Craft Show Hell

I have read about this.  Being forewarned, I was hoping it would never happen to us.

We set up yesterday at the Aubrey "Christmas on Main" for our second show in a plum corner booth.  Just as we got everything unloaded and the canopy up, the previously unnoticed speaker that was sitting 15 feet from our spot erupted with around 70 decibels of Christmas music.  It was pointed directed at us and I nearly wet myself with the surprise.  I happened to be looking at R. at the time and he actually ducked as if he was being shot at! He was able to convince the organizers to shift the speaker so it wasn't pointed directly at us but I tried not to look at the young woman and her husband who later set up the Scentsy booth right beside us.  I couldn't stand the painful expression on their faces.

Well, we continued to set up the booth and I had a bit of trouble placing the cloths on the tables due to small gusts of wind.  No big deal....just throw on some tape and continue on.  As I started placing the products, I kept having to catch a couple of the taller hatstands due to those occassional gusts.  No big deal....the wind will drop when the sun comes out of these clouds.  Then I didn't see R. moving around and looked up to find him just standing and holding onto the edge of the canopy.  We struggled with the wind for about another 15 minutes then made the decision to take it down and hopefully not get too much sun later in the day.  So we spent the day only battling the wind and not the wind AND canopy.  (On a side note:  we did see a set of handmade anchors for the canopy which R. can easily replicate.  The gallon jugs filled with water that we attempted to use were woefully inadequate for the job.)

We noticed that there were a lot of customers down the street and also around the corner from the music.  But the booths in our area near the speakers and microphone were sadly lacking buyers.  There were quite a few ladies interested in some of my crafts but it was difficult to hold conversations and answer questions due to the volume of Christmas music.  Very frustrating!  The buyers who did stop by didn't linger very long.  Was it due to lack of interest in the product or just couldn't stand the music? 

We repeatedly had to ask for the music to be turned down (about once an hour) because the young man on the sound board kept slowly increasing the volume thinking no one would notice.  We weren't the only ones to complain so maybe next year it will be different.  I'm not so sure we will be there to find out because I don't think Aubrey is a good market for the hatstands.  I think they are more upscale and once again, there was a lady selling rocks!  Painted rocks...but they were still rocks!

We will NOT be having Christmas music in our house this year!  We REALLY won't be having any Elvis Christmas music!  I think he played Elvis singing every Christmas song in existence.  But he didn't play any Hannakuh songs....what's up with that?  Six full hours of Chrismas music blasted at you can make one a little crazy!  I'm may just have to boycott my car radio everytime they play a carol for the next few weeks!

I sold the exact amount at this show as my first show.  How disappointing!  I wil say the free sugar cookies were the best thing about yesterday except I got to meet an older gentleman that I've wanted to meet.  I've seen him in the area a few times and admired his dancing.  Bill and his two daughters and grandaughters stood and visited for quite a little bit.  Somehow the conversation came around that I make pear preserves and he commented that he hadn't had pear preserves in years and wanted to buy some.  Unfortunately, we opened the last jar about 2 months ago and I haven't made any more.  I told him I will sell him a jar when I get some made.  One of the daughters who was visiting from Oregon, made sure I now have a phone number and address for him so I can deliver a jar to him.  He's no longer driving at the age of 84 and since he's so close, I don't mind.  He seems like a really nice man.

Cold+wind+lack of sales/customers+freakin' loud music = no fun!

Now my mind has to change gears to Thanksgiving as I'm actually going to host a few family members for the first time in quite a few years.  This time last week we ordered one of those pre-cooked dinners from the grocery store for just the two of us.  Now we'll just augment it with a few more side dishes and call it happy.  But now I have to clean house!

Hope everyone has a safe a happy holiday!

Happy crafting!

BKK

The next show

We received the confirmation for the Denton HS Choir Craft Festival which is on December 4 this year.  We're looking forward to it as it's the first big indoor one we will attend.  That means I'm hoping that I make a few sales this time.  It would be nice as I'd like to make my booth rental back this time.


I'm steadily crafting to add to the inventory.  I'm expecting a supply delivery tomorrow or the next day for the magnets I make.  It will really come in handy because I have so much to put on them and I'm short of glass.

