It's been a good week so far.

I finally got the rest of the first batch of vintage miniature figurines listed in the shop this week. Taking the pictures of these tiny pieces took a lot of time! I was lucky enough to make a few sales, both online and off. I've gotten some new orders, too. (Maybe one of my best non-holiday weeks of all time in terms of orders!)

'Tis the season for all things beachy and ocean-related. I've had lots of requests for my handpainted lamps and lampshades featuring fish and shells so yesterday was spent basecoating a bunch of pieces, mostly lamps. I already have a few new shades in the works. Hopefully, I'll have time to do the detail work on some of these tomorrow.

Remember the little glass canisters with the apple indentations that I bought a few weeks ago? I painted them yesterday, too. Now all they need is some cute bows around their necks. My original plan was to give them to D. for her apple-themed kitchen but I'm seriously considering listing them in the shop instead. If they're still around when I need a gift for her, maybe she'll get them then.

Poor thing! As a child she inherited all the dolls whose handpainted eyes looked a little crossed or the bear that simply didn't sell after a full season of craft shows. Now, as a grown-up, she's still a fall-back for merchandise.

Then there were some custom orders to complete, too. Since they are gifts and the recipients don't have them yet, I can't share them with you at the moment. Maybe soon. Let's just say I had fun and am very pleased with the results.

While all that paint's been drying, I've been sewing a lot of lace onto all sorts of things. Some of the lacy items should be ready to show you by tomorrow. (Most of those also have some painted details.)

On Monday night, Queen of Sienna included one of my glass paperweights in a feather themed treasury on Monday night. You can see the entire treasury here. Be sure to take time to check out Queen of Sienna's Etsy shop, too. She has a really great eclectic collection of vintage pieces.


Then, today, June over at the I Sew Cute blog, featured my "I Speak Cookie" apron on a post about baking her way through the Betty Crocker Cooky Book. Sort of makes you want to jump up and make a batch of cookies. (Or, at least, eat some cookies!)

When you get a chance, stop in and see some of the adorable pieces of resin jewelry June makes and decorates with sprinkles, glitter and love. You can see her shop here.

I think I'm going to sit back, relax and do a little reading now. I've just started reading The Girl Who Played With Fire. it's one of those books, one simply hates to put down!!

Working the Shows Wednesday - Boutique Shows

With only two weekends until Christmas, the holiday show season, for most of us, is now over. Surprisingly, for most of us, it has been a good season.

We were all braced for the worst in view of the economy but most of my crafter acquaintances have reported better than usual sales at most shows, even those in the areas of the country most devastated by the financial crisis and unemployment. There were some shows that were cancelled early on due to the economic situation and fear of extremely poor sales. As always, there were a few shows that simply weren't able to produce the shoppers for whatever reasons. This was nothing new. Show veterans find a few of these every year.

I believe people shopped more carefully this year. It seemed functional items sold better than pure art for art's sake items. If it was functional AND cute or unique looking - even better. Folks did, however, seem to want a reason to give the item. It had to serve a purpose of some sort.

Boutique Shows

The last two show I attended this year were boutique style shows. For those unfamiliar with this term, these are shows where the crafter generally drops their merchandise off for a show of multiple days duration. It is a consignment arrangement of sorts. All items are tagged with the price and coded with that crafter's id code. The show promoter (or "owner") then sells the items from one central checkout point. At the end of the show, each crafter's sales are totaled, a percentage is kept by the promoter and the crafter is paid. The crafter returns to pick up any unsold stock.

These are called "boutique" shows as most are set up like a gift shop or boutique with the crafts mixed together in a pleasing manner as opposed to separate displays for each crafter. Most are set up by the promoter (also known as "owner" or "manager") and usually use display merchandise provided by the promoter. In some cases, the crafter will provide some supplemental displays especially if they have a unique craft that requires unusual display methods.

Most of us like doing these sales as they have our merchandise out there in front of the world while we're off doing something else. Most are run by crafters themselves who are also showing their own work and are, therefore, concerned about making the show a success. They appreciate the merchandise and handle it with care. The only drawback is that you have a sizable amount of stock tied up, usually during a prime selling period. The good points are your work is on sale 7 days a week for the duration, you're not hauling displays in and out and not spending down time sitting there waiting for a sale.

The consignment percentage is set by the promoter but the crafter sets the selling price. In some cases, crafters are asked to work one or more "shifts" during the show's run where they work the show floor or register. The two shows I attended this year ran for one month (November) and for 10 days, respectively.

