Magination and PeriwinkleDzyns will be there.
Any other Westies? Comment!
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Civic Center Craft Sale Saturday April 2
Magination and PeriwinkleDzyns will be there.
Any other Westies? Comment!
Monday, March 28, 2011
Arts Junktion
Tucked around the corner from Cre8tery Gallery and Art Supply store at 312B William Avenue in the Exchange District of Winnipeg is ArtsJunktion Recycling depot. ArtsJunktion mb Inc. is a community-based, charitable organization committed to redistributing reusable materials. Mandate:
· To support community artists and arts organizations by providing materials, workshop and gallery space
· To provide educational opportunities to community groups and community members on various techniques using recycled materials in art
· To support community artists through promotion of their art through fairly paid employment opportunities
· To gather reusable materials from businesses, organizations and individuals, that would otherwise be considered waste, sort them and make them available to all at no charge
· To reduce the amount of waste that ends up in landfills
· To raise awareness in the community regarding environmental issues and sustainability
· To support community development by being centrally located and by liaising between businesses, community organizations and community members
My daughter and I spent a few hours volunteering there on Saturday as I thought this was an organisation we could both go and support.
Chloe, the depot manager is super friendly and helped us settle in quickly by letting us pick an area we wanted to clean up and organise the displays. Daughter quickly gravitated toward the yarn and sewing notions which were a big tangled mess. She's always untangled these types of messes for me and has more patience than I do!
We had fun and found a few treasures for ourselves while we were at it.
It was interesting to see how busy the depot is on a Saturday. People were constantly coming and going with donations or making selections. Their system has people noting the cubic feet of donations and withdrawals and it's so great to see so many unwanted items being saved from going to landfill.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Tutorial Tuesday: Preparing and Packing for a Craft Sale
So you've made dozens of your creative domathingy that your friends and family love. Neighbours go gagga over them and you've been getting some orders from word of mouth. Your Etsy shop is slowly getting off the ground but you're curious. How would perfect strangers react to your wonderful creations?
Well,it's time to find out and try a craft sale!
You've found a local indoor sale, the table price is reasonable, you've written them a cheque and your application has been accepted.
Now what? The sale is in a couple of weeks, you think you have enough product and you want to get ready.
Calm those butterflies and Make a List!
containers to pack everything into - I can't say enough for items with wheels, suitcases and dollies if you need them for heavy items are a back saver! If you don't already own some, borrow from friends or relatives before you invest in your own, it pays to find out what works for you and your set up
product - enough to make a nice display and some extra to have under the table
table covering - better if it reaches the ground in front of your table and covers the items you have tucked under neath, sheets, tableclothes, plastic, almost anything will do as long as it's neat and not wrinkled
table risers - pvc pipe or bed risers from the home accessory store to raise your table height if you have small items
display items - racks, boxes, household items, avoid the flat table look if at all possible, use what you have, it doesn't have to be store bought! My first bracelet rack was a tin can wrapped in velvet
packaging materials - whatever you want your customers to take your items away in
promotional materials - business cards, flyers, hand outs, banner, signs
album of examples if you do custom work
lighting and cords
tape
safety pins
basic repair and pricing kit - for me that's pliers, earwires and a few tags, for you it may be other items that allow you to customize your pieces easily
something to work on if it's slow, preferably an item you are selling - NEVER A BOOK!!!
float - the amount and denominations depend on your item prices
receipt book
comfortable shoes and an outfit that is layered so you can adjust to temperature fluctuations
refillable water bottle
lip balm
non messy snacks, gum
notebook, pen, black marker, scissors
cell phone so you can tweet or facebook what's going on at the sale
depending on the events logistics - parking $, lunch order and $
car keys
Do a dry run of your table set up. Is it a 6 or 8 foot table? Find out and set up with the alloted space. Draw a quick sketch of what goes where to help your remember - bring the sketch, it will help calm your nerves on the morning of when you are frantically setting up so you can sit and wait for the doors to open!
And don't forget your most important sales tool - a smile!!
Have fun and see you there
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Etsy - One Month Down....
After being on Etsy for a little over a month, these are a few things that I have learned that would have helped me in the beginning. I'm not saying that these are things anybody needs to do, they are just things I have come to realize.
