Art on the Haw River Wine Trail

This show was a good learning experience for me.  I think the biggest two things I took away from this weekend were:

1. Always bring extra tape.  One brand new roll is not enough.  Seriously.  You can never have too much tape, especially when you're going to be selling outdoors in unpredictable wind conditions.

2. Be persistent and don't give up.  I was ready to pack it in and stay home Sunday after a disastrous Saturday.  I barely made back the booth fee Saturday and most people were in attendance for a separate event (Farm Day) where they could have free activities for their children.  This was the farthest I'd traveled for a show (1 hour each way) and I spent a ton of time and money getting a new display and getting my items just right.  I did so poorly the first day I literally cried half of the way home.  I didn't want to go back but did because I made a commitment and didn't want to disappoint the owner.  Luckily for me, only three artisans including myself were set to sell on Sunday and I was the only one selling jewelry.  I did MUCH better than the first day (when there were more vendors) - still not enough to see a profit all things considered, but I made back my gas and my lunch money (and my self esteem).  I learned that my pieces sell much better when there is less competition and that there really is such a thing as an over-saturated market.  I'm hopefully going to be able to select small shows in the future that don't have an overwhelming number of jewelry artisans signed up to vend.  I also kept my reputation of being a reliable vendor and have been welcomed to come back any time (the owners are really nice people).  I'm happy with the way things worked out and I hope it's only up from here.

Enjoy these photos and videos of my display and the Iron Gate Winery:

Hope you enjoyed the picture tour!

Until next time,

Elle

The Artist Affair Craft Show

As you know I've been blogging about doing my first craft show this month.  The show was on December 12-13 in Raleigh, NC at a shop called Carolyn's Bead Addiction.  The show was a moderate success for me.  Saturday was the only day we had customers but I ended up making four sales, two of which were multiple pairs of earrings!  One sale I made without even being present.  Another artisan (the one who did the metal work you'll see below) was kind enough to sell a pair of my winter charm earrings while I went to pick up some lunch.  I met a ton of great people out there and we all bonded as we shivered together in the cold for hours and hours.  The weather was, in short, miserable but it really was great fun due to the personalities present.

The second day was very uneventful sales-wise.  The weather was not only cold but rainy, so we stayed indoors for the entire time.  It started out as a really, really depressing day but as we got to talking, crafting, and sharing techniques it became a great networking event.  I learned a bit about wire wrapping and how to make ornaments.  I also got some tips on great places to shop for some of the tools and supplies I need to improve my craft and practice things I'm interested in (such as making and hammering my own earwires).

I didn't take any pictures on the second day, but I did on the first while we were all outside.  This was my booth:

In retrospect I think it may have looked too "busy" but I did receive complements and a couple of sales so I must have gotten something right.  Many thanks to those who emailed and "Facebooked" me with advice.

Now, I took pictures of the other booths both for my information on how to improve my table for next time and to provide some publicity for the awesome artisans I met. Take a look at the pictures and contact information in case you're interested in purchasing something or featuring them yourself.

GLORIAous Designs

Handmade jewelry and accessories

Tanya Bass

www.gloriaousdesigns.embarqspace.com

tanyabass@embarqmail.com

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Little River Jewelers
Wear a little piece of beautiful
www.littleriverjewelers.com
orders@littleriverjewelers.com

Metal work: necklaces, earrings, and bracelets
I purchased an adorable pair of pink sterling earrings in the shape of breast cancer ribbons from this artisan for my grandmother as a Christmas present.  The short version of the story behind them is that he originally made these earrings as a fundraiser in honor of his friend who had cancer.  She passed away recently and he still sells them in her memory.  The earrings range in price from $8 to $10.
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Kathy Morgan

jlmorganjr@earthlink.net

Semi-precious earrings and necklaces

In addition to making jewelry, this seller can bake some of the best bread I've ever had.  She sold loaves of pumpkin bread and cranberry nut bread for $10 a pop.  I purchased a loaf of the cranberry nut bread to bring home for Christmas dinner.  I'm thinking it will be a bit hit!  She does take orders so stay tuned for her contact information if you're into baked goods.

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Quality earrings, bracelets, and necklaces

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 Large necklaces and earrings

This seller is the only one who didn't have a stack of business cards out for me to take one, so I took a digital picture of her information.  The website on the card appears to be inaccurate so I won't post it, but her email address is nora321@nc.rr.com if you're interested in finding out more about her work.

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Glassstone Studio: pendants, jewelry, ornaments, scarves

Pam and David Smith

glassstonenc@yahoo.com

This couple make some fabulous items as you'll see in the pictures below:

 

 These guys were very welcoming and eager to share what they knew.  Their depth of knowledge about jewelry, glasswork, and other crafts is definitely impressive.  Check out their Facebook page here to see their work and order something if you find a piece you love.  If you're an artist, they are more than open to answering questions and giving advice.

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Velletri

Jewelry Craft

Andy Velletri

andy_velletri@yahoo.com

Metal work, unique earrings and necklaces

 My pictures of Andy's jewelry really don't do it justice:

This guy makes some really beautiful, fancy designs with earrings starting around $15 and necklaces starting around $20.  Had I made a few more sales, I would have purchased something from his booth as well.  If you live in North Carolina, you can take a class from Andy at Carolyn's Bead Addiction.  He's currently teaching wire work and something called "Wig Jig" (don't ask me, I have no idea!).  For more information, check out www.carolynsbeadaddiction.com.

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Because I made so many items in preparation for the craft show, I have been able to add new listings to my Artfire shop of the jewelry, magnets, and charms that didn't sell.  Be sure to check out my shop at ellesbeads.artfire.com to see the new listings.  I will be running an after Christmas sale, so be sure to hotlist or bookmark the items you like now!

