Alerts

 

Message to licensing applicants! Calling all Licensing Applicants! Hey there. Okay, I'll stop yelling. I know many of you have sent in your licensing applications (and they keep on a-coming in) and you have very patiently been waiting for next steps from me. I just wanted to let you know that I am still going through the first tsunami wave of them. Sit tight! Watch this space or my tweets for news as events warrant.

 

After a brief hiatus, my Sublime Stitching Licensing Program is back! I thought I would do a blog entry about it. If you want to sell what you make with my patterns, thus making some extra cash for your crafts, this might be a great way to do it! I try to make it as easy on you (and me) as possible. I've already done the hard part: you know, made updated embroidery patterns people seem to love and want on stuff, earned lots of traffic coming to my website where they can find my dear licensees, oh, and a few other things to make this business somewhat recognizable and unique.

I mean, I can't possibly embroider my designs up for everyone who asks (as much as I would love to) so having an army of licensees at my back let's me say: why don't you ask one of these wonderful and capable stitchers to do it, or see what they already have stitched up for sale on their site? And seeing as how I have over 50 sheets of designs that you can combine in a gerzillion different ways, there should be no problem for you to make something unique and desirable. Get creative, people!

I sense you have questions. I have answers. Let me guess. You want to know...

Uh, why is there now a fee to apply?
Because I have to read all your applications all by my lonesome (which is harder if you have bad handwriting, but stitchers tend to have impeccable handwriting), approve them, sign the contracts, file them and mail a copy back to you. When applying was free, I was getting an overwhelming amount of applications and I couldn't keep on top of them. Because anyone could apply for free, it seemed like everyone applied. Having a modest fee should help stem the tide a little bit, and make for a more serious and robust group of licensees.

So, it's possible that I pay the application fee and am still denied?
Technically yes, but to be honest it's highly unlikely. I rarely, rarely turn anyone down.

How much does it cost if I'm approved?
Possibly nothing to very, very little. 5% of your sales is collected, but I generally don't collect royalties unless a large amount of items are being made / sold. It's decided on a case-by-case basis what that means and I expect you to be honest with me about that. Okay?

So, if I'm a freelance designer or employed by a manufacturer, I can apply for your licensing agreement myself and use your designs for projects I submit to my boss / company to make, right?
Wrong. The company manufacturing the product will have to apply for the license themselves and I will have to work out terms with them. My licensing program is first and foremost designed to be indie-maker friendly, and allow me the opportunity to work with larger manufacturers in an ethical fashion if they want to produce goods bearing my designs.

Do I have to be hand-embroidering your designs to obtain a license?
Nope! You can be using them as a basis for painting, digitizing, woodburning, screen-printing, beading...anything. Depending on the method of manufacture will determine the royalty. In other words, if you are making hundreds of product by machine with my designs on them, the royalty will be higher. If you are doing them entirely by hand by yourself, in small batches, the royalty will be little to nothing.

So, why do this at all?
Because if I don't, I lose the ability to enforce my copyright. If you don't, you are making it harder for me to enforce my copyright. If I say "yes, you can sell what you make with my designs and don't need written permission from me" then *anyone*, including major manufacturers (who just looove my designs but don't looove to pay me or ask permission first) could take my designs, use them on a product and sell them without any formal approval and without me being able to stop them. And, I'm not just being paranoid. Three lines of clothing have been manufactured without my permission in recent years, bearing my designs. Unaltered. Bought by the company directly from me. I'm not kidding. (I successfully stopped them in each case, and I didn't make a big deal out of it, so you may not know this happened to me at all). So instead of saying no one can do it, I try to make it as easy as possible for most everyone to do it -while still having a system in place for legitimate licensing. Make sense?

If you have more questions, you might find this Crafting a Business column I wrote about this very subject for Venuszine.com helpful and informative.

I get it already! Just show me where to apply, okay? Sheesh.
All right. Thanks for reading this. If you are registered and logged in, you can apply directly here. If not, why don'tcha register? 

 

 

 

I thought you'd want to know that these two lovely items, the Sublime Stitching Note Pad and the Embroidered Lotus Journal are going to go out of stock, never to return for sale! If you want either of them, now's the time. Or, if you feel so inclined to spend $50 on my humble little site, you'll get a free notepad! Orders over $100 get a free notepad and journal! (You also get a free Lotus Journal with any purchase of two books). I wanna make room for new stuff, so let's make sure everyone who wants one has one (before they're goners for good).

 

 

 

Oh, dear. I don't know how to tell you this. Something kinda great, and kinda not-so-great has happened to the beloved Stitch-It Kit, the first embroidery kit I wrote, stitched and illustrated for Chronicle Books. What's great is, all (and I mean all) of the remaining copies were purchased directly from the publisher by a distributor in the UK. People, that's a lotta kits to buy (somebody really loves embroidery). But, the bad news is, Chronicle Books isn't prepared to re-print a new run of the Stitch-It Kit (no one was expecting all those kits to get bought up like that) and now they're all gone from us and them. Only retailers who currently hold copies have them.

The good news is: there are still copies out there. We just don't have any of them ourselves (I'm clutching my one copy a little tighter now). If you want one before this kit goes the way of the dodo, I highly suggest you track one down via eBay, Amazon or your local bookstore.

Maybe the Stitch-It Kit is destined to become a rare collector's item. But hey! Even though the Stitch-It Kit had many unique things about it, we still have my original embroidery starter kit right here: Ultimate Embroidery Kit.

Sniffle!

 

 

Handmade Nation is finally making it's way to the Lone Star State! We are pleased as punch to have Faythe Levine screening her highly acclaimed film in our home town. And we are welcoming her with a weekend of fun, including: a book signing party, two screenings with Q+A after each screening, Craft Bazaar, and a post-screening party.

