Not sure what to do with your “mistakes” - then continue reading.
I can go on for days about the reasons handmade is magic. Generally, buying artisanal is not only supporting small businesses, but also investing in unique or limited edition items, creating a community around us and contributing to the development of healthy purchasing habits.
But we can all figure that creating items by yourself in your tiny studio is not some factory-like business. And when something I have been working on for hours just does not turn out okay, it is way more personal than the printer spitting out half a page.
Because hours of planning and execution are spent, and because I am literally bringing my ideas to life using my hands and eyes - everything is looked at in detail. And because of the attention that each item receives - quality becomes at the forefront of it all. Moreover, with nearly 10% of global carbon emissions being accounted for by the textile industry, it is a no brainer that handmade is the responsible choice we should aim to make. Purchasing an item that has been carefully crafted and that will last longer helps our world and creates an opportunity for a better future.
We all know there is going to be a but…
Amongst all the great benefits of creating handmade items - there is a disadvantage that I cannot go forward without mentioning. There is this one catch that taught me not everything is easily predictable and that messy outcomes are often part of the deal.
A new venture I dived into recently was screen printing. As most of you know, the very basics of screen printing involve creating a stencil, then pressing ink through the screen in order to create the design onto the surface below (tote bag, t-shirt, paper etc) . And bear in mind that no matter how skillful you are or how steady your hand is - you might just turn out with a faulty piece sitting in front of you.
So what do you do with imperfect stock?
Well, screen printing is a relatively slow process since each piece is literally laid down and handled manually. Now imagine that you have just spent a significant amount of time getting everything set up and ready to go, and then with one wrong swipe - you are looking at a distorted or partially printed image sitting in front of you instead. So what do you do? Firstly, you take a deep breath before the panic sets in and then…
The most important part of selling imperfect items is informing your customers of the nature of the “damage”. And remember that it is very important to never try and pass second grade items as normal ones.
Just imagine printing on a t-shirt or a tote bag and spilling ink on the textile right next to your beautiful design. Here is an idea - sell your misprint at a discounted prince as a solution. Just a few of the benefits:
People who cannot or do not want to purchase at a full price can get one for cheaper
You can be more personal and offer insight to your creation process - how did the error happen?
You can cover at least the costs for the materials
No items are being thrown away which is a great sustainable solution
Giving a second life to any flawed creations is relatively easy.
Example: When I first started screen printing my tote bags and t-shirts, around 20% of my items did not turn out perfect which was very frustrating for me. I had invested both time and finances into this process and felt very disappointed in myself. Then, looking at the bags and shirts I thought that maybe the small misprinted areas aren't that bad. That's when I decided to host my first Misprint Sale. I took separate photographs for each items, with close-ups of the misprinted areas and put them on my website with an announcement. They all sold out in less than an hour! I did not make a profit, but I managed to at least cover most of my material cost, which I am thankful for!
One of the items from my Misprint Sale. I made sure there are clear photos of the misprinted areas.
Just make sure you are transparent with everyone willing to purchase them, present the benefits of doing so and keep it simple. And remember that one of the reasons people purchase from smaller handmade businesses is to connect with the person behind the brand. Being honest about your creation process can be an opportunity to connect with your clients. Showing them that there is a human behind the process and including any setbacks you had along the way is part of the truly hand made.
This is the photo I used for my shop and banner to announce the sale. It is a photo that I had taken with my phone, everything messy genuine. My intention was to give a sneak-peek of the process and help people who are not familiar with screen printing understand how it works and where the misprints come from.
Bonus tip: offer any small imperfect items as freebies with regular purchases which can promote your business. For example, stickers or pins can be easily grouped into ‘oopsie’ bags. People LOVE the thrill of mystery bags and they receive it free of charge. You could also offer these for sale too, just make sure people know they're purchasing discounted imperfect items.
All of that being said, you should still be picky about what you are selling your customers. It is a delicate area organizing a Misprint Sale, you should go through every single item and decide if is still something you could sell. Sometimes there are oopsies that should not see the light of day, where you should just cut your losses. It is much more important to preserve the trust between you and your customer than getting a little bit of extra cash. I recommend reading my article on this topic- Quality Control For Artists , it is a quick read I promise.
Do not be afraid to make mistakes and remember that not every item you create will be factory-perfect. So make sure to embrace every hurdle and create a positive outcome. No two handmade items are ever going to be the same. And whatever is imperfect for one might be just the right thing for another. I've had customers who loved the texture of my misprints more than the "perfect" ones! So why not put together a flash sale with all your imperfectly perfect creations and all your oopsie daisies, all the experiments and the prototypes. Embrace it and thank me later.
Happy crafting!
-Clementine
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