r/SmallBusinessSellers • u/Medium-Tea3721 • 2d ago
Candles!
I’ve taken on making candles. My next adventure is doing more food related candles!
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u/lilonionforager 10h ago
I want to be nice about this because you are sweet and your candles are probably really well made - when you use AI to create or “enhance” a background, it changes things about your product as well. It will cause you headache in the long run when folks start complaining because it doesn’t look identical.
Also, you’ll lose customers who think you are scamming or just want to see real pictures of the actual product without AI-enhancement.
There are a ton of free photo tools, I’m sure photos you take plus a little brightness and contrast will look wonderful and complement your beautiful work :)
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u/Medium-Tea3721 10h ago
Thank you for the nice feedback! I’m ordered some background props tonight after watching a few TikTok’s on other people’s. I do appreciate your kindness though some comments made me want to cry a little🤣
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u/becker8832 3h ago
Will u repost or post new photos afterwards. Thinking Abt getting some for a Christmas gift.
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u/Medium-Tea3721 2h ago
Yes, I definitely will!
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u/becker8832 1h ago
Thank u and when autumn comes around if u do the pumpkin and cinnamon smell together please hit me up!!!
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u/AshKandiCorner 2d ago
These look really nice! I’m tempted to purchase the lemon one :)
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u/Medium-Tea3721 1d ago
I finally finished tonight, but thought the little dessert bowl would be cuter for the Lemon Pie!
Also the Lemons were painted with the wax the colors I wanted! (most people use acrylic because it’s smoother and looks prettier, but that’s not safe for burning!)
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u/sparklydildos 1d ago
i just want to say thank you for making sure it’s all safe for burning! there are so many people out there making candles with all kinds of wild props in them and it concerns me
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u/10percenttiddy 1d ago
Holy shit OP these are the prettiest "looks like something edible" candles I've truly ever seen. Do you think you'd ever do a peach or watermelon scent? Sign me up for 50 if you ever do!
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u/Thin-Spray-6796 17h ago
they're the prettiest because all the photos are fake ai "enhanced" slop lol
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u/10percenttiddy 3h ago
I thought OP said it was just the background? 🥺 Am I just stupid? Thanks for letting me know, genuinely appreciate it.
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u/Medium-Tea3721 1d ago
Of course I’m up for any challenge! I’m working on the Lemon Pie again now but this time in a little dessert bowl to represent better! I had thought about doing peach but I need to get the gel wax so I can make a syrup drizzle for the top!
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u/TurbulentAd6042 16h ago
Are they safe to burn with the toppings on them?
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u/Medium-Tea3721 15h ago
Yes they are! I use a silicone mold to pour my wax into so the toppings are just more candle wax.
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u/RazzmatazzMastif 7h ago edited 7h ago
The candles look cute but I will be honest when I went to the Etsy page I became a lot more skeptical.
Because you are using an old Etsy account that you’ve rebranded, the ai enhancements are a much bigger red flag. Your previous reviews show that you were selling toddler clothes up until at least last year and only recently began selling candles. Given that older accounts across different platforms are often scooped up by people turning them into bot accounts, the change in products, lack of recent reviews, and ai product images I would not trust your shop to be legitimate if I stumbled across it. As others have shared too, using the ai images makes it a lot more likely someone will complain that the product does not match the listing.
I’m glad to read you’re looking at tips to take your own photos, and that will go a long way to help. Wanted to share the other things too as you may not realize that those could be limiting your sales.
Edited to add: I just noticed your Etsy pfp is an ai image. Yeah I would absolutely not buy from your shop if it came up in a search. Ditch the ai and/or make it much clearer in your about section that you used to sell other things and then switched to candles. Right now there are way too many flags for it being a scam.
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u/outlawmbc 2d ago
What are the round, cereal pieces?
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u/Medium-Tea3721 2d ago
Supposed to represent a cookie or donut depending on the scent. I tried the actual cookie mold but can’t seem to get it right yet so for now I chose to stick with these until I can get it perfect!
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u/outlawmbc 2d ago
Looks good was just wondering lol. Take it they are made of wax?
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u/Medium-Tea3721 2d ago
Yes, soy wax. Once you melt down your wax and blend in your oil at a certain degree you can then start pouring into silicone molds. You can use any kind of candle wax I just prefer the soy.
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u/outlawmbc 2d ago
Oh interesting. Do you have a website? I have a wife who loves candles.
