D'oh... I forgot my camera at my booth... tucked away under some boxes, hidden from site. I'll post pics tomorrow, I promise!
The preview night for The Fine Craft Show went off without a hitch. No wait, there is a tiny hitch (or a couple), but I'll get to that. The chili dinner was delicious and they had a great display of all the advertising/publicity the show has gotten. (if anyone local has the weekend section from Thursday's paper, can I have it?!? there is an ad for the show using my jewelry!) I was shocked to see just how many things were made with my "Icing On The Cake" photo. It was really cool to see. My beads frame the invitation to the preview party, I am on the posters in Wegmans!, I am in little ads in the paper. It really is too cool.
The little hitch in the show so far has been my location. My spot is beautiful, I love it, but it is tucked in a corner and kind of out of site. So many people last night said "I didn't know this was back here?" It didn't stop people from buying though! And that is nice. Super NICE! I had a bit of a dicey situation with two woman wanting the same necklace. Eekk. Bonnie says I didn't handle it right, but what can I do? Lady A tried it on, loved it, set it back down on the bust, and her husband said to his wife "is there anything else you like?" and she went on to trying on bracelets and he said to my sister "we'll take it", meanwhile, Lady B had tried it on too (several times) and was wearing it again while Lady A's hubby was telling Bonnie he wanted it. So I said nicely to Lady B, "Lady A would like to buy that piece, unless you are?". She quickly took it off and handed it too me, but was very disappointed. Bonnie says I shouldn't have taken it off her neck and should have let them talk to each other. Feel free to leave a comment of what to do in that situation in the future, I would love some opinions!!
Another hitch, my neighbor. She didn't realize that this was an indoor show, and has set up a 10 x10 feet easy up tent... inside... like under a room with a ceiling. And just so she could hang a sign. It kind of jets into my space and is cutting what flow of traffic there is. I may need to totally rearrange me booth to accommodate her, but we'll see.
So, why the post title I have today? Well, there are a lot of people who come by my booth and say to me "you do really beautiful work". And I politely thank them. I often think that people are just being polite themselves and filling the silence with a compliment. I can tell by the 10 pounds of 14K gold jewelry they are wearing that they don't really think it is beautiful work. But, there are people who come by, pause, and you can see a gentle sigh in their shoulders, a tilt of their head, and they take a small breath to say "you do really beautiful work". Those people truly lift my spirits and make me glow with pride. So, I say thank you.
The show last night was filled with just those kind of people. And I am truly thankful to each and everyone of them.
Okay, okay... I admit... all my worrying was for nothing.
Saturday, November 08, 2008
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7 comments:
So glad to hear everything is going well!
You handled it right. Trying it on doesn't mean you have a right to something, but saying "We'll take it" does. You don't want a potentially ugly disagreement in front of your booth making other people avoid it. Hopefully you gave Lady B a card and told her that while you wouldn't make that same piece again, you would happily work with her to make something just for her.
Yippie! I can't wait to see pictures and hear more about it! But you'll be busy all day today and tomorrow!!
I'm glad it went so well, and love the thought of two people wanting the same piece of jewellery - hasn't happened to me yet at a show, but who knows?! Not sure that I would have handled it any differently than you did apart from tell lady B that I take orders/commission work.
Good luck for the rest of the show.
Yay, Kerry! I am so glad to hear your update and that you are doing fine! And better than that...your jewelry even has multiple buyers for the same piece! That was a sticky situation yesterday. But otherwise, I'm glad you've settled in and seem to be having a great time! I can't wait for photos!
Isn't it exciting when you see your work in print??? Get used to it, Kerry!
I've had the issue you had with the two people wanting the same thing. Lady A put something down to try on something else and Lady B literally snatched it up the second it hit the table. The two of them had a bit of a tiff until I started showing them both similar pieces, and then it all worked out.
Unfortunately, that rarely happens with things I can make again, but if it really gets down to it, you could offer to make something similar, custom for them? That might make them feel really special, too.
I can't wait to see the photos!
(And speak to the promoter about the EZUp thing, so they can be sure to put in the info that artists sign, so they KNOW without a doubt, don't bring that stuff).
Awesome. I'm so glad the show is going well! Yay!
Hey Kerry I think you handled the situation OK. I agree that maybe the only thing to do differently is offer to make something specifically for the person who didn't get to buy the item.
By the way, I saw the article in today's D&C Living section. Nice picture and writeup right on the front page. This is your weekend. Woohoo!! Go out and celebrate after this one.
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