CPSIA Clarification with KIDS & NON KIDS stuff?

[Former_Member]

Here's the deal. My boyfriend and I run two shops. Mine has soaps and his has all other stuff. I admit, I like marketing the soaps to parents and their kids, because my soaps are fun and kids like them a lot. But our other shop doesn't necessarily make things FOR kids. I mean, people may buy them if they are older, who are we to judge if they will give them to kids or not? We can't exactly track that or ask every person buying something from our shops, right?

Do we have to put a warning on each listing, saying it hasn't been tested for lead and don't give it to kids? It's going to make our soaps sound VERY dangerous. Not to mention a Lego ring or something of that nature.

So do we tell them we aren't responsible for any lead poisoning if they happen to let a kid try on the Lego Minifig necklace we just sold them?

This SUCKS.

[Former_Member]

I've been asking myself those questions for a long time...
I read once that no matter if you tell parents it's not suitable for children, if it can be attractive to children, you have to have it tested... I'm marking this as I need a little more clarification too...

[Former_Member]

So basically it's not just stuff marketed to kids that has to be tested but EVERYTHING because anything can potentially be given to a kid?

FAIL.

[Former_Member]

For the spring Indie Garage Sale we can have a big lead warning at all entrances!

I mean, "hi!" Allison! it's Jen/my new fused glass shop.

How's Boston? Amelia just had her second birthday today.

and I will lurk and watch this thread, I agree with the question, and your sentiments.

[Former_Member]

Hey Jen! Did you get the email I sent out about the IGS? I hope I have your email addy correct. Hopefully you can sign up on the new message board http://indiegaragesale.muux.org and help us get some convos rolling. We only have like 5 members at the moment. Lame, I know. But we just set it up yesterday.

Happy Birthday to Ameely! I will make her a little soap for when I see her. Pick something out from my shop or give me some ideas. We are putting up a few more listings hopefully in a couple days or so, the Hostess snack cake and pretzels and a new "cookies & milk" soap. I hope it works out as we haven't made the prototype yet.

I love your new shop by the way. The Katrina and the After Dark ones are my fave.

I have a question about the knitting needles but I will email you privately about that!

[Former_Member]

Oh I just realized I should keep this on topic.

So yeah. This hopefully won't affect the IGS because it will be after the 30 day thing, and maybe people will get info from manufacturers before hand. But it still doesn't help if you get a piece of vintage fabric and can't decipher where it comes from or who made it.

As far as I know, though, my soaps should be ok. But I'm worried about the resin. Have you looked into the tests with resin, Jen?

[Former_Member]

This is the link I've seen posted elsewhere:

http://www.cpsc.gov/about/cpsia/faq/children.html

Sorry, it's not a whole lot of help, but it's something! :)

[SkyviewClay]

If it is not made primarily for children 12 & under, you are OK. :)

[Former_Member]

Thank you.

So essentially, if you market it to adults and they give it to their kids, it's not really our deal, right?

[Former_Member]

Correct. But it's not enough to make a kid's item and say "this isn't meant for kids". If it looks like a kid's item, and is marketed like a kid's item, and would be used mostly by kids...they're going to say it's a kid's item.

Soap might be an iffy area if you're marketing cutesy cartoony soaps or things with licensed characters involved. But soap in general wouldn't be primarily a kid thing. Mostly adults buy it. :)

[Former_Member]

Ok, so what if you make funny hairclips? Most of my customers are adults, even if some of them give them to their children too. But when I set up my shop, I wasn't targeting children as my potential final customers, but adults who like funny stuff... Still have no clue...

[Former_Member]

I've kinda kept one eye on what's going on and not done much else, since it only affects my old stock, but I should be checking into it.

I know there's bisphenol A in epoxy resin, the same stuff everyone had a fit about being in baby bottles, it's used to make clear plastic hard, from what I understand. It imitates estrogen in the body.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bisphenol_A

but the CPSIA is more concerned with pthalates, which soften plastics, so shouldn't be in resin.

On the one hand, your recycled legos and things should be tested already, but then bottlecaps and items recycled into jewelry or magnets that aren't made for jewelry, who knows what's in them? And none of that addresses the question, obviously...

and I'll try the IGS site again, Amelia attacked last time, I'm curious where you guys are wanting to have the next one, if not at Domenicos/the other side?!

and do we-indie Garage Sale- have enough of an Etsy presence for a street team? I mean, are many of the IGS members on Etsy motivated to promote as a group like any craft mafia with an internet presence? guess I should try the IGS site again!

[Former_Member]

We have a bulletin board up now.. http://indiegaragesale.muux.org and I dont know who operates the www.indiegaragesale.com website but they havent done anything on there in forever, it would have been nice of people to pass on the info to be once I got the ownership, but oh well. We have also been sending out a mass email back and forth to each other, have you been getting this at all? Check your spam, maybe.

As far as the location we are thinking the old Resonance Center but thats kinda hush hush right now. We don't have permissions yet and we have no idea what they will charge us to rent the space. The other suggestions I got were the Deerfield fire hall and Kittys on the Canal (in North Utica by Denny's) Again, we don't know how much they might ask us to pay or what kind of amenities or rules they have, so this is up in the air right now.

We are trying to get more people involved with the street team. I'm trying to get out of towners involved with doing the whole internet advertising thing and leaving that in their hands. As far as local advertising I have a few people to call on but I want the IGS as a whole to help out in one form or another. I think I gave you Tony's phone number? Not sure.

Anyways, let me know if you're getting the emails we are sending. I'm getting feedback from everyone regarding the IGS and their likes/dislikes. I'd like to hear yours too.

And as far as staying on topic with this.. haha.. We aren't really marketing the resin to kids, but maybe we should try and get the paperwork if it has been tested for lead and those pthafdfjhsdkfhds things. Just to be on the safe side.

[Former_Member]

I make sock toys out of pre-manufactured socks with polyester fiberfill stuffing purchased from craft stores - does that mean I do or don't have to test my end product? If the pieces i use in their original form are lead-free, etc., wouldn't it stand to reason that the resulting product is safe, too? Or do they assume that my sewing machine and needles will put poisonous residue on the toy? It seems pretty iffy logic to me...

[BridalCombsBoutique]

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1231473900/bridal-comb-vintage-comb-lace-comb