How should I organize my line sheets?  By collections or by category (such as earrings, necklaces, etc)? Thanks! Sonia Schimke, via e-mail   I think the size of your line will determine this.  A small tight line that reads as a collection would be presented that way.  When I was buying for the shop I [...]

      I am going back into arts and crafts after ten years. I am going to do a lot of personalized items like country wreaths with names painted on them. I’m even going to do personalized dog collars and belts—anything that I can personalize. These are some of the items I used to make but [...]

  I’ve been wondering about this for a while now and haven’t figured out how to handle it. I sell beaded jewelry and have my pieces on consignment at a number of shops. Occasionally, a show owner will call to tell me a customer has broken her piece of jewelry and she’s asking me to [...]

    My son was helping me around the woodshop over the past few years, but he will be going to college next fall. Unfortunately, I think I’ll still need some part-time help, but don’t have anyone I know that I can bring in. I’ve heard that I might be able to get an intern or [...]

  After 12 years in my handcrafted clothing business, I decided it’s time that I give my paperwork a makeover. The one thing I am most concerned with is the invoice I send with all purchases. My old one was hand-written and now I realize it should be more professional. What kind of information should [...]

 My husband got a new job and we will be moving to a whole new region of the United States. Along with this comes a new phone number and address. What can I do ahead of time to let my customers know about these changes? Can I send a press release or a postcard?  Also, [...]

I have been consigning my work in the same gallery for a number of years now, and I just realized they don’t have a policy in place for items broken by customers. You know, “You break it, you buy it”? Another artist’s glass ornament was knocked off of its display by someone passing by, and [...]

I currently make decorative ceramic platters, bowls and vases. I was asked recently why I don’t use food-safe glazes, and I guess I just never thought about it. Would my products be more marketable if they were food-safe? Or would they lose their artistic edge as a decoration-only piece? What if some were food-safe and [...]

I am looking to participate in my first show, but I’m not really sure what shows to apply for. How can I find a show that will be successful for me? What kinds of questions should I ask the show promoters, or should I just go by the information on their website and brochures? There [...]

I would like to design and construct a unique, hard-walled, indoor booth suitable for some of the high-end fine art/craft shows. I have been able to locate a wealth of good information on tent-style outdoor booths, but very little on the more elaborate hard-walled displays seen at many of the national shows. Do you know [...]