Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Makers in Business with Liz Smith Ep 208 Question and Answer

Hello!

For this month's episode of Makers in Business I did something new, I requested questions from folks on the internet and answered them! I wasn't sure how it would go, I was nervous like it was my very first episode. I thought ahead about what I wanted to say but when I got in front of the camera I ad-libbed the answers. I hope you find this episode interesting and helpful. And if you asked a question I answered, I want to send extra thanks! Please share my show with your friends and fellow makers.We are all part of a great community that helps and encourages each other and that is my favorite thing, basically ever.

xo
Liz


Link to the video on Vimeo:
Makers in Business with Liz Smith Episode 208

Find the audio only version of this episode here:
Audio only Episode 208

Or subscribe on iTunes

My show airs locally in Lowell on LTC Comcast Channel 8 on Tuesdays at 6:30 PM and Thursdays at 8:30. New shows monthly. For more information about Lowell Local Access TV, visit http://LTC.org

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

LTC Producer of the Year!

Me with my award
I could not be more honored and excited! LTC recently held their annual potluck dinner where awards were handed out. I was so fortunate to be chosen Producer of the Year for Makers in Business! I am overjoyed and over the moon. I could not have done it without my director/editor, Catherine Zaker. She is an awesome person and the other half of this two person TV show team. 

Catherine, me, and Jessica at the beginning of Makers in Business

Jessica Wilson, the executive director of the TV station, is the whole reason I have a show at all! She is the best cheerleader, hand holder, and general force for awesomness!

And of course I wouldn't have a show without all my amazing guests! Thanks to everyone who has been on my show, and also to everyone who watches, listens to, and spreads the word about Makers in Business!

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Makers in Business with Liz Smith Ep 207 Maxine Farkas

I had fun sitting down with Maxine Farkas, the manager at Western Avenue Studios in Lowell, MA where I have my studio. I found out how she got started in her textile and mixed media arts and we talked about the significance for artists of having a studio space.


Link to the video on Vimeo:
http://vimeo.com/madeinlowell/maxinefarkas

Find the audio only version of this interview here:

Or subscribe on iTunes

Find Maxine Farkas online here:

http://maxinefarkas.com

Western Avenue Studios in Lowell, MA:
http://westernavenuestudios.com

Western Avenue Lofts:
http://liveatwas.com/

My show airs locally in Lowell on LTC Comcast Channel 8 on Tuesdays at 6:30 PM and Thursdays at 8:30. New shows monthly. For more information about Lowell Local Access TV, visit http://LTC.org


A corner of Maxine's Studio
An early art quilt
A group quilt from Lowell
Textile art
Lowell art quilt
Quilt show catalog
Mixed media assemblage
Mixed media assemblage
Mixed media assemblage
An apartment in the Western Avenue Lofts
A studio at Western Avenue Lofts

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Thanks for your questions!

In my last post I solicited questions that I might answer on the December episode of Makers in Business. Thank you to everyone who asked a question!

I chose 8 questions from those left here on the blog and posted on Twitter. As promised, I used a random number generator to choose a winner for a Makers in Business mug. And the winner is...
Lucky number 8! That's the number I assigned to Brian Hogue's question, @BHogueSun on Twitter. Congratulations Brian! The mugs are being made locally here at Western Avenue Studios by Wren and Rose Studio and I'll contact you about how to get your prize to you when I have them in hand.

I still haven't seen the footage of my questions show, we're editing tomorrow, I may have trainwrecked it, if not, it will be available in December!

Friday, October 11, 2013

Ask me a question!


Hello,

I hope you are well. As you know I am deep in the throes of holiday inventory production. But I am also still creating new episodes of my TV interview show, Makers in Business. In each episode I talk with people who make things and sell them for a living. For December I'd like to do something fun and different. I'd like to post an episode where I answer any questions you'd like to ask me on the topic of making things and selling them!

Your question can be to me specifically or just a general question you think I might have some information/insight about. To make it more universal I won't be mentioning who asked each question so you don't have to worry about it if you'd rather be anonymous!

Whenever I participate in Open Studios or do a show, I often engage with other makers at different stages of their businesses. Everyone has questions about the next steps they should take. What do other people do about this and that? Everyone is unique in their situation, but I think all the discussions, like on my show, have universal themes and practical information that could be helpful to anyone on this creative business path.


So please post your question in the comments or on Twitter and let folks on social media know that I'm putting this out there as well. To make this even more fun I'm offering a free Makers in Business mug #swag to a random participant!

IMPORTANT: Questions must be in by Monday, October 14 at 5 PM to be eligible for the TV show and the giveaway.