1. You need a decent camera to take a decent picture. Now I'm not saying you need one that costs hundreds and hundreds of dollars, but you do need one that takes a nice clear picture, and depending on what you are taking a picture of, it may need to have a fairly high optical zoom. I started with our 3 year old rugged/water proof camera that only has 3x optical zoom, and boy did I have troubles. There's nothing worse then having a finished item you can't wait to list, and you can't take a good/accurate picture of it! Recently we got a Canon with 10x optical zoom for a decent price, and I was so excited when I took my first pics with it, you'd think I won the lottery - I didn't have to spend 20 minutes trying to get the picture to look right!
The most important reason why you need a decent camera that can take a good picture is simple. You want to sell the item to somebody, and all they have is the picture to decide whether or not they will buy the item. If they can't accurately see the item in the picture, the likelihood of them taking the chance that it might be what they want and buy it, is pretty slim. At least I know I wouldn't. Which brings me to the next item...
2. If you don't have good lighting in your house, you need a light box. If your house has bad lighting like mine (I get about 1 hour of good light at midday in my kitchen before the house next door blocks the sun), you need to set up a light box. About two and a half weeks into my Etsy adventure, I came across the book Crafty Superstar , by Grace Dobush. While flipping through the pages I came across a diagram of a lightbox, and it was like somebody hit me with the book! Here I was spending all this time trying to redirect the light, or dim it to make the shadows go away when I should have been pointing the lights right at the item. Excited once again I raced home and tried it out. I noticed a huge improvement in the pictures (despite still using the old camera at the time), but they still looked a little yellow or warm. At the time I was using 2 ott-lights and one table light. What I realized was that that one light affected the whole picture. So I tracked down and borrowed another ott-light, and set it up. WOW! Yeah, there was that much of a difference.
Now I realize that not everybody has three ott-lights (I got mine on sale for super cheap), but there are other lights that will work, they just need to be a natural light source. If you are new to the light box idea, as I was, just do a search for 'how to set up a light box'.
3. Run the numbers. The last thing you want to do is spend hours making something that you can only sell for $15, and $5 of that is your cost. When setting the price for something you have to be realistic. Do a little bit of searching on Etsy and see what other people are selling similar items for, and determine if it's worth it to sell. We are at disadvantage living in Canada in that the cost may be higher for us than somebody living somewhere else. If you have to list your item on the high end of the price range because of your cost, then you are dependant on the first two things I learned, as you will need to prove to the potential buyers that your item it worth more than the other less expensive items.
4.Shipping. Ah shipping, the bane of my existence. There is no good way around it, Canada post is expensive. If you think something will cost $5 to ship, double that, triple it if you are mailing it to somebody in Canada. I do not understand their justification in this (and I've already had a few rants because of it), but there is no way around it. As I have some stuffed toys on my site, this is something that I learned the hard way (all my $$$ went to shipping an item I sold :( ). Now what I have done in some cases to circumvent this is increased the price of the item slightly, and have what I think is a reasonable shipping rate. I feel, for example, that a buyer is more than likely to buy a $15 item with $5 shipping, than a $10 item with $10 shipping. This of course is how I feel, and there has to be a few other people out there that have the same thought.
Finally, the last important thing I have learned.
5. Start a blog. I really resisted this one. Everywhere I went I kept seeing this pop up, and I was really not wanting to. Then one day I realized why you needed to have a blog. If you have a blog and write about the ideas behind the items you make, this gives the buyer the sense that they know you. They have the opportunity to see behind the scenes at how you come about your creations, and can see how much thought you put into them. This will also benefit you in that you can promote your Etsy shop, give away coupon codes for Etsy, and promote new things that you are working on before they are actually listed. At least these are things that I have read about - so far I've just put a bit of history about my items.
I know this is pretty long. There are other things that I have discovered and learned in the last little while, and I am far from knowing it all. Maybe some of these things are useful to you, maybe not. Just thought I'd share the thoughts that are rolling around in my head.
Thanks for reading!
1. You need a decent camera to take a decent picture. Now I'm not saying you need one that costs hundreds and hundreds of dollars, but you do need one that takes a nice clear picture, and depending on what you are taking a picture of, it may need to have a fairly high optical zoom. I started with our 3 year old rugged/water proof camera that only has 3x optical zoom, and boy did I have troubles. There's nothing worse then having a finished item you can't wait to list, and you can't take a good/accurate picture of it! Recently we got a Canon with 10x optical zoom for a decent price, and I was so excited when I took my first pics with it, you'd think I won the lottery - I didn't have to spend 20 minutes trying to get the picture to look right!
