Podcast appearances and mentions of alexandra tavel

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Hi there today on the show I have Alexandra Tavel, the creative force behind Two of Wands! She is a prolific knit wear designer who's designs always seem to the perfect balance of modern yet a touch of vintage too. Show notes here!

What’s in Our Cup Diana and Jocelyn got fancy tea presses from David’s Tea as well as some The Spice is Right and The Big Chill. Behind Closed Doors CanU Cool Threads Diana: Rivers Wrap by Shannon Cook out of Cascade Yarns® Cascade 220® Bloomsbury Mitts by Uma Padu out of Allison Barnes Yarn Merino Worsted Jocelyn: Coffee Shop Shawl by Alexandra Tavel out of… Continue reading Episode 88 – Head Condom

What’s in Our Cup We are drinking Second Cup Holiday Blend. Cool Threads Diana: Rivers Wrap by Shannon Cook out of Cascade Yarns® Cascade 220® Wonder Woman Wrap by Carissa Browning out of Manos del Uruguay Alegría in Carmine and Manos del Uruguay Fino in Filigree Jocelyn: Coffee Shop Shawl by Alexandra Tavel out of Bernat Premium Woolly Workings Jocelyn: Goldfish Memory by Casapinka out of Don’t Make Me Blush and In… Continue reading Episode 87 – Miniature Husbands

Brainy Thing:    12:30                     Behind the Redwood Curtain:  24:42   What we’re learning from our knitting:   Catherine likes her Coffee Shop Wrap by Alexandra Tavel https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/coffee-shop-wrap    (free through Lion Brand Yarns,) but has been yearning for lace knitting.    Margaret tries creating a design for an elongated fair isle ornament.   The project fails but she learns a lot.  https://www.craftsy.com/knitting/classes/fair-isle-holiday-ornaments/497492.  It’s Margaret’s design but Sunne Meyer’s ornament pattern.     Brainy Thing:   Catherine reviews the indie documentary “Beyond Food” http://beyondfoodthemovie.com/.   Among other topics the film highlights parkour sports:  https://www.artofmanliness.com/2013/07/19/beginners-guide-to-parkour/ A beginner's guide in case anyone wants to take it up! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NX7QNWEGcNI   Behind the Redwood Curtain: Enjoy the history and the continuing beauty of the city of Eureka with the Eureka Walking Tour  https://eurekaparksandrec.wordpress.com/2016/06/29/old-town-walking-tours/.   If you want to see photos of the work that was put into the Carson Block:   (https://www.northcoastjournal.com/humboldt/witness-marks/Content?oid=3635632 )   Facebook:  Also, join our Facebook Group  https://www.facebook.com/Teachingyourbraintoknitpodcast/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel Ravelry Group  http://www.ravelry.com/groups/teaching-your-brain-to-knit website https://teachingyourbraintoknit.com/ for show notes, photos of our knitting and crochet projects, Behind the Redwood Curtain places and things and anything else we decide to post. Instagram:   Margaret Kelso for Margaret and MagicWombat1 for Catherine   In Episode 80 of Teaching Your Brain to Knit, The documentary Beyond Food endorses the idea that to improve your brain and your body, you need to find the right approach for you;  Catherine identifies herself as a lace knitter for now;  Margaret fails at a design for fair isle ornaments but learns a lot;  and both podcasters explore Old Town Eureka on a walking tour.

