Q and A

wheee, i thought it was finally time i put some of this down in "official" terms, 'cause people keep askin' and, first of all, i have to keep repeatin' myself, and second, half the time i can't remember what i said the last time i was asked.  >_<  i'll keep updating this Q&A as necessary, so... yeah.

I'm interested in buying...

Q:  How much for ________?
A:  Unless otherwise noted, prices are as follows:
charms:  $5
earrings:  $12
cord necklace:  $10
cell charm:  $6
Some charms cost more, and some cost less, depending on how involved and complex they are.  I'll always say in the pic's description if they cost more/less.  If you buy multiples of the same thing, liiiike a whole bunch of duckies, then for every 4 you buy, the 5th one is free.  because things are easier to make in bigger batches.

Q:  Do you take custom charm orders?
A:  Yes!  Note me with a description of what you want, or a reference pic of a character you want charm-ified, and I'll get back to you with a price.

Q:  Do you take custom jewelry orders?
A:  Yes!  I do beading, chain mail, and a leetle bit of wire work.  Just be aware that if you want something like a charm bracelet/necklace, cluster earrings, or something that involves multiple charms then it is on a per charm basis.  Note me with what you want, and I'll get back to you with a price.

Q:  How much is shipping, and will you ship to ________?
A:  I will ship to anywhere, and shipping is a flat $3.  That covers the shipping and the cost of the packaging.  Because the Post Office people grimace every time I try to mail something in a plain envelope, and then they make me buy a box or a big padded envelope.  -_-U  Shipping also covers as many charms as you can possibly buy, because i can stuff a loooot of charms into one of those envelopes.  Or a box.

Q:  But haven't you said before that shipping is just a buck or two?
A:  Yeah, but then I learned from experience.  Sorry.  If I've specifically quoted you, personally, shipping at a cheaper price then I'll stick with it, but if you've just seen somewhere in one of my posts a cheaper price, then sorry, it's $3 now.

Q:  Do you require payment upfront, or...?
A:  For a bigger custom order (for example, a very detailed charm of your very specific, very unique character) I might require a percentage upfront, just in the offchance that you flake on me (not that I'm implying anything), so that it's not a total loss.  But in most cases I'll finish your order and post a picture of it for your approval before asking for payment.  But I won't send anything until after I receive payment.

Q:  How do I pay you?
A:  I can take PayPal (for an extra $1, because they charge a fee now  *kicks paypal*), money orders, personal checks, or cash.  The latter three are all at your own risk, because places don't really check anymore before cashing stuff, so people steal that stuff out of the mail too.

Q:  How long do you take to fill an order?
A:  If you're buying something that is already made, like something that you see in one of my photos, then I can ship it as soon as I receive payment for it.  For custom orders, it generally takes me about a week to fill a relatively small or simple order (mostly because the glaze I use looks best with several coats, which takes time, and then to be safe I like to let it sit and harden for a day or two).  For larger orders, I still try to keep it under 2 weeks at the very very most.  I try.  Please don't start raging on me in the offchance that it takes a bit longer.  I do get backed up with orders every once in a while, and I do participate in a few art/craft sales, so I also get preoccupied with trying to replenish my stock for those.

Q:  Why does this charm cost so little, while this charm costs so much?
A:  It's either because of the effort that it takes to make the charm, or because of the materials used.  Or in the case of a finished piece of jewelry, possibly both.

Q:  Why don't you just make an online store?  It'd make things easier.
A:  I intend to.  I haven't made an online store yet for a few reasons.  One, I haven't quite figured out a catchy name for my, for lack of a better word, "business" (any suggestions?).  Two, because I wanted to see if it'd be profitable enough to justify buying a domain name and building a website and all that junk.  And three, because any reputable place that will handle the "store" functions (like shopping carts and checkouts, etc.) charges for that service too.

I'm just being curious...

Q:  So... you make all this stuff?  Really?
A:  Yep.  By hand.  From scratch.  Well, with the occasional aid of a cookie cutter or something.

Q:  What are they made of?
A:  They are all made from Sculpey clay.  They are either made with clay that comes colored, or they are made with stock clay (which is pinkish in color, and sold in larger quantities) and then painted with acrylics (mostly the cheapy stuff in the small color sampler assortment-ish containers that you can buy at most craft stores).  Then they're glazed with several coats of high gloss polyurethane glaze.

Q:  What tools do you use?
A:  Just stuff like toothpicks and needles, and an X-acto knife.  I also use needlenose and roundnose pliers to deal with all the metal parts.

Q:  Kay, so you seem to reply to Deviation comments pretty well, but why didn't you reply to my Devious comment?
A:  That thing that shows up on the very bottom of your main userpage?  Because it doesn't show up in the Messages tab when you get one!  So I always forget that they're there, and then when I do happen to scroll down there and find that somebody left me one a month ago (or more), I feel stupid just now replying to it.  XD  So while I may not reply to it, or may not even see it there for quite a while, I do appreciate it very much, and it does give me warm fuzzies whenever I see a new message down there.  So if you've left me a message there, THANK YOUUUUU!  ;3