The most important reason why you need a decent camera that can take a good picture is simple. You want to sell the item to somebody, and all they have is the picture to decide whether or not they will buy the item. If they can't accurately see the item in the picture, the likelihood of them taking the chance that it might be what they want and buy it, is pretty slim. At least I know I wouldn't. Which brings me to the next item...
2. If you don't have good lighting in your house, you need a light box. If your house has bad lighting like mine (I get about 1 hour of good light at midday in my kitchen before the house next door blocks the sun), you need to set up a light box. About two and a half weeks into my Etsy adventure, I came across the book Crafty Superstar , by Grace Dobush. While flipping through the pages I came across a diagram of a lightbox, and it was like somebody hit me with the book! Here I was spending all this time trying to redirect the light, or dim it to make the shadows go away when I should have been pointing the lights right at the item. Excited once again I raced home and tried it out. I noticed a huge improvement in the pictures (despite still using the old camera at the time), but they still looked a little yellow or warm. At the time I was using 2 ott-lights and one table light. What I realized was that that one light affected the whole picture. So I tracked down and borrowed another ott-light, and set it up. WOW! Yeah, there was that much of a difference.
Now I realize that not everybody has three ott-lights (I got mine on sale for super cheap), but there are other lights that will work, they just need to be a natural light source. If you are new to the light box idea, as I was, just do a search for 'how to set up a light box'.
3. Run the numbers. The last thing you want to do is spend hours making something that you can only sell for $15, and $5 of that is your cost. When setting the price for something you have to be realistic. Do a little bit of searching on Etsy and see what other people are selling similar items for, and determine if it's worth it to sell. We are at disadvantage living in Canada in that the cost may be higher for us than somebody living somewhere else. If you have to list your item on the high end of the price range because of your cost, then you are dependant on the first two things I learned, as you will need to prove to the potential buyers that your item it worth more than the other less expensive items.
4.Shipping. Ah shipping, the bane of my existence. There is no good way around it, Canada post is expensive. If you think something will cost $5 to ship, double that, triple it if you are mailing it to somebody in Canada. I do not understand their justification in this (and I've already had a few rants because of it), but there is no way around it. As I have some stuffed toys on my site, this is something that I learned the hard way (all my $$$ went to shipping an item I sold :( ). Now what I have done in some cases to circumvent this is increased the price of the item slightly, and have what I think is a reasonable shipping rate. I feel, for example, that a buyer is more than likely to buy a $15 item with $5 shipping, than a $10 item with $10 shipping. This of course is how I feel, and there has to be a few other people out there that have the same thought.
Finally, the last important thing I have learned.
5. Start a blog. I really resisted this one. Everywhere I went I kept seeing this pop up, and I was really not wanting to. Then one day I realized why you needed to have a blog. If you have a blog and write about the ideas behind the items you make, this gives the buyer the sense that they know you. They have the opportunity to see behind the scenes at how you come about your creations, and can see how much thought you put into them. This will also benefit you in that you can promote your Etsy shop, give away coupon codes for Etsy, and promote new things that you are working on before they are actually listed. At least these are things that I have read about - so far I've just put a bit of history about my items.
I know this is pretty long. There are other things that I have discovered and learned in the last little while, and I am far from knowing it all. Maybe some of these things are useful to you, maybe not. Just thought I'd share the thoughts that are rolling around in my head.
Thanks for reading!
Friday, March 11, 2011
Crafty Minions - Saturday March 12
Featuring WEST members
Zenbecca
Just the Goods
Mrs Glockenheimen
Marathon1981
Dizzy Dame
PeriwinkleDzyns
Velvet Vixen
Sew Dandee
and more!
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Brand Your Etsy Shop
A brand has been defined as a name, term, sign, symbol or design, or a combination of them intended to identify the goods and services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of other sellers.
How do you brand your Etsy shop?
Be consistent!
Your banner and avatar go a long way to branding your shop.
Yes, your cat is cute but... if your shop has nothing to do with pets stick with subject matter that customers will recognize as your shop.
A banner greets your customer when they first click into your shop.
Make it clear and welcoming, a swath of shop goodness.
If you don't have the computer skills to make a nice avatar and banner search out Etsians or friendly geeks that do.
