Linda's How-Do-I Series? How To Design An E-Pattern & Where To Sell Them Online Free E-Book

Back in 2009 I decided to share my secrets of pattern designing.  Some thought it was a little foolish back then as it would be foolish as a pattern designer to give away trade secrets to the competition.

Actually, I was happy to do this. It was kind of a "pay it forward" for all the help I had received years ago when I was just starting out.

I was happy to do this and thrilled to know there were so many individuals out there  who wanted to design their own patterns which meant the interest in sewing, creating, and selling of e-products (i.e. digital goods) on the Internet was growing. More growth meant more business for all of us. Plus, if it meant more growth for e-patterns which, in my opinion were still in their infancy on the Internet at the time, then it was a really good thing..

Over the years I revised and updated my original e-book.  Well, I'm happy to report that it was time to revise it again and to revise my "I'm An Independent Pattern Designer - Where Can I Sell My E-Patterns?" Linda's Blog post as well.

I'm happy to report my free "Linda's How-Do-I Series? How To Design An E-Pattern and Where To Sell Them E-Book" is finished and is now available as a free download in Google Drive.

So, am I still giving away trade secrets? Guilty as charged.

Is more competition bad news? Absolutely not! I couldn't be happier, especially if it translates into more business for e-patterns on the Internet.

You know my crafting community motto - what helps one of us helps all of us.

I hope you enjoy the revised version of my "Linda's How-Do-I Series? How To Design A Print Pattern and E-Pattern and Where To Sell Them E-Book" and hope it motivates you to create your own e-patterns.

Linda's How-Do-I Series? How To Design A Print Pattern and E-Pattern and Where To Sell Them Online Free E-Book - 24 Pages

To view and download my free e-book please CLICK HERE. You'll be brought to Google Drive where you can view our free e-book. Then just download our free .pdf e-book by clicking on the down arrow in the top center.

For more information on all my free e-patterns, e-printables and e-books please CLICK HERE.

Please respect My Terms of Use:  All patterns, e-patterns, printables, e-printables, e-books, graphics, tutorials, how-to's, articles and other e-products © 2004-2023 Linda Walsh Originals-Designs by Linda Walsh. All rights reserved. Commercial selling or reselling by any means prohibited without the written consent of Linda Walsh.

Patterns, e-patterns, printables, e-printables, e-books, graphics, tutorials, how-to's, articles and other e-products are for personal use only. You may not modify, photocopy, download, upload, post, transmit, display, perform, publish, license, reprint, create derivative works from, mass duplicate, re-sell, digitize, and reproduce in any other form (print, digital or electric) or commercially apply, embed, share, Email, or redistribution in any other means. Use of any of the above is prohibited without the written permission of Linda Walsh.

However, you may link to my website(s)/blog(s) and the individual page(s)/blog post(s) (including 1 picture) but do not copy, reprint or duplicate my website(s)/blog(s) or individual page(s)/post(s ) without my permission.

Items made from Linda Walsh Originals E-Patterns are intended for personal use for fun or small scale personal and business profit as long as you credit us with the design. Large scale commercial use (i.e. mass production) of items made from Linda Walsh Originals E-Patterns are by permission only.

Please see my Terms and Conditions for additional information.

Copyright © 2004 - 2023 - All Rights Reserved - Written By Linda Walsh of Linda Walsh Originals and Linda's Blog. Linda is a doll maker and doll pattern designer.

I'm An Independent Pattern Designer - Where Can I Sell My E-Patterns? - Updated 5/28/2019

I often get asked by independent crafts pattern designers where they can sell their e-patterns so I thought it might be helpful to create a blog post about this.

To give you a little background on me I'm a doll maker and doll pattern designer and have had several websites for over 15 years.

Fifteen years ago for a small business owner to have a website online that you had control over you basically had to either create your own using HTML or some comparable software that could publish to the web and then FTP (file transfer protocol) it to what-ever service provider was hosting your website and domain name.

Back in 2004, when I started, I created two of my own websites that I updated to Godaddy via FTP.  I wanted to be able to update my website whenever I wanted and change it whatever way I wished. As a result my first two websites were created in Microsoft Publisher and FTP'd to my hosting accounts at GoDaddy where my two domain names resided.

I used Paypal HTML coding back then and had to copy and paste their payment HTML coding for every item I wanted to sell. While I had complete control over my website design the coding was tedious at best.

When instant download e-patterns came along I used PayloadZ and Paypal to handle the "Buy Now" capabilities. This, too, utilized HTML coding which, again, was tedious at best.

So, before long I outgrew the capabilities of these two websites and needed websites with more sophisticated shopping carts and with the ability to handle instant download e-products. So, I decided to open two new websites utilizing a CubeCart shopping cart at In A Pickle Web Design, which was owned by Annie Kelly.

With the two new websites with Annie I now had 4 websites and a GoDaddy Website Tonight "Information" page. Two of the websites I was still maintaining with Publisher and transferring via FTP to GoDaddy, two I was maintaining using the In A Pickle Web Design CubeCart interface, and one the "Information" page I was maintaining through GoDaddy's interface.

Five websites, however, wasn't all I had. I had jumped on the blogging craze back in 2003 utilizing an AOL blog, then a Yahoo 360 blog, and then several Blogger.com blogs. For me blogging was the perfect solution for disseminating information about your small business and letting your customers get to know you.

Back then, however, there was a lot of skepticism about blogging with some small business owners even claiming they would never buy anything off a blog. Not me. I took a giant step forward and stopped issuing newsletters. I jumped on the blogging band wagon and have never looked back.

My online interests continued to expand over the years as well as my doll & craft interests. Over time my blogs multiplied as each had a different audience and, therefore, a different subject to discuss.

So, at one point in time I had 5 websites, 18 blogs, an Etsy shop, a Zibbet shop, 3 Zazzle shops, and several other secondary e-pattern and handmade goods online selling venues. I also had a topsite, several plugboards, and a lot of social media pages and/or groups to maintain.

In 2014 I decided to do a little downsizing.  Everything I had been doing had become too much to handle so I decided to start downsizing gradually. The first to go were the plugboards, followed by half of my blogs, followed by several social media communities and groups, followed by some of the selling venues.

In 2015 I decided to consolidate all of my websites into one selling website that could handle not only all my e-products, all my print patterns, and all my handmade goods but be expandable so it was able to be displayed correctly on all the desktops, laptops, tablets, and mobile devices out there, as well as being able to be displayed on all the various browsers.

Back then I did a lot of research and decided to create my new Linda Walsh Originals Shop at GoDaddy utilizing their Quick Shopping Cart. What I liked about the GoDaddy website was that it could handle all of my different businesses (e-commerce and regular commerce) under one roof. I could sell both my handmade products and all my e-products in one website.

My consolidated website handling both digital products and handmade products worked well for  four years, but was still a lot of work with everything else I was doing, including online classes that I love to take.

