I don't normally post about other blog's I read that aren't paper crafting related, but this one is too good to pass up! Being an artist or crafter or whatever name you give yourself is a rough job. Most of us will never make a million bucks a year....sure we can dream! :)
I've attended many craft fairs over the years. I've been a shopper and a vendor. Being a vendor is so much harder than you could ever imagine. You have to get there a few hours before the event. Drag your 800 million pounds of awkward items through rain, sleet, snow, 100 degrees through parking lots half a mile away up four flights of stairs down narrow hallways....And
NO I'm
not exaggerating at all! I've done this several times. It's not exactly a blast. And remember when you're all done, then you get to the same exactly thing only this time in the reverse. This occurs many hours later after you've stood all day and tried to earn a living.
I won't even go into the rude comments. Some people are just so nasty. One time I had a guy scream at me for charging sales tax. Don't blame me! I don't like paying it either. The state requires it and if I don't pay it, they will put me in jail. So yeah you're paying me for the tax because I don't like stripes or concrete walls.
You will see on this blog that I do love Etsy. I shop on there several times a week. I have even found a few photographers on Facebook that I follow. I have purchased several of their photos. Yes, to some people $3 for a photo of a momma black bear and her four cubs playing in the Smoky Mountains might seem like a lot. But I know she had to spend at least $3 in gas to get there! Not to mention the hours she spent waiting patiently for a bear to wander around, her camera equipment, the equipment to print the photo, her website, etc. Just a trip to the mountains would cost me four hours to get there and another four home and over $80 in gas with no guarantee of seeing a single bear. I've been there several times and have never seen a bear of any kind except stuffed ones.
Ok so back to why I wrote this post.....a fellow crafter was recently treated rudely by a customer at a craft fair and she/he wrote a fantastic
blog post about it. Really you should read this. Everyone - not just crafters/artists - should read this.
She/he received so many comments that they wrote a
second post about the situation.
Until next time *
Be sure to support your local small businesses this holiday season!
