MousePants Fine Fiber, Felted Friends, and Sweet Little Odds and Ends

Death of a Salesman

I am an introvert.  I always have been, but as I have gotten older and spent most of my career working from home, this is even more the case.  If I don't make a concerted effort, I can go days without having a face to face conversation with anyone but my pets.  Sometimes, this means that when I have a living, breathing person in front of me I spill my guts like the Exxon Valdez (or a mental patient), revealing way too much about my inner thoughts and overwhelming the poor, unsuspecting subject of my rant.  I think I have scared off a date or two.  My good friends have come to expect this, and, if we haven't spoken in a while, I think they just expect the deluge.  I am working on finding a healthy balance.  

I love making yarn.  Love, love, love it.  I even like designing my labels and wrapping up orders and making receipts.  I enjoy the whole process.  On the other hand, I do not enjoy selling things, particularly approaching people unsolicited and trying to sell them things.  Add to this my nervous rambling, and I just don't think I am very good at selling my yarn in person.  I have found that approaching prospective buyers online is much easier, so the last few days I have been writing emails, with detailed photographs and a little bio about myself and what makes my yarn unique.  I have sent them out to area yarn shops.  I have also approached some well known pattern designers and asked them to have a look at my yarn and share their opinions with me.  

Here is the first response that I got from one designer whose patterns I have been particularly addicted to lately:  

Now I realize she probably gets a ton of fan mail and emails asking her to try new yarns and products all the time.  I am really trying not to take it personally.  I just hoped for a little more of a constructive response from someone I have admired for such a long while.  Does it mean my yarns are not very impressive?  Nothing special?  I think it probably just means she has more important things to do, and that is the way I am trying to take it.  

ADDENDUM:  I contacted a Santa Fe yarn shop a couple days ago and just got a great response.  They are definitely interested in carrying MousePants Woolens and would like me to deliver their order at the beginning of July.  I got this email about 30 minutes ago, and I am on top of the moon!  I guess it's not all that bad after all.  The internet makes it a lot easier to approach people despite my tendency toward being an introverted, somewhat shy person and my yarn speaks for itself.  Now I am off to do some spinning.  Gotta get that order ready by the beginning of July!