Today I had several fun things planned including a few networking events.  We got at least 11 inches of snow yesterday, last night and this morning!  Check out my picture on TweetPic!  I added it to Twitter this morning about an hour ago if that and there have already been 44 views!  Awesome what Twitter can do!

[caption id="attachment_369" align="alignleft" width="225" caption="Nathan and Lisa in the snow!"][/caption]

Because of this beautiful snow. . . Mark is working from home today. . .  School was canceled for Nathan. . Day Care closed for Lisa . . . and my events have been rescheduled!!

I have decided that it will be a napping, pj, catchup day!  Of course we have some embroidery to do but that can be done around the naps and of course in pjs!

Some of the fun embroidery we have to complete today and tomorrow are t-shirts for Nathan's K-Plus Program.  This Saturday is the World Fair for the YMCA.

Because one of the assistants in his class is from Somalia they have chosen Somalia as their country.  They will be presenting songs and food from Somalia.

Kristie's Kreations offered to embroider 'SOMALIA" on the front of the shirts that the kids and teachers will be wearing.   Nathan is very excited because he loves telling every about Kristie's Kreations!  And what is better than everyone in his class wearing shirts embroidered by Kristie's Kreations??!!??  I will post a picture after this weekend!

Over the holidays, our show was Nathan counting in Somalia.  Of course this will be one of the things that the kids will be doing for the parents.  Hopefully my parents will be able to come up and see the show!  They are in the Evansville, Indiana area and did not get as much of the snow that we got but they got 1 1/2 inches of ice with additional snow on top.  They are without power because of all the limbs that fell out of trees and broke their transmitter!  Because my dad is an electrician, he has Macgyver fixed it so they have temporary electricity.  His Macgyver move was to attach two wires with jumper cables.  I am so proud of my electrician, Macgyver Dad!

I am off to start working!  If you are in Indiana, enjoy playing in the snow!

Labels: blogging, Embroidery, Family, Indiana, indianapolis, Kristie's Kreations, logos, Networking, Photos, Snow

Today has been quite the day!  As I am typing this, the snow is coming down.  Depending on where the front goes, we could get almost a foot of snow by tomorrow afternoon!

Today I started out my day at a Confluence Board Meeting.  Tomorrow is the first event for the Confluence North Side Network!  It will be a great event, I just hope that the weather will not detour people from coming!  This event will focus on Social Media. This is an area that I have really gotten involved in.  I love all the different things involved in social media.  I am not sure how it will help my business, but I am more than happy to learn!  One of the ways is with this blog.  Another is Twitter. . . which I am totally addicted to!

After the Confluence Board meeting, I headed to Starbucks.  Erik Deckers and I had a short meeting before my next with Greg Cooper.   Both were excellent meetings!   I found myself talking to both of them about social media!

They are both very active in social media.  Erik is across the board active.  He has started his own business, Deckers Marketing.  He has been trying to help me with my blog.  He has a wealth of information and is always giving me suggestions on what I can do to improve my business blog and website.  We also have great conversations about kids!  He has a very interesting story about his three great children!  I loved hearing about it!

After meeting with Erik, I had my scheduled meeting with Greg.  I basically met Greg via Twitter and then in person last week at the Smaller Indiana 4,000 Member Event.  He is also very active in social media but takes a different approach.  He is a local Realtor here in the Indianapolis area and understands how important social media is to businesses.  Not only is he very active but he is trying to get other Realtors involved as well as he is a speaker about the importance of social media.  He has a great story about a house he sold yesterday and twitter had a huge part in it!  It is a great story and you should ask him about it!

Greg suggested that I add a videos to my blog.  I do not know much about this so I am definately going to look into it!  It sounds like it would be fun and a great way to actually show off embroidery and promotional products!!

So what do you think about Video Blogs?  Should I start adding them to my blog?

Labels: blog, blogging, Embrodery, Embroidery, indianapolis, Kristie's Kreations, logos, promotional product, Smaller Indiana

OK, so now I guess it is my turn! I receive this last night on Smaller Indiana and completed it but this morning I noticed that Kyle Lacy wanted me to post it on the front page as well as my blog.

So here goes. . .OK, so now I guess it is my turn! Thank you Allison for sending this to me!

