Weekend Recap

Back at Monday again, huh? I'm afraid the weekend consisted mostly of adventuring with the family and having other family over to chat and whatnot. Sure, I did some tatting, but nothing new to share. I thought about it on Friday, but I just couldn't settle on an idea. I asked the Internet for some and came to a sad realization. I've made, at one point or another, all the things they requested and they didn't know that those things were in fact sitting in the shop already. There seems to be a large disconnect between what people want to see me make and what they would actually like to own. Oh, well. I guess it's up to me to rely on my own imagination.

I did take a few pictures over the weekend. The camera on the new phone is orders better than the last one. I should really test it with some colored thread though. That was where the last phone camera was the weakest. Anyway here's the fake pumpkin I attempted to carve last week. The drill got away from me a few times and it wasn't until the last few bits that I really got a handle on the right amount of control and the angle and whatnot. I plan on touching up some of the worst spots with paint and sanding some others before this goes on display, but now I don't have to carve a "real" pumpkin if I don't want to.

This is Shade, our oldest cat. He has drool issues, but the new camera made him look so very regal that I had to share the photo.

I've got yet another eye appointment today, hopefully it's the last before I can pick up new contacts. In between that and the morning schooling I think I really will work on either something new for the shop or something old that hasn't been remade in a while. Or I could just end up tatting spiders. October does start tomorrow and I do like to give those little things away in orders. I guess we'll just have to see where the wind blows me.

Why, Thank You

Recently I have been the recipient of many kind words and statements of awe regarding my tatting. I was reading some nice feedback yesterday and I remarked to my husband how it always surprises me when people praise my work, it is just what I do. That started me thinking though, we often assume that something that is easy for us to do is easy for anyone to do. Sure, I can tat, it's easy for me, you could learn it too and perhaps be much better than me at it, or not. There are so many things I have tried and had little or no success at over the years. So I thought I would list some of the skills and people I've met you have them that impress the heck out of me.

First, metal work, it amazes me. I tried my hand a soldering and it was, well, unpleasant. I wish I had the skills of Gemmafactrix, TimothyAdamDesigns, or DowntothewireDesigns. All of these artists have amazing talent in an area I fear I will never get. Let's see, I crochet and I'm pretty good at it too, but BeaG has a knack for crochet that can't be beat. Everything she makes is perfect, even and colorful. When I first bought a lip balm holder from her, I thought I could make that. Guess what, I was wrong.

Next up will be art. I too draw and one day I might even let you see some of it, but I won't even pretend that I have the talent of some of my favorite artists on etsy. Jennifer from Stilettoheights makes the most amazing pieces. She not only has an amazing eye for design and color, but she's a pretty good comic book writer too. I've also recently been acquainted with Diana of Paynesgrey. What an amazing imagination, I just love her work and I could never create anything like it.

I can't weave like Scarfguy, I can't even imagine how to make a hat like BoringSidney. I can sew, but nothing like Deconstructress. Then there are artists that do so many things well, fetishghost has ceramics and silver smithing, tiinateaspoon has photography and amazing sculptural clothing. Ahna has hand shaped cabochons, stained glass, jewelry, makeup, candles and scents.

I have tried a lot of these crafts and though I have occasionally been successful, these people do these things better and I didn't even scratch the surface of the skills I am in awe of. So I guess the point of this entire post is, if you think I'm good at tatting, remember you might be good at something I can't do and never take your talent for granted. I am truly amazed that people are amazed by my pieces, but if I take a step back and look at them with fresh eyes, I can sometimes remember what tatting looked like to me before I learned to do it. I think everyone needs to think back to those before days occasionally to appreciate the skills you have now and how far you really have come. So anyway, thanks for the nice things you said about me!

What If Machines Had Hands

Handmade versus manufactured, it's John Henry versus the steam hammer. One has a soul and the other is cost efficient and creates a reliable quality level with a reputation, brand familiarity and accountability. Are you starting to see why people may be a bit wary of the goods you create in your craft room with no quality control? Clearly I support the handmade community, I am of course part of it, but I also love the reliability of many companies goods. I like to know that quality is consistent with every bottle of shampoo or pair of jeans I buy. I am also not rich by any stretch of the imagination so I need a good deal.