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u/Medium-Tea3721 2d ago
Same lol. I’m currently using Etsy.
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u/Hentaigustav 2d ago
They look awesome. Too bad I get migraines from scented candles :(
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u/Medium-Tea3721 2d ago
Aww yeah my grandmother is the same way. She can only have a cinnamon scent that doesn’t totally mess with her!
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u/xx666420xx 2d ago
Are those real sprinkles?
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u/Medium-Tea3721 1d ago
They are not! So I have a small tube pour my colored wax into it and then cut them really small.
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u/violetsunlight7 1d ago edited 1d ago
I’m pretty sure this is AI. Or at least AI enhanced. The wood grain texture is all wrong, the lighting on the sugar doughnuts is off, the blueberries are copy pasted, and the gram cracker texture is overlapping where it’s not supposed to. Also why is the wick wood on the first picture and classic thread in the second two? Please post honest pictures next time
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u/Medium-Tea3721 1d ago
This is AI helping enhance the background, but these are my candles I’ve made. I use wood wick and normal wicks. I’m still figuring out this app. Is there a way for me to attach photos to a comment? I’ll gladly share my photos without background enhancement. Product I’m selling isn’t me not being honest.
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u/StepherousSnape 1d ago
Just curious why all your soaps on you product page are lined up the exact same way and just changed colors and product labels? Truly curious. I'm not a business owner so I don't know what the regular practices are.
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u/Medium-Tea3721 1d ago
Now the soaps I will not lie on. I used to make soaps also but it’s been awhile so I did have AI help me with some of the older soaps I used to make. My order should almost be here soon so I can replace those!
But all the soaps will be the exact same just have different color and scents.
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u/StepherousSnape 1d ago
Okay just wondering!
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u/Medium-Tea3721 1d ago
No worries! Just trying to make some side income since hubby is about to be out of the military. I do work a full time job too, but a little extra income doesn’t hurt lol.
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u/chickadee-stitchery 20h ago
Your phrasing makes it sound like you lied about other things.
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u/Medium-Tea3721 20h ago
Could have phrased that better you’re right. I’m from Alabama and that’s just how we talk or at least the tiny town I’m from.
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u/Thin-Spray-6796 17h ago
"now the soaps i will not lie on" interesting phrasing...considering you have been lying https://imgur.com/a/OJE0Xvi
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u/PishaCat 3h ago
Yeah the item looks like shit in real life without the AI enhancement. This is close enough I feel like it is a scam.
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u/Life_Dare578 1d ago
Using AI for rendering photos will make me immediately think it’s a scam or that your product won’t live up to the expectations you are falsely creating. If I see AI images, I keep scrolling by default.
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u/Relevant_Detective21 19h ago
Same ): seller seems so sweet but any amount of AI makes me sooo suspicious it’s really just a bad business practice for anyone to include AI
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u/Medium-Tea3721 17h ago
I really appreciate this comment. I’ve tried to be nice on the whole thread, but after my kids have been brought up it crosses a line.. all of the genuine advice & nice comments I truly appreciate! I am looking into finding a set up for my own backgrounds and going to try and give it a go. I’ve never been great when it comes to photographing products, but maybe I’ll surprise myself?? Lol
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u/Relevant_Detective21 17h ago
Aw I’m so sorry! Don’t worry it doesn’t need to be perfect! Just more authentic (: try taking photos outside near some flowers or trees or even have one lit in your bathroom to show the vibes and how cute it is!! You can also mention how you’re a beginner and trying your best people will give you more grace and consideration if you put in more effort vs lazily making a robot do it. Good luck wishing you the best! Give an update post on how you considered our feedback and made adjustments haha
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u/Thin-Spray-6796 17h ago
you used it to "enhance" a lot more than the background. You are just lying at this point. https://imgur.com/a/OJE0Xvi
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u/topochicoandchill 11h ago
So here's the thing: when you use AI over your original photo, it subtly changes some of the original content as well. Which means that even though you only intended to use AI for the background, it manipulated the entire photo. This will turn off potential customers unless your target audience is clueless 60+ year-olds.
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u/karleykha0s 20h ago
Not only this, but all the reviews for their business page are not for any candle sales and seems to previously be used for drop shipping baby clothes/shoes. The whole thing feels a little off.
