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How to Buy a Sewing Machine: Choosing Your New Best Friend

November 29, 2013 by AllFreeSewing 13 Comments

So you want to buy a sewing machine. The options are endless—so endless, in fact, that buying a sewing machine can be incredibly intimidating, especially for beginners. More experienced sewists may have a better idea of what they’re looking for, as previous sewing machines may have had features that they liked or would prefer to do without. But for beginning sewists, buying a sewing machine is totally overwhelming.

Well, have no fear! We at AllFreeSewing are here to help. If you’re a beginner sewist out to buy your first sewing machine, keep these simple tips in mind and the whole process will be fuss free.

Home Machine or Industrial?

Antique Home Sewing Machine

The first decision you’ll have to make as you set out to choose your new sewing machine is whether you want a home or heavy duty sewing machine. I know it can be tempting to fall for all the bells and whistles that industrial sewing machines offer, but be honest with yourself: are you going to need it? How often do you plan to sew? If this is a machine that you’ll be using almost every day, or if you’ll be making items to sell, it may be worth the price to buy an industrial machine, as they tend to deliver a bit of a neater stitch and are often much faster than home machines. Keep in mind, however, that industrial machines are exponentially more expensive than home machines—they can come with a price tag of up to $2000.

Oh, For the Good Old Days

To compare, good home machines generally cost between $200-$600, depending on how many features and extras the machine has. For a beginner sewist who plans to use her machine a few times a week, these machines are going to be a great fit. They are far more portable than industrial machines and tend to be a bit simpler to use.

Another thing you need to ask yourself is: What type of projects do you want to tackle? Home machines are built to handle a large variety of sewing tasks, from quilting to tailoring, whereas some industrial machines are a bit more specialized. This is, of course, not always the case, and you can certainly find industrial machines that are able to sew the kinds of projects you’re making. But it is something to keep in mind.

Sight, Sound, Touch

The very first thing you want to do when you’re looking at sewing machines is, well, sew something. Pay attention to the sights and sounds that the machine makes as you’re using it. Does the motor sputter or kick? Does it sound like there’s something grinding or bumping? You want your stitching to run as smoothly as possible, and one of the best ways to tell whether or not your motor has an issue is just to listen to it. A nice, single-tone hum usually indicates that all is well “under the hood.”

Straight and Zigzag StitchesNow, look at the stitches that you’ve made. Are they even? If your stitches vary in length (for example, if one stitch is twice as long as the next) then that means your machine is skipping a stitch, which will cause endless headaches and problems down the road. So be sure that each stitch is the same length. Turn the fabric over—do the stitches look the same on the back as they do in the front? Ideally, you don’t want to be able to tell which side of the fabric is meant to be the “visible” side (at least, not by the stitches).

Sewing machines are complex beasts, so be sure that you thoroughly understand the way that your potential new sewing machine works before you invest. Do you want a front-loading bobbin, which yields a bit of a smoother stitch, or a drop-in, which is a bit easier to load and manage? Is the machine easy to thread, or is the process so complicated that it will put you off your projects before you even begin?

One detail that a lot of people don’t take into consideration is the weight of the machine itself. Many companies are replacing the heavy metal parts with a lighter plastic, making machines more portable and cheaper. This is great for our wallets, but can become an issue if you’re working with particularly heavy fabric. Are you planning to sew any kind of drapery or heavily weighted fabric? If this is the case, be sure you get a machine with a bit of weight to it; after all, you want the fabric to move during the sewing process, not the machine!

Finally, check the pedal. Not only do you want to make sure that it’s comfortable and easy to use, but also that it’s an actual foot pedals. Some sewing machines, particularly antiques, use the knee to control the speed. If you’re a beginner sewist, I don’t recommend this particular feature. They can be a bit tricky to get used to, and you’re better off just sticking with the trusty foot pedal.

The 3 Keys

Whatever else you decide to do, there are three key features that you should double, triple, and quadruple check that your sewing machine has:

  1. A straight stitch. This is the stitch that you will use most often, on almost every project. I can’t imagine that you’d find a machine without it, but still, double check! The symbols for stitch patterns are universal across all machines, and the one for the straight stitch looks like this:straight
  2. A zigzag stitch. You’ll use this stitch often when quilting or sewing a bit heavier fabric. You can also use the zigzag stitch to sew button holes (I’ve often found it preferable to using the actual button-hole setting).  That symbol looks like this:

    zigzag

  3. Most importantly, because there are machines which don’t include this feature, make sure your machine can backstitch! Backwards stitching is so helpful, especially when you want to end a stitch with a really sturdy knot. Unfortunately, this symbol isn’t necessarily universal, and not all machines have it, so you’ll want to check with the company to make sure that the machine is capable of stitching backwards.

