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crochetime

~ So many patterns, so much yarn, so little time: story of my hooky life.

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Category Archives: Etsy seller interviews

Interview with an Etsy seller – Vanessa of The Pudgy Rabbit

08 Monday Dec 2014

Posted by Natasja in Etsy, Etsy seller interviews

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Tags

Etsy

IMG_0372.JPGThis month’s interview is with Vanessa, the owner of a fun Etsy shop called The Pudgy Rabbit based in New York. The Pudgy Rabbit sells extremely cute amigurumi crochet kits and patterns ranging from penguins to coffee mugs.

For those who can already crochet, you will love the amigurumi patterns, but the Pudgy Rabbit’s speciality is crochet kits. The kits include absolutely everything you need. Depending on the kit you buy, it will include crochet hook, yarn, stuffing, safety eyes, safety nose, embroidery floss, needle, felt, stitch marker and a step by step instruction booklet. The packaging is beautiful too. Kits would make excellent gifts for crafters and non-crafters. Perfect for Christmas!

pudgy rabbit etsy shop crochet kit

Vanessa’s background is in animation and stop motion.  She got into crochet during college as way to combine her love of crafting with building puppets. After graduating and job hunting, she began crocheting constantly as a creative outlet. She built up quite a collection of goofy crochet creatures, so decided to put them up for sale online and The Pudgy Rabbit was born.

Vanessa has always been into crafting and making things with her hands, whether it’s working with paper mâché  or clay, but crocheting remains one of her favorite mediums because there’s so many different designs you can create with just a few simple stitches. Like most of us she’s also a bit of a yarn hoarder and crochet helps her work through the massive boxes of yarn under her desk.

bunny_7
coffee_kit3
final_1
goldcat_8
orange_5
owl_7

 

Q: Why did you start making crochet kits and what made you decide to sell it on Etsy?

When I began the shop in 2010, I started off selling finished toys and dolls. A couple years later, I moved on to selling crochet kits and patterns. Through selling at craft fairs, people would tell me that they always wanted to learn how to crochet, but weren’t sure where to begin. I thought having a kit that combines a fun project with all the necessary materials would give them a great start to learning a new craft.

Q: Do you also sell in a bricks and mortar shop or at craft markets? If so, how do sales compare with your Etsy shop.

I currently have my kits in a couple of shops, The Brooklyn Women’s Exchange in NYC and Matchbox Studios in New Zealand. I also sell at craft fairs throughout the year. I really enjoy doing fairs because it gives me a chance to meet customers, answer questions, and see what other crafters are creating. I’m hoping to get the kits into more shops and markets in the near future, because I think it helps for customers to see the finished projects that each kit creates in person.

Q: What do you enjoy most about being an Etsy seller?

I love hearing from customers who’ve enjoyed my kits or people who received them as gifts. It’s always great to get feedback because it helps me make improvements and decide what designs to make next

Q: How do you find the right balance between being creative and being business minded?

As a small business and the only person running the shop, the creative and business side go hand in hand. I find it helps to prioritize what needs to be done and divide the work accordingly. In the beginning, I found the business part a bit overwhelming and wasn’t sure where to start. As the shop grew and I learned more about how to keep things running, I found that I actually enjoyed all the problem solving and challenges that come with the business side.

Q: How do you keep your pattern designs fresh and unique?

I’m inspired by feedback from customers as well as friends and family. They’ll ask for different colors or suggest designs they would like to see and this helps me pick what patterns to work on next. I also research trends and popular animals to get a better sense of what people are looking for.

Q: Do you worry about, or have you experienced, people copying your work?

I’ve been lucky so far in that I haven’t experienced anyone really copying my work. While I do check to make sure my images aren’t being used without proper credit or permission, I don’t worry about copycats. I think it’s a risk you have to take when putting your business out there. You simply have to be diligent about protecting your work and take the steps necessary to shut things down if you do find someone taking advantage of your designs

Q: Do you have any tips for crochet pattern sellers on Etsy?

Take the best photos you can of your items and keep an open mind to keep learning new techniques. You never know what will inspire your next pattern.

Q: Where else, apart from Etsy, can readers find you? 

Blog/website: www.thepudgyrabbit.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thepudgyrabbit

Instagram: http://instagram.com/thepudgyrabbit

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/thepudgyrabbit/

I can definitely see the animation influences in Vanessa’s cute amigurumi designs. Only someone with this kind of background can design a crochet pattern for a talking coffee mug or birthday cake that you just Have To Have. And just look at this penguin! Cute or what?!

