Make Your Craft Show Display Stand Out From The Crowd

If you have decided to try your hand at setting up at craft shows, festivals, or flea markets, then you'll need to have the right craft show display to make your wares stand apart from the rest. This is especially important if you are selling something like jewelry or any other staple craft show item. Having a great craft show display can make a big difference between having someone walk right by you or stop for a look and hopefully a sale. Here are some great ways to create an eye-catching craft show display.

Craft Show Display Basics

When you first get started you will have to purchase the right equipment and this can be a bit of an investment, but if you think you will continue doing shows then you'll need the following:

Make Your Craft Show Display Stand Out From The Crowd

o Canopy or tent - The proper canopy or tent will protect your goods from rain and sun. Delicate crafts made from fabric, paper or handmade clothing can become damaged from just a few hours of direct sunlight.

o Tables - Most craft show displays require at least table or two for their set up. Buy the lightest, easiest thing to carry around. You can find many aluminum models that fold up with ease and can be tucked away in almost any vehicle. Don't forget a small chair for yourself.

o Weights - Make sure you carry weights, large water bottles that can be filled, or small sand bags. You will need to tether these to your tables or tent with bungee cords in case of a windy day.

o Display cases - No matter what you are selling you can find the right craft show display case for your items. Look at retails suppliers or ask other vendors. A thrift store can give you some great items on the cheap.

o Quality fabric - Cover your tables in bright fabric. Take your time to come up with a great color scheme for your craft show display. Work your tent color, table covers, and products into a harmonious craft show display.

Beyond The Basics

Once you have the basic equipment that you'll need for your craft show display then you'll need a few creative ideas to get people into your booth.

o The set up - Make sure that your tables are positioned in a way that is easy for customers to see. Keep your tables near the front of the tent so people can walk by casually. Don't expect people to walk to the back of your booth, it may seem obvious, but people want to keep going unless something really interests them.

o Height - Try hanging things from the tent to catch people's eye from afar. This can work for a lot of items. If you can't do that, make sure you vary the height on your tables. Use small shelves, boxes, or other display items to give the tables a richer feel.

o Mirrors - Always bring a mirror for people to look at things they may want to try on.

o Signage - Have a banner or business cards on display is a great idea. Even if someone doesn't want something today, they can come back and find you or email you.

o Pricing - For many people seeing clear price tags on items is very helpful. Lots of shoppers don't feel comfortable engaging in chitchat over every item in the booth. If you are getting really busy, this will save you lots of time from answering questions.

Hints To Keep You Ahead

If you are a newcomer to the festival scene then you may not yet realize what an ally other vendors can be for you. Although they may seem like the competition and in some cases they are, they can also help give you invaluable advice. Remember to always respect your boundaries with your craft show display. Most arguments between vendors center around just an inch or two! When space is at a premium people can become very territorial, just remember to take care with your craft show display and stay on your neighbor's good side. He'll be the guy you entrust with your craft show display when it's time for a bathroom break. Follow these tips to have a great craft show display no matter whether you're a newbie or a festival regular!

Make Your Craft Show Display Stand Out From The Crowd
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What is Cardboard Engineering? From Box Making to POS to Hobby to Interactive Marketing Products

What is cardboard engineering? The term doesn't exist on Wikipedia. Web searches for "definition of cardboard engineering" and other similar questions find no results. You will not find "cardboard engineering" on any US site (they call it paperboard but "paperboard engineering" cannot be found either.) And yet, if you put "cardboard engineering" into Google.com it reports over 3,000,000 results, whilst a search for "cardboard engineers" produces 1,740,000 results.

So, back to the original question - what is cardboard engineering? In order to find out, let's take a look at these diversified examples - all producing quite different things but each area describing itself as being involved in cardboard engineering.

Companies who make cardboard boxes and packaging employ cardboard engineering skills to create products which might range from a fairly ordinary rectangular box to a highly innovative product to act as a presentation pack. The term "cardboard engineering" also seems to cover closing mechanisms with names like crash lock bottoms, side panel locks and tuck lock tops.

