Craftzine.com blog: Craft Business Archives

Archive: Craft Business

September 17, 2009

Non*Mart Trade-Based Shop

A new design studio and shop is opening in San Francisco and they are looking for product submissions. Non*Mart, as the shop is aptly named, touts an interesting alternative to traditional commerce by promoting the barter system. Artists are invited to submit pieces for inclusion in the shop. From the site, "To be considered, your piece must be made (in part or whole) of post-consumer waste and/or address ideas of consumerism, waste, and the ramifications of our consumer culture." Upcoming events at the shop include the opening reception on November 6th and a special event on November 27th to commemorate the annual Buy Nothing Day. Great idea!

September 10, 2009

Little Paper Planes

Little Paper Planes is an online community of artists that was once dedicated mostly to the sale of art prints and letterpress. The shop has recently branched out into accessories and clothing. Each piece captures the same beautiful, modern, and well crafted Little Paper Planes aesthetic.

Tiny Tangerines' Crochet Baby Hats

CRAFT: Cozy Up to Yarn

Head on over to the Etsy shop Tiny Tangerines and you'll be in cute heaven. Crafter Kelly Burghardt designs and crochets the most adorable baby hats shaped like owls, cupcakes, cows, and more. I got a chance to catch up with this busy designer and mom to find out more about her new crafy biz.

Please tell us what you make.
Custom crochet hats sold at tinytangerines.etsy.com.

How long have you been crocheting and how did you get started?
I've been crocheting for about a year now. A friend of mine taught me the basic stitch needed to make straight lines, but you can only make so many scarfs before it's time to learn something new. About two months ago I taught myself how to crochet hats by watching youtube videos and I fell in love!

Your crochet hats for babies are adorable. What was your inspiration for creating them?
My daughter (born via emergency c-section) was blessed with a rather large head. All of the cute little baby headbands and hats we would buy for her looked too tight and seemed rather uncomfortable, so I decided to start making my own. When I posted pictures of them on my livejournal all of my mommy friends wanted some for their little ones too, some even suggested I open and etsy shop. I had no idea my hats would be so popular. I am so lucky to have found a way to help with the bills, while staying home with my daughter and doing something I really love.

How do you come up with your patterns?
It started with the owls and cupcakes, two of my favorite things! Now whenever I see something that makes me "awwww" my next thought is "how can I translate this into a hat?"

Do you have a crochet tip you can share?
Play with your stitches! Some of my favorite tricks have come from what I thought was a mistake.

Are there any other crafts you like to do?
I try to put a crafty spin on everything I do. I'm known for bringing theme cupcakes to every event I'm invited to. I reconstruct all of my clothes, paint silly patterns on my nails, and I've had my hair every color of the rainbow! I also love sketching, painting, sculpting, and any art project I can get my hands on. It feels so good to create something you can be proud of.

September 8, 2009

New E-Book on Craft Blogging From Diane Gilleland

Back in April, Diane Gilleland of CraftyPod, released her first e-book about blogging called, Making a Great Blog: A Guide For Creative People. I reviewed the e-book here on Craft, and have since recommended it to several friends who were starting blogs or looking to kick some new life into their existing blogs. All have found the e-book to be incredibly useful.

Diane is following up Making a Great Blog with her latest e-book, Creating a Blog Audience, which details more specific, and non-traditional, marketing practices for craft and art bloggers.

Creating a Blog Audience isn't a mainstream marketing book. It's aimed at the unique needs of craft bloggers, and covers Engagement Marketing - a great technique for this rather crowded, busy internet age.