To buy Special VIP Pre-sale tickets click here! 

(Advance tickets are sold out but you can still get tickets at the Alamo Drafthouse!)

 

Here are the details (Please help spread the word via Facebook!):

Saturday, September 5th

 

 

Book signing party 7-9pm, Domy Books
Faythe Levine will be signing books alongside artists featured in the book (Whitney Lee, Jennifer Perkins, Magda Sayeg, and Kathie Sever) Sounds by DJ Bullet, free beer from Live Oak brewing, and an awesome raffle, packed with prizes from artists and local businesses. Free.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Sunday, September 6th

Handmade Nation Screenings 1:30pm and 4:10pm, Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar
The film's Austin premiere!  Q & A to follow with director, Faythe Levine, and several of the films' subjects. Tickets available here!

plus...

Craft Bazaar noon-6pm, Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar
Craft fair featuring some of Austin's most talented up and coming artists, craft demos and giveaways, and stuff for the kiddos. Take a look at a list of vendors right here. Free.

 

Austin Handmade Post Screening Shabang 6:30pm-9pm Austin Handmade
Austin Handmade is hosting an after party at their new location - more crafty goods, free drinks by Treaty Oak Rum, snacks by Nada Moo and a dj. Free.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Other Notable Crafty Austin Events over Labor Day Weekend include...

Austin Craft Mafia is hosting a Communicrafting event at Space 12 on Saturday September 5th 11 am-7pm.  More details to come.

And the MakeOut Sessions will be meeting at the U.S. Art Authority, Sunday September 6th, 2-7pm. 

 

Related:

Handmade Nation Iron-on Transfers 
Handmade Nation PDX Premiere
Handmade Nation Featured on Etsy
Summit of Awesome Recap
Handmade Nation Titles
Handmade Nation Update / Trailer
Craft Doc

Facebook Event Page

In case I haven't mentioned it here before (have I? I can't remember), there is a set of Free Sublime Stitching Patterns on Flickr that I've been posting for you on the occasional Friday. I call it "Free Fun Flickr Pattern Friday" or some other combination of using too many "f's". The latest addition I whipped up for you is the much-requested pug dog! Get your free "Pugly" pattern right here. Snort. Snuffle.

 

 

As part of the Indie Biz Chicks Summer Sessions, I'll be doing another conference call this evening with registered participants to talk about my experiences with book publishing. You can participate in the session by registering and listening in to the call live! There will also be a Q&A, and the entire session should last an hour. Did you miss the last one, or have plans tonight? No worries! They will be archived as podcasts, and you can listen to my last session here. 

Tonight: June 9th @ 8pm/cst Conference Call w/Jenny Hart About Book Publishing Register Here!

Related Reading: Crafting a Business by Jenny Hart "The Deal With Book Deals"

 

(photo by Danielle Thompson) 

There are three major craft events going on this weekend and my triple-transformer is broken, so I can only go to one. I'll be at Art Star Craft Bazaar in Philadelphia (Saturday only), while ICE Atlanta and Maker Faire (San Mateo) is happening this weekend too. We will divide and conquer though, and for the first time ever, Sublime Stitching helpers Jessica and Jordan will be at ICE! So nice. Our good friends Mark Frauenfelder and  Mr. Jalopy will be at Maker Faire and you should give them a hearty hello. Come say hi to all of us, wherever you may be this weekend!

 

If you're like us, you recycle glass plastic and paper, compost your food waste and take your own shopping bag when you go to the store. Right? ("Of course!") So do you ever think, "why do I need a trash can at all?" What's going in there? Well, take a look at the leftovers, get inspired, and create some handmade treasures from so-called trash! We wanna see how you can creatively re-purpose items that you have lying around the house, unused, or that might haveotherwise ended up getting thrown 'away'. Perish the thought!

For your edification: The term 'upcycling' was coined by William McDonough and Michael Braungart, authors of Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things. Their belief is that we can eliminate the concept of waste altogether if everything we make is either biodegradable, infinitely recyclable, or upcycled.

How to Enter:

• Create something made of items that would have otherwise been thrown away or recycled (stained shirt, chipped glass). While we admit to being partial to embroidery, we will accept entries of any kind!
• Submit a photo of your entry by April 27, 2009 to the Sublime Stitching Customer Gallery. When you create the name for your project be sure to begin with the word "Upcycled". (For example "Upcycled Book Mark") This is important because otherwise we may not see your submission. That would be a bummer.

 Prizes:

• First Prize:  $50 gift certificate to Sublime Stitching, $50 gift certificate to Fred Flare, and a copy of Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things.
• Second Prize:  Sublime Stitching Craft Pad and Sublime Stitching Lotus Flower Journal, and a copy of Amy Butler's Midwest Modern.
• Third prize:  Sublime Stitching Lotus Flower Journal and Issue 8 of Mixtape Zine.

Who's the Boss?

Entries will be judged by our own Jenny Hart and the awesome Autumn Wiggins, of The Upcycle Exchange, and regular contributor to Crafting a Green World.

Looking for Inspiration?

Upcycled Napkin Ring Tutorial

GreenUpgrader

Crafting a Green World

Wiliam McDonough on Ted Talks

freecycle

 

...with my staff! This morning I was sweetly greeted with a crocheted rose and googly-eyed, hand-drawn card! BAW! So, so sweet. When I said "B-b-but, I don't have anything for you guys," they said "You give to us every day." BAAWW! Read about who helps me run this shebang on our About Us page. They're pretty freaking awesome. Sniffle!