Creating a Craft/Handmade Jewelry Look Book

I will be very honest and tell you that this has been one of the most difficult task for me to take on because your Look Book is literally a presentation of all your work and your statement piece when your items are not present.  It does give you that boost of sales you are looking for.  I am still working on my pieces and I cannot tell you how many times I have changed it.  The pages I am displaying are just sample pieces but I do plan on changing them because I feel simple is key.  You do want to make things easy for your viewers to search through your items but you do not want to take away from the merchandise on each page by adding a bunch of words and making the page look overwhelming to the eye.  It can be a turn off when there is too much going on.  You do however want to make sure you add the price listings to all your pieces because buyers do not want to try to figure out or ask how much each item cost.  

I went to the Innovative Bead Show this weekend in NJ and I have to say I was intrigued by this one booth but I was so annoyed that I had to ask the price for each and every item I was interested in.  When there is only one person at the booth with people interested in items and no prices listed, waiting for the sales person to even acknowledge you becomes a huge turn off and your customer walks away and you lose a sale.  That is what happened with this particular vendor and I.  I just didn't want to wait anymore than I had to and I was there for more almost 20 minutes.  

No imagine your customer looking through your Look Book and they may be interested in many items but they have to inquire about each and every one.  Now imagine that your Look Book is not even in your presence, are you honestly going to remember the price of each and every item including the new inventory just listed.  I highly doubt you will be able to do that unless it is an item that is a great seller. 

You can add the items on one page and the prices on the other.  You can match each item to the prices by added reference numbers or anything that will make it easier for your customer to order your merchandise. 

It was very difficult for me to find anything regarding a Look Book so as of right now, I used simple references and am making it up as I go.  Since I am having great difficulties, I hope that at least I can help you. 

It's a lot of work and patience to do because you want it to look good.  I am printing out all of my items on a 8.5 x 11 page using brochure paper because the quality is better.  You can easily have them printed elsewhere.  I am using the http://www.picmonkey.com to create my Look Book.  The program is pretty simple to use considering again, I knew nothing of what I was doing but I like how things came out.  

As you can see in the pictures above, one as a border and the other does not.  You have to play with your set up until you like it.  As I stated above, I am still trying to figure out what will work for me but I wanted to provide you with a sample so you at least have an idea of how you can set up your Look Book.  I am not even sure if this is the standard Look Book but it is a start and it looks good to have a portfolio of your items. 

As you can see one of these pictures has numbers and the other does not.  I wanted to give you an actual reference as to what I was referring to in regards to added numbers to each image to make it easier for your price points.  Since the image is already displayed with merchandise I have created, if I added the prices to this on top of what it looks like currently, your eyes would be every where instead of on each piece.  

This is the same concept but using different images of my merchandise. 

If you have any tips or ideas that would help me or others, please comment.  I would really like the feedback.

Reversible Acrylic Notepad Holder Tutorial with RSVP Pen

This is the easiest yet most practical and decorative way to get the best bang for your buck while creating a beautiful post-it note holder for your desk or to give as a gift to your co-worker or as a teacher gift.

The cheapest place that I have found that has these Acrylic Photo Frames was at the Christmas Tree Shop. You can also find them in Walmart for $0.95 each. 

The most important thing to do is make sure you cut the paper exact to the measurements of the photo frame.  So if you purchase a 3.5 x 5 frame, make sure you cut the designer paper to that size.  I personally like to cut out two different designs and sometimes it is not from the same paper collection. The reason why I do this is to really give the feel of having a versatile desk top post-it holder.  I rather someone feel like they have an entirely different product rather than similar designer papers.  

I personally like to use the 3.5" x 5" horizontal Acrylic photo holder.  I cut out my papers according to this size and use the Scotch Pink ATG Gun to glue everything together.  You can also use glue dots if you plan on using punches to add to your designer paper.  You can either use the punches as decorative accents or you can use stamps.  Either way have fun and be creative with your designs.  You can add ribbons and florals as well. 

I do not really like to use the 3.5" x 5" Vertical Acrylic photo holder because I feel it makes the product seem week when you write on the post-its. 

Once I design and create the template (keep in mind it cannot be elevated with designs because it will not slide in the frame), I slide finished product into the frame and position a 3" x 3" post-it holder to where I feel it will look best.  I usually glue the bottom of the post-its to the top of the frame using my ATG gun.  You can actually add 3 dimensional objects on top of the frame and surrounding the post-it for a added touch.  

To create a matching pen and post-it holder set, you can cut the same designer paper down to 1" x 3.5" or 3/4" x 3.5".  Once you have cut the paper, you will remove the cap of the RSVP pen which you can also purchase at Walmart at a discounted price and remove the ink refill and wrap the paper around it for a perfect fit.  Make sure to tightly wrap the designer paper and enter it into the pen case and match the line seam of the designer paper to the bevel edges on the pen so it gives a flawless look.  Close the cap and you have a matching pen set.  

Believe me when I tell you, the hardest part will be coming up with the right design. ENJOY!

 

You can always add a special touch and create a matching purse gift card holder.  It's a great gift to give to a birthday girl, bridal shower or any other occasion. 

 

Kolping on Hudson Craft Fair in Montrose, NY

By heart I am a Country Girl and the setting here was absolutely amazing and I could not have asked for a better backdrop.  The people who attended the event in the County Club were so very pleasant and happy. The charge for the booth was extremely reasonable ($20.00) and I was told I could bring a table to use or use one of their picnic tables.  I chose to use my picnic table only because I needed to know what my exact display would be.  It's hard to use someone else's table not knowing the full measurements or what you should bring.  If it is one thing you never want to do for a craft fair is overload yourself and bring so much that you lose out.  I brought exactly what would fit on the table and even that I overloaded my car.  I can't stress to you enough if you can buy a van do so, lol.  I have a 2010 Gallant and I could hardly fit any of my stuff in it.  I was squeezing my daughter in the back seat and it was the funniest scene ever to try to pack everything up in the car and trunk.  I actually wished I took a picture of the loading aspect and how crazy we must have looked.

Here are a few pictures of my booth and backdrop:

I tried to prep myself in advance so that I packed everything up in a way that it would be easy for me to display it in order without a problem.  Of course not everything goes according to plan but you can try.  I think I spent hours packing for the show but when we got there the unloading and displaying took us no more than 30 minutes.  Many people were impressed with my set up and if I may say so myself and not to toot my own horn but I did have the best set up.  

Here are some pictures of the midnight madness craft fair booth prep.... it was literally midnight and we were worn out trying to set this up:

Once again your personality comes into play at craft shows and when you are a people person, it makes a difference in how people interact with you.  I love people so I was fine. If you do not interact with them, you will not get sales.  Do not expect miracles to happen. 

This is just a picture of my mom and nephew when the craft fair was done and after we packed up.  I just wanted to share with you just how amazing the scenery was. 

The most memorable thing that happened to me was with this one particular customer and I really wish I took a picture of her.  This little girl was so intrigued with my stuff she kept coming back and buying things. Her mom at one point asked her to take her back to her favorite vendor and she came to me.  I loved her. Not only was she absolutely adorable but she was so sweet and when I was packing up to go home she came back to buy something else.  I was so happy with how much she loved my stuff and her enthusiasm that before she left I told her to pick out whatever earrings she wanted and I would give them to her as a gift.  She was a smart cookie because she picked out my Swarovski earrings that had not one pair but two pairs of earrings and I was true to my word and gifted them to her.  She was so grateful but it is customers like that who make me happy and want to do more and create stuff for customers that make them smile and just as happy as my items made her.  I thank her for just being her.