Brainy Thing:  16:44              Behind the Redwood Curtain:   30:32   What We’re Learning from Our Knitting: Catherine is surprised when she learns (again) that colors online don’t always match colors in yarn when she buys a Lion Brand Yarn pattern  Coffee Shop Wrap kit by Alexandra Tavel   https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/coffee-shop-wrap only to discover that a color that she thought was a mild creaming yellow turned out to be a zangy mustard.   Margaret   patched two more socks, including removing and replacing an afterthought heel and it turned out beautifully, just like it was planned to be.   One sock was out Austermann Step yarn in a   Blueberry Waffle  pattern https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/blueberry-waffle-socks and the other was out of  Fish Knits Yarn  warm heart     She also added to her crocheted bathroom accessories collection using adventuresome techniques from Crocheter’s Skill Building Workshop by Dora Ohrenstein.  The pattern is two color diamond stitch from the book.    https://www.amazon.com/Crocheters-Skill-Building-Workshop-Techniques-Adventurous/dp/1612122469 She compares this book to two others to two others:   Ultimate Crochet Bible:   A Complete Reference with Step-by-Step Techniques https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Crochet-Bible-Step-Step/dp/1910231797/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1517428360&sr=1-2&keywords=crochet+bible by Jane Crowfoot and Crochet 101:  Master Basic Skills and Techniques Easily   https://www.amazon.com/Crochet-101-Step-Step-Instruction/dp/1589236394/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1517428471&sr=1-1&keywords=crochet+101 by Deborah Burger.   Brainy Thing: Not exactly brainy but thinking along the line of how colors impact our lives, Catherine talks about the Pantone color of the Year for 2018 which is ultra violet.   Associated with mysticism and vision, expect to see the color around for awhile.     https://www.pantone.com/color-of-the-year-2018   Behind the Redwood Curtain One of the high points of North Coast Living is the Dungeness crabs https://www.google.com/search?q=dunegeness+crab&oq=dunegeness+crab&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l5.6582j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8  from December through Spring.   Links: Facebook:  Also, join our Facebook Group  https://www.facebook.com/Teachingyourbraintoknitpodcast/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel Ravelry Group  http://www.ravelry.com/groups/teaching-your-brain-to-knit website https://teachingyourbraintoknit.com/ for show notes, photos of our knitting and crochet projects, Behind the Redwood Curtain places and things and anything else we decide to post. Instagram:   Margaret Kelso for Margaret and MagicWombat1 for Catherine     In this episode of Teaching Your Brain to Knit we ask will the Pantone Color of the Year lead us to a higher spiritual level?, Also Catherine is surprised by a color she receives in a shawl knitting kit;  Margaret offer guides for choosing books that have the best pace for you, and the North Coast celebrates Dungenes crab season.  

This week's episode is a special one-year anniversary episode of the Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show. Listeners and former guests share their best advice by telling us the one thing they've done in the past 2 years that has had the most benefit for their businesses. Before we started on the advice, I shared the top 10 episodes from the first year of the show. Can you sense the themes? Episode 32: Journey to 100k Monthly Blog Visitors and More with Sedie Maruska Episode 8: Affordable Crochet and Knitting Fonts with Adriana Hernandez Episode 1: Identify the Right Magazines to Target for Your Article, Tutorial, and Design Submissions Episode 9: Selling on Etsy, An Interview with Ijeoma Eleazu from the Etsy Conversations Podcast Episode 2: 10 Ways to Use Pinterest to Grow Your Business (In Just Minutes A Day) Episode 3: 8 Tips for Organizing Your First Pattern Test  Episode 23: Diversifying Your Income and Boosting Your Blogging with Tamara Kelly from Moogly Episode 29: Selling on Etsy, Passive Income, and Using Trending Keywords with Alexandra Tavel from Two of Wands Episode 21: 10 Habits for Successfully “Owning” (or Working) from Home Episode 4: 6 Ways to Engage with the Blogging Community It seems that topics related to blogging, selling on Etsy, and self-publishing patterns are enjoyed by most listeners! And, now on to the advice! Michele Wang Michele is a knitting designer. Michele says: "In regards to my design business, the one thing that has been the most beneficial is outsourcing. I’ve found a wonderful tech editor to work with, and have also worked with great sample knitters. It’s increased my productivity and allowed me to focus more on designing." Joy Grise Joy is a crochet maker and designer. Her business is called Joy of Crochet. Joy's advice is: "Write your patterns! Crochet lends itself to improvisation so easy. Many crocheters can see a picture on Pinterest and they make a similar pattern off the top of their head. They assume that others can do the same and do not write the patterns that they come up with. So if you are making the same thing as everyone else, say you make a Minion hat, write up the pattern and offer it for free. If you make a pattern that fills a need that you have noticed so you made the product, write up the pattern so that others can make the item too. Don't be intimidated by your own skill level whether you are an expert or a beginner.  