I think a lot of us struggle with this dynamic. We want to buy handmade, but we can't often justify the cost of doing so. There is also very few guarantees with handmade, for every piece or product that has high quality craftsmanship, there are dozens of others that appear to have been created by a five year old. For example, wire wrapping at it's finest is gorgeous metal swirls draped around beautiful stones in a fluid and clearly artistic way and it's most basic, it's glass beads coiled with wire in no discernible pattern to form a colorful if not comfortable ring. I apologize to wire ring lovers, but I just don't get them.

Now, I get handmade and even I have a problem buying it for many products, so you've got to imagine that the general public has got to work through some prejudices before jumping on board. I think most people don't mind buying handmade as long as they are getting fine craftsmanship and they don't mind buying manufactured if they feel the company has fair business practices. I guess what it really comes down to, is everyone is different. We all let many different factors determine our buying habits. Some people love owning one of a kind pieces and won't let price get in the way of that. While others just what what everyone else has and still others won't spend a dime more on anything regardless of quality.

You can't change everyone's mind about handmade. We can, however, expose people to the option and by making quality goods, we can win over those people who are on the fence. Maybe I will buy some handmade shampoo soon, know of any good ones?

Challenge Update: We have five participants on board so far, they are listed in this forum thread: http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=5648779

Why, What Lovely Wrists You Have

Here they are, the Victorian Lace Cuffs, tatted in black cotton thread. I'm still waiting for my hook and eye closures to come in so I can finish and list them for sale at etsy, but I promised a look, so here you go! I hope you like them.While I'm at it, here are three other brand new designs I came up with that will soon be on their way to a photo shoot. From left to right, we have the Daisy Cuff inspired by my Grand Daisy Choker, The Quadra Cuff, based on my Quadra Tatted Bracelet and the Bib Cuff using a modified version of the Gothic Bib Choker.

I haven't decided whether I'll be listing these as custom pieces in my store since I don't know when they'll be coming home. I think it might be easier to list them as custom pieces so I can offer them in all the thread colors I have available. Let me know what you think!

Should I Quit

You may have noticed that I have a bit of a big mouth. When something bugs me I tend to lay it all out there and I like to use a lot of big words while doing it. So after I made a big deal out of folks complaining about a lack of sales in their etsy stores( see here), I felt like I just have to suck it up now that my sales are in the toilet. I had all the familiar thoughts, it's the economy, my newest items aren't any good, nobody likes me, maybe I should just throw in the towel.

Then I came to my senses. Look, my sales are nonexistent right now and while I could very well blame the economy and I wouldn't be entirely wrong doing so, the truth is, I know exactly why I'm not selling. I figure there are two options at this point. I can quit or I can go into extreme business mode. I know what I need to do, but I'm simply not willing to put out the effort needed to make the sales happen. Why? Well, I have more important things to do with my time, than spend hours networking and advertising. Many people have spent their free time outlining their successful strategies and I thank them for their time and expertise, but I just can't get that invested.

So, do I think I should throw in the towel? No, I think I'm going to opt for secret option three, continue doing what I'm doing and not stressing out about it. I was making things long before I found etsy and I don't plan on stopping any time soon. The only real difference is now, my pieces aren't gathering dust or being given to unresponsive relatives for Christmas and birthdays. I was always spending money on my crafts, only now I occasionally make my money back. The worst case scenario is I never make another sale, all my listings expire and I'm stuck with all my unsold inventory, which I will give to relatives.

I'll keep on tatting new designs as long as there are people who at least like to look at them. I've used my store as an excuse to try things I never would have attempted otherwise because I just couldn't justify making all this stuff if I didn't have a potential outlet for its dispersal. I imagine that I would go into creative hibernation without my store, sales or not. So for now, I'm gonna stop stressing about sales and enjoy creating, because when all is said and done I think that's the real reason artists, artisans and crafters create. Ars Gratis Artis!

