CharSpirit's Handmade Creations has blog site, feel free to check it out!

http://www.charspirits.blogspot.com

Copy this letter below and send this to your United States Congress Person and Senator and the CPSC to request changes in the CPSIA to save handmade toys!

From:  [your name and address]

To: [your congress person or senator]

Re: Changes needed to the Consumer Product Improvement Act (CPSIA) to Save Handmade Toys in the USA

Dear  [your congress person or senator],

Like many people, I was deeply concerned by the dangerous and poisonous toys that large Chinese toy manufacturers have been selling to our nations families.  And, I was very pleased that Congress acted quickly to protect America's children by enacting the CPSIA.

However, I am very concerned that the CPSIA's mandates for third party testing and labeling will have a dramatic and negative effect on small toymakers in the USA, Canada, and Europe, whose toy safety record has always been exemplary. 

Because of the fees charged by Third Party testing companies, many toymakers, especially makers of unique and beautiful wooden toys from Maine to Oregon will be driven out of business.  Their cottage workshops simply do not make enough money to afford the $4,000 price tag per toy that Third Party testers are charging.

I urge you to quickly rewrite the CPSIA so that toys made in batches of less than 5,000 units per year or manufactured within the USA and trusted countries with established toy safety regimes such as Canada and the European Union be held exempt from third party testing requirements. Such toys could still be subject to random auditing by the CPSC.

If you feel that testing should still be required, then the CPSC should be made to offer free testing services for USA toymakers and importers from Europe or Canada with revenues less than one million dollars.

These toy makers have earned and kept the public's trust.  They provide jobs for hundreds and quality playthings for thousands.  Their unique businesses should be protected.  Please visit www.handmadetoyalliance.org to learn more about this issue.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,


[your name]

I currently have a store on ArtFire.com and I have to compliment them on:

• How easy it is to set up page of my products on their site
• Upload 10 photos at once
• Respond to issues very quickly
• Offer a variety of crafting social networking features
• They allow you to place your other selling sites on your page!!

I have received more views on ArtFire than I have Etsy in such a short time I have been on ArtFire.

I have become a Verified Member which right now is only $7.00 month for life for first 5000 sign ups. Also when you sign up and have 10 friends become Verified members by 12/30/08 you get ArtFire free for life!

So go take a look around and if you decide to join which is free, please tell them CharSpirit referred you!

Register on ArtFire.com

Clearing out most items on www.CharSpirit.Etsy.com buy one get one free. Need to clear out my inventory by end of January 2009, so I can help pay for my surgery. if there is anything else you like on my shop please dont hesitate to make me an offer. Thanks!