Handmade Revelry show this Sunday at Rebus Works...

check it out...click the pic to learn more

Call to Artists and Crafters, May 30 show in Raleigh, NC

The history behind your favorite gemstones

This New York Times article is worth reading...I especially liked knowing that jade (one of my favorite stones) was formed in the depths of long-ago seas.

Read the article here. The photo above was nicked from the NYT site. It is an armful of jade nuggets from a stone market in China.

S*it Craft Show Shoppers Say

Don't be these girls!

But seriously, what's your favorite thing that shoppers say? How about 'I'll take two?'

Hate to say no?

Go and read this 4 minute blog post on why creative people have to say NO a lot.

Wow.

Shop Local, Shop Small

Where will you spend your dollars this holiday season? Think about patronizing a small business as a way to give TWO gifts. One is the gift you purchase. The money goes to the crafter or small business owner, who in turn spends it with another small business (accountant, landlord, their employees) in ways that directly improve and affect your town, your state, your country. They pay local/state and U.S. taxes. They are much more likely to provide better wages and benefits. They are your neighbors. Read a few more reasons here.

Local craft and art shows are also a good way to support your neighbors. Here in Raleigh we have the Handmade Market (see that link in the sidebar) coming up this weekend. The show is put on by the Handmaidens, a Raleigh-based craft collective that has been working together for years. Those ladies put Raleigh on the indie craft map and have created a show that is so well-run and profitable for the vendors that the list of applicants is bigger each year.

The show is also fun to shop.

The Handmaidens work really hard to jury the applications so that the show feels like a very hip boutique. There are no crocheted toilet paper holders or guys selling fake handmade imports, just items you really, really like.

I'll be telling you about other handmade options throughout the next two months. If you have a show you'd like to see me mention, or more reasons to buy local and buy small, please leave them in the comments here on the blog. 

A note to creative people...

Ira Glass on Storytelling from David Shiyang Liu on Vimeo.

Bead Fest Bound

Ornamentea will be represented by Cynthia, myself, and the lovely, Elaine Ray, this year at Interweave's Bead Fest. Here's a little video preview of all the goodies Elaine made for the trip to Philadelphia.  Next week, we'll all be headed up to Philly with a van load of pretty things to share with the beading world. Bead Fest is August 19th - 21st. If you will be there, you should stop by the booth and say hi!

Make your own hooks and toggles with ease

Is your work original? One way to set your designs apart is to avoid commercially produced clasps and findings. Now, I love a nice spring ring clasp as much as the next girl (okay, maybe more) but there are times you need to make your own clasp for function or design reasons. Creating soldered clasps and rings isn't difficult and you can do it.

Join silversmith Sarah Tector for this new class at our store on Sunday and you'll be able to make your own custom clasps in a short amount of time. You'll work with sterling square and twisted wire to create original toggles and hook-and-ring clasps that will set your designs apart. You'll work with sterling wire and silver solder although the techniques you use could easily be translated into work with copper or gold.

All materials and supplies are included in the $42 class fee. Call to register today.

The Show Application Mystery, part 3

So, you found the RIGHT show, and you got your application RIGHT and now you are there, ready to set up your booth.

How are you going to behave? Remember, if you don't act RIGHT you may just be asked to leave before the show even begins.

What?! Really, it happens.

If you are really heinous you just might be blacklisted from a show. None of the show promoters or artists I spoke with would confirm that they have blacklists, or have seen such lists, but we all know at least one really difficult artist who can never seem to get into the same show two years in a row. She's rude, she's a Diva, she's loud and annoying and somehow...she never repeats a show. Don't let that be you. 

Act RIGHT:
Bring the merch you said you'd bring
This was the number one comment from the various show-operators I spoke with. Artists who jury in with belts and wallets and show up with monogrammed pet bowls. Artists who try to sneak in their friend's work. Artists who try to sneak in stuff they bought, and did not make. Any of these can and probably will have you boxing your stuff right back up before the show even opens.

Follow all the show rules
No foolin'. If it says 'no recorded music' don't bring your boom box and Eminem mix CD.
If you are supposed to drape your table to the ground, well, drape that table!
If you are not supposed to protrude out into the aisle then don't. No mannequin holding your handmade aprons, no funny blow-up dog wearing a hand-woven dog collar. No.

Be nice to customers
This should go without saying but somehow it does not. Leave your attitude and crabby voice at the door. Be cheerful. Be friendly. Be happy to see the customers.

Be nice to other vendors
No rude commentary on your neighbor's monogrammed toilet paper holders. No complaints about their customers standing in front of your booth. No stealing their office supplies OR their merchandise.

Be nice to the show promoters OR Don't be a Diva
If there is a problem, be nice in complaining about it and understand that the promoter really does want you to have a good show. They are selling the show space; you are their customer.  Complaining loudly and rudely if your electricity does not work won't get it fixed faster and just might get you 'black-listed' from the show.  And don't talk bad about the other vendors or the promoters to ANYONE! Really, if you think the show is a podunk show, why did you apply? If those customers walking the aisles are dressed badly or have weird haircuts you don't need to tweet that.

Be a professional
For me this includes NOT sitting in your booth, NOT eating in your booth and NOT talking on the phone/tweeting/texting all day. It means greeting everyone, keeping social visits to a minimum and dressing nicely. Yeah, I know I"m old fashioned and yeah, I know it is hard to stand all day in a show booth but really, you can do it. Your customers will move on down the aisle if they stop by and you are munching on a big sub sandwich, chatting with a friend on the phone and painting your nails. If you tweet negative commentary about the customers SOMEONE will read it.

