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April 3-5, 2015  
Indian Wells, California
Indian Wells Tennis Garden
Deadline: October 14
(60 spaces held for second jury's Jan.6, 2015 deadline)

Accepted artists will be provided the promotional opportunity to meet with an audience of serious buyers and collectors.

The Indian Wells Arts Festival is open to all media artists and showcases a wide variety of  contemporary and traditional fine art and high quality craft selected by jury in categories including painting, drawing, ceramics, weaving, sculpture, jewelry, glass, photography and original hand-crafted wares.  Artists are required to be in attendance daily to explain or demonstrate the techniques that created original pieces of artwork which are available for purchase.

With both an aggressive online and traditional marketing campaign, professional experience and a strong reputation, the Indian Wells Arts festival seeks out and brings together a wide variety of high quality artists to delight our audience of residents and tourists alike.  Over 10,000 attendance and $750,000 in reported art sales in 2013, the Festival incorporates a number of local charities as Festival Partners and donates to their art scholarship funds.

August 30 & 31, 2014 - Portland, OR - Art in the Pearl

Opening the show in the Pearl District

Everything is "Green" in Portland - ready for the crowds

Loving this festive tent

Art in the Pearl is a volunteer run show - for artists by artists

This is Randy Sedlak, his wife Lynn Sedlak-Ford, is an artist but on the committee. I never caught her in the booth. Together they keep this show running.

Another artist on the committee is potter Natalie Warrens. I've seen her in Ann Arbor dressed to match her colorful pots. This time I was the one dressed to match the pots.

Great to see watercolor painter, Patrick Clark, formerly of Hutchinson, KS, but now a resident of the Northwest. We were both surprised to see each other.

and Lisa Burge of New Mexico who I last saw in Ann Arbor, MI

I'm used to attending shows where there are artists from a wide swath of the U.S., many states represented. Here I'd guess it was 80% Oregon, Washington, Idaho. A very regional show, that is not to denigrate the quality though.

AFI members Marty and Patty Hulsebos making the sale

A fine double booth -- on a platform! Talk about labor intensive for setting up.

Another nice double belonging to photographer Chris Dahlquist. Pristine setup.

Shelley Martin and her "minimal modern utilitarian ceramics". Such a clean and attractive display. Shelley says her main marketplace is on Etsy.

This shot is especially for jewelers, see all the different display levels. This was a very interesting to look at. I spent a long time here looking at the work, a wide range of price points. As a shopper do you see the appeal of this booth? The work is by Susan Frerichs.

Gia Whitlock gets extra points for dressing to match her mixed media work.

Amazingly beautiful enamel bowls from Jody Stone of El Cerrito, CA

Jewel-toned Glass bowls by Patty Roberts of Marysville, WA

Shoppers carrying out the goods (did anyone say "garbage bags?")

Show directors Liz Rundorff and Kerry Murphy of Artisphere in Greenville, SC, and Sara Shambarger of the Krasl Art Fair in St. Joseph, MI

Look at this! Just what we were recently preaching in our podcast on email marketing. Chicago photographer Xavier Nuez's email sign up notice.

Worth a post in itself -- doing all of it right.

This is a one day show in september in conjunction with fall fest. the lady who runs it is so unbelievably nice that its hard to write anything bad about the show, but Garden city is a shitbox.  the town is all grain elevators and feed lots and depending on the wind direction smells like rotting cow flesh.  I was there for about 30 hours and that was far too long.  There are a few people from what I've heard who have lots of cattle or oil money but i saw no evidence of it.  I mostly sold cheap prints.  I'd say if its geographically super convenient to do, maybe do it. the jury fee is only $10 and $60 for the booth fee which i actually didnt even pay til i was at the show. and they had prize money! not a ton but compared to the booth fee it was okay.  I got 2nd prize which was $200 so that was nice. 
Just a little info for anyone considering this show. 
Although the jewelers near me seemed to be really busy, but i dont know how well they did.

This past weekend, I did a small, one day, art/craft fair, “Art in the Park”, in St. Louis, Missouri.  This is a yearly art fair with the proceeds going towards the maintenance of the park where the art fair is held.  This fair is held in Francis Park with the booths being along the two sides of a long, rectangular water lily pool.  The fair is held in late September and I have been told that for the past 5-6 years, the weather has been almost perfection, although this year, it did get a bit warm.  The cost is low and the artists are mostly local to the area and it is just a fun day in the park.

