(hand)made for Glory re-cap + thoughts on online auctions

Well, it's over. Sort of. Payments are rolling in and boxes are being shipped out. Pretty soon I'll have my office and my evenings back. All in all, we made just under $2,000 from the auction! Getting closer!

Several people have asked how we pulled this off. Here are just a few loose tips. If you want specifics please feel free to contact me.

• First, start collecting your items at least 4-6 weeks in advance. 
• Pick a theme that is enjoyable to you. I love handmade goodness so I choose handmade. Maybe you like sports, or food, or something else. It will be more fun if you enjoy it.
• Don't pick a theme. (I know, I know.) I had a couple items offered that just didn't fit handmade. Could I have thrown them in and probably no one would have noticed? Yes. But I'm a first born type A and couldn't do it.
• Share enough of your story to get people interested in helping. When I contacted potential donors I gave one or two lines about our adoption journey and shared the link to our Give1Save1 video. 
• Give them the details on what they need to know - what are you asking for specifically, when is the auction, do they mail the item to you or the donor, what are you offering them in exchange - FB mentions, Tweets, blog profiles, etc.?
• Note: It is against Etsy policy to solicit donations. I did not know this when I started. I must have contacted 200 - 300 shop owners and only ONE person mentioned this policy. I'm a beg-for-forgiveness-rather-than-ask-for-permission kinda girl but Etsy can and will shut down your account for breaking this policy.
• It might also be against policy to hold auctions on Blogger. See begging for forgiveness comment above.
• Some people are not familiar with Blogger and thus don't know how to comment or see older posts. I wouldn't have done anything differently, just something to note.
• Sending out invoices via Paypal seems to be working well. Some people don't have their settings set up to receive  an email if they get an invoice. Those people will be a little confused.
• Having donors mail the item directly to the winning bidder is ideal however, not everyone will want to do this. 

I think we'll be taking a break from fundraising for a while. This one nearly did me in and, unfortunately, we don't need the rest of our money for quite some time. I can write grants in my sleep and I think I'm going to read George Mueller's autobiography and pray for some of that to rub off on us. 

Be assured, if you walk with Him and look to Him, and expect help from Him,

He will never fail you.

~ George Mueller 

(hand)made for Glory /// day five

Happy Friday!

We are moving into day five of (hand)made for Glory!

 

 

 

I must admit, this fundraiser has been a lot of work, (more than I expected:-) BUT

it's also been a LOT of fun!

I hope you guys are having fun checking out all the handmade goodness

and bidding on some of your favs!

 

Since we are down to the final few days we're going to add in a little incentive.

 

ALL of the bids started at at least half the retail value - but beginning today, 

I will be dropping the starting bid price on all items with no bids by $1.

I'll do the same tomorrow and Sunday. (when the auction closes at 11:59pm)

 

Our goal is to raise as much money as possible and

bless your socks off with some handmade goodness!

 

Head on over and see if your favorite item still has your name on it!

 

 

(hand)made for Glory /// day three

I can hardly type because I. Am. SO. Tired.

This raising thousands of dollars thing is no joke.

 

I'll try to stay on track and be brief so you can scoot on over to (hand)made for Glory

and bid on some of our amazing auction items.

 

People, it's like Etsy exploded in my house.

And I love all this handmade goodness but it. got's. to. go.

(Oh dear, see what happens when I get no sleep? I turn ghetto. Fast.)

 

Here's the deal:

 

Over 150 amazing handmade items.

ALL donated to our adoption auction.

ALL money raised helps us get this girl home.

 

What else do you need to know?

 

(hand)made for Glory.

Go there.

Now.

(and share and pin and tweet and stuff. tired.)

(hand)made for Glory is LIVE!

Here it is folks - the moment you've all been waiting for!

(Heh:-)

(hand)made for Glory is LIVE.

 

Join in the fun right here.

 

We have had such an amazing response that I could really use your help.

