Weddingbee

It’s here! It’s here! After many months of waiting (more on THAT below), I finally have a new Gocco in hand!

I have wanted one of these babies since reading about them in the very first issue of Craft magazine. At the time, though, the company had stopped making Goccos, and even if you picked up a used version there was no guarantee of future supplies. I’ve already seen the supply chain cut off for one of my hobbies, and the resulting feeding frenzy was a pricey nightmare. Plus, the expense was hard to justify for just a hobby….

But then, along came wedding invitations! And the company started production of new Goccos. And life seemed rosy. I went on Ebay and purchased a PG-11 for the amazing price of $117 after shipping.

Unfortunately, it never showed. I waited and waited, getting more and more jealous every time someone on Weddingbee mentioned Gocco. I emailed the seller multiple times, asking about the tracking and insurance. No answer. Finally, I turned to Ebay’s Dispute Resolution (Item Not Received) process, only to learn that the dispute must be opened within 60 days of purchase and I’d missed the cutoff. Thank heavens for my first rule of expensive and/or international Ebay purchases — always pay with a credit card. I contacted my card company, and hopefully will receive a refund through the chargeback process.

Meanwhile, I researched all the available purchase options and once again decided Ebay was my best bet. But this time, I went with a long-established seller with 100% positive feedback! For those of you who are considering Goccos of your own (and I know you’re out there!), here’s what I learned in the purchase process:

- Most Goccos for sale are the basic model, called PG-5 (formerly B6). Rarely, you come across a PG-11 (formerly PG-10), which is the same size but makes for easier multi-color prints. There’s also the PG-Arts (formerly B5), which makes bigger prints but is MUCH more expensive.

- Ebay generally has the lowest prices, even if you factor in roughly $45 express shipping from Japan. I paid $175, after shipping, for a brand-new PG-11 from seller PrintAddict. In contrast, PG-6s run roughly $145 after shipping. You can also find Goccos on Etsy from sellers like feltcafe, PrintAddictJapan (same as my Ebay seller), and alittlegoodness.

- If you’d prefer to order from the US, one excellent source is Northwood Studios. They had the PG-11 and a basic kit of supplies for roughly $250 after shipping. If you factor in the cost of supplies, this was only about $25 more than what I paid on Ebay. But I’m cheap, and I also wanted to pick my exact ink colors rather than relying on the basic kit. I did order all my start-up supplies (ink, extra bulbs, masters, etc.) from Northwood, and they had excellent customer service. A good list of other US suppliers is available on SaveGocco.

- Looking for more information or tutorials? In additional to all you’ll find on Weddingbee (link goes to a comprehensive list of posts), there’s a huge set of links here.

Now … to figure out what exactly to print. Invitations are hard!

Based on the amount of discussion on the boards, it seems there’s a lot of interest in Gocco out there. Do you plan to use a Gocco for your invitations or other wedding items?

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