Bitch Post #11: My Chest Is Heavy Enough..

It's time to get some things off of it. Some of my Facebook Fans have already gotten an earful, but I thought I'd share with the general population:) In no particular order:

1. You can only truly call it Castile soap if you only use olive and no other oils and/or butters!
2. Soap makers who list a soap and only show the soap in its packaging. Where's the friggin soap?!
3. Sellers who tell you that they'll leave you positive feedback if and only if you leave them positive feedback first. WTF??
4. Entrecard droppers who don't drop back. It's common courtesy like saying "Hello" back to someone who says "Hello" to you.
   
5. People who contact me about wholesaling my stuff, we work out the terms, I send them the bill, and then I never hear from them again (It's happened to me more than once in the last 6 months!)
6. People who adopt, buy, or are given pets only to turn around and dump them after they realize that pets are like children-they need love, attention, medical care, etc. This really burns me up!
   
7. When someone stops following my blog. It hurts a little. It's like saying, "Ugh, I don't like you anymore..." Yes, I do have a sensitive side, LOL.
   

I'm done bitching for now. I have lots more to say, but I'll save it for another post...

Bitch Post #9: Yes, Packaging Counts!

Picture this: You order something really beautiful and rather expensive (for the sake of argument, I consider anything handmade expensive compared to store-bought), and you're anxiously awaiting its arrival in the mail. The day finally comes, and you rip open the box, and you quickly deflate like busted balloon. Your stuff is wrapped in newspaper! This has happened to me more than once. I'm not expecting fancy gift wrap, but please don't wrap my treasures in newspaper! Ugh!! I cannot tell you what a turnoff that is. You can go to the dollar store and buy tissue paper in a multitude of colors and hook it up! I've been doing that lately, and my customers love it! I use my signature colors-hot pink and black with coordinating ribbon, and it makes such a statement without braking the bank.

So today's lesson: NO NEWSPAPER! Save your packing peanuts and bubble wrap from your own purchases to reuse for your shipments. Get thee to Family Dollar or Dollar Tree or Five Below or whatever your local dollar store may be, and stock up on tissue paper. Okay, I'm done. For now.....

Bitch Post #8: Non-Paying and Shady Buyers!

I haven't done one of these in a long while, and oh, my friends, I’ve been stewing like that bunny in Fatal Attraction-just ready to boil over! I’ve been having a steady number of sales on Etsy in the last couple of weeks, but nothing burns me more than a non-paying buyer! It even says in the final checkout…”You are committing to buy”-as in PAY! I’ve been burned twice in the last month!

The first incident wasn’t a non-paying buyer, but my spidey instincts started tingling and told me that something was fishy. This buyer had a really low feedback rating because of non-payment. She did not pay me initially when the transaction was completed, but after we traded a couple of convoes, she paid me. Red flag #1: She stated she was located in the US when she was actually in Canada-so I ate the costs of the extra shipping which wasn’t a whole lot, but it was misleading and dishonest! Red flag #2: She then sweetly hassled me about giving her positive feedback because she received negative feedback from a very reputable Etsy seller due to non-payment. I mailed her package on a Saturday. A week later, I get a convo from her that she still had not received the package. I explained it was mailed via USPS and provided her with a tracking #. To wrap up this horror story, I ended up refunding her the full purchase price and cancelling the sale. She may truly not have received that package because USPS still says the package was “accepted” for mailing, but there is no delivery confirmation or otherwise. I’ve never had a problem shipping a package to Canada until this incident. I don’t get it!

The second incident was a brand new buyer to Etsy. He joined the same day that he bought a soap from me. He didn’t pay. I figured it was because he was new and may have been confused about how things operated. So I convoed him to thank him for his purchase and explained that I would promptly ship his soap once payment was received. Three days passed and nothing, so I ended up cancelling that sale too!

So now I’m nervous after every sale. I never give feedback to a buyer until I receive payment, but now I’m wondering if I’m jumping the gun. I don’t like to hold feedback hostage, but should I wait until I receive feedback before I give feedback? Also, should I give negative feedback to a non-paying buyer then cancel the sale, or should I just cancel the sale and be done with it? I’ve never had this happen to me before. I’ve always read about it, but I’ve never been a victim til now. I’m beyond pissed….ARGHHHHH!

Bitch Post #6: Sellers Who Don't Thank Their Customers

You know I'm long overdue for one of these posts:-D

Nothing irks me more than a seller who does not take the time to thank his or her buyer for their time and their money! I think it's rude, unprofessional, and a repeat buyer killer! I work hard for my money, and I don't spend it on something "extra" unless I am so in love with it that I have to have it! Case in point: I made two purchases last week on both Etsy and 1000 Markets, and neither seller contacted me with a simple "Thank You," "I received your order," "Kiss my butt..."-NOTHING!!! You didn't have a problem taking my money, yet you couldn't take the time to drop me a line? These sellers have lost my business forever (and that's a mighty long time.) If you're guilty of not contacting your client after they buy something from your shop, I implore you to start doing so. All it takes is two words: Thank You. You could lose lots of money without even realizing it!

Bitch Post #5: Use Spell Check People!!!

I'm so disgusted, I'm about to explode!!! I was on Art Fire (when am I not on Art Fire?) reading the forums when I constantly came across threads with blatant misspellings. Maybe they weren't so blatant to the authors, but this just burns me up! Grown-ass people who can't spell or take the time to proof their thoughts before hitting the send button need to not even bother writing. The sad thing is there's a built-in spell-checker in the box! I won't even talk about listings with multiple misspellings. I will immediately leave your shop. I'll give grammatical errors a pass because I'm guilty of them myself sometimes. But I do make a point to read my stuff before listing or posting. If you ever find a misspelling in one of my product listings, please let me know!!!

Okay, I'm getting off my soapbox. My blood pressure has already gone down 10 points just by posting this. Have a good Saturday (what's left of it anyway!)

Does It Really Do That? A Product Review

I can honestly call myself a product junkie. I love to try the latest trends in beauty, and I was recently presented with an opportunity to try Smooth Away. I know you've seen the commercial. It's the one where you slip the little pad on your hand and rub all the unwanted hair away. I was really excited to try this one because I don't like waxing (it hurts like hell), I don't like shaving (not worth it if you're a Sasquatch like me), and I cannot stand Nair or Neet (stinks all to be damned!) We all know the saying, "If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is..." Well, I hate to report that in this case, that saying holds true.

The premise of Smooth Away is that you rub this pad of super-granulated crystals in a circular motion over the areas where you have unwanted hair, and the hair is magically buffed away! The process is described on its site as easy, safe & painless. I found the process to be difficult, scary, and painful. I started off small-I wanted to get rid of my moustache (which just aint sexy on a chick). I must have rubbed my skin raw trying to remove the hair on my upper lip. When that didn't work, I moved to my legs thinking a bigger area with longer, thicker hair would be more successful. I did manage to remove a few hairs, but it took maximum effort and about 10 minutes of buffing my leg to an ashy shine. I immediately used the lotion provided with the hair removal pads to soothe my chaffed, still-hairy skin. The moisturizer is key to this product because you will definitely need it after using this product.

In conclusion, I cannot recommend Smooth Away. It did not live up to the expectations it set forth in its ad. It requires maximum effort with minimal results. I do like the moisturizer though. I actually use it after I finish shaving which I've reverted back to. Check out the site and read the FAQ and make the decision for yourself.