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Sunday, July 18, 2010

A Much Needed Break

Hi Guys, I'm back from a very hot, fun, exciting one-day show.  This show was in Willoughby, Ohio--just outside of  Cleveland.  And doesn't  it  sound  like  the   name  of a  town that  you  would  read  about   in a  story  book?  Well, it's  that  kind  of  town.  And  like  I  said  in my  last  post,  it  was all  along  the  main street  and  in the cute little  park that was  there  (everything  was  cute there!)

Here's  everyone  setting up   in  the morning.  The  weather  wasn't  too bad,  as far  as the heat  and  humidity,  but you could  tell that  that  the  day  was  going   to  be a  scorcher!

You  can  click  on  any  of  these  photos  for  a closer  look.


And  you  know,  you  can  always  tell  when  the  residents  support  their  town  by   the  types  of shops that  are  flourishing  there.






The  town's  downtown  area  is only  a  few blocks,  but  it's  pretty  much  filled  with  local  businesses like  these,  not  to  mention  the  great  restaurant  selections.  I've  never  seen  so  many  restaurants (with such great food)  to  choose  from  in  such  a  short  distance  from one  another,  except  in larger  cities.  (forgot  to  take  photos of  the  restaurants!)

So,  seeing  all  of  this,  you  can  imagine  how  many people  showed  up  for the festival,  despite  the  high  temperatures  and  humidity.




And  yes,  these  people  supported  us  artists,  by puchasing  art.  Needless  to  say,  you can see why   this is one of   my  favorite  shows--great town--very  friendly people--and  an  added  bonus  of  excellent  sales.  I  made  as much  money  in  one  day as  I  did  in 3  days from  the show  last  week.

Plus,  I  forgot to mention that they had  a  very  impressive  farmer's  market  there  (which  is  weekly).



A  large  variety  of   produce  and  a  BIG  selection  of  Amish baked  items!
 

I  was  even  able  to get a  great  photo to  use  in  my  artwork--


Loved this house!!


And  my  intuituion  was right.  Remember  the boxes,  the mirror, and the embossed  metal  piece--ALL SOLD!  I  was  only able to  make 5  of  the  boxes, but   I  know now  what  I'm  bringing   for  my  fall  shows--they're great  for Christmas  presents.

And  there  was  one  more  tip that  I  wanted  to  share  with  you  about  selling  your  art  at  shows.  This  goes for everyone.  Alot  of  times  you'll   sell  out of something--everyone wants  one.  So  you'll  always  make  sure  to  make  a  TON   for the next  show, and  when you  do,  not  a  one will sell--this  is  very  common--just  ask  any  crafter  or artist.  In  this case, though, just the opposite  happened--my boxes went  just  like that!

So now I  don't have a  show until September--I need this break--it  was becoming very hard to do this  all  the time.  I  think that  I  would  actually  like to  clean  my  house  now  if  I  can  remember  how to.

37 comments:

  1. A well deserved "rest"! Altho, I'm sure you will be painting like crazy, but at least it will be inside in the air conditioning! Hope you got one of those cool spots under the trees at the craft fair!!

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  2. Diane - that's awesome! So glad folks are buying art! Congrats on a very successful show and thanks for sharing:)

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  3. Happy to hear that the art show was a big success for you. I enjoyed looking at the pictures of the town...take a much deserved rest...
    Mary

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  4. wow!! that looks like so much fun :) what a huge art fair. and the place is beautiful! congrats on the success of your show :)

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  5. Great stuff Diane. It looked like a fab show - would have been lovely to be there!
    That house looks like it has to be in a story - something like Anne of Green Gables...

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  6. Im soo glad that you did awesome at the show!!! Love all the pictures and especially the house!:O) Thanx for sharing such great tips with us Diane:O)

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  7. Thank you Diane for sharing your day! Congratulations on your sales!

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  8. Congratulations with a wonderfull show, Diane.
    looks very fantastic there, with all the tents, with great stuff under, such a pretty place, would have been fantastic, slowly walking through it all.
    Hugs, Dorthe

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  9. how great that you did so well....i know these small ohio towns...i was born and raised in youngstown, ohio...my brother is in hudson and i still have family in youngstown.... ;)

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  10. I'm glad you had a good show Diane, you really deserve it! Your pieces are awesome..I really loved the boxes you made! (actually, I love everything you make) Thanks for sharing so much about the shows you do. I've been thinking of finding shows here in Charlotte but I'm so nervous that no one will buy anything I've made!