On a completely different subject, I finished my black cuffs and I will be posting pictures tomorrow, so don't forget to come back for them.

Coincidence, I Think Not

First, I'd like to thank all the folks that visited and commented over the last couple of days. Whenever I express one of my opinions here, I brace for an onslaught of detractors. I have been pleasantly surprised each time to be agreed with more often than not. I also appreciate that those who do disagree with me have been, for the most part, thoughtful and mature in their argument. Honestly I'm just feeling so grateful that I have this space to express my opinions for a few folks to read. Although I think you'd be amazed at how many people actually popped by for Wednesday's post.

Now on to today's observation. Etsy released a preview of their new "DOs and DON'Ts" yesterday. While, they will probably go through some wording tweaks before they go live, they seem pretty darn good to me. The timing of the release, just a couple of days after the "report this post" feature seems a little more than coincidental to me. I think it was the hammer thrown into the water to break the water tension before the construction worker falls in. If that metaphor doesn't work for you, then you probably don't watch Mythbusters. What I'm trying to say is, I think that they released the first feature, that they knew would cause a little drama so that when they released the new guidelines, they would seem tame by comparison.

Etsy's Admin are, it seems, evil geniuses. The new guidelines have been met with a mostly positive response so far. In fact, I dare say, most people are happy with them. Look, I was around when Etsy was in beta, so I've seen a lot of changes and the drama of the last two days is really nothing compared to some of the other things this site has gone through. With every new speed bump, it has emerged stronger and has yet to lose sight of it's primary goals as a handmade marketplace where people can, with the right amount of effort, make money doing what they love.

If you haven't seen it yet, Please check out this Storque article for the full story:
http://www.etsy.com/storque/article/1766/

I also just found this chocolate covered treasury featuring my newest design. I just adore finding my stuff in treasuries!

Have a great weekend and I'll be back Monday with pictures the mother's day presents I made as well as my newest scarf.

You Want How Much For That?

The Art of Pricing: It's Capitalism Baby!

One of the biggest controversies in the handmade community is, Pricing. There are many reasons this issue is a sticking point for people. We want to make sales, so we want the price to be affordable to our target audience, but we also don't want to under price ourselves for fear of looking cheap. Then there's the most annoying factor, other sellers opinions!

Look, you have every right to price your goods any way you want. This is capitalism, supply and demand, a free market system that allows the consumer to regulate the pricing of goods. I know that as handmade artisans, we feel a sense of community, but that does not mean we need to resort to price fixing just to suit other sellers pricing needs. I know that this is contrary to many other peoples opinions on the subject so feel free to ignore my opinion if you so choose.

When I first started selling tatted jewelry it was woefully under priced. I had no base for comparison as I was the only tatter on Etsy at the time. Eventually I came up with price points that I could live with. I certainly can't wholesale at my prices, but I don't intend to wholesale, so that's a moot point. I used to worry about new folks selling tatted pieces at really low prices, but I realize that the average consumer is not a idiot. They can see the difference in quality, even online and the cheap goods are not really competition for me. The consumer who prefers a $3 tatted doily is never going to buy a $75 tatted scarf and the person who buys my scarf probably thinks that the $3 doily is poor of quality not a great deal.

Here's an example. Widget makers, company A and company B make a comparable product in both function and quality. If A lower their price, B must either lower their price or increase the quality of their product to compete. However, company Z who makes a similar product much cheaper in quality and price is not competition to A or B, because they do not actually share a consumer base. Company Z's customer will never spend the extra money to get a better product, only price determines their purchases. A and B don't pay attention to what Z does because they can't compete with that and continue to make a high quality product, nor should they. They must market themselves to a different demographic and continue making a product high enough in quality to warrant the price they charge.

