Today we’d like to introduce you to Paulina Monge.
Hi Paulina, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I bought a Cricut back around 2017-2018 because I was determined to DIY most, if not all of my wedding, and initially, I struggled a lot with figuring out to use the machine and how to properly make my ideas come to life. Needless to say, after several hours and a lot of frustration, I put the machine aside and began doing most items by hand. After my wedding, I always desired to go back and really learn how to make stuff, but was still intimidated by the machine and learning how to use it.
Fast forward to 2020 in the midst of the pandemic. The days were seemingly starting to blend together, and the only thing keeping me sane was the desire to learn a hobby or expand on a craft. This is when I really got into watching videos and learning how the Cricut functions and how to make simple items like birthday cards, t-shirts, and even tricks on how to reduce and recycle material to make more projects.
This, along with getting to spend time with an old friend of mine with the same interests, helped give me the push I needed to take my hobby seriously, and from there Cositas Buenas & Co formed. There was a lot of trial and error in learning how to build a website, photograph my items, and organize my materials, and get the word out there.
From there, I was helped a lot with my friend Angelica (Little Starry Things) who encouraged me to start promoting my shop at markets and pop-ups, and I haven’t stopped since.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The road seems a lot smoother now, but definitely not in the beginning. I struggled a lot with finding the confidence in my work and my products and proudly promoting what I made. There were multiple times when I would get overwhelmed because there is a lot of research that goes into running and maintaining a shop– like with the amount of materials I needed to buy and testing out if one brand of clothing was better than the other, and making sure that the items I was putting out was something I was truly happy with. It became very real very quickly to me that this was not me playing pretend or a small hobby because I now had customers, and people who were paying their hard-earned money to buy something from me that I made, and I was so determined to ensure that it was perfect that I would take my frustrations out on myself, and let it take a toll on me.
It’s taken a lot of reflection within myself and touching base with loved ones to undo those negative emotions and remind myself why I love what I do and why I want to continue to grow and to be proud that as long as the items I make are good quality and they are made well that should be the reassurance I need that I am doing well. I’m not a machine by any means, and people love to support and represent products that are handmade and have a handmade quality.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I started Cositas Buenas & Co to put out products that I would wear that have representation of my culture and the things that I like that I felt other people would enjoy as well. The name of my shop itself came from the nickname my grandma gave me as a baby, “cosita buena.”
This business has brought me closer to my roots and has taught me to value all the quirks and sayings of my culture and how I was raised and turn it into something I can share with everyone else who may have had the same or similar upbringing.
My small shop grew when I released my Cafecito con Chisme sweater, that started as a joke from playing on the phrase “Cafecito con Leche.” It became one of my most popular items, followed by my Churros sweatshirt that looks like a ‘checkmark’ (if you catch my drift).
I do my best to draw out and sketch all my own designs and try to make things in my style. Seeing the reactions I get from people over the things I have made still blows my mind, and I love all the stories that come from each item on how it relates to them. Feeling how much growth and lessons I’ve gained from this experience has made me proud of taking the leap onto this path/journey.
We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you.
I feel like some luck has come in through just sparking the interest in someone with an item. I feel like you could make something amazing, but because the world seems so vast now with social media sometimes, you need some luck to get the ball rolling. I’ve been fortunate to have friends support my shop and promote my items, and even other small businesses and large accounts shout out my products which I feel has given me the push on social media platforms.
Contact Info:
- Website: cositasbuenasco.bigcartel.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cositasbuenasco/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CositasBuenasCo/