Thanks,
Liz

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Makers in Business with Liz Smith Ep 206 Swirly Designs by Lianne & Paul Stoddard

Meet Paul and Lianne Stoddard, the married couple behind Swirly Designs by Lianne and Paul! I had so much fun interviewing them both about how they run their business, what they did to accommodate a creative business while raising a family, and which kinds of advertising and promotion turned out to work for them. I think there's so much to learn in this episode plus Paul and Lianne are just good company. Take a look or listen!


Link to the video on Vimeo:
http://vimeo.com/madeinlowell/swirlydesigns

Find the audio only version of this interview here:

Or subscribe on iTunes

Find Swirly Designs online here:
http://swirlydesigns.com/

My show airs locally in Lowell on LTC Comcast Channel 8 on Tuesdays at 6:30 PM and Thursdays at 8:30. New shows monthly. For more information about Lowell Local Access TV, visit http://LTC.org


Paul and Lianne

Steps in the process

Halloween

Easter

Valentine's Day

Swirly Designs at a craft show

Putting together a Halloween collection

Paul and Lianne at work in their home studio

From concept to creation

A holiday collection

Christmas

Beautiful handmade holiday ornaments



Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Prepping for holiday craft shows

First, an UPDATE to add thanks to Lisa and Diane for inviting me to be part of this fascinating and helpful blog hop!

I've been selling my work at craft shows since the late 1980s and I should feel like an expert at this point but I don’t! Sure, I know how to do all the tasks associated with applying to, making inventory for, setting up at, and selling at a show. But each time holiday show season comes around I am gripped with the same manic/panic energy. Will I have enough inventory? Will my right people show up at this event? Do I have new items for repeat customers? How can I make my display work to my best advantage?

Preparing for holiday shows is a big project that spans many months. In order to handle all these questions I take them in bite sized pieces.

Setting up my show schedule:

There’s so much I could say about choosing which shows to apply to, what it’s like relying on unpredictable and juried holiday shows for a large chunk of your income (I generally make HALF my entire year’s revenue between October and December), and what happens when you don’t get in or the show is discontinued, or two great shows are scheduled for the same weekend, but that’s for another post.

I’ll just mention applying to shows. A lot of big holiday shows that don’t happen until December will put applications online well before August. It’s good to be on their mailing lists as well as keep an eye on social media for when applications are up so you don’t miss deadlines. Not that that’s ever happened to me, ahem. (Yes it has.)

If you get in, (not everyone gets in!) there’s a moment of euphoria and relief which lasts about 15 minutes. After that the manic/panic probably sets in. Or if the show date is far enough away, a blissful denial will wash over you instead. Until roughly September 15th.

If you aren't sure if your right people, customers who will connect specifically with your products, will be at the shows you are thinking of applying to, you can either apply and take a chance or you can spend a season just attending, as a buyer, all the shows you are considering and see for yourself before you make an investment.

My inventory struggles:

Inventory making in process
Here’s the thing, my product line is WAY TOO BIG. I make too may different things. I have a lot of trouble keeping my super labor-intensive inventory stocked fully. But I have not appeared to have learned anything from this painful fact. Everything I make sells pretty well and I only rarely discontinue items that really just will not move.  Each year I swear I will start making things earlier in the season but it’s my experience that without the threat of a date certain, a looming deadline, I will mosey along making things here and there until about September 15th (as noted above). That’s when I will get serious and start crying when I realize the size of the workload I've saddled myself with and vow to start in April next year. Rinse, repeat.

Here I am overwhelmed by inventory making
That being said I haven’t really figured out the best way to stock efficiently. I've tried making only one thing for one week (say full sized pincushion cupcakes), but in a job of production craftwork which is all about being OK with repetition and a certain amount of tedium (salved with hundreds of hours of podcasts and intravenous caffeine) that method really tests the limits of patience and focus. So I've tried broadening out and working in one medium (needle felting, for example, or polymer clay) for a few weeks at a time, completing a few of each item every day, thereby getting a variety of items made, keeping from going batty and/or really getting sick of something, but giving up a bit of that production mode efficiency.

Sleepy Sheep ornaments in progress
This year I’m trying something slightly different. I've started a bunch of needle felted items and I've been working this way for a few weeks. The idea is to get the base parts made and embellish a few to the end here and there when I get bored making the starter pieces. But this makes me worry I won’t be able to finish making each item to the final step and still leave time for working in another medium because I could spend a month making just base parts and still not have any finished product. I’ll let you know how this works out.

Me, gleefully felting wool
I’m still never really sure how much is enough. Each maker has their own inventory level that makes them feel like they have everything under control. No-one else can see it though. You’ll come across a table filled with goods and tell your maker friend “Wow, looks great! You got so much made!” and they’ll cringe and sigh and say “But I’m missing ____”. In general I want a base minimum of a dozen of each product for each show, idealistically 36+ so there’s plenty of overstock and color variety. Not sure I've ever achieved that but you gotta have goals.