Until next time,

Elle

Reminder: Craft Show and Vacation and EB Hotlist

Hi everyone!  I have a huge amount of work to do to get ready for the Craft Show tomorrow at Carolyn's Bead Addiction in Raleigh.  I still have to price all of my items, finish my display, and finish up a few remaining projects.  Unfortunately, that means both of my shops are on vacation and I'll be unable to post this week's EB Friday Hotlist.  The good news?  I'll be posting new listings as well as 2 website reviews next week.  Be sure to subscribe and bookmark my blog so you won't miss a post!

Until next time,
Elle

Craft Fair Display Booth Advice

I finally got my camcorder memory and YouTube to get my video uploaded correctly.  The top part of my face that's cut off at the end of the video...well that's neither of their faults
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I saw a photo of a contact's booth for the recent Art Walk downtown.  I immediately started thinking about what I was going to do to make my setup appealing.  If you have any suggestions on cheap or free ways to spruce up my booth, please let me know in the comments!



See my Google Calendar in the right sidebar for more information about this event.  Also, please be aware that if it's raining badly the show will be rescheduled and I will be one disappointed chick.

Update on Fabric Flowers and Shopping and My First Craft Show!

So after my sad, droopy flower (which I've made into a refrigerator magnet) I decided to make another one Thursday night.  I think it's much better:

I turned this one into a pin and wore it to work on Friday:

I've found that it's much easier to use a button with a raised back than it is to cover and use a button with holes.  The flowers still take me about 2 hours to make and by the time I'm done I don't want to ever see fabric again...but they really are fun and easy.  I made another one which I've turned into a barrette:

These flowers really are creative!  Please visit Sew Ritzy~Titzy's blog for the tutorial.

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So I've been shopping at A.C. Moore, Michaels, Panopolie, and Carolyn's Bead Addiction so much, I'm not sure I have enough gas to go anywhere else this week (oops!).  Check out some of the awesome things I picked up!

Now I'm going to get the chance to incorporate filigrees (is that a valid word?) and vintage buttons into my work for the first time.  These pictures don't provide an all-inclusive list of everything I purchased, but you get the idea.

So why, besides the fact that I love my craft, did I feel the need to go crazy in almost every craft store and boutique I could find?  I received an email from the Raleigh Jewelry Meetup Group that a craft show was going on Dec. 12-13 and there were still plenty of spaces for artisans to sign up.  I jumped on the opportunity and now I'm going to be selling at my first official craft show next weekend!  I have been trying to get advice on what to do and so far what I've noticed is that artisans mention over and over the importance of having a variety of different styles of items and large quantities of stock.  Since my first shopping excursion, I've dedicated myself to do as much crafting each day as possible.  I probably spent 12 hours yesterday making new items.  Want to see some of the newer items I plan to bring to the craft fair that aren't on Artfire or Etsy yet?  Check out the photos below or visit my Flickr Photostream.

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.
 
If you're in the Raleigh/Durham or Central NC areas, make sure you attend the craft show, Carolyn and Friends Artist Affair.  It's located at Carolyn's Bead Addiction (formerly Bead Delite) on Old Wake Forest Road near Capital Blvd and Triangle Town Center Mall.  Be sure to visit my Google Calendar in the side bar and click on the event for more information and the complete address.  I will be there both Saturday and Sunday Dec. 12-13.  I hope to see some of you there!  If you're an artisan, contact Carolyn ASAP via email at carolynsbeadaddiction@yahoo.com as she has a ton of space outside of her boutique and may have some left for you to sell as well.  If you come either as a customer or as a fellow seller, make sure you introduce yourself both in the comments and at the show!

Until next time,
Elle

I'm Selling at the Handmade Market

In an effort to increase my visibility online as much as possible, I've also rented a spot at the Handmade Market run by Yaami.  This site is the only virtual craft show I've come across so far that actually looks like a 3D craft store.  If you have a slow connection, you may have to wait a minute or two for the site to load but this is what the fair essentially looks like:

You can use your mouse to move around the market and browse different shops.  If you click on a product you like, you're given the option to tweet the item or to be connected to the listing of that item in the artist's online shop (Etsy, Artfire, etc.):

 

This is one of the items I've featured this week at my Handmade Market booth.  These earrings are really gorgeous!  This is what the Etsy page for them looked like:

 

I'd already sold these to a family member by the time the Week 49 market went live, but there are plenty more items to check out, so be sure to swing by my booth at handmademarket.com.

I'll be reviewing HandmadeMarket.com and YaamiHandmade.com together during one of my Friday Hotlist entries. Be sure to subscribe so you won't miss out on the follow-up information on what else can be done with these websites.

Know of another 3D or 2D virtual market like this?  Be sure to leave me the URL and your experience with them in the comments!

Vote for me! Cafe Handmade: Virtual Craft Show

I'm sure you've noticed the small image I've added to the top right hand corner of my blog.  It links to my page on Cafe Handmade:
 

This site allows artisans to participate in a virtual craft show where select photos, information about themselves and their creative process, and links to their store, blog, twitter, etc. are displayed on different "aisles."  I'm asking those of you who read this blog to please vote for me by clicking this link: http://cafehandmade.com/index.php/2009/11/elles-beads/.  Below the "Around the Web" section and before the comments, there is a small heart to click on to submit a vote for me. 

Unlike many sites, you do not have to register to vote for my store and you can vote for more than one artisan if you browse the others in the show.  The person who receives the most votes at the end of the week will receive the honor of being Best in Show which includes free advertising and publicity on the site for the following week.  Voting just takes a few seconds, so I hope that you will all participate!

Until next time,
Elle