The Pinkest Package

      The other day I got a package in the mail from Tiffany Purdy. I don't think I have ever gotten a Purdy package before. But I now have new packaging goals. 

     Years ago I could get pink bubble wrap locally, and it was awesome and I loved it. Sadly, I have not been able to get pink bubble wrap in many years. Most often I am actually using recycled bubbled wrap that has been saved from other packages. The items I ship are not particularly delicate so reused bubble wrap is not a big deal at all. It also saves money, which is a good idea. When I opened the box from Tiffany and saw the pink peanuts (I have never seen pink peanuts like this before!) I loved it. And there was a pink card as well. I have new packaging goals. 

     Tiffany also included a Studio Pink mask. Not only is it cute but it's also super comfortable. These are qualities I appreciate in a mask. Thanks so much Tiffany!

     Digging into the package I also found this pink box. This is the exact size and color I can't resist buying just about every time I see them. I have a stack of them on the table next to me. They are a great size for a variety of small items. I took the Studio Pink sticker off and stuck it on my laptop and added this useful box to my collection. 

     Inside was even more pink! A lovely little, padded, wrapped in pink fleece, with a pink ribbon bit of awesomeness. I have seen people complain about the little extra touches a lot of artists put in their packaging. The complaint was that the extras just raise the prices, which in these people's opinions were unnecessary and so on. That particular post was on modelholics anonymous on Facebook so consider the source. My experience is that nice touches in packaging turn the experience from opening the mail to opening a gift. It brings an extra measure of happiness which, in my opinion, it is never a bad thing to have a little extra happiness. 

    The packaging was incredible but didn't compare to the perfect micro Hazel inside. This is my first professionally painted micro. I love micros (they are amazing miniatures, of course I love them!) and up until now all of my painted ones were ones I finished myself. I am not too bad at micro scale. Pastels have also made my finish work a bit better. But while I am a lot better than I was (because NaMoPaiMo pushed me to do my absolute best!) I am not that good. I don't paint enough. Tiffany has a lot more experience than I do. It shows. I love this tiny Hazel and I now want to get more professionally painted micros. I will still paint my own, but I need to mix things up a bit I think. 

     I have packaging goals now. Over the years I have gone through a lot of different styles of packaging. I have done COAs (I can't keep up with those) and hang tags, hand written thank yous and so on. These days I wrap dolls in pink tissue (that has been consistent for years) and put a pink thank you sticker on instead of tape. I also include a fancy business card that has a thank you message printed on it and a custom sticker. People are really into stickers lately. My live sale packing is not always spectacular. The dolls still get wrapped in pink tissue with a pink thank you sticker. The packages all still get a fancy printed thank you business card and a custom sticker. But small items stay in the paper lunch bags and get folded over, taped and put in the box. Or a bubble mailer. Some of this is out of necessity. When you are packing and shipping 40+ packages at a time sometimes you have to go for efficient over cute. But I do wonder if I can add back in some cute touches without adding an enormous amount of time to my packaging. Goals. 

     I also want to comment on the post I saw where the person was complaining about the extras and the extra cost it adds. I can only speak for myself but I pay for the extras because I like them. I didn't raise my prices because of them. My pink thank you stickers literally cost me 1 cent each. And I feel they add a lot more than that to my packaging. But I can, and should, do more. I think it will make me happy. And we can all use extra little bits of happiness.