Products made and sold by
Young Adults with Autism and Other Special Needs
goal is to generate paying jobs
Join Crafters For ‘Philly Special’ Needs
Custom Orders
Need 1,000 special gifts for a wedding, shower or corporate event? Or just 1 for a very special birthday, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day? We’ve got you covered! Send us your photo or drawing and we will turn it into something you will enjoy every day. No order too big or too small. Send a description of what you are looking for to sales@craftersforlife.com
Creating social and employment opportunities.
Products sold by Crafters For Life are made, packaged and sold by young adults with autism and other special needs. All proceeds from sales of these products go back into supporting and expanding this program for these individuals. Our goal is to provide paying jobs upon graduation from high school. Read how it all started in the ‘About Us’ page. You can buy these great products by clicking on the ‘ Online Store‘ page above or better yet, stop out and talk to us in person at our next craft show!
Great evening meeting the 2018 Philadelphia Soul players and coaches with our new friends from Audible For Autism. We will join these 2 great organizations at Audible for Autism's Interactive Autism Therapy Festival at the Wells Fargo Center in June.
We are thrilled to participate in West Chester University Alumni weekend. TJ and Jenna (a current WCU freshman) will be selling CFL products at the alumni tent during the Friday night game. Other crafters will be on hand to enjoy the events. Looking forward to see Audible For Autism in action at this event.
Alumni - West Chester University
wcualumni.org
Do people tell you that you are TOO sarcastic? Embrace it with this Crafters For Life original design! "Sarcasm. Just one more service I offer"
Sarcasm, Just One More Service I Offer Key Chain with Silver Backing
etsy.com
Show off your fun side with this great design that will let everyone know that you do not take yourself too seriously. Perfect as a gift for someone else or keep it for yourself. Sturdy construction with a wrist loop to keep your hands free while you shop. Best of all, since allApril is Autism Awareness month - here are some ideas to make the most of it while directly benefiting individuals with autism.
1. Fund raiser selling CFL products. Great way to get high school autistic support classes real world skills - selling, track orders, collect money (real - not classroom) and delivering the order to the customer - while raising money! Contact us to get started.
2. Stock CFL products in your store or business. A small amount of space by your register would be a great spot for some puzzle piece key chains. Go to Etsy.CraftersForLife.com to see our products.
3. Let us make some custom products for you. Great for employee appreciation gifts, corporate marketing...
All of these are true win-win ideas!
Winter is not over yet...Be prepared for this next storm with this great scarf!
Autism Awareness Puzzle Piece Scarf
etsy.com
This very soft fleece scarf will keep you warm as the wind blows while showing your support! Perfect gift for the special education teacher / autistic support teacher in your life. Each scarf is approximately 6 feet long and 12 inches wide. Best of all, since all products byHappy St. Patrick's Day! Get your Irish on while showing your support for autism with this original Crafters For Life design - "When I count my blessings, I count you twice"
When i count my blessings, i count you twice Key Chain with olive or yellow backing
etsy.com
Show how lucky you feel to have them in your life with this beautiful key chain with original artwork. This lovely Irish proverb takes on new meaning with the autism puzzle pieces fading into the shamrock. Perfect as a gift for someone else or keep it for yourself. SturdyJoin our team - Crafters For 'Philly Special' Needs at the Eagles Autism Challenge. This is sure to be a great day to run, ride & walk along with the players and staff of the Philadelphia Eagles.
Use this link to join us:
Registration for Eagles Autism Challenge - Powered by haku
register.hakuapp.com
A parent or guardian will need to register on behalf of this participant. Enter your information below to complete the registration for the minor.Another fantastic event this year! We are proud to be a sponsor this year as well as a vendor - look for Crafters For Life on your race shirt. What's that? You don't have a shirt because you did not attend? You do not know what you missed. Mark you calendar for next year - it is always the Sunday of presidents weekend.
Polar Bear Run Walk for Autism
Awards Ceremony!!! Thank you to EVERYONE for participating in our 10th Annual Event!!
Monkey's Uncle in Doylestown is our oldest retailer - selling CFL products for over 2 years!!! Plus it is a very cool store with very cool products run by a very cool family! If your local, stop in and get ur Eagles gear while it lasts. Out of town? Hit their web site and they will ship it to you!
We are thrilled to attend this great weekend of events - Plunge on Saturday and run on Sunday. Sign up today!ARE YOU REGISTERED YET? The Polar Bear Run/Walk for Autism will take place on Sunday, Feb. 18! Pre-register today at www.polarbearrunwalkforautism.com!
Following the race…Join us for the after party at Lacosta featuring an Awesome Continental Buffet, Door-Prizes, Live Music, Magicians and Face Painters for the Kids and the Awards Ceremony! #polarbearrunwalkforautism #autismawareness #mikesseafood
2017 by the Numbers - Part 2:
No surprise that key chains and coasters were the top selling product categories - we sell thousands and thousands of each. What was surprising to us was that Bill Franklin's Soul Man Jewelry was the 3rd largest product category representing nearly 15% of gross sales! Keep in mind that Bill has been making and selling his great jewelry for over 6 years, but we did not start working with Bill until this past July. In 6 months we sold nearly as much as Bill sold on his own in the prior 6 years!
