Monday, February 7, 2011

Variety Is The Spice of Crafting

Wouldn't it be great if we could find every stamp, paper, ink, tool and embellishment we ever wanted at our nearest craft store? How convenient! No more shipping fees (or in some cases, taxes AND shipping). No more scouring the world wide web for the best selcetion at the best prices. No more having to wait (and wait... and wait) for our items to arrive. (For me, that's the worst part). Unfortunately that's just not how it is. So if you are looking for any kind of variety or specialty item or maybe even just a better price the internet is the way to go. I'm going to share with you some of my favorite places to shop online and some of the reasons why I like to shop there. (Every site I list is a site I have personally purchased from).

joann.com:
  • SALES: You can sign up to receive emails of JoAnn's current sales and promotions. Sometimes they even have online only sales.
  • COUPONS: Their coupons have codes which can be used online.
  • VAST SELECTION: They have a much larger papercrafting/scrapbooking selection online that they do in their stores.

One downside is that when I buy from joann.com I end up having to pay taxes and shipping (unless I have a free shipping coupon code, then it is just tax).

http://www.paperwishes.com: This is the website I ordered my Workbox through!

  • Free shipping on orders $79.00 or more (yes, even the Workbox)!
  • PHENOMENAL customer service!
  • Product demo videos and webisodes featuring project tutorials
  • They sometimes offer discounts on their gift certificates (they also have e-gift certificates which are great).
  • You can also request their catalog for free.

http://www.stuff4scrapbooking.com: I recently discovered this website which boasts having "the lowest prices, and we know it"!

  • They really do have low prices!
  • They offer price matching and a 100% satisfaction 60 day money back guarantee.
  • You can register and earn reward points on items you purchase and also for giving product reviews, etc...
  • You can estimate your shipping before you buy! (I LOVE when websites offer this feature).

http://www.ebay.com: Ebay is one of those maybe/maybe not websites. That is, sometimes you'll find great deals and sometimes you won't. Give ebay a try when you have an exact item in mind, but you can't find it anywhere else (for example: retired stamps) or you are hoping for a better deal. Also look for options like Buy It Now (great when an item is rare and you don't want to risk being out-bid) and sellers who offer free shipping (or combined shipping when you buy multiple items from the same seller).

http://www.oozak.com: Buy your Copic markers here! Seriously, I don't think you could possibly find a better price for all your Copic needs.

  • Free shipping on orders $50.00 or more. (I am a HUGE fan of free shipping).
  • If you place your order by 3:30 pm (Eastern Time on weekdays) your order will ship the same day! (I am also a HUGE fan of super fast shipping).
  • Rediculously awesome customer service!

Something else I think is worth mentioning is this company uses empty Copic marker boxes as padding when they package your items. Earth friendly!

http://www.stampinup.com: You won't find the greatest prices here, but you will find some great products. (I've ordered an XL die and also a letterpress plate from this company). Make sure you choose a local demonstrator to get the preferred price. The items still ship directly to you and you don't have to have any contact with the demonstrator if you don't want to.

Well, I hope you have found this post useful in your own quest for great papercrafting supplies! If you've got a great website you love buying from please feel free to share it in the comment section!

As always

Angela

****These websites are based off my location being in the US. For those living in other areas of the world, feel free to share your websites as well!

2 comments:

  1. Or CTMH! (Disclaimer: I'm a consultant. :) )

    http://leashah.myctmh.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you for taking the time to review all of these online stores. I really like hearing what different bloggers say about their experience with a site before I want to start using it myself.

    ReplyDelete

Your awesome comments are much appreciated!