This is one very talented lady who saw a gap in the market and she’s running with it. I wish her all the best for the future.

 XXXXXX

Get 15% off your purchase at The Pudgy Rabbit with coupon code CROCHETIME. The coupon is valid from Dec 8th, 2014 to Dec 14th, 2014.

 XXXXXX

You can see some of Vanessa’s pieces in an amigurumi exhibition at the RESOBOX Gallery in NYC from Dec 12th, 2014 to Feb 28th, 2015.

 

Interview with an Etsy seller – Elizabeth Prince

05 Wednesday Nov 2014

Posted by Natasja in Etsy, Etsy seller interviews

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

ceramics, Etsy

IMG_0372.JPGSo you all know I love crochet, right? What you may not know is that I also love pottery. I studied Ceramics as one of my subjects in High School and my Mom was a ceramics teacher who taught from her studio at our home. I went to sleep many a night with the sound of clay being thrown and the  ticking noise of a kiln firing at 1000+ degrees.

Imagine my sheer delight when I stumbled upon Elizabeth Prince Design UK on Etsy a few years ago: in her shop she sells homeware that are a combination of vintage lace textures and ceramics! I mean really. It’s my two favourite things put together. Needless to say Prince Design UK is  one of My Favourite Shops.

Elizabeth Prince hails from Manchester, United Kingdom. She has a background in interior design and fine art. Add to that a great love of clay and designs that grow out ideas that start life as gifts for family, friends and loved ones, and you have a recipe for success. For example, Elizabeth’s first worked with crochet to make a ceramics present for her Mum using a piece of crochet that belonging to her mother.

Golden Swallows Moroccon Wall Art
Golden Swallows Moroccon Wall Art
white houses christmas ornaments
Red and Gold Bird Christmas Decoration
Red and Gold Bird Christmas Decoration
white and red lacy birds christmas decorations ornaments
White Swallows Moroccon Wall Art
White Swallows Moroccon Wall Art
Gold Ceramic Installation
Gold Ceramic Installation

I wanted to know more about Elizabeth, the “Ex-interior designer, ginger tea drinker, perfectionist maker, roof gardening music lover with a long term addiction to clay” behind the beautiful ceramics.

Q: How did your ceramics business start and what made you decide to sell it on Etsy?
My business started because I thought I would see if I could sell a few of my ceramic pots that I had been making as a hobby for years in my spare time whilst I worked as an interior designer. I’m delighted to say that I have sold far more than I ever imagined I would at the start, and I am very thankful that I am able to make a living doing something that I enjoy.

Q: Do you also sell in a bricks and mortar shop? If so, how do sales compare with your Etsy shop.
No. Right now, I think that running a bricks and mortar shop would involve too much management and would take too much time away from my creative practice. Also, whilst I love studio visits by arrangement, I think people coming in and out of a shop all day would be really distracting for me.

Q: I adore your Bird Bowls with lace texture. Please tell me more about the vintage lace you use.
I am always on the lookout for interesting textures and lace. Some of my favourite textures have come from antique hand embroidered ladies handkerchiefs that were passed down through my family, and crochet doilies that were my grandmother’s. Others come from my travels – I have some gorgeous cut out embroidered pieces that I collected in Spain.

Q: How do you keep your designs fresh and unique? What inspires you?
I am inspired by nature, people, interiors, homes, vintage design and craft, fine art – the list really is endless. Making gifts for people I love often has been a starting point for a range of ceramics – after all, your customers might not be so different from your friends and family. Also my customers inspire me. They might for example ask for a certain colour or size that I might not have thought of using, and that can influence my choices too.

I research a lot about other cultures and traditional design from around the world, so that can feed in to my work too.

Q: Are there big differences between working with porcelain and ceramic clay?
Porcelain is a type of ceramic clay, but the particles that make it up are smaller. That means that when they are treated with extreme heat in the kiln ( I fire to around 1250 degrees C ) the effect is that they bond more tightly and vitrify. That mens that it is similar to glass, and can sometimes have a translucent effect when you hold it up to the light. The small particles also make a very smooth surface. However, most ceramicists will tell you that it is a more difficult type of clay to use – it’s more prone to cracking and sagging than other types of clay, so you have to accept that there may be a couple of casualties in your firing. Of course, it also has the pure white colour which can make glazes seem brighter in colour, and the feel is just lovely! That said, I also use a creamy textured clay that is special too – it has a texture and colour that I love and it is strong.

