Going Green

By Christine Claringbold, Stephanie Weber and Eleanor Williams

Sustainability is two sided—it’s both maintaining the success of your business and keeping the local and global environments healthy and vibrant. By going green, you’ll be able to save on cost of goods and overhead and market your business as sustainable.  Plus, you’ll feel good about your impact in the world.

Cultural Attitudes

One attitude prevails in our culture towards the history and waste of materials: people don’t want to think about where their trash goes or the origins of the things they buy. This same attitude sees an endless supply of materials, of things, in the world. Consuming more and more is good for the economy and the country, right? It’s so easy to buy new things from faraway places that we have forgotten the creativity of our great grandmothers, who made quilts from worn out dresses.

So, let’s change our attitudes—and business practices. First, let’s wholeheartedly embrace reclaiming and reusing materials. And secondly, let’s educate ourselves about the materials we use—a green ethic entails learning about the environmental history and future of the raw and manufactured materials that go into our craft.

The Green Craft Movement: A Powerful Instrument of Change

Thousands of small craft businesses across the nation are altering the economic system by reclaiming access to production. The economy is down and there is a grassroots movement of crafters with bright ideas on a low budget. Vintage designs and reclaimed art infuse the sites of users on Etsy. Taking things into our own hands, we are shifting attitudes towards sustainability. As small craft business owners, we can sway business practices and influence broad cultural change.

So, what can you do to be green?

Foster awareness of the materials and resources you use. Then, take the steps to reduce your negative impact on the environment for your unique business.

• Materials and supplies: Think of the environmental history of materials—what happens before and after they pass through your hands?
• Production: Can you share space or tools with others? Brainstorming with other crafters is a great way to spur community strength and creative thinking.
• Sales and shipping: Many of us have shops on Etsy. What effects does shipping have on the environment?
• Packaging/Display: How can you maintain professionalism while honoring the environment?
• Marketing and Promotion: What type of paper and ink do you use?
• Waste: How can you make less waste?

Analyzing your business

Start with reuse. Where can you get supplies?

• Start at home: can you reuse waste from your business or home? For example, bike tires made into jewelry.
• Your “other job”—does your workplace generate waste that you can use in your business?
• Look to your friends for supplies. For example, if they use a certain type of tea that comes in a tin that you could reuse in your packaging, have them save the tins for you.
• Think outside the box.  For example, if you attend a wedding and see a lot of leftover paper or ribbon that is going to be thrown away, you could collect it and reuse it in your business.
• Find supplies at second hand stores, yard sales, etc.
• Shop at creative reuse centers such as SCRAP (located in Portland, OR).  To find a center near you, check out Centers for Creative Reuse: A Directory by State and Country, published on the Cosa Verde blog.
• Check craigslist, freecycle, and local recycling programs.

What can you do with your waste?

• Use it at home or in your business
• Give it to friends
• Donate it to second hand stores
• Recycle it
• Throw it away as a very last resort!

Marketing your business in the green niche

Green Etsy shops

Take a look at some successful Etsy sellers that are doing things right with their green branding.

Shannon from Greenbelts makes her point immediately by using the word “green” right in her shop name.  She also uses the term “Eco” to title many of her items, such as Eco Cuffs and EcoDog and EcoCat Collars. This gives her a big advantage when buyers are searching for eco-friendly items.  Note that Shannon has chosen to work with recycled belts, which is a fairly abundant medium. This is important to keep in mind when developing a recycled product line—you’ll do best if you choose to work with materials that will be consistently available and that can be used for multiple types of items. Shannon uses belts to create a wide variety of products, from wrist cuffs to pet collars to guitar straps to napkin rings, with prices ranging from $8–$60. Her range of items appeals to a wide variety of buyers, with styles that include retro, punk rock, shabby chic, and all-natural.  It’s all tied together by outstanding, consistent photography and the common theme of the recycled belt.

