From Crochet Hook to Laser: How Julia Tripled Her Craft Side-Business Sales with 4 AtomStack Machines
Business at a Glance
- Sales tripled after adding the Atelier and the A20 Pro fiber lase
- The Atelier made her batch engraving 3x faster than before
- Her laser business has been running for 2 years, now with 4 AtomStack laser machines
- She has switched her day job from full-time to part-time — laser income supports the reduced hours
- Sales channels: an Etsy shop + craft markets, with zero ad spend
It All Started with Yarn
Julia's creative journey began nowhere near lasers: knitting and crochet — amigurumi animals, knitted scarves, that kind of thing. "I quickly realized this wasn't enough for me." So she bought her first laser engraver — that was two years ago. Her craft expanded from yarn to wood, metal, and acrylic, and a side business took shape.
The turning point came when a friend told her about AtomStack. She joined the official user community. Not long after, in spring 2025, the community held an Easter creative challenge.
One Contest, Three Upgrades
"Winning came as a complete surprise — the other participants were all so creative and talented." Julia won the contest, and the prize was an A20 Pro: a 20W 1064nm fiber laser machine.
For her small business, this machine was a double upgrade: fiber lasers specialize in metal, and what her customers love most is personalized jewelry. The boundaries of what she could work with were suddenly pushed wide open.
The next upgrades were investments of her own: in summer 2025 she bought an X12 to speed up her wooden products, and in October 2025 the Atelier arrived — in her words, "AtomStack upgraded my business for the third time."
Why Did the Atelier Become Her "All-Time Favorite"?
Of her four machines, Julia gives "favorite" to the Atelier. Her reasons come down to three points, all pointing at a small business's scarcest resource — time:
- **Batch engraving**: camera alignment plus a separate loading door make batch orders fast and painless. "It's perfect for quick, easy batch engraving, and that directly helped my small business grow."
- **Speed**: "Since I've had this machine, I engrave 3 times faster than before. It saves me a lot of time — and a lot of nerves."
- **Quiet and clean**: the machine is low-noise, and paired with the D3 purifier, smoke and odors stay under control — which means it can work right inside her living space, all the time.
"I'm working with a laser, but using AtomStack feels like play — it's so much fun."
Beyond the Numbers: Full-Time Becomes Part-Time
The most tangible change tripled sales brought is that Julia switched her original full-time job to part-time. "The profit from the lasers is enough to let me cut back my working hours."
The freed-up time goes back into creating: her Etsy shop, craft markets, and her favorite type of project — booknook shelf dioramas. "I love polishing the details in a project and letting creativity run free."
Last Christmas, she even brought a laser machine to a class of schoolchildren for a group project. "Bringing people joy with personalized items — especially seeing the kids happy — warms my heart."
Next Step: From Selling Products to Teaching Others
Julia's plans for the future run on two tracks. One is equipment: "My biggest dream? An AtomStack CO2 laser, of course — then there'd be no limits left on my creativity."
The other is passing her experience on. She plans to use her AtomStack machines to make beginner tutorials: "I wish makers would help each other more, instead of seeing each other as competitors."
"Long story short: I now have 4 AtomStack laser machines, I don't regret a single one, and I'd buy every one of them again. They've upgraded my business, my creativity, and my income."
Quotes in this article are translated from Julia's own account.
Want to see how the Atelier can speed up your craft business? Discover the AtomStack Atelier →