Finished inventory
Any maker will tell you it is super hard to predict which item will be the big hit at a show. And what might be a hit at one might be a dud at another. It’s exhilarating to realize one of your products is selling like hotcakes (mmmm, cake) but totally agonizing to run out of it before a show is over knowing you could have made more sales if only you’d known. This is probably the primary panic-fuel that production crafters operate on.

Another thing I think about is making new items for repeat customers. If I don’t come up with fresh goods I know I will get a lot of friendly folks walking by my table with arms folded and warm smiles saying “Oh I love those, I got one last year.” And that’s the end of the exchange. Boo. A lot of my ideas for new items or even just fun new variations on existing products come in October when inventory making is at its peak frenzy (and I am not yet a November production zombie). That  point in the season seems to be when the creative ideas part of my brain is really cooking but there’s no time for new product development because INVENTORY.

I've tried writing the October ideas down to tackle in quiet February but that hasn't worked for me. Apparently I need that frenzied production energy to follow through on new ideas because production is research and development and is not always successful. That takes time and it takes a mental toll. Now I try to allow time to sneak in product development in the midst of everything else I’m doing. If I can’t get the items to a finished state for the current season at least I’ve got more to start with next October when I’ll undoubtedly get ideas for tweaking them to success or it will be clear I can ditch them and try something else.

My displays

I have a habit in my home, and also in my studio and with my table set up, of finding something that works and just sticking with it forever. I might tweak it or add new display pieces over time but I’m not big into a total display overhaul each season like I know some makers are. I just don’t have that kind of brain. Do I wish a Display Optimizer Fairy would alight on my shoulder and guide me to the perfect craft show table arrangement? I might. On the other hand, I do like my display and it works just fine.

If you are setting up for the first time or want to test a new arrangement I recommend setting your table up in your studio or home and taking a picture when you get it where you like it. Check out Flickr for craft show display inspiration but DON’T COPY SOMEONE ELSE’S LOOK. Goodness, sorry, I didn't mean to yell there. You already know not to copy.


Six foot table craft show set up
8 foot studio gallery set up
One thing to keep in mind is you might have everything perfectly arranged for a 6 foot space but arrive the morning of the show to find you've got 8 feet. Or a corner! Which is all good, but totally changes everything you planned. Alternately I saw a vendor completely thrown because she only had 6 feet when she thought she had 8. Bring extra table covers and display pieces. You might have to improvise on the spot.

Selling what I make

I enjoy interacting with customers. I worked in retail for decades and learned the rhythms and language of sales. I am proud of my creations and confident that people who like what they see on my display will enjoy owning my work or giving it as gifts. I have my prices configured so I can afford to keep being a maker and I’m not afraid to gently, kindly defend them to people who don’t quite understand how handmade is priced.

Insane crowd at a good holiday show
That said, selling is a skill, and it’s work. Very few items sell themselves. I know a lot of makers are introverts and selling their things is excruciating at the same time it is so gratifying to get that positive feedback. It can also be crushing when people say rude and thoughtless things. I don’t have much advice on being more comfortable with selling if that really is not fun for you. But I will say if you really hate it I give you full permission to never do shows! Sell online or through shops. No need to torture yourself. But if you don’t hate it, you just feel awkward, keep at it, you will improve over time.

So that’s what I've been thinking about lately as I prep for 3 big holiday shows plus Open Studios this year. Check out my schedule in the sidebar and stop by if you’re local! Or find me in my Etsy shop or at the shops listed to the right that carry my work.

Please check out these other posts on the topic of tackling a big creative project!

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Makers in Business with Liz Smith Ep 205 Mimi Kirchner


Hello! This month I'm featuring an interview I did with Mimi Kirchner. Mimi makes amazing art dolls that are incredibly collectible. Her work is distinct, meticulous, and lovely with a sense of humor that delights. Although she has been a maker all her life, she she did not start out making dolls for a living. Watch or listen to this fascinating episode to hear all about her artistic journey.


Link to the video on Vimeo:
http://vimeo.com/madeinlowell/mimikirchner

Find the audio only version of this interview here:

Or subscribe on iTunes

Find Mimi Kirchner online here:
MimiKirchner.com

My show airs locally in Lowell on LTC Comcast Channel 8 on Tuesdays at 6:30 PM and Thursdays at 8:30. New shows monthly. For more information about Lowell Local Access TV, visit http://LTC.org


Examples of Mimi's ceramics work

An early doll

Choosing buttons

Mimi's desk crowded with works in progress

Works in progress

Pinning a beard on a doll before hand sewing

One of Mimi's fabulous lumberjacks

A beautiful tattooed lady

Dapper Mr. Fox

Sweet swaddled baby

Mimi's craft show set up