We expect Bill's jewelry to be the top category in 2018 and look to have his work as bridal party gifts in multiple upcoming weddings. Talk about a special gift - matching bracelets and necklaces that are color coordinated to your special day!
Bill has also proven to us that there are adults with special needs out there making high quality products that will fit into our business model. We have turned into Bill's sales force! If you know someone like Bill, please have them get in touch (sales@CraftersForLife.com) - maybe CFL can be their sales force too!
2017 by the Numbers - Part 1:
Our total sales were up over 15% from 2016. Craft shows continue to be our primary source for sales, plus a great way to get our team working with social interactions. We plan to continue to attend quality shows and festivals in 2018.
In 2017, the online sales increased from under 5% of our total sales to over 12%. It is very important to us to continue this online growth in 2018.
Wholesale sales included sales to West Point, multiple school districts and multiple weddings. Even with these, however, our total wholesales sales were down by nearly 30%. This will be a focus for 2018.
Bottom line - Fantastic 2017 and we are setup for double digit growth in 2018!
Congratulations to New Avenue Foundation! The steps they have taken toward creating jobs for special needs adults are fantastic. I have enjoy watching the coffee process grow and look forward to its continued growth! All of you high school coffee clubs out there - this is where you should be sourcing your coffee!
On Monday, December 18, 2017, New Avenue Foundation will take a step into the retail world in Media PA at 17 S. Jackson Street, the site of Sunset Slush. Sunset Slush has closed for the season and we are setting up a pop-up store there until they re-open on April 1st.
This is a great opportunity for us to learn about the retail business while bringing awareness of the abilities our children have to the community. We are selling Our Community Cup Coffee and handmade crafts by people with disabilities from Crafters For Life and others. Helping make people aware of our mission is important. By being in downtown Media, we hope to make new friends and connections to help us move forward with helping others.
We won’t be employing anyone at this time, but are looking for volunteers to help. Unfortunately, we can’t brew coffee because of the proximity to several food establishments. However, we will be reaching out to them to see if they will try our coffee. And we hope to have a few coffee tasting events over the next few months. Maybe we will even have a musician or two help.
So, please join us on our journey!
We can no longer guarantee delivery by Christmas, but we are still shipping our quality products made by Adults with Special Needs #accessories #keychain #autism #specialneeds #puzzlepiece etsy.me/2DvCMdW
etsy.com
This puzzle pattern key chain will show your support for Autism Awareness. Perfect gift for the special education teacher / autistic support teacher in your life. Re-enforced with a black backing to hide dirt and add strength, the sturdy construction will hold all your keysGetting down to crunch time - don't get left out in the cold. All orders received by 2pm will ship the same day. Shop now and shop often - don't forget the stockings! etsy.me/2yJm2MQ #accessories #scarf #autism #autismawareness
Here is another original design by Colleen. How cool is this!?!?
When i count my blessings, i count you twice Key Chain with olive or yellow backing
etsy.com
Show how lucky you feel to have them in your life with this beautiful key chain with original artwork. This lovely Irish proverb takes on new meaning with the autism puzzle pieces fading into the shamrock. Perfect as a gift for someone else or keep it for yourself. Sturdy
Are you selling these in stores anywhere? I bought my last ones in peddlers village. Not sure I have time to wait for shipping
Check out our latest key chain with art work by Dylan's sister, Colleen - very fun!
Sarcasm, Just One More Service I Offer Key Chain with Silver Backing
etsy.com
Show off your fun side with this great design that will let everyone know that you do not take yourself too seriously. Perfect as a gift for someone else or keep it for yourself. Sturdy construction with a wrist loop to keep your hands free while you shop. Best of all, since allOk - looking for a Christmas miracle. Does anyone know a company that can help with this parking lot? Right now, this parking lot is the obstacle for a new business that not only will generate jobs for adults with special needs, create a model that can be replicated - generating more jobs for adults with special needs, these guys brew a GREAT beer! Is there anyone out there who can help me, you and everyone else get some great beer?Hey there! It was brought to our attention that some people may think we’re open for business. Nope. Not yet. We’re still in the making.
The variance meeting was continued last evening. Next meeting is scheduled for January 8th.
#gotknockedabout
#notsurehowthiswillshakeout
Current status: Trying to not let it suck the joy out of our Christmas.
The perfect teacher, TA, OT, PT...everyone on your support team.. gift:
Autism Awareness Puzzle Key Chain / Keyfob with black backing and a sturdy 12 inch wrist loop - made by Adults with Special Needs etsy.me/2iEYXZA #teachergift #keychain #autism
Very good quality. When it's in my purse instead of on my wrist, it never bunches up so it's super easy to find!
I got these for my sons whole school team last year and got more for the new teachers this year. Love this as a teacher gift!! High quality .