I'm also having fun playing with Sculpey clay.  For non-crafters, this is clay that can be baked for a short while and you can paint, sand or drill the item you make.  It's good for custom beads and other jewelry items.  I haven't made much but I've made myself a pendant.

Got to get busy!

Happy Crafting

BKK

Other people's crafts

I got the chance yesterday to touch base with an acquaintance who has experience with craft shows.  She is one of the people that had encouraged me to make the leap to go public with my crafting.  It's nice to touch base with another vendor who can sympathize about poor sales or be excited for you just for making an application for a show.

Dusti does incredible work beading and painting gourds and I guess she comes by it naturally with her Lakota heritage.  I know I certainly don't have the patience to do what she does. Her website is lovely and when I compare pics of my products to hers, I have to be embarrassed.   I know I haven't spent a lot of time on promoting my product online but OMG my pictures need work!

I've been talking with a cousin in OK that does stained glass.  She is looking to launch her business for craft shows in this next year.  She and I have spent quite a few hours hashing out what works and what doesn't work for displays, etc.  I wish I had a tenth of her talent as I've always been interested in glass but have always jumped in all different directions.  I've never been able to maintain a passion for any one genre for more than a few years at a time.  I hope I can do something long enough to sustain a business.

I'm starting to fret. 

When's the last time you heard that phrase?  I have a show coming up next weekend and I'm thinking "I don't have enough inventory!"  Then I think "That's stupid!  You haven't really sold anything yet so how can you run out of stuff if no one is buying it?"  No....but I can dream.

It's getting late and I want to make a shopping list for tomorrow's supply run.  I've also got some work to do on the computer.  I've been working on a couple of verses to go with the kitchen rabbits.  Sometimes cute sells.

Happy Crafting!

BKK

You just never know

It's amazing how you get answers handed to you when you're agonizing over whether to go ahead and take the plunge or just wait things out.  I've been kind of on the fence about putting out more hard earned money on more supplies for inventory.  I've not been really convinced I should but worry about having enough inventory for a show.

R. and I ran out for a quick meal last night because we're tired of eating at home on my self-imposed exile following that nasty dental work.  I finally agreed to eat in public so we went to Mom's on Main here in Aubrey because I knew I could get a seat with my back to the room.  (I highly recommend the hot beef sandwich, by the way!)

As we walked into the place I noticed a flyer on the door about a craft show in a few weeks right there in downtown!  I hadn't heard or seen anything about it so we questioned Steve, the owner.  He laughed and said "Oh, I just put that up!"  It's a brand new venture being sponsored by Mom's and it benefits the Aubrey fire department auxillary.  Since booth rental is only $10, I was really interested so I asked for and filled out an application for a space right then and there.

This that means I woke up this a.m. about an hour before my alarm went off with my brain on hyperdrive.  I could do this...I could make that...wonder what this would look like....and on and on and on!  I guess this means I'm back in the saddle.  I've got to get some supplies!!!! I've got to get busy!!!!

Tomorrow I go talk to the bank about opening a business account so I can take care of my Paypal account.  After doing that, I can start actually putting items online for sale.  I may also look at moving my blog to Etsy or some other online community so I can promote sales a little easier.  I haven't been able to pin down the blogger.com people as to their policy for promoting sales on my blog.  The TOS isn't clear on the subject at least as far as my interpretation of it so I'm a little reluctant to discuss money with anyone on this site. 

I gotta get busy!

Happy Crafting!!!!

BKK

Recovered

I think I'm finally recovered from our family reunion.  Why is it we knock ourselves out taking care of things that 90% of the population never EVER notices?  I can't imagine that one person noticed we swept the walls for cobwebs or that I scrubbed the dining room floor on my hands and knees to make sure it was really clean OR that I dusted the baseboards around the entire house.

R. and I basically nearly killed ourselves cleaning for the 2 days plus every night before the reunion.  The family was here for about 6 hours total.  The first guests arrived at 10:30 am and the last person left (except my sister and her husband) by 4pm. My sister helped me clean up and put food away then they were gone by 5:30pm. 

