How do you ship something so fragile and cumbersome like a figurine?

[TheSilverBranch]

I made a polymer clay faery. While I have her safe under glass in my studio, I think I might like to sell her online. The only thing holding me back from selling her online is the packaging. I'm nervous and therefor stumped. She is roughly 8" tall has fragile, nondetachable wings of copper wire and a film like thin mylar. She rides larger clay toad, so she's bottom heavy. I'm worried that a: she'll be flipped every which way in transit and her toad will crush her by weight despite the bubble wrap and tissue I might envelop her in. And b: anything I pack her in might damage her wings.

I've seen other artists mailing out similar things, but am at a loss at how they can manage it. Up to now, I've only mailed smaller and less fragile pieces. Any suggestions would be highly appreciated!

[Former_Member]

My advice would be to put her in a box that would fit her reasonably snug. You'll want to wrap her in bubble wrap...probably quite a bit. The main thing would be to make sure she's in there secure and not moving around inside the box. Although no matter how well you package things sometimes they still end up broken, so it's up to you whether you think she'd fair well being shipped. You could also go into a ups or fedex shop and see what they say for packaging. That's what they do...hope that helps some.

[TheSilverBranch]

I have asked advice from UPS and the employee in question made it seem I was a burden on his time, and rushed me through with the words "bubble wrap, tape the wrap to the box, mark it fragile" O.o

So thank you for your advice! I suppose that really is all I can do. ^_^

[Former_Member]

Good advice from LuckySparrow.

My shop is completely comprised of mostly fragile items, therefore, I am always so worried about shipping. It's a constant worry on my mind, on a daily basis.I'm always afraid some USPS truck is going to run over my package. Whahhh!



Anyhow, my advice is not to skimp on padding and make sure the box is not crushing your sweet little object or pressing on the fragile pieces....

Once the item has arrived safely, then you can let out your breath, and breathe comfortably. Ahhhh....(Phew!)

L2

[GoTo]

Can you create a collar around the base of the fairy (and above the frog) that you can use to secure the frog to the base of the box, regardless as to whether or not the box remains upright?

I've received packages like that--they even used a few wood 1" by 1" (like 2 by 4 but smaller) pieces that were as tall as the box to hold the bottom cardboard from moving toward the top of the box.

[Former_Member]

I think the above advice is great. The only thing I have to add is stick with USPS or FedEx. UPS is notorious for banging around packages more harshly than the other two. Also, don't write fragile on the box. There have been studies that show boxes with them are actually treated worse. If you read the T&C's of the sites, they actually say they pay no regard to the words "keep upright" or "fragile".

[Former_Member]

Oh my! I did not know that.
The Postal clerk just slaps that fragile sticker or stamp it on all my stuff.

I didn't think that KEEP UPRIGHT would work though...That one I can just imagine.

This is what the postal clerk told me once....If you pack your fragile item well enough so that it can be dropped from a 3-6 foot ledge, then it should get there OK. Yup, 3-6 feet from above! Yieks!

That vision has never left my mind.

[FlowerThyme]

What about securing the bottom of the item to the bottom of the box?

That would guarantee a healthy amount of space between the top of the box and the figurine! I've done that for personal shipments and its worked well.

[Former_Member]

My fiancé told me they have huge conveyer belts. Sometimes packages get stuck and then fall straight to the ground from about 1 and a half to 2 stories high.
I think the best bet is to have secure packaging. You should be able to shake it and hear no movement.

Also, purchase the insurance so if something does happen you will eventually be reimbursed for both the item and shipping. It's usually just a couple dollars, but with the amount of packages we all ship, something is bound to happen someday.

[HandyFamily]

Hm, I have a somewhat... radical? - idea on that. Get a bigger hard box - wood, metal, plastic... anything that won't bend, put some popcorn at bottom, cover tightly the faery with stuffing (from a pillow), put it in the box, over the popcorn lair, fill to top with popcorn, push around a bit - so you'd be sure to have filled it good - and close.

Variant 2 - secure with steropor / foam.

Variant 3 - wrap the item with kitchen folio, put it in the box and fill the space with isolating foam. I don't know how to instruct the recipient how to unwrap it. thou... maybe you can cut it carefully after it dries, so the buyer would open it just like the isolation parts of a camera ;) .

[Former_Member]

My husband worked with USPS in the military and I can confirm the DO NOT MAKE FRAGILE thing lol. Honestly some people will throw the dang thing around if it says that...messed up I know, but your safer if you don't put that on the box.