Another Etsy shop, Sewn Natural, uses organic and reclaimed vintage fabrics to create children’s clothes, picnic blankets, toys and more. The image in the shop banner shows a sleeping baby all sewn up in a green leaf. This sets the tone for a shop where you can expect to find high-quality, eco-friendly items that will make you feel safe and secure. The theme is natural, family friendly, cheerful, clean, cozy, artistic, mod and colorful without being overwhelmingly bright. Again, a wide variety of well-photographed product lines that all fit into a consistent theme make this shop stand out in the green crowd.

Green groups

By joining forces with a community of like-minded artisans, you can tap into a powerful network for sharing tips and ideas, and find new ways to market your items. These include opportunities to have your work featured through team blogs, Twitter feeds, Facebook pages, Etsy Treasuries, cooperative advertising and team-wide sales and promotions.

In Portland, Trillium Artisans is a nonprofit organization that offers small business support and marketing help for local entrepreneurs who create with recycled and reclaimed materials. Not in Portland? Check out some of the global green Etsy teams such as Eco Etsy, Etsy Trashion, Etsy Recyclers Guild and Etsy Earth.

Green blogs

An informal survey of bloggers who write green product features revealed that the most important factor that bloggers are looking for when considering an item is the quality of the product photography. One blogger said, “I’m looking for green items that are beautiful. Just because something is made from recycled materials doesn’t mean that it’s a good idea or has been well executed. We look for gorgeous photos and fine craftsmanship, something special that someone would love to have in their home, or something really useful.”

The second most important factor is the relevance of the item to the theme or aesthetic of the blog. So, research the blog and make sure your item is appropriate (if their focus is on home décor, then they probably won’t be interested in jewelry). Please see this document for a summary of advice from green bloggers on how to submit your items to get their attention. See this document for a list of green blogs that feature handmade items.

Green boutiques

In another survey, we asked green retailers about how they choose eco-friendly items to carry. They ranked price as the most important factor, followed by the use of recycled or reclaimed materials, uniqueness, and functionality. Please see this document for some great advice on submitting your work to green retailers. This will also help get you thinking about other factors that can give you a competitive edge, such as energy efficiency in production, carbon neutral shipping, sweatshop-free labor, and green certifications (such as membership in Green America’s Green Business Network).

There are easy ways and a plethora of resources and ideas to help you green your small craft business. With a conscious intent and an adjustment in attitude, we can influence cultural change.

Do you have green tips to share? Success stories? What kinds of hurdles can we face as we make our businesses more sustainable? Leave a comment and get the discussion started.

All images except the Etsy shop screenshots and logos are from Morguefile.com. Username credits in order from top to bottom: ronnieb, xandert, darnok, clarita, gracey, cohdra.

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Christine Claringbold started painting in 1994, and Eye Pop Art was launched in 2003. Christine loves to design mandalas and paint them on upcycled vinyl records, which she transforms into clocks, bowls, mirrors, cuffs and garden pinwheels. She is also an art teacher and the mom of two teenagers. She loves to read and collect vintage psychedelic housewares (mainly coffee cups), and for fun she likes to dress up and rock out with the band. Christine is also the program coordinator at Trillium Artisans.

Stephanie Weber splits her time between her business, Pickle Things, where she makes felt play food and accessories out of recycled materials, and SCRAP, a non-profit that promotes the arts and environment by making second-hand art supplies available to artists, teachers and the community. These two things have allowed her to feed her need to create things out of discarded awesomeness and have a positive environmental impact on the community around her.

Eleanor Williams is Program Coordinator at SCRAP and Co-Chair of SCRAP’s Re:Vision Gallery, as well as the Co-founder of L.a.r.k. Magazine, an online resource for artists. She has studied material culture in several academic settings and explored a variety of creative pursuits. Identifying with the term ‘suffer punk’, she is passionate about environmental responsibility. You can find herZodiac Series prints, all on recycled paper, at remnantbyeleanor on Etsy.