The examples in my own life are my Ultimate Upcycled Owl which is a free pattern and my Half-Finger Fingerless Gloves." Tamara Kelly Tamara is the (mostly crochet) designer, blogger, and teacher behind Moogly. I previously interviewed her on Episode 23. Tamara's advice: "I think the most important thing is to stay true to yourself, and your own voice. It's important to listen to your readers/customers, but you have to keep going with the stuff that made you passionate about getting into this business to begin with. Otherwise it becomes just another "job" - and burnout will follow along soon enough!" Dana Gervais Dana is a knitting designer and owner of Dana Gervais Designs. Dana says: "I have noticed a shift in my business since I made the decision to approach my business with the same attitude and focus that I gave to my prior careers. I have taken the systems and tools that I used successfully in my previous ventures and adapted them to be applied to my knitwear design business.  This has given my business structure, routine and made me much more productive." Amy Ramnarine Amy is the blogger and crochet designer behind The Stitchin' Mommy. I interviewed her on Episode 31. Amy's advice: "One thing that I have been doing for the past year or so, that has been the most beneficial to my blog, is sharing my posts across many social media sites. People are constantly on social media. They use it for news updates, to stay in touch, and get inspiration for projects, recipes, fashion, and more. I noticed that by sharing my patterns on different social media sites such as Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Google+, StumbleUpon and even Ravelry, I am able to get more exposure for my blog from different groups of people. It has helped me tremendously with my traffic." Anita Bose Natarajan Anita is the knitting designer behind NitaB&NishaN, Inc. Anita says: "Invest in Yourself!!! Learn financial, business and 'your area of interest' skills. If you are starting out and have no funds, learn from all the freebies you can find - internet, people, print articles - anything.   If you have some funds, research classes/subscriptions that will really benefit you, check on their pricing regularly and when the prices drop, buy them and learn.   If you have funds you can set aside regularly for investing in yourself, keep a listing of nice to have classes/subscriptions, keep tabs on the pricing, and when the price is within budget, buy them and learn.   I have always done one of the above depending on my financial situation and managed to move ahead - snail pace, but still ahead."   I agree! I talked more about how I invested in myself and my business in Episode 18: 8 Best Investments I Made In My Business in 2014. Lindsay Lewchuk Lindsay is a knitting designer and maker, and the owner of Knit Eco Chic. Lindsay was my guest in Episode 26. Lindsay's advice: "Let your passion and character shine through each design." Joanna Joanna is a crochet designer known as Goddess Crochet. Joanna says: "My business is fairly new so the conclusion I came up with is: I didn’t quit. Staying motivated to keep going and not give up is a must when you’re dealing with a business that cannot be grown overnight. There are a variety of ways I keep motivated but the most impacting has been listening to podcasts. Listening to your podcast, small business podcasts, mom business podcasts, affiliate marketing podcasts, SEO podcasts, really anything I can get my ears on. Hearing tips as well as other regular people’s success stories really motivate me to keep going, and to up my game." Kathryn Vercillo Kathryn is a writer and the blogger behind Crochet Concupiscence. Kathryn's advice: "I thought I'd share my simple-but-true business tip ... The best thing I've ever done for my business is stay true to my heart. It's important and smart to take a strategic approach to business but it's equally important to let your head quiet down so you can hear the beating of your own truth inside, following that towards any changes in business." Ashwini Jambhekar Ashwini is a knitting designer and tech editor. She is the owner of Ashwini J Designs, and she shared her approach to pattern grading in a bonus episode. Ashwini says: "As a newer designer, the two most important things I've done have been to 1) persevere and 2) diversify. I think it's tempting to envision rags-to-riches outcomes in this business, but I suspect that's not realistic, especially in the current climate. Even though sales were dismal at first, continuing to produce high-quality patterns has definitely begun to reverse the trend. There were times I wanted to give up: as I mostly design garments, each pattern is a tremendous amount of time and effort, and there were times it seemed not worth-while. However, I'm glad that I persevered and stayed true to my aesthetic style, as I'm slowly starting to see the pay-offs. Secondly, I've learned various aspects of the business by designing for different formats/ venues. I've published three designs in third-party publications in the last year and half, and all of them have operated a little differently from each other. It has been informative to see how the professional publishers display and promote my work. I also recently completed my first project with yarn support, and