Wow! is all I can say.  I feel bad because we had some late arrivals and they left after 2 hours!  They  drove 2 hours, visited 2 hours, then drove 2 hours back!  I can only think that it's because we don't have a TV in our living room and these people can't seem to spend more than 6 hours without one if there are football games on that day.  I get 8 channels here and am very happy with that. 

We made a conscious decision not to hook up cable, satellite, etc. when we moved in here in 2003.  We decided that there is a lot more to life that sitting in front of the boob tube 24/7.  We really didn't miss it after the first couple of months because we were too busy with the new house.  Living in an apartment, there just wasn't enough to keep us busy most of the time.  Now I usually don't have time to do much even on the computer!

Anyway, this has been the 1st weekend since the middle of September that we don't have to be anywhere or do anything on a time schedule.  It's been nice.  I ran errands in town yesterday and got a lot of those little items purchased that one just puts off because it's not a priority.  Today I dabbled in the garden and cut back the roses a little.  I was going to pull up all the @#%$# tomato plants that only bloom but don't make tomatoes.  I found out that 4 of the 6 plants are just loaded with baby tomatoes.  The largest one is the size of a golf ball, LOL!  We'll see if they make before it turns too cold. 

I missed the deadline (thanks to the family reunion) for the Ryan High School craft and art fair Nov. 6, so I'm looking for another venue for November.   I'm still planning on Denton HS on Dec 4 so we'll see how things go.  In the meantime, I'm still building inventory and looking at new ideas.  I'll keep you posted.


Happy Crafting!

BKK

My Feet Are Wet

Well, I got my feet wet.  Yesterday's show at the Peanut Festival wasn't exactly the resounding success I would have wanted but I learned a few things.  That was one of the reasons I chose a local one-day show as my first attempt.  I figured if I forgot anything we were only minutes away from the house and I could send the husband for the item.

We set up the booth in an "L" shape and learned that most people will not step into a booth.  They view everything from the "safety" of the aisle and keep going unless they are really curious about something in the booth.  People will step into a booth to examine small items and then will look at the other items.   Next time we'll set up a table across the front and call it good.  So much for elegant display set up!

I had gift baskets of kitchen rabbits all ready to walk out the door complete with ribbon and packing.  Turns out they weren't very visible in the bags and no one could figure out what they were.   I've decided I'm going to make a good inventory of the rabbits and just display them in piles on the table.  If someone requests it, then I will package them in a basket onsite.  It only takes a couple of minutes to do that and I figure if someone wants it, they'll wait (and pay!).

No one had a clue what the hat stands were even with a couple of hats on them!  I actually had a person ask "Are those covers for crystal balls?"  I know that this venue was not the right place for them but I wanted to see reactions.  This sounds mean but OMG! these people were buying rocks! Painted Rocks but still- they were rocks!   So what was I thinking trying to get them to buy velvet and ribbons?

I only had 2 people that really professed any interest and one actually gave a couple of good  ideas on more marketing for them.  One suggestion was to use the stands as a pin or brooch holder.  That may be a good way to market them to the younger generations as most young women don't wear hats except ball caps.  I think I'll try both ways at the next show and see what happens.

I had a sign for Black Kat Kreations hanging at the back of the booth.  Almost every person that walked by (about 95%) actually read the sign out loud when they walked by.  What's up with that?  It got pretty funny counting who would and who wouldn't read the name out loud or at least mouth the words.

Another lesson:  When you hang walls on your canopy, you can showcase your product very nicely but you cut yourself off from your neighbor vendor.  In some instances I know this can be very beneficial especially if you have a noisy booth next door or a "helpful Hannah" but in other cases you may want a little cameraderie.