Run by one woman, the first show has been taking place twice a year for over 20 years. Over this period, the location has changed a number of times but excellent advertising, postcards to a large mailing list and word of mouth by the crafters has kept it alive and well. It's most recent location (for about 4 years now) is way off the beaten path and a little difficult to find but the crowds have managed to come. Return customers look for new items by specific crafters and also have an eye out for something "new and different" each show. There are about 30 crafters who have been participating in this event for most of the 20 years. Every show, there are a few new folks and a few old ones fall by the wayside for whatever reason.

Producing these shows, twice a year, keeps this lady quite busy. There is a lot of paperwork and planning involved. New crafters contact her on a regular basis. She must meet with each one to review their work and determine if it will fit in with her show. She's careful not to have competition in any area of the show. Multiple jewelers must have entirely different types of work. Painters must do different types of products. If you wish to expand what you offer, you must run it past her. Often, she will nix a specific item as it too closely resembles someone else's product. In addition, she does her own craft and must spend time creating. She and her husband are always on the lookout for new display pieces. (The style of the show is a general store type look and she uses quite a few antique pieces for her displays.)

I began doing shows with this lady over thirty years ago and she participated in a boutique style show I helped to run in those days. I remember her having her first "boutique" show in her living room. It ran for three days and we considered it a big success. Like me, she did as many as 40 shows a year in those days. Now, she makes a healthy income off of just these two shows.

The second show is held in the same general neighborhood. They sometimes run consecutively and shoppers go from one to the other. This show is done on a much smaller scale and has a committee of 5 ladies working together to produce the show. They hold shows four times a year in a club's social hall and it runs for anywhere from 7 to 10 days at a time. They are all participants and choose the additional crafters very carefully so as not to compete with any of their own products. There are a total of about 20 crafters involved with this show. This show also started in one of their homes a number of years ago and has been held in the same public location now for about 8 years.

They also use a large mailing list to send postcards. They post handmade signs on key intersections around the community and run small classified ads in the local papers. They, too, have a devoted following. Interestingly, they require their crafters not to participate in the other show in an effort to provide some exclusivity. I used to think this was bad policy and created a bit of animosity but since they draw on the same clientele I can see why they want to offer merchandise that is different from the other show.

Both shows claim to have had excellent sales this year. While the larger show said sales were about the same as last Christmas, the smaller show noticed a fair increase.

I hope you were able to enjoy excellent sales, too, and are now ready to devote yourselves to your own holiday events.

This will be the last Working the Shows Wednesday post for a while but as the Spring show season approaches I'll bring the series back. For now, we'll all just take a breather.

Hello, again!

Still trying to get caught up but taking a few minutes to post for the night.

I've been really disappointed with my online sales this holiday season so far but my offline sales have been fairly steady. Most are coming from repeat customers which is a good and rewarding feeling. Most have been for customized items requiring a fair amount of designing effort and , in one case, a couple of trial and errors on designing the pattern! This was for a large plush creation. I can usually eyeball the pattern design fairly well and rarely have any totally unusable disasters but I've really had to work on one particular item. It's been a bit of a learning experience. I think I've finally worked it out and should be able to complete that project within the next day or two.

In addition to the sewing projects, I've been painting quite a bit each day. (Yes, I even put in a few hours with the paint brush on Thanksgiving Day!) Most of the past week, I've worked on clothing orders but this week will involve some smaller furniture pieces which means some time spent sanding. I'm hoping to find time tomorrow to list a few new items in the shop and to work on stock for some of my direct sales.

This year, I've tried a sales approach which I'm referring to as "Totebag Sales." Basically, I've provided totebags to a few sales agents (nieces and other family and friends) filled with "little" items which they can simply sell right out of the bag. These have included potholders, ornaments, mini-plaques, hair accessories, some smaller clothing pieces, etc. I've also included some one-of-a-kind items. They collect the money and keep their cut (sales commission) right off the top. They also have some catalogs/fliers featuring a limited selection of my larger items (mostly personalized products) which they can take direct orders on also. I deliver those items to the sales agent and they, in turn, deliver to the customer.

This approach is working fairly well. The smaller items generate quite a bit of cash flow but are not really practical for online sales as shipping costs as much as the item in many cases. I find folks are more likely to buy small items in this manner rather than needing to order them. I have asked the agents to e-mail me the orders each evening instead of holding them until a specific date so I can work on the products as the orders are coming in. I tried this in a very limited way last Christmas and I fine-tuned it a bit this year.