Will you please help us spread the word about this wonderful fundraiser?

 

There really is something for everyone and ALL of the proceeds go towards our adoption thanks to the generous shops and individuals who donated their handmade goods to our cause.

 

Head on over and start bidding!

It's going to be a fun week!

(hand)made for Glory {sneak peek #2}

Four more days until:

I am SO PUMPED about this!

First, it has been so much fun connecting
with all of these seriously talented folks and being blessed by their generosity.

Second, it is UN. REAL.
how many lives have been touched by adoption!

I can't tell you how many people I contacted
(aka cold messaged on Etsy. This is against policy BTW. Ooops.)
whose lives had been blessed by adoption.

I've heard stories of sisters moving to Africa,
and daughters adopting,
and dreams of one day adding to families through adoption,
and one gal who has 16 siblings from all over the world!

Just a few reminders:
the auction will be totally online (more details on that later),

you will need a Paypal account to play,

ALL items are handmade (and AMAZING) and were donated to (hand)made for Glory

so ALL money goes toward bringing her home!
 

We have over 140 items! How did this happen?!?

 

Here's sneak peak #2!

Don't forget to forgo your frappachino's this weekend
so you are ready for all this handmade goodness!

 

(hand)made for Glory {sneak preview}

One week from today our handmade adoption auction will go live!

Yikes! I've got a LOT to do before then!

 

A few details: the auction will be totally online (more details on that later),

you will need a Paypal account to play,

ALL items are handmade (and AMAZING) and were donated to our adoption auction

so ALL money goes toward bringing Glory home!

 

We have over 100 items!

I am overwhelmed at the handmade goodness in our house right now.

 

Here's a sneak preview at just a handful of my favorite items.

 

(Set aside a little money this week - you're gonna need it come Monday!)

Calling are crafters, bakers, artists and creators!!!

I am SO excited about our next adoption fundraiser!

I LOVE all things crafty, handmade and creative so this fund raiser is a fun one!

(Just check out all those great handmade items up there!)

I am working on a handmade item auction for Glory and need YOUR help!

There are 2 ways you can be involved.

#1 - I am looking for crafters, bakers, artists and creators who are

willing to donate an item to our (hand)made for Glory auction.

 

Are you crafty? Would you consider using your gifts in this way?

For your donation I will:
mention your shop here in each post about the (hand)made for Glory auction (there will be several:-)
tweet about your donation/shop/blog
post facebook mentions about your donation/shop/blog
pin your items on pinterest.

 

#2 - Maybe you aren't crafty but God gave you some mad organizational skills. I need YOU too! I need someone, or several someones, to help me solicit donations from all those crafty folks.

 

The auction will go live on May 6^th and I’d like to have all donations finalized by the end of April:-)

If you are interested in donating an item OR helping me solicit items please email me at lindsy.wallace AT gmail DOT com for more details!

reflections on being below average

A reader emailed me last week and said she was impressed with all of our fundraisers.

My first thought was "the reason there are so many fundraisers is because none of them have been that successful." and I had to laugh. (at myself)

Now don't get me wrong, we've brought in some big bucks in the last four years. But every time we do a "big" fundraiser, particularly one that is well known, and set up in my mind with high expectations, we come in well below average.

Example #1 - Both Hands.


Our Both Hands project was last March. The average amount of money families raise doing a Both Hands project is $10,000. We were hoping to raise $15k. We brought in about $2,500. See what I mean? Below. Average.

Example #2 - Give1Save1.


The average amount of money brought in during Give1Save1 week is $2,000. We made less than $2,000 and that was with the help of a matching grant for the first $500. Below. Average.

Please hear me: I AM NOT complaining. But this has been a very humbling experience for me. My professional background is non-profit management and most recently development. $35,000 is not that much money for me to raise. (In 2011/2012 I secured half a million dollars for the non-profit I was working for. Just sayin'.)

But here's the two part conclusion I've come to:

First, we don't need it. Yet.

