Upcoming Workshop: Take Pictures Like A Pro With Your Point and Shoot Camera by Elena of SimplyNu

May 12, 2014 by NY Handmade Collective in "Brooklyn", "Etsy NY", "Seller Education", "Simplynu", "Team workshop", "camera", "education", "etsy labs", "etsy", "new sellers", "photography"

Join Elena of SimplyNu and the Etsy New York team on Monday, May 19th, 2014 at the Etsy Labs in Dumbo, NY (Brooklyn) for a workshop on taking great photographers of your products using the manual settings of your point and shoot camera.

Attendees will learn how to make the most of your photos to tell your brand's story and explore the following topics:

How to use your camera manual settings, including: resolution, time exposures, crops, and macros.
Use of backgrounds and props to enhance your product.
How to best frame and crop your product to create a memorable image.

Workshop will start with a quick review of a few favorite Etsy shops and an exploration of what makes their photos interesting and unique.

Please bring your camera and 1 or 2 products to photograph, along with an item that you can use as a prop (for example, a piece of cloth or small stand.)

This workshop is free to all EtsyNY teamies. All non-members who are interested in attending can purchase tickets ($5) on Eventbrite. Check in will occur at the door, so please have your tickets and ID available. The door will close at 6:30pm.

Hope to see you there!

Mother’s Day Gift Guide + GIVEAWAY

May 09, 2014 by NY Handmade Collective in "May Giveaway", "Mother's Day Gift Guide", "Mother's Day Gifts", "Mother's Day gift", "Mother's Day", "Tracey Toole", "etsy giveaway", "giveaway", "giveaways"

If you are still looking for that perfect gift for mom, why not give her an ETSY gift card?

After you treat her to a delicious meal she can spend her day browsing the beautiful handmade creations that ETSY artisans offer!

To make shopping easier for her, here is a gift guide with some fabulous finds:

Also, this month we have a special Mother’s Day GIVEAWAY!!

Tracey Toole, owner, maker and designer of etsy shop traceytoole is generously giving away this beautiful handmade apron and bandanna scarf. She designs and sews all her products in her Brooklyn studio and specializes in custom aprons for commercial use.

How can you win one of these fabulous traceytoole creations?

It’s simple – all you have to do is “Like” her page on Facebook and write a comment with the hashtag #MayGiveaway and you’ll be entered to win – it’s that easy!

Hurry, contest ends on May 23, 2014, two lucky winners will be selected!

https://www.facebook.com/TraceyTooleDesigns

Happy Mother's Day!!!

Rekha Krishnamurthi // DivineNYCo

HEALTH & BEAUTY: The Beauty of Moms

May 06, 2014 by NY Handmade Collective

Did you watch the YouTube video titled the "World's Toughest Job"? If not, prepare for a spoiler alert.

The video is about Moms. It's about all the wonderful things Mom's do for us. Things they do day after day. Unconditionally and selflessly. It's about the beauty of Moms. And, it went viral.

With all the things that our Moms do for us and with Mother's Day just around the corner, we wanted to know how to recognize and reward them for their hard work. So, we reached out to some experts...Moms! And, this is what they said...

Overall, gift cards topped the list. This surprised us since gift cards may seem a bit impersonal. Yet, it means that Moms can use the gift cards to purchase whatever they would like or need. So, the Moms we surveyed say gift cards rule!

Assorted gift packages or a day at the spa are greatly appreciated. And, kitchen appliances ranked high on the list. Who knew?! We certainly didn't, but we agree. Who wouldn't love a blender, food processor, mixer, or any gadget that makes life easier!

While the majority of Moms said that they enjoy both handmade and store-bought gifts, their favorite and most memorable gifts were those that were handmade. They cherish the handcrafted cards, flowers, and accessories that their kids make especially for them.

We hope that you have the chance to thank your Mom in as many ways as you can and as often as you can. We wish you a wonderful time celebrating the beauty of your Mom!

How will you celebrate Mom this coming Mother's Day?

YouTube Video: "World's Toughest Job"

~ Susan

Naturally Susan's

* Photos courtesy of Rebecca Hudek, Yana Rodin, and Jill Morris.

