Tips To Improve Your eBay Sales

Believe it or not, eBay has been around since 1995! There are many people who make their living by selling their items on eBay or finding items to resell for a profit. Those people have eBay down to fine art and can teach you a lot about making money on the platform.

I've been buying and selling on eBay since 2006 so whether you’re looking to launch a new business venture or make a little money on the side, here are some tips to improve your eBay sales.

Start with something your know

It’s always easier to buy and sell things that you know about. You’ll be able to spot a bargain and know a realistic price to sell it for. You’ll be able to maximize your profits. Think about what topics you’re knowledgeable about, this could be anything from skincare to classic movie posters. For me its clothing, looking at last seasons designers or hot trends of the moment. Whatever it is you know about, it's sure to have a section on eBay.

Over time, you can learn about different products and industries to enable you to expand your profit margins.

 

Reduce postage costs

If you’re making eBay your business, you want to build up a good impression with your packaging. We’ve all received an eBay item wrapped in a plastic shopping bag and covered in tape. You want to go for something more professional than that while still keeping costs down. Buying in bulk is often the way to achieve this as well as choosing your delivery service well. High postage costs can put buyers off your items so you want to make them as low as possible while still providing a reliable service. Try delivery bidding sites to see the prices you can get. You’re looking for the best price for a professional and reliable service.

 

 

Build up your profile as a buyer

Trust is a vital part of the eBay experience. Sellers with bad feedback or no feedback are often avoided. Yet you need to start somewhere. Collect good feedback as an eBay buyer, so that when you start selling, you have a record of positive reviews.

Ensure your profile is professional too. A username that might have been hilarious at the time, is probably not the best way to attract customers. Keep your name as something similar to your actual name or something descriptive of what you’re selling.

 

Take advantage of seller promotions

Keep an eye out for the seller promotions that eBay often runs. They usually arrive in your inbox and offer reduced fees or free listings for a specific period.

You’ll find a list of current offers on your seller page.

Make your item as appealing as possible

Don’t underestimate how important your product description and photos are. Practice taking photos of your items and add multiple ones to each listing. 

When you’re writing your product descriptions, be as accurate as possible and don’t rely on the auto-generated ones by eBay. Be as positive as you can while still being accurate. If there are any issues with the item, list these (and include photos) so that buyers know what they are buying and are less likely to ask for a return.

So those are just a few tips from me on how to improve your eBay sales. I'd love to know how you get on!

How To Become A Pro At Caring For Your Skin

Having beautiful, radiant skin is something that we all desire, isn’t it? However, achieving this can be difficult, especially for some people more than others who aren’t blessed with good genes when it comes to our skin! For me, it's combatting my oily skin which is oh so annoying! Nevertheless, you do not need to despair as there are plenty of different things that you can do to make sure that you become a pro when it comes to looking after your skin. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the different things you can do to become a skin pro.

Educate yourself on skincare - There is only one place to begin, and this is by educating yourself on skincare. The only way that you can better anything in life is by learning more about it, right? That’s what we’re talking about here! There are lots of great blogs and resources that you can use to educate yourself. However, make sure you choose your resources with care. Look for blogs that are written by skin care experts and health professionals.

Seek specialist solutions for specific issues - A lot of people have different skin hang-ups, including rosacea, acne, and hyperpigmentation. For me it's mostly oily skin but I do have a touch of rosacea too. If you are suffering from a skin condition like this, or any other problem with your skin, you need to seek a specialist provider who can assess your skin and recommend the best option for you. You can use this website for a good example of the sort of skincare provider you should be looking for.

Use natural skincare products - Another way to ensure your skin looks and feels its very best is to use natural skincare products. There are lots of great products on the market today for your skin, so there is no need to go for a chemical solution. When you use a natural product, you know that you are only applying products that are going to be kind to your skin. You do not have to worry about any possible problems in terms of allergic reactions and such like. I always turn to Lush products when I'm looking for natural skincare and it always helps to balance out any problems I may be experiencing.

Understand every element of your skincare routine - Last but not least, this is an important one when it comes to making sure you achieve your skincare goals and that your skin looks as radiant and youthful as possible. When you apply products to your skin, why do you do so? Is it simply because you have read somewhere that this routine is going to be best? Instead, you need to understand what each product is going to be doing for you. What benefit will it bring you? What is the purpose of adding this specific product to your skincare regime? That way you'll get the best out of your skincare and in turn your skin will benefit!



So there you have it: some of the different things you can do to become a professional when it comes to your skin. From using good online resources to investing in natural, premium quality healthcare products, there are plenty of things you can do to ensure that your skin looks young and radiant.

