Pricing your work

Probably the hardest thing about selling your handmade products is pricing them. You don't want your prices too high but you don't want them too low either. I have read several blogs, and articles on how to price your work, I just recently realized I am making nothing probably going in the hole actually:( this was very hard news for me to hear and see.

This time on ETSY I have made several sales both online and off, I began researching how to make my business official and begin keeping books, it was only then that I figured out I was not making as much as I thought I was

I want to give an example
For my scrabble tiles I had listed them for $5.95
Expenses to make the tile--$2.18
Fees to sell the tiles-- $1.50
Shipping fees--$2.82
Total cost to make --$6.50

Wow that brings me to negative 0.55

I found this formula to price your work

Labor cost+ materials+ expenses x 2.5= retail value

For my scrabble tiles it would be

3.50+ 6.50(I have already added the materials and expenses together) x2.5= $25.00

That is a little too steep but that is what it retails for I am selling the for $8.50 for a regular tile and 12.00 for a custom photo pendant

I really didn't want to increase my prices but in order to make a profit I have to. At 8.50 please realize I only bring in $2.00 per tile sold

Until next time
Happy Crafting
Danielle C

Chloe Collection Spring 2013

I am going to start to list some new jewelry for Pure Eden jewelry designs for Spring(I wish it was spring outside instead of winter but oh well)

I am going to start with a line called Chloe, these necklaces are meant to layer with each other gorgeous bright colors green, pink, black, and a little blingy(is that a word?, well if not I will make it one)

Every woman deserves to have a whole wardrobe of jewelry and accessories!  Pure Eden strives to provide a wide range of jewelry and accessories at an affordable price!

Be on the lookout for these and more pieces to appear on ETSY in the shop for sale!
until next time 
happy Crafting!
Danielle C.

Busy Busy Busy

I am about to release my Spring/ Summer Collection For Creative Corner Designs By Danielle Boutique
 for Pure Eden and Scrabble Tile Pendants

I am so excited to be offering pieces that are bright, trendy, and of course affordable

I used Pantone color for Spring-Summer

Here is a little sneak peak of my work desk-- this desk is really my stamping/card making table but as my jewelry has taken over, I needed a place to organize them for photo shoot!

I am so excited for this in more than one ways, I explained above that the pieces are the first reason and here is my second reason
We made it through the winter my least favorite season of all, I love spring and I love summer and I Love Fall but winter I cannot stand at all, it really helped making these pieces for summer when it was snowing outside:)

I am also trying a new technique I hope to be able to share soon but here is a look at my work in progress

Until next time 
Happy Crafting
Danielle C

New Trend in jewelry, now in Scrabble Tiles

As I have searched for jewelry inspiration I keep seeing these interesting but beautiful pieces.
Handstamped sterling silver with GPS coordinates of a special location, home address, just about anywhere.  I though yeah I can do that on my scrabble tiles and offer yet another option for my wonderful customers

I am going to offer the scrabble tiles completely custom you choose the color, you choose the font, you choose the coordinates.  It will be easy to do through the ETSY shop 

Go to this website to see your GPS coordinates-- just type in an address you want and it will generate your coordinates

1. Purchase the listing
2. Choose your font
3. Choose your background color
4. in notes to seller please give the coordinates (you can copy and paste from the website)
5. checkout using paypal the fastest and safest way to pay online
6. you will receive an e-mail confirming order 
7. You will receive a shipping notice e-mail with tracking number
8. receive your pendant and remember to come back and give feedback-- it really helps 

You say I really like this idea but not sure what I would use as my coordinates, here are some ideas
*a special vacation location
*home address if you live away or a college student to remind you of home 
*long distant relationship 
* your vacation home address
* an upcoming vacation and you could say meet me there
* and more 

now take a look at the pendants ( no editing done on these photos, sorry I just took a quick photo to share here)

Until Next time
Happy Crafting
Danielle C

Wow what a day!!!

