Supplies for makers — CraftedLink

The list

Four things, all off the shelf

1 · Insert cards — perforated postcard sheets

4¼ × 5½ in · four to a letter sheet · white, matte · 80 lb cardstock

The dashboard prints your insert card four to a page at exactly 4¼ × 5½ inches. These Avery postcard sheets are pre-scored to that grid, so a printed sheet tears into four finished cards with no cutting. We print ours on the laser version (5689); the 8387 is the same sheet coated for inkjet. Plain white 80 lb cardstock works too; you just cut it yourself.

Avery 5689 · laser · 200 cards Avery 8387 · inkjet · 200 cards

2 · QR labels — Avery 1 in round, 94500 layout

1 in round · 48 to a sheet · white · durable, waterproof · print-to-the-edge

The dashboard's label printer is drawn for Avery's 94500 layout and no other: forty-eight 1-inch circles on a letter sheet. Each label carries the tag's QR code and its short code, ready to stick on the piece, inside the box, or straight on top of an NFC tag of the same size. We use the durable, waterproof version below — it survives handling far better than paper labels, and the label prints in colour. Any Avery sheet sold as 94500 (or "1 in round, 48 per sheet") lines up the same way.

Avery durable 1 in round · 480 labels

3 · NFC tags — for wood, Corian, paper, glass

1 in (25 mm) round · NTAG215 · clear · waterproof · adhesive back

These are the tags that go under the finish of a wood or Corian piece, or inside a box. A CraftedLink address is short, so the NTAG215 chip has room to spare; the smaller NTAG213 works just as well if that is what you find. Hold to the 1-inch size — it is the same circle as the QR label, so a label can sit directly on the tag if you want both. We use the clear ones below: they vanish under a finish. Do not put these on or behind metal — see the next item.

NTAG215 · clear · 50 tags

4 · Anti-metal NFC tags — for tools, metal accents, metal cards

1 in (25 mm) round · NTAG215 · anti-metal (shielded) · adhesive back

Metal detunes a standard NFC tag and usually kills the read. An on-metal tag has a thin shielding layer between the chip and the surface, so it reads when stuck to a metal tool, a metal-backed card holder, or a piece with a metal inlay. It costs more and runs a little thicker. We run these on our own metal tools every day; expect a short read range — the phone has to sit flat against the spot.

Anti-metal NTAG215 · 50 tags

Prices are on Amazon and change often, so we don't print them here. Read the review notes on any NFC listing before you buy a big pack: you want the chip named (NTAG213 or NTAG215), the size in millimetres, and "compatible with all NFC phones" — not just a gaming console.

Putting it together

From blank tag to finished piece

Register the tags. In the maker dashboard, make new Crafted tags — they're free, and each gets its own short code and page.
Write the NFC tag. On an Android phone, open the tag's row in the dashboard, tap Write to tag, and hold the blank sticker to the back of the phone. On an iPhone, tap Show QR to see the tag's address and write it with any free NFC-writing app, pasting the address as a URL record.
Set it into the piece. Under the finish for wood and Corian; on a non-metal section, or an on-metal tag, where there's metal. Test the tap before the finish goes on.
Print the labels and cards. Tick the tags, then print the label sheet onto Avery 94500 and the insert cards onto the postcard sheets. The dashboard prints an alignment page first so you can hold it against the label sheet before spending one.
Put the card in the box. It tells the buyer to unlock their phone and tap, gives them the QR code as the fallback, and says how to reach you.

Read more about which tag fits which material in QR or NFC for a gift tag?