This ebook is designed for:

- New bloggers who want to find readers outside their family and friends
- Experienced bloggers who want to grow a larger audience
- Bloggers who hope to use their blogs to market a small business

September 2, 2009

Treehouse 28 Introduces a Children's Line

One of my favorite designers on the planet, Alix, has built a very successful Etsy shop selling custom clothing. Treehouse 28 uses soft and stretchy, high-quality jersey, sewn with serged edges. Alix creates wrap tops, long dresses, and layering pieces that are handmade to your exact measurements. The clothes have a very unique and very versatile look. This summer, Treehouse 28 has launched a children's line, with the same adult fashions, sized for your little one. I was quite the tall child, and I remember my mother's struggle to find pants long enough for my gangly legs. How perfect to be able to order stylish clothes in your child's exact fit. Alix's clothes translate very well for kids, with my personal favorites being the ruffle pants and, of course, the armwarmers. Check out the Treehouse 28 Children's Line, and read in The Storque about how Alix built her successful business.

August 5, 2009

On the Importance of Consistency

I never thought I'd take a lesson from Coca Cola, but this great graphic at Thinkingalaud on the history of Coca Cola and Pepsi logos is a great example of the importance of consistency in branding, whether for a small crafting business or a multinational behemouth (via Swiss Miss). [Note: apparently this is a fairly simplified timeline; for a discussion of the brand evolution and a more accurate timeline, go here. I still like the idea, though, so I thought I'd share it anyway.]

July 20, 2009

New Blog: The Creative Life

Creativelifeblog
Crafters Kim Werker and Betsy Greer have started a new blog called The Creative Life, seeking to start the dialogue to explore ways us crafters can stay creative along with the reality of paying the bills. They invite us all to participate, so leave a comment on their blog with your thoughts.

Kim writes:

Our hope is to start a giant conversation with you about all sorts of things that boil down to this: What’s it like to strike off on your own into a creative field, where do you find support and community when you do it, where do you turn when it seems everyone in your life thinks you’re crazy? We’re not into compiling top-10 lists or giving advice on how to find an accountant. We’re very much into striving toward waking up each morning feeling at peace with the tasks we have to accomplish and the comfort of knowing there’ll be food on the table.

July 17, 2009

Isla Corbett's Felt Designs at Renegade Craft Fair in SF

One of the exciting things about being involved with Craft and Make is getting to go to all the fun events. Meeting artists, crafters and makers in their own community is the very best part. Currently the team here is involved in some "Mini-Maker Faires." It was at the first Mini Maker Faire that I met Isla Corbett. She will be at the Renegade Craft Fair this weekend, selling her handmade products.

Isla (eye-la), is a very talented fiber arts designer, who works in my favorite media: 100% wool felt. Isla couldn't be a more lovely person. She is creative, seems grounded, and her personal style is very much a mirror of her art. Everything about her was very crisp and modern, but also warm. To be more clear: she was sweet, sincere and engaging.

Her art and crafts are just beautiful. The work she does falls into three categories: accessories, purses and cases, and pillows. Her hair accessories are all hand needle felted, and they are classic barrettes with felted flowers. The colors and forms are fuzzy, yet they don't look unfinished. Her technique allows for the clear shape of the flower to dominate, but the texture of the wool isn't overworked.

Her bags carry over the natural motif of plants and flowers. They are very streamlined, curvilinear, and the wool they are constructed from has a smooth texture. Isla incorporates needle felted details that make each design pop. Her pillows are also made with 100% wool felt, but she distinguishes them from the bags and barrettes with leaves and blossom details that are minimalist in style.

Isla's crafty business is just beginning to take off. I like that she has all the bases covered- her accessories are in local fiber shops, her work is featured on a very pretty website, she has a solid Etsy, and will be at the Renegade. And additionally, her prices are just right- the hair pieces go for less than $10 and you can get a great purse for about $40. It's a very well rounded business plan and I just know she will find success. All of it rests on a foundation of the quality of her work, and the authentic kindness you feel when you meet her. Please visit her, and all the other talented and motivated crafters if you are in San Francisco this weekend!

July 16, 2009

Crafty Business: Art Licensing

I thought this was an interesting post over on The Crafty Chica about art licensing, by card artist Kate Harper, playfully titled "Want a Career Designing Greeting Cards? Quick! Grab the Nearest Artist and Start a Support Group."

We talk a lot about the business side of crafting, but licensing doesn't always get much airtime. Harper argues that it gives her the time to spend more time in her "art cave," and means she spends less time dealing with the nitty gritty details of running her own business.