What you sell!
Your listings, their photographs and the stories you write in your item descriptions all contribute to your Etsy shop brand. Make sure the look and style matches the feeling you are conveying in your shop and in your items.
Selling bedazzled used army boots? Use words to convey the shiney grunge look you are going for.
Try "Boots to be worn by a princess that doesn't need rescuing" instead of "dumpster dive finds with spit glued rhinestones" unless that's your vibe...
Shipping - the packaging, thank you note, business card: whatever you include when you send out that sale should be remembered by the customer in a positive way. Little touches like color coordination or a well executed theme. All help to brand your shop and make their purchase memorable. It doesn't have to cost a lot or use up too much of earth's valuable resources. But think beyond the ziploc bag thrown into the bubble envelope.
Include a picture of your cute packaging in your listing.
By effectively branding you Etsy shop you can drive more traffic to your shop.
How do you brand your Etsy shop?
Be consistent!
Your banner and avatar go a long way to branding your shop.
Yes, your cat is cute but... if your shop has nothing to do with pets stick with subject matter that customers will recognize as your shop.
A banner greets your customer when they first click into your shop.
Make it clear and welcoming, a swath of shop goodness.
If you don't have the computer skills to make a nice avatar and banner search out Etsians or friendly geeks that do.
What you sell!
Your listings, their photographs and the stories you write in your item descriptions all contribute to your Etsy shop brand. Make sure the look and style matches the feeling you are conveying in your shop and in your items.
Selling bedazzled used army boots? Use words to convey the shiney grunge look you are going for.
Try "Boots to be worn by a princess that doesn't need rescuing" instead of "dumpster dive finds with spit glued rhinestones" unless that's your vibe...
Shipping - the packaging, thank you note, business card: whatever you include when you send out that sale should be remembered by the customer in a positive way. Little touches like color coordination or a well executed theme. All help to brand your shop and make their purchase memorable. It doesn't have to cost a lot or use up too much of earth's valuable resources. But think beyond the ziploc bag thrown into the bubble envelope.
Include a picture of your cute packaging in your listing.
By effectively branding you Etsy shop you can drive more traffic to your shop.
Friday, March 4, 2011
W.E.S.T. Design Challenge: "March Into Spring"
The WEST design challenge for the month of March is "March Into Spring."
I know that we all complain about winter being too long and too cold here in Manitoba (but we really should admit that this is the only place we all want to be anyway!) March tends to be the month when things start warming up. I'm ready for spring, are you?
While enjoying the warmer weather and thinking about the beautiful blooms you will plant in your garden, or about spring cleaning (like I'll be doing), keep in mind the current March 2011 Spring Trends:
"With the arrival of spring the trend report instinctively turns to flowers. A riotous explosion of florals prints as well as flowers was to be seen in most spring fashion shows. Some of this season’s florals were of the demure and romantic kind while others were clearly bold and dynamic." (Handmade Europe - Flower Bomb! - Trend Report - March 2011)
"Spring: Fresh light and bright Colors...
Saint Patrick’s Day: Parties, celebrations, parades, touches of green, shamrocks, feasting, beer drinking and a nod to the Irish...
Fashion: Spring fashion will emphasize basics, dresses, bags in lighter materials, sunglasses, hair accessories,jewelry and the return of open-toe shoes." (Pure Handmade: March Trends - All About Color)
Here's how it works. Check the ning and blog at the start of the month to get the inspiration topic. As you mull over what that particular idea means to you, jot down some notes in the discussion thread or leave a comment on the blog. Take pictures of your process and finished item and post them in the thread or in the Flickr group (with the tag W.E.S.T._dc). We would love to hear the story behind how you arrived at your finished object! I will blog the results of each month's challenge.
I know that we all complain about winter being too long and too cold here in Manitoba (but we really should admit that this is the only place we all want to be anyway!) March tends to be the month when things start warming up. I'm ready for spring, are you?
While enjoying the warmer weather and thinking about the beautiful blooms you will plant in your garden, or about spring cleaning (like I'll be doing), keep in mind the current March 2011 Spring Trends:
"With the arrival of spring the trend report instinctively turns to flowers. A riotous explosion of florals prints as well as flowers was to be seen in most spring fashion shows. Some of this season’s florals were of the demure and romantic kind while others were clearly bold and dynamic." (Handmade Europe - Flower Bomb! - Trend Report - March 2011)
"Spring: Fresh light and bright Colors...