This year, I had a visitor to my booth, a young lady of age about ten.  She immediately was drawn to one of my larger images, a 20x30 inch flower printed on aluminum.  The piece was several hundred and she offered me about three dollars and wanted to pay it off over time.  Shortly thereafter, her mother arrived and said that we have to talk about this.  The lass offered to clean the yard of dog droppings for a year if she could have the image. 

After a brief discussion, the mother left and the girl remained and attempted to protect the image from all potential buyers for over an hour.  I had promised the girl that I would not sell it to anyone else but she resumed her protective posture for about another half hour before saying that she would be back. 

Again, in about a half an hour, the girl and her mother returned and more discussion occurred and again, the mother departed and the girl remained.  About a half hour later, the girl said that she was going to get her father and would be back. 

At this time, I placed the image in the back replacing it with another picture.  About a half hour later, the girl’s mother returned and was horrified that the picture was gone.  I told her that it was in the back and retrieved it.  Shortly there after the girl returned and the mother and an aunt split the cost between them.  I offered the girl one of my smaller prints as a bonus and she was one happy little girl.

Was rather nice to see someone like one of my images this much and especially so, someone this young.  Makes a person enjoy being an artist.  I am not getting rich from art fairs, but it is quite enjoyable to meet the public and see the reactions ones work evokes.  More sales would also be nice but money is not my prime motivator.

Nashville has traditionally been a great market for me in the 18 months I've been doing shows here at Centennial Park near the Parthenon. It's a local show for me, only 40 minutes from my house so I just commute back and forth over the four day period (set up + 3 day show). 

Thursday set up was available from noon - 7 pm. I decided to wait until late in the day to set up and it was a sea of white tents completely closed up so I had no issue just backing up to my booth space and unloading 5 feet from my space. I like that a lot! No issues setting up at all. Even a constant police presence circling while I spent time getting ready for Friday's show. 

I left early from the house. 6:45 am on Friday morning hoping to beat the morning rush into Nashville. Yeah....about that. An hour and 35 minutes later I arrived into Centennial Park. Parking wasn't really an issue as they have designated parking on site. Most of the parking is a 5 -10 minute walk to the booths. Tennessee Craft is a stickler on parking. They take down your tag number on check in and make certain that you're in designated parking, not in the public parking areas. 

The Friday crowd was very light and the weather was perfect, sunny and in the low 80s. In the past three shows (Spring/Fall) I've done I've seen more folks in previous shows but for me it was a great sales day. I ended up grossing close to $1000. Others around me made right at the booth fee back. 

Saturday, I had no issues with traffic but the artist's hospitality had cleared out by 9am with a 10 o'clock show opening. There were a few slices of bread and some coffee left. My son who was helping me suggested we walk to a nearby fast food restaurant to get a breakfast sandwich. We got back to the booth by 9:30 and the crowds started filing into Centennial Park right after rolling up the sides. There was a crush of folks coming on site and the crowds didn't let up until mid-afternoon. I ended up grossing about $2200 and it was a constant stream of  buyers in the morning and early afternoon. I treated myself to a nice steak dinner at an upscale restaurant nearby. It was the perfect end to a fantastic day. Being able to enjoy a beautiful Tennessee evening on the patio made it special. 

Sunday,  an 11:00 opening made it a very casual morning, although I'm glad I got there extra early because buyers were on site by 9:45-10:00. The crowd was  close to the Saturday crowd but not as  many buyers. My sales were close to Friday's total.. I ended up running out of business cards and tt was the first show that's happened to me. I'll remember to have back ups next time! 

Load out is simple here. Breakdown at starts at 5:00 and you can drive right to your booth after 5:30, no waiting on booth passes. We had everything broken down and were completely loaded up by   5:40. I love being able to have dinner at home after a three day show! 

Overall this is a fantastic show. A great show, wonderful buyers and an incredible army of volunteers making the constant rounds of water and booth sitters. Kudos to the staff at Tennessee Craft for putting on an incredible show.....again! 

That great big carnival of art is well underway in Grand Rapids Michigan. The event started last Wednesday (September 24) and runs until October 12. This is my 5th year participating in this incredible experiment in art.

