What do decorators need to know before offering rhinestones to customers?

Rhinestones are a great way to achieve a high perceived value. When utilizing rhinestones, having a variety of stock rhinestone fonts and designs in your arsenal are a must to minimize your design time and increase productivity. Another great thing about rhinestones is that they aren’t just for apparel. A few examples are car decals, totes, water bottles, glassware, and footwear.

When designing with bling, keep in mind that the entire design does not have to consist of rhinestones. They can be used as accents to enhance an existing design, such as outlining or changing an element in the design or adding rhinestones to create a mixed media item.

On the production side of things, rhinestones can be entirely or partially outsourced (finished items or transfers) or done in-house. Your equipment and skill level will determine how you proceed.

There are pros and cons to having in-house production. For some, a disadvantage might be the upfront cost of investing in equipment, inventory, and training. An advantage would be the flexibility to produce on-demand and not have stringent quantities as well as the ability to produce one-offs or demos. One of the biggest benefits for us is being able to fix or make an additional transfer if something goes wrong. Unfortunately, something always goes wrong at the most inopportune time. We prefer the convenience and flexibility of being able to produce on-demand. For us, the pros outweigh the cons

—A Crafter’s Haven