Tips for New Etsy Sellers Pt. 4

I hope you've found this series helpful so far. This is the last installment for now. I'll definitely let you know if I discover anything else that I find useful! Feel free to contact me with any questions you might have. I'm more than happy to help fellow Etsy sellers!

In order to successfully sell ANYTHING, you need to know your product. You need to be an expert on whatever it is that your selling. This is true for handmade and vintage items. Customers will feel more comfortable buying from you if you're knowledgeable about what you're selling. Make sure you're calling your products by the correct name, that you're certain of the manufacturer, era it came from, etc. You don't want your customer to know more about your products than you do!

Don't make stuff up or pretend that you know more than you do! Do your homework and know your stuff. Also, if I see one more tacky 80's print listed as "art deco", I may scream.

Let me give you an example here. Let's pretend you're trying to sell a crocheted owl hat. You see that another Etsy seller has a very similar hat listed for $20. Your first instinct is to list your hat for $19, so shoppers buy your hat over the competitor. DON'T DO THAT! I understand the urge, but in undercutting your competitor, you're shooting yourself in the foot. List your hat at $20 too (unless you honestly believe $20 is overpriced).

First of all, you deserve to make what your product is worth. By undercutting your competitors, you're undercutting yourself. If 10 Etsy sellers are selling owl hats for $20 each, they've made that the industry standard. If some fool comes along and sells theirs for less, they're not making what they should and they're making shoppers think the other hats are overpriced. That hurts the whole market and their own profit margin. It's really hard to keep a crochet business going if you don't have money for new yarn!

This goes for vintage items too! If everyone undercuts everybody else, no one will make money! If you're not sure what to charge, research it!

The best help you have is right at your fingertips! The Etsy community is the best thing about opening your shop on Etsy instead of somewhere else! If you have a question, there are forums you can read that will probably answer it. You can even start a new thread with your question to get answers. Most Etsy sellers are more than happy to help new sellers. You may think of these people as competitors, but you should be thinking of them as colleagues.

You'll be a more powerful seller if you work with your new colleagues. Joining Etsy teams is a great way to get your items promoted by others. All you have to do is return the favor! It may seem counterproductive to promote for others. However, if you're tweeting or pinning or facebooking their items (and your own) and they're doing the same, everyone gets more exposure. Take full advantage of your new friends! Branch out and network. You're business will grow so much faster!

That's all I have for now! I spent the weekend moving and I won't have internet in my new place until sometime Wednesday. Hang tight and I'll see you soon!

Tips for New Etsy Sellers pt. 3

Today I'm going to tell you how to make shipping a little easier on yourself. Deciding what to charge for shipping on each item has been the most difficult thing for me because the products I sell are all different sizes and weights. Also, selling on Etsy, I never know what part of the country I'll be shipping to. This may not be a problem for you if you sell something small or lightweight, like jewelry. For everyone else, this is what I recommend.....

First of all, I make sure I have high quality packing material. This is especially important with boxes because they are stacked up in shipping trucks and lower quality boxes can be crushed. The only time I ever had a problem was when I shipped some glassware in a box that had a 75 lb edge crush rating. Fortunately for me, my customer was EXTREMELY understanding. After that, I switched to boxes that are made to withstand 200 lbs and haven't had another problem. I buy mine from Uline. They're affordable and I get my order in one day!

I try my best to be green with my packing materials. I reuse boxes that have been shipped to me, when I can, and use quite a bit of newspaper as padding. I've even heard of some people getting materials from sites like Freecycle. I don't personally go that route because I don't want to risk sending my customers anything that smells musty or smokey (or even worse, has bugs!) This means I end up buying bubble wrap and packing peanuts because I need to make sure fragile items don't break in transit and newspaper just doesn't cut it! I buy starch packing peanuts because they're biodegradable. So, I do what I can to be kind to the environment without sacrificing quality.

