Cajun Corner – Vol. 2, No. 40 – October 17, 2010
Bon Jour! Welcome to Cajun Stitchery’s weekly email and welcome to our family.
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Don’t forget to visit our catalog at www.companycasuals.com/cajunstitchery and www.cajunstitchery.etsy.com often.
Remember last week, the customer who spent the afternoon with me. This week another customer spent a delightful afternoon with me. She brought her Christmas list and we began ordering. People are different. These two ladies are very organized. This particular customer knew just what she wanted and we sat down and I digitized the designs with her telling me “a little more space here” or there; no, the letters need to be larger or smaller; I like this color or that. We did the whole thing right there while she was here. The smaller details such as lowering the density and more technical things were left for me to do without her assistance. It actually was a lot of fun. We went to lunch at Sonny’s Barbeque. Once we returned she went through a stack of books that we are going to take to the library or donate someplace. We chatted at length and discussed new items that I’ve found through my wholesale companies and new things that we can do here. This gave her more ideas for other occasions. As she was leaving she did tell me that she enjoys shopping at Cajun Stitchery, not only for the convenience, but because she can get exactly what she wants and our prices are usually lower or equal to what others charge.
After she left, I told George to get the gardens in shape because I may just start tours of the gardens as a part of this personal afternoon session. I find a walk through the gardens always excites my imagination.
As I said before, this personal service is available for anyone. You just need to make an appointment and we will set aside a convenient afternoon to take care of all of your embroidery needs. Tea, coffee, wine, or whatever the drink of your choice will be provided, as long as you let us know your choice beforehand. Take a leisurely stroll through our yard, if you like. George and I are always happy to show off our gardens. We can go to one of the local restaurants for lunch or provide lunch at the house. Please understand that Cajun Stitchery is located in our home and the dogs and cats will be here. There is also no reason that we couldn’t do this with a group of 2 or 3 people. Of course, in that situation, you would not get the undivided attention that you would get by yourself.
It’s been a busy and enjoyable weekend. Friday night we invited a couple of neighbors over for a glass of wine by the fire and we gave them an anniversary present. They have worked so hard taking care of her parents. We gave them tickets to see Willie Nelson on Sunday evening. I sure hope they can go because they really need a break from taking care of her parents. Everyone needs time to go out and have a good time.
Since we planned on friends coming over for dinner Saturday night, Friday we went to Joe Patti’s for seafood. I was making a seafood gumbo for our guests. As much as my Mama didn’t like to cook, she could cook Cajun food and so can I. We just didn’t like to cook. Joe Patti’s is like a seafood amusement park. I could stay in that place and browse forever. We ended up with 10 lbs of shrimp, some oysters, lump crab, and crawfish tails.
The shrimp were boiled for our dinner Friday night. It was: eat your fill because whatever is left over goes in tomorrow’s gumbo. There is nothing like Gulf Coast shrimp. It’s the best in the world. When our neighbors came over later that evening, the wife and I started peeling the remainder of the shrimp in the kitchen. She would eat one and peel one. They were delicious.
Saturday was spent cooking the gumbo and cleaning the house. Our guests were expected at 4 p.m. and they arrived exactly on time. The cute Halloween runner and napkins made the table setting very festive. We ate our fill with garlic bread and wine. Then we retired to the deck. We toured the yard and had a marvelous time. As the sun set, George lit a fire in the chiminea and dessert was served on the deck. The dessert was brought by my friend. It was an ice cream sandwich pie. She crumbled up ice cream sandwiches and mashed them down in a plastic container as the base, then she crumbled Butterfingers on top of that, then a thick layer of whipped cream, topped with melted chocolate, and then froze the whole thing. Oh my, that was delicious. In fact, after they left, George proceeded to eat every last bit of that dessert that remained in the container.
You cannot make a little bit of gumbo. The gumbo was delicious but we have enough left over to feed a small army. We sent some home with out guests and our refrigerator is now filled to the brim with gumbo. If anyone wants some gumbo, come and get it.