Q: How do you find the right balance between being creative and being business minded?
When I started out I was a little intimidated by the business side of things. However, I found as I went along that I found the business side of things to be unexpectedly creative. A lot of it is problem solving, and I have found that I actually enjoy the business side of things far more that I expected to. I wouldn’t say there is a balance as such – I am a small producer, so things come up on a day to day basis and have to be prioritised appropriately. So that means sometimes business or admin stuff has to be done that day, and other times, creativity has to happen that day.

Q: Do you have a day-job?
No – I work full time on my ceramics business.

Q: Describe your typical day.
I usually start with emails/admin at home first thing before I leave for the studio because I prefer to travel after rush hour. That quiet time in the morning allows me to focus and plan my day a little before I arrive at my studio. In the studio I often have an assistant, so I assign her some tasks and we ensure all the orders that are ready to ship are packed and sent out. After that I will usually be making, finishing, designing or experimenting with new ideas and designs.

Q: Do you worry about, or have you experienced, people copying your work?
I don’t worry about that really, just because I don’t waste time thinking about negative things that might happen. Unfortunately though, I have experienced my work being copied several times. I have even found Chinese wholesalers using my photographs and offering to make my work by the 1000s on their websites, but I have swiftly had them removed. I think that people might see my work and imagine me to be a sweet little push over. Sadly for them, they are mistaken – whilst I can be sweet in my personal life, I have taken, and will take, action where necessary to protect my work.

Q: Apart from your etsy shop, where can we find you?:
Facebook: princedesignuk
Twitter: PrinceDesignUK
Pinterest: Elizabeth Prince
Blog: Gone Potty
Website: Elizabeth Prince

Elizabeth is a force to be reckoned with as a ceramics artist and a business woman (did you read what she does when people copy her work? – you go girl!). As a fellow Etsy seller I can only hope to one day be as successful as she is.

xxxxxxx

As a special treat for my readers, Elizabeth will give 10% discount on all purchase until Christmas!!

Use the Coupon Code: CROCHETIME

 Go straight to the Prince Design UK Etsy shop by clicking here.

xxxxxxx

Interview with an Etsy seller – Sabahnur

14 Tuesday Oct 2014

Posted by Natasja in Etsy seller interviews

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Etsy

IMG_0372.JPGI’d like to introduce you to Sabahnur, a talented Etsy seller from Istanbul, Turkey.

Sabahnur Gökalp is a stay-at-home Mom with 8 year old daughter. Her daughter is her muse and the reason why she started making crochet toys. Sabahnur believes that motherhood is a journey that opens doors, gives you fantastic ideas and a passion for learning. What a great attitude to have!

Her Etsy shop is filled with, in her own words, “lovely, funky, weird but totally CUTE products which had been crocheted with care and love.” I couldn’t agree more.

Blue bird
Blue bird
Bird with moustache and fez
Bird with moustache and fez
Valentine bears
Valentine bears
Love bird
Love bird
Wedding cake toppers
Wedding cake toppers
Strawberry plush toy
Strawberry plush toy

I’ve been following Sabahnur’s work for a while as one of My Favourite Shops, so I wanted to know a bit more about her and her crochet.

Q: Why did you start making cute crochet and what made you decide to sell it on Etsy?
A: Ah. It all started by my daughter’s birth. I wanted to crochet a toy which would be more healthy and playful than those sold in toyshops.

Q: What do you enjoy most about being an Etsy seller?
A: Getting positive feedback and lovely messages from my buyers.

Q: Describe your typical day.
A: I get up, prepare breakfast for my daughter and hubby, give my daughter a lift to school, then back to home. First breakfast, then housework, then checking my orders and crocheting them. If I have finished orders I go to post office and maybe meet up with friends. Then I pick up my daughter from school, prepare dinner and do more crocheting. In the evenings I read or watch tv.

Q: Do you worry about, or have you experienced, people copying your work?
A: Yes, in my country there are a lot of copycats. I was worried about it at first, but I’m used to it now.

Q: Do you have any tips for crochet sellers on Etsy?
A: Keep your items fresh. Beautiful photography helps a lot and be active on social networks.

Q: Where else, apart from Etsy, can readers find you?

A: My blog: petiteandcute.blogspot.co.uk

Instagram: sabahnur

Twitter: sabahnur

Facebook fan page: petite and cute design

Find Sabahnur’s Etsy shop Petite and Cute Design here.

I wish Sabahnur all the best for her Etsy shop and the birth of her second child. I can’t wait to see what cute and petite crochet toys she comes up with two muses to inspire her!

love my journey, love my life on etsy

– Sabahnur

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