Take Metal Embossing to the Next Level by Successfully Selling Your Work

With a metal embossing Craft business you have the opportunity to quickly turn a profit if you learn how to sell your embossed items. Unlike some other crafting businesses metal embossing is relatively uncomplicated and simple to do. It is essentially a copying art. Most of the effort and artistic inspiration goes into creating the Tracing. This finished tracing is then faithfully copied or transferred onto the metal sheet of your choice.

The Craft of Metal Embossing follows a simple four step process.

Step 1. First having decided on a design you want emboss on to metal you must create a tracing of the design.

Step 2. Place your metal on a rubber pad or sheets of news papers and place your tracing on top. Now transfer your design with light pressure to impress onto to the metal. When completed remove the tracing.

Step 3. I now begin to work on both sides of the metal. Adding texture and flattening areas as needed. I will push out from the back using a paper stump and tidy up from the front using a refiner tool. When I finally am satisfied with the detail and the height of the raised areas I move on to next step

Step 4. I will decide on what finish or polish to apply if any. The finished work is now mounted or framed or glued onto your selected item. DONE! Easy as that.

Your chosen designs can then be incorporated into many different attractive areas of decoration including picture frames, journal covers, photo scrapbooks, and wall hangings. Metal embossing items can also be used to enhance furniture and other home décor projects. You are only limited by your imagination. With a metal embossing home based business, both online and local options should be considered to help generate more sales.

Take Metal Embossing to the Next Level by Successfully Selling Your Work

Selling Locally

This is where most Crafters start. Your first method of selling is likely to be by word of mouth. Most crafters start casually by showing their metal embossing crafts to family and friends who visit and decide to make purchases. Some also give away smaller crafts as gifts to help generate interest. This can help create a network of interested buyers.

You can also set up shop right in your home. Crafters with a garage, free bedroom or other reasonably sized space separated from the main living space in their home can turn this empty space into their own little selling area for their crafts. Zoning laws and other regulations may exist for those who actually want to open a store front from their home however. At the very least, you can use this empty space for storage and as a quiet area to work on your crafts. You could also choose to open up a retail store, but the overheads for this method can be expensive.

Most crafters prefer to sell on consignment to local retail stores and some set up yard sales in front of their homes on the weekends. One method of selling crafts that has really kicked off in recent years is that of crafting parties. You can throw a few parties in your own home but you will probably get better results by having friends and family members host parties at their homes and invite their neighbors and friends, allowing you to constantly interact with a new group of potential customers.

Home Crafts Metal Embossing Wall Hangings at home

Craft Parties should be a social event but with a business slant and typically offer snacks and drinks; you can also choose to give brief demonstrations of how you make your metal embossing crafts. Party goers will typically be impressed and want to purchase an item or two or learn how to make their own. This is your cue to offer the tools and accessories needed to get started in the craft of Metal Embossing. Several of the guests will probably be willing to host a craft party for you as well.At arts and crafts shows, crowds turn up in the thousands to buy metal embossing items, paintings and other crafts.

For crafters who like to mingle and learn how to work the crowd, doing craft shows part-time or full-time can be an extremely profitable way of selling. Also at arts and crafts shows you have a group of like minded people all under one roof which creates further opportunities, such as the possibility of Joint Ventures with other crafters. I did this in the past with wood turners who created circular frames for me to frame a particular embossed piece. It was a win win situation for both of us.Renting a booth at a craft fair can be a cheap and effective way of displaying your wares to the world.

It also allows you to pass out business cards, collect email addresses and mailing addresses so you can establish bonds with potential customers and create mailing lists to advertise your newest offerings, giving you the chance to turn these casual shoppers into long-term buyers. A number of different local groups such as churches and schools may sponsor periodic craft shows, especially during fairs, parades and other seasonal events. Some larger organized craft shows tour the country while local flea markets are usually open all year.

The Fine Art of Metal Embossing

Selling Online

Selling online has quickly become a convenient way of getting crafts and crafters seen in front of a wider audience than that available locally to most crafters. Every crafter serious about making money should start by setting up a business website. I set up my own Craft website with SiteBuildIt or SBI. Believe me I had no website building skills whatsoever and couldn't be happier.

It's an excellent service for anyone wanting to create their own website for any type of business. More and more individuals are looking to purchase crafts online because of the wider selection available, convenience of online shopping and access to higher-quality crafts. Having your own website and or web store will give your crafting business a professional appearance and make it easy for buyers to contact you and ask questions or commission a specially designed piece.

Even if you don't choose to offer a full inventory online, you can use your website to list dates and locations for when you will be selling products at local craft fairs or the locations of where your products can be find at local consignment shops.Remember if you set up your own website then you are in control.To set up a basic website you only need to come up with a domain name, design the website and pay for the cost of hosting. To accept payments online most crafters use PayPal or Google Checkout.

Even with a website, don't forget about online auctions such as eBay and online crafting vendors such as Etsy. These sites have massive numbers of daily visitors and can make it easier for a new business to develop their online presence by getting good ratings and helping generate traffic to your website. Selling through these sites requires a fee for listing your crafts and you may have to pay a percentage for when the craft sells.