Craft Fair: Lessons Learned

Last Saturday could not have been more beautiful, both in terms of weather and in crafty spirit.  My local Made By Hand Craft Fair was chockfull of talented, creative, and friendly vendors which made my first experience participating in one that much nicer.

So, what are the lessons that I learned? 

1) Don't underestimate the time it takes to set up your table/booth.  Since I kept my table display simple, I figured that I would only need 30 minutes (not the allotted 60) to get to my table and make it look pretty. I know, the more experienced of you are guffawing right about now. I managed to get everything laid out the way I wanted with two minutes to spare before the doors opened, but I was definitely sweating!

2) Do have bright and legible signage for the items that you're selling.  I didn't do this and regret it.  While the lack of signage encouraged buyers to ask me questions and chat, I think I lost some folks who strolled by and didn't want to engage.  I also think that fun and cheery signage adds another creative element to one's table/booth.

3) Take lots of photographs of your table/booth before the craft fair begins.  I was so rushed when the doors opened that I only took these two blah photographs which don't represent my table or the wonderful atmosphere of the fair.  I tried to take some photographs during the fair, but it just never happened.

4) Finally, have a friend (thank you, Beth) and/or a sister (thank you, Esther) keep you company during the event.  It's not easy having your creativity out there for people to look at and while they're not really judging you, it's hard not to feel personally on display yourself.  I loved having Beth and Esther with me and it made the hours fly by.

Will I do this again?  I'm not sure but I do know that the next Made By Hand craft fair is in mid-November so I've got some time to think about it.

Craft Fair Countdown: Day 1

I know that inventory is the main ingredient to having a successful craft booth/table, but from all the reading I've been doing, a well-designed and appealing display is key to having people stop, look, and peruse all the pretties.  I'm trying hard to keep my costs down so while I'd love to cover my table with the finest textiles and fill my table with beautiful objet d'arts, I'm going to use my creative spirit to re-purpose some items I already have.

I love the look of light & dark so will have a white cloth to cover my table and adorn it with white and linen necklace and bracket displays. The necklaces and bracelets will add pops of color, and a copper standing mirror and soap dish will bring a rustic but elegant charm to my table.

I'm going to use the soap dish as my business card holder, and this antique copper bucket will be filled with some small and colorful coin purses that I knitted up (sorry, I forgot to take photos of those). Finally, I have a few Buddha statues that I'll place in and around my pieces as well as some skeins of yarn to fill out the spaces.  I'm not fully ready yet but I'm getting there! 

Craft Fair Countdown: Day 2

Thanks for all the wonderful comments about my sister's cards which will share my craft table this weekend ~ they are wonderful, and I agree that they'll get snatched up in no time! I spent some time this morning organizing my inventory and am feeling a bit more confident that my table will actually look plentiful and enticing.

With the small amount of time between when I learned about the Made by Hand craft fair and the date, I decided to focus on small knitted items made with natural/luxury yarns.  Jewelry seemed to be the best option and so I've focused on necklaces and bracelets. I've been working with silk, merino wool, pearlized cotton, and bamboo, all of which lend the perfect weight and sheen to each object.





I've been playing around with different types of cables for the bracelets as well as different types of closures, and I really love how these crocheted eyes add a nice detail to the bracelets overall.

Esther & I brainstormed a bit about her Mother's Day cards and my striped baby socks and what we've come up with makes a sweet gift for a new mom, don't you think?  I'll be putting the card and pair of socks in a large plastic sleeve and tie it up with a bright ribbon ~ voila, a ready-made gift.
 

I still have some new ideas which I'll be testing tonight and hope to add some additional styles to this collection.  Whew, my needles have been on fire!

Craft Fair Countdown: Day 3

I'm completely open to advice on how best to have a successful (and fun) craft fair experience, and the one word that has been repeated over and over again is .... inventory ... as in have lots of it.  I'll admit that I've been creating small knitted items like a mini factory, but I know that I won't have the type of varied inventory that I had initially hoped for.  I'm not going to feel bad about it though ~ after all, I've got a really full life ~ and I'm seeing this Saturday's craft fair as a great learning experience for me.

One thing I did know for certain when I decided to pay my vendor's fee and get myself a table was that I wanted to involve my incredibly talented sister, Esther, who makes the most beautiful cards.  I love her color sense and the whimsical way she uses gems, stamps, drawings, and paper.

Along with birthday and thinking of you cards, she created lovely celebratory graduation and Mother's Day cards.  Each is hand-made with love and, seriously, you can feel that love in each and every one!

So, I'm thankful that Esther wanted to share her talent on my craft table as I love how her cards will fill out enhance my little booth!

Craft Fair Countdown: Day 4

I'm learning that there's a lot that goes into participating in a craft fair, and I bet everyone who has done one shares the feeling I'm having today:  I wish I had another month week and then everything would be perfect!  But as you know, I only have four more days until show time so perfect is going out the window!

But maybe I can still aim for almost perfect, right?  When I'm feeling like too many sparks are going on in my head, I take out my trusty notebook and pencil and start making lists. I'm a BIG list maker and love making them so it felt really good to jot down my thoughts this morning and start organizing all the things I have left to do.

I'm embarrassed to say that I still need to knit more inventory ~ in fact, I came up with a new (easy) bracelet design that I just have to add to my collection ~ so knitting is at the top of my list.  Next will be display design then tag marking then price lists then .... I guess I should get off the computer and start paying attention to my lists! 

Craft Fair Countdown: Day 5

Yes, that's right ... I'm counting down the days until my very first craft fair, and I woke up today feeling both incredibly excited and downright jittery. I've been thinking about participating in craft fairs for a while but the timing has never been right (although we could probably say that about anything we want to do, right?). While the timing for this upcoming show isn't perfect either, I decided to jump first and swim later. 

The Made By Hand craft fair is smack in the middle of the town where I live, and the vendors' fees will support the wonderful adult & children programs that the Nyack Center provides daily to our community. It's a win-win situation:  my fee supports great programs, and I get to fulfill a small dream of selling my hand-knitted items. 

Above is a photo of some of the items I'll have for sale,but believe me, I've got a ton of work to do between now and Saturday morning.  So stay tuned as I'm going to rely on all of you to keep me accountable this week.  I'm going to count down each day here on my blog with updates ... and with a few extra cups of coffee (& bites of dark chocolate), I'm crossing my fingers that when all is said and done, my display of wares will actually look like what I have in my dreams!