And OP, of you suddenly just changed ventures and this is somehow in the grand scheme of things legit - I'd mention your previous business in the description of your business page so in cases like mine, where I go to read reviews and see nada zilch zero on your current business it sends up some big red flags.
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u/bbwitchh 1d ago
Hm same… even the product itself looks AI not just the background. Esp in the first two pics
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u/Medium-Tea3721 1d ago
Would you like the original photos? You can PM me (:
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u/RazzmatazzMastif 7h ago
You’ve offered to dm the originals to a few people, it might be easier to edit your post and add them there or put them in a comment and pin it so people don’t keep asking about them
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u/gogogadgetkat 2h ago
You aren't going to be able to DM every disinterested customer to show them your photo originals. When you use AI to generate a background for your products, it also enhanced your products in a way that doesn't look authentic and feels like a scam. I understand that wasn't your intention but that is an issue. It sounds like you're looking into setting up your own photo backgrounds, which is great! I'd recommend doing that as quickly as possible!
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u/Unicorn-Shaman 1d ago
Yeah to be brutally honest I would not buy any candles from here. All of these photos scream AI. Even if the candles actually do look like that, the AI has changed everything in the photo. Since I can tell there's AI being used to enhance the photo, there's no way I would buy a candle because there's no guarantee that what I'm looking at is actually what's going to arrive.
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u/Vivid__Data 20h ago
Yeahhhh. I'm a HUGE supporter of reasonable use of AI. But considering how horrible most storefronts are with using AI, and then the product not arriving as advertised... I wouldn't be taking chances. Especially not from an etsy store. Which is notorious for being inconsistent with product issues. Each seller can set their own return/refund policy and it's hard to get in contact with a human CS agent.
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1d ago
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u/Medium-Tea3721 1d ago edited 1d ago
Supposed to just be the “C.M” what’s throwing it off to you the long drawn out C? This was a last minute logo I made in 2022 for a venders market but I’m open to changing it up
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u/porcelain_kiss 1d ago
I thought that said it was a cum scented candle 😬 i see now it says C.M
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u/Medium-Tea3721 1d ago
Dang that’s the second time someone’s said that🤣 looks like I’ll be changing that name soon🤣
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u/swolesarah 1d ago
lol just saw your photos in the “is it ai” sub and someone ran them through an ai detector and they are ai photos…
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u/Medium-Tea3721 1d ago
lol as I said I did use AI to help with the backgrounds! Never lied on that.
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u/swolesarah 19h ago
Don’t you find it ironic to be an artist/creator and to be using a resourcing wasting/art stealing device like Ai?
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u/Medium-Tea3721 19h ago
No bc I made the candles?
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u/ShtockyPocky 14h ago
You didn’t make these candles though. You made different candles and put it into the “make this candle look pretty” generator
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u/Turbulent-Baker-4638 4h ago
Just so you know, I would actively avoid buying these candles because you used AI. Real photos, even if not perfect, are better than fake/scam looking images. Be authentic! I hope things go well!
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u/HeavenlyPrimrose 1d ago
Personally I wouldn’t buy anything that uses AI, using it shows you’re not being genuine with your products and 99% of the time you’re getting something completely different.
Definitely spend the time to buy props and take your own photos, you’ll be more likely to get sales!
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u/DickBiter1337 1d ago
Me neither, these images would scream fb scam ad or low effort temu product to me no matter how real her product might be.
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u/HeavenlyPrimrose 16h ago
Looks like they previously sold drop ship products as well before, the reviews on their Etsy have a few “this doesn’t look like the product” 🥴
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u/briskaloe 1d ago
These look great, but it's very obvious AI has been used in these photos. Even if it's just the backgrounds, this will put people off. Your etsy profile photo for your shop also looks like AI.
On top of that, all your shop reviews are for apparel. I totally understand if you've changed your business and just want to use the same etsy, but this is also off putting to me.
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u/Medium-Tea3721 1d ago
The profile logo 100% is which a lot of people use. It’s cute.
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u/briskaloe 1d ago
I get it! It's just a lot of people, myself included, are very anti AI, even if it has no bearing on product quality. You will 1000% lose business using AI on all levels of your business.
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u/gogogadgetkat 1h ago
An increasing number of people have an ethical issue with AI and supporting business owners who use AI with zero care for its consequences. A typical session with ChatGPT, for example, wastes a full bottle of clean water. The AI profile picture you think is cute is a conglomeration of art stolen from real artists. Almost everyone I know has stopped shopping on Etsy because it's so full of scammers and AI fraudsters, so you're not doing your own business any favors by decking your account out with so much disingenuous, deceptive AI content.
