Andreea – Page 13

I don’t usually post Etsy treasuries…

April 28, 2015 Andreea

… but when i do, they are awesome!

I rarely find Etsy treasuries that i really like, but i will definitely always get the ones i do like over here on the blog. This particular treasury is gorgeous and it also includes our pyramid boxes! Turns out these cute little things have a lot more success than i ever hoped for!

Enjoy!

The Funky Studio team wishes you, as always, a colorful day!

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etsy, tips and tricks

Shipping problems tips & tricks. It’s not always pink and flowers…

April 23, 2015April 22, 2015 Andreea

… Remember that even beautiful roses have thorns!

This is the second Tips & tricks article that i’ve taken over from the old blog. It’s slightly revised as it’s been almost 2 years since writing that article, but the main aspects still are the same to this day. So let’s talk about shipping problems when sending out your clients’ orders and respectively, when receiving a package ordered online.

Probably the most common problem Etsy sellers have is shipping. Everything regarding shipping. Starting with the insane shipping fees and ending with packages not being delivered! Everything in between those two examples is also of high importance, however this time around let’s focus on those two, discuss about them, find solutions and give tips.

1. Shipping fees

This is by far the biggest problem of them all. First things first:

– for Etsy sellers – don’t feel guilty about the shipping fees! You’re not the ones making them; you have no control over them. Try and make your customers understand that. Give them links for the websites of the couriers / post office and have them see the fees themselves. Do not charge less for shipping fees because you feel like they’re too high! A possible solution for this would be taking a little out and putting it on your items’ prices. However, keep in mind that Etsy calculates its fee from your items prices, so the absolute best solution is to try and explain to your clients that this particular aspect is out of your control. Another thing you can do is presenting special offers for the repeat customers or clients with larger orders.

– for Etsy buyers – in order to have your orders sent safely to you, you need to pay shipping fees. They are high, but Etsy sellers can’t do anything about it unfortunately. The lowest shipping fee always comes with risks – damaged package, lost package, delayed delivery, no track & trace, no insurance, no way of ever finding out what happened to your package. You have to pay extra for the package to arrive sooner, you have to pay extra for the package to have a tracking number, you have to pay extra to have insurance, you have to pay extra to have a confirmation of receipt, you have to pay extra if the package is heavy. It’s terrible, all Etsy sellers know that, but this is how it is, unfortunately.

2. Lost packages

The Etsy seller gives you a heads up when he mails your package and you’ve also read about how much time it would take to get to you. That time had come and passed and you still don’t know anything about your package. What do you do?

– check out the track & trace number – usually when you make an Etsy purchase you’d receive a track & trace number for your package. Check it out and see where exactly your package is at the moment.

– no track & trace number? If, however, you don’t receive a track & trace number, contact the Etsy shop owner and let him know about the problem. He would then give you that number and check it out himself. There are situations where there is no track & trace number (for example: packages sent with non-priority mail if the customer so wishes, simple envelopes etc.). For those situations it’s best to have your package sent with a confirmation of receipt. That way it will certainly either arrive to destination or get back to the sender. If there’s also no confirmation of receipt, the Etsy seller should send a new package to his client, but this time making sure all the proper precautions had been taken care of. There is also another situation where post offices simply don’t register international tracking numbers. An example is Australia. We ship to Australia quite a lot, but we can only track the package on our post office’s system until it gets out of the country. After that, if there’s a need for tracking, we can only contact the social media team of the Australian post office (and by the way, this team is awesome! Quick responses, friendly people!).

– for Etsy sellers – it does cost extra, but make sure you either have a track & trace number or a confirmation of receipt. Otherwise, you’d have to send out a new order on your expense.

– for Etsy buyers – please understand that shipping problems are out of the Etsy seller’s hands. They will of course do everything they can in order to have your package delivered safely, but what will happen on the way to you is out of their reach.

Hope everything above will be helpful for both Etsy sellers and Etsy buyers.

The Funky Studio team wishes you, as always, a colorful day!

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etsy, wednesday wishes

Wednesday wishes. Let’s focus on ourselves for a change!

