Now, I have to stop here and tell you that this show was two weeks away and having only ever visited a variety of art shows and craft festivals around the country, I had no earthly idea as to what I was getting myself into! I had no tent, no display items, no ‘anything’ that I needed. So I turned to a co-worker (you now know as my friend and faculty member ‘Stained Glass Lindi’) and asked if she wanted to do the show with me, adding her beautiful glass pieces. She agreed and then admitted that she also was clueless about how to get things together.

The following weekend I paid a visit to another local show, just to ‘walk it’ with a different eye, looking at how vendors had their booths set-up, what type of tents were available, etc. Obviously I was supposed to get into this business, because when I stopped to question an older woodworker about his type of tent, he offered to sell it to me the next day (at show closing) for just $100 because he had decided to retire. OK, now I had a tent! And a good one at that, with metal bars you could ‘chin’ on. (And while the gentleman took it down, I had to number each of the zillion pieces with a magic marker so I knew how it went together again.)

Display items and tables were my next goal. I choose a wooden rack (the kind that goes on the back of a commode) to which I added lots of screw-in hooks so I could hang my hand-made earring cards. (Poster board cut with scissors and holes made with a small paper-punch, labeled also by hand.)  At a local yard sale I picked up a couple of tall, plastic, soda displays and had my husband use his grinder to remove the logos and names. My main table was a fold-up aluminum one borrowed from Lindi, who had used it for years while doing wallpaper work (and it was more than a bit wobbly). A folding chair was borrowed from our travel trailer as well as a rug, and as I had worked for a direct sales company in the past, I had some great, blue tablecloths. We all thought I needed more color, so I draped a Mexican blanket over the blue. Now I had to find some type of cover for the holes in those soda displays, and as sewing is not my thing, I bought and cut some felt in the same colors as the blanket (no hemming necessary).

To display my pendants I just used U-shaped jewelry pins and attached each piece to the velvet boards I used inside my storage trays. Rings and bracelets went into the one glass topped box I had to keep cabochons in. All of the signage was made out of paper, printed on my computer, and then covered with adhering clear plastic (I think I found in the cabinet lining section of a department store). And although my very first business cards were quite sad, they did have my name and address on them, and a brief description of what I make and sell.

The result? Well, during that first three-day show I about sold out! I also received several show applications in the mail from other promoters who liked my work enough to invite me to participate in their show. Not bad for a two-week learning experience. Needless to say, over the years I became more professional with my set-up and displays, but not all at once! After all, this was my ‘hobby business’ and I was not going to take funds out of the household to make it happen. Rather, after every show I took my profits and purchased one or two more items (a lot of which I still use today).

The lesson from this experience is: you do not need a lot of expensive display items and professional equipment to get started! Look around your home, basement, garage and those of your family and friends. You will be amazed at what your imagination can do with a few simple items. After all, your jewelry is what people are coming to see and hopefully purchase.

Today one can begin participating in outdoor art and craft shows quite inexpensively due to the selection of affordable tents available from a variety of companies. Check your local department store or ‘wholesale’ club for some nice choices. If you are an outdoors person, you probably have a few good tarps that could be used to begin with, for no additional cost. Colored sheets make great table covers (I still use a lot of those today) and about every computer comes preloaded with a good design program so you can make your own business cards and signage.

Choosing the right show for your work is very important. If it is a local or ‘drive’ show (no hotel/motel necessary) and the booth fee is reasonable, sure, give it a shot. However I always advise my students to ‘walk’ a more expensive or ‘travel ’show first. Yes this means not participating in it right away, but take the time to make the drive and check out the local area for restaurants and a decent place to spend the night, besides ‘walking the show’ to see what types of vendors and items are included, how the promoter seems to be handling things (or if you can even find them) and ask vendors questions. (More on this in a future article.)

Here are examples of different types of booth set-up and displays, according to the venue. The photo below was taken at a high-end sci-fi con, where in addition to their gallery table, each juried artist also has the option of purchasing one 6-foot table. No, that’s not a lot of space and it depends on what you are doing as to how to set it up. This costumed artist was using her space to demonstrate her art form that in turn generated customers interest, who then paid a visit to her gallery table and made their purchases from it. (Atlanta, GA)

The following picture is of a display at an art gallery where the artist was ‘the feature’ and her work is only priced via a list in the customers program. (Boston, MA)

I don’t know about you, but I have found that most people will NOT walk INTO a jewelry booth! (Maybe they are intimidated by thinking they have to purchase an item as admission or something.) To counter this situation (with the exception of my first 2 shows) I never set-up so people have to walk in! Instead, I set my tables up around the perimeter of my space, which puts a boundary between them and me. (Maybe they feel safer this way?) When they walk by my tables I just say ‘Hi’ and tell them ‘what’ they are looking at, describing my art form. If they are interested, I can always come around the tables to help them try things on. (Dothen, AL)

