Preparing to do a show:

I have not done a show in years, not since my little one was born. I have helped others set up and run their booth for a bit. It is hard work standing there for a long time and answering questions about your work, but in a way also very exhilarating. The customer feedback is so valuable!

To do a show you do need to be ready. You cannot just show up as the show opens to buyers and think you can wing it. Courtesy says that you should be there in plenty time to set up and be ready to sell as soon as the door opens. Know before hand what you want your booth to look like and have a trial run on the layout. Think about the colors of your booth and how it compliments what you sell. Talk to friends about what to say that would represent your work in a couple of keywords and have a huge smile on your face.

Things you must have:

• Business cards, brochures, postcards : something for people to take home and remember you by and also to be able to contact you again in the future. Home printing with HP has made that small batch of printing a bit easier.
• Plenty of inventory in a variety of price ranges and sizes.
• Water and a snack.
• Cashbox with change and a way to process credit cards. This is easier now with Paypal and Square offering card readers that work though your phone.
• Make sure your items have clear price tags on and know what kind of wiggle room you have if someone wants to negotiate.
• If you do custom/commission work then have a photo album of what you have done in the past and the price in case someone wants a special something. Make sure you have an order book to take down relevant information, get a deposit and work on a calendar so you can let customers know when you will start and finish their item. Be upfront about time as some people may feel you are messing them around if you are not. I would rather loose a sale than a customer for life because I was not honest about the times I have to make their item.
• An Address book for people to write down addresses for a mailing list or email updates.
• A cute way to wrap your items.
• Sign or banner to clearly identify your store.

 

Something to consider is a work basket of things you can door make as people tend the show. A kind of working demonstration. I make bears and sometimes it helps for someone to see what I make and how I make it as then they have a better understanding of why my prices are where they are. It takes 2 days to make a bear, and with felted bears and dressed bears even longer. I also love the fabrics I use and like to have some on hand for people to feel.

Another thing: a buddy to tend the booth so you can have a bathroom break and really comfortable shoes! How you dress and represent what you sell will also impact the booth. You are part of the display after all: )

Shows are a fun and a great way for a studio artist to get out and meet the audience you are making crafts for. Sometimes selling on the internet is hard as people do not let you know how they feel on receiving the item you made for them. Face to face is great as you can see the interest. It is a reminder to me why I do what I do!

Doing custom work:
The last couple of weeks have been spent making a wonderful commission. The creature is a Treecat from the Honorverse series of books. What a wonderful challenge!

I love doing commission work as it keeps me challenged and helps me push the limits of what I think I can do. All of it starts with the request from a potential customer about something they would like to have made and asking if it is possible. I look at the request and at this time I respond with either a yes or no answer. Sometimes I have people ask me to make something that is clearly a copy of someone else's work. Ethically I will not do that. If I can proceed with the custom order I ask for more details at this point:

1. Budget (and ask if  the taxes and shipping are included in this budget or not)
2. Time frame- how soon it is required and informing the potential customer of a 2 - 3 week time needed.
3. Materials they would like me to use ( and bearing in mind I might not have in my stock what they want and that will add to the timeline)

This allows me to establish if I can make the custom order in the time, cost and material requirements. If I can meet the requirements, we make a tentative agreement to go ahead. I start by doing some research if it is not a standard creature I know or can easily find out about. Realism is important to me. I am making a creature the customer knows and I want to be correct. As much information from the customer as I can get always helps!

Once the research and rough pattern is ready I can estimate materials and time to make. This allows me to put together a quote for the customer and if we are both in agreement I start making the creature. I ask for half of the payment upfront, as this covers me if the customer changes their minds and I have spent money on materials.

Head of the Treecat ready for customer approval

I try to keep my customers updated as I cut and sew the creature.  As each stage is finished, I photograph and upload pictures for them to see and agree if I am heading in the right direction. Once I have a partially finished creature I again send pictures. I seek to involve my customer at each stage so we are in agreement as I go along and there is not a nasty surprise when I finish : )

Obviously once the creature is done I post the final pictures and arrange how the customer would like to have it shipped. Once I have shipped the creature we do the final payment.

Finished Treecat

I always wait with bated breathe to see if the customer loves the creature in person. It is always hard to post images for me, as I am not a great photographer, but I am learning. The animal always looks better in person.  It is always great when a customer approaches you and can give you  as much detail as they can about what they want. A successful relationship in making a custom creature is great communication.