As I mentioned above, my potholders seem to be a popular item this year. I include a cookie recipe with each set and, in my direct sales, also include a cookie cutter. Luckily, I can make these fairly quickly. I hope to get some more sets up in the online shop but they seem to be moving so quickly through direct sales that I haven't had a chance!

Well, I've still got painting to get done before I go to bed, so I've gotta run.

See y'all tomorrow!!

Working the Shows Wednesday - So, what makes for a ”GOOD” craft show?

One of the most asked questions in this business is “What makes a good craft show?” The answer is extremely subjective and is different for each of us. It’s really much easier to define a “bad” show than a good one.

Of course, we are all happy when we make big bucks so high sales rank right up there in making a show a GOOD one. However, what constitutes “high” or “good” sales also varies from one crafter to the next. I’ve heard folks define “good” sales as anywhere from 3 x expenses to 10 x expenses. Some use percentages of merchandise sold. Some simply set a dollar goal for each show. The problem with the 3 x expenses theory is if you have found a cheap ($15) local show with very little travel expense, will you consider sales of under $50 a good show? If you use the 10 x theory and do shows with expenses of around $100, you will often be disappointed which can lead to some deep depression. You, alone, need to determine how many sales it takes to consider a show “good.” Obviously, when you don’t break even, it is NOT a good show.

I, personally, think the balance of mediums and types of crafts as well as quality of goods offered play into whether I consider it a good show. I even look to whether there is a spread of price ranges available. If you are one of twenty-five jewelers at a show featuring only 30-35 crafters, I don’t consider it a good selection.

These aspects lead right into the attendance factor. In my book, good shows pull in the shoppers. It is difficult to have good sales without a fair size buying audience. (I have come across a few exceptions to this idea but very few!)

While none of us have found any way to control weather, it definitely can make or break a show. Shows with excellent reputations have suffered from a bad weather situation and weather impacts both outdoor and indoor events when it comes to attendance. It can make a good show have a bad year! If weather conditions cause damage to your merchandise or your display booth, you will obviously consider it a bad show.

Advertising is something to look at with regard to ranking a show, too. Do the organizers run various media ads? Are there TV blurbs, newspaper features and ads, billboards, signs around town, radio spots, fliers etc. ? Have you been seeing bits and pieces about the show for a few weeks prior to the event? While, on occasion, I’ve seen well advertised shows flop, more often than not, good advertising brings in customers which, ultimately, brings more sales. (As stated at the start, more sales make for a good show!)

The setting and layout of a show can also play into our perception of good and bad. I’ve had so-so sales in an absolutely beautiful park setting which left me feeling good about my weekend show. A pleasing, easy to navigate layout helps make a show go well, too. Customers like to be able to maneuver around the show with ease and enjoy a natural flow to traffic. Happy customers make happy vendors which equal good shows.

As an exhibitor, I want reasonable access for loading and unloading. Preferably, I can get my car close to my space and there won’t be steps to haul merchandise up or other physical obstacles. I have eliminated profitable shows from my schedule strictly because of poor and/or difficult access.

By the same token, I have kept shows with borderline profits because they were enjoyable shows to do with great promoters or organizers. We did one show for a number of years where we were set up on a small farm and at least one of the two show days or the set-up day were plagued with rain requiring some us to be towed out by tractor. Sales were generally good but the organizers were such a pleasure to work with we returned year after year, regardless.

On Friday evenings, they often had a pot of stew or soup on for those early-birds who came in a day early for set-up. They threw a party for the crafters on Saturday night after the show closed down for the day featuring food and a social time. They were readily accessible throughout the show for any needs that might come up and made a point of circulating throughout to check in with us frequently. There were special restroom facilities reserved for vendors and special access to the food sales area so vendors did not spend long periods of time standing in line for such services.

Some shows have helpers for the loading/unloading process, many offer continental breakfasts for vendors, booth sitters, lounge areas and other amenities that make it a good experience. All of these factors play into whether I consider it a “good” show.

Some artists and crafts folk also want to do shows that offer judging and awards for such things as Best in Show and Best Booth Display. A number of shows do offer such awards and ribbons. Some of those “contests” include prize money or, in some cases, free registration for the next year’s show. For these people, judging is taken into consideration in whether they consider the show good or bad. I, personally, do not pay this aspect much mind and do not feel it effects sales at a show, but to each his own.

I subscribe to the theory that if you feel good when all is said and done after the show, then it was a good show for you. As I stated earlier, only YOU can determine what makes a GOOD show for YOU!!

So, here’s wishing your next show is a GOOD one !!!!