Woke up this morning to a fresh coating of white fluffy snow, and an early morning call from work stating we were on a two-hour delay due to the nasty roads. 45-60 minutes later we closed I now had a unexpected day off, I spent the good part of my morning working on exams, grading, and setting up my online class for next term. I had just looked up at the clock and was thinking I needed a break when all of a sudden my electronic devices began ringing like a cash register which means I got a sale on ETSY:)

I not only got 1 sale, not 2, not 3, but 4 sales in one day WOW!!!

I then headed out in the midst of winter to my nail appt, so excited about my sales I decided to wear my scrabble tile necklace for go red day, 6 people couldn't stop talking about them one even wanted my business card and also requested a custom scrabble pendant!

I stopped by a local craft supply shop to pick up some supplies to get me through the weekend
( more winter coming) I came home had an awesome dinner, new pizza in town. Retreated to my studio to finish packing the orders from today and creating some post earrings and a really cute purse charm, still working on this but photos coming soon!

As much as I hate winter and snow this snow day has been pretty awesome and successful!!! Now let's keep this streak up for a great February:)

Now off to do work on the computer

Until next time
Happy crafting
Danielle C

Feature Friday- Ashley after Dark Etsy Shop

Hello everyone on Fridays I will be featuring a great ETSY shop on this blog!  Be sure to read through the interview as the shops usually provide ways you can save in the shop! And be sure to go support these shops, shop handmade!

She provided us with this interview 

Q: Name of shop, how did you come up with your shop name? A: AshleyAfterDark. I wanted to come up with something that directly dealt with my life. I am a stay at home mom to my two beautiful children, so it’s usually not until after the kids are tucked into bed that I get to go to my crafting zone. There isn’t a lot of time for art between naps, school, meals, and kid’s wants/needs. www.etsy.com/shop/AshleyAfterDark?ref=si_shop
Q: How did you get started? A: I had been seeing etsy here and there and one day my sister in law mentioned she was opening a shop, knowing I had a love for creating, she suggested I look into it. Once I did, it was love at first sight. There are so many amazing items on etsy. The talent is so diverse and wonderful, its eye candy at all times.
 
Q: When did you begin selling? A: I opened my shop July 2012, and have had fun ever since.
Q: What inspires you to create?
A: Crafting and creating has always been a big part of who I am, and is something that I am passing along to my children. I grew up in a house with a mom that is very talented and always had some craft project going on. It has become a real bonding time for not only my mom and I, but my daughter and I as well. She is always asking when she gets to head out to the craft cave to do some art.
Another huge inspiration to my creativity is my emotions. I have to be in a carefree relaxing state of mind in order to properly create something that I love. Many times I will sit down to start a piece of art, then when I step back and view it I think of it as just ok. With a little more color and love being poured in it, it usually ends up being one of my favorite pieces of art.
Q: While you create do you have a playlist, like to watch something on TV/movie or do you have to have complete silence? A: I would say a combination of all the above. Most frequently I have music on. It ranges anywhere from, reggae, hip hop, alternative, county, to meditation music. Typically it sparks some sort of emotion to base my art off of. Then there are other times that I want to work in pure silence.
Q: Do you have a special place dedicated to creating? (home office or studio?) If not where do you create? A: When I first started etsy my creations were spread out all over the house. It just kept growing and growing. Long story short, that didn’t last long. My family got tired of not having any place to put their things because my crafts were taking over.
So about 3 months ago I was graciously given an extra hand to clean out the garage in order to have a place for my supplies. It now has turned into a workbench area that I have set up with all my supplies, orders and creations. I absolutely love it. It’s my space to be ME!
 Q: Is your shop your only job? What else do you do?

A: I am a wife and mother. I am not paid a salary; I am paid in kisses from my kids. It’s the hardest, but most rewarding job a parent could have. I feel fortunate that I am home with my kids every day.
Cooking is another passion of mine. My kitchen is another one of my favorite places to be. It’s invigorating to try new recipes and come up with meals that my family loves.
Q: Do you have a Favorite thing in your ETSY shop?