+ Bonus:

This symbol is the symbol for a stretch stitch:

stretch

This is a useful feature to have, but totally unnecessary; you can use a straight stitch and be totally fine. Don’t let it make or break your decision, but if it comes down to two machines and one has the feature while the other doesn’t, it can be a handy tool.

So there you go, sewists! You have all the information you need to buy a sewing machine. Good luck, and have fun!

CharmedLiebling Winner's Choice Pattern GiveawayPlus! After you’ve selected your sewing machine, don’t forget to enter the AllFreeSewing and charmedLiebling giveaway to win a free purse pattern! Enter here once a day, every day until December 9th!

 

Did we miss anything? Do you have any questions or tips?

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Filed Under: Advice, Tips, & Tricks Tagged With: Mollyhall Seeley, sewing machine, shopping, Tips

Sewing Nightmares: Try Some Tips to Conquer Your Sewing Fears

June 8, 2013 by AllFreeSewing 1 Comment

Sewing NightmareAllFreeSewing asked you on Facebook what your biggest sewing nightmares were, and the answers were horrifying. What was really astounding was that most of you had actually realized your sewing nightmares. Reports of electricity outages, ill-fitted wedding attire, and even fingers caught in the sewing machine made us cringe. We thought we’d offer up some tips to prepare you for future nightmares. Hopefully you’ll never have to use them, but just in case…

 

 

 

Sewing with Children

Sewing With Children

This tip from one of our designers most likely resonates with a lot of you. Whether you were the victim of your sewing machine or have feared it for most of your life, here’s a tip. Prevent any damage inflicted by the dreadful sewing machine onto your children.

Threading Your Machine

Terrible Threading

Who among us doesn’t loathe threading? If you like it then you should volunteer your services to other sewists out there. Try out this sewing tip to tackle those threads. This is a great tip for beginner sewers.

Loss of Electricity

You’re not going to like this answer; but when you loose electricity and you’ve got a deadline to meet, it’s time to hit the fabric old-school style. Grab a thimble because hand sewing is your best bet for sewing success. Luckily, we have some much loved hand sewing advice for you.

Hanging Fabric Baskets or PocketsInaccessibility to Sewing Supplies

Some of our sewers are at this very moment unable to access their sewing supplies. This could be because of a move or because of no room. We feel for you. Put these organizational tips to use when you do get that fabric out of your storage unit. Hang in there!

  • How to Make a Travel Scissor Case
  • Hanging Fabric Baskets or Pockets
  • Denim Fabric Basket Tutorial

Barbie Ball GownMaking Doll’s Clothes

Grandmas out there, the only true way you won’t have to do this tedious sewing project is by hiding your sewing abilities from your grandchildren. However, if you are stuck in a bind and need to make the apple of your eye some itsy-bitsy clothing, we have some doll’s clothes on our site.

  • Easy Doll Dress Tutorial
  • Barbie Ball Gown
  • American Girl Doll Clothes

Adding a Zipper to a Project

We were surprised to see that some of you feared adding a zipper to a project. Admittedly, a lot of us used to fear that too, but thanks to some crafty advice that fear is conquered. Check out these tutorials that tackle the toothy zipper once and for all.

  • Hot to Sew a Lapped Zipper for Shorts
  • How to Sew a Separating Zipper
  • Invisible Zipper Video Tutorial

    Using a Magnet

Stepping on Needles

Ouch. Nothing hurts more than the startling rediscovery of a long lost needle…in your foot. Try out this sewing tip for preventing needle injuries and keep you and your family happy.

Some of you were afraid of losing inspiration for your sewing projects. We can easily help you there; if you visit our site you’ll never be at a loss for projects ideas. Remember to check out our tips and tricks section on AllFreeSewing for sewing safety advice. Also see our Facebook page to find our post about Sewing Nightmares and see specific stories from your fellow sewers.

What’s the best sewing advice you’ve ever received?