What is Cardboard Engineering? From Box Making to POS to Hobby to Interactive Marketing Products

Companies involved in producing point of sale products also utilise cardboard engineering techniques in the design of POS units from giant floor standing displays to counter top dispensers. Larger POS companies employ highly sophisticated CAD design systems, cutting plotters and large format printers in their design departments and work in a variety of materials which can include corrugated board, display board and folding box board.

There are lots of cardboard engineers who utilise their skills as a hobby, creating models and automata. This group is closely related to others with crafts and hobby interest in paper engineering, card making, making books by hand and origami. These groups actually account for the largest numbers of participants with millions of world-wide enthusiasts.

However, there is one area where cardboard engineering can create quite a stir - particularly in the world of Business to Business promotional marketing. Using a combination of skills gleaned from the various worlds of paper engineering, promotional packaging, paper crafts, structural packaging and the technology involved in designing pop-up books; the cardboard engineered items produced for the promotions and advertising market are perhaps the most intriguing.

Products in this area have the most amazing movements. There are pop-up products which are powered by rubber bands which come in all shapes and sizes. They are often used in direct marketing and jump out of the mailing pack to give the addressee a big surprise. There are other products with really sophisticated movements that grow bigger when opened or they can turn and spin. There are many interactive products designed to hold the interest of the B2B customer. One UK company with a large range of examples such as these is Whitney Woods.

So, what is cardboard engineering? Well, having taken a long, hard look at the top results for the search of "cardboard engineering", it seems to boil down to a term that covers the design of any three dimensional object that is made out of cardboard - from boxes and display units to making models and to producing promotional advertising products.

What is Cardboard Engineering? From Box Making to POS to Hobby to Interactive Marketing Products
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Article by Paul Whitney.

Whitney Woods Ltd is a manufacturer of promotional marketing products designed using sophisticated cardboard engineering techniques. The company is a market leader in this field in the UK and publishes a range of over 50 products covering the areas of promotional pocket media, interactive marketing products, information discs, promotional pop up cards, creative folding and automatic pop up mailers. Whitney Woods also publishes a range of products which are particularly suited to Christmas promotions and for use as company Christmas cards. You can read more about cardboard engineering on http://www.popupmailers.co.uk/paper_and_cardboard.html

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Easy Knitting Patterns - Knit Christmas Gifts

If you choose the right techniques and easy knitting patterns, making your own Christmas gifts
doesn't have to be intimidating. Even a beginning knitter can make wonderful gifts that will show
your love and creativity!

The key to knitting for gifts is to keep things simple, use quality
materials, and, if you want to knit several gifts, consider using one pattern multiple times.

I'm a beginning knitter (or I don't know how to knit yet)

Easy Knitting Patterns - Knit Christmas Gifts

Here's the big untold secret about knitting. If you pick a simple pattern, knitting is really
easy! If you're an absolute beginner or just feeling a little lack of confidence, knit up some
scarves in chunky, beautiful yarn.

They'll go quickly, winter scarves are wonderful to wear, and a thick "novelty" style yarn hides any little irregularities in your stitches.

If you don't know how to knit at all, pick up a book like Teach Yourself Knitting Visually or a
clear, simple how-to-knit eBook like this one

You can master the basics in less time than it took you to figure out how your email program worked.

Finding the time to make handmade gifts

This is the kicker, right? We're all crazy busy, and finding time to make hand-knit gifts might
seem completely impossible.

Here are some great opportunities to get some knitting in. Think about your own schedule and see
if there are other times you can find.
TV. This is the big one for most folks. If you watch an hour of TV a night, you can get a beautiful gift knitted every week, at least. Two hours a night = two gifts a week. Netflix counts too! Train or bus commutes. If you usually manage to get a seat, especially on the train or light rail, this is a fabulous knitting opportunity. Again, you can figure an average of a gift a week per hour of commute time. Waiting on hold. Does your job or home life ever find you waiting around on hold, in a doctor's office, or anywhere else? Perfect knitting opportunity. Before-bed wind-down. Staying up on the Internet or electronic gaming until right before bed (you know you do it) is rotten for your sleep patterns. Instead, about an hour before you want to turn in, make yourself a cup of non-caffeinated tea, put on a recorded book or some music, and get out your knitting needles. You know what I'm going to say next. An hour a night will equal at least one beautiful knitted gift every week.
Knit for charity

If you live in a warm climate or your friends just aren't winter scarf people, you might consider
knitting for charity. You can knit blankets for the elderly in cold climates, "comfort dolls" to
comfort children with AIDS in Africa, or hats and scarves for the homeless. Google "knit for charity" to find some great opportunities. You might even consider knitting for charity in a friend's name as a holiday gift, if you're a little short on cash for something like the Heifer Project.