Daily Skincare Routine For Younger Skin

A good skincare routine is something we all need in our lives. If we want to look after our skin year after year and keep it youthful and glowing - it is crucial to follow certain steps each day to achieve this.

Good skin is the best base you can have for makeup and beauty - and this is why today we want to take you through the most simple 8 step daily routine you should do.


1. Cleanse

The first step to any skincare routine is to cleanse your face and get rid of excess oils, dead skin, and dirt. It is very important to cleanse your face when you wake up in the morning as well as in the evening after you take off your makeup. A good gentle oil cleanser can be a great start here and will get you ready for a deeper cleanse.

2. Cleanse again

Beauty is natural - and whether you are in your early 20s or you are a little older and considering a facelift; cleansing the skin deeply is important. Cleansing your pores will get rid of bacteria or foreign objects that could be stuck in your skin and cause an infection. Use a good string cleanser such as a foaming cleanser and consider investing in a cleansing brush to really get into those tough to reach spots. Once you have completed this round of cleansing your skin will feel like new.

3. Exfoliate

After cleansing comes exfoliation - and this step is one that all too many of us miss out of our skincare routine every day. If you want to maintain youthful and clear skin, exfoliating is important. Consider exfoliating with a gentle cleanser every day for 30 seconds to a minute. It will make a huge difference to your face and it will get rid of any bits of debris and dead skin that might be lurking.

4. Vitamin E oil

Once you have finished with your cleansing routine it is time for you to take a look at vitamin E oil for the skin. Add hydration back to the skin by gently patting a pea sized amount of vitamin E oil into warm skin. This essential oil is crucial for healthy skin and it will keep your face looking and feeling youthful.

5. Serum

Once you have applied some oil and allowed it to soak into the skin it is time to apply a collagen serum which will work to keep your skin looking young. Collagen is a protein that lives within the skin and keeps your skin elastic - the level of collagen in your skin will dwindle with age and this is what causes you to get wrinkles. Make sure to supply your skin with a healthy dose of collagen every day and this will make a massive difference to your skin and your overall appearance.

6. Moisturiser

We all know how important moisture is for our skin. If our skin cells don’t get enough water it can make the skin look pale, withdrawn, and pasty. It is so important to hydrate the skin effectively every single day to keep your skin bouncy and youthful. A pea sized amount of a rich moisturiser will do the trick - and when applying make sure to sweep in upward and outward motions to allow the moisturiser to penetrate the skin cells. This will leave you feeling refreshed and hydrated and ready to carry on with your day.

7. Eye cream

Eye cream is a must if you want to avoid looking tired all day every day - and there are some great eye creams out there that will brighten your eyes and keep them happy. One thing you can consider trying is an eye roller which will not only apply moisture to the eyes but will also stimulate blood flow to your eyes and will ensure that you don’t develop bags. Your eyes are so important and keeping them hydrated will not only help the skin but it will look after your eyes themselves and keep them bright for longer.

8. Lip balm

The lips are so important to account for in your skincare routine - and once you have done the rest of your routine for the day you should apply some lip balm to keep your lips plump and hydrated. Lips can become chapped very easily - especially in colder weather - and this is why protecting them is so important. Apply either a lip oil or a balm to your lips and massage it in for 30 seconds. This will stimulate blood flow to your lips and will help keep them looking kissable and plump.

So those are just a few tips and tricks to keep your skin looking younger for longer. What do you in your routine?

Your Four Secret Weapons for Battling Acne

One of the life's annoying questions is: how to prevent acne?

Some of us are no strangers to the inflamed, red spots that occur on the face and body. Acne can either be caused by androgen hormones, imbalanced hormones, and genetics. While there is no way to prevent acne entirely, there are effective ways to clear them up faster and keep your face looking healthy and clean.



You can show the world a happier, more beautiful you with these five secret weapons for battling acne!



Washing Your Face

Washing your face: it is a simple but effective acne-fighting hack. If you find that you have an acne-prone skin type, you want to make sure you never skip a good face washing.

In fact, you will want to make washing your face with a gentle cleanser part of both your evening and morning routine.

Washing your face can clear away the dead skin cells, residual makeup, dirt, debris, and bacteria that can clog your pores after a long day. With a cleansing brush, you are sure to achieve a cleaner, healthier, and more radiant skin.



You want to be conscientious of what type of cleanser you are cleaning your skin with, as our faces absorb 60% of whatever we slather on. When choosing a cleanser, you want to be careful to avoid the dirty dozen toxic ingredients, which include harmful, skin-drying compounds like aluminum, mineral oil, parabens, phthalates, and synthetic fragrances. The first step to getting rid of acne is making sure you put the right products on it!