the logistics of the promotions and marketing have been different from what I've experienced for self-published designs without yarn support, or for 3rd-party publications. The skills I've learned by designing in each of these settings will be valuable in whichever direction I take my business in the future." Angela Plunkett Angela is a crochet designer and maker, and the owner of Little Monkeys Shop. Angela's advice: "The tip that has made a daily impact on me is about my tools - If I am going to crochet everyday, I need to use the best crochet hooks out there to keep from getting hand cramps, etc. I’m not sure which of your episodes this is from, but after that show I ordered myself a set of the Tulip hooks and love them! They were expensive, but much better than hand cramps! I’m know that I have utilized several other tips that you have passed one, but this tip is the one that stands out to me, probably because it’s the one tip I use every day." Vashti Braha Vashti is a crochet designer, indie publisher, and yarn manufacturer. She was previously my guest in Episode 27. Vashti's advice:   "I thought the answer to your question would be simple but I ended up with a list of ten things! Then I realized that five of them are all aspects of the same thing:   Doris Chan crocheted ALL sizes of a new design in ALL colors of DesigningVashti Lotus yarn. At two CGOA conferences we had "fitting labs" with them, and had them all modeled at once in the fashion show of each conference. This ensured that crocheters got to know the yarn in the best possible way: they experienced the yarn's special drape and sheen as they tried on the garments. They saw all of the colors up close as well as on a runway. They gained lots of valuable and inspiring information about crocheting clothing in a memorable way: how more than one size of a well-designed garment fits fine depending on the look you want (for example, a smaller size may look trendy in a cropped, figure-enhancing way, while a larger size on the same person may have a breezy, swingy, streamlining look). How two people who wear the same size but have different body shapes look different in the same size. What good blocking does for a stylish design. Ideas for altering the pattern, for example, add repeats of the edging, or change sleeve length. (Doris also crocheted some simple variations.) And, they experienced all of this while chatting with the designer directly." Danielle Chalson Danielle is the knitting designer behind Makewise Designs. She also happens to be an intellectual property attorney, and I interviewed her about IP issues in Episode 7. "For me, the one thing that has been the most beneficial is to learn to trust my gut more. By that, I mean: trusting my instincts when a design idea is working or is compatible with my design sensibilities, but more importantly, trusting my instincts when a design idea is NOT working. It could be the shaping, the yarn choice, a stitch pattern, or the whole design altogether. Learn to trust that inner voice that the idea needs to be tweaked or even abandoned. I think that the more I do that, the more my designs will reflect a cohesive aesthetic or “voice” that is hopefully unique!" I don't suppose I could sneak away from this episode without sharing my own tips... Since I made the transition from being the full time employee of an organization with a side business in 2013 to being a fully self-employed person, I've found that there are 3 things that have allowed me to be self-supporting without relying on a full time job for income. Flexibility. I've had to be willing to make adjustments and course corrections to my businesses (while still staying true to myself, of course). Learning. I've had to make frequent investments of time and money in myself to keep learning new things to help my businesses thrive. Diversification. I have more than one business, and within each business, I have activities that lead to multiple streams of income. I've found that each one contributes to the others in unexpected ways. Recent review Kathy Kelly from Crochetbird gave the Show a 5 star review on iTunes. She says, "I am always surprised at the amount of useful information included in these podcasts. Definitely worth the time and an enjoyable listen too." Thanks, Kathy! If her name sounds familiar, it's because I responded to questions from Kathy in two past episodes: Episode 4: 6 Ways to Engage with the Blogging Community and Episode 45: How to Balance Two Creative Businesses.   If you enjoyed this episode The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in August, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated. If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week’s Episode I’m continuing my Crochet & Knitting Design & Self-Publishing Mini Series by talking about publishing your pattern. I’ll be exploring six different online marketplaces in depth (Craftfoxes, Craftsy, Etsy, Kollabora, Patternfish, and Ravelry), and will be briefly talking about other self-publishing options (such as your blog/website, ebook vendors, and printing patterns). This episode is longer than usual, so I’m including some time stamps if you need to pause in the middle of the show. You can scroll down past the time stamps for detailed show notes. 0:00 – 17:25 Introduction and announcements. Feedback on pricing after Episode 40. Factors to consider when exploring different options for self-publishing. Marie’s thoughts on selling directly from your own site. The Alexa rankings of each of the six marketplaces we focus on today. 