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Post by halay on Jul 10, 2014 4:38:31 GMT
It seems that felt doesn't sell so well during summer. My friend took part in an art show recently but didn't sell much, although she had some very nice stuff on offer.
I've read your post on the blog Zed. You had lots of very nice tings on display but is seems there were also lots of competitors there. Also, going by public transportation is an adventure in itself and requires maximum organisation and you've done a great job. Thanks for all the tips on how to get organised.
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Post by zed on Jul 10, 2014 9:06:54 GMT
Thanks, Halay  You know, I had a think afterwards and I'm not sure it was obvious that my stuff was felt or wool or basically not just bought fabric made into stuff. I had a lot of nuno which just looks like fabric, most of my felt is firmly felted unlike soft scarves or softly felted felt 'paintings' where the fibres are obvious. I think having some wool tops there would have been helpful because a couple of people did ask how felt was made, and though I had a hard copy of beyond nuno, I don't think photos mean much if you have no idea. |
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Post by lyn on Jul 10, 2014 10:58:51 GMT
What if you took a sushi mat, a bottle of soapy water, a towel and small bowl, and gave demonstrations at the side of your stall on how felt is made. You'd only need to make a pieces 6" square with 2 layers - and if you only took the felting so far - enough so it held together when you held it up - you'd have a decent supply of pre-felt for your stash by the end of the day! Each demonstration would only take a few minutes to the pre-felt stage because when it's wet it holds together and looks very much like finished felt.
Nothing makes people crowd around more than a demonstration of craft work.
You could sell some starter kits? Sushi mat size. Hang on (edit in progress) I've just remembered your transportation, so unless you had help getting to the venue, taking extra stuff could be a problem?
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Post by halay on Jul 10, 2014 11:20:47 GMT
You are right, Lyn. Demonstrations always attract people, but usually you are given only a limited space (one small stall).
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Post by Shepherdess on Jul 10, 2014 13:35:16 GMT
The other thing that works is a little photo album of the steps. not as detailed as the book. I am working on designing some felt baskets that go flat for part of my display. so much of the bulk of what I use for display are baskets.
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Post by MTRuth on Jul 10, 2014 16:22:31 GMT
The other problem with demonstrations is then you make it entertainment. People watch, thank you for your demo and move on. Concentrating on selling to people who are interested is a better use of your time. If you had a sample of wool fiber, prefelt and a hard felt (4-6 inches square or so), then you could explain the process more easily but not do a full demo.
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Post by zed on Jul 11, 2014 9:38:05 GMT
They are all really good ideas and points. I have thought about kits, Lyn, maybe in the future as I have more stock, I can be choosy about what to take, and spend time working on things like that. I was thinking of ways to show different stages, Ann's photo album idea is a good one, or at least a large sheet with a few clear photos and graphics. If I took cheap wool tops, I could pull them off and do a small demo of laying out or just show wool tops laid in opposite directions if anyone was interested, save them and re-card into tops later. Samples are definitely a good idea too. I think demos would actually work really well combined with selling kits, and a few examples of what can be made from pieces of felt. We could make this into an info sheet for craft fair sellers |
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Post by lyn on Jul 11, 2014 23:59:31 GMT
Yup - if Annie and I hadn't watched a demo we wouldn't have bought a beginner's paper making kit at a craft fair. The demo sold it to us.
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Post by Pandagirl on Jul 12, 2014 0:52:06 GMT
Yup - if Annie and I hadn't watched a demo we wouldn't have bought a beginner's paper making kit at a craft fair. The demo sold it to us. So, have you used the papermaking kit? What did you think? |
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Post by lyn on Jul 12, 2014 14:59:25 GMT
Well Marilyn, let me put it this way, I'd much rather buy handmade paper!
The kit comprised a deckle (roughly A4 size) and some printed instructions. It was summer and Annie and I spent a fabulous day in the garden making bits of paper ... but once was enough.
First we had to make a pulp from scrap paper (my blender wasn't happy about that - it broke soon afterwards). This was applied to the deckle and we added bits of flowers, grasses, angelina, feathers etc. pressed it then put the papers to dry.
It was great fun, and we did end up with bits of paper, but to make paper of any quality and interest would require time and effort to develop the skills needed and we weren't prepared to invest.
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Post by Pandagirl on Jul 12, 2014 15:35:43 GMT
Lyn, I asked because I made paper and taught it for many years. It takes a lot of work and strength! I did mostly Sculpture and it was a lot of fun, but I'm not sure I have the stamina now.
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Post by koffipot on Jul 12, 2014 16:17:55 GMT
Lyn. I too saw off a blender making paper pulp. Expensive paper!! |
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Post by lyn on Jul 12, 2014 17:03:42 GMT
Marilyn - you really are multi-talented. We've bought handmade paper that's made from all sorts of fibres, including linen, and it's great stuff.
Judith - I bet nearly everyone that's bought an amateur's paper-making kit could join our 'blender-killer' club!
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Post by Pandagirl on Jul 12, 2014 20:10:22 GMT
Thanks Lyn! I used an old blender a that I still have for paper and chemicals. But after my initial experiment and teaching children using recycled paper I purchased five gallon containers of pulp or used linter paper with an electric drill and special attachment. I've made paper from all kinds of plants but that's a lot of extra work. It was fun to learn, but not something I'd do unless I had a special purpose.
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Post by zed on Jul 13, 2014 10:12:23 GMT
I made paper once, about 7 or 8 years ago following a tutorial on flickr. I left the paper soaking to make the pulp, and made a deckle out of an old canvas frame and some tights stretched over it, the paper came out really nice, but it's a lot of faffing around.
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