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Filed Under: Advice, Tips, & Tricks Tagged With: craft tips, Craft Tips and Tricks, helpful tips and tricks, organizational tips, sewing patterns, Tips

Choosing a Quilting Design

January 29, 2013 by FaveQuilts 1 Comment

Today’s article on Choosing a Quilt Design comes to you from our guest, Carolyn Wainscott from Carolyn’s Canvas. Enjoy her tips and her lovely photos of the vintage quilt tops she quilted! You can also find more quilting designs in the Patterns for Quilting section of FaveQuilts.com.

Choosing a Quilt Design

That quilt top you spent so much time, effort and love on is done. The colors and fabrics had to match the design just so. With so much invested in the top, finishing the quilt deserves just as much thought and care. Or maybe you have found a wonderful quilt top in the trunk in the attic that needs to be finished. No haphazard quilting and binding here, please!

Eight vintage, or almost vintage, quilt tops were brought to me recently to be finished with machine quilting and binding. Each had been hand-pieced by the same quilter. Some fabrics ran through several of the tops. You lovers of old quilts would appreciate them, as I did.

It almost seemed like sacrilege to defile them with so vile a contraption as my longarm quilter, so to ease my conscience, each was quilted to enhance the quilter’s work (let’s call the quilter Sarah). I could have  stitched back and forth using one of the templates supplied with the machine and gotten done fairly quickly, but that would not have done justice to Sarah’s fine, hand-pieced work.

Before one of the tops could be quilted, a couple of blocks had to be reinforced with lightweight fusible interfacing because some of the fabrics were quite fragile. The interfacing was cut in squares the same size as the top’s blocks and fused onto the back, and it was ready to go. If I had begun quilting before this was done, the fabric would have been shredded. Now, you can’t tell the difference between the treated blocks and the rest of the quilt.

A couple of Sarah’s quilts were quilted with allover patterns because the designs are so busy.

This is Sarah’s charm quilt. I think it has over 800 patches, all hand-stitched, mind you!

Choosing a Quilting Design

Choosing a Quilting Design

This is Sarah’s combination 16-patch/9-patch variation. The quilting on this one is near invisible also on the top. Look at her inventive way of sizing up the 9-patch block to match the 16-patch with an additional ring of small blocks:

Choosing a Quilting Design

Choosing a Quilting Design

16-patch block and 9-patch with additional ring of squares

Choosing a Quilting Design

allover 16-patch/9-patch block quilting pattern

This is Sarah’s sawtooth double wedding ring. Yes, each of those triangles is hand-pieced!

Choosing a Quilting Design

The muslin space between the rings allows some show-off quilting that enhances the quilt pattern.

Choosing a Quilting Design

Choosing-A-Quilting-Design-8

I didn’t realize Sarah’s 9-patch quilt was an Irish chain quilt until I had it laid out to take this photo. The second photo was taken while it was on the longarm. See how those plain blocks can add so much to the flavor of the quilt?

Choosing a Quilting Design

Choosing a Quilting Design

Here  is a simple 5” block quilt with a free-motion, allover star pattern in each block.

Choosing a Quilting Design

Choosing a Quilting Design

This is Sarah’s grandmother’s flower garden rendition with simple outline quilting to pump up the hexagons.

Choosing a Quilting Design

Choosing a Quilting Design

And my absolute favorite of all Sarah’s quilts is her version of a ocean wave block. Yep, it is all hand-stitched, and her color selection is as modern as you can get with her mix of oranges, reds and bright pinks blended with lots of other prints. To bring out her individual triangles, a cross-hatch quilting pattern was used.

Choosing a Quilting Design

Choosing a Quilting Design

Choosing a Quilting Design

Because Sarah’s quilts were very traditional, I chose to stay with the more tried and true quilting of the time they were made.

Some quilters may decide on the quilting pattern from the very beginning of their quilt or, like a lot of us quilters, let the quilt decide how it wants to be finished. Whether you hand quilt or machine quilt, there are beautiful quilting patterns available if you don’t design your own.

For a wonderful variety of machine quilting patterns, take a look at Leah Day’s site: Day Style Designs.

Day Style Designs

Happy quilting! I hope you enjoy quilting as much as I do. Please come by and visit me at carolynscanvas.blogspot.com.

Carolyn Wainscott

What’s your best tip for choosing a quilting design?

 

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Filed Under: Quilting Tagged With: FaveQuilts, Quilting, techniques, Tips

National Sewing Month 2012: Personalizing a Quilt Pattern

September 20, 2012 by FaveQuilts 36 Comments

We’re celebrating the last few days of our National Sewing Month Blog Series, and today we’ve got a special post on quilting for all of our quilters out there! Our friend Deanna from WeddingDressBlue is here to tell you how to easily adjust a quilt pattern to fit your needs. With her simple tips and formulas, you can make any block quilt any size you need. Whether you want to scale down a bed quilt or supersize a baby quilt, you’ll be able to figure out how! She also shares secrets about how to adjust a quilt block for smaller pieces of fabric, so you can use your stash efficiently.