Saint Patrick’s Day: Parties, celebrations, parades, touches of green, shamrocks, feasting, beer drinking and a nod to the Irish...
Fashion: Spring fashion will emphasize basics, dresses, bags in lighter materials, sunglasses, hair accessories,jewelry and the return of open-toe shoes." (Pure Handmade: March Trends - All About Color)
Here's how it works. Check the ning and blog at the start of the month to get the inspiration topic. As you mull over what that particular idea means to you, jot down some notes in the discussion thread or leave a comment on the blog. Take pictures of your process and finished item and post them in the thread or in the Flickr group (with the tag W.E.S.T._dc). We would love to hear the story behind how you arrived at your finished object! I will blog the results of each month's challenge.
A few notes: Create something especially for the challenge. Entries for each month should be finished by the last day of the month. Vintage and supply sellers are welcome to participate, too, with a focus on artful photography and careful choice of item.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
February Design Challenge Projects
For the month of February, the WEST design challenge has been "Geometry Class." It's been an interesting exercise in patterns and geometric shapes. We were challenged to keep in mind the "now" colours of turquoise and yellow and the popularity of industrial items.
The challenge was wide open to interpret these ideas in a unique and exciting way.
And two WEST'ers rose to that challenge this month. Here are the fantastic results:
Fine Silver Hand Built Swarovski Pearl Cube Pendant
First we have Wendy of The Silver Agenda.
She writes:
Next we have Tawny from Tawny Bee. I feel a little weird writing about my own, so I'll paste what I wrote with my entry:
Two very cool and unique ways to interpret Geometry Class. :)
Stay tuned tomorrow for the announcement of the March Design Challenge for WEST!
She writes:
When I saw the design challenge I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to try building with precious metal clay. I then decided on the simple (or so I thought) plan of a cube.
Because I design for children, I tend to think of geometry as big and bold and crazy! Zig Zags were perfect.
I also wanted to use simple shapes that children would recognize in my design. So I started with a simple triangle and made a zigzag patterned Teddy Bed.
__________Two very cool and unique ways to interpret Geometry Class. :)
Stay tuned tomorrow for the announcement of the March Design Challenge for WEST!
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Etsy Shop Basics
It's a big wild world out there and opening up an Etsy shop can be very intimidating.
Start with these basic steps
1. Think carefully about your user name before you create an account on Etsy, search for similar names and see how others have used their names to brand their identity on Etsy. If you first registered as a buyer only and picked something unimagination like ruth123, don't despair! You can create another account, just remember you are supposed to disclose all Etsy shops.
2. Use the Etsy Help section and read read read! There's lots of excellent information out there but if you tackle it a bit at a time it will help you tremendously.
3. Make the best product you know how and keep making it the best. Even the most successful shops continue to improve and evolve their products.
4. Take the best pictures you can. Never ever apologize for your pictures. If you think they could be better, keep working on them! No one cares about your excuses. The internet is full of ideas and tutorials. You don't need a fancy expensive camera or a light box.
5. Write descriptions that tell what the product is in detail. Use white space to keep your information organized and easy to read. Your customer can't pick up the item or try it on. Include measurements and materials used, include process information that helps the buyer understand the product. Avoid craft specific technical jargon that isn't common knowledge or that you can't explain.
6. Ship to the US - that's where most Etsy buyers live. Once you get the hang of that do Europe and Australia. Visit the Canada Post website or go see the friendly gals at a real post office. Don't get your information from a postal contractor! (eg. Shoppers or local grocery store)
7. Write shop policies about shipping, returns and whether you take custom orders and what will happen if the have a problem.
8. Have a banner and an avatar - branding! We'll talk about that another day but for now start there.
9. List your shop location - people like to know where there product is coming from. Be safe and keep it to city, province. Wackadoodle locations like "inside my mind" or "fertile fields" are cute but won't help local buyers find you. And the day/week before an important holiday, believe me, they're searching for local shops.
10. Use all 14 listing tags - it helps people find your item
11. Accept PayPal
12. Keep learning and have fun!
This is my top 12 list, thought of while eating leftover birthday cake on my lunch hour (yes I had carrots too!)
Please comment or add to them - they are just my sugar induced opinion!
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