Tips for knitting Christmas gifts without stress

The most important tip is to keep it simple. Even if you're a pretty proficient knitter, this isn't the time to learn a new technique or work with a skinny fingering-weight yarn that will take forever to knit up. Pick an easy knitting pattern for something like:
A winter scarf A simple winter hat Fun knit toys Easy fingerless mittens

I created a Squidoo lens with lots of tips, patterns, resources and ideas--far more than I can link to in an ezinearticle. There are resources there for cute and easy knitted toys, too, and some more charity knitting ideas. You can find it at Knit Christmas Presents

If you find a pattern you like, say for an easy hat or a cute stuffed toy, use it as many times as you can for multiple presents. You'll be amazed at how much faster the second, third, and fourth version of the same pattern can be.

You also will usually want to stick with chunky yarns (this is a good use for "novelty" yarns, which have lots of texture and are usually thick but also light and fluffy), since they knit up quickly so you can make more presents. Remember that a scarf or hat should be made of nice, soft yarn so it feels good against the face. Even a beginner can make a simple scarf with novelty yarn in just a few hours, and have it look just fantastic.

Don't let the idea of knitting Christmas presents intimidate you! Keep it simple, use quick-knitting materials, make use of your downtime, and you'll have 5 or 10 heartwarming home-made gifts to give this year. Happy knitting!

Easy Knitting Patterns - Knit Christmas Gifts
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Copyright (c) 2007 Sonia Simone. Sonia is a professional marketing writer and editor who also loves to knit. You can read her blog at www.remarcom.typepad.com

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Discover The Most Popular Kids Face Painting Designs

Nothing beats the warm glow you feel when a child first sees their painted face. But how do you know which kids face painting designs you should offer? Well that's easy. Just master the most requested face paintings and you will not go wrong.

Irrespective of what the latest hit movie is, I've found the following kids face painting designs are always in demand. They never seem to lose their appeal.

The Most Popular Face Paintings For Girls

Discover The Most Popular Kids Face Painting Designs

Butterfly Fairy Princess Fantasy Bunny Rabbit Ladybug Cat Flowers Rainbow Puppy Dog

The Most Popular Face Paintings For Boys

Red Spider's Web Pirate Skull Tiger Robot Bat Clown Puppy Dog Alien Tribal

The Most Popular Halloween Face Paintings

Vampire Witch Devil Skull Spider's Web Bat Cat Alien Monster Clown

And remember, there are 5 basic principles to follow if you want to create stunning face paintings with speed and ease:

Have a collection of great designs to offer; Know exactly what steps are required for each face painting design in your collection; Use only quality paints; Use the right tools, the right way; and Know how to mix paints and blend colors.

It's best to stick to simple designs until your face painting skills improve. And of course use templates, stamps and temporary tattoos to help speed up the process.

And, whether you are painting the children of friends and family, or offering your services at school fetes, kids' parties etc, have a photo album filled with your face painting pictures. That way each child can choose the creation they would like painted on their face.

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Learn how to paint these designs with step by step face painting instructions.

Discover how easy face painting can be with these great tips.

Don't limit yourself to just kids face painting creations. After all, we adults deserve some fun too!

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Top Ten Ways to Not Make Money at Craft Shows

I have been involved with crafts shows for a long time, and have been on both sides of the table... as a vendor and as a customer.. Here is a list of the top ten "money losing" tricks.:

1) Lay out your crafts on a table without any thought of display, look grumpy, set up your chair behind the table and read a book. Better yet, don't even pay attention to your potential customers.

2) Eat a large onion laden cheese burger, that is bigger than you mouth, have it loaded with ketchup and mustard, and let everyone know you are eating it!, then try and explain your crafts while people are backing away from you! (why do they always sell cheese burgers at craft shows?)

