The Buds of May

Next weekend I am participating in a jewelry show called The Buds of May. It will be held in Regina, Saskatchewan at the West Harvest Inn in the Solarium Room. I am looking forward to going, however I am a little nervous as I have never attended this show before.

It is always nerve wracking when participating in a new show. You never know what to expect. How will the room be set up? How much space do I get? What do I need to bring? What don't I need to bring? How do I look like I know what I am doing and not just flying by the seat of my pants?

I try to plan for any senario I can think of. I know this time I get one table. I haven't set up a one table display in a long time and I have a LONG list of items in stock. I will bring everything, but I will likely only put out a couple of certain items or none of some things.

It is also nice to know what sort of clientel to expect. Are they looking for quality items or a bargain. I have been to shows of each. And a bargain to one person is an outragous price to another. There is no pleasing everyone anywhere.

You have to walk into the situation expecting anything, but remember for next year what it was like so you can plan accordingly.

I have never been to an all jewelry show. This is also something totally new. The biggest problem with that is not to undercut or overprice your work as compared to the other sellers. I hope mine is inline. It will be impossible to tell until I get there and see what everyone else charges.

Price has always been a problem with me. I want people to be able to afford my work, so I don't tend to use sterling silver in a lot of my pieces. I do have some pieces with sterling silver, just not very many. I am happy to make anything for someone in whatever materials they want (provided I have access to said materials), but for now I am trying to make affordable quality pieces. (I once had a woman ask for sterling silver because it wouldn't tarnish as my plated pieces do. I had to let her know that all sterling silver does tarnish, the only difference is that silver plated can wear off over time. She didn't care. She still wanted the sterling silver. I have found that putting my jewelry into plastic zip locking baggies helps to prevent tarnishing.)

Everyone uses different pieces and styles for their jewelry. I guess if I am happy with what I am charging for a piece and am making something on it, I shouldn't feel as if I am over or undercharging for my work. It really shouldn't be "comparable" to other artists. It is what it is.

There are 10 artists in total that will be attending this show. I think I have met only two of them. Here is a list of the artists:

Chase and Ollie

Prairie Sky Creations

EllJay Design

Shauna Mitru

The Finishing Touch by Roxanne Brown

Charming Betties

Stonewench Handcrafted Jewellery

DD Jewellery Designs

Susan Betker

and me - Carelebeads

If you know any of these talented artists and want to see their work in person, come on down on May 1, 2010 to the West Havest Inn, 4025 Albert Street, Regina, Saskatchewan from 10am to 5pm and see all of us.

Hope to see you there!