Crafting for Profit: Business Cards

If you are one of many who has decided to sell your crafts and handmade items, your success does depend on how you promote your business. Make no mistake, this is a business for you. And you want it to be successful, like we all do with any business.

Whether you have just made the decision to sell you crafts, or you have been in business for years, promoting your handmade work is one of the most valuable things you can do. The old adage, build it and they will come, frankly isn't true. You need to be the one to tell them where to go.

That's where business cards come in handy. They are probably the most valuable tool in your promotions arsenal. Your business cards will be used in many different ways, so make sure you have plenty available.

There are multiple ways to sell your crafted items. For many of us, we used a variety of ways. We sell through a booth in a craft mall, at every local craft fair possible and online through sites like Etsy and eBay.

With a physical presence, your business cards need to be available to all who stop by. Customers, of course, but also those who are just browsing. You want them to share your information with their friends and relatives.

For an online shop, your business cards will also be a valuable addition. Send your card along with every single item you ship. People will want to have a way to contact you again for additional orders, gifts and more.

In working your craft business for profit, you want to alert everyone you can to what you have for sale. Business cards are one of the best ways to do this.

Have You Discovered Smash Booking?

I found a fun new and exciting craft. Smash Booking. For some of you this probably isn't new, based on the number of YouTube Videos about Smash Books. For me, it's a new and exciting paper craft that I had never known about.

Smash Books are the creation of K & Company which makes papers and supplies for the scrapbook industry. They found the need for a smaller version of a scrapbook. But these books are even more than that.

The books are designed to be about 10 inches tall by 7 inches wide. Quite a nicer size than the traditional 12 inches square scrapbooks. They are spiral bound. The pages of Smash Books are designed so that they can be written directly on. That means your Smash Book can become a journal, or you can just add your own notes to the fun momentos you gather.

My first Smash Book is designed to be an book of inspiration for me. It's also a great outlet for my creative juices. Quilting is one of my favorite crafts. With my Smash Book, I can design "paper quilts." Now how fun is that?

I'm having a great time working through the pages, adding in beautiful, charming or whimsical papers, then embellishing to my heart's content and creating my own inspirational masterpiece.

Whether you enjoy scrapbooking and want to try something just a bit different, or you want to get into papercrafts, but not in such a huge way, Smash Books may be your best bet. I am certainly enjoying the creative work on mine!

Small Pieces Craft Supply Organizers

When you work with a crafting project that uses small pieces, you need a way to keep them organized. It doesn't matter whether you are a jewelry maker and have the tiny little pieces that go with that type of craft, or you have a collection of googly eyes for crocheting fun animals. All of these little pieces need to be kept sorted and organized.

Small-piece organizers come in a variety of types and sizes. You need to consider what variations of craft supplies you want to keep sorted. Some may have different color combinations, sizes or physical variations. How sorted to you want to keep them? For instance, you may want to have all your googly eyes in just one bin no matter what size they are. Or you may prefer to keep the small ones in a separate bin from the larger ones.

Also, you need to consider how you like to work. Do like to keep everything you need open and ready to grab when you need it? Or do you prefer to keep everything closed up and open only the one you need immediately.

These kinds of things will help you determine which kinds of small-piece craft supply organizers you need and will enjoy using. And the whole purpose of organizing your craft supplies is to allow you to enjoy your projects more.

Christmas Crafts Planning

I know, I hear you. It's only July, why would I be talking about planning for Christmas already? But, remember this is all about crafts and crafters know you do start early to plan for Christmas or any holiday. Craft projects take some time. Organize Craft Supplies has found a perfect site for you. It's Sylvestermouse's Christmas Craft Kits. She has wonderful craft kits to help you make just about anything you can think of for the holidays.

Personally, I am a fan of kits when making holiday projects. Everything you need is included and you rarely have left over scraps to deal with. The projects are so well designed and the instructions are usually geared to a novice so I can try my hand at many new or different crafts.

At Christmas Craft Kits, the choices are incredible! She shares all the fun of making different or unique items. But you better hurry over. Many kits are one of a kind, and they won't last long as we get closer to Christmas!

This year, I'm making these adorable Gingerbread placemats for all the grandkids. Won't they just love using those at Grandma's special Christmas dinner, then getting to take them home as a little holiday favor? I'm definitely looking forward to that!

Crafting Paper Dolls Grows Up

Do you remember playing with paper dolls when you were a kid? I sure do. Paper dolls were so much fun as a child, but they have grown up. They have grown into a fun and creative craft for adults. Making paper dolls has become an art all in itself. Paper dolls from the past, historical figures, even 3-D paper dolls are becoming very popular.

At Organize Craft Supplies, the new fun of crafting paper dolls is discussed, along with offering up some free patterns to make clothes for a Victorian girl and boy. It's definitely worth the fun of trying out this charming craft.

Books about creating paper dolls as a grown up craft can help you get started. Here are a couple of my own choices. Just click on one to see more about it, purchase it, or browse more.

 

So when you are looking for a new craft to try, think about paper doll making.You can end up with a fun and creative talent from it.

We're Crocheting in May

With summer on it's way, we are taking the month of May to learn crocheting. It's not hard to learn and it makes great Crafting-on-the-Go projects so easy. The only supplies you need are a crochet hook and some yarn and you are ready to go.

Think about summer time where you may be traveling for family vacations, waiting for kids to finsh summer sports practices, or just sitting on your patio enjoying some sun and fresh air. All of this time gives you the opportunity to craft some cute projects.

At Organize Craft Supplies, we have two great friends who are helping us all learn crocheting. Syvestermouse, at How to Crochet, helps us learn the very basics, what it takes and how to learn the stitches, along with lots about the terminology.

