Threadymade Serves Up Pleated and Smocked Fashion Kits By Mail
Threadymade is a new craft kit company that provides pre-pleated and smocked fabrics for garment sewing at home
Choosing a Laser-Cutting Service
A round-up of laser-cutting services for quilting templates, acrylic rulers, or tags and other unique products to promote your business along with tips for working with laser cutting services.
2020 Trends in the European Craft Market, Looking Ahead to 2021
Representatives of a cross section of the European craft industry to weigh in on what changes they have seen in their business this year, and what trends they foresee for 2021.
Buying and Wearing African Wax Prints: An Exploration
African wax prints are fabrics with a complex and nuanced history and, although they’re trending on the fashion runways, some consumers question whether wearing these garments is cultural appropriation.
Recycling Scrap Materials, Artists Work to Earn a Living in Zimbabwe
Industrious and creative young people in Zimbabwe are upcycling metal scraps into intricate artworks and finding a market for them abroad, providing economic opportunity which is hard to come by in the current economy.
15 Percent Pledge Calls on Retailers to Support Black-Owned Businesses
A new “15 Percent Pledge” calls for major retailers to pledge 15% of their shelf space to Black-owned businesses. Will craft industry retailers take action?
Clothworks Prints 1 Millionth Yard of American Made Brand Fabric
This year, Clothworks is celebrating its one-millionth yard of American Made Brand fabric, quilting cotton that’s manufactured entirely in the United States.
Coronavirus Disrupts the Craft Industry Supply Chain
Coronavirus is impacting the supply chain for craft businesses large and small due to factory quarantines and closures plus shipping delays in China.
How Offering Gift Cards Can Grow Your Sales This Holiday Season
Selling gift cards can help you boost your holiday sales. They’re the ideal last-minute gift and shoppers with a gift card tend to spend more than they would have otherwise. Read these tips to add gift cards to your product mix this year.
The Gift That Doesn’t Always Keep Giving: A Retailer’s Guide to the Legalities Gift Cards
Selling gift cards in your shop can be a great way to boost sales, but be aware of these legal issues before you dive in.
How to Successfully Sell Your Designs on Spoonflower
Spoonflower is a print-on-demand service that allows you to create your own design, upload it, and print it on fabric, wallpaper, and gift wrap. Designers have the option to sell their unique surface patterns on the Spoonflower Marketplace and receive a small percentage of each sale. The key to selling anything online is getting found and the same is true of the Spoonflower Marketplace. Use the tips to optimize your listings so that you can make the most of this platform.
Aurifil Takes Step to Offset Plastic Waste By Partnering with The Plastic Bank
At the end of January the Italian premium thread brand, Aurifil, announced a partnership with The Plastic Bank, a social enterprise based in Canada that aims to clean up plastic waste from the ocean while providing work opportunities for people living in poverty. Most weights of Aurifil threads currently come wound on plastic spools.
RJR Enforces MAP Pricing for Cotton+Steel; Retailers React
Fabric company RJR notified retailers of a minimum advertised pricing (MAP) policy that will go into effect for Cotton+Steel.
Joann+ Program Offers Bulk Discounts to Small Businesses
Does your small business need to order a lot of fabric on a regular basis? If you’re running sewing school, small batch production studio, costume shop, or another sort of business that requires many yards of fabric come through your doors month after month, a bulk discount program could dramatically reduce your costs.
JOANN+ is a new business-to-business initiative from JOANN that aims to help small businesses, organizations, and solo entrepreneurs.
Craft Trend Report From Darice
Craft Industry Alliance is excited to have Darice join us as a corporate member. Darice is a premier manufacturer and wholesale distributor to the crafts industry that carries more than 45,000 products.
New Wholesale Platforms Rise in the Wake of Etsy Wholesale
In the wake of Etsy Wholesale’s closure, many artists and makers are looking for new resources for selling creative work to wholesale buyers.
SCRAP USA Brings New Business Model to Reuse Centers
Reuse, repurpose, and recycle is more than a slogan at SCRAP USA — it’s a business model that aims to make creative reuse stores a sustainable endeavor applicable to any community.
Why Etsy Wholesale Matters—and Why Etsy Shouldn’t Let It Die
It appears that Etsy is pivoting away from Etsy Wholesale. Some of the people that use the platform share the role it has played in their businesses.
Building a Business, One Rug Loop at a Time: Profile of Amy Oxford
Amy Oxford has been a professional rug maker for 30+ years, selling her rugs, operating a business for supplies, creating kits and patterns, and teaching.
The Big List of Fabric Manufacturers
Whether you’re starting an online fabric shop, launching your own line of garments, preparing for a large class of quilters, or planning for a big sewing giveaway, there may come a time when you need to reach out to fabric manufacturers. Here’s the big list of fabric manufacturers with contact information.