³¹ Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.

Matthew 6:31-32

¹¹ If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

Matthew 7:11

⁶  He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, because of the quantity of fish.

John 21:6

⁸ And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency^[a] in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.

2 Corinthians 9:8

¹⁹ And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:19

When we need it, I am confident He will give it to us. Reality is, we just don't need it yet.

Second, He wants us to keep sharing our story.

If we were fully funded, I'm pretty sure I'd be sharing our story a LOT less. I'd still be talking about orphan care and adoption and injustice BUT God wants us to share our story because He wrote it. He wants us to tell of the amazing twists and turns, some of which have a beautiful redemptive ending, some of which are still playing out.

He wants us to keep tellling our story because it all points back to Him. He gets more glory as we wait for our Glory if we are completely reliant on Him.

⁹ But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession,

that you may proclaim the excellencies of him

who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

1 Peter 2:9

So, I guess I'm ok with being below average.

PS. If you'd like to check out one of our NOT below average fundraisers, Beard for Glory definitely fits into that category. It was a success on all accounts:-)

Beard for Glory - Adoption Fundraiser from William H. Wallace II on Vimeo.

NEW t-shirts are IN!

And they look just as good as the pictures!

 

I'm so excited about both the mens and the womens!

It's starting to get warm here and I'm wearing mine a lot.
As in, every day.

(Thanks Jen Hatmaker.)

 

Get yours here.

Give1Save1: UPDATE Day 4

It's day four of our Give1Save1 Africa week and we have raised $1,072 for Glory!

Thank you SO MUCH to everyone 

who has donated and shared our video. 

The Wallace Family Adoption Story from William H. Wallace II on Vimeo.

Would you consider sharing it AGAIN? 
Chances are, there are some folks who missed it 
the first time around. OR maybe someone (or several someones) saw it and thought 
"That's neat. I'll check it out later." 
but later got busy.

Remember, you can enter the giveaway below by sharing/tweeting/pining/donating once PER DAY. 
There's four days to go - that's a lot of entries!

In case you need a refresher, here's how it works:

• WATCH our video.
• GIVE $1. (See Donate button to the right.)
• SHARE our video on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, email, etc.
• ENTER to win one free item from our shop. (see below)
• REPEAT each day for one week.

The first $500 donated will be WAS matched by a generous grant from the Orphan Care Alliance!

It's that simple. Adoption for the people by the people. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

It's Our Week! (Give1Save1)

We're super excited to be featured as the Give1Save1 Africa Family of the Week! 

Here's how it works:

• WATCH our video.
• GIVE $1. (See Donate button to the right.)
• SHARE our video on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, email, etc.
• ENTER to win one free item from our shop. (see below)
• REPEAT each day for one week.

The first $500 donated will be matched by a generous grant from the Orphan Care Alliance!

It's that simple. Adoption for the people by the people. 

The Wallace Family Adoption Story from William H. Wallace II on Vimeo.







a Rafflecopter giveaway

T-Shirt GIVEAWAY!

We're doing a t-shirt giveaway to help spread the word about our new shirts! 

Yay, free stuff!

Starting NOW, if you share about our t-shirts on Facebook, 

Tweet it or Pin the picture on Pinterest 

you'll be entered to win a t-shirt of your choice!

You have until Wednesday at midnight.

(here's our shop URL - http://wordfromthewallaces.bigcartel.com/)

Enter below via Rafflecopter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Chrome Buffalo <------ awesome fundraising organization

Chrome Buffalo is an amazing online crowdfunding platform utilizing the concept of individual Drives or campaigns. T-shirts are one of the most popular adoption fundraisers and, for a number of reasons, having someone else design, purchase up-front and ship out your shirts sounds like a pretty rad deal to me.

Not only that, their designs are pretty sweet.

 

And they release a new set of designs each quarter just in case your fundraising goes on and on and on...Check out exactly how it works here.

