Got to love that crazy, unpredictable Minnesota weather. Saturday morning I woke up bright and early (6am) to discover it was cloudy, windy and 38 degrees outside. Not what you want to see when you're getting ready for an outdoor show. Setting up the tent was a nightmare. The wind was insane and there were a few moments I thought I might lose my tent. We were across the street from a (very large) lake, so that could have been disastrous! Thank goodness for my wonderful partner! She went to the hardware and came back with 4 40 lb. bags of water softener and some pulleys to secure the tent. It worked, but there were still a few scary moments.
The wind didn't mess with just the tent...I had to modify half of my display. I normally have easels with jewelry cases but the easels couldn't handle the wind, so I had to prop them up on the table. The cold and wind kept a lot of people away, so it was not a great turn out. Sunday, on the other hand, could not have been any more beautiful. Sunny, warm, no wind, just perfect conditions. We had about 3x the amount of people on Sunday at the show. Surprisingly I made more sales on Saturday than I did on Sunday.
On the plus side I got a lot of positive comments about my designs. People genuinely seemed to like my jewelry. I also talked with a member of the Etsy team I'm part of and got some really good feedback about my display. I definitely need something to create sort of a "wow" factor and pull people in to look. I love my current display because
1. all the jewelry can stay in it in between shows.
2. set up time is minimal. I just take off the plexiglass covers and the cases are ready to go.
3. it's easy to pack and transport.
4. it allows me to display a lot of items (over 250) in a small space without looking cluttered or messy.
So...I need to find something to create a focal point for my display that is easy to transport and set up. I would like something unique, not just the typical necklace display busts. That's my current goal.
The wind didn't mess with just the tent...I had to modify half of my display. I normally have easels with jewelry cases but the easels couldn't handle the wind, so I had to prop them up on the table. The cold and wind kept a lot of people away, so it was not a great turn out. Sunday, on the other hand, could not have been any more beautiful. Sunny, warm, no wind, just perfect conditions. We had about 3x the amount of people on Sunday at the show. Surprisingly I made more sales on Saturday than I did on Sunday.
On the plus side I got a lot of positive comments about my designs. People genuinely seemed to like my jewelry. I also talked with a member of the Etsy team I'm part of and got some really good feedback about my display. I definitely need something to create sort of a "wow" factor and pull people in to look. I love my current display because
1. all the jewelry can stay in it in between shows.
2. set up time is minimal. I just take off the plexiglass covers and the cases are ready to go.
3. it's easy to pack and transport.
4. it allows me to display a lot of items (over 250) in a small space without looking cluttered or messy.
So...I need to find something to create a focal point for my display that is easy to transport and set up. I would like something unique, not just the typical necklace display busts. That's my current goal.