The crazy thing about ArtPrize is that one artist will be awarded a $200,000 prize determined by popular vote. (This year there is also a $200,000 prize awarded by a professional jury as well.) It's the popular vote aspect that brings out a lot of silly entries, but it is still an event not to be missed. There are over 1500 artists exhibiting at over 100 different locations throughout the city. Hundreds of thousands of people flock to Grand Rapids to see what us crazy artists have to offer. Artists get a lot of exposure at this event, but its not an art fair. It's not a place where you sell art to the throngs. Its just a place to show your best effort in hopes of getting some attention or winning a prize.

I created a 20-foot digital painting called "Outhouse Island" for ArtPrize this year. In keeping with the carnival atmosphere, I'm passing out sheets of toilet paper with my voting number on it. Get it? Toilet paper - Outhouses? So far I've gotten a lot of good vibes and a lot of smiles from the public. I'm having a good time at ArtPrize.

I'm exhibiting at a good location at 50 Monroe Street, in between the BOB and the Grand Rapids Art Museum. The wall my picture hangs from gets lots of natural light from huge windows and the traffic has been brisk. If you can make it to Grand Rapids, stop by and say hi. I guarantee you're gonna enjoy this crazy art exhibition.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 
November 28 - December 23 

Brought to you by PHAIR, Philadelphia's weekly open-air maker market. Franklin Square's Electrical Spectacle is brought to you by Historic Philadelphia, Inc.

I was in the DC area for two shows in a row.  Alexandria King Street Art Festival and Arlington Festival of the Arts.  Both just across the Potomac River from DC.  What a great area for an artist to be for 10 days. 

First Alexandria.   This was my third year doing this show and my third review.  It had always been one of my top shows of the year.  This year it fell on the same weekend as Atlanta Arts Festival, Atlanta is my home town and that has also been a good show for me.  I chose Alexandria over a local show.  That is how much I love the Alexandria show.  I have gone into detail about lay out and area in past reviews so I will quickly run through it here.  If you want more detail just check out past reviews. 

Most booths are back to back with no room behind.  Most everyone has very very little room on the side.  Nothing can go on the sidewalks so go through your show crap and get rid of anything you don't need.  I always stay at The Monaco right at the show.   I keep ALOT of my stuff in my room and can just run up and get it if I need to.  There is a section where booths are not back to back, but set up in the middle of the street.  Both sides of your booth are open.  Set up is a dreaded early morning city street set up.  The city imposes a lot of rules for this show and the police enforce them.  If you do this show read your emails and follow the rules.  This is a big show, over 200 artists, and big crowds.  The homes in the area are older, many historic and not very big compared to Atlanta.

The show opens at 10am but patrons show up early. Be ready no later than 9am.  Saturday the forecast couldn't make up its mind if it was going to rain or not.  Finally decided to rain and it pretty much did all day off and on.  It was a light rain so lots of people  came out and those that come out in the rain are usually serious about buying something.  There was a lot of strong interest on Saturday.  People going home to measure or calling their husbands to come to the show.  People would come back 3 and 4 times to look at a piece.  This was not just my experience but the general experience from all the other artists I talked to.  We were all hopeful the be backs would be back on Sunday.  Sunday the weather was absolutely perfect.  Not too hot, not too cold and sunny.  Buyers did come back and buy but not as many as I expected.  Again this was the same experience for many artists.  It was a good show for me, but not a great show like past years.  I know some artists who had amazing shows, the rest of us had good to decent shows.  I haven't heard from anyone who had a bad show. 

Break down, the city wants you out of there asap.  I can do that no problem.  Show ended at 5pm.  I was loaded and out by 6pm.  There are a lot of police and people who keep everything flowing and we all worked together to make sure there weren't any issues. 

A few tips for this show.  Parking is a pain if you have an oversized vehicle and/or trailer.  Arrive on Friday and scope it out.  Alexandria is one of my favorite cities in America.  The history, restaurants, culture, shopping are all a great experience so try to take an extra day or two if you can.  Come with extra inventory and don't be afraid of price points.  The patrons buy and they don't care about cost.  They are very sophisticated and care more about the art than the price point.   

