Blog
Today’s article by Anthony Ha at VentureBeat discusses our mission here at CustomMade.com and how we differ from other marketplaces for hand-crafted and/or customized products.
We’ve said it before and we say it again in the article – we believe custom is a service, not a product. What do you think?
Congratulations to Bryce Van Dyke, winner of the 2010 CustomMade.com Design Challenge!
Orca Coffee Table by Bryce Van Dyke
His Orca Coffee Table is amazing and he has won the opportunity to work with one of our woodworkers to have it custom made for him using Rockler tools and supplies.
Thank you to all of our entrants – the designs were incredible and showed the beauty and versatility of custom made woodwork.
Arts and Crafts Child's Crib by Jason Ekstrom
One entrant in particular stood out: The Honorable Mention goes to Jason Ekstrom for his Arts and Crafts Child’s Crib. Beautiful work, Jason!
Want to make sure you’re the first to hear about the next Design Challenge and other news from CustomMade.com?
Cast your vote now for the best original design in the 2010 CustomMade Design Challenge!
We asked you to design a piece of furniture that you’d like to have custom made by one of our woodworkers and you sent us some amazing entries. In fact, so many great designs came in that we decided to let the public vote on all of them!
See all of the entries here: http://blog.custommade.com/category/design-challenge-photos/ Click on the photos to see more information about the designs and the designers.
Voting ends March 2, 2010. The winner will be announced by Friday, March 5, 2010 and will be able to work with one of our artisans to have his or her piece custom made using Rockler tools and supplies.
Official Rules and Regulations
Rockler Woodworking and Hardware is the official sponsor of the 2010 CustomMade.com Design Challenge. Celebrating its 55th anniversary as a family-run business, Rockler Woodworking and Hardware is the nation’s premier supplier of specialty hardware, tools, lumber and high-quality woodworking products.
When my partner Seth and I tell people about the company we are building, they often say, “Custom woodworking – that’s an odd business for two guys from Boston…are you guys woodworkers?” Our answer is, of course, no. We are website marketing guys.
So why are we involved in a company that is the online source for anything custom? The answer is we both LOVE custom stuff. We are buyers of custom furniture, custom suits, custom jewelry, and other custom items. If I could have everything in my life custom made, I would be a much happier consumer.
Why do I love custom? Well, for one, there is a value proposition to custom. I’ve found that you can get much better quality for your money. In addition, when you buy custom you’re buying a service, not a product. You buy something made by someone with whom you can build a relationship, whether that someone is an individual or a company.
Mike Salguero, President of CustomMade.com
In terms of woodworking, the value of buying something custom rather than a product made in a factory overseas is apparent in the end result. Many of our woodworkers can make you a piece that will last a lifetime, not just a few years or until you move to another home.
Here is a photo of me in my favorite custom item: a leather and sheep’s wool jacket that I had made while I was visiting my father in Montevideo, Uruguay. I talked to the maker of this jacket, gave him my specifications, and purchased exactly what I was looking for!
I bet you have stories about things you’ve had custom made – isn’t sharing them part of the fun? You can do that here – it could be furniture, of course, but anything custom is fair game – clothing, jewelry, shoes, drapes, artwork – anything! Go to the Comments section and “Leave A Reply” – upload a photo by clicking on the “add images to your comment by clicking here” link just below the “Submit Comment” button. You can then copy and paste the URL for your photo! (NOTE: your photo must be online to be uploaded).
C’mon fellow Custom Made evangelists – share!
-Mike
CustomMade.com has partnered with uShip to provide discounted shipping services for its members! uShip is an online marketplace where you can list furniture, household items, vehicles – almost anything, and receive competitive bids from thousands of feedback-rated carriers. Listing an item in the uShip marketplace is completely FREE and there is no obligation to accept the bids you receive.
For all the details, visit our uShip page: http://blog.custommade.com/uship/
There are two weeks left to enter the CustomMade.com 2010 Design Challenge (sponsored by Rockler Woodworking and Hardware) but already we’ve been amazed by the entries. We can tell that a lot of thought went into the unique and creative furniture designs we’ve received so far.
Lamps, book cases, buffets, tables…we’ve even seen a pipe cabinet! Don’t miss out on the opportunity to use Google® SketchUp to design your own piece of furniture and win the chance to have it custom made for you by a CustomMade.com woodworker using Rockler tools and supplies.
Read more about the Challenge here: http://blog.custommade.com/2010/01/design-challenge-2010/ and submit your entry by Friday, February 12, 2010 to be included.
Here’s a sneak peek at a few of the entries so far. What will YOU make?
THE ENTRIES ARE IN! VOTE NOW FOR YOUR FAVORITE.
Have you been looking for the perfect piece of furniture for your home or office but can’t seem to find what you need? Think you could design it better than the mass manufacturers? Here’s your chance.
Introducing the CustomMade.com Design Challenge sponsored by Rockler Woodworking and Hardware. Using Google® SketchUp (or other 3D modeling software), entrants are invited to submit their design for a piece of furniture that illustrates what they’ve been looking for but have been unable to find in the marketplace. Enjoy the process of designing your own furniture and win the chance to have that very piece custom made.
