Many manufacturers and distributors like to share profiles of their customers who use their products. This is usually done by the creator’s submission providing images and information. I like to submit my creations to these now and then, and when I received my emails from Online Labels and saw others’ products and the invitation to other customers to submit their products, I decided to submit my votives. You can find it on their website here: Upcycled Jar Lamps – Label Ideas, or you can read on and find out a little more about my process.

I purchased a wide variety of labels for years from Online Labels, from address and shipping labels for myself to gold foil seals and crazy shapes for customers for me to print or have printed.

I began making my votives using clear labels I could purchase in local stores and etching the insides of all my jars and purchased votives, but I knew those off-the-shelf labels weren’t going to cut it when I began to make more votives and wanted to move forward with my Custom Pet Memorial Votives. And the etching creams I used to “frost” the inside of the glass were intended to create spot etching like a monogram or logo, not the entire inside of a jar, and that got pretty expensive and very time-consuming. I ended up with a lot of waste when the prints just wouldn’t come out as I expected, and in the outdoor dampness of a summer night at Rock the Quarry the ink on the labels actually started to soften and smear, even though the inks in my Epson were waterproof. I couldn’t imagine the disappointment of a customer with one of my votives if that were to happen!

As soon as I could I contacted Online Labels and described my project and the issues and they suggested three different labels I could use and sent me samples. They looked great and ran perfectly through my computer, and no more need for etching, but I knew I could get a better image with more color and contrast and I was still concerned about the durability when I had to use such heavy ink coverage from my inkjet printer.

I emailed my question about inkjet versus laser printers for the effect I wanted and the durability late in the evening on a Sunday expecting a response the next morning when someone emailed me back about 15 minutes later to agree the finish from a laser printer would give me the finish and durability my votives needed, and sent me samples of the laser labels I could use.

I’ve received that sort of customer service working with Online Labels all through the years, and I’m by no means a big customer. Designing a product includes a lot of trial and error, even a quirky kind of product like my upcycled jar lamps. In designing all my votives and lamps, from the process to the materials to the construction I ended up wasting a lot of materials and remade a lot of votives because I didn’t want to buy a quantity of labels until I had the right one. If I had known about getting samples I could have saved myself a lot of time and money! So now I go right to them about issues as I design.

I actually use labels for a number of things I make, like my keepsake boxes, gift bags, and products like trays where purchasing a commercial-quality label with the right finish on the top to capture a clear and accurate print of my artwork, the best permanent adhesive on the bottom for the surface it will adhere to and the kind of handling it will get, as well as the thickness that best suits the product for handling and appearance is all equally important.

While I have many different votives and lamps now, I submitted just my upcycled jar lamps for starters, and it was accepted and published.

Read more on Online Labels: Upcycled Jar Lamps – Label Ideas

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