Selling Online --- Part Two

Today we're featuring part 2 of our Selling Online series and we're going to talk about selling on ArtFire.com

ArtFire.com is the home of many handmade sellers from around the globe. Sellers can sell handmade, vintage items or supplies. It's fairly simple to set up a studio and start selling on ArtFire. They have two options. Their Basic Account and a Pro or verified seller accounts.

A basic account is FREE! Yes, FREE!! You can list an unlimited amount of items. A Pro account is $15.95 per month but has a lot more features than the Basic account. You can compare the two accounts here. 

Unlike etsy, there is no individual listing fee for each item. If you are a pro seller, you simply pay a monthly fee of $15.95/month or if you are a basic seller, you pay NOTHING. Now, keep in mind, you will need a PayPal account and they charge a fee for every transaction. You also have the option of  using Google Checkout and Amazon for collecting payments on ArtFire.com

ArtFire.com has quite a few help guides for any question you may have about selling and setting up your shop. You can find them here. 

The forums on ArtFire are a great place to find answers and most members are happy and eager to help answer your questions.

Do you have questions concerning setting up an account? You can find the answers here. 

The key to successful selling online with any venue is promotion. Once you set up your shop, be sure to promote it. You can find many places online to promote your shop for nearly no cost and some that are paid. We will cover promoting your shop in another post in this series.

Thanks for joining us!

Deena Davis

www.byyourhands.com

Trash to Treasure --- Dresser Transformation

Today we have a guest poster,   Miss Mustard Seed,   from  http://missmustardseed.blogspot.com/.

Dresser Transformation

What do you do with a dresser that has drawers beyond repair?

You take them out and replace them with a couple of shelves, of course...or at least you have your husband do that and then you paint it. 

The construction of these drawers were ok, but the veneer was in terrible condition.  It was either put new fronts on or take them out.  I opted to take them out.  My husband built two plywood shelves and trimmed them in the original trim that separated the drawers.  Isn't he clever?

I painted the dresser in Creamy by Sherwin Williams and the interior in a pretty blue.

I found a galvanized box that was the perfect size for one of the cubbies.  It's for sale separately, but hopefully whoever sees it will love the box inside and have to buy both.  That's the idea, anyway!

I brought the blue of the interior up to the box mounted on the dresser top. 

 I really love how this dresser turned out...I think I may have to make another. 

Welcome To My Studio --- Cave Creek Studio

 We have a new feature here on By Your Hands.   We will be showcasing the places where you create your handmades.

 Today's guest poster is Laura Obiso of Cave Creek Studio.   You can visit Laura's shop here:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/CaveCreekStudio

I LOVE my studio, and I give thanks every day that I'm able to have my own space in which to create.  For years and years I've worked on my computer desk or kitchen table, so having my own space is a real treat.  Remember to click on the photos for a larger view.

This is my studio building.  It's a 16 x 20 pre-built shed that was delivered here last March (much to the moans and groans of the driver who had to get it off the truck and up this little hill!)  I still have to work on the flower beds next spring - I'm thinking herbs and flowers for drying to use in the dolls, but it's a shady spot so I'll have to do some research on what will grow.

This is the view coming in the front door and looking at the main part of the work area.

This is actually neat, most of the time it looks more like this:

There are windows at each end and windows on either side of the front door, so it's well-lit.  I also have overhead lights and a ceiling fan, and lights on the back wall over the formica work space.  So, as you come in the front door, we'll go first to the right:

My sewing center is to the right of the front door.  I love my cabinet and my new Janome Threadbanger.

One of my best purchases when we outfitted the building were simple thread holders from Walmart.  I also bought a LOT of thread from one company, and I thought it was a pretty neat coincidence that the spools were red, matching the accents on my machine!

Continuing around the room to the left of the sewing center I have an old easy chair in the corner covered with an old quilt - this is where I sit and do handwork, and to the left of that and directly opposite the front door, is this baker's rack:

The baker's rack holds some finished pieces on the top shelf - my Cricut Expression  and other assorted stuff.  I use a lot of tins and baskets to hold small items. One of my better purchases was a set of studio lights and a light box for taking photos - but there's no place to really store them so I just sort of keep moving them around out of my way...so that's the big black light.  There's another on the other end..

OK, to the left of the baker's rack we're back to the main work space.  It's a formica counter attached to the wall and open underneath - great for storage but it does tend to get a little messy.

Try as I might, I have difficulty keeping this space clear.  My vintage buttons are in the antique bowls (and I have boxes and boxes of them under the work bench).  At the moment I have plastic containers, baskets and old tins holding assorted items under the bench, but I'm hoping to find some wooden apple crates for that space. Otherwise, I'll have to make me some fabric boxes.

Continuing around to the left, we come to the other end window where there's a small AC unit, and to the left of that in the corner, is my "office" where I keep a computer, printer, and postage scale.

The little white cabinet I bought for $15.  It had two cute glass doors covering that open shelf and one was broken, so I got a deal.  We took the doors off - someday we'll fix them and put them back on maybe. The cabinet holds my shipping stuff and the computer paper.  The wooden desk is a piece I brought home from my Mother's after she passed last year.  I was with her when she bought it and it's a little bit of Mom - who taught me to sew and be creative - that I keep near.


To the left of the office area, and in front of the other half of the front door (that I really don't use) is this sort of eyesore cabinet that holds all my fabric stash - lots of storage so I'm really not complaining. I keep my shipping boxes on the top of it.

It doesn't look bad when the doors are closed and it keeps the dust off the fabrics and covers up an ungodly mess.

A big thank you to Laura for letting us walk through her studio with her.   You can visit Laura's blog here,
http://cavecreekstudio.blogspot.com/

 If you would like to share where you do your creating,  send us an email through our contact form.   We would love to talk to you about it.

Handmade Spotlight - Aprons!

Check out all these gorgeous aprons we found on etsy. You can get a closer look at them by CLICKING HERE

Thanks for visiting!
Deena Davis
www.byyourhands.com

Rag Quilting Tutorial --- Part Three

Welcome to part three of my rag quilting tutorial. You should have all your individual blocks sewn now and be ready to sew them together into one large block.

Here is the center of the large block.    Your one dark block is in the middle with a light block on both sides.

 Pin the blocks together along the side.   Remember your seams will be on the outside so the back sides of the blocks will be together.    Sew the seams with a 3/4 inch seam allowance.

Next cut the clips from the sides and cut the seam for fringe like you did last week

This is what your row should look like.

The other two rows are made the same way.   The two triangle blocks are on the outside and the light color block is in the middle.    Pin the seams together just like you did the last row.  Stitch the seams and then cut the clips out of the end of the rows and cut the seam for fringe.

You now have three finished rows.   Lay them out like this.

Then you are going to pin the two long rows together.   Sew them with a 3/4 inch seam allowance.   This is where all that corner clipping comes in handy now because you will be sewing over  the seams now.    It is much easier to sew these rows together with all that bulk eliminated.

You will need to treat these two long seams the same way you did all the others.  Cut the clips out of the two ends of the rows and clip the seam for fringe.

And this is what the finished block will look like.

This will look a lot nicer once it has been washed and dried because the fringe will curl under.

Well,  that is the first block of the quilt.   You will need to make 12 of these large blocks to make a lap quilt.
Next week I will show you how to sew the blocks together and have the dimensions of the finished quilt for you.

Thanks for joining me again this week.
Bette
www.byyourhands.com

Do you have a special skill you would like to share with our readers?   If you would like to do a tutorial of your own on our blog,  please email me at byyourhandsblog@gmail.com