[Former_Member]

This gal shipped (to me) a highly fragile item once,& one of the things she used (over all the bubble and tissue) was one of those plastic DIAPERING BLANKETS...the BIG ones.

So she wrapped that diapering blanket round and round, all around my fragile item, & then she proceeded with newspapers, peanuts, etc. as fillers.

It got here intact.

[Former_Member]

Also, how about shipping fragiles Abroad?
Yieks! That's even harder! For sure then you'd want to look into a sturdy box, as the previous poster said.


Shipping Int'l can get very complicated,more than Domestic, especially since most Int'l Buyers from Abroad will not (most actually refuse) to buy insurance.

I wont ship without insurance so that pretty much eliminates most of my Int'l buyers.Dang!

It'd be different if I just sold postcards or tiny paper items.

[GoTo]

TheSilverBranch says
I have asked advice from UPS and the employee in question made it seem I was a burden on his time, and rushed me through...


~~~That might have been because that's a service they offer--packing goods for you, so if you're not paying him to do it, he's got no need to share his trade secrets. :)

[HandyFamily]

L2Country says

This gal shipped (to me) a highly fragile item once,& one of the things she used (over all the bubble and tissue) was one of those plastic DIAPERING BLANKETS...the BIG ones.

____________________________________

What IS a diapering blanket? Please? Could you link a pic, so I could see... perhaps I'm not familiar with the term - but still am curious...

[Rabbittude]

Usually for fragile items, shipping services recommend that the box has at least 3 inches of clearance around an item in the box so that there is no chance that the item will touch the box sides. That usually means an item gets wrapped in bubble wrap and then suspended in packing peanuts. To get enough peanuts in the box to do the job usually means overfilling the box just a bit so that closing the box is compressing them down. When a properlly filled box is shaken, you should not hear the sound of anything in the package moving around.

It isn't just dropping boxes that causes breakage, vibration can too from machinery and the trucks. When things inside a box touch the box sides or can move around, there is more vibration.

I agree that shipping is the scariest part of any transaction. In our area, UPS and Fedex won't even walk up the steps to put packages on our porch. They stand at the bottom of the steps and throw the boxes on the porch. Sometimes I know packages have delivered when they hit the house.

[Former_Member]

I think you're fairy may hold up well if you package her with specially cut foam or styrofoam, sort of like DVD players or other electronics are shipped. You can get squishy foam laser cut, or you could carve out a big chunk of styrofoam yourself (just know that can get messy). Then the foam can be the right size for your box and your fairy without leaving much room for her to move around!

If I find the name of the company online that can laser cut the foam I will post again and let you know. Good luck! I'd really like to see your fairy :)

[Former_Member]

Ugh . . . I meant to type: your**** lol

[Former_Member]

Avramova ,
It looks like a light blue and white baby blanket quilt made of plastic... made of the same stuff as thick diapers. I think Moms used them under their babies on changing tables.

I love them since they are so large and you can twirl and twirl them around your object, giving it lots of buffering.

Try COSTCO---they may sell those in bulk & much cheaper. :-)

L2

[CuriousBirdPottery]

Here is a great tutorial on how to pack pottery from LaPella.

http://lapellaart.blogspot.com/2007/11/packaging-tutorial.html

[Former_Member]

Txs, Lurearts. Great info.


I wonder how expensive it is to double box everything? Just curious.
Peanuts are light, but double boxes are not.


Most Buyers don't want to spend a lot of $$ on shipping.
Usually, they see high shipping and run for the hills. And shipping costs keep going up.
It's a dilemma for Sellers shipping fragile,large and/or heavy items. Sigh!

L2

[Former_Member]

Well, from working for a gallery that shipped delicate glass items around the world, I learned how it's done...

With a sturdy corrugated box (doesn't flex or squish) Be sure it is big enough to allow 4" clearance ALL AROUND your item. Layer 4" of packing peanuts in the bottom. Lay your item on top in the center of the box, then cover with packing peanuts, filling the box a bit over the top, so that you have to apply some mild pressure to close it up. This will surround and secure your item so it is "floating" in there. Once it's taped up, you can move it around, you won't hear a thing. No other packaging needed!! Sometimes I do carefully put a tissue paper "blanket" around an item, but more for presentation...

Packing peanuts are eco-friendly if they're made from corn. It's all very light, so it's less expensive compared to paper wadding to ship... and far more delicate and conforming to the shape of your item than bubble wrap.

Check with the kitchen at a local university, Thats where I get 16 cubic feet of biodegradable packing peanuts once every 3 months! or try asking a large microbrewery (they frequently buy glassware). They're also available in a big bag for around 5 or 6 bucks at local U=Haul locations!