Table of Contents
< All Topics

Vendors We Use

* We have not necessarily purchased from all these vendors yet, but we have them on the list as we want to remember they exist when we make our next purchases. :0)
Many times when wanting to create something, figuring out where to buy the supplies can be more than half the battle. This page lists the Vendors we currently use* for supplies, etc., and is a “living document” that will change over time. It is typically as up to date as our inventory logging is, and vendors we no longer use will remain listed (though we might add a note to indicate why we’re not using it any longer, e.g. out of business, etc.).

When “vetting” vendors for our own use, some of the things we look at include (listed pretty much in order of importance to us):

  • Quality — Are the items they offer of good quality, which is, of course, subjective. This can be tied into pricing as often if your gut tells you a price is “too good to be true” for the quality you expect the item to be, then it likely is and you should either expect to receive a lower-quality product or move on to another vendor to find the quality you want at a price you care to pay.
  • Pricing — Are their prices similar to market? Can you find better prices elsewhere yet maintain the quality you expect? Also, be sure to include shipping costs, any custom duties costs, and any other added costs into the pricing equation when comparing pricing from vendor to vendor.
  • Handling and Shipping Time — How long do they indicate it will be before they fulfill the order and it ships? How long will your chosen shipping method take? How soon do you need the item? You might need to pay more at another vendor who can get something to you sooner if you need it sooner; you might be able to get something at a better price if you can afford to wait.
  • Reviews — If reviews are available, in addition to looking at the rating value and reading the comments check to see how many reviews were made. If an item has 5 stars and all glowing comments, but only a handful of reviews, that’s less useful to us than an item that has a 4-star rating with hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of reviews. We’re personally not overly deterred by the occaisonal bad review if the overall response is positive. We try to read reviews both on the product itself and the vendor.

Feel free to peruse the list for any vendors that you might like to visit. You can sort and filter as desired, view in a larger window, and/or download as a .csv file.

Notes:

  • No affiliate links are present in this listing.
  • These are primarily U.S.A.-based vendors.
  • The “Purchase Types” column indicates how *we* purchase from them, not necessarily all options the vendor might have available. However, we do try to set up a wholesale account with each vendor when available and where we meet their criteria so it might be close.
  • The “Good Source For” column is by no means meant to convey all the different types of items the vendor carries. We use it to only show the types of items we do or would typically source from them.