I put four art cards for sale here:
http://www.cafepress.com/leoraw/
This is rather experimental; if I make some sales, maybe I will think about how to develop this further. If you want to offer any marketing advice, I’ll be happy to read. Can’t say I’ll take it, but I’ll read.
Thanks for reading my blog; that’s really what I enjoy most, sharing with the public and exchanging ideas. I don’t expect this to take over my web work as a means of income, but rather a fun, experimental supplement.
Update: Thanks to triLcat, I added two shirts, one 3/4 sleeve, one long-sleeved. With garlic.
Broccoli Update: I added a broccoli t-shirt, especially for nutrition nerds.
Good luck with this venture. No marketing advice, but I’d think the cards would sell themselves!
They look GREAT!
Congratulations! Here is your fisrt question from a potential customer:
Do they ship abroad?
They are beautiful cards Leora..I will take a closer look when I get back. My daughter is coming into town and I am going with her to another city on a job interview. This job could being her so much closer to home…
The site was down when I tried to look, but I’m wondering whether Cafe Press is the best choice for handmade work (or are you potentially reproducing in quantity?). If you’re sticking to handmade (or considering doing both), perhaps etsy would be a good thing to look into.
If you’re doing CafePress, then maybe you’d want to do shirts or tote bags?
I’m not much for cards, myself. I’m more the type to appreciate a nice raglan shirt. (has the advantage of having 3/4 sleeves.)
You might also want to offer each of the cards in each of the different bundles (10 note cards, 20 note cards, glossy card, postcard)
Hey, thanks everyone! Robin, my impression is that Etsy doesn’t do the printing. I think there’s another company called Zazzle that does printing. “Site down” doesn’t sound good. But I picked Cafe Press because others have used it. One of my friends puts listings on Etsy and orders the item through Cafe Press and ships it to the customer.
triLcat, I would love to do an assortment, but none of these companies seem to offer that. I’ll add a three-quarter sleeve shirt soon.
Ilana-Davita, I’ll need to check. Or you can check. It probably says so on the site somewhere about shipping abroad.
No, etsy doesn’t print. That would only work if you were sending out original one of a kind cards. I wasn’t sure what you were aiming at because I couldn’t see the site.
I’ve just checked. They do but here is what they add:
However, you may be subject to import duties and taxes, which are levied once the package reaches your country. Additional charges for customs clearance are the responsibility of the recipient.
This is bad news. When we import books, no extra tax is levied because we are exchanging “culture”. Yet if I order clothes, I am charged additional charges because I’m importing “goods”; which usually means that the price of the t-shirt is doubled (at least). I ma not sure whether cards are “goods” or “culture”.
When my cousin (in the USA) send “goods” to her relatives, she writes “presents” on the box so that they are not charged extra taxes.
Hope this summary of International trade laws are clear.
Ilana-Davita, sounds like a good way to get around all this is to have someone bring it to you from the U.S. Too many taxes! The taxes are going to the U.S. govt, the French govt. or both? Seems ridiculous on such small ticket items.
My husband would love that garlic shirt, we are both Garlic obsessed! Do you post international? If so I may need to start saving up for some unusual Yule gifts…
As for taxes, as long as you write it’s a gift on the packaging no taxes needed, however French government may tax you anyway they taxed me, when my husband sent me a gift from Thailand. Ridiculous!
oh, I love the garlic!!!