Art and Craft Shows

[patmoore]

Okay, I bit the bullet and signed up for a booth at my town's Extravaganza (Art & Craft Show) on July 21st. Never done one of these before and I'm looking to borrow expertise from those of you who have done these in the past. I'll be selling both my photographs and my pencil drawings (originals and copies). The office retail store Staples had a special on vinyl banners so I designed and bought a 2' x 6' for only $19.95.

A friend is loaning me a 10 x 10 pop up canopy and I have a couple of card tables (one is 8' long). In attending other shows it seem important to put up walls. Some vendors cover wire mesh with muslin. I stopped by The Home Depot and saw some inexpensive lattice that I might be able to use by hinging several pieces together.

I picked up a gadget for my iPhone that allows me to swipe and process credit cards and I registered with the state of Connecticut to get a sales and use tax permit.

I printed up several "about the artist" flyers with contact info and web address.

For the photos I'm printing 8 1/2" by 11" on my home printer and mounting them in 11 x 14 mats with scotch tape (should I be using archival tape?) and covering them with a plastic sleeve. I also have a limited number of canvas prints and some 4 x 6 prints in hard plastic cases.

At one show I saw where someone had glued photos under Lucite blocks. They looked very nice but I'm not sure where to buy them or what glue to use.

I'm enthused about doing this but clearly could use some guidance. Do you folks have any suggestions?

[patmoore]

Re: Art and Craft Shows

Had another thought. I have a portable easel that I'll set up in the booth and have a half done drawing that I can work on. Might generate a bit more interest?

[Pops]

Re: Art and Craft Shows

Can't help with the expertise but I can wish you the very best of luck.
Good to hear your enthusiasm coming through

[mike_j]

Re: Art and Craft Shows

My wife does a few shows selling paintings and beadwork. She made a couple of comments

Do mount your pictures properly with mounting tape, not Scotch tape. Presentation generally is very important. Have a mix of framed and unframed pictures. People wanting to buy a present will generally not want to have to find a suitable frame. People buying for themselves may want a specific style of frame.

A browser like this http://www.artistsmaterialsonline.co....php?cat_id=48 seems to attract interest, put sketches and odds and ends in it priced cheaply, people like to hunt for a bargain. I made hers quite simply and it works fine. In your case a tabletop version would work.

Demonstrations as you suggest are always popular, be prepared to talk a lot and sell little though.

I hope it all goes well. Let us know how you get on.

[Ian]

Re: Art and Craft Shows

My next door neighbour produces a lot of craft work and she does a few craft fairs. It looks like a lot of fun. Hope it goes well and do take some shots on the day

Ian

[patmoore]

Re: Art and Craft Shows

Thanks for the suggestions. The show is this coming Saturday.

I found some lattice panels in white plastic and set up the display in the back yard yesterday as a dry run. As my wife pointed out, if this stuff doesn't sell, our relatives will be getting matted photos for Christmas presents for several years to come!

[Kurt]

Re: Art and Craft Shows

Good luck.

[patmoore]

Re: Art and Craft Shows

I promised to report on the results. The weather was spectacular and I had a good location. There were plenty of shoppers but very few buyers. Other vendors said they had a bad day as well. I might have overpriced items or simply had subject matter that didn't grab attention. Another photographer suggested printing 4 x 6 note cards. He buys them with envelopes and prints his photos. Total cost is 70 cents and he sells them for $3. He said that covers his admission to the shows. Interestingly, my best sellers were reprints of my drawings.

I discovered that photos in plastic sleeves will produce condensation in a short time. I managed to ruin this print.

To draw in customers, I started a drawing of my wife. Here it is half done.

While the results were discouraging we had fun. And we now have quite a bit invested in inventory so that going forward the only costs will be entry fees. I'll try another one or two to see how it goes.

[Pops]

Re: Art and Craft Shows

Looking at the quality of your pencil drawings I wonder if you could include on the spot drawings of potential customers!

[patmoore]

Re: Art and Craft Shows

Looking at the quality of your pencil drawings I wonder if you could include on the spot drawings of potential customers!

Ironically three young guys were heading for a surprise party for a girl and asked if I could do sketch from a photo in ten minutes to surprise her with. Unfortunately I haven't developed that skill yet. Each drawing takes me between five and ten hours. I'll post the final product of the one of my wife when I finally get it done but it will likely have ten hours in it.

I've dabbled with caricatures but haven't produced anything of commercial quality yet.

[patmoore]

Re: Art and Craft Shows

Okay, I promised I'd post the final product. I'm still a neophyte at drawing but making progress. Here's the child bride (she's only 60).....