So, I decided to downsize even more and closed my Linda Walsh Originals Shop which was selling my e-patterns and all my handmade doll and craft decorations and updated the products I was selling via my Linda Walsh Originals Etsy Shop.

I also decided to upgrade my Linda Walsh Originals Information website which is a GoDaddy Website Tonight website to be an "About me" portfolio with multiple pages of sorts for everything and anything concerning Linda Walsh Originals.

I'm still in the process of critiquing my business interests as well as my creative interests.  After all this time I've decided I want to spend more time in creative mode versus business mode so I wouldn't be surprised if I downsize even more.

I always like to give back and over the years have posted many free e-patterns, e-books and e-printables so everyone can enjoy crafting.  If you're interested in my "freebies" please visit my "Free E-Patterns, E-Printables, & E-Books" page.

I've been in love with .pdf instant download e-products since they first came on the scene in 2004 and have tried all sorts of different venues.

Some I like, some I don't. Some have come and gone, some are free, some are very expensive, some are for specific types of patterns, some are commercial sellers websites, etc. The internet is always changing so what was there in 2004 might not be in existence today.

Nowadays there are websites that do it all, some are websites that provide html code so you can sell your e-patterns on your website or your blog, some are handmade craft websites where you can list your e-patterns and then send them as an email attachment to your customer or, depending on the website, can send the download link to the customer via e-mail or put it in the customer's account on their website, some are websites that provide a download integration for your Etsy shoppe, some are social networking websites that allow for selling, etc.

The online crafts e-pattern, e-printable, and e-book craft industry has been slowly developing over the last decade and, as far as I'm concerned, is still in it's infancy. There's plenty of room for growth and, I'm sure, plenty of room for change. Which venue is best for you is based on what you're selling, what your experience is, what your skill level is, and how much time you can devote to this.

Selling e-patterns online as an independent pattern designer is a long, slow process that requires nerves of steel and a lot of patience. It is not for the faint of heart or those hoping to make a quick buck. That just is not going to happen.

If you’re an artist or crafter who has created e-patterns you might be wondering how you go about selling them. Where do you store your e-patterns and how do you sell instant downloads? Whether its e-patterns, e-tutorials or e-books you first need to create a .PDF (Portable Document Format) file which is your electronic product. With the various computer software available nowadays, as well as the various online websites willing to help you with that, once you have created the .PDF file then there are basically two ways to get the .pdf file to your customer.

1) You can send them yourself as attachments to an email once you have been notified of payment by the customer.

2) They can be sent automatically or available in a customer's account as an "instant download e-patterns" once payment has been made.

So, what kind of online set-up do you need to accomplish this?

1) You can have your own website that has Paypal (or other payment processor) payment button capabilities. Once you have received notification from Paypal (or other payment processor) of payment you can send the e-pattern to your customer as an attachment to an e-mail.

2) You can have a blog that has HTML capabilities in the sidebar or posts that allow you to create Paypal (or other payment processor) payment button. Once you have received notification from Paypal (or other payment processor) of payment you can send the e-pattern to your customer as an attachment to an e-mail.

3) You can have your own website or blog that allows for HTML modules in the sidebar or posts whereby you can copy/paste the Buy Now Digital Goods E-commerce Shopping Cart providers HTML code. In this instance they provide a service whereby they store your e-products on their servers and provide you with a Buy Now (or similar) button link. When your customer clicks on that Buy Now link then the payment process would begin. Once payment has been made an email will automatically be sent to the customer with the e-pattern download link. They click on the link and follow the prompts to download your e-product. Digital Goods E-commerce Shopping Cart providers charge you a fee for this service.

4) You can have your own website that has e-commerce instant download shopping cart capabilities that will send your customer the download link for their e-pattern via email once payment has been made to you.

5) You can have your own website that has e-commerce instant download shopping cart capabilities that will put the download link in the customer's account once payment has been made to you.

6) You can utilize a third-party website with an e-commerce shopping cart provider that has "instant download capabilities." Once payment has been made by the customer the software will automatically generate an email to the customer with the download link or put it in the customer's account where they can automatically download it. Depending on their set-up you can either: a) upload your .PDF files onto their servers, b) transfer your .PDF files via FTP (file transfer protocol), or c) send them as attachments to an email to them. It all depends on how the e-pattern website is set up. The e-pattern website owners collect payment and then remit to you once they have been paid and have deducted their fee, or they may have a system in place to automatically pay you once the customer has paid. They may charge a monthly fee or charge a % of the sale price and/or both.

7) You can utilize a third-party handmade goods marketplace or community website to create a shop for you to sell your handmade goods and/or e-patterns. Once you have been notified of payment you can, depending on their set-up, either send the e-pattern to the customer as an attachment to an email, or sometimes these third-party handmade goods marketplaces or communities have apps that can work in conjunction with your shop and automatically send the customer an email with the e-pattern download link once payment has been made.

If you're an independent crafts pattern designer and you want to sell your e-patterns online, but aren't quite ready for your own website you might want to check out the following websites, blogging platforms, and e-commerce services websites:

Amazon - https://kdp.amazon.com/ - Amazon's online digital distribution publishing division for selling e-books online.

Artfire - https://www.artfire.com/ - Shops created and maintained by designers. E-Patterns sold by designers are emailed to customers as attachments to an email.

Blogger (or any blogging website) - https://blogger.com - Free blogging host provider.  Create a selling blog.  Publish post with image and information about e-pattern.  Include copy and paste code for Paypal or other eCommerce downloading button within the post or email e-pattern to customer as an attachment once payment has been received.

Bonanza - https://www.bonanza.com/ - Online handmade goods marketplace and social networking community. Shops created and maintained by handmade artisans. E-Patterns sold by designers are emailed to customers as attachments to an email.

CraftHub - https://www.crafthub.me/ - An Etsy app that works with Etsy shops selling .pdf instant download e-patterns and provides an integration between ETSY and downloads to customers.

CraftIsArt - http://www.craftisart.com/ - Online artisan and handmade goods selling community. Shops created and maintained by handmade artisans. E-Patterns sold by designers are emailed to customers as attachments to an email.

Doll Street Dreamers - http://www.dollstreetdreamers.com/ - Oldest social networking doll club on the web. Offers doll classes and pattern shop for instant download doll e-patterns sold by members. Pattern shop maintained by owner of doll club. Owner handles all aspects of download and interface with customer.

DPD - https://getdpd.com/ - Digital Goods eCommerce service for selling downloadable goods online. Provides copy ad paste codes for instant download e-patterns to use in websites and blogs.

eCRATER - https://www.ecrater.com - eCRATER is both a free web store builder and an online marketplace.  E-Patterns would be emailed to customers as attachments to an email.

EJunkie -https://www.e-junkie.com/- Digital Goods eCommerce service for selling downloadable goods online. Provides copy ad paste codes for instant download e-patterns to use in websites and blogs.