Then Happy Nutrionist gives us lots of basics about crocheting and tons of free patterns to practice with. She shares lots of cute and easy patterns.

We are going to be crafting on the go this summer and enjoying many new projects with our newly learned crochet skills. So grab your yarn and your crochet hook and get started learning. Then come on over and try your hand at making an adorable baby octopus, or two.

Crafter's Business Cards

If you enjoy making crafts, even if you don't sell them, it's fun to have business cards just for your own use. A business card can be added to a gift that you have hand crafted. If you do sell your crafts, then you definitely want to have business cards for your crafting business.

We consider them part of our supplies. Every crafter deserves to be able to leave a lasting impression and memory of the gifts we make and those we sell and give away. A crafter's business cards does that.

My daughter ordered a great gift for me from an Etsy shop and had it shipped to me. With the gift came the woman's business card. I was thrilled and ran right to her shop. Actually, I bought a few other things from her. So the business card paid off for this Etsy shop owner.

The easiest way to get business cards is through Zazzle. We have a nice selection of those that we like and think you might like, too, at Organize Craft Supplies. These are easy to customize, just for your own business or craft hobby. We ordered ours and were thrilled with the quality when they arrived. I've since added two more designs to go with different crafts that I make. It turns out to be a fun way to show off my ability.

Crafter's business cards make great gifts for the crafters in your family and friend circle. So pick out a few just to have on hand!

DIY Craft Baskets for Mother's Day Gifts

Alright, I will admit I have ulterior motives for writing this post. I'm a Mother who would love to get a DIY Craft Basket this Mother's Day from one or all of my kids. These will make great gifts for any crafty mother. I will also admit that the idea is not mine. I wish I could take the credit - it's such a great idea, but no. It comes from My Favorite Things. Well, it's a favorite thing for me, too.

Click on the picture!

Author Mandee Sears tells you how to put together some interesting gift baskets for mothers. She talks about a basket for scrapbooking moms. Well I'll take that a bit further. Try starting with her idea - use a craft supply totebag - then add the kinds of things your own mother would like in her favorite crafting projects.

Think about a knitting or crocheting mom. Yarns are the first thing you think about, but try adding some unique or fancy yarns that your mom might not typically get. Add in some sweet little extras. A crochet hook organizer, stitch markers, even needle tips will work well in your DIY craft basket. Maybe a book of new patterns will be just perfect for your mom.

Click on the picture!

If your mom is into jewelry making, a new bead organizer, loaded with plenty of unusual beads, makes a great gift for her. Of course, this idea works great for just about any craft project. Art brushes, pencils or paints all lined up in a new craft supply organizer.

So get your thinking caps on and give your crafty mother a charming and welcome gift this Mother's Day. DIY craft baskets are ideal!

Crafting On The Go

With summer just around the corner, and warm weather already hitting my neck of the woods, I'm thinking about the lazy days of summer. Vacations, traveling, even just enjoying some time outside. With all of this, I want to have some easy crafts to carry with me. I want the supplies to easy to carry along as well.

At Crafting on the Go, we have spelled out how to pick and handle the crafts and supplies that we take with us. It's easy to find the fun and simple craft projects to take along, but maybe not so easy to make sure we have everything we need with us. One of the things that really enjoy working on are cross stitch designs.

The kits for cross stitch always include everything but the scissors. So I add my own tiny pair of scissors. I like to carry all of this together in a small tote bag. That way all I have to do is grab my little tote bag and toss it into my handbag or travel case. Simple isn't it?

Take a look at Organize Craft Supplies for lots other suggestions, as well as fun little tote bags to carry your crafts and the supplies needed along with you.

National Craft Month is March

March is the month to celebrate crafting. National Craft Month is a favorite time for us. We enjoy all sorts of fun ideas to celebrate this special month. Here are some of our favorite ways to celebrate

Get those craft supplies organized. When you have your supplies sorted and put away where you can find them when you need them, you can spend more time on your crafts. Not on the search for a particular supply. This is one of my favorite organizers. It is so useful for so many crafts. Once you have your supplies organized in this, you can roll it into a closet when not in use and bring it out whenever you want to work on your project. Just click on the image to see more about or purchase it.

Treat yourself to a new tote for crafting on the go. We love to craft every where we can. I personally, have many little totes that I can grab quickly on the way out the door. Making Christmas ornaments is a favorite way to craft on the go. I make use of little kits so all the supplies are included. I just tuck the kit and a small pair of scissors into one of my totes and I'm ready to go.

Here is one of my favorite totes. It has room for whatever supplies I want to carry with me and keeps them organized for my craft project. Click on the image to get one for yourself.

Enjoy yourself for National Craft Month and celebrate all month long. Commit to work on your favorite craft or learn a new one. There are lots of fun ways to share your love of crafting at Organize Craft Supplies. Come on over and join us for crafting talk and crafting fun.

Time to Get Our Craft Supplies Organized

Now is the time to get those craft supplies organized. Don't just hate wasting time searching for just the thing you need to continue working on your project? I sure do. That promoted me to get my craft room organized and ready to go. Now all my craft supplies are exactly where I need them. I know what I have and what I need thanks to the great folks at Organize Craft Supplies.

When you visit that fun site, be sure to check out some of the great stuff:

• learn a new craft
• pick out a favorite craft supply organizer
• see what's going with new craft trends
• find a holiday wall decoration to make

You can even see how to create and organize a craft room, along with many great options for the furniture to fill that room. Find the best storage options for the kind of crafts you enjoy.

And don't forget to leave a comment to say you stopped by Organize Craft Supplies. We sure are enjoying our time there. Hopefully, you will, too!