A.
This is one of my favorite pieces. I love the colors and think it has a great reminder message that many of us tend to forget in the busy world we live in.
Q: Do you have a favorite medium?

A: As you will see when you visit my etsy shop all my items somehow have alcohol ink incorporated into them. Its and acid free ink that acts much like tie dye in the sense that you have a wide variety in mixing and combining.
Q: Could you share yourSocial media links, blog links?

A: Following me on:
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/AshleyAfterDarkWhereThePartyStartsAtTheCraftTable
TWITTER: twitter.com/AshleyRodgers26
PINTEREST: pinterest.com/ashley_breann/
BLOG: ashleyafterdark.blogspot.com/
GOOGLE+: plus.google.com/u/0/101678518806867897153/posts?tab=XX
Q: Do you have any special sales or promotions?

A:Use coupon code BLOG15 in checkout to receive 15% off your purchase at AshleyAfterDark.
Q: Is there anything you want to add?

A:Creations of any sort come from the heart and have meaning behind them for each and every individual. You must have confidence in yourself and in the products you are selling. In order to make it worthwhile you have to believe in yourself.

Thanks Ashley for providing us with this interview, now be sure you go to her shop check it out!!!
Follow her on her social media links above

Come back next Friday for another feature!
Until Next time 
Happy Crafting
Danielle C

How to run a Successful ETSY business

That is a great question that many ETSIANS have asked and tried to figure out for years!  What is crazy is that what may be successful for one ETSY shop may not work at all for another ETSY shop, Crazy I know!

Here is my list of what is helping me to become successful

Good Photography:
I first opened my shop selling my greeting cards in 2008 and here is a example of a photo I had

not the best but at the time I thought it was fine.
What is wrong with the photo?

• needs cropped
• needs straightened
• taken at a bad angle
• the background makes it too dark 
• fuzzy picture
• lighting was bad

I think that my photos have gotten better

fixed the photo

• cropped the photo
• straightened the photo more(could probably be straightened more)
• took the photo and tried to get a birds eye view of the card
• this photo is more in focus
• lighting was much better
• notice the different background

 Listings:
the key is to list product and to have a full shop, never thought about it the first go around but really who wants to shop in a store that only has a handful of product, not me I want choices!
Imagine going into a big dept store and only having 3 options to buy-- You probably wont want to shop there a lot. 

I try to list at least 2 items per day if not more, and space the listings out throughout the day so that your shop is gaining more exposure!

Budget:
Now however this may be common sense It was the last thing on my mind the first go around and so now I budget tightly!

Figure out what  you can personally spend per month remember that it takes money to make money!  Dont overspend on supplies however it may be tempting to do just that.  You need to figure out what the max amount you can personally add to the etsy shop from your personal budget(keep personal money separate from ETSY money)

each time you make a sale figure out what your profit was by taking the fees and the expenses of creating the product from the price sold at.  You will probably be surprised to find out that you really don't make as much as you would think :( You may have to adjust your prices a little the first 6 months to a year.

No one wants to work for FREE

Excellent Customer Service
You have to be conscious that there is a person on the other end of your purchase
I not only sell on ETSY but I also buy on ETSY, there is nothing better than opening a package and seeing pretty packaging a free sample or coupon code, a handwritten note of thanks!  I also enjoy getting convos from the buyer throughout the process just letting me know where we stand.
Some things I do

• e-mail customers with thanks and approximate shipping times 
• send a convo through ETSY when I ship the product(the shipping label usually gets to them before the product gets shipped and I just want them to be aware of when I ship)
• Package my products in a cute way 
• includes a handwritten note with each purchase
• includes a coupon code with each purchase
• during holidays I include a free gift
   

 Advertise and market shop:
This is something that I struggle with most!  How do you market your shop? how to advertise?  many etsy sellers advertise through ETSY, some others advertise through a blog, twitter, facebook, pinterest, and others get published in a magazine, Others pass cards and samples out through out their neighborhood
I dont know if there is a right or wrong way to market I am still trying to figure it all out!
 