1. First and foremost, I love my family! I am married to a wonderful husband (Mark) and have two great kids, Nathan (almost 6 yrs old) and Lisa (3 yrs. old). I have an awesome younger sister (Angie) and brother (Andy)!

2. My husband Mark is very understanding and knows that I have to get out there in order to grow my business! He makes sure that he takes care of the kids at least two days a week so that I can attend events!

2. I wish I saw my family more! Most of my family is down south so I do not see them very often! I do have a brother and sister-in-law that live in Fishers! I wish I spent more time with them and my kids got to know them more and vise versa!!

3. I used to be a special education teacher. I was a teacher for 7 years before I stayed home to grow my business and raise my family.

4. I am from Southern Indiana- Evansville area - and almost all of my family still lives down there. Excluding my sister and her family (in St. Louis) and my brother and his wife, Allison (in Fishers)

5. I love networking and meeting new people! Anyone who knew me in my teaching years will be really surprised about this but it is true! I love getting out and meeting new people and then figuring out how I can connect them to others!

6. I have a great group of friends! Many are from networking and then others from when I moved to Indianapolis! They really made me feel at home when I was 3 1/2 hours away!

7. Allison Witmeier is my sister in law! She is married to my great "YOUNGER Brother"! Which I love to say because he is much bigger than me! If anyone knows him, "He is kinda of big deal" Or so he says! I grew up with him and can tell stories otherwise!

Rules are below. Enjoy!

Now my turn to continue:

Share seven facts about yourself in the post.
Link to your original tagger(s) and list these rules in your post.
Tag seven people at the end of your post by leaving their names and the links to their blogs.
Let them know they’ve been tagged.

What 7 things would you list about yourself?

Labels: 7 Things About Me, blog, Embroidery, Evansville, Family, Fishers, Indiana, Kristie Bradford, Kristie's Kreations, Promotional Products, Smaller Indiana

Have you heard of Angie's List?  If not, it is a company that is headquartered here in Indianapolis.  It is a members only organization in which consumers can check out businesses to see how they have performed for other members.  Once the member uses the business, they then rate the business on their performance by submitting a report to Angie’s List.   Companies can not put themselves on the list nor can they pay to be on the list.  The only way for a business to get on the list is by a member writing a report on them.  The goal is of course to have an A average rating and to have excellent comments!

Personally, Mark and I have been members of Angie's List for a number of years and have found it very useful!  As for Kristie's Kreations, we have been on Angie's List for about 5 or more years. One of our customers put us on the list because of our exceptional work and service. Over the years we have gained new customers simply because of being on the list. Some of the projects that we have completed have been really fun including fleece jackets for a group going to Alaska to take pictures of polar bears. We have also made wedding gifts that were taken to China to be presented to the couple. We can now say that our work can be found worldwide!

Last May, Angie’s List contacted us because they needed something other than a t-shirt for the race car driver as well as their CEO to wear in a press conference announcing Angie’s List Sponsorship. We Took Our Marks . .  Got Set. . .  and Off We Went to the Race completing the order within 15 hours.

Just recently Angie’s list contacted us again. This time it was for a different reason. They were contacting us to let us know that we have received the Angie’s List Super Service Award for 2008. This is a huge accomplishment. Less than 5% of the companies on Angie’s List receive this award. Companies who receive this award have to have a minimum number of reports a year as well as keep an A average grade on reports and be in good standing with the Better Business Bureau.

Are you a member of Angie’s List? If so, please leave a good report for us in the hopes that we can continue to receive this award every year! We are very proud of this accomplishment and are excited to share it with you!

Labels: 2008 Angie's List Super Service Award, Accomplishment, Angie's List, Embroidery, Kristie's Kreations, Sponsor

How do you plan on getting the information from everyone who stops by your booth?

Do you plan on having a special drawing that anyone who enters your booth can enter?

Why not have the drawing represent your company?

There are many ways to do this but one way is to have your logo embroidered on an item that not only represents your company's look but also will display your logo every time the winner wears it.  Do you want to learn more about how to do this?  If so, contact me and I can help!

It is important that you find just the right item no matter what is important to you.

Labels: Kristie's Kreations, logos, Promotional Products, Table Covering, Trade Show

Here is testimonial that I received from one of our happy customers in regards to their table covering. This just proves how great these table coverings are!