So if you make high quality baby bibs for $16 a pop, you are not going to get a Dollar store customer to buy them. You do not share a customer base with the Dollar store, so don't complain about their product pricing. Perhaps you should worry more about marketing to your consumer base and less time trying to undermine other peoples business strategies or lack thereof. Etsy is not a co op and although we love to help each other out, we are individuals in a free market system. Not too long ago, I read someones post suggesting that we put a basement price on goods. I was actually shocked, I mean how would we feel if all industries adopted these kinds of strategies. Milk can't cost less than $3, a car can't cost less that $10,000, a pair of earrings can't cost less than $7. Ridiculous. If you can't sell your bibs at $16, the problem does not lie with the Dollar store, it lies with you. Either the price is higher than the market can support or you are simply not advertising to right demographic.

Here's a pricing strategy for you, take your costs, fees, materials, etc., add to that minimum hourly wage or give yourself a bit of a raise, then add $1 and that's your price. If you never plan to wholesale that's all you need to charge. Everything else is optional. My material costs are extremely minimal so my costs are basically labor, so it comes does to how much I feel my time is worth. I would never charge less than it cost to make something and neither should anyone else, but if you make just $1 on your item, you don't have to answer to anyone else. You are not hurting everyone else with your prices. Conversely if you want to make $20 on that same item, you can't complain about the $1 person, you need to make your product worth the extra $20 and market to the audience that pays for quality.

I know that this issue is not going away any time soon, but I think that people need to get some perspective. This is capitalism whether you like it or not!

Anatomy Of A Custom Order

I've done quite a few custom orders in my time, mostly single color changes and simple adjustments. Sometimes I get one that hurts my head a little and here's a breakdown of what happens in my head during that kind of custom order.

First, the request:

What they said: Could you make this design in purple and green?
What I heard: I have no idea how you make this item, but I assume it's magic and can be done anyway I like.
What I said: Sure I'll make that up right away.
What I meant: Hell, if I know, but I'll sure try.

Then the creation:

I will spend the next two hour agonizing over how to do this. Then I'll probably make three or so failed attempts before succeeding. I will then spend a hour just staring at the piece thinking, 'is this alright and will she like it?'. I'll take pictures and then debate actually sending said pictures.

Then I present my photos of the piece to the customer. This is accompanied by extreme anxiety and fear that after all my hard work, the product will be dismissed as "not what they wanted".

What they say: Wow, it's beautiful. I can't wait to get it
What I hear: Looks alright, I'll let you know when I get it.

I pack up the order and send it out as quickly as possible. Then I wait and wait for the feedback to arrive, terrified that the second they open the package, they'll realize what a hack I am and send it right back.

What they say: I love it! Thanks so much, I can't wait to wear it!
What I hear: Thanks for your time, maybe you'll get right in the future.

I'm not really that hard on myself, but I would be lying if I said I didn't doubt myself on a regular basis. I do love custom orders though, they allow me to stretch myself as an artist. They make me think outside the box and play with colors, which I tend to avoid. Of course I already screwed up this custom order and have to make another. That'll teach me to watch my DVR'd comedies whilst tatting.

What Is This Needle Tatting You Speak Of?

I've only been tatting for a couple of years and when I mention my craft I can just about count on one of three stock responses.

1. I've never heard of that, what is tatting?
2. My grandma used to tat, I tried to learn, but couldn't get it.
3. Wow, that's a lost art.

I could spend hours debating the history of tatting, there seem to be a lot of myths about when and why people began to tat. If you want the history wikipedia is a good start. Instead, I'll just tell you what it is that I do. I needle tat, it's a cousin to the shuttle tatting you may have seen. It is all but indistinguishable from shuttle tatting in the finished product, but it differs in method. The closest craft to tatting is most likely macrame. Both processes involve the trying of knots. Tatting has really one trick, the double stitch. When used with picots the ds forms rings and chains that work up into fairly durable pieces of lace.

I often hear from people that they could never learn to tat. Nonsense, it's much easier to needle tat than many other fiber arts. Grandma probably tried to teach you shuttle tatting and all those wrist twists and shuttle weaving confused you to no end. Trying the same thing on a needle makes it easier to understand what you are doing. Try it, you'll like it.

Tatting is not a lost art. When I was teaching myself to tat, I went online and was bombarded with patterns and tutorials and many communities full of creative tatters. No it's not as popular as knitting or crochet, but it's far from lost. I've seen hundreds of tatters online and dozens of books for sale on the subject. Here's a few links I ran across early on, you can also just Google tatting or needle tatting and you'll be surrounded by information.

