20 Must Have Maker Tools!

Hey everyone!

So the holidays are behind us, *cue sigh of relief* and we are almost one full month until the new year. Crazy, right? Things were so busy over here at LRK for the last 4 months, but now I can breathe a little bit and focus on my lists and goals for 2020. It’s always exciting to start a new year with a blank slate, and dream of the possibilities and aspirations we have for the upcoming year. Hopefully you are looking ahead with fresh and eager eyes, with plans on how you can step up your business game – however that may look to you.

If that is one of your goals this year, then keep reading because this post is for you! I have put together a list of my 20 favorite maker tools and swag to help grow and organize your business in an thoughtful and efficient way. All of the items I have included below I have personally used, so I can speak to their true worth. All of these have been a game changer for my business, and will help you to stay organized and stocked for the whole year, and not miss a beat when it comes to market prep and the holiday hustle. Click on the heading texts to shop – and let’s get to it!

1.Mannequin

• • I purchased this mannequin in 2016 to be able to showcase my items being worn when I am doing craft shows. It’s always good to wear your items, but a mannequin helps to model more or different items than what you’re wearing, and it’s also a great photo prop for your online business such as etsy or instagram. This mannequin is available on amazon and comes in 6 different colors/styles for $55 plus free shipping – it’s about an average price for mannequins that I have seen on amazon, and it has held up wonderfully back and forth from my 30+ shows in the last 3 years, so I highly recommend it!

2. Crochet Notions Case from Amazon

• • A friend of mine shared this case a few years back when I first started to crochet, and I didn’t have a proper notions case to store all of my items that I was quickly acquiring. So I decided to give this one a chance, and for $10, why not? I received it in no time, (thanks amazon prime), and it’s one of my absolute favorite things! It holds so many hooks, needles, tape measures, stitch markers, scissors, you name it! It’s compact so I can put it in my project bag or backpack without taking up too much space, and I always have all of my tools on me. I highly recommend this case, and it comes in a lot of different colors and prints.

3. Clover Pom Pom Maker

• • If you like to make hats and love pom poms, this one is a must! No more trying to make a yarn pom around your fingers, hands, or drink coaster – trust me I have tried them all, lol. This small investment will be another game changer for you when it comes to making all the poms quickly and perfectly. The pack comes with two sizes, great for making larger poms for adult hats and smaller poms for baby hats. You can find this at your local Joann for under $10, and they always have coupons so make sure to check before you shop!

4. Susan Bates Crochet Hooks – Multipack and Jumbo

• • My crochet hook stash is something to blush about, ranging from hand me downs to expensive and luxury hooks like hand carved hooks from Knit Brooks, and streamline hooks from Furls Crochet. However, I always tend to use my trusty Susan Bates plastic and aluminun crochet hooks from my local Joann. If you’re just learning how to crochet, or if you want to have some back up hooks just in case, these are super affordable and work great. The plastic hooks have yet to break on me, (*knock on wood*), and have always helped me to create beautiful items. The Susan Bates 11.5 plastic jumbo hook just might be one of my favorites!

5. Handmade Faux Fur Pom Poms – Hickory Lane Handmade & Sierra’s Crafty Creations

• • I have purchased many handmade poms from both of these amazing makers and I love them all! They usually do scheduled updates, but if you are interested in pricing and availability, you can reach out to them via their website for more information.

6. Canon Camera and Upgraded 50 mm Lens

• • I understand having a DSLR camera may not be in the budget for you, and cell phones these days have amazing cameras, so you may not even need one. But if you are looking, this is the camera model and upgraded lens that I own and I absolutely love it. The listing for the camera comes with a lot of extras, such as a case, tripod, and multiple memory cards. So this is a really great price for all of the extra items that you get. The stock lens has a wide range of lenses that you can use to practice your skills and give you different looks without having to change the lens each time. It took me a while to learn how to use it, but once I understood the basics of photography, it was yet another craft that I fell in love with. After a year of playing with the camera and learning how I liked to take photos, I upgraded to the 50 mm lens. I feel like my photos and aesthetic have really come alive since using this lens and has been a total game changer for me. I sometimes still use my cell phone for photos, but mostly I use my canon for crisper and brighter images, especially for my instagram and etsy photos. This would definitely be more of a luxury purchase, not as much as a necessity. However, this is something that I use everyday for my business and also for pleasure, so I wanted to add this to the list in case any one was wondering what I use or if you’re looking for a good beginner camera. If you don’t want to spend that much, you can purchase the camera alone without all of the upgrades for about $100 less here.

