WRITTEN ON May 25th, 2010 BY Eric Scout AND STORED IN Events
In 2005, St. Louis-based mechanical engineer turned knitter Danielle Landes began the World Wide Knit in Public Day, hoping to bring the community of knitters out into the open and together on the first Saturday in June. What began with just 25 events around the world quickly blossomed into over 200 in just a few years!
We at Crafty Scout are huge fans of artists and crafters doing their thing out in public. It’s one thing for a “non crafty” person (though we believe there’s no such thing) to see art and crafty goods on sale at a show or in a shop, but it’s an entirely other thing altogether for them to see those goodies being made live, in person. We hope that WWKIP day will inspire people all around the world to pick up some yarn and needles and find the crafty person within.
Curious to know if there’s a Knit In Public Day event going on in your neighborhood? Head on over to the event finder on the WWKIP Day website and find out!
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WRITTEN ON May 23rd, 2010 BY AND STORED IN General
- SF's Museum of Craft & Folk Art is looking for volunteers for Maker Faire! Go for free, help awesome people! Email kkofibruce [at] mocfa.org #
- We're heading north for the weekend, to #bazaarbizarre and#makerfaire! It's going to be an action-packed few days, and we are ex-ci-ted! #
- Ack! Hey #makerfaire and #bazaarbizarre Does anyone have an extra USB camera cable I can borrow for a night! #
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WRITTEN ON May 16th, 2010 BY AND STORED IN General
- Oooh the vendor list for Bazaar Bizarre Maker Faire looks fantastic! Any vendors up for interviews during the show? http://bit.ly/9qc5nj #
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WRITTEN ON May 16th, 2010 BY Eric Scout AND STORED IN San Francisco
If you are anywhere near San Mateo, CA over the weekend of the 22nd, you’d be doing yourself a gigantic favor to spend a day (or two, if you want to see it all!) at the 5th annual Maker Faire. Children under 5 get in FREE, so it’s an awesome opportunity to expose the little ones to every corner of the wonderful world of DIY!
The fair grounds are pretty massive, and there’s a ton of stuff to see, and in the middle (well, corner) of all this craziness is Bazaar Bizarre, one of our favorite big craft shows on the West coast. The 2010 vendor gallery shows an impressive collection of wares, from jewelry to art prints, textiles , clothes, soaps, edibles… you name it! We at Crafty Scout always feel the people behind Bazaar Bizarre to a fantastic job of curating their shows, and this one looks to be no different!
One complaint we heard from last year’s show was that Bazaar Bizarre wasn’t well-promoted once you were inside of Maker Faire, so if you happen to be wondering to yourself, “Where in San Mateo’s green fairgrounds IS Bazaar Bizarre?”, we’ve taken the liberty of pointing it out for you on this map, here:
We hope to be putting up pictures and updates over the weekend, but even more than that, we hope to see you there! Directions can be found on Make’s website here.
Bazaar Bizarre Maker Fair: http://www.bazaarbizarre.org/sanfrancisco/
Maker Fair: http://makerfaire.com/
[UPDATE]: Make Online has put up an awesome map of the Maker Faire as well as the schedule of events! Check it out here, and get your plannnnn on!
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WRITTEN ON April 28th, 2010 BY Polly Scout AND STORED IN Los Angeles
Hey crafty and shoppers! Here’s an upcoming event for your pleasure: Mompreneur Night in West Hollywood. The proceeds for the event will help support the Larchmont Charter School in West Hollywood.
Don’t forget to R.S.V.P!!
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WRITTEN ON April 15th, 2010 BY Polly Scout AND STORED IN General
For newbies and veteran crafters alike, one of the trickiest parts of the job is merchandising booths or tables effectively! It’s easy to spend all of our time focused on making the product and before we know it our next (or first) show is upon us. We scramble to pack up the car, get change from the bank, and find that extra stack of business cards- all without paying nearly enough attention to the connection between good merchandising and making money!
A poorly merchandised booth will blend into the general chaos of the show without encouraging customers to make a purchase and can make for a very long day! But never fear- below you’ll find a clear guide to planning out the merchandising for your booth! You can click on any photo to visit its merchandising mastermind.
A well merchandised booth does the following things:
- It conveys the brand in a glance.
- Invites customers from across the room.
- Creates an emotional connection with the customer.
- Compels shoppers to linger, touch items, spend money, tell their friends, and come back for more!
The following are elements present in table-space rentals and booth rentals, and should be tackled one at a time, always keeping the big picture (your brand) in mind.
The table- the easiest table to use is a flat folding table, which often has a handle for easier carrying and can fit in the trunk of your car. You can use a 5 foot, 6 foot, square, or round table, depending on your needs. A 10 x 10 booth will require more than one table, or one table and several other pieces of furniture, such as cute shelves, plant stands, etc.