Sunday we plan on just bathing the dogs and kicking back. This has been a delightful weekend without any work. At one of my women in business meetings last Friday we talked about boundaries and boundaries between home and work, personal time and business. It’s difficult when you and your spouse work together in a business in your home. This weekend was a refreshing break from business.
Another highlight was of the week was an order from a lady who needed to get her husband’s work logo embroidered on his work shirts. A special thanks to my friend, Tina, for directing them to me. I’m hearing more and more that in an effort to cut back on expenses, many businesses that require names or logos on work shirts have stopped paying for the work shirts and now require the employee to get this done. The problem that I foresee these company employees encountering is digitizing fees and set up costs. When the logo is brought to an embroidery company, like Cajun Stitchery, they are going to charge not only for embroidery but also for digitizing the logo. If the company has had the logo digitized previously, there is someone out there with the digitized design. In this particular case, I believe the embroidery company went out of business. If the digitizing file is not available to the new embroiderer, then there’s a fee to digitize. Also, there is a set up fee with each order because even if you have the digitized file, you have to set your machine up with the design, the right threads, and stitch out a sample to make sure the file hasn’t been corrupted or the tensions are set right for the thread, etc. This was a fairly easy design with lettering that I was able to digitize. A sample was stitched out and the customer came over to approve the stitch out. She will pick up her finished order on Monday. Now any of the other employees can come to Cajun Stitchery to get the logo embroidered without having to pay the digitizing fee because it is already done. And since the customer did not pay me for digitizing the logo, I am not obligated to give my digitized file to any other embroiderer without payment for it. This lady is very nice and says she is eager to tell the other employees to get in touch with Cajun Stitchery.
In the past few weeks, I’ve been requested to find various types of specialty jackets. First, we needed to find micro fleece, full zip jackets. This is the really soft jacket where the outside of the jacket feels like the soft pile of the inside of a sweatshirt, only denser. I found those and then received a request for the same thing in a youth size, with a light blue color. That was more difficult but I found it. Now I have requests for satin baseball jackets. I have actually found them but I don’t have an account with that company. So, I’ve been emailing forms and paperwork back and forth trying to get our account set up. I’m pretty excited because I love those satin jackets.
Another thing that I’ve found, and will try to get an account with that company, is those market baskets. The kind that have the metal frame and the cloth basket that attach to the metal frame. If you would be interested in something like that, let me know. It may turn out that there is a minimum order and it would help me decide whether or not to order them, if I knew people would buy them.
Christmas is coming and customers are doing their Christmas shopping at Cajun Stitchery. Get this out of the way as soon as you can. For all who have businesses out there, remember that we also sell gift baskets.
Always remember that we are just a call or email away at cajunstitchery@yahoo.com or 850-261-2462 and place your order.
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This may be a repeat, but worth it :>)
Boudreaux walks into a bar and orders three beers. The bartender raises his eyebrows, but serves Boudreaux three beers, which Boudreaux drinks quietly at a table, alone.
An hour later, Boudreaux has finished the three beers and orders three more. This happens yet again.
The next evening at the bar, Boudreaux again orders and drinks three beers at a time, several times.
This happens for several nights.
Soon, the people up and down the bayou are whispering about Boudreaux going to the bar and always drinking three beers at a time.
Finally, a week later, the bartender says "Boudreaux, I don't mean to be nosey, but everybody around here is wondering why you always order three beers at one time?"
Boudreaux replies, "You see, I have two brothers. One moved to Texas and de udder one to Mississippi. We promised each other dat we would always order an extra two beers whenever we drank as a way of keepin up de Boudreaux bond."
Everybody on the bayou was impressed with Boudreaux's explanation, and Boudreaux was the talk of the bayou.
Then, one day, Boudreaux comes in to the bar and orders only two beers.
