Quick Tip for Etsy Sellers: Perfect Packaging

I've been selling on Etsy for awhile now, but only recently have I started bringing a steady rate of orders per week. I attribute this to blogging, tweeting, and keeping my shop updated, which are all things I was not as consistent at doing in the past. 

This increase in sales has prompted me to share this tip with you about packaging.

It's a simple thing, but I think that people who shop on etsy are looking for the extra touch they're not going to find if they buy something of the same price-range from a big-box megastore. 

I use recycled materials for shipping wherever possible, but I make sure to wrap the actual item with a scrap bit of tissue paper, fabric, or ribbon to pretty it up a bit :) 

I also hand stamp the address labels, which can be time consuming. To save time, I spent a little while this evening prepping some squares that I can attach to packages as I get them.

I used one of these stamps in the corner of a bit of spare scrapbook paper, 

in this case, but I frequently use the inside of security envelopes as well.

Aren't these beautiful?  I know you're jealous, you can admit it ;-)

I just can't get enough of this style of stamp.

So, here's my quick suggestion: keep all of your shipping supplies handy, make them eco friendly, and prep them as much as possible in advance. It will really help out when you realize you have another order 10 minutes before you're about to walk out the door to the post office....not that I'd know anything about that, of course ;)

Do you have any good packaging advice for etsy sellers? Leave it in the comments!

Dolls make me nervous. Especially when they're babies.

A little while ago, I was visiting at a friend's house and one of her children came to me sad-faced, doll in hand, and asked, "Do you sew??" Not one to crush the dreams of children, I said I did and examined the doll in question. It's arm was almost completely unattached, likely due to someone loving it a bit too much...kinda disturbing when you think about it ;-)

This is the doll in all it's original glory:

Super creep-tastic, right? 

To be fair, I've always hated dolls. I'm not sure why exactly; all I can say is that my family learned very quickly they could not give me a doll as a gift if they were not prepared to spend the following few hours consoling a crying child. 

I decided I'd feel better about the doll if it looked more like this:

Monkey Pajamas...Much better!

I made it completely on the fly, no patterns or tutorials were consulted. To follow this process for your own disturbing naked baby doll, take rough measurements around the body parts you intend to clothe, making sure to include seam allowance. 

It's also a good idea, if you have a cloth doll like this one, to mimic the shapes of the existing cloth when envisioning construction. This particular doll has a pretty weird shaped body, so following that logic was the only way I could pull it off. 

I thought buttons would be too difficult for the younger child (above the choking age, don't worry), so they are purely decorative and velcro was used as a closure. 

The kids were so happy to receive this! 

And, I was happy to have successfully completed another crafting challenge :)