** Our survey does not represent the opinions of all the awesome Moms out there :).

My Top 5 Tips to Prepare for A Wholesale Trade Show

May 02, 2014 by NY Handmade Collective in "loella medina", "trade shows", "wholesale"

So you are interested in taking your business in the direction of wholesale and have decided you will do this by exhibiting at a trade show. Here are my top 5 tips to prepare for your first wholesale trade show:

1) Research Trade Shows - First of all, you want to research the trade shows available and figure out which one is the best fit for your business. Think about who you want to sell to. Is your product something you can see at a gallery or museum or is it more of a gift item that could be sold at a gift store, a spa or small boutique? Is it suitable for almost any type of store? Once you have narrowed down which trade show has the audience of buyers who you want to sell to, then first thing you want to do is walk that show. Walking the show will give you the best idea of how much traffic that specific show gets and what type of goods are sold in that show and wether those products are like yours and targeted to the same type of business. Find out what the application process is like. How far in advance do you need to apply? Is it a juried show?

2) Take a Good Look at your Business Finances and Make a Trade Show Budget - Once you have figured out which show you are going to exhibit in, it is important to create a budget for your trade show and start to save money before applying. Trade shows are expensive and depending on your product and the audience it might take a few tries before making the connections needed for the orders to start pouring in. Remember, you cannot truly judge a show’s success until after the show is over. Aside from the application and the actual show fee, there are many other expenses to account for: 2) Show services: electrical, drayage, union fees; 3) Travel expenses: meals, transportation, lodging; 4) Booth design: signage and furnishings; 5) Printable: line sheets, catalogs, order forms, price forms, marketing materials; 6) Shipping: cost of getting everything shipped to the show; 7) Promotions: pre and post-show mailings, etc.

3) Pricing your work: Before you go ahead and submit that application, make sure your pricing is right for wholesale. There are two reasons why this is so important: First - You do not want to underprice your work! If you do that from the start, you will not make a profit selling your work at wholesale prices or you will not be able to offer the standard 50% off your retail price to wholesale buyers. Second - You do not want to compete with stores carrying your work! Yes you want to be able to have a sale and offer your loyal customers a good price but you do not want to miss out on the business a store can bring you by competing with them with lower prices on the same items you sell to them and they are selling at retail. This might not be such a big deal if you are not in the same city as your buyers but most of us do business online, so this is something to keep in mind. Research retail and wholesale pricing and adjust your own prices if necessary. An option you can contemplate is creating a wholesale line of product. This way, the products you sell wholesale are just for wholesale and you can do whatever you would like to do with the products you sell direct to customers on your website or at a craft show.

4) Create a Line Sheet/Catalog, Order and Pricing Forms - For the show, you would want to have a line sheet or a catalog to hand out to buyers interested in your work. A line sheet/catalog is a document with all the necessary information for your prospective buyers. The line sheet or catalog should include the following: 1) Photos of each style; 2) Style numbers; 3) Color and/or fabric information (so variation information); 4) Delivery dates (turn around time) and order cut off dates; 5) Order minimums; 6) Season; 7) Company and/or sales rep contact information and (optional) 8) Prices and 9) Information about the maker and company. I personally have a separate sheet for ordering which also contains prices because this way a new catalog does not necessarily needs to be printed if my prices change. You can find many samples of line sheets and ordering forms online.

5) Research best lay out options for your booth - Buyers and store owners walking a show do not have the time to leisurely stroll down aisle after aisle of product so it is important to captivate the buyers attention and help them decide right away if they should stop at your booth. A good booth design will help attract buyers attentions and get them into your booth and place an order with you. You want to have clear signage and photos of your products that are visually appealing and of course easy to spot. Buyers make split second decisions and know their customers so if you have something that will be a good fit for their customer base, they will likely place an order with you. Use the space wisely, create levels on your display tables to attract your buyer to look around your table, etc. Perhaps, shell out some extra money for a corner booth to increase the traffic into our booth.

www.LoellaMedina.Etsy.com

Setting the Table: Sewing 101

May 01, 2014 by NY Handmade Collective in "DIY", "kitchen", "sewing", "table", "tutorial"

In New York City most apartments are on the small side. We live in shoe boxes. Most of us all live on tight budgets. And most of us are single and like to go out. Sometimes though it is nice to entertain, even in our little shoe box. I used to live in a 300 square foot apartment. My husband to this day makes fun of it. It was my bed, my work table, and 3 cats. Plus a few bookcases here and there. It was cozy. It was in Hells Kitchen which is a very fun place to hang out in and filled with history. Even though I lived in a small studio I still liked to have friends over. I didn't have chairs or a dining table but we could have drinks and appetizers. Entertaining is nice, pleasant, cozy and personal.

