August 9th: Etsy Meet-up

Wow, great last Etsy meet-up last week. I am really excited seeing our members grow and all the new faces. This month, in an attempt to be more organized, I am breaking the meeting up into two sections. The first part is geared more for people looking to sell on etsy and the second features fun local artists showing you how-to-craft.

7-8 PM: The Art of the Online Sale.

This is a 1 hr. Primer on How to set-up and sell on Etsy. Laptops welcome. You will learn about:
1. Setting up an account
2. Making a profile
3. Designing a shop avatar and banner.
4. Shipping Policies- Standard and International
5. Listing items- What makes a good listing?
6. Getting your name out- Advertising tools (free and otherwise), Etsy Teams
7. Completing sales- Paypal, Google Checkout, etc.
One of my friends, Fabiola, of Fabiola Designs, will be on hand. She designs custom banners, icons, and logos for people as well as doing graphic design on etsy at her shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/fabioladesigns. Originally she trained in Paris. She will have examples on hand to discuss and you can purchase through the etsy website. Her prices are very reasonable. A great resource if you are looking to give your shop a professional edge.

8-10 pm Guest Lectures with Ruthan and Jon

DIY Custom T-shirts by Ruthan Reese

Some of you remember the awesome blog post a few weeks ago with my friend Ruthan about making your own custom bleached t-shirt. Now, you can do your own. Bring your own t-shirt or pick on up on-site for $5. It takes roughly 5-20 min to make one and an hour for it to dry. Great t-shirts for bands or upcoming events.

The Art of Finishing Wood by Jonathan Danforth

I am really pleased to announce this month's guest artist specializes in creating wooden objects of incredible beauty and simplicity. I am lucky enough to own several of Jon's pieces. My favorite is a simple purple heart wood crafted box he created for me as a gift for Nash for Valentine's. His pieces make wonderful gifts that create a lasting impression. The quality is amazing and they hold up well to repeated use. You can visit his etsy shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/duckarrowtypes which is virtual feast for the eyes, he has pieces in a wide range so you can be guaranteed to find something in your budget even if you don't yet have $11,000 for a custom Digitrola.
Jon Danforth will be giving a short lecture on how to professionally finish wood pieces for sale and shipping. A lot of people make amateur or hobby wood crafts around here and want to make the jump in quality necessary to sell as art. Jon's lecture is geared towards helping push you a little farther along the path. We will have tables set up for you to try your hand at gluing, sanding, finishing his famous iPad wall mounts. You may recognize them from Thingiverse. The instructions are open source, and if you would like take home your own at the end of the night, he will have kits on hand for $20 to cover the cost of wood and components. All pieces finished during the lecture will be available at his next show.

I'm really excited about both these talks.

Look forward to seeing everyone here:

Techshop RDU
5905 Triangle Drive
Raleigh, NC 27617

August 9th from 7-10 pm

Free and Open to the Public.

Note: If you are over 21, Roth Brewing provides complimentary beer for the event. You must bring a photo ID as proof before we will serve you.