Book Review: How To Sell Your Crafts Online

How to Sell Your Crafts Online: A Step-by-Step Guide to Successful Sales on Etsy and Beyond

Author: Derrick Sutton

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Publication Date: October 11, 2011

 

About The Author

Derrick Sutton and his wife sell their artwork and jewelry in their Etsy store. After using simple Internet marketing techniques to promote their work, they saw their Etsy sales increase dramatically. Based on these techniques, Derrick produced this guide to help other artists and crafters increase their success.

Guide For Crafting Success
The purpose of this guide is to illustrate techniques for setting up an Etsy shop and marketing handmade items online.

Selling your art, crafts, and designs has never been easier. The Internet has opened up a great window of opportunity for creative sellers. Etsy, a marketplace dedicated to buying and selling all things handmade, opened it's doors on the Internet in 2005.

Online marketing is vital to expanding your audience and getting more sales. This book provides step-by-step guidelines and practical techniques for "getting the word out" and helping people find your unique handmade items.

My Thoughts
I have sold on eBay for many years but I just opened an Etsy shop a few months ago. I have been looking for books that would help me get up and running on this site.

This book covers every subject that you need to know to get started on Etsy. There are instructions for setting up the shop, writing listings that sell, tagging and taking photographs of your items.

The author explains the importance of getting involved in the Etsy community by participating in forums, forming teams and creating Etsy treasuries.

This book provides a detailed guide for promoting your Etsy shop on the Internet. The author encourages crafters to promote their craft business by blogging, tweeting on Twitter, setting up a Facebook page, creating a lens on
Squidoo and making a movie on YouTube.

I really like the way the author provides "Action Steps" at the end of each chapter. These steps summarize the information in the chapter and give you specific things to put on your "to do" list. This book will be very useful for new shop owners and it will also help established shop owners improve their shop design, get more involved in the Etsy community and establish new marketing techniques.

My Rating:  5 Stars Out Of 5

FYI ~ I checked-out this book from my local public library. This book is available on Amazon in print and Kindle versions.

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Book Review: Blogging for Bliss by Tara Frey

Blogging for Bliss: Crafting Your Own Online Journal: A Guide for Crafters, Artists and Creatives of all Kinds

Author:  Tara Frey

Publishers: Lark Crafts

Publication Date: August 4, 2009




About The Author
Tara Frey began blogging in 2004 and inspired thousands of creative souls with her honest and often funny prose about family, friendship and her creative endeavors.

The Creative Blogging World
This book is a visual delight for artists, crafters and creatives of all kinds. The color illustrations are amazing and really add value to the text. Ms. Frey was a creative blogging pioneer and she shares many of her techniques for adding photos and using photo-editing software. She offers tips on enhancing and embellishing blogs with type, art and other visuals.

The author features more than 50 blogs to inspire the reader and illustrate how a creative hobbyist or professional can use a blog to share and promote their skills.

There are many creative bloggers who have made the transition from pleasure to profit. Ms. Frey tells how these bloggers have built blogs that create loyal followers and solid business.

My Thoughts
I have found that craft blogs are RED HOT! Even though this book was published several years ago, I found myself pouring over the pages and absorbing as much of the information as I could.

I found the information about taking great photos, altering photos, designing banners, using photo-editing software, and adding "sidebar fancies" absolutely fascinating. I also learned how to use Blog Roll to attract more readers to my blog.

I enjoyed reading the case studies of 50 creative bloggers who have attracted a large following of readers.  I checked-out these blogs and most of them are still active. Each of these 50 bloggers also listed their favorite craft blogs so this book really offers a wealth of examples to investigate.

I was a little disappointed that the author's blog has been closed down. I could find very little current information about her.

I recommend this book to creative bloggers who are looking for inspiration from those who have found bliss and success in the blogosphere. I would love to see an updated edition in the future.

My Rating:  4 Stars Out Of 5

FYI ~ I checked this book out from my local public library.

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Book Review: Getting To Know God

My Rating: 5 Stars Out of 5

This book provides a rare opportunity to view passages from the private journal of celebrated artist Alice Ann Dobbin. “Getting To Know God; An Artist’s Journey” is an awe-inspiring collection of personal reflections, meditations, prayers and songs of praise to God. The author recognizes that her fears, feelings and thoughts are shared by many. The poignant prose in this book will encourage, inspire and give hope for a better tomorrow.

About The Author
  Alice Ann Dobbin has been drawing and painting since she was old enough to hold a pencil. She was selected to attend special classes for artistically gifted children while still in elementary school.