Pollyanna Cowgirl uses vintage suitcases and a child’s chair to utilize space more effectively.
The tablecloth- Whether you use a simple bed sheet or have a custom made table cloth, you’ll want to choose fabric that fits your style and brand, but doesn’t compete with your product. Many people use the front of the tablecloth as a place for their company name. Make sure that your tablecloths are neat and even, and that they cover the table legs completely so that you can store extra merchandise and packaging items out of sight.
Display items- These should consist of lightweight, easy-to-store/travel items that will show off your merchandise at a variety of heights. This is where you get to really use your creativity! You can use ugly plastic bins hidden underneath the table cloth to create much needed height, or use beautiful vintage trunks to create the same effect on top of the tablecloth. Don’t forget all the space above and below the tabletop! You can string t-shirts at the back of the booth, banner-style, hang purses from S-hooks, place large baskets directly on the floor, etc. Remember that your booth fee covers more than just your tabletop!
My own booth, using a hidden plastic tub and shoe stand!
Merchandise- Put your most eye-catching items within 3 feet of the aisle; pulling customers into the booth is the first step to making a sale! Even if you’ve had the same 3 ft. tall Swarovski-encrusted teddy bear sitting in inventory for a year, bring it and put it front and center! Other items can be displayed in a variation of ways:
- By usage- cell phone cases near cell phone charms
- By color
- As it would look in the home/ in use.
- By price point- least expensive, mid-range, and most expensive, grouped near each other
- By theme- cowboy aprons, cowboy bibs, and cowboy blankets together.
- Or by any other aesthetic means, as long as it is well thought out!
Signage- You’ll need a sign with your company name as well as signs with prices and/or item descriptions. These should be simple and straightforward with information that illuminates the nature of the product or invites the customer to experience the item for themselves. Make sure that they fit in with the look of your booth, because this is part of your branding! Simple, handmade signs can do the job if necessary, as long as they’re legible and fit the brand. Signage can also be used to sell an item that you don’t even have in stock! For example, if you offer custom work, a sign with pricing and a few examples laid out can be an excellent way to secure a custom order.
Roscata uses witty signage to curb parents from letting little hands make a mess of her table!
Tent, Lights, etc.- Tents come in a variety of styles, but the most common tent for vendors is the 10ft. pop up tent. First Up is a popular brand, which is easy enough to put together in about 10 minutes with two people. Tent canopies come in a variety of colors, but you’ll want to make sure that the inside of the tent is lined with sun blocker (a silvery lining) so that the tent color doesn’t interfere with the color of the light inside your tent.
For outdoor shows lighting is rarely an issue, but when working indoors the lighting can often be icky fluorescent, or just dim. Some show coordinators will advise you to bring your own lighting, but it’s a great idea to keep some backup lighting in your show kit. When electrical outlets are unavailable (or if you just don’t want to pay for the use of electricity) you can use battery-operated lighting. (thanks to Elegant Sparrow for the tip!)
A last piece of advice is to keep your booth tidy throughout the show! You can use the moments in between customers (or while you’re chatting with an especially enthusiastic, non-shopping customer) to tidy things up and refresh your table. This is a great opportunity to keep note of which things are selling out and which items are left untouched.
And just for fun, here’s some booth porn that I hope inspires you to get creative with your merchandising!
Finally, I leave you with the image of the perfect craft show . . . teeming with eager customers! Click on the photo to see which fair this is!
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WRITTEN ON April 15th, 2010 BY Polly Scout AND STORED IN General
Hey Crafties! I’ve got 2 upcoming craft show opportunities in the Los Angeles areas (and beyond). Applications are still being accepted for both events!
Red Rabbit Spring Arts and Crafts Market is looking for 75 vendors to sell at a very hands-on crafting and selling event in Glendale, Ca.
Saturday, May 15
Glendale Civic Auditorium
$75 booth fee
Visit the Red Rabbit website for an application and more info!
The South Coast Roller Derby is looking for 25 vendors to come sell their goods at the team’s first home game on May 22! Here are the deets:
Saturday, May 22
2 Via Positiva
San Juan Capistrano, Ca 92675
6 PM- ?
$25 booth fee
Contact BrookOwens@gmail.com (aka Marilyn Monrollher) for more info!
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WRITTEN ON April 2nd, 2010 BY Polly Scout AND STORED IN Events, General
Polly of Polly Danger and Margaret Haas of Paper Pastries met at a craft show in 2009 and became instant friends. They began sharing knowledge, hints and tips about vending at craft shows. They have since built up an un-stoppable system for vending that they have graciously agreed to share with our readers.