Yes, not being on the end of a booth row can limit your space if you set up around the perimeter, as you would only have about 10-feet of space. My solution to this challenge is to make my own aisle. (Virginia Beach, VA)

After many years of participating in shows all over the United States, I finally have one basic set-up that I now use all the time, with variations being made just by changing the table covers or the holiday theme, (and I still add one new display item every year). Life is good. (Bmghm, AL)

Yes, I like to have most of my work displayed in covered cases. Not only do cases prevent jewelry items from developing limbs and disappearing, but they also protect my work from dust and dirt. (You would be amazed to see how much lint and dust collects on the safety glass tops, within just a few hours ‘indoors’!) And if you are wondering how I fill my cases, I choose to display my items by what I personally feel go together, rarely the same combination twice, and usually surround a higher priced item with a variety of mid to lower priced pieces. (I am also known for changing and moving the contents of my display cases around during a show.) Other folks like to group their work according to either color or material, and still others group by price. As seen in some of the above pictures, I also think that it is very important for customers to be able to freely pick up and try things on, so some of my bracelets are lying loose on my main table too.

You may also notice the little white squares along the edge of the cases. These are my prices. (I think tags are ugly and take away from the jewelry.) I cut small shapes from 3×5 cards and list the item name or the material it is made from and the price. (I know that if I walk into a jewelry store or booth and cannot see any prices, I think they are probably high and I couldn’t afford them anyways.) By using these small cards I can also change the price whenever I want, and not have to worry about cutting and threading, etc.

The arena of display and booth set-up ideas is HUGE! This is just a sample of things I have tried that I hope may help those of you who are wondering in which direction to head while thinking about participating in shows, or those of you who are looking for a fresh idea. (And for all of those who have asked me for such an article via our ‘tips’ submission form, thanks!) 

Stay ‘Twisted’!

Dale/Cougar

Easily found in abundance, pre-historic man discovered the malleability of copper and used it to form simple weapons, tools and talismans. Some of coppers’ other historic roles include: being formed into statues and all forms of ritual and/or decorative art; used in the construction and protection of dwellings as roofs, gates and plumbing; shaped into eating and drinking vessels and utensils; used in thin sheets as a painter’s canvas and to protect the underside of ships from algae and parasites; used as trade barter and currency; and of course for personal and often functional ornamentation, copper and its early alloys of bronze and brass have been made into pieces of jewelry. (The following samples are from Morocco and can be seen at Epcot.)

The main property of copper that associates it with healing, is that copper is ‘biostatic’.  This means that bacteria will not grow on its’ surface. The ‘ancients’ realized this feature and made drinking vessels of copper to drink water from as a healing method.  Modern man uses copper in garden sprays to dispel mildew and other bacteria from plants. Copper tubing is used in air conditioning units to prevent the spread of bacteria. Copper-impregnated fabrics have many uses as socks, uniforms and underwear for the sports industry; gauze bandages, wound products and textiles used in healthcare such as gowns, masks, towels, etc; household pillowcases, mattresses and carpeting; and for military and industrial clothing. Did you know that some hospitals use copper doorknobs to prevent the spread of germs? I realize now that what I though were just gorgeous older elevators, they were actually made using copper and brass as disease resistant decor! (This example is found in a bulding on Liberty Ave in Pittsburg, PA.)

Copper is very important to the human body too. We all consume copper in the form of vegetable, nuts, dried beads, seafood and (thank goodness) chocolate! Copper is also present in the air we breathe and in the water we drink. A copper deficiency in a humans diet can be associated with many stomach diseases, chronic diarrhea and premature birth, as well as high cholesterol levels. So enjoy your chocolate desert!

I’ll bet you have more copper in your personal home than you think (I know I do). One of coppers alloys is brass. Look around your home. Do you see brass andirons and tools near your fireplace or woodstove? How about any brass lamps, bells, a Grandfather or antique clock, a brass bed frame, silver plated flatware or tea set?  Ok, now how about the construction of your home. Did you know that an average single-family house in the United States contains more than 400 pounds of copper? Think about the builder’s hardware, plumber’s brass fittings and goods and the electrical wire. Now look at all of your electronic devices (computers, game players, stereo) and regular appliances like the heat pump or furnace and AC unit, stove, refrigerator, washer and dryer, etc.  Amazing when you think about this, isn’t it. (And I’m not even going to detail all of ways that copper is used within the transportation industry!)

