Creative Woodworks & crafts 2004-01, страница 28

28 • Creative Woodworks & Crafts January 2004

by Wayne Fowler

I unique little gift. I also look f for simple cat patterns, as f c love of both crafts and : cats seems to bo very, very kcommon. Then there are K the pig, elephant, owl and pother animal collectors. | There are so many simple i designs that highlight good ; wood, look great on dis-\ play and altracl the eye of lithe customer with that p spare five- or ten-dollar bill Bin their pocket.

How »o Price What

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offering suggestions on pricing and finally settled on a simple equation: my time at a fixed rate per hour plus the cost of materials plus a market factor. Currently I work for $10 an hour and the two market factors I use are how original the piece is and how it is priced relative to my other work. I have found that customers will pay more for pieces made with unique woods or from original designs, so in those cases I charge more. It is also important thai smaller pieces, such as stack-cut Christmas ornaments, not be priced too low as these usually pay your costs for a show. My smaller pieces have a minimum price in the $5 range.

Finding a Place to Sell

This is not as difficult as it sounds if you are thinking ahead. However, be careful where you sell. Scroll saw work is difficult to mass produce and you are wasting your time if you choose venues such as flea markets or most other general markets. To get what my product is worth, I find qualify croft sales, preferably juried, or artist/artisan shows and sales. The best way to find these is to watch for signs, go fo shows to see if you would be comfortable selling there, and then talk to the organizer about space at the next show. Many of these shows advertise for vendors in local newspapers and often have a contaci number for vendors in their ads to the public. I also find that I get invited to shows when I am doing a show.

Another way is fo join a local craft or woodworking guild or club. Many of these organizations either arrange sales or maintain a regular list of sales that their members attend. I am a member of a local craft guild thai maintains a presence in most of the local street festivals, the farmers market and the regional shopping mall for demonstrations and sales. I hey also hold two juried sales a year in the spring and fall that arc open to all members on a fee basis per table. A great deal for $40 a year!

''Juried" is one of those terms I didn't understand at firsl. Basically what it means is that someone or some group is determining if the quality of your work is competitive with other show participants and that their show will have a good balance of vendors. If you have already passed the tougher test of giving your work to your mother, wife, or mother-in-law as a gift, then passing the jury test should be easy.

Most shows charge a fee for a fixed amount of space in which to sell. This usually includes a table and one or two chairs. You have to use your judgement on whether you can recover your table costs at a show. A good idea (if you are checking out a show that you would like lo enterj is to telk to the organiz-

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About four months after I started scroll sawing, people began asking me how much my work cost. It seemed that I was on to something beyond just a new hobby. I quoted a few prices and suddenly found myself taking orders for Christmas. One thing led to another, and soon I found myself being asked to sell at a church bazaar and a friend's home.

This led quickly to the ultimate test: would strangers buy my work? Then there were the tougher questions, such as: what should I make, how much should I mcke, what prices should I quote, and how do I display my work? The following is a summary of my experiences over the last fifteen years in answering these questions.

Before You Start

If you are considering selling your work, there are a few things you should know first. The most important is that this will take time and energy. In addition, what you think is great stuff to sell, others might not. However, the rewards are much more than a self-funding hobby. The pure satisfaction you get from nice people telling you they like your work so much that they are giving you money for it can't be beat.

What To Make

I use my own tastes and make items that I like. I have found that I had better like the designs because if they sell I could end up making a lot of them, I usually try out new designs on rela fives, friends and co-workers and suggest that you do the same. Don't be disappointed if everyone isn't excited. I have found that roughly one person in ten shows serious interest and that one person won't like everything you do. However, liking what you make is still your number one priority because it makes no sense to lurn a fun hobby into another job.

If you are going to be selling at craft shows, you should find patterns that will sell for a range of prices. This is a good business practice, as the sale of low-cost pieces will usually guarantee that you will pay your expenses. More importantly, the people who like your work often want fo buy something, and a small Christmas ornament is easy for them to justify. You get to give them a card and they will often come back later or at another show to buy bigger pieces.

For example, I look forward to the Christmas ornaments publication from this magazine each year because I can stack cut dozens of ornaments out of thin oak or cherry and sell them for a much greater profit then my larger pieces. They make great teacher gifts or stocking stuffers and they easily cover my costs for the show. They also attract lots of customers looking for a