Moisturise, Moisturise, Moisturise

This step might seem counterproductive: will over-moisturizing my skin make me break out more? NO!

The truth of the matter is your skin could be so dry that it is overcompensating and overproducing oil. This could lead to more oily skin and subsequent breakouts. This might mean that your skin is begging for some moisturizer.

Like your facial cleanser, you want to keep it simple with your moisturizer. You want to make sure your moisturizer will not clog your pores so that a lightweight moisturizer might be perfect for your skin.





You can also switch out your moisturizer when the seasons are changing—winter naturally tends to create dryer, cracking skin begging for a thicker moisturizer. If you find your skin breaking out, you might want to try more moisturizers.

Use a Mask

No, not the COVID-19 type of mask.

A good cleansing mask can seriously reduce the look of unsightly blemishes or help you get your acne under control. An antioxidant mask can help reduce your pores' look, reduce redness or dark marks, and provide much-needed hydration after one single use.

Leave your charcoal mask on for a half-hour, for example, and it can detox the buildup in your bores and cleanse your face more thoroughly than your cleanser. Face masks can help battle your acne by removing excess oil and clearing out the impurities buried in your skin.

Depending on your needs, there are many masks to choose from: gels, creams, sheets, overnight, aloe-infused, oatmeal-based, and many more. A mask with good, quality ingredients once or twice a week can be one of your best weapons for battling acne!

Stop Touching Your Face

As difficult as this step can be (all of us can touch our face without realizing it), this is an imperative step! You should avoid touching your face and scalp at all costs because you can easily spread bacteria, transfer oil, and immediately irritate your inflamed skin. Likewise, you should avoid picking at or popping your pimples because this can lead to infection, further irritation, scarring, or dark marks.

I hope some of these tips will help if you're struggling to battle acne or are having a particularly bad break out at the moment!

Par Avion Paper and Pen Palling

Some of you may have noticed that I’ve been a bit quiet on my usual Instagram of late. Others may have read my previous post on gifting during a pandemic and noticed something too…Well today I’m going to go into full depth about my latest passion project- Par Avion Paper. 

For those of you that don’t know, I’ve been an avid letter writer for the past two and a half years, writing to my pen pal Rachel who lives in Malta! Before that I had been known to write to my both my nanny’s, especially when I lived abroad and even as young as 8 I was writing to my friends in Essex when I’d moved up to Cambridgeshire. Letter writing has always been on and off throughout my life and it’s something I really enjoy and since the pandemic I’ve taken on a few more pen pals so I’m now writing on a weekly basis.



The only thing I wasn’t mad on? The writing paper! I’ve found designs I like very few and far between, either being aimed at children or just in general being very twee designs. Paperchase has produced some paper I’ve enjoyed over the years and the awesome OxMailStudios also does some fabulous designs but I wanted more! I took to my laptop and started playing around designing me own and before I knew it, I’d produced over ten designs from my head. I showed them to my husband and his first reaction was “why don’t you sell these?” I sat on this idea for a little while. Would anyone really want to buy my paper designs? Finally I thought sod it, I can put them out there and if people enjoy them that’s great but if not? Well I’ve got a bunch of designs that I enjoy and will definitely use. Nothing ventured, nothing gained and all that! 

The next step was setting up a shop and for me, Etsy was a no brainer. Yes they do take fees for listing but they also sort out your postage and I feel it’s a website that fits well with shopping small and supporting small creatives. Initially I started selling digital downloads of the papers, thinking this would be an easy and manageable idea for me but I soon realised I was yearning to actually make the papers come to life and so I began printing. That’s when the paper really took off and I haven’t really looked back since! 

Each and every time I get an order my heart soars with happiness. I literally do a happy little dance each time too and my most favourite thing is packaging up the orders. I may (ok always) add in some little extras as a surprise because who doesn’t love surprises!? It’s also lovely too see behind the scenes that people buy as gifts to their loved ones. 

So why letter write anyway? There are so many advantages to writing letters. You can re-read a letter but you can’t re-read a phone call! There’s also something quite special about receiving happy mail in the post and the anticipation of finding out the next instalment of your friend of family member’s life, dilemmas or news. Text messages are so instant too whereas letters take time and are thought through. Every word counts. It’s also a great way to connect with new people! There’s lots of Facebook groups to meet fellow pen pals and hashtags on Instagram such as #pepalswanted. I have 3 pen pals who live overseas and another 3 up and down the country and it’s interesting to read how other people live and have a completely different lifestyle to me. A lot of these people I’d never meet in real life and it’s a great privilege that they take the time out to write to me and also read my letters too. 

