Inspiration can present itself in so many ways; perhaps it might be a complete idea of just a tiny little acorn of an idea. But, sometimes it is the little acorns that set your products apart from the rest - from tiny acorns grow great oaks afterall.

In the third installment of my Artisan Features of fellow Artfire artists, here is Michelle from Creative Critters and her answers to my bunch of questions:

When I relaunched Butterfly-Crafts, I created a Newsletter for people to sign up to and I will send out a newsletter ever 4 to 6 weeks. Well, the newsletter hasn't received a great number of sign ups and this might be because I have not advertised it well enough or there is no incentive to sign up!

Last time we looked at creating a mission for your business, this blog will talk about brand identity. By creating a brand, you communicate a message about your company to other peope. But, a brand is not just about a logo, colours and stationery but about an entire idea. If I asked you how would you like other people to describe your business, what would you say?

Over the past few business set up blogs we have looked at the technical side of things. Now it is time to talk style! The biggest aim you have is for someone to see one of your products and recognise it as your brand.

Now you have decided to make the giant step into owning your own business you need to decide if you want to continue doing things alone (sole ownership) or with someone else (partnership).

A partnership is much more than just dividing up the work and the profits, it’s also about taking advantage of each individual’s strengths. A partnership can be very satisfactory if it works well, but emotionally draining when they aren’t working right. What ever legal structure you decide upon will determine your taxes and personal liability. The best recommendation I can give here is to seek professional advice.

When you set up a business, one of the biggest concerns is the finances. Many craft businesses are started as a sideline career or an extension of a hobby and therefore require little capital investment (like Butterfly Crafts). But if you plan to work full time on your new business, many business advisors recommend that you save up twelve months of living expenses – just in case!

Whether you sell online or in bulk, once people begin buying your products, you are a business and there are some basic necessities you will need to consider. Firstly bear in mind, a company must make a profit for 3 out of 5 years or it will be considered a hobby. I will not, in any way, call myself an expert here and you will need to research further but below are some points to consider:

Business License – you are often required to keep your business license mounted on the wall at your place of business.

Zoning – you may need to verify that you are allowed to run a business from the location you choose.

Fictitious Business Name – if you run a business under a name that is not your legal name, you will need to file a fictitious business name (FBN), also known as a DBA (doing business as).

Sellers Permit – if the goods you sell are taxable then you will need a sellers permit.

Federal Tax ID – if you have employees then you will need to have a Tax ID number. If you are the sole proprietor then you would fill out a self assessment form instead every year.

Trademarks – a trademark is a word, phrase, symbol or picture that distinguishes your goods from another company’s. Getting a trademark is a protective measure to prevent someone else opening a company or selling a product with the same name.

House insurance – if you are running your business from your home you need to make sure you have enough insurance to cover your tools, equipment, materials and products.

Health insurance – sometimes joining an artists’ guild or association can provide discount rates.

Product liability insurance – this covers you if someone suffers an injury from your product and decided to sue you. Items that may be affected include candles (fire) and bath and body products (skin irritants).

Phone line – it is illegal to have your home phone line as your business line so you will either need a mobile phone or another land line.

Business bank account – it is far better to use a separate bank account so that you can keep track of expenses and keep the income separate. It might also be a good idea to open a separate savings account to set aside money for the tax bill.

I really love featuring other Artfire artists and today is the turn of Silver River Jewelry. I set Silver River Jewelry owner, Sonja, a bunch of questions to find out more from the artist.

1) If you had to work by a creative mission what would it be? My creative mission is to make as much of each piece by hand as I possibly can. You can see this the most in my metal work as I dig many of the stones myself and finish them as well as design and make the settings. I am hoping to learn to make lamp work beads in the future which will help make my pieces more "mine" as well.

2) Have you had any creative disasters? Almost every day! I am quite good at melting metal!

3) What is your favourite item in your collection? Right now I really like my rustic wildflower pendant series

4) Sum up your collection for me: Elegance with a touch of whimsy

5) Is there another craft you would like to try? Umm everything else in the jewelry field I haven't learned yet! I came late to the jewelry but have spent many years doing other crafts.

6) What is your favourite craft store? Rio Grande

7) From where do you draw your inspiration? From the stones, from nature, from color and shapes

8) What made you do this for a business? My compulsiveness to create and my addiction to stones and beads of course.

9) How do you like online selling? Actually I love it! BIG learning curve but well worth it. And I have met so many wonderful people I would never have met otherwise.

10) What tip can you pass to a new online seller? Take really good pictures, be willing to work harder than you ever have and be patient.

11) Describe yourself in 5 words Christian, Mother, wife, metal smith, jewelry designer

12) What has been your favourite vacation/holiday? Germany

13) What's a good book you have read? If you want to walk on water you have to get out of the boat.

14) Which season do you relate with and why? Spring, Summer and Fall. Spring is for new beginnings. Summer is the best, I love the warmth and the sun, and Fall just has such beautiful colors that can't fail to inspire.

15) What is a favourite film of yours? Lord of the Rings

Well thank you Sonja, and here is a spotlight of my favourite items available at Silver River Jewelry:

So you've been thinking about how you can turn your creative hobby into a business, but now you have this idea - what next? Well the absolute first thing you need to do is become serious about your dream and don’t just limit your idea to earning a few coppers on the side because you never know where it might lead!

Earning an income from your creative hobby is not purely about someone buying your products; it’s about making a livelihood that works for you. The early days are about development stages where it is important to include all the activities you love or you will soon grow tired of something that started as a hobby.

One of the first items on your business “to-do” list has to be deciding on a business name. The name should reflect your product but ask yourself this: Will the name still sound good in 5 years time and will it give me the space to grow? I chose Butterfly-Crafts because I am fascinated with butterflies and how they go through many changes, I could develop a good brand and also cover many crafts. If I’d chosen Butterfly-Cards, I would’ve put a constraint on myself.

Coming up with a business name can be fun, just remember though that you will have to live with the result so it pays to do some homework and groundwork. Research on the Internet to see if your name has been taken, check with any agencies if necessary but overall, make sure the name you choose is a perfect fit!


Coming in the next Business Tips blog on Friday: Business Set Up Part 2 - Basic Necessities

Hello and welcome to the Butterfly-Crafts blog.

I have been running Butterfly Crafts for a little over three months now and I have never regretted a single minute! Artfire is an amazing site to have a store on, the staff are brilliant, the other sellers are my online "friends" and I feel a valued member of the gang!

But, after these three months I feel it is time for the butterfly to get a new set of wings! On Saturday 4th July, I will be having a mini relaunch of Butterfly Crafts. This will include

• A new banner and avatar,


• A whole new blog with a different layout and features


• An artisan of the fortnight feature on the blog (If you wish to take part leave me a comment)


• A mailing list which you can sign up to and receive an email every 4-6 weeks with news of special offers, new items and general news


• A better utilised Facebook site


• An up-to-date Flickr site


• A more up-to-date byhand.me site


• A new style of picture in the store listings,


• A whole big bunch of listings to fill up the virtual shelves


• And hopefully some well placed adverts to get my brand 'out there'

• A written blog series on turning your craft into your business.

Here is a sneaky peak at my avatar:

Make sure you check back on 4th July for an overview of what has happened!

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