Remember, if you’re looking to score our huge mystery prize, leave a comment at the bottom of this post and every post with National Sewing Month 2012 in the headline. You’ll be automatically entered to win. We’re picking a winner this Saturday so stay tuned!

Now let’s hear from Deanna!

How often do you see a quilt and say, “I love it, BUT…it’s a twin, and I need a baby quilt” or “it’s a baby quilt, and I have a queen-sized bed.”  Well, there is a solution to that—it just takes a little math and the quilt can be yours.

This is Deanna from WeddingDressBlue here to share a little very non-scary quilters’ math to show you how to make that great quilt idea a perfect quilt idea.

The Hundred Patch Charm Quilt you may have seen on FaveQuilts is a great example.  Here is the original pattern:

Hundred Patch Charm Quilt

It finished at 75 x 99″.

But what if I want a couch quilt, like Cindy did?

Hundred Patch Charm Quilt

Or what if I have a lot of 2-1/2” squares and the pattern calls for 2”?  Do I really have to recut all those squares?  NO!  Birgit didn’t; she just changed up the pattern a bit.

Hundred Patch Charm Quilt

Or, what if I, the original designer of the quilt, decide that I really need a queen size quilt?  Can I do that?  YES!

Hundred Patch Charm Quilt

First of all, you need to know what size quilt you want to make. My favorite reference for quilt sizes is this chart.

Some patterns are written for multiple sizes, and that is a big help. If your pattern isn’t, you can arm yourself with a little information and make the changes yourself.  You need to decide what you plan to change. If it is overall size, you will just add or subtract blocks from the pattern. Most patterns have the block size included and will say something like “Block Size: 12″ finished.” This means you can change the size 12 inches at a time by adding or subtracting blocks from the original pattern. That is what I did in the Hundred Patch modification above: I added four blocks to create a wider quilt. The finished size of the larger Hundred Patch is 99” x 99”.

The slightly more complex change is a change in the size of the pieces or components in the quilt. When Lillian changed from 2” to 1-1/2” starting squares, she used the quilters’ rule: “subtract ¼” all the way around.”  Because quilters use a ¼” seam allowance standard, you can figure the finished size of any square or rectangle by subtracting the seam allowances from the size of the cut piece. So 1-1/2” squares will finish at 1”.  How many of those squares do you have? That is how many inches across the quilt will be.

You can check this math with other size squares. Do you have 2-1/2” squares? They finish at 2”. Do you have 2” squares? Yep, 1-1/2”.

So, next time you face an almost-perfect quilt pattern, be brave and change things up a bit to make it your own.

Do you have any tips for personalizing a quilt? Share them below, or leave a comment to enter the giveaway!

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Filed Under: National Sewing Month Tagged With: FaveQuilts, Guest Post, National Sewing Month, National Sewing Month 2012, Quilting, Sewing, Tips

September FaveCrafts Radio Show: Simple Home Decor

September 6, 2012 by FaveCrafts 1 Comment

It’s that time again! We’re gearing up for another episode of FaveCrafts Radio! This month’s topic will be simple home decor, one of my favorites, and we’ll be chatting with some crafty experts all about sprucing up your space.

Two of our favorite ladies will be joining us to chat all about simple home decor craft ideas and the easy ways you can update your space! Amanda from Crafts by Amanda and Shalana from Country Woman Magazine will be chatting with us and happy to answer any of your crafty home decor questions too! Just tune in on September 11th at 11am EST and call 646-200-4435 to have our craft experts answer any of your questions.

You also won’t want to miss the announcement of a very special prize for all of our listeners after the show!

Did you miss last month’s Craft Wars show? No worries, you can listen to all of the past shows in the archives.

What are some of your favorite ways to craft for your home?

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Filed Under: FaveCrafts Radio Tagged With: FaveCrafts Radio, home decor, Tips

Hot Glue Gun Tips

August 20, 2012 by FaveCrafts Leave a Comment

Here we are with some great new tips from bloggers! This week’s topic: Glue! Everything you could possibly want to know about how to make your hot glue gun strings go away or how to clean up those sticky messes!