17:26 – 33:50 Interview with Lisa Fulmer, Senior Editor at CraftFoxes, and overview of CraftFoxes. 33:51 – 52:43 Interview with Stefanie Japel, Senior Acquisitions Editor at Craftsy, and overview of Craftsy. Changes to Craftsy’s affiliate program since the interview. If you sign up to be an affiliate, please let them know I referred you! A “work-around” for non-EU designers selling on sites that don’t collect VAT MOSS. 2019 Update: Craftsy is now Bluprint and is not currently inviting new patterns for its marketplace.  52:44 – 1:08:46 Interview with Lindsey Ibarra, who manages Editoral, Social, and Trends at Kollabora, and overview of Kollabora. 1:08:47 – 1:26:09 Interview with Julia Grunau, Prime Minister at Patternfish, and overview of Patternfish. 2019 Update: Patternfish is now closed. 1:26:10 – 1:32:42 An overview of selling on Etsy. Marie’s thoughts on patterns as passive income. 1:32:43 – 1:35:24 An overview of selling on Ravelry. 1:35:25 – 1:45:28 The pros and cons of selling on these six marketplaces. 1:45:29 – 1:48:22 Self-publishing through mainstream ebook sites. 1:48:23 – 1:50:51 Self-publishing printed patterns. 1:50:52- 1:56:57 So where should YOU self-publish? and conclusion Pricing (again) There has been some interesting conversation in the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs group on Facebook about pricing since the last episode in this series. Many designers noted that their more expensive patterns sell better than their less expensive patterns. Food for thought: Does that mean you may be underpricing your patterns? Or does it mean that you have correctly gauged the demand for more popular patterns and increased their prices? Let me know what you think in the comments! Publishing Your Patterns We’re going to focus on six different marketplaces in this episode. I find these four questions helpful to think about when you consider whether a marketplace is the right place (or “a right place”) to sell your patterns. Who is your target audience and how much does it overlap with the site’s target audience? What is the cost of selling on that site? Consider your own time for setting up shop and adding patterns as well as listing fees and merchant charges when sales are made. What kind of exposure can you get from this site? Consider both the traffic the site receives and how likely it is that your work will be seen through search or be featured by the site. How easy is the site to use? The ease-of-use may be higher on sites that you are already using, or sites that have a better user interface. I also shared the current (as of mid-July, 2015) Alexa rankings for each of these sites. Alexa is a site that ranks websites based on their traffic. Please use caution when interpreting these rankings. With the exception of Patternfish, all of these sites do more than sell crochet and knitting patterns, and therefore, the overall traffic is not necessarily indicative of the popularity of pattern sales! The sites, ranked in order, are: Etsy: 43 (US)/157 (Worldwide) Ravelry: 647 (US)/2,156 (Worldwide) Craftsy: 828 (US)/2,801 (Worldwide) Kollabora: 31,166 (US)/132,671 (Worldwide) Patternfish: 67,971 (US)/315,301 (Worldwide) Craftfoxes: 70,543 (US)/186,421 (Worldwide) I also talked about the challenges of selling patterns directly from your own website. CraftFoxes I interviewed Lisa Fulmer, the Senior Editor of CraftFoxes, a multi-craft social network with a marketplace. You can find information about becoming a CraftFoxes seller here. Some of the key features to consider about CraftFoxes are… Their marketplace is oriented towards physical/tangible item sales. They do not support digital/instant downloads at this time. Pattern sellers will need to email the pattern to the buyer, or bundle patterns with a physical item (like a yarn or supply kit). There is a $0.10 listing fee (which lasts for 3 months), but the first 50 listings are free. CraftFoxes also deducts 4% from any items sold. Additionally, PayPal will deduct their standard fees. CraftFoxes is not involved with the collection of VAT MOSS, a tax for digital sales to buyers in European Union member countries. Knitting and crocheting are the most popular crafts on the site. In particular, amigurumi, wearables, and beginner-friendly projects and patterns are very popular. For designers without a blog (or who want to amplify their blog posts), you can also share free patterns or projects with links back to your patterns. You can learn more about CraftFoxes in this episode of one of my favorite crafty shows, the Etsy Conversations Podcast. Craftsy I interviewed Stefanie Japel, the Senior Acquisitions Editor at Craftsy, a multi-craft site that features online courses, a craft supply marketplace, a digital pattern marketplace for independent designers, and more.  2019 Update: Craftsy is now Bluprint and is not currently inviting new patterns for its marketplace.  