We actually packed up about 1/2 hour before the end of the show because everyone around us was packing up.  I looked around at the other booths and either vendors were standing around chatting or already packing.  We set up in about 45 minutes and tear down was approximately the same.  We were just lucky it wasn't too hot since it was an outdoor show.  There was a light breeze that only bothered items in the booth a little bit. (note to self:  get sandbags for the canopy legs in case of heavier wind)

Because of the dental surgery I had 3 days prior, I took a thermos (so I thought) of corned beef hash for my lunch. I know it's not healthy but I could shovel it down without chewing much.   My husband sat the booth while I slipped out to a quiet area where I could be as messy as I wanted without embarrassing myself.  Turns out this insulated bowl doesn't keep anything hot but it turns it hash nice and cold.  Cold hash is just nasty so I lost another pound yesterday!  Dental surgery is great for a diet!  I also have to remember to drink more water but I didn't want to deal with the Port a Potty visit that would result from doing so.  I noticed I was a little dehydrated after we got home.

I would say I had fun but would have like to have sold more than some magnets.  My poor husband who toted everything (my dentist said I couldn't carry stuff and raise my blood pressure for a couple of weeks) was exhausted and needed a nap once we got home. I really think that some of the nap attack was related to boredom.  But still, it would have been nice to pack up less to bring home. 

One of the first things that occurred after we set up was someone ran around passing out flyers for a craft fair in 3 weeks.   We are discussing this right now and think we'll do this one.  We'd like to try an indoor set up this time.  I also have my eye on one in November and another one for December 4th.  I think that will give us a good idea whether this is something we really are going to pursue.  I also want to look closer at selling some of the items on Etsy.  I can't decide if I want to do that  because it entails shipping across the U.S.

I need to get busy on the next project which is readying the house for a semi-annual family reunion.  My house was volunteered for it and I've got a lot of cleaning to do since I haven't done anything but wash dishes and craft for the past 2 months.  LOL!

Time for my breakfast....I just love Malt O Gruel!

Happy Crafting!

Down and Out

Wow!  What a week this has been.   My head is still fuzzy from yesterday's surgery and I'm sitting here reading everything I can to prepare myself for Saturday's show.  A need for some unfortunate dental surgery lost me 2 full days right before the show.  Combine those 2 days with the 3 days I lost for my HS reunion and I find myself coming up pretty short. But I wouldn't have missed the reunion for the world!  We had a great time! 
I had an email from the show's coordinator when I signed on this morning and learned that they are staggering set-up/drop-off times to avoid congestion.  My time slot is 6:45 a.m.  How lucky is that?  Does she realize it's still dark at that time?  How am I supposed to set up in the dark in a non-electrical booth?  I don't have any experience so I'm not thrilled about trying to do it by braille.
I drove my husband crazy because I had him set up the tables Tuesday night and I played with the setup and worked out the aesthetics of the tables.  I took a picture so I can recreate it Saturday morning.  I just didn't plan on doing it in the dark.
I know I'm kind of putting things off, but I'm not going to start gathering my supply box until tomorrow because I've been working on a list of things for it for weeks. I should be able to just pull everything on my list and be done with it.  I'll just add a thermos or two of gruel for my lunch and I should be set!  I miss food already and it's only been 24 hours.
I keep looking at the stuff I have sitting here just waiting to be put together.  I know I should be working on a few more items but I don't want to screw anything up and lose materials.  Maybe tomorrow when I'm less fuzzy.  Right now, I just want another pain pill.

Happy Crafting!

BKK

Run, rabbit, run!

Wow! It's been a week since I lasted posted anything here.  I'm running constantly trying to make sure everything is ready before next week.   Attending my high school reunion this weekend is really putting a strain on things but I wouldn't miss it for the world.   Thank goodness my husband is holding my world together.

I've finshed the rabbit baskets and am having trouble deciding how to convey that I will take orders for them rather that sell the 5 baskets I have on hand without losing a sale.  I think I may designate one of them as "display only" and sell the rest.  I also have pics of them so I can put together a small album to show colors, etc.  I've also had supplies left over from previous purchases and I think I'll offer single rabbits, too.  I still have more supplies for a few more hat stands and will continue to make them as I have time.

So we're down to 10 days and counting!

Happy Crafting!