Top Ten Ways to Not Make Money at Craft Shows

3) Dress like you just rolled out of a barn, look crusty, and act as if you would rather be somewhere else... anywhere else. Total lack of interest always attracts customers...NOT!

4) Take absolutely no interest in setup... Take your table and jam it right up to the aisle as close as you can, and then lay all your crafts out in a single file. or better yet, pile them in a pile.. or in bins... ignoring all that free space behind you where you could have spent the money on shelves and displayed your products nicely.

5) Do not smile, at all, look totally peeved that you were dragged out of bed for this weekend, and you and your crafts look like it. Show a total lack of interest when a potential customers stops to look or asks a question, better yet, wander off and chit chat with other vendors.

6) Make sure your crafts are put together literally the night before, and are about to fall apart, and then stick a high price tag on them. After all no one will notice right?

7) Thinking this craft business is a great money maker, and pricing your crafts as if people should bless you for making them.. and then look totally crusty by the end of the day when people are not buying.

8) Make sure and have NO small change, or bags, that way you won't have to get up and complete the sale.

9) Make crafts that you do not like making, or don't know how to make properly, do not explain them to anyone. Show no passion in your work or display, let everyone know, you are there for the money only.

10) Explain to people that you are on the verge of welfare, and need this money, and produce stick it notes for your business cards..

Don't laugh... everyone of these things has happened at shows I have visited or shows that I have been in. I was actually set up beside someone who told me she hates crafts, but figured it was easy money... guess what?.. Her sales were non-existent.

Smile, show some passion in your work.. be confident in your work, and the best way to do that is to create a craft you are passionate about. Something you would make, even if you were not selling it. Look proud to be there... after all you worked hard all year for this show!

Find out what your passion is, in the craft world, this makes all the difference, and it shows in your work.

Set up a pretend display at home, I know this sounds like a lot of work, but on setup day, there will be panic all around you, and if you pack your things away in some sort of system, you will then unpack them in a calm manner. You can even do a drawing of your setup that you did at home, and follow it. You will be distracted by other vendors, especially those wanderers who spent 5 minutes setting up...so its best if you are practiced.

Find something you like to do, and do it. There are many ebooks on line now, that you can buy today and be learning the craft tonight, these are written by passionate people. Give that a try or take a class... just find something you like and your craft shows will make you some money.

Top Ten Ways to Not Make Money at Craft Shows
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Article by Diane Palmer - [http://www.make-crafts-for-cash.com] is a website by Diane Palmer, with more than 15 years in the crafts business. Learn creative ways to make and sell crafts, online, craft shows, fairs and more.. Turn your craft hobby into a business!

[http://www.make-crafts-for-cash.com/passion.html] - Learn a new craft and have fun!

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How to Make a Sword -The Six Step Process

The process of making a sword is more than what you see in the movies. For many people being a blacksmith is a fantasy where you pound steel against an anvil, dip it in water and voila! You have a completed sword ready to mow down the evil hordes of creatures that lurk in the forest. But swordmaking is much more than this. Swordmaking is both an art and a craft and it takes hard work, a lot of practice and a significant amount of specialized tools to create a sword. It also takes many years of practice to become proficient at this skill.

Before the blacksmith or swordsmith actually starts hammering or heating the metal for a sword there is a lot of work to be done. The sword size, shape, properties, and metal composition all have to be decided upon. These factors determine the amount of metal, the temperatures of heating and the specific steps in the process that have to be completed. This article doesn't cover the complete art of swordmaking. It will only discuss and outline the process of smithing the blade of a sword.

There are many different methods for making a sword and the art has changed over the centuries as technologies, tools and the science of metallurgy has changed. But for the past five hundred years there has been one method that still stands as the most common. This is the six step method. of taking a bar of the desired metal to a completed sword.

How to Make a Sword -The Six Step Process

The First step is Forging

A bar of the desired metal or combination of metals is heated in a forge and then it is hammered into shape.(The shape of a sword) This hammering process can take a long time and it is called drawing out the sword. The sword is worked on in sections (usually around 6 inches in length) and repeatedly hammered and heated until it comes into the desired shape .This process is repeated many times and the sword is often heated then allowed to cool without hammering. This is required by the metal to keep the desired properties of strength and flexibility. Once this step is completed the sword is in the proper shape but the properties of the metal make it very brittle and something has to be done to give flexibility to it.

