Why Whimsy Forest?

Have you ever felt like your name didn't fit you? Or maybe it did, but then you changed and now the name doesn't seem to be who you are anymore? It's not easy living with a name that doesn't fit. People will go by nicknames or shortened names or diminutive names rather than by a name that doesn't fit. Some opt to go by a middle name. Some even go so far as to legally change their name.

After 3 plus years of selling toys under the name of Mountain Goddess Studio, I am changing the name of my business to Whimsy Forest. It wasn't an easy decision. After all, I've got a few years of sales and people knowing me as Mountain Goddess Studio. It's not that I've changed, or that my products have changed. It's that the name didn't suit what I did from the beginning. It was a legacy from when I had bees and made candy. I confess, I should have thought it through when I began selling online, but, I didn't. I kept the core name of Mountain Goddess. It was familiar and comfortable.

Struggling to create a logo and a marketing plan for Mountain Goddess Studio, it just didn't want to gel and come together. I must have tried a half a dozen different logos. When I showed them to people for an opinion it was either negative (it didn't seem to fit), or it wasn't recognized for a mountain, a dragon wing or whatever I had come up with. Then there were the logos that got crickets. Nobody even bothered commenting one way or the other. It was frustrating and very sad.

My marketing became virtually non-existent. I couldn't find my brand. Besides with the name of Mountain Goddess Studio it felt more like a fine art or graphics art business, not someone making stuffed toys from natural materials.

Several times I thought I should just change the name. But, to what? So I kept the name and carried on. One morning several weeks ago, upon awakening, there came to me a name with a logo, colors and even some idea of how to market it. Unfortunately, that name had already been taken by someone else and the domain name wasn't available. :( For the next several days I kept a list of words that spoke to me in a similar way. Hours of checking if the domain had been sold to someone else as I tried combination after combination.

Then, it happened. The name Whimsy Forest was available. It made me smile and it evoked the feeling I get when I work on the stuffed toys and how the toys speak to others. I hesitated. I questioned, is this right? Will this work? How much work would it be to change things? I ran the name by family and friends. What do you think? I'd ask them. The response was overwhelmingly positive. Still I hesitated. My husband (and biggest fan) told me to just go for it. So, I bought the domain name.

It was such a relief to have made the decision. I immediately felt more positive and the ideas for marketing and new products began to pour into my head. I've been working on getting the website set up, changing my name across social media and coming up with a logo. Everything is falling into place with only a few minor hiccups. The critters and fairies are delighted to be in a forest instead of a studio. It's much more to their liking. :)

There are a few more loose ends to tie up to finish the name change. Since the name change wasn't planned when I made goals for this year, I'm behind on those goals. Once the name change is completely in place, I will get back to those goals. Here's a sneak peak at one of the new things that are in the works.