The world of indie crafts is getting bigger and bigger all the time. Craft shows abound and it seems like all you need is an Etsy shop to get invited to do one show or another. What this means for the newbie vendor is that you’ve really got to do your homework before signing up for any show! Many, many of us seasoned crafters have either started out at absolutely the wrong fair, and most of us have done a desperately bad show at one time or another. Think of Margaret and Polly as your worldly older sisters, showing you the ropes and sharing our lipstick.
The Minor Leagues- Smaller shows usually have a low show fee ($20- $65) and are a low-pressure way to enter the crafty scene.
You’ve just received a request to participate in a craft show and you’re thrilled! You didn’t even have to go out of your way to find the application, they sent you a link! This is a really common scenario and it can be the gateway to an educational, even a profitable show! Then again, it could be the keys to six hours of boredom, misery, and regret.
There are definitely some things you’ll want to know before you sign up for that show.
- Did you receive a mass email/convo, or was the message specific to you and your shop?
- Does this show have a website? Is it decent, or does it give you that Grandma-made-a-website vibe?
- What happens when you Google the show? Is the show making its way around the world wide web? In what capacity?
- How do the show promoters plan on getting the word out? Will you be expected to help promote? (note: you should be doing this anyway!)
- Most importantly- what kind of a feeling do you get about this show? Instincts are important!
The Big Leagues- Big names, big crowds, ($100- $400)
You’ve shopped them, you’ve drooled over the vendors, and now you want to run with the big boys (and girls). So where do you start? First things first- you’ve got to want it. I mean WANT it. You’ve got to want in on that big, bad craft show so badly you’ll take a day off of work to re-take all of your product photos and fill out the application. This requires a certain level of confidence in your product.
When Margaret started doing shows her theory was, “I don’t want to work my way to the top, I want to start there”, so she started with one of the biggest craft shows out there- Renegade. She had a modest amount of goods, but her f-ing adorable product line, combined with a determination to be badass did not go un-noticed by the Renegade application reviewers. She’s been doing the Renegade shows ever since.
Here are some things to consider before applying to big name shows:
- Make sure all of your product shots online and in the application are fantastic and consistent. Flash photography or fuzzy images are an absolute NO-NO.
- Write and proofread a short bio, no more than 4 or 5 sentences. Have a friend or honey proofread it as well. This never hurts.
- Keep your bio and photos in a file so that you have easy access to them for all of your show applications. This does not mean it’s okay to recycle the same exact bio for every show, but it is handy to have everything in one place.
- Do you have enough product to sell? Will you have enough time to make products to sell at this show? Big shows can be two days or more, so you’ll want to stockpile well in advance. This is especially true for holiday shows.
- In addition to the show fees, will you have to put up money for a tent, table, or chairs? How about travel expenses and displays? Do you think you’ll make this money back, or are you willing to accept part of that as business startup costs?
- A handful of home-printed business cards really won’t cut it. You’ll want to have a fat box of business cards printed well in advance.
It’s important to note that you never know how well your show will go, or how great a fit it might be until you actually vend there. Margaret and I have done the same shows on many occasions and had totally opposite experiences in some cases. What might be awesome for one vendor can be mediocre or downright crummy for someone else. It’s important to keep that in mind when shopping around for applications.
Margaret and I really hope that these tips help you find the right craft fair for you! Keep your crafty ears perked up for any crafty opportunity and stay tuned for more on this topic soon!
You can see Polly Danger and Paper Pastries in person June 5+6 at Renegade Brooklyn, where they’ll be sharing a booth!
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WRITTEN ON March 28th, 2010 BY AND STORED IN General
- Help build the kids of Micheltorena Elementary a new library! Book-It Bake Sale at Home Ec in Silverlake, CA, 3/27, 11am to 7pm! #
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WRITTEN ON March 26th, 2010 BY Eric Scout AND STORED IN Los Angeles, San Francisco
The application deadlines for Renegade LA and Renegade SF are coming up quick! All you crafters out there who want to be a part of the Renegade magic need to get your applications in by April 2nd, mere days away!
Renegade LA is going to be held outdoors in the most ‘there’s a what now?’-named Los Angeles State Historic Park right next to Chinatown! There’s lots of room for the 200 or so vendors to sell their goodies to the throngs of shoppers on July 24th & 25th, 2010, from 11am to 7pm. Apply here while there’s still time!
Renegade SF will be held once again in the absolutely cavernous Fort Mason Center Festival Pavilion on July 31st & August 1st, 2010 from 11am to 7pm with about 225 crafty spots available. Application info can be found here!
Both shows are going to be gigantic, and are FREE to attend! The big questions is… what’s the easiest way to get to both? Carpool, anyone?!
