This week's news involves a magazine called Quick Cards Made Easy - it's in UK shops now...
and no less than two mentions for Handmade Harbour inside its pages!
The magazine contacted me a while back about using my free cupcake digi stamp for their download of the month spot. I was thrilled - of course - but then they offered me another spot, too ... this time I'm giving £10 worth of free stamps to 15 people. I figured it was pretty good publicity and hopefully the recipients will be happy too! This is a magazine giveaway, so you'd need to go through them to be in with a chance of winning.
In other news, I've happily completed a commission for one of my personalised party cones. This one was for a wedding where they are serving fish and chips cones, and I'm thrilled to report that the couple love the design. This is a snippet...
However, I've realised that I seriously underestimated how long it would take to put together all the elements of personalisation and come up with a completed design! And that means I underestimated the cost, too! I really will have to charge more for these (sorry, talk amongst yourselves while I pop over and adjust the price... OK, I'm back) which I fear might make them seem too expensive - it's often a tricky thing, getting a balance, isn't it? However, the good news is that I've realised I can concentrate on developing some generic designs, too - so people who can't afford the personalised version could get a real bargain. So I will be making more cone designs to put on the website - for weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, etc. I'm hoping that will give a real choice for people.
Enough of my news - what's been happening in your world?
24 comments:
Congrats on the two magazine inclusions. i know what you mean about the time a bespoke item takes and charging enough. It's a balancing act between what you think people would pay and the value of your time.
Have a creative week :-)
Well done on the magazine spots, it sounds fantastic publicity.
I'm terrible at costing commissions realistically, I always forget just how much thinking time can go into doing something different
I'd never heard of party cones but really like the glimpse of the one you did a personalised design for. I agree that doing a few generic ones for a lesser cost may entice more people.
Jane, you know I never really consider the thinking time either (although I realise I should!). I didn't anticipate revising the design to suit the recipients (shortsighted of me!) and bringing the elements together effectively took time too. You live and learn, don't you?
Made in Suisse - they're really fish and chop cones, but would work for popcorn, sweets and other stuff. Maybe even a paper plate alternative!
Congratulations on the magazine inclusions.
Pricing has got to be one of the most difficult part of crafting. There are so many things to consider.
Pricing is such a headache. The party cones are a fab idea so I hope it works out. Congratulations on the magazine coverage, you are going from strength to strength! x
your cones are such a fantastic idea, i love the snippet of the wedding one, i bet the customer was thrilled with them!
its so easy to underestimate the time it takes to create bespoke items, i do it all the time! :) i'm glad you've put the price up now, they are so gorgeous i'm sure people will be happy to pay the extra and like you say there are a few options to suit every budget - i can see these being really popular! x
Stephen and Penny - you're both so right, pricing is such a problem to work out! I thought making downloadables would make it easier (fewer raw materials) but it's still a problem!
Free Spirit - I've noticed with other things when I put prices up, sales drop for a little while, but then pick up. It evens out in the end. Sometimes you have to take a chance on a higher price, there's no point in working for £2 an hour!!
It's lovely to hear about your commission successes with craft magazines. You seem to be constantly on demand :) You can be really proud of yourself.
I love the idea of the party cones, having generic ones sounds like a good plan but I'm sure people will be willing to pay for the personalised ones.
Congratulations on the magazine include Wendy, that's thrilling!
Ohhh well done on the magazine inclusion :-) And I love the look of the wedding cone - but you're right, it is SO hard to price things at a level that's fair to you and still appealing to the customers. Simmi xx
Fantastic news to be included twice in the magazine, I'm the sort of crafter who looks at the giveaways and then visits the sites that are offering the item - so hopefully there are lots more people like me out there who'll do the same.
Love the fish and chip cones too.
Well done on the magazine entries - a great confirmation of how lovely your work is. The cones are so good. Sadly, I think we all underestimate the time take to produce our work - very often most of it is spent on the designing, planning, tweaking, etc. Hope you have a good week.
Well done you! Two mentions in one magazine. Pricing is never easy at the best of times, but I do like your wedding cones. That is a fantastic idea :)
Thanks for hosting!
Love the personalised cone. Could you have a standard design with some elements that could be changed - e.g. the colour of the bridesmaids dresses and names/date?
Well done getting 2 mentions! Great publicity :) :) the cone looks fab and I bet they will be very popular
Well done on your ongoing projects and successes Wendy. Will we ever be able to get the price right with handmade goods? As you say - thinking and designing all part of the time invested and would be included in an organisation's costings I'm sure. You probably need a time sheet to hand etc but then it starts to take away some of the appeal of working at home creatively I think.
Thank-you once again for hosting Handmade Monday. Well done on your magazine mentions! Have a great week, Jo x
Good news on the magazine interest, it's a great way to 'get out there' and get your name known. I didn't join in this week. I had some family time :)
Jan x
Bummer, I missed out on linking this week :(
http://kitsch-stitch.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/sibling-bags.html
I was going to say "there's always next week" but having now read your post, I know that might be the wrong thing to say! x
Yes indeed it might! They'll always be another week though.
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