I couldn’t believe a few weeks ago when I noticed that my supply of labels was running low, since that would mean that I’d run through over 300 product labels! I was like, “WHAAAT?!” I am a MACHINE, boys and girls! Eh heh heh heh…

So it was time to order up some more labels. But rather than reorder more of the same, I decided to switch things up a little bit since as a microbiz you kind of just have the flexibility to do that! I played with my colors a bit and added an image of sprouting leaves that I think is in keeping with the bright-sunshiny-day design of my site and shop banner, as well as my business card. And, I think it represents the budding nature of my business and hopefully the new growth ahead. So voila! My new label. :]

I’d had a decent experience with my previous label supplier from Etsy but the turnaround had been a bit slow, so back I went to see what new suppliers might have cropped up since then. I found Worldwide Label, did some price comparisons, read their customer reviews and ordered up a pack of 600!

My first interaction with them was uhhhhh, not so good. I sent them this:

And this is what they sent back to me as a proof to approve:

ACK! I had a few moments of speechlessness but quickly wrote them back to basically say that the proof was not going to work out for me unfortunately and that I would much prefer that it look a little bit more like the design I submitted.

Thankfully, the story quickly takes a turn for the better! They wrote me back the next morning saying that they’d take care of it and not to worry. And they did! Not sure what happened there but they arrived 21 days later, and I am lovin’ me my new labels!

I can’t wait to try them out. Here’s to my next 600 products — cheers!Similar Posts:

• On the hunt for labels
• A sticky situation

I’m a huge fan of OnlineLabels.com, where these packs of stick-on labels obviously came from. They’ve been really responsive to product and order questions, they offer good prices and have a super-speedy turnaround.

My first order with OnlineLabels.com was a pack of weatherproof lip balm labels, and I came back this time around because of the good experience, but also because of a $5 off coupon they offered for writing up some feedback about the type of label software I’ve used! I respond well to bribes. Mine’s at the bottom dated 9/18, though actually it’s really not even worth looking at.

I’m not so crazy about OnlineLabel.com’s Maestro Label Designer software, which I tried today to make my first sheet of packaging stickers. Once I finally realized that it doesn’t matter if the image on the screen looks pixelated because it won’t actually print out that way, I ended up wasting half a sheet of stickers because the image printed higher up on the sticker towards the bottom half of the sheet which left me with not so cute excess white space.

But, the software is free for customers for a certain length of time after your purchase so it’s not that big of a deal anyway. I wouldn’t pay to use it again when my trial period expires though. Besides, they provide a bunch of templates for each product to allow you to use plenty of other software to print your labels so you’re plenty covered.

With any luck, I’ll run through these packs of sheets like there’s no tomorrow…and then I’ll be back for more! =DSimilar Posts:

• Big ole box o’ labels
• On the hunt for labels

I’d thought about this awhile ago after seeing Fashion Incubator’s post on How to order labels pt.1, but I’d put it on the back burner and kind of forgotten about it. Prompted by Nicole, I requested a quote from ClothingLabels4U.com. I also dug up Kathleen’s aforementioned post for the source mentioned there, Laven Industries, and got a quote from them as well. Both companies got back to me within the same day which I really appreciated, and now the ball’s in my court to figure out what kind of label I want.

ClothingLabels4U.com mailed me a bunch of samples, including these (woven labels on left, fusible labels on right):

…and these, which are the ones I like the best (front view on left, back view of same set on right):

Laven Industries sent me a PDF with photos of labels across different categories. Considering price, so far I like their printed twill labels the best:

This is my first label order and I’m pretty undecided, so I kind of wish the companies had a quick ‘n easy chart of the types of labels they offer and their corresponding prices so I wouldn’t have to go back and forth with “How much for this one? Oh wait, how about this one? Or maybe…what about…”. Maybe there are just too many variations to list, and/or they want customers to contact them, and/or perhaps it’s a competitor/privacy thing…? I dunno.

At any rate, here’s what my options currently look like:

Laven Industries

• Minimum order: 100 labels
• Prices at 250 labels:
  • Printed satin (cheapest): $90 + $50 setup
  • Printed twill: $120 + $75 setup
  • Woven label: $250 for 100 labels, or $275 for 500 labels (no setup fee, no option for 250 qty)
• Turnaround: 1-2 weeks depending on type of label
• Shipping costs: not sure

ClothingLabels4U.com

• Minimum order: 250 labels
• Prices at 250 labels: not sure, but 500 labels are between $270 and $380
• Turnaround: within 2-4 weeks or sooner after payment and approval of final proof
• Shipping costs: 15.00 for all US orders via FedX Ground (5-7 business days)

Custom Couture Label Company (an Etsy shop!)
Of course I had to check Etsy, and this seller has some great values on woven labels!

• Minimum order: 100 labels (the smallest quantity available on their site)
• Prices: $90 for 200 text-only woven labels (they also have other options on their site)
• Turnaround: 3 weeks
• Shipping costs: $4.95 via USPS Priority Mail

So…decisions, decisions. I know I want a horizontal layout. And text-only. One color for the text, one color for the background. Aaaand, that’s about it. Do I want it folded? How do I want it attached? I know it’s either sewn on around all four borders like I currently have, but then now that I have the option, maybe I want to sew it into one of my seams! Well hopefully I figure it out soon so I can cross this off my list of things to do. Wish me luck! =]Similar Posts:

• Big ole box o’ labels
• A sticky situation
• Let the Lug-making begin