7. Jimmy Beans Wool – Namaste Makers Backpack

• • I actually own two of these backpacks, the Plum and the White, and I love them both! I use the plum more in the fall and winter and the white in the spring and summer. These backpacks have so many zippers, pockets, storage areas for all of your notions, yarn, laptop, cell phone, water bottles – the list goes on! I took a trip to Florida for a long weekend and used this as my entire suitecase and carry on – it was jam packed but it fit all of my clothes, yarn, camera, and everything I needed! They come in so many beautiful color options, and they also just released a mini backpack if you aren’t looking for something as large. The mini  backpack does come in at $125, so it’s a little less expensive and is a great size for a purse/smaller project bag. I WILL own one of those soon also, lol, and I have heard amazing reviews on all of their other products. Highly, highly recommend this!

8. Modern Crochet by DeBrosse

• • If you are just learning how to crochet or are a seasoned maker, this book is for you! Teresa from DeBrosse has been an inspiration to me from the beginning, and when she released this book it was a no brainer – I purchased it immediately! It’s such a beautiful and thoughtful design, packed with useful information and patterns galore. I have seen people who have never crocheted in their lives, purchase the book and make one of her blankets within a few short weeks – so you know it’s that good! She also has maker merch to check out – and you can find her cozy swag here.

9. Knit Picks Yarn Swift and Yarn Ball Winder

• • If you like hand dyed yarn, you must have these two items! They make winding up your hanks so much easier and it’s really fun! I have both the yarn swift and ball winder from Knit Picks, and they have worked great for me. They do go hand in hand, so if you get one you will need the other. Knit Picks also has a video tutorial on how to use them, because it is tricky if you never have before! You can find the video tutorial here.

10. Desk

• • I purchased this desk a few months ago to better fit in my office and I really love it! It’s a great price and good size desk, it was very easy to put together, is lightweight, and I love the color options. I got the smaller size and it’s still pretty large. It’s an L shape which is great for separating my computer space with an area to pack up orders, film video tutorials, (coming soon!), and have my swift and winder on the other end. The only downside is that it does not have any drawers or storage, but I have put a small cabinet that I already had underneath to set my printer on, and have drawer space without cluttering the top of the desk. But all in all, it has been working great!

11. Letter Board

• • I received a letter board for my birthday a few years ago so I don’t have the exact listing to share with you, but you can’t really go wrong with any of them! I just searched “letter board” on amazon – they come in many colors and sizes to match what you’re looking for. Letter boards are fun for social media and are also good marketing tools when selling online or at craft shows.

12. Mannequin Heads – Modern Metal Hat Stands or Styrofoam Mannequin Heads

• • I have used both of these mannequin heads and they are both really great in their own way. If you want a quick and cheap solution to showcase your hats or headbands at craft shows, then the styrofoam heads are perfect. The only downside to these is that they are very lightweight and sometimes would tip over when I would have my slouchy hats on them, so I had to be creative with where I put them so they would stay standing up. When I had regular hats and headbands on them I had no issues.
  • The metal hat stands I purchased back in October and used them this entire season for my shows. These are much more sturdy and worked great! I love the look of these a lot more, they are more modern and look more professional, in my opinion.

13. Handled Paper Bags

• • When I started selling at shows, I would make multiple runs to the dollar tree whenever I ran out of bags. They sell them in a few different sizes and colors but they averaged to be $0.50 per bag. I was always running to the store to get more, and that made me feel anxious and unprepared. So I decided to spend more up front and buy bags in bulk from amazon and these have been great. They come in three different sizes, with 25 of each size. I print my logo on labels and put them on the brown paper bags – they look professional and hold up really well. Sometimes the dollar tree bags would break at the bottom or the handles weren’t secure, but the bags from amazon have not given me any issues. When buying them in bulk it averages out to be $0.39 across the board. They are on sale with prime right now for 75 bags under $30.