Now Alexandria is over and I had all week to enjoy the DC area.  I decided to rent a carriage house in Alexandria for the week.  Eating out in DC area can kill your budget so having a kitchen is a must.  I also wanted to be close by incase I could close some more sales with the folks "thinking" it over.  Glad I was in town that week and was able to close a few more sales.  Alexandria is also a quick metro ride to DC.  I was able to walk to the metro from my place and run into the city to enjoy all the wonderful FREE museums and monuments.  First class vacation in between shows.  Life as an artist is wonderful if you can take the time to enjoy the journey.

Now for Arlington.  This show is in its second year.  Much smaller show with around 100 artists.  The streets are huge.  The area is surrounded with condos, restaurants and bars.  Very lively area for young professionals, double income not to many folks had kids, and they all need art!!!!!  Again it was an early morning set up but since the street were so wide I decided to try something I never do and showed up at 7am instead of 4am.  What a great decision.  I was able to drive easily to my booth and set up.  Parking is a piece of cake.  The police were very nice and helpful.  This was one of the easiest and smoothest set ups ever.

Booths are set up across from each other with wide sidewalks behind the booth.  There wasn't much room between the booths but a ton of room behind.  My booth was in front of a Trader Joes so I didn't even pack a cooler.  This is an active community and folks were out early again. 

I had rare Saturday sales.  Most of my sales happen on Sunday. By the end of Saturday I was already thrilled with this show.  Plus people could WALK their large art pieces home!!!!  Oh and the weather was absolutely perfect both days, low 80s and sun.  I restocked the booth on Sunday morning.  Sunday was a repeat of Saturday.  First large sale was 9:30 am and continued.  The crowds were never huge, but since the streets are so wide it did make it difficult to tell if it was crowded or not.  I saw LOTS of art walking out besides just my own.  Not everyone had a good show.  Like I said this is a younger crowd than we are all use to.  They have the money and the wall space.   Some of us had excellent shows, some had bad shows.  This is a more contemporary crowd. 

Break down really easy.  Plenty of room to fit your stuff on the sidewalk.  Cars could come in at 6pm, show closed at 5pm.  Easy for everyone to get in and fit.  The only hard part about breakdown, and I have never experienced this before, were the patrons running through the tents as we were breaking down.  I had baby strollers in my tent as I was lowering my tent.  I can't tell you how many times I had to warn people to be careful.  Out of nowhere a patron would walk through or push a baby carriage through my tent as propanels and tents were being broken down.  Maybe it was because I was in front of Trader Joes.  Anyway I have an easy break down so I was broken down by 5:30 and went for a quick dinner.  Drove in at 6:15 and drove off by 6:30. 

Arlington was a treat to do.  The booth locations, the area, the patrons, the set up and breakdown and even the police were all wonderful.  Did I mention The Today show gave a shout out to us on Sunday morning? It was such a nice calm show.  Great Great show all around. 

Here are some pics.  The first one is Alexandria on the rainy day, good size crowds.  Second one on Sunday, really good crowds.  The third is Arlington.  Beautiful site for a show.  

As a contributing author for Creative Bead Chat I write at least one article a month for our online group.  So far all of them have been about business building.  I just shared my experience being a member of Art Fair Insiders.

Here is a link to the article:

Creative Bead Chat - Art Fair Insiders

March 20-22, 2015 
Winter Park, Florida
Central Park along Park Avenue
225 Artists
Deadline: September 26

Fine Arts and Fine Crafts categories:  Clay, Digital Art, Drawing and Pastels, Fiber, Glass, Jewelry, Leather, Metal, Mixed Media-2D, Mixed Media-3D, Painting, Photography, Printmaking, Sculpture, Watercolor and Wood.

• Ranks #5 in the nation by Sunshine Artist magazine in their 2014 list of Best 200 Fine Art and Design Shows
• Ranks #1 in Art Fair Calendar's 2013 America's Best Art fairs poll
• Attracts more than 300,000 visitors each year
• Presents $72,500 in 63 cash awards including a $10,000 Best of show purchase award, a $5,000 Art of Philanthropy Award purchase award funded by the Edyth Bush Charitable Foundation, and a $2,500 Award for a Distinguished Work of Art given by the Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art
• is expected to exceed $50,000 this year in Patron Program "Art Bucks"
• Lists all artists' names, art image and contact information in Art Festival Magazine and on the website
• Promotes an Emerging Artist Program
• Offers booth sitting, free parking for artists, Artist Hospitality Tent
• Produces a Friday Night Jazz Concert
• Celebrates with a Saturday Night Artists' Award Dinner
• Provides a children's Workshop Village and encourages student art through the Leon Theodore Schools Art Exhibit
• Produced by an all-volunteer board that focuses on the artists' success