Etsy shop re-opened

I know I know we have been down this path before, but this time I have found a new passion Scrabble tile Pendants

Okay Okay so ETSY is pretty much swamped with Scrabble tile pendants and shops are very successful at making and selling them, so you have to be different to stand out or really good at marketing-- So how can you reinvent the wheel when everyone is so successful?

I am not for sure I have completely figured this out but I am working hard and hoping that this time my shop will be successful too:)

My shop is going to be a one-stop shop for all handmade items eventually you will be able to purchase scrap-booking supplies like pre-made items, greeting cards made from the heart, crochet items like dishcloths--scarves--blankets and more, Pendants made from resin, Glass pendants, Scrabble tile Pendants, Pure Eden jewelry Pieces, Home/party decor and more!!!!

Come check my shop out and see what I am so excited about :)
I also have a shop Facebook page-- become a fan and get special sales and coupons  http://www.facebook.com/CreativeCornerDesignsByDanielle

Have a Blessed Day
Danielle

ETSY a place to buy and sell all things handmade

ETSY is probably the best place to sell or purchase hand crafted items I have found anyway!

I joined in 2008 selling cards and crochet items, I was open 6 months and then one morning a sale :) then nothing for 3 months:(

I could not keep up with my shop-- creating-- photo taking--listing-- the whole running a business thing, because I was working and going to school and it got to be too much so I closed my shop

the desire to create and sell my creations was still in the back of my head so I re-opened in 2009 early 2010 was only on for a few months when I decided I needed a break to regroup maybe create some new products so I was off for approximately 5 months

Now I am open and here to stay!!!! I am offering a wide variety of greeting cards, jewelry and accessories

What is different than last time you may ask? Well I am working 2 full time jobs (teaching) and trying to create and be on ETSY well a team is different I joined a TEAM on ETSY that is supportive for working ETSIANS meaning we have day jobs or go to school the team helps us to balance everything and it a support system for working etsians!

I am doing better at ETSY this time I think anyway you can look at the 2nd page of my shop to see my old pictures and my current pictures are on page 1 I think a better improvement

With any business it needs to be run, management is everything in a company the same thing goes for my little shop~

Come on by and check out Creative Corner Designs

Have a Creative Day!

New Listings

Do you like interchangeable pendants you can exchange different chains for different pendants? Well I have just listed some wonderful glass pendants in my shop with more to come soon!!!

New listings in my shop just this morning, I have added glass pendants to my shop~ These are so much fun to make and to wear, one added note is these pendants are not waterproof and should not be worn in the shower or pool area!
They make perfect gifts for shower gifts(bridal or baby), hostess gifts, bridal party gifts, Mother's Day Gifts, Graduation gifts, and really any gift for any occasion!

here is a picture of the grouping of some of the pendants


It is finally Friday YEAH:) oh I could almost scream out loud and do a back flip~
My weekend is full of projects and appointments
I have some creating to do, pictures to take, pictures to edit, school stuff to do-- final exams to be created, papers to be graded, planning to be done, the list goes on and on! I need to prioritize or I will get nothing done~

A new challenge-- P365- this is where you take a picture each day of the year leaving you with 365 pictures as a record of the year! I am going to be putting these photos in a scrapbook-- I tried this 2 years ago but no luck I made it 1 week, sad but true... This time I am doing pretty good, I know we are just in February but I have a picture for everyday so far:) I just hope I can keep it up I bought a beautiful scrapbook to put my POTD layouts inside and I can not wait to see it all put together:)

Have a Creative Day

New Listings

This morning it is cold out side but warm in my shop with some new spring listings

I listed some new statement rings and a very fun bracelet

This ring is a gorgeous rose in a buttercup color and so nice for spring time!

How fun is this bracelet it is called cha cha bracelet because it reminds me of the cha cha cha dance, fun!!!

My rings come in both silver plate(listed this morning) and gold plate, and they come in a variety of colors!

Come to the shop and check what is new!