14. Craft Wrapping Paper

• • For a long time I struggled with how to ship packages so they stayed secure, but also looked nice. I saw someone on instagram using this crafting paper to wrap Christmas gifts and I thought this would be nicer than using tissue paper, and also protect the items a little more. I went to my local Lowe’s and picked up a roll for under $5. I have wrapped so many items and this roll just seems never ending. I am very happy with this and you can also write a thank you note or doodle on the paper to jazz it up a little bit!

15. Poly Mailers

• • If you ship items – these are a must! I used to use recycled boxes but they tend to be a lot more pricey when shipping, so these poly mailers work wonders especially if you’re shipping knitted items. You can fold and manipulate the mailer to be the exact size of your item to cut down on shipping size/cost, and they are very hard to tear open so your items will stay safe through delivery. You can find them on amazon in many different sizes and colors, but this size is the one that I primarily use.

16. Twine

• • Twine is a fun and pretty way to wrap your items when shipping, or if you like to put a bow on your bags. I wrap my items with the crafting paper, then tie a bow around it with twine or red yarn – gotta stay on brand lol – and include a hole punched card on the bow, (photo example below). This way each item looks nicely wrapped and has my business information on the card ready for my customer.

17. Vista Print

• • Not sure if I even need to explain why Vista Print is the go to company for all business cards and marketing materials lol but they are the best! I have been using their business cards for over 5 years, and also purchased a banner with my logo in 2018. They always have quick shipping and great customer service, sales for days to give you the best deals out there, and so many options to customize to your needs. You can upload your own logo, design, or photos, or use one of their many premade designs. You can also work with a designer to get exactly what you need.

18. Digital Kitchen Scale

• • I just got this digital scale in the mail yesterday and did a trail run and it’s super accurate. I am very excited to use this for weighing my packages to get the most accurate info for pricing, also weighing yarn for accurate yardage on patterns and pattern testing. I also will use this for cooking too, but let’s be honest, it’s mostly for yarn lol.

19. Square Reader

• • When I first started off I was using the free swipe reader for my cell phone and it worked fine. However, the more shows I did the less I liked this thing dangling from my phone while my customers were checking out. In fall of 2019, I did research and priced out the contactless chip reader versus the square kiosk, and decided on purchasing the contactless chip reader – and I really love it. People are using and handling my cell phone less, the reader works really fast when you insert their card, and the customer can hold their phone up to the reader for quick and easy Apple pay. I will most likely upgrade to the kiosk in the next year or so if I continue to do shows at the rate I did in 2019, but for under $30, it was well worth trying out. It’s also good to have a few square readers as back up in case you misplace one or if you have multiple shows, or if you have a helper at your booth to checkout multiple people at once.

20. Custom Buttons and Labels

• • I have been buying my custom buttons for the last 4 years from Elemental Craft Works on Etsy and they have been amazing! They worked with my design and always ship out my bulk orders very quickly. I have been using All This Wood on Etsy for the last year for my faux leather labels and I love them as well! Very quick processing time, friendly customer service, and I always get so many compliments on both the buttons and labels. These are definitely the final finishing touch on all of my items that take them to the next level. I think if you’re serious about selling your finished products, you really need to have your logo on them in some way, and buttons or labels are the perfect solution!

So there you have it, my 20 favorite tools and must haves for my business, and I hope that this list was helpful for you! Sometimes it’s a lot to spend on stocking up on these items before the season starts, but I promise they are a good investment to your business and will help you stay organized and efficient when it comes to doing markets or shipping orders. I have found keeping these items on hand has helped me spend less time running around town to gather materials, leaving more time to stock up on product, therefore making more sales! When you are organized and have your go to items on hand, your business will run more smooth, you are less stressed, and you have time to grow your brand in a fun and easy way.

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below. Happy Wednesday and happy making!

Cheers,

G