Native or natural copper is a lovely pinkish color, however most of what we are familiar with has a reddish/orange/brown tone due to the fact that when copper is exposed to oxygen it develops a layer of tarnish. Copper also forms within several other minerals like chalcopyrite (fools gold), covellite, malachite and azurite. Copper is also the responsible color pigment for the mineral turquoise. Most copper findings produced today are polished, and most copper jewelry is coated with a lacquer both of which are temporary protection from tarnish. Copper will eventually turn a human’s skin green due to the reaction of the copper with the chemicals present in the human body.

 This is a photo I took of a basket of malachite in various forms. The specimens in the center show copper inclusions.

All of the pictures included in this article are from my private collection. The following picture is of a piece of ‘flow’ from a copper mine in Arizona. When it was given to me, it was explained that as copper is smelted to remove all impurities, all types of ore emerge, such as silver, gold and platinum. Taken in the morning sunlight, this piece clearly shows all of those metals!

This copper ‘drip’ is part of my outdoors collection as it weighs about 5 pounds and has very sharp edges. It is a solidified ‘drip’ from a smelting vat. The ’sheet’  and freeform mass are just more of my copper collection.

The only serious way to release deadly chemicals such as arsenic from copper is by heating it. Therefore all copper cookware is coated with a protective shield and anyone who uses any type of heat when working with copper needs to work in an area with adequate ventilation as well as wear personal protection such as a respirator. My husband is a boilermaker who is occasionally in situations where deadly fumes are present; such as repairs in the copper mines of the SW United States, and all workers there are required to wear respiratory protection. 

 All of the above information and facts are scientifically proven and true. Now let’s look at some healing theories associated with copper.

Many different cultures through the ages have used copper as a healing agent. Most of these cures were based on the fact that copper is biostatic or an antibacterial material. Second only to silver, copper is the best conductor of both heat and electricity therefore it is presumable that it would also help to conduct the flow of oxygen, energy, blood and other bodily fluids. 

Many people swear by the use of copper as an assistant with arthritic pain, however there is no scientific proof of this to date.

Based on scientific facts, it can be concluded that copper is a very important part of the human body and without it our entire circulatory and digestive systems suffer, and that copper peptides assist in cell regeneration that quickens wound healing.

I leave the rest up to your own individual judgment.

‘Stay Twisted!’

Dale/Cougar 

Wire-Sculpture’s Side Trip Adventure!

For Inspiration and Education

Located at Rozel Point of the Great Salt Lake in Utah, the Spiral Jetty is an earthwork sculpture that was created by American sculptor Robert Smithson in 1970.  In a previous post regarding inspiration, I mention folks who use mathematical formulas to create physical art, as Robert Smithson did when designing the Spiral Jetty.  Read more about this amazing artist:  http://www.robertsmithson.com/index.htm

The Spiral Jetty is a form of art known as Earth Art, Earthworks or Land Art.  From other examples found around the world, Land Art has been a practice for thousands of years but became a recognized ‘movement’ of the art world in the 1960’s, led by Americans.  What I find so cool about this art form is that it uses only materials native to the natural area in which it is created, and over time the art is actually meant to erode back into the earth from which it came!  (Talk about recycling.)  This is a great video clip that shows Smithson planning this sculpture, as well as its’ creation by heavy equipment: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTx4Pp4aPXA

The only Sign that told us were we headed in the right direction!

Our travel to the Spiral Jetty was enjoyable and it is ‘out there’!  As we rode through the terrain I thought of the first settlers traveling through the Utah prairies in covered wagons; women wearing all those cumbersome, hot clothes and what a challenge it had to be to find drinkable water.  Our first stop turned out not to be our end destination, but we were all glad to get out of the van and walk around on the salt flats, which seem to go on forever!

During our exploration of these flats, we checked out what appeared to be puddles covered with a thin layer of ice.

Ice in August in Utah??

Upon closer examination, the ‘ice’ was really a layer of salt crystals in the process of forming as the water evaporated.

Nope - Salt crystals!

The challenge for everyone then, was to find a formation of salt crystal that was different from anything we had already seen.  There were so many, really cool examples!  Although tempted to remove our shoes, as it was rather hot and we were in a wet location, I do not recommend it because these crystals can be razor sharp and some of them are as big as a dinner plate!  (Find out more about salt/halite crystals: http://www.galleries.com/Minerals/HALIDES/halite/halite.htm )

Loading everyone back into the van, our driver expertly maneuvered around not just rocks in the roadway, but miniature monoliths!  Continuing on to the Spiral Jetty location, we stopped to leave some water and fruit with a young couple that had not been as careful and had cracked the oil pan of their little car.  (Warning!  If you venture out to any remote location be sure to take along plenty of water and a few high carb snacks, as in some places cell phone reception is non –existent!)

The Jetty is awesome!

August 30, 2009

Talk about an ‘inspiration’ for everything beyond jewelry making, from: ‘we need to take care of the earth because it takes care of us’ to ‘one person can make a difference’.  Yes, we all walked the entire spiral and then explored the salt formations on the local basalt rocks that had been used to create it.