June 19, 2009

Checkin' In: Crafty Chica Kathy Cano-Murillo

There are few peeps in the crafting world who haven't heard of the Crafty Chica, Kathy Cano-Murillo. There could be no better way to describe Kathy because she is indeed one Crafty Chica! All that glitters may not be gold, but likely, it has Kathy's stamp of approval, being as she's the biggest glitter advocate I know of, having originated such slogans as "Don't be bitter, use more glitter!" Indeed, Kathy! She is head of the glitterati, the godmother of glitter.

Kathy contributed two sparkling projects to the pages of CRAFT. In our premier issue, CRAFT Volume 01, Kathy showed us how to spice up a plain terracotta flower pot with clay, vivid color, and of course glitter:

And in CRAFT Volume 02, she shared with us how to make fun earrings of paper and tin with an unmistakable Crafty Chica flair:

We checked in with her recently, and despite her super busy schedule, she had a great update to share with us. Here's what she said:

"I've been keep very busy. Everything is still growing at a very steady pace! These days I work full-time for Duncan Enterprises as a Senior Product Developer and Spokesperson for my own brand! The team at Duncan is amazing because they have allowed me to work on CraftyChica.com as my main job. (You may remember I used to be an entertainment reporter for The Arizona Republic.) Aside from the product line, which is for sale on my site, amazon.com, and several indies shops around the country, I also released a new book this year."

"Crafty Chica's Guide to Artful Sewing (Potter Craft) is my best-selling book to date! It was my message to help crafters embrace sewing. It seems to have worked; I get emails daily from people who appreciate and embraced the concept! I'm currently working on the follow-up proposal that will be even more exciting and sparkly!

I'm also gearing up for the 4th Annual Crafty Chica Cruise in April 2010. Last year we had 50+ crafters, and this year we are opening it up to even more! These were people from all ages, backgrounds, skill levels, and art styles who came on board to craft! We have six workshops, a 24-hour craft room, plus a mercado area for cruisers to sell their art, cocktail party, sightseeing, and lots of free goodies!

We have two new brands on the Murillo household: www.MantasticCrafts.com (my husband Patrick Murillo) and www.MayaintheMoment.com (my teen daughter, Maya).

Our Heard Museum exhibit, La Casa Murillo: A Life Size Shadow Box is coming to an end after 11 months! Thousands of people have come through to see it. It has more than 500 handmade items that my husband and I created in our home studio. There will be a "moving sale" on August 21, where a live auctioneer will auction off the larger pieces to the public!

My biggest news is the release of my debut novel on March 1, 2010. I love creative writing as much as I love crafting. I've been writing ever since grade school. I spent many years as a journalist and now I've entered the world of fiction writing! I love that now I can combine both worlds! The book is first in the "Crafty Chica Novel" series. It is called Waking Up in the Land of Glitter."

"Here is the synopsis:

Struggling domestic-goddess-in-training Ofy is determined to turn heads at this year's International CraftOlympics. To do that, she'll need the help of her best friend, Star. Considering herself a serious artist, Star is hesitant, but finally agrees to help as a way to end her own creative slump. Truthfully she thinks Ofy is a little loca about the whole craft thing — and about her idol: local TV personality, Crafty Chloe. Star doesn't trust the bottle-blonde, even after she becomes part of their crafting team. As the competition heats up, Star will learn Chloe's dirty little secret, why crafting means so much to Ofy, and that beauty, art, and creativity can take many more forms than a canvas hanging in a gallery."

Wow! Thanks, Chica! Check out Kathy's product line, site, and new books for some seriously spicy flavor.

June 11, 2009

Crafting a Business with Jenny Hart

Crafting a Business
By Jenny Hart

The Money: You Gotta Keep 'Em Separated!

Oh yes, you better believe it. While everyone has been pacing nervously in circles over the economy, I am still gonna tell you to keep a sharp eye on your company's finances. You do still have a company, don't you? Even just a little somethin' somethin' on the side? I bet you do. Now is the best time to buckle down and see what makes your little business tick. Even if you need to take a hiatus to figure it out and re-stabilize, do so (no need to prematurely announce a shuttering of your doors). Let's look at your finances.

