Oh, sorry to hear all that! I too, have not had much luck selling my garden art...my calamities are usually unloading/loading/transporting my "Creations" and not packing them good enough, and "casualties" happen....plus the fact that most of them are concrete, so are pretty heavy! I may try to sell stuff from my yard...when I finish all my projects I wanna do for my yard, then if I feel like making extra....

Laura, I'm so sorry you've had such a bad experience. I think part of the problem is selling art doesn't work well in a farmers market forum. Its too bad we are all spread all over becaue we could trade with eachother. That's what a lot of artists that I know do.
I'm not even good at yard sales so I probabl couldn't sell my creations either!
kathy

Sorry to hear all the bad luck!! I was on Antiques forum & It sounds like a lot of dealers are about to go under too because of economy & E-bay as you can get the "hard to get items on there!! Things sure changed in a hurry didn't they!! Jan

I'm so sorry, Laura. I know that really bummed you out and don't blame you one bit. I'd quit too.
I'm sure the economy has a lot to do with sales of so many things. And so many places are going under. Very sad.

Maybe you should just put a sign in your yard saying Garden Art for sale?

hugs, Karen

I really don't want to see you have to give up! How about an internet store??? You can reach more people....would love to see your stuff displayed on a cool site!

You can set up a free website and sell from your home. I set one up on www.tripod.lycos.com
I think it costs $12.95 to register the domain and there are templates on the website that makes setting up the website easy. My daughter told me about it, I had never done a website. It was so easy.

Oh I am sorry to hear of your terrible times, but don't give up selling your creations. Just try a different place.
You can also register for an Etsy account for free!

that sounds like normal economy. Try being a realtor and not selling for awhile/
Or a store owner paying RENT, INSURANCE, UTILITIES, WORKERS,ADVERTISENENT, BOOKKEEPING,CLEANING PRODUCTS & FAX AND COPIER RENTAL well,you get it.
Last month was bad at my booth rental too and it is 180 bucks plus they get to keep 11% pf any profit!!!
Thats alot of junk to sell just to pay rent

Sorry for loss, laurastheme... yesterday my DH & I unloaded the pick-up for FM (it was "misting")...so photo projects can't be out...but lots of woodworking & cement rocks! Then it rained harder!!! So for l-l/2 hrs. we took in $12 ... all pricing tags wet, table covers wet...load back up pick-up to come home early...unload pick-up & set-up in garage so everything can dry! (today must be tables/GF away)... we learned a valuable lesson...Mother Nature RULES!!! No more FM's on even "misty" days! First time we've been caught...usually don't even try it in the rain! So you need GOOD weather...to bring people out to FM's!

Lots of people "looking" on good days...but, that's how it usually goes...and we do get customers that DO COME BACK after they're price-checked & decided what dollars they can spend that day out!

Another thing DH & I have learned is that it's GOT to be FUN...if not, then we won't continue...it's FUN yet! For years I've done craft shows (and worked out of the home) but only did 2 or 3 craft shows a yr. ... and that was fun. So maybe you can find that as a resource for your Garden Art! And "safer" parking areas! Ughhhh!

Don't give up...if you love doing it...look for different resources for selling! Jeanne S. ...and, yes, it's a tough economy right now...but faith in the future!

Laura, you have my sympathy. I know firsthand how tough business can be. I've done the craft/specialty markets as well as had a storefront business for many years. It definitely has it's ups and downs. IMO the buying public is pretty fickle.

Is there a possibility you could join with other artists/crafters twice a year for a group market? I know many who do that and make a living at it. Mainly because they also wholesale to stores. I found many of my wholesalers at such craft fairs or markets.

I think in some ways consignment is the easiest way to go but you have to find a good store and produce in quantity and inexpensively and sometimes be satisfied with less profit. I had many consigners for awhile and some did very well. It became more paperwork than I was willing to do so I quit doing it but some stores might be open to this in a poor economy. Gets them stock without cash outlay.

Please don't stop doing what you love because of these unfortunate set-backs. Where there's a will there's a way.

Sorry for your bad luck! I used to own a crafters' mall, and sold it when stores like Michael's and Joanne's started selling imported decor and putting it on 75% off sale. Things were definitely not as nice as the hand-made items in our shop, but it made too much of a bump in our sales. People LIKE creative, artistic things, but aren't always willing to pay a fair price for it!

Thanks to all of you for your support. I think the thing that really got to me was the damage to the truck and not knowing who was responsible. I've been in sales for many, many years...travel, real estate, crafts, ebay...so I know that there are ups and downs and I need to look at the big picture...but..I'm beginning to think that the FM isn't the right place. It's a lot of work to make so little money. Most of the crafters have been complaining about lack of sales there. I did well at a garden fair in May. Wish there were more of those.

