Welcome To the group

Hello Everyone! As most of you may know my name is Melissa and I am the owner of Melrae Design, MelRae Makers and most recently MelRae Motherhood! I guess I can start off by introducing myself and telling you guys a little about me. I am a working mother of one handsome boy Kayden who as i’m writing this just turned 8 a dog mom to a Husky Koda, and a girlfriend of almost 13 years to Jim! I am a jack of all trades as some people say I own my own small business I started MelRae Design in 2018 with a Cricut in my apartment. My mother had gotten it for me for Christmas and that’s where my “small” hobby started.

As i’m sure some of you have experienced when I started that small hobby I had dreams of owning my own small business but back then I would have been happy to make enough for a tank of gas for the month! As the years went on I started doing craft shows in between my 9-5 job with a friend. She made badge clips and I was making shadow boxes, night light jars, car decals basically anything I could make with some vinyl. Every weekend we were lugging all of our items to these craft shows. It was great for a few years but I wanted more! There was just not enough hours in the day to go to work at my 9-5 and also put my all into a small business! Just like im sure a lot of you I was afraid to make the leap and just continued making things at night when Kayden went to bed to take to shows on the weekends!

Then 2020 happened… I was home with our son because he was out of school with the pandemic and it just made more sense for Jim to go to work and for me to stay home. But during that time is when I was able to make my business into what it is today! We moved out of our apartment in 2020 and into a house with enough space for my business and soon after we moved in I convinced Jim I needed a Glowforge! For those of you who don’t know what a glowforge it is a laser machine that is able to cut wood and other various things. HUGE step up from my Cricut but also a HUGE expense. I had to get serious!! So I really worked on my social media skills took some classes and started my “new business” I started off making EVERYTHING!! But I quickly learned that having a niche is SUPER important and that’s when I found tiered tray signs!

I will tell you guys more along the way. I know when I started my business in 2020 I learned SO MUCH in those 2 years. The reason I am where I am though is the fact that I had amazing mentors who have inspired me and helped me along the way! From SVG’s with Gwynn from Gettin creative with Gwynn to social media training with Ashley from Ashley Creatives I owe all my success to the ladies who paved the way for small business owners like me!

The reason for this group is because I wish there was a place when I was starting with ALL the knowledge but also ALL the support along with it! I want this group to be a place where you can go for all the information! where to get packing supplies, Info about glowforge, info about cricut, info about shipping, about social media, any question you may have about your small business I hope that this group can help!! I hope that This community makes a difference in your business and creates a safe space for you to ask ALL the questions! Lets get started! Again Welcome to MelRae Makers and lets get to making!!