First of all, you keep your monies neatly organized and accounted for, right? You never "cross the financial streams," so to speak, between what you spend on yourself and what covers costs the company has to bear, right? Right? Oh dear. You realize that to do it any other way is a great way to run your business into the ground faster than you can say "expense it."

Cash flow is the lifeblood of your business. If you don't know what's pumping in and out of your bank account — and why and how much — then you don't know anything about your business. You can't tell how it's doing, and I bet you don't sleep so well at night, not knowing. When you know, you can sleep (or at least, best figure out how to straighten it out).

Let's talk to a successful and stable business, Art Star in Philadelphia. Owned and operated by Megan Brewster and Erin Waxman, Art Star is a boutique and gallery that features the work of independent artists, designers, and crafters. They also host the Art Star Craft Bazaar, which recently took place on May 30–31.

I had a solo show at Art Star a few years ago, and while I was there Erin was showing me her charmingly arcane, but practical, method for going through the gallery's receipts each day. As I sat down to write this column, I wondered if she still used this accounting method today, or if they'd moved on as business grew. So, let's talk to a couple of women who have been doing it all by themselves and making it work.

What is the main focus of your business?

Our space is divided between the gallery and boutique. The gallery rotates every six weeks with a new artist, and our main focus in the boutique is to carry handmade work by artists, but we also work with a few artists to develop limited edition products — for example, prints, glasses, mugs, etc.

How do you keep your books, and how did you learn to keep books? Or, do you have someone else do them for you?

We keep the books ourselves. We thought about hiring someone to save us some time, but haven't gotten around to that yet. We tried using QuickBooks when we first opened, but I found it more trouble than just making an excel document. We also bought the cheapest version, so that may have been why it didn't quite work for us. Shortly after we first opened, a friend showed me some basics, but most of it seems like common sense to me — keep track of what goes in and out.

Do you have your own system? Why does it work for you?

Yes, I have a few Excel documents to break things down. I keep a daily ledger of what we take in and what goes out, and then I also like to have comparisons from month to month and year to year.

What doesn't work about it?

We have an archaic way of keeping track of all our inventory. Each artist has a specific code for easy organizing and payments, but it's all handwritten and kept in large book keepers. It was fine when we first opened 4 years ago and only had a handful of artists, but now that we have 50+, we need to update it. This year we plan to get a POS system that will keep the artist inventory together. It will save time and energy when we need to pay them and at the end of the year for taxes.

Did you have to make changes to your bookkeeping as you grew?

When we first opened I kept everything in a handwritten ledger. It was slow when we first opened, and I didn't have much to keep track of, but then I realized how silly that was and I created an Excel document for balancing our books and keeping track of our money flow.

Do you work with an accountant? How do they help you?

Yes! I think anyone who has a business, no matter how big or small, should have an accountant. There are so many forms that we have to fill out at the end of the year that I would never want to even attempt doing it myself. We have to file taxes for Art Star and for our personal income, plus I have my own jewelry and clothing as a separate business. It's just too much to think about. We just organize and break down our figures, and send it along to him — and then magic, it's all done.

It's also important to have someone to call with any questions regarding taxes, deductions, etc.

How are you weathering the current economy?

We are surprisingly doing alright. It's always slow in January and February. I think after the holidays people are sick of shopping. Last year we definitely had a lull around August and September, but then our holiday season was a little better this year than last. This was the first year when we had people tell us that they were making an effort to only shop at small businesses. We even had a few folks who did one-stop shopping; we have a good price range in the shop and something for men, women, boys, and girls.

What was the best lesson you learned in watching your finances? Scariest money story?

The first year that our business showed profit was really scary. Our accountant called and asked me if I was sitting down. The month of December is when we bring in the most money, and because we pay our artists in January for sales in December, it seemed that we had lots of extra money, but we didn't. We had to pay a chunk in taxes that year — very scary. We learned to try to get at least a chunk of artist payments out by December 31st for the deduction, and if there are any improvements or upgrades we need to make to our business, such as buy a new computer or furniture, we do it before the year is up.

