How SleepingLunaDesigns got started

Introduce your Etsy shop and tell us your story. How did you begin and decide on what to sell on Etsy, and how do you create your products?

I’m Liz, the owner, and founder of Sleeping Luna Designs. We create art for cross-stitchers and crafters everywhere! I started back in 2018 with a few simple designs as a hobby, but fell in love with the idea of selling patterns and completed objects in 2019 after I moved to the Pacific Northwest of the United States. I wanted to be able to express myself through an entire process, from pixel art on a digital canvas to a physical canvas that can be displayed and gifted to the ones I love. It was really amazing to see others love the process as well! Seeing people complete these projects, post them to social media, and gift them to loved ones was truly the moment I realized how much this is what I was meant to be doing. I create my designs using a combination of software on both my iPad and PC.

Favorite items

What are your favorite items? What makes these so special? Why do you think these items might be selling well?

My Neck My Back My Anxiety Attack - Cross Stitch Pattern - Cute Cross Stitch - Snarky Cross Stitch - Anxiety Cross Stitch - Digital Download

This one is one of my favorites, as it was the first pattern I designed after getting my iPad. Designing on a tablet with a little more freedom to move with a pencil really changed the game for me.

Luna and Apollo - Cross Stitch Pattern - Yin Yang Cross Stitch - Cats Cross Stitch - Sun and Moon Cross Stitch - Digital Download

This is my best seller. I never expected it to do as well as it has! It was something I drew up because I was inspired by my cats, Apollo and Luna, sleeping near each other. I’ve had requests for variants of this but just haven’t gotten the chance to draw them up.

Lunar Princess Stitch-Along SAL Cross Stitch Pattern PDF ONLY - Mystery, Galaxy, Anime, Kawaii, Senshi, Manga, Pretty Guardian

The Lunar Princess Stitch-Along was one of the greatest moments of my stitching career. This was a pattern that released new sections biweekly (like puzzle pieces) and was inspired by the 1990s anime Sailor Moon. A large community of us stitched this together, and it was such a fantastic time. I can’t wait to create a sequel to this piece!

Getting sales on Etsy

How long did it take for you to earn your first sale and how do you currently attract customers to your Etsy shop?

It took about 6 weeks to make my first sale. I went in with no followers on social media and no knowledge of tags, good listings, photography, etc. Currently, I use social media to attract business—between Twitch, Instagram, and TikTok, it brings in good side income. I’m also looking to expand into creating physical cross-stitch kits and making more video content on YouTube and Instagram to attract more people to the art of cross-stitch.

Managing SleepingLunaDesigns

How do you manage your shop? Are you running solo or do you have any team members? What tools or services do you use to run your shop and how do you handle fulfillment?

I am the only one running my Etsy store! My husband does help me with creating some art for my patterns, but I create the majority of the art and do all of the management. I use Etsy’s built-in tools for building my listings but other programs (such as Photoshop and Affinity Publisher) for building listing images and digital downloads.

The future of SleepingLunaDesigns 

What goals do you have for your shop in the future?

The goal I have is for more consistent sales. While I know I won’t be able to replace my 9-5 with my Etsy income any time soon, my goal is to hit a consistent dollar amount every month that I can use for bill payments or a savings account (what a crazy thought in this economy).

Advice for new sellers

What’s your advice for a new seller starting an Etsy shop?

Diversify your audience! You can’t just rely on Etsy’s SEO to bring people to you. Start specializing in one social media app [example: Instagram (reels, photos, and IG Stories)]. and build an audience there. Use free tools like Facebook Business Suite to schedule posts in advance. If you take one or two evenings to schedule photos for a three-month period, it will lessen the burden of social media over time. You can pull from your own photos, customer reviews, and customer photos to increase what you post.

Some sellers really get inspired by hearing numbers. Feel free to share these if you like.

Question: How much is your monthly revenue?
Answer: This varies, but I also have other financial avenues with the Sleeping Luna Designs brand that brings in income. My Etsy revenue is lower (around $150 per month), but I also stream on Twitch, have affiliate links, and am working on sponsored projects and commissions.

Question: What is your average profit margin?
Answer: I sell mostly digital downloads. My profit margin is estimated at about 60%.

Alura Team
Alura Team

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