Cheap Craft Supplies Online

This weekend I was reminded that one of the best places to find some unique cheap craft supplies is right at the local dollar store!  I don’t have a dollar store that’s actually near where I normally shop, but I was able to stop into one of the larger chain dollar stores yesterday and I was shocked that they had an entire aisle dedicated to cheap arts and craft supplies.

I found a lot more discounted craft supplies that I expected to find.  They had a full collection of beads and jewelry supplies, they had lots of artificial flowers, plants and fruits, they had glass beads and marbles and flower vases and all sorts of craft supplies for making home decorations and decor.  And don’t forget to check out the cheap greeting card section and discount paper and party supplies.  The dollar store is actually a pretty good place to also find some uncommon and unique cheap scapbooking supplies.

It’s almost like buying wholesale craft supplies without having to worry about all the rules and regulations!

The chain dollarstores like Dollar General and Dollar Tree are probably your best place to get craft supplies on a regular basis, though some of the independent dollar stores in my area also carry a pretty good selection.  Some of the chain dollar stores now offer bulk ordering, so if you want a case of picture frames or a crate of scrapbooking supplies you might be able to buy them directly from the store and have them shipped to you!

And while it’s always a challenge to find really low-price craft supplies that are high quality, it’s even more of a challenge to find arts and crafts tools that are affordable and yet still functional.  Like most dollar stores, this one had a small selection of tools which are perfect for small arts and craft projects.  It had a few small pliers, hammers and wrenches all for a dollar a piece and all high quality enough to handle most hobbies and craft supplies projects that I had waiting for me at home.

They had a lot of crafty things like yarn and wooden placques and wooden boxes and they even had a small selection of off-brand craft paint.  Their selection of glass candleware and picture frames was absolutely amazing, but I did find that I had to be careful about picking ones out that were not broken or scratched in some way.

In fact, when you go to a dollar store for craft supplies you have to always be careful to make sure you’re buying items that strong enough to be used in larger projects.  Inspect every craft item in the store before you buy them because sometimes things are damaged or scratched in dollar stores.  Dollar stores are also great places to get seasonal craft supplies, but be aware that they often don’t stock seasonal items all year around, so if you’re making your Halloween crafts in July you probably won’t find much at the dollar store.

And even though all the items only cost $1.00, it’s still possible for you to overpay for your craft supplies there.  Don’t forget that sites like Amazon.com also have some great affordable craft supplies that can work out to cost less than you might pay for similar items in a dollar store.

That being said, if you find something you think you’ll use a lot of you might want to stock up while you’re there.  The arts and craft supply inventory of most dollar stores isn’t always predictable so one week you might find a basket full of craft supplies you can use and the next week you might walk out empty-handed.

Let’s face it, the most expensive part of creating any craft project is the craft supplies and tools you need to buy in advance. At some point most serious crafters begin to take a good hard look at the money they’re making with craft fairs and craft sales and start comparing it to their expenses and quickly realize that the one item the most money is spent on is the craft supplies themselves.  This means, of course, that it makes sense to try to get your craft supplies at the lowest cost available.

That’s where buying paper, paints, wood pieces, ribbon and lots of other arts and crafts supplies “wholesale” can really help a professional craftsman or women or even a small craft store owner who is starting out. But you can’t just walk into any arts and crafts supply store or visit any craft supply website and really buy things wholesale. It’s all a little more complicated than that.

Let’s begin with the basics:

What does it mean to buy something like craft supplies wholesale?

The word “wholesale” is thrown around a lot these days and is often used as a substitute for “cheap” but that’s not really the true meaning of the word. Normally when you buy wire or beads or ribbon or anything from a craft supply store you’re buying small quantities from the store. The store, in turn, bought larger quantities from a wholesale operation somewhere. By buying larger quantities the store was able to get a lower price per item, which they can then mark up a little bit and sell to you. This is how most retail stores, not just arts and crafts supply stores, work.

Retail stores are vendors who stand in the middle of selling one or two items to people. Wholesale arts and crafts supply companies usually do not deal with the general retail public buyer, don’t have a showroom or fancy storefront and only deal in larger quantities of craft supply sales. When you buy most things wholesale you often don’t pay sales tax on the items because it is understood that you will eventually sell the items to individual customers and collect sales tax instead.

Where do wholesale companies get their craft supplies?

Most wholesale companies have a relationship with large distribution centers or directly with the manufactures of whatever it is they are selling, including crafts and arts supplies. In the craft and supply world many wholesalers deal with small and large importers from around the world.  So the XYZ Wholesale Craft Supply Company may have a contract with a vendor to buy 1,000 handmade wooden boxes with small hinges every month. The box maker can sell the boxes cheaply to XYZ Wholesale Craft Supply Company because it is guaranteed income and they are the manufacturer. XYZ Wholesale Craft Supply Company must then sell their boxes to hundreds of different craft and arts supply stores. They make a profit by marking up the boxes a little bit. Often real wholesale craft supply sellers will only sell large quantities of items to buyers. It just isn’t worth their time to sell 3 boxes or a couple vases to someone when they have a crate of 1,000 of them sitting in the a storeroom.

How can wholesale craft supply companies sell supplies for so much cheaper than retail stores?