  • Crafting Tips from Dreamalittlebigger.com

I know that when I make crafts with my little sister, she somehow manages to get glue all over the table. It doesn’t seem to matter if we put newspaper down, the table just gets messy. I used to try just soapy water and a wash rag, and when that didn’t work, I’d resort to harsher chemical cleaning projects. It became a huge problem and when my sister would come up with some crazy craft idea, I would groan a little inside because I knew the clean-up would be treacherous. But with these awesome clean-up ideas, I can breathe a sigh of relief.

When I start a new craft project, I’m not always thinking about safety right away, especially when it comes to hot glue. It’s like my fingers are magnetically attracted to the tip of a glue gun. I know it’s hot, but I just don’t think straight when my creative juices are flowing! Anyway, just follow these smart tips on being safe with hot glue, and avoid any future burns. I know my fingers will thank me for this.

So don’t fear the glue! Glue can be your friend and you don’t have to worry about getting burned by your hot glue gun anymore. Now you can dive into some great projects.

5 Projects to Make with Hot Glue

3-Sassy Feather Hair Accessories

Altered Art Mason Jars

Braided T-Shirt Bangles

Cute Bug Painted Pumpkin

Candy Corn Friends

Altered Art Mason Jar

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more great tips, you can check out our Adhesive Glue and Bonding Tips.

Have a tip that you didn’t see here? Please share!

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Filed Under: Advice, Tips, & Tricks Tagged With: cleaning tips, glue tips, hot glue, Hot Glue Gun, safety, Tips, Tuesday Tips

Ask Maria Ruffled Scarf Crazy

March 14, 2012 by Maria Leave a Comment

Reader Question: I’ve seen some beautiful ruffled scarves lately and would love to make one, but not sure what kind of yarn is being used. Any help?

Answer: I have seen these scarves too and you are right–the scarves are fabulous, and amazingly easy to make. You’ll need what most are calling ruffling (also called frilly or twisty) yarn. There are many brands to choose from and at first look the yarn looks like flat ribbon, but when you loosen it up it folds out to look a lot like netting. I’ve listed below a pattern plus several how-to’s for knitting with this new and exciting yarn. My friends are raving about this fashion look and you’ll find the scarf a very quick project!

Try your hand at making a ruffled scarf with this wonderful project, Ruffelina Frilly Scarf by Michael Sellick from The Crochet Crowd.

Here are some step-by-step knitting instructions using Ruffelina yarn from Bernat.

Check out this great video showing how to create the ruffle style using the ruffling yarns.

 

Maria Nerius is the Craft Expert at FaveCrafts.com. She’s worked and crafted for over 30 years and loves to answer questions about any craft technique. Send us your question today!

 

 

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Filed Under: Advice, Tips, & Tricks Tagged With: craft help, crafting, Crochet, DIY, Knitting, Maria Nerius, michael sellick, Tips

Ask Maria: Soldered Jewelry

January 16, 2012 by FaveCrafts Leave a Comment

Reader Question: Is there a difference between all the different types of solder available?  And any soldering tips would be appreciated.

Answer: There are a few different kinds of solder.  The type of solder you need will depend on what you’re planning to do with it.  Some varieties of solder, like those used to make stained glass work, often have a small amount of lead in them…so you want to be careful when and if you’re using solder to make jewelry.

When you’re in the market to buy solders, make sure you check on the lead content, especially if you’re planning to make jewelry with it.  I highly recommend the Walnut Hollow Designed for Her Creative Soldering Tool.  It’s easy to use and can be used for anything from jewelry making to stained glass crafting.  It comes with the perfect soldering iron, assorted tips, and lead-free solder that doesn’t need any additional flux (flux is a liquid used in soldering to help adhere to the solder to the copper tape).  For jewelry making, this is your best buy.

You can find a Soldering Iron Kit and additional lead-free/no additional flux needed solder on CutRateCrafts.com.

  Do you have a question for Maria Nerius, Craft Expert at FaveCrafts.com?  Just send us your question!

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Filed Under: Advice, Tips, & Tricks Tagged With: craft tools, cutratecrafts, hints and tips, jewelry crafts, jewelry making tools, soldering, soldering how to, soldering tools, Tips

It’s Too Cool2Craft

July 2, 2011 by TheCrochetCrowd Leave a Comment

Tiffany is an elegant host that really brings creativity to the table. She doesn’t hold those inside secrets for herself. She shares them so you so can be a creative artist.You will enjoy her website as she has a livestream channel going showing really amazing crafting projects in motion. I’ve just finished watching an artist paint wine glasses with watermelon designs to enjoy the outdoors even more. Simple yet cool! Her website is stuffed full of wonderful ‘howto’ crafting ideas for you to complete.This is a website that will inspire more creativity within yourself.