I have a t-shirt additction and I hope you do too.

Because we have some awesome new shirts available for pre-order! 

Pre-orders will run until March 4th and will ship out the week of March 18th. 

Please share on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest!

Beard for Glory RESULTS

Drum roll please.....

Beard - 404

No Beard - 531

Wow. 

Just wow. 

We are blown away by how big of a hit and how much fun this was!

We are so grateful

to everyone who voted and helped spread the word!  

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!

Seriously. This is a huge step closer to getting Glory home.

And, I'll get to see this handsome face until August 1, 2014:-).

Double Your Vote.

Thanks to a generous matching grant from the Orphan Care Alliance and Lifesong for Orphans all votes made between now and midnight on Valentine's Day WILL BE DOUBLED.

You MUST ENTER THE CODE 3548 in the "Note to Seller" section when checking out or we won't get any of the money. Semi-complicated but worth it!

Here's the link to vote.

Please continue to share and remember to include the code - 3548.

Thanks! 

(Side note - All donations made via that little button on the right are automatically matched - no code necessary:-)

Beard for Glory - Four Days Left to Vote!

Ok people, we're in the homestretch. Only four days left to vote and share.

Current count:

Beard - 222

No Beard - 233

Here's the video again. Please share it!

The more people who see it the quicker we can get our girl home!

Beard for Glory - Adoption Fundraiser from William H. Wallace II on Vimeo.

Weekend Reading

I'm emerging from slacker mode. Here you go... thank me later.

I came across this great blog - written by a foster mom, with several young kiddos, who also runs a foster care ministry. YES. PLEASE. I promise you will be encouraged by her family.

Did you see this uh-mazing ultimate list of adoption fundraisers? Check it out. There are sure to be some new ideas among these gems. (And we might be included in the "Other Creative Ideas" section:-)

This post on special needs parenting made me let out a sigh of relief. More to come on why, but this is a necessary read for anyone with a kiddo who has special needs and anyone with friends who are parenting kids with special needs. 

I'm leaving you with a quote from Gillian's above linked post...

If you are struggling with your child who has special needs, I give you permission to say it outloud.

I give you permission to ask for help.

I give you permission to realize and own the fact that Jesus is with you in your pain. He knows how much you love and cherish your child, and he also knows that this path can be difficult.

When I open up about my struggles something amazing happens.

I cry “uncle,” and God whispers “peace.” “Gillian, what took you so long to give this to me?”
I call for help, and Jesus stands up on my behalf. “I’m here. I’m helping.”
I confess weakness, and He claims strength. “Oh, child, finally, you are starting to get it.”

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 2 Corinthians 12:9

Mama's Bag of Tricks

Do you have a Mama Bag? What is a Mama Bag? Glad you asked.

It's a NON- diaper bag bag that is kept exclusively for when you are going out without the kids. (You do go out without them every now and then, right?)  

No kid paraphernalia is allowed in the bag. No diapers. No wipes. No crayons. No cars. No power figures. None of it.

It might sound silly but when I leave the house with my Mama Bag (that William got in Uganda a couple years ago - I picked a good one.) I feel like an actual adult. With a brain. Who talks about intelligent things and doesn't use the word "potty" or respond "Would you like to try that again?" seven thousand times a day. I feel like a normal human being.

I first got the idea of a Mama Bag several years ago from Amanda Blake Soule's book "Handmade Home". Before you get all impressed, I have never made anything from that book. Ever.

But I do love my Ugandan made Mama Bag and it's transformative powers.

Are you in need of a Mama Bag? Check out our shop and pick one for yourself. And then keep that kid stuff out and plan yourself a ladies night.

Here are a few of my favorites...

Use coupon code "mamabag" for FREE shipping while supplies last.

Beard for Glory Update: It's a Tie!

The current count is:

Beard - 204
No Beard - 204

It's about to get competitive up in here.

NINE DAYS left to vote!  

Vote. Share. Bring Glory Home.