Have a Creative Day

Pure Eden

Yes I did add Pure Eden to my greeting card shop yesterday!

it is so exciting to see the pendants listed at the beginning of the shop, I have several pieces, pictures taken, some need edited, others are just waiting to be listed, And cards yeah I have more cards to list, some pictures that need to be taken and others need to be edited and others are just sitting there waiting to be listed!

Monday Monday, wow it seems like it was just Friday and the weekend was starting but now the workweek is starting-- A fun week this week as i am testing most of the week towards the end of the week i will have to teach the next chapter, I will have some time to think about new designs during my testing time:)

I am planning on listing new items everyday this week so you will have to be sure to stop by the shop

Have a creative Day

thinking of expanding my shop~

Well I have more than one crafting passions
-scrapbooking
-cards
-crochet
-Jewelry
-any craft really

So how do i limit my shop to just greeting cards you may ask? Well I thought if you have one brand maybe the shop will do better~ Just a thought so about 6 months to 1 year i opened up a shop called Pure Eden jewelry but all of my traffic feed my hearts were in my creative corner shop~
What was I to do I am trying to be better at advertisement but right now I just am at the brick wall ETSIANS get to, I need to break through that wall~

So I have a pretty large inventory of jewelry... Here is what I have decided to do

instead of having every jewelry item--like beaded jewelry, bracelets, rings, necklaces, pendants, I am going to have just a few items like-- pendants(glass and resin), rings, some really neat beaded bracelets, and hair accessories FUN items nothing too fancy, nothing really vintage, more like young people wear today, cute enough to wear to church or school but still modern enough to wear to a party or wedding~ What a balance-- well I have thought long and hard about this-- my price point-- shipping options-- whether to offer the new jewelry line or not-- I have decided I will go ahead and give it a try~

It will be under my Creative Corner Designs shop but still branded as pure Eden Jewelry that way I can easily transition to the Pure Eden Jewelry shop if I need to in the future, also at Craft shows and fairs I will be able to easily distinguish my Jewelry because i have created a logo for my Jewelry and my cards of course is my banner and avatar both here on this blog and at my shop~

Here is to a very nice Sunday with a very nice productive weekend behind me-- Friday I got my pictures taken and edited-- Beautiful weather the light just came in my studio (wonderful)-- Saturday I got some work done for my day job-- Lectures and exams created-- Today I am going to try to get some listings ready for this week and maybe my new banner for my shop yeah I have to change my tag-line if I add jewelry.

What to say, what to say, what to say..... hmmmm well it could be a greeting for every occasion and Pure Eden Jewelry designs, or it could say Greetings for all occasions and Jeweled creations, i don't know i really would like to have Pure Eden in the name some where?

Have a Creative Day

here is a sample of my new Line of Pure Eden Jewelry Pendants


And I just realized I do not have all of my pictures edited so that will be added to my to-do list today:)

The Etsians by Night treasury

This is a first for me, i have been on and off etsy for the past 3 years or so and have never been featured on a treasury so I am truly honored and it is really pretty and bright!!!! Check it out!!! Click the picture to go to the actual treasury on ETSY!



mine is the card on the bottom the third one over

I just joined a team that are all etsians that work by day and ETSY or Craft by night , we are helping each other find that perfect balance, be a support system for each other, share creative thoughts, our blogs, and just a place to go where everyone is in the same boat!

Have a Creative Day

A Sample of cards available in the shop

Yeah my shop is finally open~ What took so long? That is a good question, I am now working full time and overtime, leaving me little to no time to create, I had a bunch of cards created however the photos, description writing, and photo editing takes lots of precious time, I just did not have:(
But I am getting there! Come check the shop out I have a grand opening coupon for a % off your first purchase~

here is a sample of what is listed for sale








Have a Creative Day!

Shop is OPEN

Finally I have a few cards listed in my ETSY shop come on over and check it out
More coming hopefully this evening!

happy Valentines day~ I was just featured on this wonderful blog with one of my favorite cards anchored to your heart check it out

Have a happy valentines day and be sure to come back to tell me what you think of the shop!

Have a Creative Day!