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You are here: Home / Podcast Episodes / Bluprint vs. Creative Bug – Which Online Crafting Site Is Best For You?

Bluprint vs. Creative Bug – Which Online Crafting Site Is Best For You?

April 23, 2020

Spring 2020 Update:

The Craftsy spin-off site Bluprint offers a free 7-day trial and 33% off your annual subscription to the site. Use this link to sign up for this special deal.

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If you’re anything like me then you’re probably almost always on the hunt for ways to get better at your craft and improve on and hone your skills. I attend my local library book sales almost every month (because they’re a lot more cost-effective than buying brand new books and there really aren’t very many physical bookstores left in my neck of the woods)…

Anyway, I find myself always gravitating towards the “Crafts” section quite a lot and as a result I have lots of books (and I do mean lots) of craft books all over the house.

Sometimes though, if you’re like me, you just want someone to explain a technique to you live, and if not, you at least want to watch someone do something so you can copy exactly how they do it and learn. I learn better in 3-D than in 2-D. If that’s you then probably know that you can easily search through lots of YouTube videos to find tons of free tutorials and videos.

Have you ever considered paying for a repository of such videos? Well, that’s what Bluprint and Creative Bug are essentially. One of the main differences though (between them and free YouTube videos) is that you get much more… More access to the people teaching you, downloadable PDFs, community support, and much more.

So let’s say you decide that you’re willing to pay for the benefits of an online crafting community, the next question is – “well, which one should I choose?” Well, I am so glad you asked! I too actually faced the same decision that had to be made and since I’m no Rockefeller and couldn’t (or at least can’t at this point in time) belong to both communities as a paying member of both, I made a side-by-side comparison chart of the two.

I hope this handy chart will help you in your decision-making process to figure out which one, if any, of these two wonderful crafting communities is the better choice for you.

Bluprint vs Creative Bug

 BluprintCreative Video Workshops on Creativebug.com
What Is It?Bluprint

  • Online arts and crafts courses

  • Also offers a crafting supplies catalog - members can buy and sell

  • Courses offered via HD video lessons

  • Feedback ratings from past students

Creative Bug

  • Online arts and crafts courses

  • Courses offered via video

Course SelectionCake decorating
Crocheting
Drawing
Embroidery
Food & Cooking
Gardening
Jewelry-making
Knitting
Painting
Paper crafts
Photography
Quilting
Sewing
Spinning
Weaving
Woodworking
Accessories (not just jewelry)
Apothecary (i.e. soap, lotions, etc.)
Bookbinding
Ceramics
Clothing
Collage
Crochet
Embellishments
Embroidery
Entertaining
Felting
Gift-wrapping
Halloween
Holidays
Home Decor
Kids Crafts
Knitting
Mixed Media
Needle Felting
Patchwork
Printmaking
Stamping
Upcycling
Wedding
Other Features

  • Buy and sell crafting supplies (indie designers, sell your patterns & pay NO fees!)

  • PDFs available

  • Downloadable videos

  • Access to instructors within classroom interface

  • Upload photos & get personalized responses

  • Ability to participate in discussions with your classmates

  • Bookmark your favorite section of a video


  • No option to buy or sell supplies

  • PDFs available

  • Videos available for streaming only

  • Access to instructors via instructor discussion forum

  • Bookmark entire videos/workshops

Free Courses AvailableYesYes
Available Freebies

  • Patterns

  • Workshops

  • Mobile app (iPhone, iPad and Android devices)


  • Tutorials

  • Mobile app (all smart phones and tablets)

Gift Subscriptions AvailableYesYes
Access to ClassesUnlimited access to individual classes purchasedUnlimited to all classes (with paid monthly membership)
Membership RequiredYes (you'll need to sign up for a free account to get access to the site's features)No (but you'll need to sign up for a free account to get access to the free and A la carte features)
Closed Captioning AvailableYes, but not on all videosNo
Payment OptionsA la carte (prices range from approx. $20-40/class, on average)

  • Monthly subscription - $7.95 (for unlimited access to ALL courses)

  • A la Carte options (not all classes are available to non-members though)

Please note: if you click on any of the links above and then sign up with either of these two services I may get a commission. Commissions like these go towards the costs of keeping this site going and the podcast up and running.


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Filed Under: Etsy Q&A, Making Money on Etsy, Podcast Episodes 13 Comments


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