Step Two: Annealing
Annealing softens the sword and makes it easy to grind into shape. The sword is now heated and then allowed to cool very slowly. Often it is wrapped in an insulating material to slow down this cooling. It can take as long as 24 hours and this annealing process makes the sword soft and easy to grind.

Step Three: Grinding

Now the blacksmith uses a grinder to work out the edge and point of the sword. This would also be when any engraving is added. This is not a completed sword yet. It is still much too soft so it must be hardened.

Step Four: Hardening

Now the sword is heated to a very high temperature and then placed into a quenching tank. (This is what we always see in the movies). This quenching allows it to cool quickly and evenly which will harden the metal. After this hardening the sword is brittle and something must be done to make it strong yet flexible.

Step Five: Tempering

Again the blade is heated and quenched. But now the heating is at a much lower temperature than was used at the hardening. This heating/quenching cycle may be repeated several times. This tempering allows the blade to be strong but not brittle. This is one stage where the skill and experience of the swordsmith is invaluable. It takes a trained hand and eye to understand the properties of the meta. It will have a certain amount of flexibility yet still retain its sharp edge. Now the sword is ready for completion.

Step Six: Completion

The sword blade itself is now complete. Now the additional parts will be added such as the pommel the guard and the hilt.

For the past five hundred years the only way to learn the art of swordmaking was to find a skilled blacksmith or swordsmith that was willing to take you on as an apprentice. Because of the specialized skills and tools, and the skill that is required this tradition remains the best way to do it today.

Before you invest lots of time in money in equipment and materials you should find a master that is willing to teach you the basics of the art. You won't have to devote your life to endless hours of hammering against an anvil and with a little perseverance, a little patience and some practice you will be able to make some decent swords that you can be proud of.

How to Make a Sword -The Six Step Process
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Will Kalif is the author of two epic fantasy novels. Check out his novels, his blog, and podcast or see his fantasy dioramas and get video game design tips at:
Storm The Castle - Creativity With Attitude

Interested in Medieval Things? Visit his website: All Things Medieval:
The Everything Medieval Website

For Daily News and info about Epic Fantasy and everything Medieval: The Heroic Dreams Blog - All Things Medieval Blog

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Different Types Of Hobbies

It's a fact that each individual has their own hobby. There are different types of hobbies that an individual could engage with. Hobbies are common related to the interested of an individual. If a person is interested with something, tendencies are, that person will keep on doing the same thing again and again for he/she finds pleasures and entertained with that hobby. Each person could have a new hobby as long he/she want it to. Hobbies are also applicable during leisure time or if we are bored or stressed. Below are some examples of popular hobbies that most people are interested in.

Sports: This is the number one hobby that people tend to spend more time doing. Aside from being a hobby, it also serves as exercise which could promote good health to an individual. There are numerous types of sports that a person could do as one of their hobby. There are also other people that from simple hobby, they began to excel and make a living out of it. Of course, you are familiar with those popular sports celebrities. Each type of sport has its own celebrities. So, if you want to develop or engaged in a new hobby, don't hesitate to try it and learn it. It's nice to know that we are not stocked with one hobby only. It will also become boring doing the same thing over and over again.

Culinary: Secondary to sports hobbies, culinary have also gained its popularity since eating is one of human's necessities. It's really nice to know that there are gifted people who could cook us the best dishes in the world. Many people find satisfaction in cooking especially if the people they have served like what they've cooked. So, if you are interested in cooking or if you love to eat different dishes then it's better that you also learn culinary. In that way you will be able to cook the food you want to eat everyday.

Different Types Of Hobbies

Art: This type of hobby is for people who are involved with nature. They're art works are the expressions of their emotions and feelings. There are different type of arts; painting, tattoo, drawing, sculptures, carving, and many more. So, if you are one of those people who are really that expressive with their feelings then you could learn one art so you will be able to fully express your emotions with your artworks.
There are more hobbies that you can learn, all you have to do is to know your interests and find the right hobby that will suit your needs.

Different Types Of Hobbies
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