Bev

Your site is wonderfully original and so funny! I just love it!!! You have done a fantastic job!

There are months I may not sell a thing. I just fill out my tax form with -0- sales and mail the form but do not send any money in. You don't have to pay any sort of fee to file state sales tax, at least where I live. You can file online on the Dept. of Revenue's website or you can fill out the paperwork and mail it in, either way. If you file online, your Dept. of Revenue will give you a PIN number for filing.

Sales on Day 2 were as bad, if not worse, than Day 1. Had it not been for a fellow vendor purchasing a case of my candles for Christmas gifts for her book club, I would have hardly made a dime today. The school finally got the A/C turned off in the gym ... but it was hotter than a firecracker by mid-afternoon. No happy medium! This year I made 3 times my booth fee, down from 7 times my booth fee last year. Being in the last row of vendors in the back of the gym, behind a vendor with a huge partition that was three booth spaces wide, I think no one knew I was back there. Probably thought her row was the end of the line. Foot traffic was dismal in our row, but if you walked around the corner, people were everywhere. The person selling tie-dyed tee-shirts next to me sold only 3 shirts all day today. She had a much better day yesterday. Well, it's hit or miss when it comes to craft fairs. At least I made enough to cover my booth fee. Hope all the rest of you who did craft fairs had a great and prosperous weekend!

I've had help loading and unloading at the craft fairs I've attended, but sometimes I'm working my booth alone. I have found that if it is a fair at, for instance, a high school, the organization the fair is benefiting usually has the high school kids helping, and they can man your booth for you if you need to take a potty break. And like it has been said earlier, other vendors are usually very helpful and will watch your booth for you if you need a quick break.

Day one at the two-day holiday craft at the high school was dismal! Sales were less than half what they were on day one last year. I was located in the small gym in the same booth space as last year. However, this year the school maintenance dept. turned the A/C on in that gym ... and it was 30 degrees outside!!! Numerous complaints were lodged but the only explanation we got from craft fair officials was that building maintenance had been notified but there was "nothing they could do about it" because the climate control is computer programmed. Several vendors sat with their coats on the entire day. Brrr!!!!! I can't say the extreme cold temperature was the only thing that kept sales down. I had a lot of customers coming in and out of my booth spending lots of time sniffing, then walking away. Not a lot of customers were carrying bags, which led me to believe that people in this area are just not parting with their money as quickly as they were last year. I'm sure the gas prices and the economy in general are no help. Also, the craft fair officials seemed to have lumped all the chandlers in one area, which didn't help either. I have one more day so we'll see what tomorrow brings. At least I made booth fee plus some extra, so whatever I made is more than what I had before I started the day. Hope others who did fairs this weekend did not experience such slow sales as I did. I'll report back tomorrow ... hopefully with better news. But like I said, at least I made booth fee and some extra today. Things could always be worse!

Big two-day holiday craft fair at the local high school this weekend. Keeping my fingers crossed that I'll do well!!

Maryann, those are just beautiful. But I don't think there is anything you have posted that I haven't oooh'd and ahhh'd over! You do great work!!

I only participate in one craft show at the moment. It is at our local high school, is a two-day event, is well advertised, has over 250 vendors, and is one of the most popular fairs in our area with high attendance. I pay $75 booth fee for the two days.

Correct. Stone Stew South. Her stuff is FABULOUS, very fragrant and very pretty! Great prices, fast shipping. You can't go wrong ordering from her.

Pouring the last of my inventory for the craft fair next weekend. Good luck to those who are doing any shows this weekend!

I love it! The pictures were a little slow to load but I'm at work and don't know how fast these computers here are compared to my computer at home. I LOVE the groovy background you have and the font for your biz name is really cool looking. You've done a great job!!

Correct, they already have her bank information or they wouldn't have been able to take $350 out of her account. But, two wrongs don't make a right!

Congratulations and I wish you all the best! Can't wait to see pics of it stocked!

It looks FANTASTIC! I am going to have to look this guy up so I have a banner for next year's craft shows!

My advice to anyone considering an open house is DO IT! I do not regret it one bit. I would strongly recommend having a nice door prize ... our guests LOVED the idea that they may win something of value. (And it was a great way to get names and addresses/email addresses to add to our mailing lists). Also be sure to have refreshments. We didn't do anything fancy, just a variety of cookies and some hot cider and coffee. I have two air pots that hold 3 liters each, so I didn't have to worry about refilling any pots or continually brewing coffee. If you can afford a couple of these or know someone you can borrow them from, I would suggest using those as well. That way you can devote all of your attention to your customers. Be sure to decorate your home for the season. I made sure the house was all decked out in its "fall attire." I had candles burning in seasonal scents in different rooms (hot mulled cider, cinnamon buns, sweet pumpkin spice). I heard a lot of comments from people as to how they could smell the candles as soon as the front door was opened, and I believe it really helped generate sales. Most of all, be confident, greet everyone with a smile, and just enjoy yourself! The open house really was one of the best decisions I think I have made.

I order most of my FOs from Peaks, Lonestar and Nature's Garden.

What a BEAUTIFUL basket! I love your bow. I'm sure that will be a hit at the fundraiser.

Finally got back here to take a peek ... the basket is WONDERFUL! You've done a great job. What a wonderful and thoughtful gift for the baby shower. BTW, congratulations!!!!

Those are OUTSTANDING! Absolutely perfect colors for toasted marshmallow!

I've made them with soy container wax and if they stick to the mold, if you pop them in the freezer for a couple of minutes, they will come right out of the mold.

Very nice! I love it.

Cute bear. I don't see a basket, though.

I triple wicked them. I use EZ Soy and used three Eco-6's, twisted. Worked well with Sweet Pumpkin Spice and Banana Nut Bread, which is what these are scented. HTH.

Thanks for the compliments. To answer a couple of questions: we sent out invitations to friends, family, co-workers, church family, and neighbors. We each made a door prize with a value of $30. To win the door prize, you had to fill out a slip which asked for name, address, phone and email address. That way we could add those people to our mailing list in the future. We served light refreshments (hot cider, coffee and cookies) and offered special deals on certain items. Year to year it's so hard to gauge what people will be interested in. Last year I couldn't sell those casseroles to save my life. This year they were selling like hotcakes. It was an enjoyable day and I felt it was a success. I know I will be doing this again. As Woolfswickery said, it was much better than hauling the stuff to shows!!! Edited to add: Just as I posted this, I got a phone call from someone who was at my open house. They want an enamelware mug. Yippee!

I hosted my first ever open house Sunday afternoon. I sold my candles and my cousin sold her handcrafted jewelry. We had a steady flow of people through the doors from 1:00 until 4:00. It went very well. I loved making money from my own living room!! Here are a few pictures of my setup. DH made the pegboard that houses the melts and air fresheners. Looks much better in person than in my cruddy photography!