Craft Fair Projects

[bfrikken]

Does anyone make anything for craft fairs? There's plenty of plans out there for small projects, but I'm wondering what would sell and be cost effective to make.

I'm not looking to make lots of money (ha but that would be nice). I'm hoping to offer some items for my wife to sell when she does the craft fair thing. Maybe help offset the cost of her booth/table... But I have no idea what sells...

Of course, first thought was simple birdhouses, that type of thing.. But any one out there a pro that could give some tips?

Thanks in advance!!

Bill

[Jeffrey Schronce]

Does anyone make anything for craft fairs? There's plenty of plans out there for small projects, but I'm wondering what would sell and be cost effective to make.

I'm not looking to make lots of money (ha but that would be nice). I'm hoping to offer some items for my wife to sell when she does the craft fair thing. Maybe help offset the cost of her booth/table... But I have no idea what sells...

Of course, first thought was simple birdhouses, that type of thing.. But any one out there a pro that could give some tips?

Thanks in advance!!

Bill

Are you looking for things that she can decorate to sell? IE you build a magazine rack and she toll paints some scenic crap on the front or does some wood burning?

I am definately not a pro, but back when I was a little kid my mom and pop were into that type of stuff. He built very basic items, all butt joints and nails. Typically white pine with medium to medium dark stain and light coat of sanding sealer. Mom would do the toll painting things, you know cows in a field, little old farm ladies, etc. Some wood burning, typically wheat style pattern on front of larger items.
Big sellers were shelfs (few hearts cut out and routed, that type of thing), basic magazine racks, large chests. Again all pine, low cost, simple designs, easily to produce in volume with patterns. Very basic finishes.
Think about your target audience here. Craft fair folk. They are looking for country style stuff typically.

[LCHIEN]

Does anyone make anything for craft fairs? There's plenty of plans out there for small projects, but I'm wondering what would sell and be cost effective to make.

I'm not looking to make lots of money (ha but that would be nice). I'm hoping to offer some items for my wife to sell when she does the craft fair thing. Maybe help offset the cost of her booth/table... But I have no idea what sells...

Of course, first thought was simple birdhouses, that type of thing.. But any one out there a pro that could give some tips?

Thanks in advance!!

Bill

Definately, I'm no pro, but here's what I would think -
Simple stuff you can mass produce and has a wow factor to facilitate impulse buying.

those balancing wine bottle holders,
various toys and games (like the triangle thingy with golf tees at Cracker Barrel)
boxes (although that presses the edge of complexity).
Yard toys (whirlygigs and stuff)

[ejs1097]

I've been toying with the idea of wind chimes and consignment craft stores. The ones I make look vary similiar to $40 versions in stores. parts cost about $5.00 and I think I could mass produce about 10 per hour in shop and maybe 10 minutes to string. Probably sell for $15-$20

I would think you best bet is seasonal items. Halloween and Christmas mainly. Pumpkin laterns, snowman, etc. with a 15watt bulb on a string. If you wife can paint, birdhouses would probably be good as well with sports team Like Michigan State, NFL (whoever you root for up there), etc. U.S.A red white and blue usuall does well also.

Most people buy stuff at craft fairs to decorate the homes or for gifts for others, the above fall into that line.

p.s. I'm not a pro at craft fairs but this is my general observation from going to several.

[bfrikken]

Cool, some good ideas so far. I like the idea for wine racks/fancy wine bottle holders....

Neither of us are real "artsy". My wife just happens to have a good knack for some crafts that she's working on. And My MIL is adding some crochet'd items... Trying to convince my FIL to provide his fishing lures he makes too

I think the last craft fair I was at was in 5th grade So I can't picture who'd be attending these functions, other then my general guesses....

[bfrikken]

Does anyone think cutting boards would work? I have some scraps I could make one or two out of....

[Jeffrey Schronce]

I think the last craft fair I was at was in 5th grade So I can't picture who'd be attending these functions, other then my general guesses....

Well I am talking about the same time period as well! LOL! So maybe my info is dated.

Seems to me that folks are looking for a very rustic, country type looks. Sunflowers, cows, etc.
Shelfs, both wall and freestanding, seem to do pretty well. Bench seats always seemed to sell nicely.
I guess my direction is a little different than others. Seems to me that if you get a good price on material that larger items will be more bang for the buck and money for your time.
Example :
I built the shelf below for less than $30 and less than 1 hour (not included glue up dry time and time between stain and finish and wax). I could image this selling for $100 (wild guess).
My wife was a big fan of this stuff prior to us getting married and I managed to get rid of most of it! LOL! Example is the photo of the free standing display shelf I pulled out of the attic. God knows what she paid for that thing, but is it white pine and once patterns are established, could not have taken more than 1 hour average per unit when done in production.
I threw in the photo of the fishing rod rack cause I thought your FIL may like it.