Kristie,

First of all, I have to admit that I did shop around for this item. I did not find anyone to be very helpful, and no one seemed to have much to show me. The internet is crazy with information, but how do you really know what the color will look like, what the quality is and the stability of the embroidery? Then you have to figure out what all the costs really are and add shipping, and hope for the best. I am so glad to have you right here in the Indy area!

Our tablecloth has been used many times now and I must say, it still looks brand new! The tablecloth drapes just right and has looked good on what ever table we have had to use. It has been laundered by me and washes just beautifully. The color has remained vibrant, and the coffee stains wash right out. My biggest challenge is to fold it by myself. The stitching is awesome and the way you saved us money, by adding the navy fabric background, has worked really well. No one even notices that the background is not stitched. LANtech, and I have been very pleased with this product. We highly recommend not only this table covering, but your great customer service, and definitely your embroidery!

Pam

Corporate Account Manager Lantech

Labels: Embroidery, Kristie's Kreations, Laundering Instructions, Logo Embroidery, logos, Table Covering, Trade Show

If you just read the previous post, you will know how important it is to have a nice table covering for that trade show.  Below is the one that we have recommended time and time again to our customers.  It always embroiders nicely as well as last.  Check out the next post for a testimonial from one of our happy customers!

LOGOThrow™

Full coverage (4-sides) of table. Single piece of cloth (no seams). Corners are rounded to create soft folds. Fits 24'' or 30" deep table tops. Most versatile & easy-to-use!

Fabric - Our Throws are made from the finest polyester fabric available - our exclusive Premier fabric. It is fire-retardant (required in public venues), machine-washable, wrinkle-resistant and possesses superior draping qualities. With Premier fabric, your Throw becomes a great marketing tool that enhances your image.

• Fire-retardant (required in public venues)
• Machine-washable
• Wrinkle-resistant
• Heavy weight
• Durable

[caption id="attachment_246" align="alignnone" width="438" caption="Table Covering Fabric Colors"][/caption]

Product Workmanship – You’ll appreciate the beauty of our Premier™ fabric upon first glance. Our products look substantial and elegant, thanks to the soft draping qualities of the fabric. Fabric alone doesn’t make the difference – our sewing techniques ensure that sizes are accurate, edges are clean-finished, and seams and stitching are straight. With such attention to detail, our workmanship is on par with custom tailoring.

Fabric Care - Premier™ – Our products are manufactured to the highest quality and carry our workmanship guarantee. Printed products are similar to fine garments and require care to preserve their exquisite appearance. Follow washing instructions carefully to preserve their appearance and durability.

Our Premier™ fabric is machine-washable in cold water, mild detergent, gentle cycle — no bleach. Tumble dry on permanent press/low heat and remove immediately to prevent wrinkling. If ironing, use low heat and DO NOT IRON printed area. Excess heat and agitation will damage ink.

DO NOT DRY CLEAN, as both ink and fire-retardancy will be damaged.

(copied from Logo Throw Website)

Labels: blog, Embroidery, Kristie's Kreations, Laundering Instructions, logos, Recommendation, Suggestion, Table Covering, Trade Show

Are you thinking about having a booth at a trade show?

Are you signed up for a booth at a trade show and you are wondering. . . Now What?

If you answered Yes to either of these questions then I can help!


There are two very important things to consider. What will my display look like and What will I pass out? For this post we begin to discuss what your table will look like. You will have more visitors to your booth if it looks nice and stands out especially from a distance.

Once noticed, customers will walk across the room to see what you have to offer if it looks good! The first way to assure this is by having a logoed table covering.

There are several options out there for table coverings but we have found one that we really like! These table coverings look good no matter what size table you are putting it on. The logo always embroiders very nicely on the material as well.

You might be thinking that the embroidery would be really expensive for a table covering. Well, the answer is that it is more expensive than a left chest design, but it is well worth it! The look and detail in the design is phenomenal! There are times when we can also help to reduce the number of stitches in the design. More information on this to come. Please check back.

Many locations will require that the table coverings be fire retardant. If this is your case then you are in luck! These table coverings are fire retardant and will fulfill this requirement.

Have you realized how important the table covering is for the trade show? If so, read the next post for more information!

Labels: blog, Embroidery, Kristie's Kreations, logos, Promotional Products, Table Covering, Trade Show