Easydigitaldownloads - https://easydigitaldownloads.com/ - Digital Goods eCommerce service for selling downloadable goods online. Provides copy and paste codes for instant download e-patterns to use in websites and blogs.

Etsy - https://www.etsy.com  - Shops created and maintained by designers.  E-Patterns sold by designers are uploaded to Etsy listings and downloaded by customers once payment has been processed.

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ - Free social media network.  Sell e-patterns on your business page or within groups.  Paypal bill your customers and once paid e-patterns would be emailed to customers as attachment to an email.

FetchApp - https://www.fetchapp.com/ - Digital Goods eCommerce service for selling downloadable goods online. Provides copy and paste codes for instant download e-patterns to use in websites and blogs.

FlickRocket - https://www.flickrocket.com/-  E-commerce content shop platform for selling e-products. Since 2010, FlickRocket’s cloud based solution powers shops for big and small content owners which enable secure digital content sales and marketing. E-Patterns sold by designers can be downloaded by customers once payment has been processed.

Folksy - https://folksy.com/ - British online handmade goods marketplace and community.  Shops created and maintained by handmade artisans. E-Patterns sold by designers are emailed to customers as attachments to an email.

Go To Patterns & Co. - http://gotopatterns.com -  Website selling sewing & craft patterns. Independent pattern designers can contact them for designer terms.  Submitted patterns are reviewed for quality content.

Gumroad - https://gumroad.com - Digital Goods eCommerce service for selling downloadable goods directly to customers. Integrates with your website, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, SoundCloud, and email newsletters.

Handmade Artists - https://handmadeartists.com/ - Online handmade goods marketplace and social networking community. Shops created and maintained by handmade artisans. E-Patterns sold by designers are emailed to customers as attachments to an email.

iCRAFT -   https://icraftgifts.com/ - iCraft is an online handmade goods marketplace.  E-Patterns would be emailed to customers as attachments to an email.

MagCloud - http://www.magcloud.com/ - Hewlett Packard online print on demand and digital distribution publishing. Used by e-zines, e-book sellers, and some e-patterns. Customers can choose to buy either print on demand pattern or downloadable e-pattern.

Makerist -  https://www.makerist.com -  E-Commerce selling website.  E-Patterns sold by designers are uploaded to Makerist and downloaded by customers once payment has been processed.

PayloadZ - https://www.payloadz.com/ - Digital Goods eCommerce service for selling downloadable goods online. Provides copy and paste codes for instant download e-patterns to use in websites and blogs.

Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com - Free social media network.  With a business account you can create boards for pinning your items for sale. Your pin would include an image, description and link back to your website where your item was pinned from, like a website, blog post, or 3rd party marketplace. Pinned items with prices show up in the gifts section.

Pulley - https://pulleyapp.com/ - Digital Goods eCommerce service for selling downloadable goods online. Provides copy and paste codes for instant download e-patterns to use in websites and blogs.

Ravelry - https://www.ravelry.com - Social networking website for knitters and crocheters.  E-Patterns. E-Patterns would be emailed to customers as attachments to an email.

SendOwl - https://www.sendowl.com/ - Digital Goods eCommerce service for selling downloadable goods online. Provides copy and paste codes for instant download e-patterns to use in websites and blogs.

Sellfy -  https://sellfy.com/ - Sellfy allows creators of digital files to sell their e-patterns in their shop on Sellfy.  Shops created and maintained by designers.  E-Patterns sold by designers are downloaded by customers once payment has been processed.

SellPin - https://www.sellpin.com - Buying and selling marketplace that integrates with Pinterest users selling goods and offers payment capability through credit card or Paypal. E-Patterns would be emailed to customers as attachments to an email.

Sellwire - https://sellwire.net - Digital Goods eCommerce service for selling downloadable goods online. Provides copy and paste links for instant download e-patterns to use in websites and blogs.

Selz - https://selz.com/ - Selz includes secure, unlimited eCommerce hosting on all plans. You can also use our Buy Buttons and widgets to add eCommerce to any existing website or blog.

Shopify - https://www.shopify.com - Shopify is the only eCommerce platform that lets business owners sell directly on the world’s biggest websites and apps. In just a few clicks, you can make your products buy-able on the social networks and online marketplaces people use every day.

SimpleGoods - https://simplegoods.co/ - Digital Goods eCommerce service for selling downloadable goods online. Provides widgets for instant download e-patterns to use in websites and blogs.

The Pattern Cupboard - http://www.thepatterncupboard.com/ - Large selection of designers and crafts e-patterns. Currently owned and managed by DJDoodle, LLC. Designers upload .pdf e-patterns and maintain their designer accounts. The Pattern Cupboard handles all aspects of download and interface with customer.

YouCanMakeThis - https://www.youcanmakethis.com -  Website selling sewing, crochet, jewelry, crafts & hobbies, stitchery and quilting e-patterns.  You set-up an author account and submit ideas for projects,  Your idea is reviewed and if they like your idea they promote and sell your e-patterns.

Wordpress - https://wordpress.com/ - Website or blog hosting provider.  Create a selling blog.  Publish post with image and information about e-pattern.  Include copy and paste code for Paypal or other eCommerce downloading button within the post or email e-pattern to customer as an attachment once payment has been received.

Zibbet - https://marketplace.zibbet.com/ - Online handmade goods marketplace and social networking community. Shops created and maintained by handmade artisans. E-Patterns sold by designers are emailed to customers as attachments to an email.

If you're an independent crafts pattern designer who wants to sell e-patterns, e-tutorials or e-books online I hope you find my post helpful.

© 2004-2023 Copyright Linda Walsh Originals - Written By Linda Walsh.

DIY (Do-It-Yourself), Website and Blog Designers & Hosting Providers

I often get asked by independent small business artists and crafters where to go to build a website.   I usually tell them that depending on their requirements they probably don't need to hire a professional website designer.  Depending on their needs if they are a small business owner most of the DIY websites and blogs will work just fine.

To give you a little background on me I'm a doll maker and doll pattern designer and have had websites for over 10 years.  I created two of my own websites that I updated to Godaddy via FTP and also managed and maintained two websites that were hosted through In A Pickle Web Design: one an instant download e-products website using MyCartToGo e-commerce software and Mals-E shopping cart and one selling my handmade goods and crafts

Now I have 1 consolidated Linda Walsh Originals Shop website at Go-Daddy that I maintain that uses a Quick Cart shopping which allows me to sell all my handmade goods and e-products on the same website.

For the past 5 years I've also maintained a Linda Walsh Originals Info website utilizing Website Builder at Go-Daddy.  This is basically a 5 page DIY website that contains all the information about me, my websites, and all my blogs.  Website Builder is very easy to use and very suitable for my information purposes.

