In The Pursuit Of Truth, Justice, & The KERRI Way: March 2013

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Update Dump

There are so many things I feel like I've been kicking ass at lately. Unfortunately, keeping up with things on here isn't one of them. I still have a few hang ups I need to get over when it comes to journaling... or blogging... All I can say is it's still a work in progress.

1) I guess I should start with an update on how donating all my Crowdtap points to TWLOHA is going. Since my last update on the subject I've earned some 96,000+ points doing stuff on/for Crowdtap. I've been able to donate 80,000 pts ($40). That's double what I was hoping/thinking. I've almost got enough to donate another 20,000 ($20) but we'll see if I make it there before things change or not. The ebb and flow of things to do on Crowdtap lately has been a bit wonky, at least with what I "qualify" for.

I'm pretty happy that since learning about TWLOHA I've been able to donate (if my calculations are correct) 210,000 points ($105). It doesn't seem like nearly enough, considering why and who I'm doing it for, but when you think about what I've done to get these points (and I only had to click a button to spend them on a monetary donation) it really is a little insane that I've been able to donate that much.

Through a bloggy "friend" I've come across a charity event that I will be donating to once I get paid on the 1st (it won't be much but it will be something). It's the Out of the Darkness Overnight Walk (put on by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention or AFSP) and will be taking place June 1-2 in Washington, DC. I'll be helping a walker named Janice, who is walking in honor of her brother who committed suicide, reach her goal... which is to raise $700. To hear it in her words (from my bloggy "friends" post) you can go here.

I've been extremely lucky that I have not lost a brother to suicide but Nathan was, at times, like a brother...was definitely like family and he was (is) a brother to people I care deeply about. He was my friend and donating in his memory is the least I can do, especially if it helps other people, people like Janice, raise money and awareness for the prevention of suicide.

I'm not trying to be all "Hey, look at how great I am...I'm donating!" and I hope it doesn't come off that way. I'm just trying to get the word out there and talking about who and what I'm donating to is one of the small things I can do to help this cause.

2) I received my last exchange package from Shabby Apple... and the third time was the charm. Not only do I love the belt & shoes I picked but they fit!

RipRap

I've yet to wear either of them but I hope to soon and I hope to get some sort of documentation. Because they are THAT cute!

3) It's been a month since I opened my Kitsy Lane boutique, KittyKerri's Jewelry Box (yes, I changed the name to match my email & blog [I, guess])... thankfully, you get a grace period to make changes like that. Anyway, I'm definitely not rolling in the money yet but I do feel like I'm making some progress on getting my name out there to customers. I've made 2 sales that are not from myself. I've got 18 customers signed up and as of right now my KKJB FB page, has 48 "Like's", and it's only 2 weeks old.

So far I really love being a boutique owner (you can become one too here). I like that there are several new items every day and that there is always a new sale or deal going on.

I'm still waiting for a shipment to come in of stuff I've purchased. I'm not sure exactly if I'll be keeping all of what I bought for myself (selfish, I know) or if I'll be using some as giveaway prizes. I guess it all depends on how hard I fall in love with the pieces once I get my hands on them.

I purchased the Ariel ring for the simple pleasure of I LOVED it. Thank God I had no intention of giving it away because it would have never happened. I've worn it every day for the past 16 days. It's so pretty, delicate, and easily stackable with my other everyday favorite rings.

I love the packaging!

I mean, come on! Seriously!!

She's so pretty, isn't she?!

4) And just because this actually happened TODAY and I would be a horrible aunt if I didn't post about this... My great nephew, Hunter Austin, was born this morning. Healthy, happy, 6 lbs 12 oz 19 3/4 inches and soooo cute!!

Posted to Instagram this morning:

Always the bridesmaid, never the bride...

*blah, blah, blah

(*had real words here but they are redundant at this point)

He's my 9th great nephew/niece, I have 8 nieces/nephews and yes, babies still scare me. LOL.

So that's it for now. Until next time... where I will probably update dump about Andrew McMahon, dieting, and dating...or lack there of. Oh, and bras. I know, ya'll can't wait!

Friday, March 1, 2013

Now Open: Kerri's Jewelrybox

I'm pretty sure I shouldn't start any of this off by saying I have absolutely NO idea of what I'm doing but... I have absolutely NO idea of what I'm doing but I'm doing it anyway.

I don't even know how but I stumbled upon a jewelry website called Kitsy Lane. I liked the what I saw and noticed that you could open up your own Kitsy Lane boutique. While doing something like this isn't a new idea to me finding something that had no start up cost was a big "selling" point to me. I figured what have I got to lose (nothing, right?!), so here I am. Plus, I don't have to keep any inventory at my apartment, I don't have to do any awkward in-home parties, nor is there a minimum purchase requirement. I'm having a hard time seeing a drawback here. I'm hoping to be able to make some extra income from this and to give myself something else to do. Who knows, if I like it, maybe i'll try something crazy like hocking an in-home/party product.

"Kitsy Lane is made up of a community of Boutique Owners (from stay-at-home moms to professional stylists and even celebrities) who customize their own online storefronts, curating jewelry and accessories from on-trend and up-and-coming designers to sell in weekly flash sales. We simply provide the platform (by the way, our innovative marketing platform is first-of-its-kind), pay the commissions, and securely handle all the orders."

Kerri's Jewelrybox @ Kitsy Lane

I like that I can pick and choose from the 700+ items Kitsy Lane has to add to my boutique inventory. You can only add 300 items at a time but you can change them out any time you want, which is nice. Anything Kitsy Lane sells is available though the Storefront and anything that I chose is under "Kerri's Picks".

I'm hoping to make my own purchase of Kitsy Lane soon. I can't wait to test it out and tell you guys all about it. Everything I've seen online has been extremely positive (hence, the "blind" sign up). The only problem, at this point is, trying to figure out what my first purchase should be.

My favorite "big ticket" items: