Internet Artisan Interview - Patch First Shop

I think one of my favorite things about etsy is getting to know people from around the world. I communicate with my next artisan everyday; she lives in Thailand, so we're on WAY different schedules! Patch is an etsybloggers and has three different Etsy shops. It was way fun, sitting down and looking in her shops for pictures, because they are so different: jewelry, vintage and supplies. She also has a shop on Artfire. Patch has two blogs right now; one is a special Wedding Guide Blog that is a must stop for all brides. But I'll let her tell you what she's up to:

What's the name of your business/shop?

I started my first shop with "PatchFirstShop" for everything: Jewelry, Vintage Clothing, and Supplies.. and then I wanted to make the shop more organized.. so I opened 2 more shops for vintage clothing "PatchVintageShop" and supplies "PatchSupplyShop".


Do you have a registered domain name and/or a blog?
Jewelry Shop in Etsy
Jewelry Shop in Artfire
Vintage Clothing Shop
Supply Shop
Weddings Guide Blog
All about Patch


What type of handmade products do you sell?
I made Handmade Jewelry from Genuine Swarovski beads - Crystals and Glass Pearls. And in my supply shop, I do make mini bags by hand-sewing.


Show us a piece you recently finished
Now I'm working on Little Princess Crown Rings in many colors following the monthly birthday gemstone. They will be added soon in my shop. Now I have only Emerald color in my shop. Finished colors are Garnet, Sapphire, Ruby, Diamond (Clear) and another extra - Black and white.

What are you working on right now? Any sketches?
I'm still working on my "Amelia Collection".. now I have Necklace, Hairpin, Brooch.. in my design, they must be Earrings and Bracelet too which I haven't made them coz they need something to re-design and adjust for the size. Moreover, this collection has 3 necklace designs which I've finished just one design. And of course I have the sketches but I can't show you.. it's CONFIDENTIAL!! hahah ;D You can see the sample of the sketches here

[this necklace is on etsy]

If you have a website or blog, what do you use for advertising? What do your avatars look like?
I have a rapid cart from my artfire shop and mini etsy in my wedding guide blog to advertise my shops for weddings market. I normally use one of my jewelry to be my avatars, sometimes necklace, sometimes earrings, sometimes ring.. Except the avatar in Etsy.. I'm using my name "Patch" as avatar in all my shops so everyone will know it's me. :D


If you have a website or blog, tell us about your favorite widget.
Ummm.. very difficult question for me.. coz I don't pay much attention on widgets in my blog..

Which online selling vendors do you use? What do you like best about each one?

Just only 2 online vendors - Etsy and Artfire.
Good thing for Etsy is that it's my really first online shop. I have all experiences there and now I have a group of friends there too since I've been the member of EtsyBloggers Team. So I feel like home there and of course all of my orders were in Etsy.
Good thing for Artfire is that all items they are all no expired date since I upgraded to Verified account. And lot of viewers are from search engines, I feel like I don't have to work much on advertising but still no order from it.. so not so sure now.. ;)

Are you involved in social networking? What's your favorite and why? If you're not involved, you must have a good reason.

I have many accounts in social networks: Twitter, Ning.com, Plurk, FaceBook, etc. My favorite is Plurk, I can share from Plurk to Twitter to FaceBook so I have to online only on website. The most favorite thing that I love on Plurk is that responding communications, I can chat with Plurk's friends like I use any instant messenger program. It's great for custom-order because you can talk all details with your customer.

All of us can use a helpful business hint once a week. What's yours?
If you have a blog to advertise you shops, try to blog about something that you think most people will search for it in any search engine. This will help your traffic to your blog and you may have more new customers to your shops. :D

Do you have a "modus operandi" for computing the price of a handmade object? Tell us your formula.
Ummmm.. let's see how can I explain all in one paragraph.. I make my own worksheet in Microsoft Excel (thank you for my previous job as sale representative). First I combine all supply cost in Thai Baht and then convert to US dollar plus exchange rate risk factor (about 10%) plus workman cost then multiply for a profit margin. Then add listing fee and packing cost. Calculate for Etsy order fee and Paypal fee.. then add both to the items.. now you have a price! (Why I have to calculate order fee and paypal fee in it, when you have an order the real fee will be slightly more than you calculate but you already added in your price so this means you pay for fee less than the real fee.. got it??)
But.. I still modify the formula because sometimes you will see that there are some costs that you forget to add in it.

We'd love to see your little corner of the world, where you create.
My bedroom is my workplace, every area of it - on the floor, on the desk, on the bed.. You can see my workplace here

Where do you see your artwork in one year? Any plans in the works?
I've already had the first shop for one year. At the first time in November last year, I got 2 sales in one week from the chat room. At that time I thought everything will be great by itself but couple of months with no sale, I knew I was wrong. I started to focus harder in April 2009, started to blog and other social networks. This year is just the started year for me.. kinda trial and error processes for me. So the plans for next year, the first priority is that I will pay attention to all my shops daily, adding new items daily, and blogging daily too to create more traffics to all my shops. Working harder is my plan for next year! :D


OK, it's the storybeader's turn. I don't know which I like more, clothing or jewelry. I would buy this vintage lace blouse, but I know a 19" bust has to be too small for me. Isn't it adorable! I also think Patch's pearl jewelry is exquisite, but I have a special hand-me-down from my mom...

Posted for the EtsyBloggers team by: storybeader
See EtsyBloggers team membership requirements here: etsybloggers.com
Got a blog? Love Etsy? Check us out!

Mini Monday - Splendid Little Stars - Sparkly Park

You can easily see the love for creating in the items from the two shops of Margaret who is our mini Monday feature for today. To continue her introduction read what follows from her profile.

My home studio is located in the Cincinnati area. There is a little bit about me in the "policies" section. Artsyness and crafting have always been a part of my life. I love the outdoors, to travel to new and beautiful places, photographing all the while. Nature inspires me. I love making most anything with my hands. Inspired many years ago, by a special teacher of my daughter's, I began the study of tie dyeing. Learning something new while creating is a constant process. Discovery is a joy (mostly). I have been selling hand~dyed and hand~painted clothing for about 18 years now. I have been making jewlery for longer than that. For about 4 years, at the turn of the century, I owned a gift shop along with other artisians. We made and sold our own creations along with some "ready-mades." Truly, the most meaningful part of this was the relationships formed with our treasured customers. Sharing our creations with an appreciative audience was always heart-warming as well.

Of course I would be remiss if I didn't lead you to her blog as well. You can find out more about this busy person right here. When you stop by leave a comment and tell her the EtsyBloggers sent you!

Got a blog? Love Etsy? Check us out! etsybloggers.com

CPSIA Blog-IN

As parents and concerned citizens I’m sure most of us at one time or another have been confronted with the question of lead poisoning. But have you asked yourself what your government is doing to protect your children from lead contained in toys? The answer? They're banning toys, taking books from schools and libraries, hurting low income families, killing entrepreneurial spirit and risking putting the economy in an even greater depression than we've seen in decades. I'd like to introduce you to their solution: the CPSIA.

Do you know about the CPSIA? No? Then I ask you to take a few minutes to find out about it.

The CPSIA stands for Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, a new set of laws that will come into effect on 10 February, 2009 and will impact many, many people in a negative way. Make no mistake, this is very real. View it for yourself. If Forbes, the American Library Association and numerous other media are paying attention, perhaps you should too.

How will these new laws affect you? Well, here are a few examples:

To the Parents of Young Students:
Due to the new law, expect to see the cost of school supplies sky rocket. While those paper clips weren't originally intended for your student to use, they will need to be tested now that your 11-year-old needs them for his school project. This law applies to any and all school supplies (textbooks, pencils, crayons, paper, etc.) being used by children under 12.

To the Avid Reader:
Due to the new law, all children's books will be pulled from library and school shelves, as there is no exemption for them. That’s okay though, there's always television. Our children don’t need to learn the love of reading after all. Here's the article from the American Library Association: http://www.wo.ala.org/districtdispatch/?p=1322

To the Lover of All Things Handmade:
Due to the new law, you will now be given a cotton ball and an instruction manual so you can make it yourself since that children's item you originally had your eye on for $50 will now cost you around $1,000 after it's passed testing. It won't even be the one-of-a-kind item you were hoping for. Items are destroyed in the testing process making one-of-a-kind items virtually impossible. So those awesome handmade presents you bought your kiddos this past holiday season won’t be available next winter.

To the Environmentalist:
Due to the new law, all items in non-compliance will now be dumped into our already overflowing landfills. Imagine not just products from the small business owners, but the Big Box Stores as well. You can't sell it so you must toss it. Or be potentially sued for selling it. You can't even give them away. If you are caught, it is still a violation.

To the Second-Hand Shopper:
Due to the new law, you will now need to spend $20 for that brand new pair of jeans for your 2-year old, rather than shop at the Goodwill for second hand. Many resale shops are eliminating children's items all together to avoid future lawsuits.

To the Entrepreneur:
Due to this new law, you will be forced to adhere to strict testing of your unique products or discontinue to make and/or sell them. Small businesses will be likely to be unable to afford the cost of testing and be forced to close up shop. Due to the current economic state, you'll have to hope for the best when it comes to finding a new job in Corporate America.

To the Antique Toy Collector:
Due to the new law, you'd better start buying now because it's all going to private collection and will no longer be available to purchase. “Because the new rules apply retroactively, toys and clothes already on the shelf will have to be thrown out if they aren't certified as safe.” http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123189645948879745.html

To the American Economy:
Already struggling under an economy that hasn’t been this weak in decades, the American economy will be hit harder with the inevitable loss of jobs and revenues from suppliers, small businesses and consumers. The required testing is far too costly and restrictive for small businesses or individuals to undertake. Here's the article in Forbes: http://www.forbes.com/2009/01/16/cpsia-safety-toys-oped-cx_wo_0116olson.html

To the Worldwide Economy:
Due to this new law, many foreign manufacturers have already pulled out of the US market. You can imagine the impact of this on their businesses.

If you think this is exaggerating, here is a recent article from Forbes
http://www.forbes.com/2009/01/16/cpsia-safety-toys-oped-cx_wo_0116olson.html

Did you know about all of this? If this upsets or alarms you, please react.

Download Etsy's CPSIA Action Kit here:
http://www.etsy.com/storque/craftivism/cpsia-action-kit-and-community-chat-3321/