Over the years I've created many, many, many selling and non-selling blogs, most of which were created using Blogger.com.  My main Linda's Blog  was created in 2005 and is used for posting everything and anything concerning Linda Walsh Originals.  It's a personal blog, selling blog, and promoting blog all in one.

When I started you only needed to worry about how your website looked on a desktop computer and laptop.  Now you have to worry if your website is optimized for a desktop, laptop, tablet, and mobile phone.  You also need to be concerned with the browser used, as well as the computer platform. The good news is most of the DIY websites and hosting providers are already equipped to handle this. Just be sure to check this out before making a final decision on where to create your website.

So, I  thought I'd create a list for you of  DIY (Do-It-Yourself), Website and Blog Designers & Hosting Providers that I'm aware of.  If you're an independent small business artist and crafter looking for a website please check out my list below.  I hope you find it helpful.

3dCart.com - 3dcart is the quickest and fastest way to sell online. Easily build, edit, and maintain your online store without any programming knowledge. Start selling, today!

ArtDealers.com- ArtDealers is a revolutionary new tool for artists and galleries to easily create and maintain a powerful web site with industry level features. With the point and click easy to use website builder, anyone who can use microsoft word can now create their own web page.

ArtFire.com - The premier online marketplace for handmade products. Our community celebrates and supports art and creativity in all forms.

ArtPal - Sell art and buy art. Featuring artists from around the world, find the perfect art and choose your framing instantly. Create your free gallery and sell your art - It's free, and easy. There are no membership fees. You receive 95%-100% when ArtPal sells your art, and you can start selling in minutes.

Artshow.com - Artshow.com specializes in websites for artists and photographers. Art Resources: ARTISTS' PORTFOLIOS - browse original fine art for sale, OPPORTUNITIES FOR ARTISTS - art contests, shows & competitions, WORKSHOPS, CLASSES & TOURS - search by location, medium, and theme, TIPS & TUTORIALS - learn techniques to improve your art, ART SUPPLIES, PRODUCTS & SERVICES - art materials & services for artists, EXHIBIT YOUR ART ON ARTSHOW.COM - affordable art marketing for artists.

Artspan Contemporary Art - Artist, Photographers, Artisans & More - ARTSPAN IS HOME TO 4,000 CONTEMPORARY ART WEBSITES - Founded in 1999, Artspan is a major contemporary art destination and the leading provider of premium artist, artisan and photographers websites. Use our search functions and directories to access the individual websites and to view or buy work directly from Artspan members. Artspan provides creative contemporary artist professionals with websites and features designed specifically for their needs. The work shown on the individual sites is only original work and prints.

Art Studios Online - Art Studios Online is a website service designed by artists for artists. We provide a variety of website options designed to fit every need and budget – from membership in our juried online gallery, to artist portfolio websites built from our pre-designed templates, to custom sites designed around your artwork. See for yourself what many other artists, artisans, and craftspeople already know: our artist websites are professional, affordable, easy to setup, and easy to update 24/7 — and our great personal customer service is second to none.

Beautiful Artist Websites - Beautiful Artist Websites is a boutique design studio based in Santa Monica, California. We create beautifully designed 21st Century online-marketing systems that showcase, market, and sell artists’ work to galleries, collectors, and art buyers. Our goal is to provide artists with the best online marketing tools, systems, and advice to pursue an enjoyable creative life and get their work seen and sold. Creative and commercial success in one artistic lifetime!

Big Cartel -Big Cartel is where artists set up shop. We provide clothing designers, bands, jewelry makers, crafters, and other artists with their own customizable store to sell their stuff online.

BigCommerce - BigCommerce is the easiest way to sell your products online and reach thousands of new customers both locally and around the world.

Blogger.com - Create a free blog, it's easy and only takes a minute. - Your blog. Share your thoughts, photos, and more with your friends and the world. - Easy to use. It’s easy to post text, photos, and videos from the web or your mobile phone. - Flexible. Unlimited flexibility to personalize your blog with themes, gadgets, and more.

Bluehost - BlueHost has been providing hosting solutions to thousands of business and personal web sites since 1996. Our internet hosting package helps businesses and individuals get high-powered service at a fraction of the cost.

BuildYourSite.com - BuildYourSite.com helps small business owners create and manage a professional website. Pick from over 4,000 industry based website designs and easily manage your website with our easy to use tools. Our all-inclusive services are backed by friendly and live customer service.

CraftIsArt - Online artisan and handmade goods selling community. Shops created and maintained by handmade artisans. E-Patterns sold by designers are emailed to customers as attachments to an email. Two tiers for selling - pay as you go and premium.

Create A Shoppe - Looking to build a website and sell your products or services online? Create A Shoppe's DIY website builder is packed full of features to make building and maintaining your own website easier and more affordable then ever! With our do it yourself website and online store builder you can build a quality, fast loading, feature rich website all on your own and in no time at all!

DJdoodle.com - Country & Prim Craft Website Design & Web Hosting :: DIY Services :: Your 1-Stop Web Shoppe for Craft Sites and Small Businesses

Doodlekit -Doodlekit is an Online Free Website Builder that allows people to create and maintain their own websites for personal or business use. Doodlekit provides users with everything they need to make their website a success: domains, hosting, advanced online website builder, design tools, stock photos, blog, photo albums, forums, form builders, shopping cart, email forwarding and much more.

Duda - Duda is a leading DIY website builder for web professionals and small businesses via its products; DudaMobile, a mobile-only site builder; DudaOne, a responsive website builder and eCommerce platform and DudaPro, which enables entrepreneurs, designers and agencies of all sizes to create personalized and dynamic web presence solutions without the need to invest in hours of costly development time. Duda is based in Palo Alto, California, currently hosts over five million websites and won over ten awards in the last year, including ranking #185 on the Inc. 500|5000 and Small or Medium Business Service of the Year.

eCRATER - What is eCRATER? eCRATER.com is both a free web store builder and a free online marketplace. Sellers can easily create their own free online store in minutes. Buyers can easily browse and compare between thousands of products. Sellers receive free website hosting, a free subdomain and a powerful admin tool to manage their free online stores. All products are posted to Google Product Search as well.

EHost.com -Everything you will EVER need to host and manage your website! Build Your Own FREE Professional website - Choose from Thousands of Templates - Free Domain Name - SEO Tools Included FREE - Free Business Email.

ETSY.com  - Our mission is to enable people to make a living making things, and to reconnect makers with buyers.Our vision is to build a new economy and present a better choice: Buy, Sell, and Live Handmade.  Now offering digital goods  instant download capabilities for items like e-patterns, e-printables, e-tutorials, etc.

EZShoppes.com - An online shopping directory that showcases the finest Crafts, Home Decor, and gift giving products all in one place. Numerous merchants and crafters gathered in one place for your shopping pleasure.

FASO | Fine Art Studio Online- Websites for Artists by FASO - The Easiest Art Websites, Blogs & Newsletters for Professional Artists.