• Bella Online
• Handy Hands Tatting
• Needle Tatting Two
  

And I Thought Birthing A Skein Was Hard

A few years back I was an assistant for a local knitting instructor. As she explained to the class how to start a pull skein she warned about the giant yarn fetus that occasionally comes out of the center of the skein instead of the just the end of the yarn. She referred to this occurrence as 'birthing a skein'. We've all had this happen more times than not and you must spend the extra time untangling the yarn baby before you can begin rolling it into a ball.

I've been a knitter most of my life, a really cheap knitter. I had never considered purchasing hand dyed yarn. It was pricey and I'm a solid color kind of gal anyway. I do however love to trade with other sellers. So when I was offered a trade by a yarn seller, I thought, this is my opportunity to get some of this popular yarn and try it out. It was beautiful and purple and wrapped in a neat little twist that I assume is standard practice. Then I attempted to undo said neat twist...disaster. I spent the better part of a evening untangling and winding it into a ball.

I used it to tat up the most beautiful tatted scarf. I enjoyed making the scarf so much that I offered to make it in any sock yarn a buyer could find on etsy. Very quickly someone took me up on the offer, so I bought another skein of hand dyed yarn. It too arrived quickly and lovingly wrapped in that neat twist. Maybe I had just been too hasty the last time. I carefully uncoiled the twist and proceeded to make the exact same mistakes I had previously made. This led to very long afternoon of untangling and winding.
I did manage to tat a gorgeous orange scarf from the yarn, so I'll let my offer stand.

I assume that there is a trick to this skein stuff. I know I just should have just asked first, but I had to get started. I'm hoping at this point that I'm not alone, that I'm not the only one perplexed by a skein of yarn. I'm not...right?

quick update: I have been educated in the way of the skein, thanks so much!

	twentypoundtabby says:
	When you undo the twist there's going to be two hopefully obvious ends that form the loop of the skein (the one end went through the other to hold the twist). Put your fingers in the ends and untwist, BEFORE untying any little pieces of yarn securing the skein. Once it's untwisted, put it on your swift (or spouse or inverted chair legs), put the cat outside, and unwind.

Why Didn't I Write Down The Bloody Pattern!?!

I've only been tatting for a few years now, but I'm been knitting and crocheting for decades, so I should really know better by now.

If you're new to your craft, you're probably still dutifully following patterns with very little modifications, but after a while, that will all change. You will find yourself working along and think, maybe I should change this or remove that, so you do. Then when you look at the final piece and think, wow I should write those changes down so I won't forget them. Listen to yourself!!!

I really have lost count of the times I've designed a pattern on the fly and didn't write it down only to find myself counting the teeny tiny knots in the finished piece weeks later. Even worse, selling the only piece and trying to reconstruct it from the pictures I took for the listing. I do have a little notebook, right next to me in my little crafting corner, but I seldom reach for it. I did recently start making prototype pieces in easy to see white thread, but that still leaves me counting knots over and over again.

I can't be the only one with this problem, right? There are dozens of you out there nodding along in agreement, I can hear the rattling. So, why do we do it, or rather not do it? I've decided that it's because it interrupts the creative process. We can't possibly create, if we are constantly stopping to write things down. Seriously though, take my advice and write down your patterns and those simple changes that you think you'll remember later, because you won't. It's for your own good. That is, unless you enjoy counting stitches or beads or tracing images from the pictures you took. If that's the case, then enjoy!

Of Course I Like You...Now Buy My Stuff!

Community and Competition
Part 1 - Promotions

Let me start out with the positive stuff. Etsy was my very first forum experience, I met my first troll, saw my first flame war, and over the last two years, I watched some truly amazing acts of kindness unfold. We are, it seems, all in the same boat and because of that we are bonded in a very real way. People freely give advice and wisdom without hesitation. I wonder however, amongst all this goodwill, if people are really forgetting that we are all ultimately, in competition with each other.