What's your favorite tax write-off?

Food and beer for the opening receptions!

What has been your biggest reward in running your significantly awesome Art Star gallery?

A sense of accomplishment and being a part of a community that's both local and national. We love the artists we work with and want to promote their work to the best of our ability. Helping to generate an income for artists and expose Philadelphia to work we like and think is important. We also like being our own boss.

I heard that! Being your own boss has its rewards. If you're in the Philly, Penn., area be sure to stop by their gallery and boutique.

In Austin next week? Join Jenny and friends at the Austin Museum of Art (AMOA) for an evening of "Communicrafting" with local teachers and designers, who will be on-hand to let you jump in and sew, knit, embroider, and just try your hand. Jenny Hart will also be introducing her latest kits (stationery, baby bibs, and some surprises) from Chronicle Books in the AMOA bookstore. Come one, come all next Thursday, June 18th from 6:30–8:30 p.m.

About the Author:

Jenny Hart is the founder of Sublime Stitching, the first embroidery design company to bring tattoos, robots, and pinups to needlework patterns. She is also the author of several titles on embroidery for Chronicle Books and an internationally exhibited fine artist. Jenny lives and works in Austin, Texas, where she is a founding member of the infamous Austin Craft Mafia.

March 26, 2009

How-To: Make a Craft Fair Banner

Craftsterbanner
Craftster Community Manager, Jungrrl, shows you how to make a craft fair banner in this awesome tutorial featuring this felt banner for Craftster.

From batgirl at Craftster:

It made its debut at a very rainy Renegade Craft Fair in Chicago last summer, and it was hit! Most recently it was spotted at the Craftster/Standard Recording party at SXSW in Austin, Texas! Jungrrl shows how it was done in this awesome tutorial. Now you can use her tips and make your next booth stand out from the crowd.

February 22, 2009

Starting an Etsy Business

Check out the 3 part series "Starting an Etsy Business" (part 1, part 2, part 3) over on Design Sponge. There's a Q&A with White Elephant Vintage and Blue Bell Bazaar, as well as a write up on business tips, including a sample excel spreadsheet for tracking sales and inventory.

February 3, 2009

Crafting advice from Thelonius Monk

Ok, not really--he's actually giving advice to saxophonist Steve Lacy, but I thought there were some wonderful insights about the creative process and collaboration that applied to crafting and all art, not just music ... I love his line "Don't play everything (or every time); let some thing just go by. Some music just imagined." He's even got business advice: "Don't sound anybody for a gig, just be on the scene." (I don't know if I agree with him entirely there, but he's right about getting yourself out there and making as many contacts as possible.) Perhaps best of all: "Whatever you think can't be done, someone will come along and do it. A genius is the one most like himself". (Or herself, of course.) For more of his notes, mosey on over to Swiss Miss, where I saw it in the first place.

January 31, 2009

CPSIA Lead-Testing Law is Delayed

Thanks to the incredible grassroots movement against the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, which would have gone into effect on February 10, 2009, the commission that created the law has voted to stay the legislation for one year.

"The stay of enforcement provides some temporary, limited relief to the crafters, children's garment manufacturers and toy makers who had been subject to the testing and certification required under the CPSIA. These businesses will not need to issue certificates based on testing of their products until additional decisions are issued by the Commission."

Read the full statement here.

Senator Jim DeMint from South Carolina has sponsored an amendment in order to reform the law.

It's certainly not a done deal, but it's a step in the right direction.

January 27, 2009

More Harm than Good? More on the CPSIA

I've known for a while that one of the key legal challenges to the growth of the DIY segment as a source of innovation is liability law. So-called consumer protection laws have long been used to punish manufacturers who produce defective or harmful products, even if the use of the product extends beyond what the manufacturer intended. In the past year, parents and child-safety organizations have lobbied the US government to enact a law that requires products intended for children to be tested and proven to be safe. That is the origin of the Consumer Protection Safety Improvement Act, slated to take effect in February. Now, what happens when the the very law designed to protect parents and children eliminates a source of handmade products that were designed as safe alternatives?

