, and in the meantime she runs a fun and simple Every Monday Sale onher blog. She only lists a handful of items each Monday, ships them out promptly, and then she’s done — until next Monday!

So, what lines does Joan carry? Well, some really GREAT lines that we all know and love. Joan currently has:

• Crafty Secrets Stamps
• Inkadinkado Stamps
• Cricut Cartridges
• Cuttlebug Embossing Folders
• Spellbinders
• May Arts Ribbon

Joan will soon be receiving:

• Hanna Stamps
• Art Impression Stamps
• JustRite Stampers
• Scor-It
• Scor-Pal
• Crystal Elements
• Glue Glider

So, if you’d like, stop in to see Joan and check out what she’s got for sale today. Her prices are certainly very reasonable and her shipping beyond compare! You just never know what you might find at Joan’s Garden. Keep scrolling down once you get there asitems are all listed separately.

And being a huge fan of beautiful vintage images, I’d like to leave you today with some creations made using Crafty Secrets images.

I made this card in May 2007 for the Fan Club Gallery at SCS. Itis 5.5″ square andusesBird Notes by Crafty Secrets. If you are are a Fan Club Member, you may view all details here. If not, you may want to consider joining. You can read all aboutthe Fan Clubhere.

This card was also made in May, 2007 for the Fan Club Gallery at SCS. This card is very large at 8.5 x 5.5, and it uses bothStickers and Cotton Scraps by Crafty Secrets. And, yes, that is a real cookie cutter hanging there and a doily that I cut and added seam binding to in order to create a mini apron!!! Again, details may be seen in the Fan Club Gallery here.

Thanks so much for stopping in today and getting to know Joan a bit better!!! I truly enjoyed preparing this article and sharing these fun facts about Joan with you!!! Hope you are all off to a wonderful and fun-filled week ahead.