Kollabora I interviewed Lindsey Ibarra, who manages Editoral, Social, and Trends at Kollabora, a social network and DIY/crafts community. You can find information about setting up a Kollabora pattern shop here. Some of the key features to consider about Kollabora are… The marketplace is curated. Apply to be a brand here. There are no listing fees, but Kollabora collects a 20% commission on each sale. Kollabora is not involved in the collection of VAT MOSS. Seller support is available at partners AT kollabora DOT com. Sewing is the most popular craft on Kollabora and it also has a vibrant knitting community. Crochet is the third most popular craft on the site. Kollabora’s users are younger and aesthetic-oriented. Most are multi-craftual so beginner level patterns do well. Tops and shawls are very popular. Kollabora users can share tutorials and videos and host make-a-longs on the site.Kollabora likes to feature their designers in their newsletters, so if you sign up to sell patterns on their site, be sure to keep them informed of your latest activities! You can also share pictures of your projects for patterns sold (or distributed for free) elsewhere. Kollabora projects can also include links to your blog or shop, and you don’t need to sign in to see projects. Patternfish I interviewed Julia Grunau, the Prime Minister at Patternfish, a site exclusively focused on selling crochet, knitting, and weaving patterns. 2019 Update: Patternfish is now closed.  Etsy Etsy declined to be interviewed, but you can learn more about opening an Etsy shop here. You may also want to listen to these previous episodes to learn more about Etsy: Episode 9: Selling on Etsy, an Interview with Ijeoma Eleazu from the Etsy Conversations Podcast Episode 28: Indie Craft Fairs, Negotiation, Freelancing, the Hazards of Etsy and More with Grace Dobush Episode 29: Selling on Etsy, Passive Income, and Using Trending Keywords with Alexandra Tavel from Two of Wands Let’s talk about Etsy’s fees. There is a $0.20 listing fee (which lasts for 4 months). Etsy also deducts 3.5% from any items sold. Additionally, PayPal will deduct their standard fees and Etsy will deduct additional fees if the customer uses Direct Checkout instead of PayPal. Etsy has taken an unusual position on VAT MOSS, which you can read more about here. Essentially, they are taking legal responsibility for it, so as a seller, you do not need to worry about it. While Etsy has a huge volume of traffic, it can be difficult for a buyer to navigate. For this reason, I’ve observed that shops with superior, staged photography and where the sellers do a lot of promotion tend to be more successful than those who assume that keyword optimization with drive all of their sales. I would also surmise that beginner-friendly patterns would do the best, as many visitors are casual crafters or DIY enthusiasts who aren’t necessarily master crocheters or knitters. Ravelry Ravelry also declined to be interviewed, but you can learn more about getting started as a Ravelry designer here. (You must be a member and logged in to view this page.) Let’s talk about Ravelry’s fees. There are no Ravelry fees for pattern sales under $30/month. For sales from $30 to $1,500/month, Ravelry collects 3.5% of your sales. There is a discount for designers who sell over $1,500/month. In addition, PayPal collects their standard fees. Ravelry is now responsible for the collection of VAT MOSS. They previously had a partnership with Love-Knitting for VAT MOSS collection, so you can choose to sell your patterns to EU customers on both sites. 2019 Update: LoveKnitting is now LoveCrafts. Sign up here as a LoveCrafts designer. You can list all of your patterns in Ravelry’s database, whether or not you choose to sell or make them available for free on the site. You can have both free and for sale patterns available for instant download in your pattern shop on Ravelry. Ravelry is the only site with the opportunity to easily wholesale your patterns local yarn shops. You can learn more about the In-Store Sales program here. I suspect that Ravelry is the only one of these six sites where more complex patterns could be popular. Mainstream ebook sites You may also want to consider selling your patterns on mass marketplace/ebook marketplaces for use on ereaders. You can learn more about becoming an ebook publisher on each of these sites by following the links below. Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing here. iBooks Author here. Kobo Writing Life here. Nook Press here. Smashwords here. My assumption is most crafters are not seeking highly specialized patterns on these sites and that beginner-friendly projects would be more likely to succeed on these platforms. These sites require different file types, and formatting images for non-PDF can be challenging. Pricing standards are also quite different for ebooks when compared to individual pattern prices on the six marketplaces discussed earlier. I would recommend starting with the craft-focused sites using PDF patterns and later expanding into these other marketplaces after further research unless you have prior experience with formatting .mobi or .epub files. Self-publishing print patterns These days, it seems the demand for single, print patterns is waning. Many yarn shops are moving towards Ravelry’s In-Store Sales Program. However, if you do wish to self-publish print patterns, I know several designers use print-on-demand services like MagCloud. So, where should I sell my patterns? As I mention in the show, I think that most designers will have more success if they can list their patterns on multiple sites. While there is certainly overlap among the dedicated crocheters and knitters, there are many potential buyers who may use only one of the sites but not the others. However, when you are first starting out, you may want to choose one or two sites that you seem the most suited based on the four