by Abby Way

Created on: May 02, 2009   Last Updated: May 07, 2009

Buying and selling arts and crafts can be a pleasure with the right website. One of the many advantages of the internet is being able to list items for sale on websites specially designed for the purpose, such as Etsy.

Etsy has been running since 2005, and attracts thousands of buyers and sellers of handmade goods, craft supplies, and vintage goods.

-Buying on Etsy-

The Etsy site is designed to be as easy and fun as possible for the buyer. Even those not interested in purchasing anything will have fun browsing through all the different items. There are many ways to browse the site:

*Use the typical categories and subcategories of items, such as "Knitting", "Journals", "Pet tags", "Amigurumi", "Glass", or "Geekery clothing" with Categories.

*Shop by geographical location of the sellers; you can find sellers close to your home for lower shipping costs and to support sellers in your own community with Geolocator.

*See connections between, and browse, different people's favorited items with Connections.

*View items in a cool spiral of pictures that progresses and ticks back in time, from most recently submitted items to older ones, with the Etsy Time Machine.

*Find items based on a color grid; you click on the grid closest to which color items you'd like to find, and pictures of items pop up that you can discard or view more details about with Colors. Really must be tried to be believed!

There are fifteen ways of browsing listed on the main Buy page, not even counting the highly customizable search options.

Once you've found an item you love, you have to sign up for a free account in order to buy it. The signup process is easy, and soon you can go back to that item and order it. If you have any special requests or need more details, you can start a "conversation" (series of private messages) with the seller. Most sellers are very accommodating, and you're sure to find just the right item. Once you've ordered and paid (more on that below), the seller ships it, you receive it and make sure it's to your satisfaction, and both of you leave feedback on each other's profiles. Other buyers and sellers can refer to that feedback to see if you're a reliable buyer or seller.

-Selling on Etsy-
The process of selling might be a little more complicated, but it's still fairly straightforward for most people. Etsy does not act as a retailer, but in their words, as a "venue". It is a kind of marketplace to sell your goods, and as such, you have to pay a small per-transaction

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