BKK

17 Days and counting.

Well, more money has been paid out and we're still about 2 1/2 weeks away from our first show. Yesterday, my other half was kind enough to deliver our application for booth rental to wherever it needed to go along with the booth rental check.  We received an email today from the Peanut Festival that assigned us to booth S11 and I'm pleased because I think this is a decent location.  Bad news though, I was informed that we need to unload by approximately 7 a.m. and pretty much be set up ASAP.  Seems last year they had lots of people onsite at that time of day so they don't want a lot of vendors setting up at it gets closer to parade time (10 a.m.).  Nobody told me I was going to be up at 5 a.m. for these things!

I hit the jackpot on candlesticks the other day so am busy making more hatstands.  Don't know what I'm going to do with these if this doesn't fly.  Guess a whole lot of people will get hatstands for Christmas for the next few years!  LOL

I've got a line on another couple of craft fairs so everyone keep your fingers crossed.

Gotta get to bed for some much needed beauty sleep!

Happy crafting.

You asked for it!

Here's a few things to look at!  I realize the pic is sideways but it doesn't really matter which way you look at the magnets I've made.

It's been a busy week and a busier weekend.  I got the rabbits almost finished and a few more stands ready to work on in the next few days.  I think I'm going to be ready for October 2nd after all.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to work!

Happy crafting!

routine things, not!

I like things nice and quiet and routine.  I get grumpy if my routine is upset.  Ok, that's a mild understatement.  I get up in the morning and eat the same thing for breakfast Monday thru Friday.  Same goes for lunch since I've been dieting: I have the same thing for lunch-day in, day out.  I kind of like it that way.

However, over the next two months will be anything but routine and I'm trying to gear my mind to accepting that. I have 4 major events occuring in a 5 week timeframe in which I play the central part. 

To start with, I'm getting old and I've elected to go to my 35th high school reunion in a little bitty place in NW Oklahoma.  Cool, I got a 3 day weekend for it but it will entail a 5 hour drive each way.  No big deal....ROAD TRIP!  I love to travel and am looking forward to spending a couple of nights in a decent hotel (with an indoor pool!).  I won't have to cook and we get a mini vacation  while I get to see how well my classmates have aged compared to myself.

The next week isn't so happy.  I have to have a dental implant done.  This means I have to see a dentist.  I believe I've stated this before, "I HATE dentists!"  Nothing personal, guys, it's just the whole in your mouth with sharp objects profession thing.

Then with my standard rotten luck, 2 days later is the Aubrey Peanut Festival and the debut of Black Kat Kreations.  I have no idea if I'm going to be greeting the public looking like I was smacked with a baseball bat or if I'll be oozing blood or just what.  I've got to call the periodontist tomorrow and see if I can get more info.

And lastly! To add insult to injury, 2 weeks later I'm hosting our fall family reunion at our house.  Great!  Missing a tooth, trying to rebuild inventory for the next craft fair (or licking my wounded pride from the previous one) and having to get the house in immaculate condition since none of those folks have ever been to my house before.  All you ladies know how that can be!

So I'm looking to keep a steady hand and head for these next 2 months then hopefully we'll move into an even faster pace to start getting ready for Christmas shows.  Woo Hoo!

Happy crafting!!!!!

My secrets

I've been asked by a few people, "What is your craft? What are you selling? Why aren't you on Etsy?"

I've decided that I probably won't post any pics of my wares until after my first show.  A couple of the items are unique but I think can be easily copied. So I feel it's in my best interest to wait until after Oct. 2 which is my first craft fair/show to post pics for everyone  to ooh and aahhh over.  If I can motivate a little you might get to see some pics of the earrings I've put together or maybe some of the magnets I'll have available for sale but other than that, you'll just have to wait.

I'm not on Etsy yet because I'm using the Aubrey Peanut Festival as a test market.  IF my products fly there, then I will consider going out on a bigger scale.

Holy Smokes!

Well, my other half and I did another one of supply forays and my pocketbook is still coughing and crying.  We are now the proud owners of two 6 ft. tables to be used for displaying our wares, and lots of craft supplies.  We nearly walked our legs off but managed to find a copy of Photoshop 8 at a reasonable price.  This means the photos will be ready for the show on Oct. 2 and I can get off his back some.  However, just a word of caution to everyone:  No one is safe now! Everyone is fair game when it comes to photos.