Imagine if food from farmers's markets was eliminated because they were required them to comply with a set of regulations imposed on the industrial food-processing system that people don't trust. The effects of this law are not limited to crafters, but all those who are making products large and small. I've heard that a number of companies are truly scared by what this legislation could do to them. The following is a column I wrote on the subject for the current issue of CRAFT magazine.

Read full story

January 15, 2009

Last Day to Vote on the CPSIA at Change.org

Image by Hasenpfeffer Incorporated, via Handmade Detroit

This just in from BuyHandmade.org:

The last day of voting for the Ideas for Change in America competition is today! On Friday we will present the top 10 ideas to the Obama administration at the National Press Club in Washington, DC. We'll then connect the winning ideas to leading nonprofits and launch a series of national advocacy campaigns to turn each idea into federal policy.

One of the top 10 issues right now is the CPSIA issue. For more on this, see the info below (via the Handmade Toy Alliance):

In 2007, large toy manufacturers who outsource their production to China and other developing countries violated the public's trust. They were selling toys with dangerously high lead content, toys with unsafe small part, toys with improperly secured and easily swallowed small magnets, and toys made from chemicals that made kids sick. Almost every problem toy in 2007 was made in China.
The United States Congress rightly recognized that the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) lacked the authority and staffing to prevent dangerous toys from being imported into the US. So, they passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) in August, 2008. Among other things, the CPSIA bans lead and phthalates in toys, mandates third-party testing and certification for all toys and requires toy makers to permanently label each toy with a date and batch number.

All of these changes will be fairly easy for large, multinational toy manufacturers to comply with. Large manufacturers who make thousands of units of each toy have very little incremental cost to pay for testing and update their molds to include batch labels.

For small American, Canadian, and European toy makers, however, the costs of mandatory testing will likely drive them out of business.

* A toymaker, for example, who makes wooden cars in his garage in Maine to supplement his income cannot afford the $4,000 fee per toy that testing labs are charging to assure compliance with the CPSIA.
* A work at home mom in Minnesota who makes dolls to sell at craft fairs must choose either to violate the law or cease operations.
* A small toy retailer in Vermont who imports wooden toys from Europe, which has long had stringent toy safety standards, must now pay for testing on every toy they import.
* And even the handful of larger toy makers who still employ workers in the United States face increased costs to comply with the CPSIA, even though American-made toys had nothing to do with the toy safety problems of 2007.

The CPSIA simply forgot to exclude the class of toys that have earned and kept the public's trust: Toys made in the US, Canada, and Europe. The result, unless the law is modified, is that handmade toys will no longer be legal in the US.

If this law had been applied to the food industry, every farmers market in the country would be forced to close while Kraft and Dole prospered.

How You can Help:

Please write to your United States Congress Person and Senator to request changes in the CPSIA to save handmade toys. Use our sample letter or write your own. You can find your Congress Person here and Senator here.

January 12, 2009

Calculating the True Cost of CPSIA Third Party Component Testing

One handmaker of organic parent/baby accessories, Turtle Park Tots, calculates the true cost the required CPSIA testing on products, going into effect in February:

I've telling everyone how expensive the third-party component testing required by the CPSIA is but I don't think I've sat down and actually ran the numbers. Yikes! The costs are truly frightening!

I calculated the costs based on my current Winter Collection and assuming that each component test cost between $75-$100. Not included in these costs are the cost of each test item (they are destroyed in the testing process) and the cost of shipping the items to China since that's where most of the testing facilities are located.

