Today, I am excited to feature a very talented artist, Colorfly Studio, who works with a lovely mix of different media. She paints canvases with beautiful, bright colors. Her work really makes me smile! I love how bright it is, and how eye-catching it is. Her setup is very nice - it has clean lines, and really draws all of the viewers' attention to the work itself! The bright white background is a nice contrast to her colorful work.
She was nice enough to take the time to answer a few of my questions about her successes at shows and such...
1.) Please tell us a bit about yourself:
Name/Company Name: My name is Jennifer DeDonato and my company name is Colorfly Studio. The reason Colorfly Studio came about is because people had a very hard time saying my last name so I felt I needed to come up with a easy memorable company name. My husband came up with Colorfly because of my love for color and I am crazy about dragonflies and butterflies.
General Location if you want: Houston, Texas
Website or Contact Info: www.colorflystudio.com takes you to my site and my etsy shop is www.colorflystudio.etsy.com
See her on Flickr here.
2.) What form of art/craft do you make? I used to use only paper but in the past years I have added acrylic paints and dye ink into the mix. So I would officially call myself a mixed media artist.
3.) When did you start vending at Craft Fairs? I started about two years ago. Were you successful at first? My very first show was wonderful and I couldn't have asked for a better response to my work. I thought it might be a fluke so I kind of blew it off as such but then I had another big show and it went really great.
4.) What is/was your favorite Art/Craft Fair you have ever
attended/vended at and why? My favorite art fair is the First Saturday Arts Market in the Heights area of Houston. I am lucky to live in a city that has a wonderful art scene! I love it because the artists that attend are so amazingly talented and friendly. It's also great because the market happens the first Saturday of very month so if you attend on a regular basis it becomes like a little store front.
5.) What was your least favorite Fair to attend/vend at? I did a local craft show and it was not good.
Why? The main reason was it wasn't the right audience. The people attending were mostly consultants for other companies like Mary Kay, Stampin Up!, Taste of Home. I didn't know this ahead of time and now I think it's important to check to see what other vendors will be attending.
6.) What tends to be your target audience? Young couples with children and women.
7.) Do you ever do marketing for your upcoming shows, or do
you leave it to the Show Coordinators? If you do promotions,
how do you do them, and do they seem to work well? Do you
ever do giveaways at shows? Give out lots of business cards,
etc... I have a blog that I promote my upcoming shows on. I have had several people come out to meet me because of that. I end up giving out a lot of business cards. I am working on a email newsletter that will go out to my past customers to let them know where I will be and what work will be available.
8.) Have you ever helped put a show together or run a show?
Which one(s)? Goodness NO...that is so much work and I have my hands full just getting my EZ Up canopy in place.
9.) How have Flickr, Etsy, Facebook, etc helped you expand
your crafty business? I have all three of these accounts. The only way Facebook helps me is it lets my family and friends know where I am going to be. I think the account that has helped me the most is Flickr. So many people are able to see my work because you can join specific groups geared toward your work. For example Mixed Media, Quote Art Group or Cut Paper Artwork just to name a few. You join these groups and then you can put your work in the group pool. This is great because Flickr will let you know when new work is added to the groups you have joined. I found on Etsy that you just get lost and it's hard to advertise. I say that because when I have gone to promote, the ad spaces have always been sold out. I think if Etsy decides to promote you as a featured seller then you're golden but to try to promote yourself is really challenging.
10.) What do you think the difference is between an Art
Show and a Craft Fair? If there is any difference...I think the main difference is the prices. At an art show you will have original artwork or one of a kind jewelry that can cost some big bucks, At a craft fair you are going to find items sold in multiples.
11.) If you wish, please list your upcoming shows for 2010
and beyond. Vox Culture (Feb 19), First Saturday Artist Market Houston Heights (March 6) CITYCENTRE Spring Market 2010 (March 27, 28), Midtown Art In The Park (April 10) , Cross Creek Ranch Arts Festival in (April)
12.) Any words of advice for people who do not think their
setup is as good as it could be? What is your most
successful layout for a table or booth. Be as general or
specific as you want. I have had my booth every way possible! I have noticed that as patrons are walking and looking they usually want to be left alone to take your booth in. I put my table off to the side so the artwork can be seen and where I am not intimidating buyers. Nothing worse than a person thinking they are going to get pounced on. If someone comes in I greet them and leave them to look. However, after a few minutes striking up a small conversation is always good. Something like..."All my work is made using paper and paint. Oh, and I make my own frames." That usually leads to other questions and the longer they stay in your space the odds of them buying increase. Always say hello to kids and pets ALWAYS! I have little things for small children to keep like (goldfish, lollipops, etc). One market I attend has SO many dogs owners so we started giving little treats for them. I think having a small table with some goods on it right outside your booth is key. I put less expensive items there like cards, magnets, prints. It gets their attention and then they come in and look.
13.) Any closing remarks? Best of luck!
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