faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase-martin luther king

      i love my family. i do. i just look at my kids and my hubby and i am in love. just like any other family, we have our ups and downs and i believe that in life, those downs actually change you. they make you stronger. they bring you even closer together. i met hubby in college and more than a decade later, this is our life. often times i joke around with him and say "imagine if in college we could've looked into the future and we could see what kind of life we would have". wow. i think if i did, i would've fallen in love with my kids. i mean, me? a mother of three? NO WAY. to tell you the truth, it would've scared me. the thought of all that responsibility. hmmm...maybe that's the magic of the unknown? it is scary. it is exciting. it's fun and full of possibilities. sometimes our imaginations get the best of us, doesn't it? fear itself can make us freeze.

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 i still have issues with the unknown.

i have been making jewelry for 10 yrs or so, i'm self taught. i would just stay up for hours and watch video after video. i would go to the bead store and if there was someone there buying beads, i would use the opportunity and ask questions. i wanted to make jewelry and i knew this was a passion. for a long time i created pieces for myself and people would compliment me on it. then, of course, i would tell them i made it. people loved my pieces and yet i was still scared to show many people my work. i was afraid that they wouldn't like it or it wasn't good enough. fear.

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 as years went by i got more comfortable, and eventually to the point where i started selling some pieces to friends and family. everyone thought that i should go into business, get an online shop and start sharing with the world.

here we go again. that feeling.... fear. the 'what ifs' started setting in. what if they don't like it? what if i'm pricing too high? too low? what if this isn't good enough? what if I'M not good enough? so what happened? yup. i froze. i just stayed where i was comfortable, making jewelry for family and friends. half the time i gave it away. don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with giving my jewelry as gifts, but this is how i wanted to make a living and i couldn't get comfortable with selling.

finally, one day as a dare, hubby suggested that i start a blog. i didn't know one thing about blogging, but here he was daring me. i knew i couldn't resist, so i started one. i started blogging about my everday life as a mommy, something that my children could look at when they grew up and see all the memories that mommy documented. i loved having my family blog. that was a step out of my comfort zone and i took it!

after a few years of doing my family blog, i still felt like i needed to do something that was my own. something that allowed my creativity to buzz, to inspire others.

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 i started really concentrating on making my jewelry and getting serious. i sold more pieces in the last couple of years than i ever have! yes! that is big time for me. i had to just have a talk with myself and get real. i finally decided to make my own blog and this was for my creativity and everything that i, evelyse, loved. i needed a place to just connect with other creative people. and guess what? i have and it feels so good. i have that little community of people just like me. people that are doing what they love and making money at it. it makes me feel like "hey, i can so do that". it gets me excited and inspired. i am so glad that i started this blog.

taking those little steps have given me a little bit more courage. step by step, i get a little more confident. i get a little less scared of the unknown and more excited. i have more confidence in what i do because at the end of the day, people care more about the connection they have with me. i want to make beautuful pieces for people, pieces that make them feel unique, at the same time i want to share with you a part of this journey. it's amazing because you get to go on this ride with me. that's very cool.

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 where am i at right now? i'm working on inventory and hubby is working on my website. to tell you the truth, for the first time in a long time, i don't feel scared. i don't know if people will like me or if they will buy my jewelry. it's not about that in the end. it's about following what my heart is leading and continues to lead me to. i am showing up and and the rest in not in my hands. i can only be myself, share my story and i hope that i can inspire someone else to follow their dreams. i'm letting go of the fears and the whatifs. this is what makes my heart sing and i'm gonna let it sing! every time i  take a tiny step, the next step isn't as scary.

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 i am so excited to share my creations with with you! i'm also excited to have others wear something that i, evelyse, created. how cool is that? mostly, i'm excited to inspire. i want to write my own story and i have been all along without knowing. all those fears and unknowns was part of my story. i went though them for a reason. i can finally have something here that i can not only use to share my creativity, but i can use to inpire you. for you to see that you, too, are writing your story. don't let fear take over and write it for you. take that little step with me and start listening to those little whispers. we can feel the fear and we can stomp on it and we can hold each other's hands and take those steps together. today can be the day that you can start living and creating the life you want. we deserve it!