(Disclosure: This post contains links to which I may or may not be affiliated with. With these links, it allows me to earn a commission. This allows me to pay for things such as blog fees and other business items. You are not obligated to make a purchase.
I love to make things. It is the reason why I craft, and it is the reason why anyone with a creative bone in their body likes to do. With prices going up on already items like blankets, clothing, and stationery, a person who is gifted will often make their stuff. In fact, everyone should at least try to make anything except technology, and even with that, there are people who build their own computers. All you need are the right tools and parts to basically come up with your own take of products. Of course, if you ending up selling to the masses, there are certain rule and regs you have to follow, especially for technology and food products you make. I will get into that later on hopefully in this post. If not, I will save it for another time.
I love to make things. It is the reason why I craft, and it is the reason why anyone with a creative bone in their body likes to do. With prices going up on already items like blankets, clothing, and stationery, a person who is gifted will often make their stuff. In fact, everyone should at least try to make anything except technology, and even with that, there are people who build their own computers. All you need are the right tools and parts to basically come up with your own take of products. Of course, if you ending up selling to the masses, there are certain rule and regs you have to follow, especially for technology and food products you make. I will get into that later on hopefully in this post. If not, I will save it for another time.
Today, in Part 2 of destressing your holidays, with Part 1 on my blog My Ambiance Life, I am going to explore the world of the crafter and all things gifts and craft shows. Before I do that, I want to talk a little bit about my business P. Lynne Designs so you can get to know it a little bit better.
P. Lynne Designs got its start around 2009 as MDN Creates. In 2012, I changed the name to P. Lynne Designs to refection more on the company and less about why it was named MDN Creates in the first place. You can read more on the story on my post, Reintroduction to P. Lynne Designs. P. Lynne Designs is a stationery design company, but I design more than just stationery, I freelance writing and freelance graphic design as well. This list includes greeting and business cards, invitations, documents, and blog posts, logos, “Save the Date” postcards, mailing labels, spreadsheets. Many come as a package set, custom package set, or Ala Carte. If you have any questions, email me at plogan721@att.net or you can contact me through social media. My information will be at the bottom of this post. Anyway, back to today’s topic.
Gifts
People, in general, are hard to shop for, but there is no reason to not get someone one anything, even if it is a gift card. Making something as simple as a scarf shows that you at least attempted to give from the heart. What you cannot make, you can buy. I will cover buying gifts in part 3, which will be on my other blog, At Home with Tricia's Baskets. For right now, this post will cover gifts that a crafter, a graphic designer, or those who attempt to make something as gifts.
For the paper crafter
If you are a paper crafter, you have a unique position, at least I think I do. You can make mini books, scrapbook albums, greeting cards, invitations (more on that in a minute), even things like coasters, and office supplies. My process for making an item is I first plan out what I want to make. Next, I go based on who the person is, and what they might like. Do not go by what you might like because everyone’s tastes are different. This includes colors and themes. What are themes? Themes cover a variety of areas from brands (think Disney, Barbie, or Harley Davidson), gender (Boy, girl, male, or female), seasons (which I do not recommend, this can limit the time the recipient uses it), or subject (frogs, unicorns, or their love for Star Wars). Once I have those things in mind, I do a rough sketch of the item. If I am stuck, I turn to Pinterest, Etsy, and my Facebook groups for inspiration only. Never copy, especially if you are selling online. Now it is time to go shopping.