For more information:

Apply: www.Zapplication.org 

Festival's website:  www.wpsaf.org 

E-mail: WPSAFpr@yahoo.com

Phone: (407)644-7207

Just thought I would share this pix of the Plaza Art Show this last weekend in Kansas City.  I just love the way the tents look all lit up. On the left side you can see the band stage set up on the bridge.  I did not do this show but I am from Kansas and try to attend every year and take it in along with visiting with family.  The weather was beautiful, show was packed with people, lots of great art.  I walked it on Friday nite and again late Sunday afternoon, there was still lots of art left but a few booths were looking preety empty.  Beautiful show in a beautiful setting. 

A sample of Chris' work. See more at ChrisCoffey.com

Who knew when I purchased a kit and tutorial for enameling from Barbara Lewis that it would change my life?  I was looking for a way to stand out in a jewelry crowd and came across her web site Painting with Fire.  I couldn't order the kit fast enough.

The next year she had a book come out that hit #1 on Amazon Torch Fired Enamel Jewelry.  I also got to meet her and her husband at Philly Bead Fest and we became friends.  

Imagine my surprise when she asked me to contribute a piece for her newest book Mastering Torch Fired Enamel Jewelry.  There were only four of us.. and we each were asked to create a piece using the color wheel .. I got complimentary colors.  I had to figure out what colors to use and then what to design.

I used one of my favorite components, vintage leaves I purchased a few years ago from CJS Supply in NYC.  I made a lot of them.  Then I wire wrapped them to a vintage chain and added recycled silk ribbon.

 My reaction to getting my own copy of the book autographed by Barbara reminded me of this scene in one of my favorite movies..

http://youtu.be/-7aIf1YnbbU

Let me give you a little background about how I found this show, and then I will tell you everything about it--it is called giving you guys some real meat that you can digest and then make an informed decision about would it be a good fit for you.

Mind you, I am a photographer, 40 years on the circuit, so much of my info is from a 2-D point of view, but I have lots of 3-D friends and have good perspective on what works for them.

SO, NELS, WHY THE HECK DID YOU PICK THIS SHOW?

It was an open weekend for me, I needed a filler.

Shazam.  This year I did not get back into Saint Louis (was in last year, you can read my blog, it is as informative if not more than Barry's, it is just I don't suck up to the promoter like he does--but, he is a great guy, great artist, he got the right show and made moola).

Heck, I did not get back into the Plaza (been out 5 years now, been in 7 times in forty years).Got juried out of Naperville for the 10th time in a row.  Was number 20 on the wait list for Arts and Apples (fat chance).  Skipped Arts, Eats and Beats (thank God), did Upper Arlington on Labor day, but a one-day show will not pay the bills for the month (read my recent blog about it).  Decided to pass on Ferndale and the Swamp Fest, done em both, had little to show for the effort.

So, I got Neptune (Virginia Beach next weekend, nothing like the June Show).  So I needed a filler, something to help pay the booth and jury fees.

Right now, gotta pay Barry Witt almost $400 for the Jan. Bonita show, had to pay Deland almost $300 for their November show, gotta pay Halifax (Daytona) another $250 for their Nov. show, oh, and I owe Richard Sullivan $400 for the Thanksgiving show in Sanibel.

Then, oh gee, God forbid, if I get into Artigras, Gasparilla, Artisphere, Des Moines, Winter Park, Mt. Dora, Main Street Fort Worth-- they all want their high booth fees in December--the lowest grossing month for art shows all year.  Oh yeah, you just go on a starvation diet and hang out behind Subway and eat their five-day old bread rolls that they throw into the garbage, because who has any money to eat on.

For alcohol, I will  ferment old dried cat food mingled with my leftover mangos and avocados in Ybor.  It is going to be a tight fall, let alone who knows about January.  I already bought Ellen her Christmas present- five shiny pieces of coal--should make a dazzling necklace to offset her beautiful blue eyes and blonde hair.

Yikes!  I just high-jacked my own thread.

Back on subject.

How I found this show.

Connie did a little blog about it.

She does that a lot.  Puts little unknown shows out there--gives us some info, then we can ummmm, should I check it out.