Ms. Dobbin graduated from Pennsylvania State University with a degree in journalism and advertising. She later obtained her art degree from Washington and Jefferson College where she was awarded the prestigious Beta Scholar designation by the president of the college.

Ms. Dobbin and her husband own the Doddin Art Gallery in Johns Island, South Carolina.  Her art work appears in numerous private, public and corporate collections throughout the United States, Europe and Australia.

The Art Will Touch Your Imagination
“Getting To Know God” includes thirty-five original oil paintings that feature many aspects of nature. Ms. Dobbin portrays the beauty of nature in the most exquisite manner. She uses her God-given talent to highlight the wonder of creation.

The first chapter in the book is titled “Where Would I Be Without the Lord” and the painting “Storm Rising” is used to illustrate this chapter on faith. This painting features huge dark clouds invading the pale blue sky. You can see hints of the sunset on the horizon. This painting brings back vivid memories of hurricanes and tropical storms that I have experienced while living on the Texas Gulf Coast.

Ms. Dobbin does a lovely job painting birds, wildlife, farm animals and pets. She shares a painting of a mother with her baby lamb in the chapter “Being a Parent”.  The painting portrays the vulnerability of the lamb and the protective eye of his mother. The author expresses the challenges and joys of being a parent. She believes the best gifts a parent can give are a happy childhood, a sense of self-esteem and a heart full of faith in God.

Comforting Verses and Sincere Prayer
Alice Dobbin shares many of her favorite verses from the Bible in the chapters of this book. The treasured verses bestow faith, hope, love and peace. These are verses that Alice has reflected on during the most difficult and joyous times of her life. The prayers that are included in this book reflect the close personal relationship that she has with the Lord.  The author believes that “the more we seek the Lord and ways to please him, the more we will learn of different ways to pray”.

Reflection and Meditation
“Getting To Know God” includes a collection of intimate writings, reflections and meditations. The author’s sensitive portrayal of life is a testimony to her strong faith in the Lord. She writes about getting to know God and developing a personal relationship with Him.

Ms. Dobbin declares her thoughts in the following uplifting passages;

“As we commit the work of our hands
And our energy to You,
Small “miracles” begin to happen.”

“The small miracles in our lives
Are the many blessings
God has given us.”

These prayers, meditations and songs of praise were not written with the intent to publish them. The author has decided to share her personal writings with the hope that her readers will draw strength and comfort from them.

My Thoughts
I found reading this book to be a visual and emotional gift. I have always been an artist at heart and I truly enjoyed the beautiful oil paintings that illustrate this book. The author was able to successfully harmonize the content of the paintings with the subject of her prayers and meditations. This made the overall reading experience fulfilling and rewarding.

Alice Dobbin is an authentic woman of faith. This book will take you to higher levels of spiritual development and maturity. It demonstrates that we are not alone. We all need each other and we need God.

I recommend this book for your personal use and to share with loved ones. I think that reading a few chapters from this book at bedtime will provide a peaceful closure to the challenges of the day. I hope this book will inspire others to use their special gifts and talents to bring glory to God. “Getting To Know God” is available from Westbow Press, Amazon and in print and digital format at Barnes & Noble. Get a copy for yourself and another one for a treasured friend.

I want to thank Alice Dobbin for sending me a complimentary digital copy of this book to read and review. If you would like to learn more about the book, please view Getting To Know God [Book Trailer].

Please share your thoughts in the Comments Section below.

Kids Camp At Painting With A Twist

My granddaughter recently attended a week of summer art camp at Painting With A Twist in Conroe, Texas.
She enjoyed painting and getting to know her fellow artists.
The theme for the week was "Color Works" and she painted four very colorful masterpieces. Each picture was painted on a 16" by 20" canvas with acrylic paints. The instructors provided step-by-step instructions.

My granddaughter painted the following colorful paintings at art camp;
Day #1 ~ Fleur-de-Lis
Day #2 ~ Peace Sign
Day #3 ~ Guitar
Day #4 ~ Fish
This was a wonderful experience that encouraged creativity and taught artistic skills.

Painting With A Twist also provides painting experiences for adults. The "twist" is you can bring your favorite bottle of wine or beverage!! They offer birthday parties, team building, guy's/girls nights, office parties, date nights and family activities.
I'm not sure a glass of wine would improve my artistic skill, but it sounds like a great time. I hope to enroll in one of their classes soon!




Do you have a Painting With A Twist near you? Please share your thoughts in the Comments Section below.