A word on getting supplies:
Sale, sale, sale. A Michaels coupon here, a Hobby Lobby discount there. Signup to get discounts especially if you are in business. Every penny counts. If you are in business, this is a tax write-off, but check to see what you can write-off because every state and country is different. Even if this is a one-time thing that you are doing, signup to get their mailings. Use the weekly ads and look for specials on craft supplies. When you shop, search the aisles for clearance items. I was in Walgreens two days ago getting some allergy medicine, when I spotted a pack of 12 Post-a-Notes. It was $12.00 down to $2.00. Score!!! I snatched those pads up in a hurry before someone else spotted them. I am making notepad holders for the craft fair. I could have gotten two, but I only saw one. Also, hit up Dollar Tree and Dollar General (or a dollar store like them) because I am starting to see more and more craft items like them. Do check for quality in the crafts stores. If there is a material that is highly flammable or toxic to people or the environment, I will not buy, especially if there is a craft fair hosted by a school. I do not want to get anyone sick.
Graphic Designers
You are in also in a unique position where you do not have to rely on other people’s products (except maybe paper) to make your gift. I was fortunate enough to learn how to create on Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator and Microsoft Publisher, as well as PicMonkey and know my way around Canva, but it can be any program, either paid or free-based. Some programs like Adobe Photoshop allow you to try them for free for a limited period of time. I have made my business cards and other items, and what a gift you can give a soon to be graduate with a set of their own business cards and stationery. Once I made my design, I sent it to Vistaprint and paid $17.00 USD. The breakdown goes like the this: normally, it would cost me $24 USD, but it was on sale, then I went through Swagbucks to get a discount of $10.01 USD, which brought it to $9.99 or so. Next, I was given a discount of $.60 because I was a merchant (I did not realize that I was. This was on 500 cards. Again, I saved a ton of money. Shipping is $6.00, which would have normally raised the price to $30 USD or so. The last part was my tax, which the only way you can lower the tax is lower the price, but the United States usually will tax on the original price and not the sales price (go figure). So, for the State of Ohio where I live, the tax is around 8.0% or so, depending on where you live. So, those living outside the US, the tax bracket can get pretty pricey. I just checked, and my cards should be here tomorrow at the end of the day and I ordered them on Tuesday. If you are designing for a company to print them for you, I would get started now before the rush starts. Shipping may get worse, especially after December 15th. The closer to Christmas you get, the longer it will take to get to your house.
I only talked about the areas that I create. For things such as woodworking, textiles (sewing and needlework), pottery, and Jewelry making, it is the same process; plan what you want to make for the people on your list, plan out your materials and start in plenty of time so the gifts can go under the tree.
Now for a Word on Craft Shows ….
Many of the things I talked about in gift creation goes for craft shows as well. The one thing I want to stress out is your income. I guess I should have addressed this in the gift-giving as well but have a budget. Nothing says going into debit-like not having a budget. Lay it out in either paper or digital form. I did both. The reason is I can lose the paper, or the power can go out. I have a backup plan for the digital: I also can get to the digital through my Ipad. I have a three backup system: I make and enter information through my desktop, and I can access it through my Ipad and my smartphone. Also, now is a good time to figure out how much you want to charge for your goods. When I did crafts shows with Longaberger products, I had to choice but to sell them at the price that Longaberger charges for their products in the catalog. The only time I was allowed to change prices as if I owned a retired product. I still got my commission, but no one was really interested in the prices in the catalog.
Price items that will at least make you feel like you have got back the cost of the supplies you bought, but at the same time, make the items so people will want to pay the price. For instance, bookmarkers will be $.75 or 2 for $1. (meaning the second one will actually cost $.25). If you have a business, be sure to bring your business cards. You can also ask for clients while you are there, but make sure you focus on what you have on hand and have plenty. The fair I will be at next week will be from 10 AM to 2 PM, so I need to make sure I do not run out at noon.
One final tip before I go, make sure if you sell anything you give the state what is due if you have it listed. I have P. Lynne Designs listed with the state of Ohio, so in January, I have to report it. (bummer). This means to keep track of my money. Have plenty of change because most people will not be coming with a credit or debit card.
Be sure to check out parts 1 on My Ambiance Life and 3 on At Home with Tricia's Baskets. Part 3 will be on decorating, organizing, traveling, and taking care of the family during this time of year.
Until then, Peace on Earth.