Purchasing a postal scale was a great investment! The one I found on Amazon.com was very affordable and has saved me so much time standing in line! I also use self-adhesive shipping labels because they're much faster to attach to my packages and they save me money on shipping tape. (Btw, shipping tape and packing tape aren't interchangeable. Get the shipping tape.) Once you know your package weight, it's so easy to purchase your postage online from home and print it out. Also, I thoroughly enjoy the looks I get from the people standing in line at the post office when I walk right past them to leave my shipments on the counter. :)

As I mentioned before, I never know where in the country (or Canada!) that my items will be heading. That makes estimating shipping costs difficult. I don't want to undercharge and have to foot the bill for the difference. I also don't want to overcharge and deter customers from buying! It's quite a conundrum.
What I do is pack up my items before I list them and weigh them. Then, I use the shipping rate charts provided by USPS or UPS to find out the shipping cost for the most far away region, add a small amount to account for packing supplies (and to have a round number), and use that as my shipping rate. (I ship to Canada, so I also have to calculate a separate rate for my Canadian customers) Next, I make a note to my customers letting them know that I will refund overpayment. Most importantly, I always follow through if there is a shipping overage and send their refund right away. I even offer to tell them what their exact shipping will be if they want to know before they buy. I'm hoping Etsy will eventually revamp how they do their shipping options and maybe offer a shipping calculator for buyers. Until then, that's how I do it!


I know that's a lot of information. I hope I was clear and didn't give you a headache. Feel free to email me with questions! Check back next Monday for part 4!

Tips for New Etsy Sellers Pt. 2

A lot of time.

It's true that once you get a system that works well for you things will move more smoothly. However, there will always be plenty of behind the scenes work that will keep you busy. Everything requires time. Preparing your product, photographing your items and uploading them, writing product descriptions, packaging & shipping, bookkeeping, advertising....They all take time. So be prepared to dedicate quite a bit of it to your new business.

When customers go to brick & mortar shops, they can see the items for sale and pick them up for a closer look to examine them before purchasing them. People that visit your Etsy shop should feel comfortable buying from you because they can clearly see what they are purchasing. There shouldn't be any surprises when their item arrives in the mail. Also, nice looking items are more appealing to buyers. Brushing up on your photography skills will help quite a bit. This post from Shrimp Salad Circus has great tips on how to get good product shots for your Etsy shop.

When I started out, I was working with Excel spreadsheets that I made myself and tried to keep my books that way. It was working, but it took an incredible amount of time and frustration. It was the absolute worst part of my job and I knew that there just had to be a better way! I asked around on Twitter and my friend, Jen, asked me if I used Outright at all. I hadn't even heard of Outright, so I Googled it right away. It's an online service that merges your Etsy and Paypal into spreadsheets and charts that you can actually use and it does it automatically! YOU GUYS! Outright is a Godsend! It was like waving a magic wand. I'm not even kidding and it's FREE! All I have to do for myself is manually enter in mileage and money I spend on supplies. I wish I'd know about it ages ago! They even have an app so I can add to my account on the go. I'm saving so much time now! As my business grows, I may decide to upgrade to the version that prepares tax documents too.

Ok, guys. Part 3 will be coming next Monday and will answer lots of questions about packing & shipping. I've learned quite a few lessons on that front and look forward to passing them on to you!

Tips for New Etsy Sellers Pt. 1

Lately, I've had some friends ask me for pointers on opening their own Etsy shops. I've learned some pretty useful stuff this year as I've fumbled along. I thought it would be nice to pass along some information that I had to learn the hard way. So, here are some things that I wish I would've known starting out. By the way, the links in today's post will send you EXACTLY where you need to go and will save you lots of time and frustration!

My circumstances couldn't really be helped. It would've been SO much better if I had taken time to plan instead of jumping in. Ideally, getting stocked all summer and opening in the fall would've made much more sense. Instead, I opened my shop during a slow retail time and had to struggle. My sales picked up in September and my best months were November & December because of holiday shoppers. Learn from my mistake and work the calendar to your advantage!

My advice is to start planning right now. Do your homework. There is a ton of great information on the Etsy blog and on Etsy forums. Read it, take notes, do whatever works best for you to figure out your game plan. I really didn't know what I was getting into and research would've been so helpful! The whole Etsy community is amazing and more than willing to answer questions!

This part is gross and boring and totally necessary. Figure out what you need to do about licensing in your state and get what you need. I live in Ohio. For me, this meant getting a vendor's license to sell things online and through the mail. I also registered my business name and got an employer identification number (EIN) for tax purposes. You will also need to decide whether you want your business to be a sole proprietorship or Limited Liability Corporation (LLC). It would've been cheaper to go with the sole proprietorship, but I felt like I was better protected with the LLC. I think all my business filings cost me around $150. You can read about sole propietorship vs. LLC here.