Materials used in Winter Collection: certified organic cotton fabric, certified organic terry cloth, certified organic cotton fleece, poly thread, velcro, cotton fabric, poly anti-pill fleece, cotton chenille

The numbers: $25325 - $29100 to test the Turtle Park Tots Winter Collection

One commenter pointed out that to meet goals for profits, Turtle Park Tots would have to increase her retail prices astronomically. If you'll remember, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act has the unintended consequence of requiring individual expensive testing of products to make sure they're free of lead and other hazardous materials before they can be sold in the US. It seems totally unfair that the big companies who created the problems with lead-contaminated toys aren't the ones who will pay the biggest price, it's the small independent hand-crafters. How much is the CPSIA going to cost your business? Post it up in the comments. Via Silona's twitter.

One commenter on BoingBoing debunked the possible loophole of claiming your handmades as "collectibles" instead of toys. Beanoli writes:

The 'collectible loophole' would be unlikely to stand up in court. From the FAQ on the Act:

"A "children's product" means a consumer product designed or intended primarily for children 12 years of age or younger. In determining whether a consumer product is primarily intended for a child 12 years of age or younger, the following factors will be considered:

A statement by the manufacturer about the intended use of the product, including a label on the product if such statement is reasonable.

Whether the product is represented in its packaging, display, promotion or advertising as appropriate for use by children 12 years of age or younger.

Whether the product is commonly recognized by consumers as being intended for use by a child 12 years of age or younger.

The Age Determination Guidelines issued by the Commission staff in September 2002, and any successor to such guidelines.

So any product 'commonly recognised by consumers' as a prepubescent child's toy could be covered by the Act, whether or not it's labelled as 'adult use only', or 'collectible'."

More:

Consumer Safety Rules Could Drive Crafters Out of Business

December 23, 2008

The NY Times on Craft Sales & the Recession

Shoppers at a Michaels store in Pleasant Hill, Calif. - photo by Peter DaSilva

The New York Times has an interesting article about the effect the recession has been having on craft sales, both on the craft supply front and the readymade craft product end. The gist? Sales are up! Read more here.

December 18, 2008

Protests Against Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act

We've been following the CPSIA development, and it's apparent the groundswell of protest is in full swing.

Petitions are being signed by the thousands, letters are being sent to Congress, and small business owners are mobilizing to take action against what they believe are unreasonable demands being placed on them by a law that will take effect on February 10. The new legislation will mandate that every part of a child's toy and clothing be tested for lead before it can be sold to the public.

The law was passed in response to high levels of lead being found in toys manufactured in Chinese factories, but does not take into account the thousands of small businesses who make toys and clothes in much smaller numbers, and many of them by hand in their own homes or workshops. If the law goes into effect as it's currently written, they will have to pay up to thousands of dollars to test just one set of handmade goods.

Here are just a few developments:

As of Thursday December 18, 3 p.m. PST, 4,417 petitioners had added their names to ipetitions.

Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont sent a note to Cecilia Leibovitz, founder of Craftsbury Kids, stating his intent to work with the Congress work towards a solution that will help small American manufacturers.

National Bankruptcy Day lists many helpful links and sites for those compelled to learn more and take action. One of them is the wiki link to the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce, which lists the names of Congress members on the committee who should be written to.

Fashion Incubator is also following these developments closely and offers useful links and information.

Stay tuned for more! As ever, write to us, tell us your thoughts, and let us know of any other developments.

Craft Business Home | Next >

Craft:

Non*Mart Trade-Based Shop

Little Paper Planes

Tiny Tangerines' Crochet Baby Hats

New E-Book on Craft Blogging From Diane Gilleland

Treehouse 28 Introduces a Children's Line

On the Importance of Consistency

New Blog: The Creative Life

Isla Corbett's Felt Designs at Renegade Craft Fair in SF

Crafty Business: Art Licensing

Checkin' In: Crafty Chica Kathy Cano-Murillo

Crafting a Business with Jenny Hart

How-To: Make a Craft Fair Banner

Starting an Etsy Business

Crafting advice from Thelonius Monk

CPSIA Lead-Testing Law is Delayed

More Harm than Good? More on the CPSIA

Last Day to Vote on the CPSIA at Change.org

Calculating the True Cost of CPSIA Third Party Component Testing

The NY Times on Craft Sales & the Recession

Protests Against Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act

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