What Evah - Support is not Enough

I've been encouraging Etsy sellers to joint this protest.  http://www.protesty.com because I think that you should be able to stand up for what you believe is right. But I've recently read a blog post that I think you all should read. I guess with honor, there comes sacrifice and I feel that I should warn you.

Please take a few minutes of your time to read The Hands of Handcrafted and How I was Expelled From Etsy
You will be shocked and amazed because this honest seller had her shop shut down because Etsy accused her of using her "public areas" of her account "to demonstrate or discuss disputes with others or with Etsy". In other words, that she might have protested something. Decide for yourself if her words were inappropriate.

My fear is that if you join the protest that Etsy might retaliate. If you join the protest and put your shop on vacation on May 10, please do not leave a message on your shop as to why you are closed unless you are willing to loose your business there. I realize that many of you are so angry that you don't care today, but realize that Etsy is the best venue for vintage and handmade. It' has taken my daughter and myself a solid year to get back on our feet again after our Etsy disaster.

I'd say be brave and stand up to them. But be cautious about it. Don't take unnecessary risk unless you are willing to start from scratch. Good luck to you all.

Bizz Buzz - A Little Bird Told Me

I've been hearing a lot about how unhappy Etsy sellers are about resellers on their site. I think that it's bad enough that Etsy promotes shops that blatantly break rules like this recent Star Wars Pez Dispenser find in Etsy Dudes (check the "vintage" dates).  It's bad enough that Etsy is kicking off honest hardworking crafters and leaving on resellers, but to add insult to injury, they've been promoting a lot of the resellers, like their featured seller EcologicaMalibu You can read more about who this seller really is in The Etsy Featured Reseller: Ecologica Malibu at Regretsy

I've been reading a lot of posts and blogs about this and it seems that everyone is upset, because they think the resellers are misrepresenting what they are selling as "handmade". After working with and in Chinese, Mexican and Filipino factories for several year, I can guarantee that most of the merchandise is hand made, not machine made. Humans are far cheaper to use than machines in those countries. So are you buying handmade? Even the   reclaimed wood furniture is, I'm sure, made by hand.

I think the point is that Etsy should be a place for self representing artists who also make their own craft of their own design. There are too many blatant abuses of this term to post here. And honestly, Etsy should be ashamed of promoting and featuring resellers, when there are so many wonderfully talented artists who have never been promoted.

So here is what a little twitter bird told me. I heard that there will be a silent protest against Etsy on May 10th. If you would like to learn more and join in on the silence, check out http://www.protesty.com and join the protest. I'm all about the protesting and radical behavior and stuff like that. But I bet you know that about me. I'd be doing this too if I hadn't already been quietly removed from Etsy late one Friday night (you know what I'm talking about).