That should be enough information to keep you busy for awhile. Look for part 2 of this 4 part series on Monday and feel free to ask questions!

Cyber Monday Savings!

Happy Holidays from Atomic Purple!

Starting NOW until Midnight on 11/26/2012

Vintage Pyrex Discovery!

Like a lot of other vintage junkies out there, I am obsessed with Pyrex! The vintage stuff was unbelievably well made! It has a million uses, can withstand very high heat, and resists chipping like no other.

I recently purchased a set of primary bowls and noticed that the bowls were marked differently than what I'm used to seeing. I did a little internet research and found out the they're marked differently because they're the oldest version and the Pyrex company wasn't numbering them yet.

Here are some subtle and not-so-subtle differences in the vintage and older vintage primary colored bowls.

I hope you guys don't mind that I totally geek out over this stuff. I know I'm not alone in my obsession!

First, notice the color difference in the red bowl. There wasn't a drastic difference in the other colors.

Next, check out the difference in the bottom curve.

Not all of the bowls in the older set are thicker, but there is a definite difference in the red.

Of course, the easiest difference to spot is the bottom marking.

And I just listed the complete set of older bowls today on Atomic Purple! Click on the photo and you'll go right to the listing!

That's the Pyrex scoop I have for you today. I'll let you know if I find out any other cool info!

Reassessing the Blog

When I started my blog, the idea was to write a blog based on my etsy shop. It seemed like a good way to promote my business and for my customers to get to know me. I wrote a few blog posts about crafty things I’ve been doing and my photography passion, but it hasn’t been particularly shop related. …Frankly, I don’t think shop posts would make very interesting reading...Today, I found this treasure hunting and I carefully cleaned and photographed it so it’d be shop ready….snore…

So, I decided to take a break and decide what I really want my blog to be about. I read a lot of blogs and I thought about what I like and dislike about different ones I read regularly and I kind of surprised myself. Turns out, I prefer blogs with more written content than photos. Who knew? I’m a PHOTOGRAPHER! It’s crazy! I’ll elaborate on this in a later post, but yep. Crazy. I think it’s because I’m an avid reader. I like stories. I don’t want bloggers to tell me they like “this” or “that” unless they tell me why.

I like diversity. Recipes, crafts, Pinterest mishaps, personal events, gardening tips, whatever! I like to read the stories from their everyday lives. That is what I want to share with you. My stories. This is a blog about a girl that just happens to run an etsy shop of the same name. Thanks for reading.

What the Heck is ETSY??

I love Etsy.com and I'm so excited about my new shop! What has really surprised me about starting this business is how many people ask me "What's Etsy?" So, let me answer that question for you. 

Disclaimer: I am in no way responsible for your impending addiction. You have been warned.....

Etsy.com is a marketplace for the most amazing handmade and vintage lovelies that you will ever see! It's like a craft show/antique store/vintage shop right in your own home! It's a great place to find original art and vintage items online. There's something for everyone at all price points. No auctions, thousands of vendors, and the site is incredibly easy to navigate.

Etsy isn't a new site either. They just celebrated their 7th birthday and they are even offering wedding registries! How awesome is that?? You can register for handmade and vintage housewares for wedding and shower gifts!

Here is a sampling of items you can find on Etsy.com

Buy it here.

Buy this print here

Buy this sweet dress here

Get this ring here

Buy this breathtaking painting here

Pick up this personalized wallet here

The list goes on and on! Go check it out and tell me how much you love it. Heck, tell everyone! Shout it from the rooftops, I am.

And visit my shop here while you're at it!

Just Keep Swimming!...Figuring Out My New Etsy Career

This business stuff is some hard work! I'm loving the treasure hunting part of my job. It's just so fun to dig through other people's junk! I have so many awesome treasures I want to share with you, but I've been so wiped out from all the hunting that it's been tough getting everything cataloged, photographed and uploaded!...Is it too early to hire an assistant?

Here are a some of my faves that I've found time to post:



And here's a little preview of what's coming next:

I hope you like what you see so far! There's much more to come!

Also, I snagged some cool retro shelves and spice racks that are in pretty rough shape. I'll be giving them makeovers soon and posting the pics for you all to see! Thanks for reading!