Do you sell your handmade crafts?

[lorah]

I think Etsy is pretty much the 'go to' venue for selling handmade. I did well there and anticipate doing well again. I tried other venues like Artfire, Bonanza, Zibbet and other lesser known ones but never did as well as when I was on Etsy. I am not crazy about the fees but sure is less expensive than starting a brick and mortar!

[michelli]

Hi, I work with polymer clay and metal (mix media) and sell at local art flea markets and I have a small clientelle of friends that buy from me. Although It's great to make money, I mostly enjoy being creative and executing my designs, I find it very relaxing and fun. I combine my jewelry with personal messages, such as poetry, history, and prayers in secret compartments. I transfer images on clay and make it personal. I love being able to manipulate the clay into any design I want and making it meaningful where you can wear a piece of history, especially if you're a history teacher, or a prayer if you are the spiritual type, etc. Last year I made a beautiful neglace for my niece who just lost her mom, and the pendant told a story of her family tree. I actually found a free photo online of a tree with several beautiful colors and circular leaves which I used to symbolize her family's attributes. My other niece writes poetry and she helped me put all the words together, making it flow real nice. I always encourage everyone to use their skills, hobbies or create one of something they might be interested in, stick with it and just use it as an escape, a place where you can have fun and feel free, and also make some money at the same time. Aside from doing this, I also work from home for a callcenter which pays for all of my craft materials, so good night folks - have to work tomorrow, Michelli

[lorah]

Hi Michelli,
Your work sounds beautiful. And what a lovely tribute that would be for someone.

[lorah]

Originally Posted by sunnydays

I have a niece that makes handmade bracelets. She sells them at the local convenience store and makes a little money. I have told her that are places such as Etsy and Handmadecatalog.com but didn't know if she would make less money because of fees charged..Has anyone had any success with online companies that they could tell us about/ Thanks.

I'm not sure I understand the question? Do you mean people having success on Etsy or other online venues like that? Etsy charges 20 cents per listing and then a small percentage when an item sells. Your neice would need to rethink her prices some to make up for the fees most likely. There are alot of people making a full time living on Etsy and other venues. I have never heard of handmadecatalog. There is a new venue coming called Farmmade or something like that. All new venues take awhile to get moving, get traffic, vendors etc. I would encourage your neice to try it. She won't be out alot of money and who knows, she might make a bunch! Let us know how it goes.

[beemelissa]

I have been selling on Etsy since last year. I think I had my shop open before that, but when I got pregnant and had to quit my housekeeping business (because cleaning products made me wanna barf!!), I started selling personalized Christmas ornaments on Etsy. I said, "...if I could just sell 10 I would be happy." Well, I stopped counting at 150 in the middle of December. I had NO IDEA how popular they would be. I am doing them again this year and I also have fired up my sewing machine and sew all kinds of baby items like blankets, car seat cozy pads, paci clips, soft blocks, etc. For my birthday I got a basic embroidery machine and now I can also personalize and applique items! I have applied to be in 3 craft fairs this year and I am hoping to really make a splash at those. I will be really disappointed if I don't do well, especially since I'm putting my husband out expecting him to be "in charge" of the baby while I'm off selling!

[MiAve]

Originally Posted by lorah

I was just curious as to how many there are here that make their own items to sell? Whether on Etsy, Artfire, eBay or another venue. I am in the process of starting my own dog clothing and accessories line. I am building my own website but haven't discounted selling on Etsy or another venue until I can build a following. Would love to swap and share marketing ideas. Would also love to know what you make.

This is not the place to post links to your stores, you can do that in the Shop Handmade section. Although if you have over 30 posts, you can put the link in your signature. Just wanted to find others to chat with about the trials one can have when they craft for profit.

Don't you think setting up an etsy shop would be a good way to build a following?

[maceysdreams]

Originally Posted by sunshineborders

kind of!
I paint canvases and furniture (and murals)... I have an etsy account but havent started selling on there yet. I just think etsy is the place everyone goes to buy handmade items. I have friends who sell their products at vendor's booths at fairs, markets, or in shops where you can rent a space, those are big here in NC, but we didn't have things like that back home in OH!

Like Sunshine Borders we paint on canvases and do murals.
Here in London.
it's kind of hard when you start off to make keep everything on the up.

We also do door plaques for all rooms.

[southernscrappn]

I sell on ETSY...It is pretty much the main place for handmade items. I also sell locally which is great advertising

[lorah]

Etsy is the go to place for handmade. However, you also need to be careful that you don't fall into the "re-listing" game. They try to tell you that you NEED to relist in order to sell but that is not true. It's just a way for them to collect more fees. There have been some semi recent changes to the way they do things and I am not 100% convinced that it is in the sellers best interest.

[Smile Steady]

I've been selling on Etsy for about 7 months now, lightly at first, but things really took off before Christmas. I'm starting to take it a little more seriously now and hope to turn it into something sustainable soon! I make burlap signs.