Why Not Etsy?

Over a decade ago, I opened an Etsy for paper ephemera. You know what’s super dull? Taking photographs of old, useless papers. (Sorry, crafters.) I very quickly grew tired of my attempted business.

A few years later, I revived my Etsy shop, this time selling garments. I had great designs with a lot of modular items and a focus on serving those of us who are hip-heavy pears. There was one problem though: I hated sewing. I was thrilled with everything I finished, but the process of fighting with the machine left me in tears. I couldn’t imagine crying so much as a hobby.

It’s been about three years since I resumed being an artist. During that time, everyone has asked me, “What are you planning to do with it?” I have always replied, “Nothing.” The point of creating art was for my own well-being, peace and satisfaction. I didn’t want to turn something that brought me so much joy into another tear-stained Etsy shop.

Furthermore, during that time, Etsy changed their policies, driving up costs for the artists, sometimes for features the artists didn’t even opt into. They claimed that they did this because of their own rising costs during the pandemic “caused by a surge in traffic.” Okay, Jan. Sounds like you just want a bigger cut from the starving artist pie, but we’ll pretend to believe what you said. On top of this, Etsy is doing next to nothing to curb drop shippers selling things from cheap, low-quality overseas websites or who are selling art stolen from other artists. This turns me into a giant squid of rage.

In April of 2022, I decided to take a leap of faith. I bought my domain and started designing my website. (Let me tell you, website maintenance is a garbage fire. Thankfully, I’m married to an IT guy.) Then I let it sit for months while I dealt with the wildfire of my life.

I think it was that wildfire that finally pushed me to really take a chance on my art. I needed positive movement in my life. I started creating digital files of my work, cleaning and smoothing and uploading to the printer. The 2022 holiday season was my test run. Does my art actually appeal to anyone, or am I going to have a stack of cards to mail out myself? To my amazement, my gold, art-nouveau deer cards sold out!

When I noticed 2023 was going to be the Year of the Rabbit, I took it as a sign to get my art out there. I currently have a shelf of listed paintings in my bedroom closet and a photocase of 4x6 prints under my desk. I’ve redesigned my logo, bought some bubble mailers and thank you stickers, and learned how to print labels. I started Facebook and Pinterest pages for my shop, and I’ve been networking as much as an introvert can. I’ve already seen some big things happen this year that I’ll tell you about soon.

I’m on my own and loving it. I may not be playing the game with Etsy, but every social media site has its own mystery algorithm to appease before your posts get traction. Thankfully, there are a variety of ways you could help me out that won’t even cost you a penny. (I know not everyone has the budget for prints and framing and original art.)

• Follow The Hare and The Pear on Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest.

• Like my posts.

• Comment on my posts.

• Share my posts.

• Rate and review me on Facebook.

• Share my website with a friend.

Thank you for coming on this journey with me!