Some of us are only competing in a loose sense, for the disposable income of consumers, but others are in very direct competition. I've always been a bit confused at the way this dual relationship plays out, especially in the Promotions forum. To make my point, I'd like to break down the basic kinds of posts we see there:

• New Listing/re listed, etc. - Basic cry for attention.
• Show me your Red/vintage/wedding/flowers, etc. - Focused cry for attention, slightly more likely to draw customers with a specific need.
• BNR/buy from this list - Snake eating its own tail.
• Sale/Milestone/Hearts and Views - advanced cry for attention, unlikely to draw customers, only other sellers with a similar need.
  
• Let's support each other - often begins with the phrase, "aren't you just sick of people who post and run". Seemingly designed to make people who have other things to do with their time, feel bad.

The weirdest promotion thread, in my opinion, is the last one. I'm sure that there are people around that honestly just want to support the community, but how can those people fault others for wanting to make a buck without wasting time in the forums. I've noticed that most of the top sellers stay out of the forums for any length of time. They come by and chat in etc., or offer wisdom or ask questions in one of the other categories, but rarely venture into promotions. Why do you think that is? I think it's because they have separated the community and the competition of etsy. They are probably spending time promoting in places that more consumers gather and making quality products.

Let's face it, we all want a little attention for our shops, for our products and for ourselves, but does that mean that we need to spend hours making false compliments and replying in the same forum thread to legitimize posting your newest item. I get it, I do, you don't want to spend your time looking at my listing, if I'm not gonna look at yours. What I think a lot of people don't get is, getting views, especially from other sellers does not equal sales. Sure, we've all gotten a sale or two from the forums, but not because you spent an hour complimenting other people. You got a sale from the forums because someone, a buyer, saw what you posted and liked it enough to buy it. That same buyer could have seen you on the time machine or a simple search.

After I had my baby, I took a long forum break. When I returned, I began to quickly notice that the familiar faces were gone from the forums, but not etsy. I tried to get back into the swing of things on the forums and I'm ashamed to say it took me a long time to figure out why they had most likely left. I'll still jump on the promotion bandwagon from time to time, but I refuse to feel guilty for not looking at something I'm sure I won't buy or not leaving an insincere compliment so you'll look at my stuff. No one really needs 100 views on an item from people who would never buy it, when 1 view from someone who would is so much better.

Next: Part 2 - Street Teams

Who Do You Want To Be Today?

Hobby Vs. Business

Nothing causes quite as much confusion for a crafter, artisan or artist than the concept of business. I imagine this is partly because creative types, by nature, are a little uncomfortable with the mundane details involved with having a business. I see folks questioning daily, whether they should be a business, or are one already. The debate also spurs on controversies regarding pricing, advertising, quality, taxes and countless others. Using what I've learned I'd like to break down for the newbie the basic, honest questions you should ask yourselves in order to get the answer right for you.

There are, in my opinion, four basic things you should question to understand whether you are starting a viable business or what I like to call a self sustaining hobby. First, do you have a real talent or skill at your chosen craft. Second, how much time do you actually have to spend on your craft? Third, what is your turnaround time for your craft. And lastly, what is the cost versus profit of your craft.

Do you have a real talent or skill?

I want to tackle this one first, because it is the hardest one to answer for most people. I see people everyday asking for critiques and sadly getting few real answers. Most people are simply too polite to give you an honest answer, instead they say thing like, "it's cute", "i like the color", "you just need to wait for the right buyer". This is all bull and you should know it. Be honest with yourself. If you think the product you make is just ok, stop trying to sell it and hone your craft first. Pick something else to try that you enjoy or just make things for friends and family. If you want me to give you an honest opinion on your stuff, just ask!
If you feel like you know what you're doing, then good on ya and keep reading.

How much time do you actually have to spend on your craft?

See, I have two small kids, so my day does not revolve around tatting. If it did, perhaps I would have a business. How is your day structured? Do you set aside a block of time for creation and promotion? Do you craft whenever you get a quick moment and then head over to the forums to play? If you can't treat your craft like a real job, then you can't expect it to be a real business. Don't forget that if you want to be a business, you must also factor in the time you need to promote and advertise as well as creating your product.