FatCow- We Blow Away the Competition - FatCow Web Hosting is Now Powered by 100% Wind Energy. FatCow was born in 1998 and the rest is history. We've grown our company with a dedicated group of talented believers in the notion that simple, old fashioned service and value still ring true. FatCow has focused our entire company on delivering the best value and customer service experience in Web hosting to the small business user. We make every effort to make our services easy to own, easy to use and most importantly to provide real business value. And yes, we like to have fun doing it.

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FolioLink- Website designs and services for photographers, artists and creative professionals to showcase and sell their work online.

GoDaddy.com - Go Daddy is the world's largest domain registrar, is also the top hosting provider in North America and the world's #1 provider of new SSL certificates.

Homestead - An Intuit Company - Homestead Technologies is a leader in website and online marketing solutions for small businesses. Since 1996, more than 12 million customers have used our award-winning products and services to establish their presence on the Web, maintain and promote their site, and sell or market their products and services—all without mastering programming or design. From our award-winning SiteBuilder software to our ecommerce solutions and world-class support, we help small businesses achieve success online.

Host Gator - HostGator.com LLC is a world leading provider of shared, reseller, and dedicated web hosting. Products: Shared Hosting, Reseller Hosting, Dedicated Hosting, Domain Names.

Host Monster - HostMonster has been providing hosting solutions to thousands of business and personal web sites since 1996. Our internet hosting package helps businesses and individuals get high-powered service at a fraction of the cost.

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Imcreator - A simple & elegant website builder (and it's free). http://imcreator.com/ - Build gorgeous sites fast using our Drag & Drop editor. No programming needed. Start from a template or blank page

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IndieMade - IndieMade DIY Websites include store + blog + portfolio + calendar + news + custom pages + social sharing on your own url. IndieMade offers the simplest, most affordable way for indie entrepreneurs to build an online presence. For a low monthly fee, IndieMade provides crafters, artists, writers, filmmakers, DIYers, and creatives of all types a well-designed, customizable website—which can include image galleries, a blog, a shopping cart, and much more—with your very own URL. Creating a site with IndieMade is perfect for portfolios, online stores, or simply showing off your talents. Did we mention hosting’s part of the package? Everyone needs a website, we make it easy. We give you simple tools to use and we host it for you.

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Webstarts - WebStarts is everything you need to build and maintain your very own website. It's powerful enough for professionals and easy enough for everyone.

Wix.com - Wix.com is a cloud-based web development platform that allows users to create professional HTML5 websites and mobile sites, through the use of online "Drag & Drop" tools. Users can add functionalities such as social plug-ins, eCommerce, contact forms, email marketing, and community forums to their websites using a variety of Wix-developed and third-party applications.

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Zhibit - Zhibit.org is the leading online community for artists who wish to harness the power of the internet to exhibit their work online. Zhibit.org provides artists with simple tools to build unique personal websites and sell their artwork online.

Zibbet- Zibbet is a global marketplace, connecting buyers and sellers of Handmade Goods, Fine Art, Vintage Items and Crafting Supplies.

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My Free Linda's How-Do-I Series? How To Design An E-Pattern E-Book

My e-book was revised 5/28/2019 and is available here.

I've decided to share my secrets of pattern designing.

Now you might think that this wouldn't be something I should do and as a pattern designer this would be foolish as I'm basically giving away trade secrets to the competition. Actually, I'm happy to do this. It's kind of a "pay it forward" for all the help I received years ago when I was just starting out.

I'm happy to do this and thrilled to know there are so many individuals out there now who want to design their own patterns which means the interest in sewing, creating, and selling of e-products (i.e. digital goods) on the Internet is growing. More growth means more business for all of us. Especially if it means more growth for e-patterns which, in my opinion are still in their infancy on the Internet.

So, I decided that I should REVISE and UPDATE my original e-book and I'm happy to report that it is finished and is now available as a free download in Google Drive.

So, did I give away even more trade secrets? Guilty as charged.

Is more competition bad news? Absolutely not! I couldn't be happier, especially if it translates into more business for e-patterns on the Internet.

You know my crafting community motto - what helps one of us helps all of us.

I hope you enjoy the revised version of my Linda's How-Do-I Series? How To Design A Print Pattern and E-Pattern E-Book and Where To Sell Them and hope it motivates you to create your own e-patterns.

Linda's How-Do-I Series? How To Design A Print Pattern and E-Pattern E-Book and Where To Sell Them Free E-Book

To view and download my free e-book please CLICK HERE. You'll be brought to Google Drive where you can view our free e-book. Then just download our free .pdf e-book by clicking on the down arrow in the top center.

For more information on all my free e-patterns, e-printables and e-books please CLICK HERE.

Please respect My Terms of Use:  All patterns, e-patterns, printables, e-printables, e-books, graphics, tutorials, how-to's, articles and other e-products © 2004-2023 Linda Walsh Originals-Designs by Linda Walsh. All rights reserved. Commercial selling or reselling by any means prohibited without the written consent of Linda Walsh.

Patterns, e-patterns, printables, e-printables, e-books, graphics, tutorials, how-to's, articles and other e-products are for personal use only. You may not modify, photocopy, download, upload, post, transmit, display, perform, publish, license, reprint, create derivative works from, mass duplicate, re-sell, digitize, and reproduce in any other form (print, digital or electric) or commercially apply, embed, share, Email, or redistribution in any other means. Use of any of the above is prohibited without the written permission of Linda Walsh.

However, you may link to my website(s)/blog(s) and the individual page(s)/blog post(s) (including 1 picture) but do not copy, reprint or duplicate my website(s)/blog(s) or individual page(s)/post(s ) without my permission.

Items made from Linda Walsh Originals E-Patterns are intended for personal use for fun or small scale personal and business profit as long as you credit us with the design. Large scale commercial use (i.e. mass production) of items made from Linda Walsh Originals E-Patterns are by permission only.

Please see my Terms and Conditions for additional information.

Copyright © 2004 - 2023 - All Rights Reserved - Written By Linda Walsh of Linda Walsh Originals and Linda's Blog. Linda is a doll maker and doll pattern designer.

I'm An Independent Pattern Designer - Where Can I Sell My E-Patterns?

My post and list has been revised and is available here.

I often get asked by independent crafts pattern designers where they can sell their e-patterns so I thought it might be helpful to create a blog post about this.

To give you a little background on me I'm a doll maker and doll pattern designer and have had websites for over 10 years.  I created two of my own websites that I updated to Godaddy via FTP and also managed and maintained two websites that wer hosted through In A Pickle Web Design: one an instant download e-pattern, e-printable, and e-book website using MyCartToGo e-commerce software and Mals-E shopping cart and one selling handmade goods and crafts.