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  11. That is awesome Diane...Don't worry about that house cleaning..It will always be there for the next day..LOL..Someone told me once you won't be lying on your death bed wishing you had spent more time cleaning your house.Create create create!!!!

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  12. Such good news that you did so well at the show, Diane, and what a darling town too. Loved the pics, especially the house....lots of charm!

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  13. Congratulations on having such a great show and thanks for the tips on boxes! The town you were in looked SO charming(O: That house you photographed is right up my ally!!

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  14. Good work at the show! ah heck, paint up a bunch of boxes anyway....
    love that house too! beautiful detail; wouldn't you just love to take a look inside???

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  15. Hi Diane, how awesome! Great photos and how neat that you sold all your boxes. Now you got me wanting to do boxes. Looks like it all worked out great for you. Have a wonderful week.

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  16. Whew! Makes me tired just thinking about doing a show....haven't done one for a spell...but have one coming up in November. Looks like a lovely town you were in! Congrats on a successful weekend! Your art is wonderful!

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  17. With a show like that one, you deserve a rest. Isn't it amazing how art shows differ so widely? And once you know what really sells, you can tailor your pieces to fit the show.

    Did you ever consider keeping one box back with a NFS sign on it, so people could order one?

    When you remember how to clean house, please come show me. I keep getting distracted and must have it finished tonight!

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  18. So glad you had a good show. What a charming town; and that house looks like it came straight out of a story book. Thanks for sharing your experience with us.

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  19. Congrats on the sales! You do deserve it. The town looks beautiful, and I'm so happy it's an art-friendly one. No wonder you enjoy it there so much. Enjoy your much-deserved rest! Theresa

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  20. That's great Diane!! selling your work is so rewarding! all that hard work paying off! I love your pics. I miss doing craft shows, they don't have anything like that in Greece :(
    xoxo

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  21. Diane, you just took me back to my old show days. All that you wrote was so true. I exhibited at 30 shows a year for 31 years!!!!! In many ways I miss it but I remember the hard, hard work of selling and rushing home to create and restock. I never did shows in Ohio, since I moved away when I was young. Willoughby is a beautiful little town and I'm so glad it is still thriving. (I'm from Warren, Ohio)

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  22. Hooray,I'm so glad you had a great show,it makes all your hard work worth it. That house is beautiful! The whole town sounds amazing. And yes you do need a break. I know what you mean about cleaning,sometimes the house gets so bad you actually want to clean.Enjoy the rest of your summer.

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  23. Nice stuff. It looks like fun!

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  24. This looks like just the type of show and town I'd like to stroll through. So good to hear of the support of all of the arts there.
    adorable town. Enjoy your break.
    Blessings
    T

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  25. Congrats on the sale! :) I can tell from the pics you had fun.

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  26. It does look like a delightful town, congrats on your sales, you deserved them.

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  27. What a great post! So happy to hear your show went well, and what a lovely little town. Thanks for sharing it with us. Happy resting...and creating!

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  28. how lovely!
    & i love your hippie girl box below!!!

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  29. Hi Diane! Wow, that's fabulous! Congrats on all your well deserved sales! Thanks for your sharing your art show journey with us! Have a lovely week! :)

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  30. Congrats Diane! This looks like a lovely show, makes me want to have been there but will just have to visit through your photos.

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  31. Yes, a well deserved rest! And congratulations on your sales! But of course!!! You stuff is fabulous!!!

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  32. Congratulations on the success of the show!! What a wonderful town too :-)

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  33. Thanks for all the pictures; I felt like I was there (without the heat)....so glad you had a good day and sold lots of stuff...sounds kinda like where I grew up..

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  34. hi diane...about columbiana....it has been forever since i have been there and i am sure it has changed like all other small town....i am anxious to hear about your show there......again, i love all of the beautiful work that you do....take time to smell the roses, though.... hugs

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  35. wow, how wonderful that the show was a success - it's so hard to pull them off, I'm glad you steamed through it:) thanks for sharing all the lovely photos - towns like Willoughby are too few and far between!

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  36. Ah well done Diane; what a satisfying day for you. Looks like a lovely place for an art show.
    And how good to know that your art is spreading far and wide!
    Enjoy your rest.....

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  37. How wonderful this town is! Glad you enjoyed your show and did well! congratulations! It looks like so much fun!

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