There are a number of reasons for this, some of which we’ve already covered. Most wholesale arts and craft supply stores don’t have a real “showroom” so they don’t have to worry about expensive storefronts, insurance for customers, parking, nice lighting, calming ambiance, friendly clerks, etc. Wholesale companies are often big warehouses with nothing more than thousands of shelves and boxes filled with craft supply items! Some wholesale craft supply stores now have beautiful websites, but that’s relatively cheap to build compared to a real brick and mortar craft store.

They also make money by selling in large quantities of arts supplies or other items. If they only make 10 cents per paint brush in a sale but they sell a minimum of 10,000 paint brushes at a time, then they are still going to make a fairly decent profit. A regular arts and craft store may make 50 cents to a $1 or more for each craft item they sell in some cases, but they are usually only selling a few items at a time to any one customer.

Okay, so how can I buy my arts and craft supplies wholesale?!

Ahh, this is the big question and there isn’t an easy answer. First, you can search for wholesale craft stores online. Be careful! Just because a website says “wholesale craft items” doesn’t mean it necessarily is a true wholesaler. Most “true” wholesale establishments will only sell to you if you have a store or you’re serious about buying a lot of arts and craft supplies at once.  Most have minimum order amounts.

Most require that you have a real registered business with your state commerce department as well as a “wholesaler’s license” which can usually also be obtained through your state. A wholesaler’s license basically allows you to buy items from wholesale centers without paying sales tax. But when you then sell the items you bought you must collect sales tax and give that tax to your state. Some wholesale craft supply companies specifically ask that you also provide proof of a legitimate business ownership as well as photos of your storefront.

Remember: Wholesale arts and craft supply sellers want to make sure you’re truly able to buy lots of craft supplies from them at one time! Yes, this is a lot of work and it really is for the true art or craft business woman, not just the part-time crafter who wants to get some cheap arts supplies every now and then.

With a little persistence and some effort put towards your arts or crafts business, you can really save a lot of money and find some wonderful and inexpensive craft supplies through wholesale distributors!

I was just browsing the A.C.Moore website looking at a couple different “basic” craft supplies that I’m running low on like glue sticks and seed beads and I came across a link to A.C. Moore’s “unadvertised craft supply specials.” It’s near the bottom of the page on the right side, down by the Store Locator tab.  I don’t know if the link has always been there and I just missed it or if it’s a new link that shows all their sales that they don’t want to publicize too much.

Sure, some of the unadvertised specials really aren’t that secret.  For example, right now the AC moore website is listing 40% off scrapbooking supplies as an unadvertised special, but today I received a newspaper insert that listed the same scrapbooking supply sale (though for different dates).  Overall, though, I’m impressed with the sales they have listed on the AC Moore website.

In fact, the whole AC Moore website has really improved in the past six months or so.  Instead of just being a website that lists their craft supply store locations they also have up all their sales fliers, a larger collection of items from their stores and lots of online web enhancements.

Two of the biggest improvements I’ve seen are their online craft video tutorials and their craft supply forum where you can talk and leave messages with other crafty people and see what other neat and clever crafty things other people are doing.  AC Moore even allows people to talk about where they found their craft supply deals, even if it isn’t in their store!

Though you still can’t buy your craft supplies online at the AC Moore website, I would recommend using it as a good place to check up  what sort of craft supplies are actually available before you drive across town to your local store.  All in all, AC Moore is still a great place to get cheap craft supplies, though the unadvertised sales on certain craft supplies certainly helps!

Michael’s Art and Craft stores across the country are right in the middle of their annual winter clearance event and you can save up to 80% off art and craft supplies of all types! Michael’s has been advertising their craft sale all week and it’s been in newspapers, sent out through mail and even advertised on their website. If you’re looking for some great cheap craft supplies to start out the new year then there is no better time visit the Michael’s Art and Craft Store website or visit a store in person for some amazing craft supply deals and sales!

Some of the sales on craft supplies include 50% off your entire picture framing order, up to 70% off certain yarns, 25% off all ribbons, 50% off floral items, 50% off baskets, and up to 40% off all sorts of art supplies throughout the entire Micheal’s store! To be fair, Michael’s usually offers a lot of inexpensive craft supplies, though it’s sometimes a toss up as to which craft supply store is ultimately cheaper. Both Michael’s Arts and Craft stores and AC Moore arts and craft stores do their best to offer the cheapest prices on craft supplies possible.

If you want to get some cheap craft supplies online then I recommend you visit either of the big craft store’s websites (some offer sales online, some don’t) or you can visit my personal favorite for cheap online craft supplies: CreateForLess.com. If you’re really in the mood to save some money on your craft supplies you might want to check all three, though I’ve found that when I’m in a hurry it’s simply easier to go to order everything from CreateForLess.com than to comparison shop for every single little art and craft item I need.

Because it’s the beginning of a new year and the end of an old one a lot of art and craft stores, like Michael’s and AC Moore, are having clearance sales. This is an excellent time to get a jump on your cheap holiday craft supplies for next year if you have the storage space. By buying your holiday craft supplies a year in advance you’ll have the opportunity to offer some unique craft items at the craft shows next year and you’ll be able to realize a much larger profit when you sell your craft projects.

Good luck at all those arts and craft supply clearance events! If I see you there I’ll try to leave a few good craft supply deals for you, too!