The winner will work with one of our talented woodworkers to have their piece custom made for them using Rockler tools and supplies (up to a $1000 value)! Winners will be announced on Friday, February 26, 2010.
Judging Criteria:
Judges will select and announce the top three entries Monday, February 15, 2010. Those three will then be voted upon by the general public to select the winner. In selecting the top three entries, judges will consider the piece’s creativity and potential to demonstrate the beauty and craftsmanship of custom made furniture. All entries
Submission Details:
Please read the OFFICIAL RULES AND REGULATIONS for all the details. Good luck and let’s get designing!
————————————
Using Google® SketchUp:
Download a copy of SketchUp here: http://sketchup.google.com/download/gsu.html and follow the instructions to install it on your computer.
Use the built-in tutorials to familiarize yourself with the software. The four-part “New Users” videos should have you up and runnng in no time. When you first start using SketchUp, you’ll be asked to choose a template. You can work with any template you choose, but the “Simple Template” is a good place to start. Use the eraser the get rid of the image of a person that often appears in blank templates.
You will want to save your model in .skp format as you work but will also need to create a jpeg of your finished product to upload along with your entry form. Use File > Export > 2D Graphic to do this.
Rockler Woodworking and Hardware is the official sponsor of the 2010 CustomMade.com Design Challenge. Celebrating its 55th anniversary as a family-run business, Rockler Woodworking and Hardware is the nation’s premier supplier of specialty hardware, tools, lumber and high-quality woodworking products.
Launch Party!
Well, it has been almost a year since we purchased the original CustomMade.com from Ted!
In that past year, we have made a lot of changes, have met many challenges, and have grown closer together as a team and as an organization. Our launch party was a time for Employees, Consultants, Woodworkers, Investors, and Family to get together for one night in celebration of the hard work we have done and the even harder work we need to do!
A Nice Selection of Wine From Jonathan Edwards Winery!
We had a wine tasting with Jonathan Edwards, a family owned vineyard in North Stonington, CT.
Jonathan Edwards is a fairly new winery that embodies some of the same values that CustomMade stands for, including family, supporting small businesses, hard work, and dedication to your craft. If you have not been to their winery before, please check out their website, they are great!
Your Co-Founders Seth Rosen and Mike Salguero
Mike and Seth both spoke about how thankful we are that we have all of you, the subscribers, workers, and consumers of CustomMade! We believe the world is changing, and consumers are taking notice that customizing the things in their life is the new way to shop.
Seth and I have been extolling the virtues of purchasing local and custom for years now; we are just so excited to have the opportunity to run a website that believes in the same things!
We had a really great turnout (about 50 people), and we asked every member to keep us in mind as they were doing their holiday shopping this year!
We are continuing to work hard here to make the best possible CustomMade marketplace!
Thank You to all of you who have helped make this happen!
-Mike
Mike with his proudest supporter-- his Mom!
While our cropping tool is scheduled to be modified in our next site revision, we think that the current version is simple to use and yet it’s sophisticated enough to tell you if you have attempted to upload a file that is either the wrong format, or is too large to upload. If that’s the case, you’ll get a warning asking you to upload a different file.
That being said, you can upload any standard JPEG format (the file name will look like “filename.jpg”) image file that is 2 megabytes or less and the system will upload it for cropping. Then once uploaded, you will see a to-scale version of it with a cropping window superimposed on it. Use the “handles” (the little boxes) at the corners and sides to adjust the crop to your liking. You then click the “Crop Image” button to approve the crop and add the image to the item listing. This will also create the other images needed, like the smaller thumbnail images used for navigation on the item listing detail page of the site, as well as the icon image used in the galleries and search results.
You’ll notice when cropping, that the relative proportions of the cropping tool are always the same. This to fit the standard image proportions of the site design. We do recommend that you keep the crop within the limits of the image area to avoid creating blank space within the image when it appears on the site. Also please note that if the image appears too small in the cropping tool, that your file may be too small to show your item properly. Uploading a slightly bigger file will solve that.
Each sample item listing gives you the ability to upload three 340 pixel x 317 pixel images. In general when uploading the three photos for each sample item, it’s best to use a main image that shows the whole item in context within its background for scale, then to use the other two images for detail or close-up shots showing 1 or 2 features of your unique item. This may be done by cropping sections from a single larger image, or by using multiple image files of the same item.
If you have a designer on staff, or have access to someone else who is already using an image editing application like Photoshop, they may want to create files that are already sized at the correct 340 x 317 pixel dimensions. In that case, the image upload works the same way. Once you upload the image, it will display your image with the cropping tool completely outlining it. You then approve the preview by clicking the “Crop Image” button and you are set.
CustomMade.com will be holding a vendor booth in the AWFS conference seeks to help you get information to stay competitive in a tight economy, which falls The goal of the Association of Woodworking and Furnishings Suppliers is to focus on representing the interests of companies and individuals who supply home and institutional furnishing industries.
We
Follow us on Twitter
