みなさん、こんにちは！
Minasan, kon'nichiwa!
"Hello everyone!"
I don't really know what to say today. I'm still a bit confused and mentally lost after yesterday :( I have so many thoughts in my head. On the one hand I really want to start selling my things, but on the other hand I don't think I can do it :( I totally lost my confidence after checking Etsy and eBay. There are so many people selling much better quality products! But I know that I have to do it otherwise I will be forced to make less sweets and that would just break my heart -___-''
But even being so down today, I still managed to create something :) I finished these cookies I made earlier this week and soon I will make phone charms with them, or something else if I'll figure out what :P
These are the first ones I made so they are not perfect :P
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These look a bit better but I forgot to make little leaves for roses :P      I'm looking forward to hear what do you think about them. Costructive opinions are much welcome! ^_^'' また、明日 Mata ashita! (^_^)' "See you tomorrow!" |
You're so busy! You've got a blog post everyday haha, I don't make enough to be able to do that!
ReplyDeleteI really, really know the feeling of thinking you're not good enough, and I kind of think that it just means you're not ready to sell. I made many items and I just thought they looked rough or not good enough, but eventually after about half a year I started making items that I loved and really thought were beautiful, and that was when I decided that I was ready to sell. I think it just takes time, eventually you won't feel like you're not good enough because you definitely are! You're a lot better than me when I started :). Even now I just want to go back and delete all my old blog posts because I think my old items are so ugly!
So I think, if you think that you shouldn't force yourself, there's nothing worse than selling items that you think other people won't like. You just keep wondering and it really shatters your confidence. Eventually you'll definitely look at your items and go 'people will love that' :). Keep trying, you're really good!
Nah, I'm not that busy. I jusy have two weeks off work now so I have time to play around with clay :D I'm back to work next sunday so fun times soon will be over :(
ReplyDeleteAlso maybe it's because I'm new in blogging world and so far it's really exiting to write what I think and make :D
And thank you, thank you for you words! They mean a lot to me because you're kind of one of my gurus (?) ^__^' But it's not even me thinking that I'm not good enought. The first thing that scares me it's a massive "competition" on the internet. And the second thing is all the legal stuff and paperwork (like registration as a self-employed, taxes etc). That just petryfies me because I know that I'm messy and unorganized and I'm afraid that I will make mistakes and I will pay fines or go to jail! :D Ok I was kidding with the last one :P And the health&safety issues for example with silicone. Would it be safe to sell sweets with silicone? I just don't know o_O'
And one more time: thank you, thank you thank you for your words! They made me feel really good about myself and I would give you a big hug if I could! ^______^'
Hehe it's ok! Virtual hug!
ReplyDeleteI think you're overthinking it though... unless you're planning to start an online business, casual selling on ebay or etsy wouldn't require legal paperwork. I do know that each place is different in terms of sales tax, but I think that is the only thing you need to worry about if you're just selling a few items on an online marketplace. I didn't do anything like that when I sold on etsy and i'm not in jail :P.
As for selling with silicone, i'm pretty sure it's fine. Silicone is only hazardous when you're using it, plus i'd say epoxy resin is worse but there are many items made with clear resin. Silicone is the most widely used type of material for fake whipped cream and everyone seems to be selling fine, so don't worry about it!
If there is one thing I can suggest to you though, it's that you definitely need to take better photos if you want to start selling, since so much depends on what it looks like in the photo. The composition of your items are fine since I can see clearly what they are, but the lighting isn't bright enough. The best light is always natural light, and this is going to sound ridiculous but I actually take pictures of all my items crouching on the ground next to a really big window with lots of light coming in. I put a pretty cloth on the ground and take photos of it that way. I hope you're not offended, there's nothing wrong with your photos, they're just a little dark :).
As for competition... I can't do much about that haha! Technically I am competition too haha :P. Thanks so much for saying i'm one of your 'gurus' haha! Made my day it did :). Have fun back at work...? Try to anyway?
I have already phoned the tax office and they told me that here in UK you have to register as soon as you start selling things (unless it's something used on eBay). They will send me all the paperwork I'll have to fill in, so it should be easy. I won't have to pay tax because I definetely won't reach the treshold of 6000£ a year :D And I won't need a VAT number. I think that I'll have to keep the records of things I buy and sell, and once a year fill in a tax... thing,I forgot the name of it :P
ReplyDeleteAbout the photos. I've got a new camera so the photos I took will be better quality from now on and I will try my best to make them a lot brighter. Hahaha it's just hard to do it in rainy UK! :D Ok, I'm kidding.. :)
And about competition. I said "competition" but I just meant that there is (hmm how to say it) no need for a new sellers,because the market is kind of already full. But I will try anyway, it doesn't cost anything :) I also may try to sell some things here locally. So, we'll see how it will go :)
Just a quick note about the so called competition you have...I wouldn't worry at all from what I have seen on Ebay and Etsy and other websites your stuff is by far the best I have found!
ReplyDeleteI don't have much money and I have bought 3 large items and I am buying another 2 next week so believe me when I say your items are awesome!
I wouldn't spend my hard earned money on them if they were not something very special!
Believe in yourself Monika! I believe you will have a very very succesful buisness selling your items. xxx