Now I have 1 consolidated Linda Walsh Originals Shop website at Go-Daddy that I maintain that uses a Quick Cart shopping which allows me to sell all my handmade goods and e-products on the same website.  Over the years I've created many, many, many selling and non-selling blogs.

I've been selling my doll and craft patterns and e-patterns online since 2004 and have designed over 350 e-patterns, over 30 e-books, over 20 e-printables, and several e-catalogs. To say I love instant download e-products might be an understatement. I've been in love with .pdf instant download e-products since they first came on the scene in 2004 and have tried all sorts of different venues.

Some I like, some I don't. Some have come and gone, some are free, some are very expensive, some are for specific types of patterns, some are commercial sellers websites, etc. Some are websites that do it all, some are websites that provide html code so you can sell your e-patterns on your website or your blog, some are handmade craft websites where you can list your e-patterns and then send them as an email attachment to your customer, some are websites that provide a download integration for your Etsy shoppe, some are social networking websites that allow for selling, etc. And, some are website designers and e-commerce carts that provide you with the capability of selling instant download e-patterns on your own website.

The online crafts e-pattern, e-printable, and e-book craft industry has been slowly developing over the last decade and, as far as I'm concerned, is still in it's infancy. There's plenty of room for growth and, I'm sure, plenty of room for change. Which venue is best for you is based on what you're selling, what your experience is, what your skill level is, and how much time you can devote to this. Selling e-patterns online as an independent pattern designer is a LONG SLOW process that requires nerves of steel and a lot of PATIENCE. It is not for the faint of heart or those hoping to make a quick buck. That just is not going to happen.

If you’re an artist or crafter who has created e-patterns you might be wondering how you go about selling them. Where do you store your e-patterns and how do you sell instant downloads? Whether its e-patterns or e-books you first need to create a .PDF (Portable Document Format) file which is your electronic product. Once you have created the .PDF file then with the e-patterns there are basically two ways to get the .pdf file to your customer.

1) You can send them yourself as attachments to an email once you have been notified of payment by the customer.

2) They can be sent automatically or available in one's account as "instant download e-patterns" once payment has been made.

So, what kind of online set-up do you need to accomplish this?

1) You can have your own website that has Paypal (or other payment processors) payment buttons capabilities. Once you have received notification from Paypal of payment you can send the e-pattern to your customer as an attachment to an e-mail.

2) You can have a blog that has HTML capabilities in the sidebar or posts that allow you to create Paypal (or other payment processors) payment buttons. Once you have received notification from Paypal of payment you can send the e-pattern to your customer as an attachment to an e-mail.

3) You can have your own website or blog that allows for HTML modules in the sidebar or posts whereby you can copy/paste the BUY NOW digital goods e-commerce shopping cart providers HTML code. In this instance they provide a service whereby they store your e-products on their servers and provide you with a BUY NOW (or similar) button link. When your customer clicks on that Buy Now link then the payment process would begin. Once payment has been made an email will automatically be sent to the customer with the e-pattern download link. They click on the link and follow the prompts to download your e-product. They charge you a fee for this service.

4) You can have your own website that has e-commerce instant download shopping cart capabilities that will send your customer the download link for their e-pattern via email once payment has been made to you.

5) You can have your own website that has e-commerce instant download shopping cart capabilities that will put the download link in the customer's account once payment has been made to you.

6) You can utilize a third-party website with an e-commerce shopping cart provider that has "instant download capabilities." Once payment has been made by the customer the software will automatically generate an email to the customer with the download link. Depending on their set-up you can either: a) upload your .PDF files onto their servers, b) transfer your .PDF files via FTP (file transfer protocol), or c) send them as attachments to an email to them. It all depends on how the e-pattern website is set up. The e-pattern website owners collect payment and then remit to you once they have been paid and have deducted their fee, or they may have a system in place to automatically pay you once the customer has paid. They may charge a monthly fee or charge a % of the sale price and/or both.

7) You can utilize a third-party handmade goods marketplace or community website to create a shop for you to sell your handmade goods and/or e-patterns. Once you have been notified of payment you can send the e-pattern to the customer as an attachment to an e-mail. Sometimes these third-party handmade goods marketplaces or communities have apps that can work in conjunction with your shop and automatically send the customer an email with the e-pattern download link once payment has been made.

If you're an independent crafts pattern designer and you want to sell your e-patterns online, but aren't quite ready for your own website you might want to check out the following websites:

1)   Etsy - http://www.etsy.com  - Shops created and maintained by designers.  E-Patterns sold by designers are uploaded to Etsy listings and downloaded by customers once payment has been processed. Fees are .20 per listing for 4 months plus small  percent of sale.

     a) CraftHub - http://www.crafthub.me/ - An Etsy app that works with Etsy shops selling .pdf instant download e-patterns and provides an integration between ETSY and downloads to customers.  Monthly fees based upon number of transactions.

     b) Easy Social Shop - http://www.easysocialshop.com -  An Etsy and Facebook app that integrates Etsy shops with Facebook business pages allowing you to show your e-patterns on your Facebook business page. E-patterns would be emailed to customers as .pdf attachments.  No fees.

2)  Craftsy - http://www.craftsy.com/ - NOTE: Unfortunately, as of 12/28/18 Craftsy is closing all indie designers pattern stores.

Social networking website created by Sympoz Inc. to sell their e-classes and offer fabric deals from fabric manufacturers. In 2012 they started offering instant download e-pattern sales capabilities for independent craft designers. All different kinds of crafts represented. Designers upload .pdf e-patterns and maintain their shops.   Craftsy handles all aspects of download and interface with customer.  Completely free - no upload fees and no selling fees.

3)  Patternspot - http://patternspot.com/ - Instant download e-pattern marketplace created by C & T Publishing mainly for quilting enthusiasts.  Designers upload .pdf e-patterns and maintain their designer accounts.  Patternspot handles all aspects of download and interface with customer. Fees % of net sales.

4)  Patternmart - http://www.patternmart.com/ - Thousands of different craft patterns.  Designers upload and maintain their memberships. Pattermart handles all aspects of download and interface with customer.Currently closed to new memberships. Designers are encouraged to join their waiting list. Monthly fees based on number of products.

5)  The Pattern Cupboard - http://www.thepatterncupboard.com/ - Large selection of designers and crafts e-patterns. Currently owned and managed by DJDoodle, LLC. Designers upload .pdf e-patterns and maintain their designer accounts. The Pattern Cupboard handles all aspects of download and interface with customer. Monthly or annual fee based on number of e-patterns plus % of each sale.

6)  EPatternShoppes - http://www.epatternshoppes.com/ - Small co-op mainly primitives e-pattern marketplace owned and operated by DJDoodle, LLC.  Designers upload .pdf e-patterns and maintain their shops. Monthly or annual fee.

7)  The Quilt Pattern Shoppe - http://www.thequiltpatternshoppe.com - Instant download quilt e-pattern designer website.   Designers uploads .pdf e-patterns. The Quilt Pattern Shoppe maintains website and handles all aspects of download and interface with customer. Fee per listing plus % of sale.

