Is it really that hard???

OK! I need to go off on a rant for a minute here....

I did another craft fair this last weekend, I must admit it could have gone better. Sure I sold some stuff and I got my name out there and I had fun and all it was still very frustrating! I don't want to come across as a malcontent but is it so hard to limit the number of jewelry vendors at each show? The last 3 fairs I've done have been almost 40% jewelry! I get it, there are a lot of people out there creating beautiful jewelry and that is great! but do I have to have a space right next to all of them? I was talking to friend of mine (yep, you guessed it, she sells jewelry too!) and we figured that maybe 10% of the people that come to those craft fairs are going to buy jewelry, so say you have 100 booths and 40 of them are jewelry... not really good odds that your booth will be the one they choose to buy from! Every person who buys jewelry at those fairs has their own particular taste, they might hate my stuff and love the items for sale at the booth across from me (yes I did say ACROSS from me) or they might like mine better, I think it is safe to say that out of all the customers at any given craft fair about 1% are going to see any given vendors stuff and HAVE TO HAVE IT! I don't know about most people, but if I walk into a fair and there is a jewelry vendor right by the door that has a pretty necklace I choose to buy, what are the chances that I am going to purchase another necklace from a diferent person down the line... Even if they have one I love? Not good I think! Another person I was talking to this month told me that she was under the impression that the unspoken rule is that there shouldn't be any more then 10% of each kind of booth (ie: jewelry, ceramics... ) well at the fair this weekend there were 6 booths within sight of each other selling almost exactly the same items... Sure all of their stuff was beautiful (fused glass pendants and earrings) but I really doubt if any of them did well because there was just too much competition. I love doing the fairs but it this is so frustrating!

Another problem I have is when I go to a CRAFT fair there are companies selling bathroom remodels or big store chain distributors selling items, to me a craft fair is the person who created the stuff selling it... not some big company that isn't all that worried about how much they sell because they have 100 stores across the country... Having those kind of booths makes the whole fair seem less creative and personal to me. ok, I just had to get that off of my chest! I am sure I am not the only person who is running into this problem... Maybe we should all get together and put on our own craft fair!

Wow what a week!

Last Saturday I had a booth at a Colorado State Fairgrounds craft fair and all things considered I did pretty well, I am pretty sure I would have done better if Obama hadn't been doing a rally in the same town at the exact same time as my show! But hey, what are you going to do?

I learn something new every show I do... I am finally starting to get over being shy, shy people sell nothing! I have gotten more and more comfortable engaging my customers in light conversation, I don't want to come across as a used car salesman but I do want them to know that I truly appreciate them taking the time to stop and look at my items, whether they buy anything or not... and I DO appreciate it! I have also learned about the strange phenomenon of no visitors equals no visitors... this is odd; if there is no one in front of my booth looking at things then it is hard to get someone to stop but if just one person stops then they come in droves... very odd... guess people figure something isn't worth looking at if no one else is looking at it too?!?! I also learned that the people who do the craft fairs are a pretty decent bunch of people, everyone there was very warm and friendly, and totally helpful! I got a lead on at least 2 shows in the future and I finally took the leap and paid the money for Craft Masters News (at the urging of another vendor) And I am very glad I did! I got the idea for a new display for my stuff from another jewelry seller, I spoke to her on the phone (she is great!) and she told me to USE IT!! I had a LOT more stuff for this show and my table had so much stuff on it that it was a bit crowded, hopefully this new display idea will help!

Do I even need to mention the election?????

If you are in Pueblo, Colorado on the 15th or 16th of November come to the Pueblo Fairgrounds and see me!! I would love to hear that someone local read my blog!

My First Ever Show!

Yesterday I did my first craft show, wow what an experience! I was a vendor at the Apple Festival in Penrose, Colorado, I must admit I was a bit surprised when a pony ride booth set up across the street from me! It was a great experience though… I must admit I was a bit shy and self conscious at first, I’ve never done anything like that before! After a while I kind of got into the groove and started interacting with my customers. It was a fun experience and I can’t wait to do it again, in fact I am scheduled at the Arts and Crafts Fair in Pueblo on November 1st at the State Fair Grounds so be sure to come and check it out!

Wow not bad for a first post from someone who has no clue what to say eh? Anyway, I am going to try to get on here and leave a post as often as I can, so be sure to check my blog often. I will be listing shows I will be doing as well as telling you all about my jewelry so I hope you come back soon!