April 22, 2015August 21, 2015 Andreea

The first Wednesday Wishes article i posted over here is my all time Nemesis. It’s just one of those things i guess. Well i did reach the 6000 Twitter followers goal though, so i guess it is something after all. On the other hand, i’ve started marking as “done” some of the things on the second post, so it’s still good.

Well let’s see what we can squeeze for this week!

* Do sports. I need to get back in shape… as much as possible. I won’t even get into detail here. I finally did it! Got myself a gym permit and i am attending 3 classes a week. It makes me feel great mostly because it’s not your regular gym that i go to; they’re also focusing on communication and having fun and we meet and greet each other and learn about healthy food. Oh well, all in all, i’m finally doing sports.

* Make salads. This is sort of a part of the “cooking more” goal, but the salads are a must. I love salads! Why don’t i make more of those?

* Read. I’ve been so busy with work, the shops, that temporary project i worked on that i didn’t have time to read anything lately. And i so miss reading a good book! I have so many i want to read that i just don’t know where to start! At least i caught up with Dr. Who episodes.

* Create designs for letterpress business cards, wedding invitations, RSVPs and save the dates. I have so many ideas, but so little time to actually apply them. This must be done!

* Make pancakes. Lots of food related wishes this week, so i try to have them limited to a minimum… But i can’t really pass on the pancakes one, can i? Now that i think about it, these food wishes are a bit in contradiction with my “do sport” thing over there… Oh well. Made pancakes finally (on the 11th of July… why did it take so long to just make pancakes?)!

* Buy earrings. Seriously, i never have enough earrings and i really need them. Ok, maybe not really “need” them per se, but close enough. Bought earrings! But i sorta… want more?

* Major house cleaning. Like really major!

* Visit the Botanical Garden and Palace of the Parliament. Both of these have been on my list for too long. It’s gotta be done!

Yep, finally starting to focus more on other things rather than work all the time. It’s really about time i did that!

The Funky Studio team wishes you, as always, a colorful day!

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behind the scenes, etsy, funky print studio story, letterpress, letterpress business cards, pantone

[Behind the scenes] Custom letterpress business cards for BURNISH + BONE

April 21, 2015June 4, 2015 Andreea

The custom letterpress business cards we made for Ali of BURNISH + BONE Osteological Taphonomy were a bit of a challenge for us. Well, for me alone actually, as my husband (and crafter at the same time) was just as confident as ever. For me, though, it was quite an emotional journey…

“Emotional journey? Are we still talking about the letterpress business cards or…?” Yes, i hear ya and yes, we’re still talking about the business cards. It was emotional to the point of me bursting into tears at some point! Oh, those dreaded dog bones enjoyed toying with my obsessive compulsive perfectionism! However, the final result exceeded my expectations and it turned out great!

Short technical details of the custom letterpress business cards of BURNISH + BONE:

– 600gsm Snow White card stock, double sided printing, Cool Grey 10 U

letterpress business cards film — Letterpress business cards film

Since we create our own polymer plates when letterpress printing, the first step is having the film made and then, based on them, the plates themselves. In order to get from the images above to the following ones, we’ve had a lot of work to go through, but ultimately the end result was well worth it.

I was really anxious to find out Ali’s opinion on her letterpress business cards, so i must admit i checked that tracking number practically every day. When they finally did arrive and i read Ali’s mail, i was really the happiest i had been since leaving the package at the post office! And i’m saying this just to not sound too corny even though i could easily go there. Ali was kind enough to send me a photo and i can’t thank her enough for this!

Seeing the photos of Ali’s business cards, you might have wondered what it is she does. It is indeed a not so common activity which is why it is that much more interesting. BURNISH + BONE is all about cleaning and preserving animal bones, skulls, claws, tusks, teeth and horns for hunters, pet owners, collectors and enthusiasts. For more details please visit BURNISH + BONE. Also, soon enough we might get some more inside info from Ali herself during a future interview.

The Funky Studio team wishes you, as always, a colorful day!

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