The November Flea Market

LW was in Nashville last weekend ... and called me 3 times on Saturday ... seems my stuff was selling like crazy!  Yahoo!!!

She sold the spice rack I had redone for her (back a couple posts) for $22 to a girl who bought it for her best friend who was getting married ... wedding gift ... LW said she was so excited about it.

I had sent alot of Christmas stuff ... but these ornaments evidently went like HOTCAKES!


Ones on the left are paintstick ornaments that I glued images I printed onto scrapbook paper, added a wire hanger and some glitter ... ones on the left are just a wooden ornament w/ printed image glued on and wire hanger.  Completely sold out of all! 


Couple other things I sent that sold:  (to the same person)

(bottom one is a winebox repurposed)

LW said my total was $99 ... none of my things are over $15, so I did pretty good!  YIPPEE!

Grandkid ornaments

For the past 6 years I have been making our 7 grandkids a Christmas ornament w/ their name on them.  They've been a big hit ... with their mothers!  LOL ... I believe the grandkids could care less! (at least at this point in their lives)  LOL

Anyway here's this year's ornament ....

As you can see -- they are scrabble tiles.  I glued them onto pieces of paint sticks that I had painted in various colors then glittered the whole thing.  Quite fun to make ... and pretty darn cute!

Back to Square One

<sigh>

I infuriate myself.

So Saturday I went to another craft show in a school gym .... it was in one of the more affluent school districts ... and what a disappointment.  Maybe 30 booths.  There was ONE that I liked their set up and could use the ideas in my booth.

BUT ... I am back to NOT wanting to do this.  No craft show ... no antique booth ... no Etsy.  I guess I just don't want it bad enough.

I can't justify any of it .... making 275 pieces of art for one show, making a booth display for one show, buying business cards for one show, a banner for one show.

The truth is I will not make any money (which granted has never been my goal).

I think my biggest issue is feeling like I HAVE to use my studio ... I have built it, filled it, spent ALOT of money on it.  Have nothing to show for it.  I think that's my problem.  I feel like I SHOULD be making making making and selling selling selling. 

Maybe that's not what it has to be about.  Maybe I need to take a deep breath and say "I go down there to create with NO goal in mind."

And so the war w/ myself continues ............

So Much Confusion in my Head

I am bi-polar ... or something ...

I'm just feeling ambivalent about this whole thing ... I just don't know what to do.  Here is what I know:

1    I love to make stuff
2    I don't want to do Etsy
3    I don't want to do an antique booth
4    I'm not even overly thrilled about a craft show
5    I have confidence issues
6    I love to make stuff

I'm in a do loop.

Am I lazy?  Do I just not want to do this 24/7 (which I cannot cauz I have a 40-hr week job already).  Maybe that's the problem ... I don't feel like I have enough TIME to be doing this.  Time I don't want to take from my husband -- we actually enjoy each other. 

To do this right I would really need to give up my evenings and work in the studio every nite (was just reading a blog that a woman was in her studio creating in the middle of the nite--yikes!), would need to give alot of weekend time to creating .... coincidentally those are the times we are together!  He doesn't mind me working down there at all ... but we do like to spend time together, so what would be the balance?  I don't know.

The IDEAL situation would be me being able to do this job PART TIME .... even one day a week off would give me an entire day to work in the studio!  But that is NOT going to happen.  And I can't leave this job -- I do love it, and I make good money and we need that extra $$$ for the lifestyle we've become accustom.

And WHAT IF I do create a truckload of inventory, build displays, etc. for the ONE show I'm going to do NEXT November .... what if it's not for me?  What I don't sell enough to even cover the show cost ($50)?  What if I see it's "too much work" .... then I will have a truckload of creations, show displays built .... and stored in my basement for the rest of my life?

AND I'm 10 years from retirement.

Never Say Never .... I guess

I am consumed w/ mixed media.

I cannot find enough time in a day/week/month to get into my studio and play around.   I cannot sleep at nite because my brain will not shut off all the ideas ... I cannot browse Pinterest enough, I cannot haunt my fav mixed media blogs enough .... I am consumed.

I am now considering doing the craft show circuit.  Saints Preserve Us.

So back the bus up and I'll tell you how I got here.  Last month I hooked up w/ LW to do a quick inventory of everything she had of mine, so that I could reconcile my inventory list w/ what has sold and what she still has.  I stopped by her house and she had all my stuff out on the shelf I had found for $5 and hastily spray painted (you know the one that everyone wants to BUY and it's only for display!).

At first glance I was discouraged at how my creations were weathering the transport to and from various flea market venues.  I don't blame LW at all ... I'm grateful to her for schleping my stuff all over creation (she has a HUGE amount of her own stuff she's schleping around).  I know she's careful w/ it but hey -- she's packing and unpacking .... crap happens!

My stuff is well made; however, it's still coming in and out of boxes, jostling in the back of a truck, etc.  I was also concerned that several pieces had faded. I asked if they had been in the sun, cauz I knew her booth at the market was in shade ... and no nothing had been in the sun.  I'm guessing it was my transfer process for the image, but I really don't know.  I took a few pieces back w/ me because they were just needing major TLC. (and I was so embarrassed of their condition)

Anyway I was really discouraged and realized this is NOT the venue for my stuff.  It just wasn't selling that well in the flea market venue (which really IS about junk), and I began to realize I need to do something else.

I still don't want to do Etsy and have to worry about shipping, etc.  Still don't want to do an antique booth. (I'll go broke)  So Door #3 is craft shows.

Last weekend I went to a craft show to see what it's all about -- in my 30+ years in this city, I've never attended a single one.  They are usually at the large high schools, churches, etc., all thru Nov and Dec.  What I found out was that my type of art is not being sold -- at least at this particular craft show.  Is that good or bad?  I dunno.

But I got a little pumped after I left there.  I spoke w/ a booth owner (happened to be Premier Jewelry and yes I just had to have that necklace!), told her what I wanted to sell, showed her a pic from my phone, she thought it was great, and said "just dive in ... get the booth rental packet and plan to do just ONE show next year."

Uhm .... ok

This weekend I am going to go to another craft show cauz I would like to concentrate on booth display set up ... see what people are doing w/ those plain ol' tables, etc.  I already have some really good ideas on set up, but just wanna run thru one more show.

My brain is STAGGERED at all the inventory I will need to have to fill up a booth, but I have some good ideas on varied offerings (small things / larger things) ... and afterall I now have a full year to get ready!

Excited .... scared ....