I’ve also found letters are a great way to communicate with elderly relatives; in particularly for me my Nan. She has Alzheimer’s and never remembers having a phone call. She also doesn’t live nearby so I can’t pop and see her as and when I want, especially with Covid too. I’ve found the letters have helped my Nan to remember things and she can re-read them as much as she likes. She never replies and I never expect her to but I like to think it’s a nice little surprise through her door every couple of weeks.



Another thing to consider is there’s also mental health benefits to letter writing. That’s right! Letter writing is good for you!! Studies have shown that it increases your resilience, reduces stress and can improve your mood. I personally find it therapeutic too. Sitting and putting pen to paper in a quiet environment is so relaxing and mindful as well as being a great escape from technology and glaring screens. It’s also a great fuel for my creativity, so much so I’ve gone on to design further papers and have some more ideas in the pipeline… 

So those are just a few things I’ve discovered from letter writing and through creating Par Avion Paper I’ve discovered so many wonderful and likeminded people, particularly on Instagram. The pen palling community is welcoming, kind and full of positivity! If you’re looking for a new hobby and/or want some beautiful paper designed by yours truly, definitely take a look at my Etsy store.

Are you into letter writing?

A Break in The Lakes

With lock down restrictions slowly starting to ease, I thought now would be a good time to share a break idea for later in the year. Two of my favourite things are autumn and The Lake District. Put them together and you get one of the places to get away and have a break! So that's exactly what I did in October 2020.

Chris, Harry the hound and I stayed in the little village of Finsthwaite. Close to Windermere, we found the perfect little place to stay called Tanyard Cottage.

This cute little cottage had everything we needed for our stay. A cosy log fire, under floor heating, kitchen, dining table and even a washing machine! The cottage can in fact sleep 3 but we didn’t end up using the second bedroom with single bed. Oh and how could I forget- it's dog friendly too!

Whilst staying in The Lake District we visited some fab places which I definitely think you should go to if you plan a trip here!

Our walk to Windermere

As I’ve already mentioned, Finsthwaite is close to Windermere, so close in fact that we were able to walk through a beautiful woodland area where we saw these rocks and the gorgeous light pouring through. 

It looked like a lovely little fairy den! And this was just the walk to Lake Windermere…

Windermere

Windermere itself is utterly stunning and is the largest natural lake in England. With trails, peaks and villages surrounding the Lake, there is plenty to do in or off land and the autumn colours really set it off too. 

We decided to take a boat trip to Bowness-on Windermere and take in the sights that way. The dog absolutely loved taking in the sights and smells this way too!

Bowness-on Windermere

This town is awesome! If you’re looking for a mix of walking and outdoor activities paired with some epic pubs- this is the place. Chris and I discovered The Crafty Baa, voted the AA Best Pub in England.

Opened in 2016, this family run pub is built using 80% of upcycled and recycled materials! The decor is wonderfully bizarre and if you're into your beer, they have a huge array on tap for you to try and enjoy. Chris was in his element!

Another great pub was The Angel Inn with its panoramic views over the town.

Aside from pub hopping there were some lovely shops to look round and eateries too that were all incredibly dog friendly!

On the way back from Bowness-on Winderemere we decided to stop at The Swann hotel for a little tipple and watch the sun set over the peaks and the river. 

Grasmere

Another gorgeous place to go is Grasmere. 

It’s the most picturesque village with more gorgeous views (would you expect any less in The Lake District?) and quaint gift shops and eateries as well as links to Williams Wordsworth. I will say though you’re best to arrive early if you want any chance of parking here. We’d originally looked to visit here on the way back from Catfell but we couldn’t get parked up for love nor money!

There’s some beautiful walks here around the valley with Allan Bank National Trust on your door step too. This is somewhere I’d have loved to have gone, especially as part of my 12 Trusts of 2020 challenge but alas it was closed at the time due to Covid. 

If you’re a lover of food, in particular ginger bread then you should definitely visit The Grasmere Gingerbread shop. It tastes and smells incredible with queues of people down the street. It also sells it’s own award winning rum butter and a variety of ginger themed foods such as toffee, fudges, chocolate and more!

Catbells Fell

Whilst in the lakes you need to do one of the fells right? Have you even done The Lake District if you haven’t done a fell?

I’m not the biggest of hill climbers, quite the opposite in fact but I managed to climb Catbells Fell slowly and steadily and the dog loved it too!

I can see why this is one of the most popular fells in the area too- the views are just stunning. I’ll let the photos do the talking here!

So these are just some of the places I'd recommend visiting in The Lake District. There are many more and I myself am yet to visit them but here's a starting point for sure! Have you been to The Lakes and if so where did you go?