criteria (audience, cost, exposure, ease-of-use) mentioned earlier. Once you feel more confident, you can expand into other marketplaces. If you enjoyed this episode The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in June, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated. If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week’s Episode I interviewed Alexandra Tavel, a crochet and knitting maker and designer. Alexandra owns the Etsy shop, Two of Wands. We met up in person in New York City (where we both live) to talk about how she launched her shop, how it became her full time income, and what she enjoys about the platform, as well as other topics related to owning a yarn-based business. About Alexandra Tavel Alexandra Tavel earned dual degrees in fashion design and costume construction technology from Indiana University. After graduation, she moved to New York City with plans of entering the fashion industry, but she ended up working in a nonprofit organization for 8 years. In late 2013, a series of life changes led to her launching an Etsy shop, Two of Wands, where she sells her finished knit and crocheted projects as well as instant pattern downloads. You can find Alexandra online at the Two of Wands Etsy shop, on Facebook, Instagram, Kollabora, and Ravelry. You can subscribe to her newsletter here. Additionally, Alexandra was recently profiled here as a Featured Shop on Etsy. About the Interview Alexandra talked about how she studied Etsy’s blogs and newsletters before opening the Two of Wands Etsy shop to sell finished knit and crochet items in November, 2013. Alexandra’s signature photographic style actually developed by happenstance. After Etsy launched digital downloads, Alexandra read an Etsy Quit Your Day Job post that inspired her to begin to sell her patterns in her shop as well. Alexandra’s designs started with simple design and construction so that she could easily create and finish finished items, but as she began to see her pattern sales allowing her business to scale, she is reconsidering this approach. In this very conversational interview, we covered a variety of business topics including Selling patterns on other platforms, like Ravelry, and the target audiences available on different e-commerce platforms, Incorporating mainstream and pop culture ideas into your designs (and keywords) without infringing on the intellectual property of other businesses, Optimizing workflows, dealing with seasonality, and creating passive income streams for handmade businesses, Pricing, Providing customer service, Designing for children, and Analyzing website traffic and ordering trends, and using that information for planning. Now, this interview was recorded several weeks ago before I interviewed Grace Dobush for Episode 28, read Grace’s article in WIRED, “How Etsy Alienated Its Crafters and Lost Its Soul,” and learned about Etsy’s announcement that it filed papers for an Initial Public Offering. If I had a time machine, I would have asked for Alexandra’s feedback on these issues. If you enjoyed this episode The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in March, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated. If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week’s Episode I interviewed Grace Dobush, a full time freelance writer and part-time crafty business owner, in this week’s episode. Grace and I talked about many topics including prepping for your first indie craft show, deciding whether Etsy is the right online marketplace for your craft business, tips for starting up as a freelance writer in the craft scene, negotiating for a higher rate, and more! About Grace Dobush Grace Dobush is a freelance writer and a part-time crafty business owner. She is the organizer of the Crafty Supermarket, an indie craft show in Cincinnati, Ohio; author of the Crafty Superstar craft business guides for part-time business owners; and the maker of smiley poop emoji ephemera. You can find Grace online at the Grace Dobush website and on Twitter. Crafty Superstar has its own website, Facebook page, and Twitter account, and is also available through Grace’s author page on Amazon.  About the Interview I’m a volunteer book reviewer for the Crochet Guild of America‘s blog and late last year, I received a review copy of the 2015 Crafter’s Market: How to Sell Your Crafts and Make a Living from Fons & Porter/F + W Media. Since this book is the first Crafter’s Market, I wanted to interview one of the contributors, and Grace was happy to oblige. In our interview, we talked about the topics covered in Grace’s two chapters in the 2015 Crafter’s Market, “Indie Craft Shows” and “Pricing Your Work.” We also discussed Grace’s February article in WIRED, “How Etsy Alienated Its Crafters and Lost Its Soul” and Etsy’s recent announcement about filing a registration statement for an initial public offering (IPO). I referenced a recent discussion about whether Etsy is the best online marketplace for yarn crafters, as well as an interview I did with Alexandra Tavel from Two of Wands on Etsy that I’ll be sharing on the podcast next week. Grace also shared her tips for getting started as a freelance writer in the crafting space, as well as her philosophy on negotiation. If you enjoyed this episode The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in March, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated. If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).