VACATION MODE–OFF! Sunburn, Island Dogs and Fire Safety

We’re back from our very first Caribbean family vacation. We spent a week on the Turks and Caicos islands. And yes, it’s as beautiful as it looks in the pictures.
My sun-lovin’ husband is happy, happy, happy, but despite avoiding the sun between 10 and 3, applying not one but two layers of sunblock [...]

HOT TIP 4 PROPANEL OWNERS

I’m all set up for the League of NH Craftsmen’s Annual Fair–our 75th!! (yay!!!) It’s going smoothly so far, which I hope means I’ve finally experienced enough booth emergencies in my life to be ready for anything.
I broke down and invested in MD Propanels a few years ago, and though I’ve managed to [...]

GOOD BOOTHS GONE BAD #25: Booth Evolution

Folks, there will be typos…
But I can’t resist sharing this great article by Bruce Baker in the latest issue of THE CRAFTS REPORT.
In the February 2008 issue, Bruce shows the actual evolution of a typical craft show booth, from those typical craft table displays and blank walls to a sleek booth that really highlights [...]

GOOD BOOTHS GONE BAD #24: When “Perfect” Isn’t Good Enough

Sometimes perfecting the best booth you have isn’t good enough. Sometimes having the best booth, period, isn’t good enough.
What I mean by the first statement is, sometimes we get stuck trying to perfect something that isn’t the best solution in the first place.
Take my search for the “perfect track lighting.” I constantly worked, [...]

GOOD BOOTHS GONE BAD #22: Say Something!

Here’s something else that drove me nuts at the show:
Vendors just don’t know what to do or say when someone is in their booth or looking at their work.
You see something that catches your eye and approach the booth. The person usually says hello. Then….silence.
You are aware of their gaze upon you [...]

GOOD BOOTHS GONE BAD #21: Give Me Space!

I had another chance to walk a craft fair recently. I was actively shopping at this one, or trying to. Once again, I was thwarted by my fellow craftspeople.
Here’s another tip from a crabby shopper:
Leave yourself room to conduct business.
Please… Give your customers room to write a check.
I watched a young woman [...]

GOOD BOOTHS GONE BAD #20: When to Break the Rules

I’m back from the Westport Creative Arts Festival. It was a beautifully run show, well-managed and supported by the Westport Young Women’s League. They did everything right! Unfortunately, attendance was down, down, down and although I didn’t crash and burn, I did not do well enough to return.
It did give me a [...]

WESTPORT CREATIVE ARTS FESTIVAL

Today is the day! Robin and I leave for Westport, Connecticut to do the Westport Creative Arts Festival.
I’ve been squishing my booth down to something that will fit in my car–a 2003 Subaru Forester, so that is no mean feat.
Everything is stacked up in my studio. It looks fairly compact–only four small Rubbermaid [...]

GOOD BOOTHS GONE BAD#19 Chosing Fewer Choices

Let’s go back over the issue of having too much stuff in our booths. I have two anecdotes that I hope will encourage you to pare down your offerings.
A few years ago, I browsed another jewelry artist’s case. Barbara Sperling does polymer clay canework, which means once she makes a cane design, [...]

GOOD BOOTHS GONE BAD #18: Intervention

A reader just posted a plea for help on booth layout.
He set up a U-shaped booth at a recent show. Unfortunately, if a peek at the small sample of goods displayed at the top of the “U” didn’t capture people’s interest, they walked on.
He’s now thinking of a table across the front of the [...]