does anyone actually make any money doing folksy/etsy etc

[EleanorBuntingCupcake]

or is just a way of justifying buying more stash?

My friend seems to. She runs a market, she has alot of free time and makes really lovely stuff.

what does that mean 'runs a market' is that online?

what sort of stuff does she make?

ONly if you have a Presence already, I would have thought, eg you attend regular markets/fairs and are good at promoting yourself all over the place (Facebook and Myspace pages for your stuff as well, etc, cards at markets saying See Me On Etsy or whatever).
Also, your stuff needs to be reasonably good - an awful lot of 'craftspeople' are trying to flog uninspired derivative tat that looks like it was made in Reception class.

yes a la regretsy

Elanor- she is one of these people who insists she has no creative flair but is great at everything!
She makes amazing cakes/cup cakes, crochets beautiful first toys for babies/makes bunting, knits really cool tank tops for children in a lovely not naff granny kind of way (gets lots of interest for them)hand makes children's aprons/door stops filled with rice. She uses brilliant combos of cheap fabric, seriously she gives Cath Kidston a run

thanks megglevache. thats the sort of thing i mean.

what's her etsy page??

er what the hell is an etsy page?

etsy

i worry i will be more like these people

This girl got involved in hiring a hall, ringing up all of the local farmers/cheesemakers/cider/winemakers/delis etc, then she got word around and she then set up her stuff and got loads of sales from the already established customers.

Really clever, she charges the other businesses a fee for their pitches so she never goes home empty handed, I wish I had thought of it.

And she's pretty and slim.....hate her really

I have shops on both, as well as my own website.

With regards to my experience I've made quite a few sales on Folksy, in the past 18 months, which has subsidised my sales on my own website, it has also helped with sales on my own site.

Etsy- I do have a shop but to be honest Etsy is so HUGE, especially in my field that you get 'lost' in the sheer scale. I will keep on with it, but really it's just to keep my hand in on there.

You do also have to find your 'niche' there is a lot of the same things out there, good customer service pays dividends,as does little extras like top notch packaging.

Selling online on a small scale is incredibly hard work, as Solid says, you have to get yourself 'out there', make the items, keep accounts, buy materials etc. Its really hard fitting it all in, as well as normal family life.

I wouldn't swap it for the world, but would like an extra 12 hours in each day

what do you make moonmother?

EleanorBuntingCupcake - what do you make?

i have etsy and folksy shops - i don't get many sales but it's my way of justifying my button buying addiction
my blog click here has links to my shops and shows the type of stuff i make.

Etsy is a bit rubbish for non-US sellers, because all prices are in dollars which puts people off (including me TBH) and buyers from the US who wouldn't be put off by the currency are put off by the higher shipping charges. And there is no "X Country only" option in their search.

Have just been shrieking with glee over Regretsy and wondering what the mileage might be in actually selling 'art' made out of one's own turds on Etsy? Given the utter cack some people put up for sale.

i have tonnes of neutral embroidery fabric adn was thinking about making a few dolls

inspired by mimi kirchner

I have sold a jewellery set on folksy (the only one i put on there) but i now use groovy carts and have sold a few bits on there. plus i have just (and i literally mean last night) created a craft forum where members (if i get any) lol can share selling tips plus advertise their sites/shops

here's the link if anyone is interested in signing up (it's free)

saphy75.proboards.com/index.cgi

ooops

try this

I make a reasonable income from Etsy, but a good percentage of that is from selling vintage supplies (buttons an' stuff) rather than my handmade stuff - I actually just can't work quickly enough to produce enough to make it profitable, although actually selling the stuff isn't such a massive problem. I recycle vintage textiles into quilts and other homewares.

I think being obsessive about quality and looking at what else sells (rather than exclusively what you want to make) helps.

I have an Etsy shop, i get about one sale a month, if I'm lucky. I think a lot of potential buyers are put off by my crappy items expensive shipping, but it's not cheap to send a heavy item to United States
I like having my shop anyway, it's not expensive to run it and i enjoy my sales SO much when they finally come!

(I can see myself spending long hours on regretsy!)

hopefully can i have a link to your shop please? i collect sell buttons too

It's www.islaybower.etsy.com. I quite often blog my shop updates here too.