I really don’t want to write up tutorial on how I knitted or crochet this or that or how a made a recycled journal or how I created a piece of patchwork for that I get paid if I write How To’s.
So no I won’t be using that section. If people want to know details on how I create something they can pay me for a How To Tutorial or pay to come to a demonstration and teaching session of which I’m not running any of at the present time.
I tend to give as many details as I want to in the item description, so would rather not have to clutter the page using that section.
If it is optional then those flouting the what qualifies as handmade quidelines could just ignore it , so it wouldn’t work from that perspective.
I’ve had a quick look at some of my “inspiration”. I just add something as a sort of “conclusion” to add something that might make a buyer decide to buy that item. I don’t think I would include anything in the “how I made this” other than repeating that it’s a handmade in UK, one of a kind item.
Rather than a ‘how I made this’ section per item I would like to see an expanded ‘meet the maker’ section. At the moment the ‘meet the maker’ section is a bit hidden (you need to know to click on the makers name to get to it) and there is no facility to put photos of workshops/spaces or works in progress. Could there be a button titled ‘meet (or about) the maker’ under the banner next to all the social media links? As others have said I tend put all the details of how I made something that I’m prepared to divulge in the item description.
I use the inspiration section occasionally when I genuinely have been inspired to make something. I sometimes fall into the category of “I made it because I like to create and it’s something that worked and fits in my range”. In that instance I don’t write anything. If it were to change to “How I made this” I would just be repeating what I write in the description so I wouldn’t use it at all. I can’t see this being a benefit to sellers or buyers. Unless I am not understanding the vision and I’m not using the sections to their full potential, in that case an example from the Folksy team of how they think these sections should be used would be useful.
Just looked at mine…which is repeated on every item. I need to have a serious re-think, not sure what I was thinking of when I put it on 
. I do think it can be a useful thing to have information appearing in two columns, particularly if people are scanning the item and not reading or scrolling down. I also like it that if you don’t fill it in the description is spread across.
Fraid I’m not a fan of the ‘inspiration’ section or a ‘how I made this’ section, mainly because I don’t like the 2 columns of text. I think it’s quite confusing to the eye.
I think a ‘meet the maker’ button at the top of the page as @SashaGarrett suggested is a great idea :0)
I really don’t like the 2 columns of text either, especially on a small mobile screen it makes the description really hard to read. And if there was only one column we could do away with the heading ‘Description’ which also feels a bit cluttersome to me.
I’m with @SashaGarrett in that I’d prefer to see an expanded ‘meet the maker’ section displayed more prominently from each item page, maybe with a little taster and a link to ‘see more’ over in the unused space under the social media buttons in the right hand column.
I like the idea of the ‘how I made this’ but realistically, after I’ve explained that I fuse layers of glass together in my kiln, it will be the same for all the many different colours of earrings, ditto pendants, ditto cufflinks… if the information on how I made the item is interesting and different enough it will naturally form part of the description anyway rather than needing to be a separate thing; if the information is simply going to be what I do in a general sense (eg I fuse glass, or throw pots, or whatever) then surely it is better positioned in a more prominent ‘meet the maker’ section?
I agree with others who have said they do not use the inspiration section and would not use a how I made this section. Such details if relevant and interesting could easily be added to the description, for example I tend to explain the term nuno felt in my descriptions as many people may not have heard of it. I like the idea of a more visible “meet the maker” section - maybe make it more formal with separate sections (some could be compulsory) such as where you live, what inspires you, why you started crafting, what techniques you use, that people have to fill in when they sign up.
I rarely use this for inspiration - does the public appreciate “the gas bill was due so I needed to sell some stuff” as the true motive behind your creative process? I had no idea it disappeared when blank, so I may edit my listings to get rid of drivel 
When I do use it for interesting stuff it is about the rare breed sheep that the wool came from, or the making of Harris Tweed; the listing is slightly better for it but it wouldn’t be the end of the world if it wasn’t there.
I’m not sure a one size fits all works whether you call the section “Inspiration” or “How I made this”. Maybe “Further details” or “You might like to know” would be better. I would prefer if it was underneath the description rather than beside it.