I've seriously thought about consignment, but I'm not sure that's the way to go. When I sell my work I tell the buyer how to handle the item and tell them that I'll repair anything that comes apart (which is rare) if it is handled properly. I would rather be directly responsible rather than the store. I sold outside an antique store one day last summer and did fairly well, then the owner put them in her store on consignment and none sold. I think they were too far back in a corner and there was too much competition with the other merchandise.

I haven't tried a web site or etsy because so many of my items are way to big and heavy to mail easily. However, I think that would be a good option for the smaller items. I've been making a few bottle bugs and I've also put a couple glass flowers on driftwood backing for hanging on a wall. Those items would be easy to mail. I think I'll try the rest from home by ads in local publications, craig's list and flyers around town to friends and acquaintances.

By the way, one of my friends made a recent trip to one of the San Juan islands near us and a shop there was selling the patio side tables like I make for $250 each!!!!!!!!!! (No, that's not a typo.)

Laura post a pic of your bottlebugs and glassflowers on the driftwood...It sounds very pretty...

Hi Laura,

Ugh--what a nasty experience you've had. I don't know how much my insight might help, but wanted to offer it just in case it might be useful to you.

I'm a regular farmer's market patron, but I go shopping for my family's weekly produce. I need to shop quickly to catch the nicest produce/best deals and then I need to go home since I've got a trunk full of goodies getting warm. I know there are crafters at our FM, but I honestly don't have a clue what they sell.

Also, I have to say at least at our FM I see the same people week after week. We all come for produce which needs replenishing every week, but if someone were to buy a piece of art it isn't something they're going to keep buying every week so it seems like there are diminishing returns being at the same FM every week.

Now an art fair is a different beast--I'm there to look at arts/crafts and I won't have produce threatening to rot in my trunk if I browse. I LOVE our town's annual art fair. There's always plenty of people buying nicely done yard art (and the economy doesn't get any worse than here in MI). I'm looking forward to it--it's next weekend!

Also, have you tried Craig's List? It's all local sales with pictures so no shipping is needed. I don't do ebay at all anymore unless it is something I simply can't get from CL.

Good luck to you!

Debbie

Thanks for the input, Debbie. One of the crafters told me something very similar last Saturday regarding the same people coming to the FM each week. There are quite a few people early in the morning. Then it slacks off until about noon when people come for the wonderful lunches that a couple of vendors offer. That's when most of the crafters get the 'lookers', but there doesn't seem to be a lot of sales. Some of the crafters this year have been there for several years so they must be making some money, but the few I've talked with have done very little business so far. My booth has been a definite eye catcher. People come over to it as soon as they glance in that direction and tell me how beautiful the items are and how creative I am. But they don't have a place to put it, even though I give them suggestions, or they don't have enough money and they'll be back or they need to think about it.

We have a large annual art festival here in August. It's a 3 day affair and I would need a VERY large inventory to participate. I don't know how much the entry fee is at this time, but I've heard it's quite high and the festival organization takes quite a large percentage also. 50,000 people or more come to it each year and we're just a small town of about 15,000. It's more for crafters who travel to shows most of the year rather than small time hobbyists like me. I started this for our own yard, then got so addicted that I decided I need to sell some of it.

Yes, I have thought about Craig's list and I'm leaning strongly toward that.

Laura said "Lots of oohs...ahhs...and compliments" ..... There ya go sweetie ...... it isn't that people don't love your art, it is just that people aren't spending money on "wants" these days, but more on "needs" IMHO.

Don't let that stop you from crafting and enjoying your art! Times will get better again. Just like the economy took a few years to get so bad, it will take years to recover.

I am looking for more things at yard sales now than Thrift Stores or Consignment because the YSs are cheaper. It's more trouble, but I just get into the hunt, and don't go unless I really feel like it. I've been thinking of having a yard sale worded something like "Plants & Garden Art, & Rummage Sale". That is if I could ever get back to crafting and making a few things I think I could make money on.

As to the fender benders .... stuff just happens sometimes.

One more thing to remember is the time of month. People buy more at the first of the month than the end of the month usually. At least it's that way in this neck of the woods.

Great ideas above. Just try different things. Don't be discouraged, be proud of your art. The Oooohs and Ahhhhhs are your proof! Don't forget that. Now go create something beautiful! ..... ~tenderlee

Laura,

That's a lot like our art fair, but we also have a small "locals" area where local amateur artists can buy a booth at a reduced rate to sell their merchandise. Even talented kids will get one of these small, cheap booths and sell their beadwork, etc. There are nice things for sale in that area, but it is mostly just the first morning of the art fair because most things sell out due to smaller stock of stuff. Maybe the organizers of your fair would be willing to designate a spot for locals in the future?

Debbie