Selling Etched Glass

[Ayla of Duluth]

So my parents decided they were going to completely opt out of helping me buy a raven tail, and since my hours got cut at work, I really won't have much money to put into the fund. However I was daydreaming today, thinking about all the vendors that go to local events here for craft shows and such, and I decided that maybe I should sell etched glass to make money while it's my off season. I asked my friend what someone who does many different things for money is called, and he came up with multi-medium artist. I can do glass etching on basically any glass surface, I can make beaded jewelry, tube scarfs, and soon I think I'll be looking at wire working.
Point being, if I was to sell etched glass, would any of you guys buy it? The details are on my Facebook page, Facebook.com/mermaidwaterwolf
if you guys request it, I could probably also sell the tube scarfs, I have a few that I made and they turn out rather well. I don't think I'd like to use etsy to sell my stuff because I hear you have to pay a small fee for every thing you sell. Since I'm trying to make a profit for my tail fund, I need every penny I can get.
My other question to you guys is how would I work out shipping and handling? I would send it through ups. Would I charge for S&H on top of the price for the item? Or would I take it out of the price? Etched glass is cheap so I don't want to bump the price up to cover S&H and still make a profit.
Any input would be of great help. :)

[Kanti]

Dude, you should totally make an etsy.
Etsy is a nice place to start out business and it'll help you in the sense that you can search through
it and see what everyone else sets their prices to.
I don't exactly know what etched glass is, but if you list it and put some examples of your work, people
will probably ask you for custom orders.
Etsy allows you to handle your own transactions, but it's sort of weird in the sense that I think you need
a paypal account or a check to get paid. If you don't want to register for paypal, you can always make
the customers buy via check, but I think it's more of a hassle so they probably won't do it as often.

As for S+H, you charge extra for that. Usually customers handle the shipping. If you want you can charge
more for the actual product and just put free shipping, which can also seem appealing to people as well.
Etsy gives you the options for all of that stuff.

If you're talking about selling stuff in person, you'd probably have to attend an art show and get a booth,
which are both pretty pricey sometimes. Getting a booth at an event is usually $100+ so it's a hefty
investment. You should only get a booth if you KNOW you're going to sell enough to make up for the
cost of the booth and make a profit, OR if you know it's going to get your name out there to people and
they'll buy your product.

[Ayla of Duluth]

I just signed up for PayPal today. I was kinda pissed because I have a debit card for everyday purchases and another one for online purchases, but wells Fargo shut down my online account for some reason so I'm going to be using one card for everything. Pfft. Anyways, irrelevant.

...is it just me, or does everything on etsy seem vintage? xD it's so quaint.

Do you have to pay etsy a percentage of what you sell? I think I read that on their FAQ section and that's mainly what turned me off to the idea of etsy.

[Kanti]

You pay 2% for the "transaction fee" and then .20cents to list the item.
It's not THAT bad, but I suppose you need to be making money off it.

That's not half bad compared to eBay, who takes a 9% transaction fee and has a monthly cost.

Etsy is a nice place to start up, but if I were you I'd get some products out there first and see
what people think of them.
Then check etsy and see how many other people have the same or something similar.
Make your item stand out!~

[LittleTreasure]

...is it just me, or does everything on etsy seem vintage? xD it's so quaint.
Weeeellll... That's part of the beauty of it. They only let you sell handmade or vintage items. So yes, it's quaint. But that keeps it from being like Ebay or something. I like it - I have a little shop on there too (SpunSterlingCandy). I need to make more items to list soon...maybe some mermaidy stuff.

Compared to other sites you could be using, Etsy is actually kind of cheap to use, so you'd do well there depending on whether your items sell. In my limited experience mine take a loooong time to get noticed so be prepared to wait. ;p
Also I think the key to sales with Etsy is take very nice clear pictures with non-distracting backgrounds, alternate views, and include lots of detail about the supplies you used.

You should tell us your shop name so I can check it out when you're ready! :)

[Ayla of Duluth]

Weeeellll... That's part of the beauty of it. They only let you sell handmade or vintage items. So yes, it's quaint. But that keeps it from being like Ebay or something. I like it - I have a little shop on there too (SpunSterlingCandy). I need to make more items to list soon...maybe some mermaidy stuff.

Compared to other sites you could be using, Etsy is actually kind of cheap to use, so you'd do well there depending on whether your items sell. In my limited experience mine take a loooong time to get noticed so be prepared to wait. ;p
Also I think the key to sales with Etsy is take very nice clear pictures with non-distracting backgrounds, alternate views, and include lots of detail about the supplies you used.

You should tell us your shop name so I can check it out when you're ready! :)

I noticed a lot of people have mannequins and canvas backgrounds for their photos. I think that also contributes to the vintage look of things. Also I haven't made a shop yet, but I think I might, I just need a good camera for pictures. :)

[LittleTreasure]

Having a nice clean background is good. You don't really need expensive equipment like mannequins but if you have no model for clothes, etc. it's probably not a bad idea. I've thought about making a lightbox to use, but for now I've just been taking pics in my backyard where there's good natural light. If you're taking pics inside you need to take care that your white balance is correct and there's enough light. Having said that I almost never use flash. My crappy little camera takes pretty good pics if I just do all that.

[Kanti]

There's no need for a mannequin if you're not making clothing of some sort.
Usually just a nice backdrop or some fancy table is fine. I take all my photos on random tables
or areas of my house that look pretty but I think having an actual photo location that highlights
your piece is pretty nice. A lot of people on etsy also don't have amazing cameras, either, so
that's not a huge concern.

I'd say take a few pictures in different lighting, since you're going to be working with glass, it'll
help people see the quality of the etch.

[Ayla of Duluth]

I'd say take a few pictures in different lighting, since you're going to be working with glass, it'll
help people see the quality of the etch.

taking pictures of etched glass is hard. You can really only see it when it's held up in the light. I use my iPhone to take pictures because I don't have a real camera. If anyone has an iPhone, they'll understand my dilemma. The camera autofocuses according to light. I tap the sunny part of the picture, it gets way too dark. I tap a darker area, it gets way too light. The best pictures I've been able to take are half dark and half light, do you can't get a good feel for how the glass looks. Damn you, low quality camera phone

[michellerobison]

I used to do a lot of etched glass,if you can photograph it outside, have it back lit.It helps. These aren't the best examples but al I could find. One is taken from in side my studio,the other is a lady etched on my bathroom window.

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[Ayla of Duluth]

That lower picture looks exactly like the etching I'm doing. If I had a computer, I'd post the photos I was able to take. The unfortunate thing is I'm no artist, I get the templates for my etches off of deviantart and such. It kinda sucks cuz I have to get ahold of the artist and ask their permission to use their design to make money. A lot of the times they say no. I wish I could draw. xD