This year is uh... different.
Here's some info about the sale, shipping times, product availability, and shop closures.
It's our 8th anniversary!
Cruelty-Free Stitchery started on Small Business Saturday in 2017!
Take an automatic 15% off through December 5th!
No code needed, it will automatically show the discount in your cart.
(Excludes the Upcycled Aprons, does not stack with the B5G1 snack bag deal, but the B5G1 ends up being a better deal than 15% off. I tried to stack it but Shopify won't let me.)
Order by December 5th!
Regardless of shipping upgrades or location. (APO addresses will need to upgrade to priority, as their cutoff for Ground Advantage was November 4th.)
Of course, the sooner, the better.
Get your gifts ASAP.
Not just from me, but any small business you've had your eye on.
USPS released their holiday shipping cutoffs, which, as I expected, are earlier this year.
But, for me specifically - I will very likely be (temporarily) closing my shop or removing inventory on or around December 5th!
I'm attending local Holiday Markets every weekend in December, and I kinda need product to sell there. I want empty tables at the END of the day, not the beginning lol.
Anything left will be re-added AFTER the holidays.
Why?
As you probably know, Joann Fabrics is no longer with us. R.I.P. They had a phenomenal wholesale/bulk program that allowed businesses like mine to thrive on a MASSIVE selection and low prices.
But this ultimately led to the demise of local fabric shops, a nightmare for... tens of thousands(?) of small businesses, and partially their own demise as well. They undercut the fabric market real bad, y'all.
My material costs have now more than doubled. To be transparent, I could get flannel in bulk from Joann for as low as $2.42 a yard, typically around $2.99, even in-store at non-bulk quantity. As far as new suppliers, some slightly lower quality options are around $3.75 a yard, but the best are going to be in the $6.50-$7.50 range.
And the print selection? For flannel specifically - it would not be an understatement to say it's been reduced to 10%. That's adding up all potential suppliers, most of which make primarily nursery/baby prints, which I don't really use. So it's more like 5%.
The good news is the new supplier(s) are a bit higher and more consistent quality, bad news is they're mostly limited edition and require pre-orders 6 months in advance. (Please don't bang your head on the wall on my behalf, I've already done it).
So over the coming months/years, unless someone fills that gap, expect more limited prints, but slightly higher quality? Yay, I guess?
Don't think I haven't considered filling that gap myself, with 0 capital and 0 space to do so!
It's just taking some time to rebuild my quickly-depleting stock, because of...
Other news!
This year, I'm in TWO local consignment shops, one is permanent, one is a holiday pop-up. I've also been selling wholesale to small gift and refill stores around the U.S. - check here to see if there's one near you!
A massive THANK YOU to everyone supporting makers and small businesses - my products are flying out the door, which makes this transition a bit easier financially!
I'm seeing a shift towards buying gifts early. Typically for my niche, the busiest times are late winter for spring cleaning, and after school starts in the fall when vacations and school shopping are done - but the last 2 years have been overwhelmingly busy for the holiday season.
I personally prefer to give practical gifts, and from what I hear from repeat customers - a lot of people like to receive practical gifts! So might I humbly suggest a pack of NonPaper Towels for your "I don't know what to get for this person" person?