The bartender pours them with a heavy heart. This continues for the rest of the evening ... Boudreaux always orders only two beers. The word flies up and down the bayou. Prayers are offered for the soul of one of the Boudreaux brothers.
The next day, the bartender says to Boudreaux, "People on the bayou and I want to offer condolences to you for the death of your brother. You know - the two beers and all."
Boudreaux ponders this for a moment, then replies, "You'll be happy to hear dat my two brothers are alive and well. It's jus dat me, myself, has decided to give up drinkin' for Lent."
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French phrase of the week: Tu te rappelles du petit cheval nain que Théophile avait qu'on restait à la campagne? (Do you remember the little pony Théophile had when we lived in the country?)
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I recently read a rather interesting article at http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/384755/uses_for_ancient_age_kentucky_straight.html Here is an excerpt:
The uses for Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey are a lot, but I will only list a few, and let you figure out the rest. I would like to explain that this product has a very smooth taste, and the smell is very refreshing. But, consider health hazards before drinking Ancient Age Kentucky Straight Whiskey, because health comes first, "before getting drunk." This whiskey is very good when mixed with energy drinks, especially the sweet energy drinks. I would not recommend mixing it with Red Bull Energy Drinks, because I personally do not like Red Bull Energy Drinks. You can also mix it with sodas like Coca-Cola, or a refreshing Sprite. I usually put about half of a shot glass with a mix of an energy drink. Ancient Age Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey can also be used to marinate your meats, before they go on the outside grill. But, I would be very careful not to cause a fire or something, "just be prepared." Because, this whiskey is forty percent alcohol by volume. This product can also be used when baking, which I am still trying to come out with a good recipe for a cake. And, last this product can be used for morning uses, but it's up to you to try it out. This product can be used to rinse out your mouth instead of the regular mouth wash. Not only does this Whiskey freshen up your mouth, but it kills all the bacteria causing germs in your mouth. I have seen a show on T.V. called Mythbusters, and they proved that hard whiskey can destroy the smell of onions, or food in your mouth. And, if you use this product before going to work, "please do not swallow because you will get a police ticket on the road while driving!"
Please let me know if there is something that you would like to see in the weekly email. You may always call me at (850) 261-2462 or email me at cajunstitchery@yahoo.com.
If you are not a subscriber and would like to receive Cajun Corner weekly, please email cajunstitchery@yahoo.com and let me know to put you on our email list.
C’est tout, mes amis
Peggy Henshall
Cajun Stitchery
(850) 261-2462
cajunstitchery@yahoo.com
P.S. You are always welcome to stop by and look at all of the catalogs and pass some time with me, cher.
SALE OF THE WEEK (Good through Wednesday, October 20, 2010, Cajun Stitchery will be closed on Thursday, October 21, 2010)
SALE: Waffle Weave Bath Robe with initial or name embroidered on left chest area = $40.00
Waffle Weave Bath Robe
White One size fits Most
48" Length 3.0 lbs ea
Very Elegant 60% Cotton
40% Poly
Now that we've taken a look at last year's booth, we need to make some corrections for this year's booth. The table cloths are history. I would like matching floor length table cloths but in lieu of that, I purchased 2 white, plastic tablecloths from the dollar store. The only problem with that is now you will be able to see under the tables where the boxes are kept. Nevertheless, it cannot look as bad as last year. We are also going to place the tables differently. We are going to put them in a way, probably an L, so that the customer can come further under the canopy. I have purchased some baskets to put little things, like patches, into to keep some order on the tables.
When I went to my first arts and craft festival, a friend warned me not to have too many different items. Pick out 5 or 6 items and make lots of those items. I think she was right. I tend to just put everything out there and it becomes confusing and messy. This year we are going to offer (1) caps for $10 or $12, (2) Christmas stockings for $20, (3) can wraps for $7-$10, (4) patches for $5-$7, (5) fingertip towels for $10, and (6) little scrapbook appliques for 2 for $1.