8)   MagCloud - http://www.magcloud.com/ - Hewlett Packard online print on demand and digital distribution publishing. Used by e-zines, e-book sellers, and some e-patterns. Publisher sets price - Magcloud fee % of sale price.

9)   Doll Street Dreamers - http://www.dollstreetdreamers.com/ Oldest social networking doll club on the web. Offers doll classes and pattern shop for instant download doll e-patterns sold by members. Pattern shop maintained by owner of doll club. Owner handles all aspects of download and interface with customer. Fee % of sales price.

10) PatternFish - http://www.patternfish.com/ - Sellers of knit and crochet e-patterns. Website maintained by PatternFish. PatternFish handles all aspects of download and interface with customer. Fee structure - % of sale price.

11) Artfire - http://www.artfire.com/ - Shops created and maintained by designers. E-Patterns sold by designers are emailed to customers as attachments to an email. Monthly fee structure.

12) CraftsU - http://www.craftsu.com/ -Social networking community of craft artists plus shopping network to buy and sell handmade crafts. Members can use apps (like RapidCart) to help sell handmade items on their individual profile pages.

13) Threadbias - https://www.threadbias.com/ - Online social networking sewing community offering members ability to sell instant download e-patterns. Mainly sewing, clothing, and quilting e-patterns. Designers upload .pdf e-patterns.   Threadbias handles all aspects of download and interface with customer. Fee level structure based on price of e-pattern.

14) Handmade Artists - https://handmadeartists.com/ - Online handmade goods marketplace and social networking community. Shops created and maintained by handmade artisans. E-Patterns sold by designers are emailed to customers as attachments to an email. Membership subscription fees.

15) Folksy - http://folksy.com/ - British online handmade goods marketplace and community.  Shops created and maintained by handmade artisans. E-Patterns sold by designers are emailed to customers as attachments to an email. Two-tier fee structure listing fees per item for 4 month listing plus % sales or annual fee plus % sales.

16) Zibbet - http://www.zibbet.com/ - Online handmade goods marketplace and social networking community. Shops created and maintained by handmade artisans. E-Patterns sold by designers are emailed to customers as attachments to an email. Free for 50 products or less, then monthly or annual fee structure.

17) Bonanza - http://www.bonanza.com/ - Online handmade goods marketplace and social networking community. Shops created and maintained by handmade artisans. E-Patterns sold by designers are emailed to customers as attachments to an email. No listing fees just % of sale.

18) MadeItMyself - http://madeitmyself.com/ - Online crafting and handmade goods selling community.  Shops created and maintained by handmade artisans. E-Patterns sold by designers are emailed to customers as attachments to an email. No listing fees just % of sale.

19) CraftIsArt - http://www.craftisart.com/ - Online artisan and handmade goods selling community. Shops created and maintained by handmade artisans. E-Patterns sold by designers are emailed to customers as attachments to an email. Two tiers for selling - pay as you go and premium.

20) Papernstitch - http://papernstitch.com/ - Papernstitch provides an online exhibition space for talented artists, designers, makers selling handmade goods, and independent boutiques. Products are linked back to each exhibitor's online store where these available they can be purchased. One month exhibition fees.

21) PayloadZ - https://www.payloadz.com/ - Digital Goods eCommerce service for selling downloadable goods online. Provides copy and paste codes for instant download e-patterns to use in websites and blogs.  Monthly fees plus sale transaction fees.

22) EJunkie - http://www.e-junkie.com - Digital Goods eCommerce service for selling downloadable goods online. Provides copy ad paste codes for instant download e-patterns to use in websites and blogs.  Multi-tiered fees based on # of products and storage space required.

23) IPM Pro - http://www.ipmpro.com - Digital Goods eCommerce service for selling downloadable goods online.  Provides copy ad paste codes for instant download e-patterns to use in websites and blogs.

24) YouCanMakeThis - https://www.youcanmakethis.com -  Website selling sewing, crochet, jewelry, crafts & hobbies, stitchery and quilting e-patterns.  You set-up an author account and submit ideas for projects,  Your idea is reviewed and if they like your idea they promote and sell your e-patterns. Fees are 50% of the sales price.

25) Facebook - http://facebook.com - Free social media network.  Sell e-patterns on your business page or within groups.  Paypal bill your customers and once paid e-patterns would be emailed to customers as attachment to an email.  Only cost is Paypal fee for payment transaction.

     a)  Heyo - http://heyo.com -  App that allows you to create a customized Facebook page, with a shopping cart. E-Patterns would be emailed to customer as attachments to an email.  Monthly fee.

26) Gumroad - https://gumroad.com - Digital Goods eCommerce service for selling downloadable goods directly to customers. Integrates with your website, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, SoundCloud, and email newsletters. Flat fee for each sale.

27) Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com - Free social media network.  Create boards for pinning images from around the web.  Pin your item for sale from anywhere else on the web. Pin includes image, description and link back to original website where item was pinned from, like a website or blog post.  Pinned items with prices show up in the gifts section.

    a)  SellPin - https://www.sellpin.com - Buying and selling marketplace that integrates with Pinterest users selling goods and offers payment capability through credit card or Paypal. E-Patterns would be emailed to customers as attachments to an email.   No listing fees just % of sale.

28) Blogger (or any blogging website) - http://blogger.com - Free blogging host provider.  Create a selling blog.  Publish post with image and information about e-pattern.  Include copy and paste code for Paypal button within the post or Paypal bill customer.  When paid e-pattern would be emailed to customer as attachment to an email. Only cost is Paypal fee for payment transaction.

29) Google+ - https://plus.google.com - Free social media network.  Sell e-patterns on your personal profile page, business page or within groups.  Paypal bill your customers and once paid e-patterns would be emailed to customers as attachment to an email.  Only cost is Paypal fee for payment transaction.

30) Go To Patterns & Co. - http://gotopatterns.com -  Website selling sewing & craft patterns. Independent pattern designers can contact them for designer terms.  Submitted patterns are reviewed for quality content.

There are also many graphic developers and website hosting providers who can provide websites with digital goods e-commerce instant download capabilities software and shopping carts.  However, that list is for another day.

If you're an independent crafts pattern designer who wants to sell e-patterns online I hope you find my post helpful.

© 2007-2023 Copyright Linda Walsh Originals - Written By Linda Walsh.

What Have I Really Been Up To?

You may have noticed that I haven't been posting as frequently lately as you may be used to on my Linda's Blog. Well, there's a really good reason for that. Actually, there's many good reasons for that. You see, I've had my hand in a lot of different projects during the last few months - all of which have taken an enormous amount of time.