The next few weeks I will be posting a series of DIY called Setting the Table. You don't need to be an expert sewist to do these projects but it will help if you know the machine.

There will be projects for every living situation. We will start with simple and easy, a napkin.

double sided napkin using Liberty Wiltshire backed with muslin

tea towel  (spoon by Cor Pottery) — tea towel (spoon by Cor Pottery)

Moving on to a tea towel with hanging loop.

felt octagon coasters (mug by LennyMud ) — felt octagon coasters (mug by LennyMud )

Felt coasters

Table cloth

Embroidered placemats

Quilted table runner

Each above item can be used in any table setting, big or small, casual or formal. What will determine the feel is what fabric you use.

The first project, the double sided napkin, can be used for every day meals or only when special meals with guests are held.

Materials:

For 4 Reversible Napkins
1 yard of 44" wide fabric - quilting cotton, broadcloth, or light to medium weight cotton woven fabric
1 yard of 44" wide
200 count muslin
I use the higher count muslin because it is much softer than regular dress maker's muslin
matching cotton or poly machine thread. I prefer Gutterman brand but Coats and Clark is also good.
Size 10 machine needle

All fabric should be pre-washed.

1. You can layer both pieces of fabric on top of each other for cutting. Cut out 4 18" squares.

I use a rotary knife to make sure I cut a completely even square

2. Lay one piece of muslin and one piece of your print face to face. Muslin has no face so just choose one side. Pin it together. Sew 3/8" seam allowance on all sides leaving a 4" opening. When you are sewing the sides continue with one seam, you will pivot when you get to each corner. Start your sewing in the middle of one of the seam allowances, so don't start at a corner. Press with a steam iron.

The face is the nice side.

Pivot at the corners

3. Pivoting: Leave your needle in at the corner, raise your presser foot and turn the fabric to sew the next seam.

Leave a 4" opening so you can turn the napkin back to the right side.

Clip corners before turning out

4. Clip corners before turning back to the right side. This reduces bulk and will help you get nice pointy corners. Use a point turner for this. I like the bamboo kind.

5. After turning out, press with a steamy iron. And sew around all 4 sides using a 1/4" seam allowance. And press again.

Finished! Beautiful and soft spring napkins!

The next post will be making a tea towel with hanging utility loop.

Thanks,

Tracey

https://www.etsy.com/shop/traceytoole

Nostalgic Toys - Sailboats

April 28, 2014 by NY Handmade Collective in "Nostalgic Toys", "Sailboats in New York", "Toy Sailboats", "Vintage Boats"

Toy Sailboats

This is the first in a series of posts that will bring back memories from our childhood in the 70's, 60's, 50's and earlier. Each post will focus on a nostalgic toy or game that made growing up fun. Most of the toys featured will be those that were made with simple construction and basic designs. These toys started out as playthings for children in the past, then they became collectibles and now, they are considered by many as art.

When kids bought and sailed their play boats they imagined themselves to be sea captains searching for unexplored lands, fighting giant sea creatures and braving the rough seas. From 1850 to 1950, toy sailboats were made to mimic adult life. They were instructional, scientific and educational toys. As technology advanced, so did the toy boats - wood and sail were replaced by steel and steam.

One thing does remain the same, the imagination of a child. With the myriads of types of boats floating on the oceans, rivers and lakes today, there are many toy boats for children to play with. Giving a toy boat to a child is a great gift that will help them to sail off on their own adventures to distant lands guided by their imagination.

The pictures featured in the post are photos and illustrations of sail-boating in New York City. On pleasant days, Kerbs Boathouse Pond, in Central Park hosts toy sailboat races on Saturdays at 10:00 a.m. If you don't own a sailboat of your own, they are available for rental at a cart provided by the boathouse.

1907 Central Park Yacht Pond, New York City

Resources:

Melanie Ann Mercado

M Ann M Creations