Clean up after yourself and don't leave trash behind
This should also be obvious. Your booth rental fee + a slow show does not = the right to leave a crazy mess in the space. Be neat.

 Write a thank you-publicly!
A few positive tweets about the show, and a nice facebook or blog post, will remind the show promoters that you were a decent human being...it never hurts to be polite!

So, that wraps up the series...any tips you want to share?

The Show Application Mystery, part 2

NOTE: this post was supposed to magically appear on Wednesday but there were technical difficulties. Here it is!

One thing that everyone agrees on is the importance of the application.
You don't want to mess this up.

Get your application RIGHT:

Take GREAT photos. 
No ifs, ands or buts. You have to have really, really good photos. Half-good won't help you and it will hurt you. Blurry? nope. Dark? nope. Too busy with a million props and bad models? Nope. You may also want to have some photos tailored to the specific show. Lori Flanders of LORiOLA suggests that will help the jury see your work in the way that they want to see it. Props, lighting and background can all be adjusted to fit the aesthetic of a specific show.  Consider a collage unless that is specifically prohibited in the application rules; it will allow the jurors to get a feel for the theme of your work. Edit those photos with piknik.com or another photo editing software.

Fill out your application COMPLETELY. 
Seriously, don't leave any blanks. There are many shows that will automatically disqualify you for a blank question here or there. If you haven't done any shows, write 'None' and don't leave a blank space.
Fill out your application legibly all in one color of ink. Reserve the cutsy margin art for your sketchbook or customizable Toms shoes. They don't want to try to decipher your handwriting or be distracted (annoyed!) by your doodles. Obviously, this is moot if the application is on-line.

Be serious.
Don't answer the questions with questions, or philosophical drivel, or rambling MFA-thesis statements. Know your own work and be able to write about it, consisely and clearly.

Don't lie. They just might check to see if you participated in those three prestigious shows you listed on your application. Don't list shows that haven't announced vendors yet, either. It looks like you are psychic OR like you are lying.

Pay the fee with a smile and crossed fingers..
Most good shows won't accept your application without a small fee of some kind. This fee keeps the show organizers from being overwhelmed with semi-pro applicants who are turned off by paying $20-50 to apply. It also allows them to recoup some of the costs of paying (or at the very least feeding) their show jury. Don't sweat this fee if you don't get in. Consider it a cost of business and just roll on down the road.

Don't take it personally.
If your work is not chosen it was not because the jury committee sat in a dimly-lit room and talked trash about your application, your work and your personal hygiene while drinking vodka and mocking your taste in music.

Really, they didn't choose your work because they didn't think it would fit into the show. It doesn't fit their aesthetic. Reasons I have heard for voting down good work include:

• This artist has never done a show this big (meaning we don't think they are ready)
• This work is too vintage/street/modern/steampunk/retro/whatever (meaning it's not the 'look' we want)
• This work is too pricey (meaning we don't think it will sell at our show)
• This work is too cheap (meaning we think this artist is a beginner and may have quality issues)
• This work is too familiar/too much like someone else's (meaning we already have all the work like this we want in our show) 

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.
Do tray again to get into a show. Don't use the same photos year after year. Don't submit the exact same work. Do rewrite the application and adjust it to bring it up to date. 

If at third you don't succeed, then move on.
That's right, three strikes and they are out of luck. Find another show. Your work does not appeal to that jury. It's okay. It's not about you, it's all about them.


Thanks to members of the Richmond Craft Mafia, the Raleigh Handmaidens and Lori Flanders of LORiOLA beads for insight into this topic. Thanks to the Handmaidens for the photo collage at the top of this blog post.

Tomorrow: Act RIGHT when you are in the show, or how to get invited back!

The show application mystery...

I recently taught another Crafting For Money class at Ornamentea and I had a great group of crafty folks. The class is always a mix of information from me and questions from my students. Sometimes the class has a better flow and we really can get into the business end of the business quite quickly.

One of the things that was a big topic that night (and in my student's follow-up emails) was Craft Shows. Which ones, how, when and where to apply, and what to bring took up a lot of our conversation that night.

I know why,

Applying to shows is like a mix of sorority rush and meeting your new in-laws. You never know what to wear and there is a good chance you'll think they are talking about your hairdo or your shoes as soon as you leave the room. Every artist feels this way but really, you shouldn't. At least, I think you shouldn't.

I decided to contact some friends who get to sit on craft show juries and ask their opinions. I chatted (via email!) with members of the Richmond Craft Mafia and Raleigh's Handmaidens. They generously shared their opinions about the three RIGHT things to do if you want to participate in the Craft Show Rodeo. They also generously shared some funny/odd/what the heck examples of things that have happened in their own shows.

Their stories boiled down to three basic points:

Choose the RIGHT show
Get your application RIGHT
Act RIGHT when you get there

These seem like three simple rules to follow but somehow, they don't always get followed. I'll be posting the details for each rule this week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Check back!

It's not too late...apply for the Renegade Craft Fair

this is THE fair if you have work that is quirky, new and original...and if you want to visit any of these great cities.

me, I'm thinking how nice a trip to Austin would be in May...

so, go apply here and let me know how it turns out!