Of online shopping

I think I got into online retail therapy after swapping for cosmetics/skincare on Makeupalley.com for almost a year. The surprises I always get from package through out the many months were very fun during that year. And a time to learn more about grooming myself. (Even though I have slackened a lot.)

There were swappers who refuse to ship international. Since I always ship outside of Singapore, I can totally understand the cost of postage and the anxiety whether the package will reach the recipient safely. Anyway, there's always swappers who were willing to ship to Singapore. Postages back then were much cheaper too.

Then came a time when I realised I had turn into a makeup junkie. That's when I sold off items which were 99% used, threw away stuffs that were not touch for a long time and would probably have gone mouldy.

Alright this is a knit blog not a makeup blog. So why did I start writing about the above? Well, since I stash mostly via online retailers, I thought I might do a little write up on my online Stash Enhancement Experience.

- Freeshipping
It's not always inexpensive to buy online. Especially when one buys alone. Shipping charge is 1 HUGE factor to consider when shopping. Very often, I will look for Freeshipping Worldwide. However, you might need to hit a minimal order amount. And there's no freeshipping for books and magazine, That's common sense, isn't it?

- Flat shipping charge
This is not usually available to me. And I love to organise bulk purchases. There's once which I need to seek out USD300 just to claim the deal. I'm never in the right mind to stash $300 worth of yarns at one go. I'm still very sane towards my yarn hoarding. By sharing shipping cost with other like-minded, it is more wallet-friendly.

- Free/Flat shipping within US/Canada
I might need to do a bit of maths and judge whichever is more cost-effective; to ship via a forwarding company or direct to my doorstep.

It pretty sad that some sellers do not ship international. And I think that's simply closing doors to more business. Given the current economic situation, turning down a sale is turning down a potential long term customer.

As a customer, I think it is very helpful if a seller goes all out to help save shipping cost for me. I will most probably return to buy more and recommend them to more people. Word of mouth is very powerful in this sense.

And now, I'm crossing my fingers (and toes) that my last package willl reach me within this week.

angelknits: thanks for the congrats!

Aw: it was raining and traffic was very slow, thus the long wait for the groom.

Rain: hahaha, i guess we agreed to take a pic of me knitting in my gown. will really be unforgetable.