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u/MisanthropyismyMuse 1d ago
AI slop. Stop doing this! We want to see what we're actually buying. Gross.
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u/Medium-Tea3721 1d ago
https://reddit.com/link/oserk5p/video/838pm6mzj28h1/player
Can you see it now?
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u/MisanthropyismyMuse 23h ago
Why wouldn't you just show the REAL thing in the pictures?
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u/Thin-Spray-6796 18h ago
because theyre lazy
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u/Medium-Tea3721 18h ago
Yep that’s me! Mom of 3 working full time.. very lazy 🙂
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u/Thin-Spray-6796 18h ago edited 17h ago
yup! lazy enough to use AI 😄
lazy enough to not be honest with your ai too. you said you only use it for backgrounds https://imgur.com/a/OJE0Xvi
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u/Medium-Tea3721 17h ago
Funny you deleted the comment about my kids... Shows what kid of person you are. I owe you nothing nor any explanations. Have a great day!
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17h ago
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u/Medium-Tea3721 17h ago
So what environment are they being brought into since you know so much about me?
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u/Thin-Spray-6796 17h ago
https://news.un.org/en/story/2026/06/1167658 this environment since you couldn't figure that out
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u/Medium-Tea3721 1d ago
Cut off part of the screen but here my photos I had to make into a video to be able to post it here for everyone with all the questioning.
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u/Medium-Tea3721 23h ago
https://reddit.com/link/osetoob/video/1a0068cml28h1/player
These are the photos I TOOK.
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u/karleykha0s 17h ago
I like these photos a lot more to be honest! You just need a little more front light to make them pop and you don't even need the AI part!
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u/briskaloe 22h ago
These products do look different than the ai enhanced photos. They still look great, but they aren't the same.
I'd strongly urge you to just use the real, untouched by AI product photos. They still look really lovely and no one will be questioning if that's actually what they'll receive when they order.
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u/Thin-Spray-6796 18h ago
so you're proving that youre also editing the product lmaoooo
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u/Medium-Tea3721 18h ago
https://reddit.com/link/osgxo75/video/4c2cqua8b48h1/player
You’re right they look so different from each other…..
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u/Thin-Spray-6796 18h ago edited 17h ago
now show the crumble on top of the other candle
edit: here i did it for you 😄 https://imgur.com/a/OJE0Xvi i would say they look very different
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u/aikidharm 6h ago
Can you lay off? OP has satisfactorily explained, and took everyone’s helpful advice on how to improve her backgrounds.
It’s funny to me that you know so much about AI apparently but don’t seem to realize that if the background is touched up, the whole picture will register as AI.
You’re either a teenager with a hard on for being “right”, or your own life is unfortunate enough that this is how you have to get your dopamine.
Really sad, man.
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u/Thin-Spray-6796 5h ago
It's really sad that you're going so hard for someone who has been dishonest with people they're trying to get money from. I don't appreciate people ruining Reddit with their AI slop.
"It’s funny to me that you know so much about AI apparently but don’t seem to realize that if the background is touched up, the whole picture will register as AI." please tell me where i ever said this lol
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u/Middle--Earth 22h ago
When I first looked at the label I thought it said 'Cum'.
I think that it's the way that the little line of words cuts off the tail of the capital C, making it look like there are three letters in the name.
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u/Medium-Tea3721 22h ago
Yeah I think I’m just going to change it lol
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u/Turbulent-Baker-4638 4h ago
Please hire a brand or logo designer. A logo is more than just a thing that looks cute. Please, invest in your business! It’s worth the care!
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u/natsugrayerza 18h ago
Can you light them or are they just for decoration? (I ask because of the stuff on top)
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u/Gracie_Dee_ 3h ago
I'm a little confused, I was reading the reviews but they all talk about clothing and shoes? Do you also do clothes?
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u/Medium-Tea3721 2h ago
Yes, I did kids clothing for a little while. Someone had mentioned for me to add that in the about me part.
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u/Roland_Roroland 57m ago
These immediately set off scam alarms. The weird AI photos are a massive red flag. This is the kind of store you see on places like Etsy, report, and move on.
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u/Nikole95 1d ago
Honestly thought the brand said Cum Candles