What is the turnaround time for your craft?

This is really a make or break question. A lot of products lend themselves to reproduction and those are best suited to starting a business. Artists and photographers may spend a great deal of time on their pieces, but at the end of the day they can make nearly limitless prints, buttons, t-shirts, bags, magnets and countless other products with relatively short production times. If you're a knitter, you still have to knit each piece one at a time and while you may get faster, you'll never be that fast. So, you need to look closely at how long it will take to stock your store, then imagine if you sold 2 or 3 things a day, could you keep your store stocked? If you're sure you couldn't, put yourself in the hobby category and stop stressing out. If you can, then you may have a viable business idea.

What is the cost versus profit of your craft?

This closely relates to the previous question. If you can't make hundreds of something quickly, but you can charge and get a large amount for it, then you're gold. First, take into account how much your material costs are to make your craft, don't forget online fees, then make a guess at how much you'd like to pay yourself an hour or a piece. This should allow you to come up with a ballpark price. Now I suggest doing a very thorough search of many different online outlets for the average price of whatever you are choosing to sell. Don't forget to check and see whether sellers are actually making sales at their prices. If you came up with an unrealistic price for your items, then let it go and charge your cost plus a small profit and you have yourself a sustainable hobby. If your price is comparable to others or lower then you have a shot at becoming a business.
Back to the artist and photographer for a moment, if they are talented, they can charged a good amount for their original pieces as well as reasonable prices for ancillary products. This again makes a potentially profitable business. If it takes you 10 hours to knit a scarf that you can only get $40 for, then clearly you're not going to be making a living off of your craft, but you can sustain your hobby.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with a self sustaining hobby, that's what I have. Of course, I dream of a day when I could make good money with my tatting, but I asked myself these questions, and for now, it's not in the cards. Perhaps when the kids are a little older, I'll have the time and resources to make that happen. The real reason to learn these things about yourself, is to reduce stress. If you know it's just a hobby, you don't need spend hours a day promoting yourself, you can just enjoy your craft and put whatever money you do earn back into your craft. If you've done your research and feel a business coming on, then you need to spend time promoting and worrying about making a profit.

More controversies to come...

A Craftsman, an Artisan and an Artist walk into a bar...

...and find themselves just surrounded by wannabes. This is the one of those oft argued topics amongst the forums at etsy and I imagine anywhere that handcrafted goods are sold. I thought that I'd add my opinion on this subject to public record. First, I'd like to state that I believe these three thing are equals. Neither is any better or worse than the other, simply different.

The Craftsman:
The craftsman has a skill and uses that skill to create something usually based on traditional patterns or set steps. The craftsman generally creates something basic and functionally and if he/she is very skilled at their craft, they can charge a great deal and make good money doing it. This category contains many knitters, weavers, potters, woodwork, soap makers and jewelry makers.

The Artisan:
The artisan has a skill as well, but tends to deviate from the patterns and uses their creativity to expand on the traditional craft. Their designs tend to be slightly less functional than the craftsman's pieces and often need to find a niche market in order to make money from their work. This category contains the same kinds of crafts as the Craftsman category. The differences are that Artisan creates more of their own patterns and designs, uses unconventional components and is generally more artistic.

The Artist
The Artist doesn't need a skill, they have creative talent. Now they may have a learned skill that makes their chosen medium better, but that doesn't make the artist, the talent does. The artist does not tend to create functional pieces. Even when they are creating clothing, they go for form over function. Like the artisan, they need to find a niche in order to make money with their pieces.

Now, it is my opinion that most people know where they fit here. Some of us fit in all three. When I knit a scarf, I'm a Craftsman. When I turn a vintage collar pattern into a gorgeous tatted necklace, I'm an artisan and when I sit down with a pencil and paper and draw, I'm an artist. I think we need to stop arguing this point and look at what I think is the real distinction here.