So, if you're wondering what I've been doing  - here's what I've been up to:

First, I've been creating two brand new websites/blogs for my baby sister. I alluded to this in my recent post entitled "A Delightful Surprise From My Baby Sister!"  She had sent me a bouquet of beautiful flowers as a "thank-you" for all I had been doing for her.

If you're wondering what her new websites/blogs are - well, the first has to do with alpacas and the second has to do with her new patterns. Now the latter (ie: patterns) should come as no surprise for something my baby sister might do. Given my creative juices never take a break and given how many patterns I've created I would hope some of that might rub off on my sister. When she was young she wanted to do everything I did and I didn't always let her. This time, I helped her.

This past winter her creativity went into overdrive. Make that super overdrive. She had decided that she wanted to combine her love of flowers with her love of quilting and sewing so she designed several framed flower appliquéd wall pieces.

She was not only creating like crazy, but wanted to put the fruits of her creative endeavors to good use by creating patterns. And, of course, I told her that on the net "e-patterns" were the name of the game. So, since she didn't know how to create patterns - let alone e-patterns, I helped her a bit. After all, what are big sisters for?

And, since she had created patterns - well, she needed websites/blogs to sell them. So, of course, "the blogging queen" eagerly volunteered to create those for her. 

Inspired Creations By D sells FRAME or QUILT - FABRIC WALL ART PATTERNS. According to my sister, "Inspiration comes from many areas and one of mine comes from my love of the great outdoors, nature & flowers. I love to craft, sew, quilt and design patterns."

I hope you get a chance to visit my baby sister's new website/blog. If you do please leave a comment to let her know what you think.

So, I've explained the latter.  You might be wondering "what's up?" with the alpacas. Well, it seems my baby sister and her husband have decided to try their hands at alpaca farming. I really should say that my baby sister fell in love with "alpacas" (how could you not - they're just so ADORABLE) and managed to convince her "hubby" that this would be a great thing for them to do. Raise and sell alpacas and alpaca fiber. So, they are.

Right now they're in the process of getting their "alpaca farm" ready for the two alpacas and their 2 offspring that will arrive in September. My baby sister bought two "girls" that she named Sunflower and Ivy - who are both pregnant and will deliver their babies in July.

In case you haven't guessed by now baby sister's thing is flowers and gardening which is why she named her alpacas after flowers and which is why she named her new adventure "Rock Garden Alpacas."

So, since she and her husband are now in the alpaca business they needed a website/blog.  And, of course, I had no problem volunteering to create another website/blog for them.
Rock Garden Alpacas is not only their selling website, but also their blog as it tells about their journey into alpaca farming. According to my sister, "We decided that it would be helpful to document our journey into alpaca farming as a way of "paying it forward" for all the help we received along the way. If you're thinking of alpaca farming we hope "Our Journey" helps you."

I hope you get a chance to visit my baby sister and brother-in-law's new website/blog. If you do please leave a comment to let them know what you think.

On top of all of that I've also been in the process of revising all 272 of my patterns.

The first of the year I decided I wanted to revise my patterns to create computer assisted diagrams and pattern piece pages. I tried one pattern to see how difficult it would be and how long it would take using Microsoft Publisher. I've been using it for years upon years now and would be lost without it.

So, I thought I'd see how difficult it would be to use their computer assisted drawing tools to help me create some of the images on my diagrams pages and pattern pieces sheets. After a few mangled attempts at drawing curves I finally got the knack of it. And, it worked really well once I got used to drawing lines, circles, curves, arrows, different size text, and different positioning of the text and images.

In fact, everything looked so wonderful. So nice and neat (not that my drawn diagrams weren't neat) and organized (not that my drawn diagrams weren't organized - as they were). It really made a difference in my pattern. I just LOVED how they looked - how professional - that I decided to revise all of my patterns.

Well, with 272 patterns this is a HUGE endeavor to undertake. Depending on the size of the pattern it might take me anywhere from one day to three days just to complete the changes. That's a HUGE undertaking to say the least and one that takes up a lot of my time.

So, I decided to take it one pattern at a time and over time eventually they'd all be done. I've got 76 of them done now and they're all updated in my Linda Walsh Originals shop.

Thirty five of those I've posted about on my Linda's Blog .

I've got 41 of the revised e-patterns done just waiting for new blog posts. So, that leaves 196 left to go. It will probably take me the rest of the year to revise all of them, but they're coming out really well and it's well worth the effort.

So, you're probably saying, "with all the above I can understand why she's been a little blog absent."

Well, that's only part of the story. I've been doing something else too that has taken me 315 hours to complete. I started it on December 29th, 2010 and finished it on May 14, 2011. Hubby has painstakingly recorded the days and hours it has taken for me to complete this project.

However, I can't tell you what's taken me 315 hours. It's a surprise for another Linda's Blog post. I will say that it came out absolutely beautiful and was well worth the effort. When I finally reveal it to you I hope you will all agree.

Has Anyone Noticed!

BLOGS, BLOGS, AND MORE BLOGS!

Have any of you noticed how many blogs there are now for individuals, crafters, small business, corporations, etc.?

Everyday when I'm listening to the news I hear someone say, "Just go to so and so's blog at....." And, I love hearing that!

That tells me that blogs have become more and more commonplace as tools for individuals and families to stay in touch, as tools for small businesses and their customers, as tools for the news media, as selling tools, and as tools for mainstream businesses. Everyone and their brother has a blog and I think it's FABULOUS!

What I also love is how many crafting bloggers there are out there. And, most are around my age - which I also think is FABULOUS!

If you key the word blog into Google you'll get 1,030,000,000 results. That's a LOT OF BLOGS.

There's a reason why blogs have been increasing in popularity exponentially over the past few years and it's because they are FREE, they are easy to use, they are extremely easy to update, and they are highly personal - which most customers LOVE. If you were to apply the reality TV versus regular TV analogy to blogs and websites you'd understand why reality TV and blogs are so popular. They are both highly personal and both involve people interacting with each other.

Plus, they can and do function for some bloggers as very professional websites. You can have your own domain name and you can use a shopping cart. In fact, I'd say that there isn't much you can't do with a blog. There is a way to do just about anything you want to. That makes blogs much more versatile than a website as they are much more flexible. And, they are a LOT easier to change and update.

The Internet is ever changing and to be in business on the Internet you need to be fluid and ever changing. That means utilizing what's popular with users and customers. BLOGS are extremely popular and easily adaptable to any kind of commerce, especially e-commerce and e-products.

I, personally, love shopping with someone who has a personal or small business blog. I love the feeling of getting to know the person I'm buying from. I don't know if you feel the same way, too, but I always feel more comfortable buying from someone who has taken the time to tell me something about their product(s) and their life or business. By doing so they make me feel feel more comfortable doing business with them. And, that's what writing blogs for small businesses does. Hopefully, if the blog reader is comfortable with the blog owner they will buy their product.

If they do that's FABULOUS! Bring on the blogs. The more the merrier!