[Jeffrey Schronce]

Does anyone think cutting boards would work? I have some scraps I could make one or two out of....

Sure. I made a few for gifts out of hard maple and honduran mahogany that people really seem to like.

[bfrikken]

Your fishing pole holder is pretty sweet. I was thinking small because I have a big 50 gallon cutoff bin that I was going to pilfer through. That display case looks like a good idea too.

[ejs1097]

Non wood item

[QUOTE=bfrikken] And My MIL is adding some crochet'd items... QUOTE]
Can you MIL sew too? We saw a lady once selling heating pouches. They were about 6" wide and 12" long and filled about 3/4 full with rice and barley. She had a microwave there to demostrate and was selling them for $10.00. Sounds crazy but they were flying off her table...even my wife bought one. She loves it and still uses it years later. takes about 3 minutes to nuke and stays warm for hours. uses it on her neck, back, etc. In the winter she throws it under the covers by her feet. Easy, fast, and cheap.

[Jeffrey Schronce]

Your fishing pole holder is pretty sweet. I was thinking small because I have a big 50 gallon cutoff bin that I was going to pilfer through. That display case looks like a good idea too.

Display case with a few trophies on it . . . . . soccer mom magnet!
Don't forget that segment of the population. Parents practically put children on a pedestal and worship them now a days. Anything that catches the children will catch the parents pocket book.

I guess the key, whether the project is large or small, is being able to reproduce the projects quickly relative to the price it will fetch. There are things that we spend many, many hours on that are completely lost on the average consumer (think hand cut DT versus half blind jig DT). Also, remember that the enjoyment factor will decrease as it becomes more of a job than a passion. That is the nature of high volume work. Don't fall in love with each piece, remember they are a commodity to be sold. Also, remember that when hand tools get involved profits are typically falling. I read a detailed article from a custom furniture maker who was making wonderful furniture and getting a nice price for it, yet he was living at poverty level. He realized that when he picked up his hand tools he was losing production time and therefore losing money. This statement will not sit well with hand plane addicts but I stand by it.

[bfrikken]

[QUOTE=ejs1097]

And My MIL is adding some crochet'd items... QUOTE]
Can you MIL sew too? We saw a lady once selling heating pouches. They were about 6" wide and 12" long and filled about 3/4 full with rice and barley. She had a microwave there to demostrate and was selling them for $10.00. Sounds crazy but they were flying off her table...even my wife bought one. She loves it and still uses it years later. takes about 3 minutes to nuke and stays warm for hours. uses it on her neck, back, etc. In the winter she throws it under the covers by her feet. Easy, fast, and cheap.

That's an awesome idea. My MIL made us some of these Never dawned on me that they'd be perfect!

[bfrikken]

Display case with a few trophies on it . . . . . soccer mom magnet!
Don't forget that segment of the population. Parents practically put children on a pedestal and worship them now a days. Anything that catches the children will catch the parents pocket book.

I guess the key, whether the project is large or small, is being able to reproduce the projects quickly relative to the price it will fetch. There are things that we spend many, many hours on that are completely lost on the average consumer (think hand cut DT versus half blind jig DT). Also, remember that the enjoyment factor will decrease as it becomes more of a job than a passion. That is the nature of high volume work. Don't fall in love with each piece, remember they are a commodity to be sold. Also, remember that when hand tools get involved profits are typically falling. I read a detailed article from a custom furniture maker who was making wonderful furniture and getting a nice price for it, yet he was living at poverty level. He realized that when he picked up his hand tools he was losing production time and therefore losing money. This statement will not sit well with hand plane addicts but I stand by it.

Good pointers. I'm mostly thinking in the capacity of giving some real substance to a booth for my wife. I'll make a short list of projects, and if i can get those done, then great. I remember making some squirrel feeders that were real simple "L" shaped with a nail in it for corn cobs. The wood all came from deck cutoffs from a friends house. I thought of doing a few of those too.

Again, I appreciate the ideas and tips. This is really what I was hoping for with this post. Thanks!

[atgcpaul]

Seems to me that folks are looking for a very rustic, country type looks. Sunflowers

How true! I went to a fair with my wife and it seemed like every other person
walking out of there had a 12" diameter sunflower attached to a wooden or
metal rod. I walked past that booth later and it was insane. I guess people
really like their sunflowers.


Paul

[RayintheUK]

What about a simple flower-pot hanger/holder, like this:



The pot is kept from falling by the outwards force its weight exerts. Can't find the actual design, but the drawing is fairly close. Once you'd got a template done, you could churn them out fairly simply with a saw, drill and router. Piece of rope/stout cord through the top hole as an alternate way of hanging it.

Ray.