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Filed Under: Cool2Craft Tagged With: CoolCraft, Full Project Tutorials, michael sellick, The Crafting Crowd, Tiffany Windsor, Tips, Tricks

Crafting Show Tips & Tricks

May 22, 2011 by TheCrochetCrowd Leave a Comment

I think people miss the mark when it comes to real live shows and craft presentations. You will notice when we are out at shows that we are different from many vendors.

Consider This:

You have paid money to be there. It can be several hundred dollars to thousands to be there depending on the size and advertising budget of the event. So why on earth would you rent space if you aren’t going to engage the public.

I see problems at shows:

  • The Vendors aren’t dressed appropriately. Some, in fact, look dumpy dumpy and it’s not about weight. Attire is one of the first things people will look at before even approaching your display.
  • Vendors looking miserable and complaining to public about poor sales / attendance. The public doesn’t need to know you are miserable. A sad story doesn’t create sales. It’s a turn off.
  • Vendors hanging off personal devices, wearing Ipod Headphones, texting, and using personal cell phones. Every person that walks by is a potential customer. You might as well stayed home or in your car if you aren’t going to appear approachable.
  • Displays are trashy / garage sale like. If this is your passion, display it in a way that looks interesting or unusual. Just because someone else has hung up something a certain way, maybe a different display is more eye pleasing.
  • Position tables and sales areas that are inviting. Many people like to put a table in the front of the booth where they are sitting and their display is at the rear of the booth. Essentially, human instinct dictates that you have just created a mental barrier and people feel like they are intruding on space or feel if they go behind your table, they be trapped into buying something when in fact, they just want to snoop.

What Things To Do?

  • Dress the part. A wise artist once told me that if I love Crochet so much, I should be prepared to wear it too. She’s right, when I look at artsy dressed up, people know right off the bat I am serious about loving my hobby.
  • People love visuals and are fascinated with techniques. If you are a quilt maker, why not show samples or your work by doing hands on demonstrations. It show precision and creativity which captivates people.
  • Be authentic, you aren’t going to love everything or everyone. It’s like walking into a furniture shop and the sales person absolutely LOVES EVERYTHING in the store. She isn’t kidding anyone and she isn’t being real nor is she going to get my business because I can’t trust her judgement. You have just seconds to prove you are authentic.
  • Make your display inviting and eye pleasing. Have a flow within your section that makes sense. Colours with colours, ideas with ideas and etc. Many booths I see are TOO MUCH stimulation. They want to display EVERYTHING they possibly own but as a whole it turns the display into a flea market appearance. Pick your best items as it proves your worth, samples can be shown if more questions come along.
  • Have fun, engage your neighbours at the show. More often than not, we have referrals from other vendors at our shows because we have made friends. IE, I may use yarn in a demonstration that has been provided by a hand spun yarn woman. People ask me where I got it from, I point the direction and they see her yarn working instead of at her display doing nothing but sitting on tables with no finished samples of what it could be.

Don’t spend 1000’s of dollars on shows or festivals if you aren’t going to operate them properly. The public is smarter than you realize and it’s up to you to see potential in everyone, even if they haven’t spent a dime at your booth. They may refer you further down the aisle or on their daily travels long after the show is done.

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Filed Under: Events Tagged With: michael sellick, The Crochet Crowd, Tips, Tricks

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Full Project Tutorials

How to make Valentine’s Day Rose Bouquet

This Valentine’s Day craft is perfect for teaching young children lessons in following directions and by the end they will have a inexpensive Valentine’s Day gift to give to a loved one; an excellent preschool valentine project! Materials: Tissue Paper in red, pink, or white Green Pipe Cleaners Masking Tape Green Tempera Paint Scissors Ribbon […]

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Free eBooks

21 Printable 4th of July Crafts for Kids Tutorials

Is there anything better than a nice, American holiday? Take Memorial Day or 4th of July for example. The sun, the family, the games, the … [Read More...]

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Easy and Green Mother’s Day Gift

A clever Mother's Day guest project I've just posted at FaveCrafts will make you ask, "Why did I not think of this before??" Jennifer of Ramblings of … [Read More...]

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