So, I did.

What turned me on was the fact that this was the second oldest outdoor show in Chicago--59 years--so, what is the number one oldest?  I don't know, does somebody know?

Next, I checked out some of the exhibitors from other years, there were a few, very few, that I knew.  So that was hopeful.

Next, I Googled Park Forest, IL (that is the show location).

It did not really tell me a whole hell of a lot.  Got no feel for the ethnic makeup or any demographics.

To me, this looked like a filler show.  If I could take out $1500 I would be happy--it seemed possible.

Then, last week right before the show, I leaked out on Facebook that I had this show scheduled.

Oh, Jeez!  You should have seen the funeral memorials coming in.  The Sterns said, "Are you nuts" (OK, I am paraphrasing Bob, but I know Bob).  Oscar basically said, between the lines , "Good luck, compadre, we will bury your bones on I-80."

Thursday nite at Clearbrook, my go-to restaurant in Saugatuck where I  live in the summer, the bartender looked at me and said, "Nels, are you nuts, it is very dark there, it is Southside Chicago."

I don't do a lot of shows in Chicago, I don't know Northside from Southside from Westside.  I just know that Chicago people don't dig my work as much as the rest of the world does.

I base this on facts, I have done 57th Street, Hinsdale and Amy's Port Clinton--and they were all snoozers.

I go just up the road to Milwaukee, Green Bay or Madison and I kill them.  I think I am way too colorful for Chicago, they need dark and dreary and conservative blick that has been done 100s over.

JEEZ! Are you finally going to tell us about the show?

You betcha.

First off, I recommend this show to you if you live within about 150 miles from it.  Also, traditional, conservative work will sell best.

There.  That is some powerful meat, chew on it.  It is more than most bloggers on this site ever give you--and, there is more coming.

Park Forest is just over the Indiana border into Illinois.

Coming from the east, like me, you use I-94-80.  Connect on I-57 go south ten miles, go east on Route 30 about 10 miles, turn right, go south on Western Blvd. and you are there.  There is  a big shiny archway that proclaims downtown Park Forest.

I found a Red Roof on the CLC card for $39 per nite in Lansing, which is just north and slightly east of the show (about 20 minutes away if you drive 75 mph) right off I-80 at Torrance Road.

The booth fee is $175.  Yep, you read that right--$175.  This aint no Amy Amdur show--thank God.

They give you a breakfast each day, bagels, OJ, coffee and fruit.

They give you a hell of a Saturday nite artist dinner--where awards are announced.

This year, we had appies, cheeses, fruit, four kinds of wine and crackers.

Than came the meal.

They had four kinds of Chicken there, roasted baked, fried and yummy.

They had great collard greens, great green beans, great potato sale, great tomato-cucumber salad--they had cornbread.

They had meatballs, they had pork.

They had five different desserts.  You could come back for seconds, thirds and even fourths, and I might have seen a fifth go out the side door.

They kept the wine a-flowing.

They were the nicest people (the gallery-committee) you ever ask to be next to.

ENOUGH ABOUT FOOD, TELL US ABOUT THE SHOW.

Thought you never ask.

Well, I came in a day earlier (It is a Sat. morn setup) to check it out.

A lot of closed storefronts on the main street where the show is.  Easily can fit 100 booths along it and on the grass in front of the gallery.

Not many people walking around.

I was getting a real uneasy feeling about the whole thing.

I happened to bump into a shop owner and asked her about the show--and, did anybody show up for it.  She assured me that people came from all over for it.  That made me feel a little better.

Next morn I got there early and was setup in no time.  Others were too.  All the booths were nicely spaced with plenty of room for storage and room to display on both sides.  What a concept!

The forecast called for rain to happen on and off all day, better than 60% chance of wetness.

It was mostly cloudy, we finally got rain at 2:30, it poured hard for about 30 minutes than cleared, so did the buying crowds, they were gone.

So, before the rain people were selling, mostly lowed price points.  I did almost nothing.

I was thinking of tearing down Sat. nite and leaving.  Thank goodness I did not.

Sunday morning, we awoke to clear sunny and very breezy skies.  It was frisking cold too.  But no rain was forecast.

People arrived early and started buying.  I surpassed Sat. sales totals in my first hour.

Everybody had a good day.  People came from all over.  Many of the exhibitors are long timers at this show.  Many have done it for 20 years or more.  So they have a steady following.