When I started I struggled to find the words for my inspiration, as sometimes its just because it was a good idea at the time…! But as I am still developing the items I make at the moment and buildng my shop, I am looking more at collections with complimentary items rather than one off odd things, so more thought goes into them which makes this section easier for me to fill in. I do think its good to have something on the listing as it gives customers more behind the scenes insight and hopefully may sway them to purchase from you rather than the generic retail shops of samey things.
I tend to repeat what is in the description as I want my inspiration to be a key part of the listing - I didn’t realise that the section disappeared if there was nothing in it. I won’t use it in future.
My “how I made this” would be repetitive too. I would prefer the time to be invested in an easy-to-find link to the rest of my shop.
i prefer the idea of ‘how i made’ to ‘inspiration’.
i also like the idea of having a section that you can have extra photos showing you work in progress and so on and could write a bit more about the shop and processes and studio shots like the ones that appear on folksy’s banner etc. - a sort of ‘how i made it’ bit in photos.
this would then not be about how each item is made, rather just an overall feel of the shop and the seller.
maybe it could be part of a new meet the maker section that can be clicked via a different way rather than clicking on the maker’s name which perhaps isn’t always obvious to somebody looking at your shop.
i really like learning about a seller i am interested buying off and also like looking at photos of their wip etc…
I think overall this section could be optionally used for a number of purposes, depending upon what the seller wants to say.
A ‘how its made’ section sounds ok, however I have recently been using the section to highlight to people WHY they should buy from me, i.e. I am educating them about my craft and the results (in my opinion) that they should be looking for when spending their hard-earned cash.
To be honest, I don’t mind sharing information on my craft. If someone is prepared to spend the amount of money and time (i.e. years) required to master the craft, then I don’t have a problem sharing a few tips to help them along the way. After all, some people have shared their tips/techniques with me for free. For every one person who takes up my craft, there will be 1000 who drop out when they realise just how much personal and financial investment is involved.
I like the idea of an extended ‘meet the maker’ section too. Especially if you’re like me and make pretty much the same thing- it would mean you can do a little synopsis of ‘how I made this’ in there.
But- I also like the idea of simply having the ‘description’ section and that’s it- and as someone else said then it wouldn’t have to have that header as it would be obvious so may be a little more sleek. 
Can mock ups of a few plans be made that Folksy like and then there’s a vote on the favourite layout? I know you can’t please all of the people all of the time though.
I like the idea of the Meet the Maker being more visible.
I think I would prefer the ‘inspiration’ box to change to something like ‘Techniques Used to Create This Item’ - then people could just fill in a few words, eg hand sewing, machine sewing, hand knitting, machine knitting, lino cut and printed, hand modelled, original oil painting, hand dyed, home spun, original or print photograph, etc (waaay too many to list here!).
Perhaps then, if was obligatory that section was filled in, it would only take a few words for the technique used that genuine crafters could easily fill in, and those who are selling on might be deterred if the genuinely hadn’t realised this is a site for hand crafted items?
I have no objection to sharing what techniques have been used to make an item with information about the process. What I do object to is people starting out who ask for help and who expect a step by step guide complete with a list of materials and suppliers used! It has taken many man hours for me to research techniques and materials and I don’t expect to pass them on for free.
Lol. Yes, but that is my whole point, these people are unlikely to be committed enough to stay in the craft for any amount of time and they flounder and disappear pretty quickly when they find out how much work is actually involved.
Anyway. I’m probably just used to the leathercraft trade where it is the norm to share free tips and techniques with veterans and newcomers alike.
I already put that sort of information into my description ie hand knitted, hand sewn crewel embroidery or sewn on my hand turned non electrical singer sewing machine.
I think some crafts are more accessible to beginners than others (not that it still doesn’t take a great deal of practice to become good at something, I was thinking more in terms of equipment and materials) - I think it’s understandable that people in less accessible crafts are generally happier to share info.
At uni some of the lecturers had a theory that different types of people were drawn to the different areas on offer - the jewellers all tended to be quite secretive about their techniques and designs, the glass artists were a bit more open and sharing, and the ceramicists would tell anybody anything, and at great length 
There, I’ve probably offended everyone now…