A Few New Bowls..

Chuck Ellis

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6,997
Location
Tellico Plains, Tennessee
I haven't been on the forum much lately... I tried setting up a permanent booth at the local "Public Market"... Larry came by and chatted a minute or two on his tour de wood this year... but unfortunately the booth didn't work out... traffic was there, but not spending much money... so I've reverted back to my traveling shows and the last two were pretty good...

But thought I would show a couple of the bowls I've done since the first of the year... I actually got them all finished with any of them smacking me in the face... did have one blow up and send wood shrapnel all over the shop, but I was wearing my face shield and was standing back towards the tail stock slightly so none came too close... :D:rofl:

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The first two are spalted maple with maybe a little ambrosia thrown in... it only about 7 inches dia
Third is a crotch piece from a Silver Maple log... the bowl is about 11 1/2 inches dia.
Forth bowl is spalted hackberry and just over 12 inches diameter
the last one is spalted white oak and about 9 1/2 inches dia.
 
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Great looking bowls Chuck. I don't know if it is just our area or what but craft fairs around here are just disappointing. I still make more money from the art gallery and floral/craft store than doing the fairs. It seems to me that at these craft fairs people are looking for cheap bargins. Lots of people but just not spending. Anyway good to see ya back posting Chuck.
 
Those are really nice looking bowls. I don't understand why they are not selling. Maybe Bernie has the answer. However, it might be something else. Do you have a friend or relative that would give you a real, honest answer if you asked them to critique your booth, the way the bowls are displayed, and/or anything else that is part of your package?

Anything other than an honest answer is more apt to hurt you than help you. Also, two friends opinions would be even better---friends that are from different homes---not man and wife type thing---sorry but wife and husband only count as one.

There could easily be something you are saying or doing or the way you dress that kills the sale before it begins. There could be something about the booth that seems fine to you; but is a turn-off to others. You need someone who is not real close to you, someone you believe will give you a real, not necessarily polite, critique.

I use to lecture to doctors on practice management (pardon the bragging but I was extremely good at it). However, I kept hiring other practice management people to check me and the office. It is extremely difficult to see the things that are not ideal in your own business...it takes an honest outsider.

Enjoy,

JimB
 
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Thanks for the encouraging words... I like turning bowls and am getting better and better at them...

Jim, My wife looked the booth and was brutal with her comments... some good and some not so... but the problem with the permanent booth was that the market place was supposed to have been a "public Market" with craft vendors, artists and antique dealers.... the owners decided the clientele didn't understand the concept and started marketing it as a flea market, so we got flea market customers... they didn't appreciate the artistry that went into my work, or the work of some really fabulous artists that was set up... they wanted quality with flea market pricing... plus they started letting the flea marketers display and the concept just went out the window.

I do a couple of Farmer's Markets every Saturday that has a mix of art/craft booths and farmers.... people come there to shop and seem to be more inclined to spend money.... Last Saturday was the best sale day I've had in a couple of years...

The two big bowls, the silver maple and spalted hackberry are sold, the spalted maple is new and this weekend will be it's first showing... the oak bowl was out last Saturday but didn't sell....

The wine glasses are a novelty thing and I may have to reprice them... I get lots of lookers, but they seem to look, then put them back.... I'm thinking I may be too high there...

I don't have a picture of the booth, but I use two tables, one of which has a set of shelves that displays the pepper mills and glasses, the other table has a pen display and a work area... the bowls are displayed on baker's racks... but I also think last weekend even though I had good sales, I had too many bowls on the racks and it looked a little crowded... going to reduce the number I display this weekend and see if it makes a difference. This weekend is a much smaller market place than last, but has always done pretty well... I never need a Brinks truck to bring home the loot, but still it's done well.
 
well chuck, i have had some of jims concepts put in my park and he is right we look at things differently if its us sometimes and i too use the better half to critique my work and i sometimes have to step up and tell her to get mean or tell her what i feel in regards to the quality or setup of a project.. as for your booth that i saw from memory looked fine its the clientele that came i think..i saw some other booths there that were sweet looking and probably suffered the same things you did.. now to the present, the over stuffed booth, have them boxed out back somewhere and if you sell one replace it with the stock you have out back, i did that on a garage sale and made another 50 dollars in junk that i didnt have out there at first, if you came to a booth and it looked empty you would think that all the good stuff got sold before you got there and would probably stop looking . so there is a balance on what is to little and what is to much.. now for the outside observe part.. look at these bowls you just posted,, i really like the first one, and the spalted hackberry one i recognized the wood right off,, but go look at your picture and the bowl in number five, what do you see that could help it out? its things like that which can turn a sale into no sale sometimes..
 
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