I had A MODEST GOAL THAT I HAD SET FOR MYSELF FOR THIS SHOW.  AFTER ALL, IT WAS A FILLER.  ALSO CHICAGO PEOPLE DON'T BUY A LOT OF MY WORK. (Ach!  I did not realize the caps key was lit, forgive me).

I am too colorful and too tropical for them.  They buy tried and true traditional themes here, over and over.

Anyways at show end, a woman walks into my booth, looks at my biggest piece and says, "That would look perfect on my living room wall."

She then told me that her husband was a photographer and he had a booth at the show too.  

I figured, fat chance of selling to her.  She said she had to talk it over with him and she would get back to me.  I said, "Aloha,"  I will never see her again.

She showed back up in five minutes and uttered those magic words, "I will take it."

Ha!  Oscar, I made my goal.  I was out of there in under an hour.  Take the money and run, all the way back to Saugatuck.

I met the nicest people there, exhibitors and patrons.  It was a joyful little show.

You might want to try it sometime.

Gotcha! I know our plan was always to keep doing shows and then fall dead out of the chair at an art fair (actually, I know a couple of people who did just that), but if you don't believe that the Internet is your retirement plan, look no farther than this website and my others.

I took our mailing list from doing art fairs for over 25 years and turned it into a business when we could no longer do shows. You can do that too.

Our podcast Is Email Marketing the Answer? The Experts Weigh In is full of the answers.

You've got your website. People can find you online. Shows can link to it and patrons can shop before and after the show. What's next?  Email marketing

Our guests Mckenna Hallett (able to live in Hawaii and earn a living selling her jewelry around the world) and Scott Fox (an online marketing expert and host of ClickMillionaires.com an entrepreneur coaching community) are passionate about using email marketing as the prime tool for staying in touch with your audience of potential buyers. 

Learn why Scott calls your email list "the artist's retirement plan" plus:

• what email marketing is and why it is important for your business
• best tips for building an email list
• services available to help you use email marketing
• integrating your website with email marketing
• nuts and bolts of those emails

Get cracking, folks. You won't be able to put up that tent forever.

My husband and i have been doing art fairs for 4 years now, and always try to be carefully strategic as to where to put our check out counter and cash area to ensure it is accessible only to us.  And until yesterday it was a great strategy.  Neither of us are certain how, but believe that it was toward the last minutes of the show that someone got in and took all of our $20 bills from below the till.  i am certain this was while i was distracted to the front of the tent by one customer, and my husband was pulling the vehicle up behind to begin the load out.  I shared our story with some of my friends who are fellow artists, and have had a variety of responses for how they handle cash.  The majority have indicated either an apron, fanny pack or some sort of bag that fits snug to the body.  I would love to hear your thoughts on how you handle cash.  I feel like such an idiot that i must have left up my guard for just a moment or two.  The only other explanation is that my neighbor has light fingers... because i expected her to be at the back of her booth, and thought nothing of seeing her close by.

So this is a small fair in Adrian, Michigan. It's in it's eighth year. This year was my first year doing this show. My sales were not all that spectacular. I did just $487.50 at the two days at this fair. I was hoping to hit the $500 mark, but organizers decided to cut the fair short on Saturday because of impending storms. The call was made about 6:30 PM. The show was supposed to run until 8 PM. And we had a severe thunderstorm roll through the fairs while we were packing down.

But the news is not all that bad. September has been the highest month in sales outside of July this year. Thanks to Funky Ferndale! And my new Flourish Trimline tent survived the storm. It did shake violently when the big gust of wind came through at the start of the storm. My artwork stayed dry because I placed it on my table inside the tent. But a little river of water was going through the tent. All that heavy rain. 

But there was a lot of EZ-Ups at the fair. Those tents did not survive the wrath of the storm. My Trimline has just been to three fairs up to this point. All September shows (Mundelein, Illinois, Funky Ferndale and Art-A-Licious). I'm glad I decided to ditch my EZ-Up and go with the Trimline. Even with the stay-bars, I don't know if it would of survived that storm.

But the volunteers there were great! Restroom breaks and they even helped my take my tent down in the rain. Kudos to them!!

The wrath of the storm...

What do you carry?  What would you recommend?  Cost vs benefit?  Also, do you pack up every night or only when weather is an issue?