That is, the bar full of wannabes. Every online market place is chock full of them. They are the ones constantly whining about not making sales and then when you check out their shop, it appears to be full of things that could have been made from kits. Generic designs that aren't put together very well. In days gone by, they would have been apprentices, working under someone until their craft was honed. Today however, we have the internet, 2000 craft stores and hundreds of magazines and talk show hosts making people feel like they can make everything without learning a skill first.

To paraphrase Ratatouille, just because anyone can cook, doesn't mean they should cook. Please, find something you love to do and are good at doing. Don't make jewelry because everyone is doing it and it can't be that hard. Don't try to sell your garter knit scarves, just because your mother likes the one you made for her. Support people who make things better than you could, keep learning and find your own niche!

Ars Gratia Artis

So, I've been around Etsy long enough to see all the "big" questions brought up, argued ad nauseam and fade away completely unresolved only to be revisited again & again & again. Etsy was the very first forum I ever participated in, so this was an entirely new experience for me. Nearly two years later with the return of the Alchemy feature, a new round has begun.

Rather that join in the fray there, I've decided to express my opinions here. The first subject I'd like to wax poetic about is: Artistic integrity or art for arts sake vs. creating for customers. When I first began tatting, I was only making simple objects like bookmarks and small doilies. As I got better I began making things I'd like to wear and when I started selling my work, that was what I was making. Some very well meaning sellers suggested that I start making things in colors because "people on etsy like color", so I did & I sold some things, but I wasn't really happy with a lot the pieces. Eventually I gave up trying to please people and now I only make pieces that I would wear, if I didn't have a 1 year old pulling at my jewelry that is.

Why do I bring all this up? Well it got me thinking about how we decide what we're gonna make next. I used to run to the forums and ask for advice, hoping that people would just tell what to make & then proceed to purchase whatever they had asked for. I imagine that is why people like alchemy so much. Why make things that may never sell, when you can make something with a ready made customer. I'll tell you why, it's kind of boring & doesn't give you the chance to really grow as an artist or artisan. I'm not saying that alchemy is bad, in fact I quite enjoy it, but when people spend all their time trolling the listings, they're just stressing themselves out when they could be making something they love to make.

Sorry if I started rambling on, it's my way. The bottom line here is, who really makes what they love & who spends a little too much time worrying about what people will like & buy?

I think you've got to find a happy medium or your days crafting for cash are fraught with frustration and are likely to end sooner rather than later. I'm really happy for those sellers that have found a niche that allows them to make lots o' money making things they love, but that's not the path for everyone. Maybe your craft should just stay your hobby & isn't a small business after all. I don't really believe that I can make a living with my tatting, but it keeps me sane and happy. That's why I only make what I like to make, do you?

D.I.Y. vs. Consumer Crafting

I admit it, I do a lot of stuff myself, often things that are better left to someone else. I fix household things that should be replaced, sew up clothes that should be retired and I refuse to buy things that I could make, even if I'm not likely to ever get around to doing so. D.I.Y. seems to be an ever increasing trend that has spawned a plethora of "sell your own crafts" sites. I know I threw a little party when I discovered Etsy.com and began my own retail experiment.

The whole thing has me wondering though, if an ever increasing amount of people are "doing it themselves" and trying to make a living at it, won't the whole system implode? If everyone who liked the look of knit cuffs, learned how to make knit cuffs, who would be left to buy them?

Everyone seems to agree what we need are customers that understand that hand craftsmanship takes time and skill and are willing to pay a premium for that. Unfortunately, it seems more like a lot of poor crafters are buying each others goods in an effort to keep consumer crafting alive.

What do you think?

Welcome

When I first thought about blogging many moons ago, my husband lamented that blogging was like standing on a street corner yelling your inner thoughts to complete strangers. I realize that just like that crazy guy yelling on a street corner, most bloggers are likely to be ignored by those passing by, but a few will find like minded folk and thus an audience. Perhaps I will be lucky enough to find those people. For now, I imagine that I will be talking to myself.

In the coming weeks, I will be posting about my etsy shop and other shops I have found & love. I will also be waxing poetic about my tatting and life in general. This may or may not interest the masses of internet going folks, but I hope someone will be amused by my thoughts.