I have found that I love making refrigerator magnets.  I love the fact that anything I can find in miniature, I can put under glass and put a magnet on the back and someone will like it as much as I and will give it a good home.

I have also thought in the past few days that I can use the kitchen rabbit concept for babies.  Just a simple metamorphosis and we now have baby shower gifts.  I plan on doing a little more research to find out if I can do other animals, also.

The sad thing about all this is the fact that I know that whatever I manufacture will not be enough if I am lucky enought that my items happen to catch on.  The saving grace is that this is only a one day show.

Wherever you leak

....someone hangs a bucket.  It's been one of those weeks.  A dental appointment Monday, a funeral on Tuesday, my car died Wednesday, Thursday's schedule all out of whack (because of said car), and finally it's Friday!

I hate dentists. Period.  I hate dentists.  I not only had to see a dentist, I had to see a PERIODONTIST!  The years I spent straightening my teeth has come back to bite me in the butt.  Seems repeated pressure (trauma according to the dentist) from the retainer has caused a tooth to die.  Of course it's a front tooth.  So I have the pleasure of getting an implant which will take approximately 6 months healing time before I have a permanent implant. We won't EVEN talk about the cost of this implant.

Then my aunt passed away on Friday the 13th and the funeral was Tuesday about 3 hours drive away.  It was expected but even so funerals are tough because I'm such a sympathy crier.  All I have to do is see someone tear up or hear them choke up and I'm crying too.

I am still driving my '96 Olds because A. it's paid for, and B. it is dependable.   Well... usually.  Seems I had a cracked radiator with coolant everywhere.  Maybe this explains the coolant smell I've noticed for the past week.  But good news!  Now that it's fixed, the hesitation I've had in the engine for the past year is gone.  Could I have had a cracked radiator for over a year?

Because of the @#$#^&% car crapping out on me, I had to get up at 4:30am and go into work with the spousal unit.  In order for me to get to work, I had 2 hours to kill before I could clock in.  There's not a whole lot open at that time of the day in my area so I ended up sitting on a bus for over an hour.  When did they take the padding out of bus seats?  Trust me, it's not as if I have a skinny butt.  I definitely have my own padding but those seats were a horrible insult to my posterior.

So I survived the week to Friday.  After work, I went in search of special looking candlesticks to use for my hatstands.  I only found a few but they were just a little too pricey for what I want to do.  In order to keep my cost of goods down, I need ones that are under $5.  I found a couple in a small thrift shop but I felt they were too lightweight: a hatstand needs a heavy base so it doesn't easily tip.  I did find some giant clear gems to turn into magnets so the candlestick safari wasn't a total loss.  Now I have to start searching all the thrift stores in the area for candlesticks.

Guess I know what I'll be doing tomorrow since I don't have to mow. The grass is just crunchy now and I don't think there's much of anything green out there.  Maybe triple digit weather will end this next week.

Until later.....

Happy Crafting.

An Exciting Week

I finally decided to do it!  On Friday, I drove to the county courthouse and plopped down my $15.00 and I was rewarded by receiving my DBA.  For those that are initially challenged, that stands for "Doing Busines As" or "an assumed name".  This means I can finally kick off my home business and actually make some sales of my crafts to real people.

I'm going to get my feet wet at the Aubrey Peanut Festival which is October 2, this year.  I know I may have to scramble to get everything ready in time probably won't have enough inventory.  From all that I've read this is a pretty standard lament among crafters.  I still want to try and I want to know if what I've decided to do will sell or if I need to go more generic to generate sales.

I think I also want to get to a point where Black Kat Kreations will sell jams and jellies, too.  I have to do more research on that as I don't know the food product laws.

My husband and I went to a "trade days" today to check out how vendors are setting up their booths and to see what's on the market.  We lasted about 2 hours because of the heat.  We were inside a "mall" that had air conditioning for 1 of those hours.  I don't know if I could do that on a routine basis. But on the plus side that is only 1 weekend a month.

I'm excited to be able to present my wares to the public but it's scary also.  I know that people are pretty harsh critics and there is a learning curve.  We'll just have to see what happens.  

It's 5 weeks and counting till "D day"!

Happy Crafting!

BKK