My only wish now would be to see this Earth Art sculpture when the water is up because the salt here is tinted pink with the salt tolerant algae that lives in this lake, and when the water level is up the black jetty jumps out of the blood red water, aligned with the bright white salt encrusted shoreline.

Leaving for the long drive back to Ogden, we each felt just a little closer to Mother Earth, and everyone has a nice salt crystal to remind us of this wonderful ‘Side Trip Adventure’.

Moral of this article: take an occasional ‘Side Trip’ in your local area and see what you didn’t realize was in your own backyard that may just be transformed into an inspiration for both your life and your art!

Stay ‘Twisted’!

Dale/Cougar

Nothing can make up for old fashioned one-on-one training with a proficient expert who has years (and oftentimes decades) worth of knowledge.

Have you ever felt like you wanted to take your wire jewelry making to another level, but weren’t sure how? Here at Wire-Sculpture.com we offer many different areas of information that are designed to help any level of jewelry maker increase their proficiency and skill level of jewelry making.

But training videos, emails, articles, patterns, etc. can only take you so far. In order to really progress to the next level its necessary to sit down and “pick the brain” of someone who has years of flourishing knowledge to share.

For the first time ever, we’re offering LIVE WIRE JEWELRY CLASSES with Dale “Cougar” Armstrong! World renowned for her unique ability to sit down and help students go from a beginner to intermediate level in just a few days, Dale has the wisdom and skill level to be able to help anyone achieve greatness!

***While we plan on having many classes similar to this one in the future, this first class is limited to the first 35 registrants.

Be sure to reserve your seat quickly and not miss out on this incredible opportunity to improve your wire jewelry skills and create friendships with others that will last a lifetime!

Find out more about the “Wired Retreat” here: http://www.wire-sculpture.com/events/

To Your Success!

Brandon Hutchins
Wire-Sculpture.com

Join Us for this FREE Webinar Where You’ll Learn About the Inspiration for Dale’s New Book, Find Out About Her Exclusive Wire Wrapping Techniques That Have Made Her So Successful, and Be Able To Have All of Your Questions Answered!

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Would you like to know how Dale “Cougar” Armstrong is involved with all of the new Wire Sculpture changes?
Would you like your jewelry wire questions answered by Dale live?
Do you want a chance to purchase one of Dale’s special edition books with her autograph?
How would you like to win a jewelry pattern kit for one of Dale’s exclusive patterns?

 [See post to watch Flash video]

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Growing up with a mother who was an avid rock hound, Dale quickly acquired a knack for working with gems, rocks, beads and more! Dale “Cougar” Armstrong has a very diverse background, ranging from her training in art with Carl Haskins and William Keyworth to her education in fine arts and geology with the University of South Florida.

Since her training, Dale has quickly become an expert in the wire jewelry field. With the start of her studio, Cougar’s Creations, Dale has won many awards at various juried art shows. She has been interviewed on live television, has works for sale in museums and galleries, is a regular contributor to Step-by-Step Wire Jewelry magazine and has been published in The Wire Artist Jeweler. Dale recently has become one of many wire jewelry artists showcased by Wire-Sculpture.com and has just published a new book entitled: Wirework: An Illustrated Guide to the Art of Wire Wrapping.

Yes, I want to attend this incredible event! 12PM EST Event has passed.

During this powerful webinar, you will discover:

-    Where Dale got the inspiration for her new wire wrapping book
-    How Dale went from a normal wire jewelry artist to being popular in her field
-    How Dale has been able to continue to prosper during these economic times
-    You will be able to have your wire jewelry questions answered live by Dale herself!

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At the end of the webinar Wire-Sculpture.com will raffle off 3 jewelry supply kits for the attendees! These jewelry supply kits will contain ALL of the supplies you need to successfully create jewelry pieces right from Dale’s new book. You’ll have enough for 3 jewelry pieces, so you’ll get plenty of practice, so that you can turn a profit quickly!

Yes, I want to attend this incredible event! 12PM EST Event has passed.

This is the only opportunity you will have to view this side of Dale Armstrong. She is going to share with us her feelings, desires and special thoughts on wire jewelry. We have all come to love her personable nature and her easy-to-understand instructional materials. But this is the chance to get to know Dale as she REALLY is!

Yes, I want to attend this incredible event! 12PM EST Event has passed.

We look forward to having you there!

Brandon Hutchins
Wire-Sculpture.com

P.S. This webinar is going to be incredible! And we expect to fill our attendance quickly.

Dale/Cougar, has a diverse art background, training in two-dimensional art with Carl Haskins of Vermont, and William Keyworth of New Hampshire. She also spent several years receiving personalized instruction with Karl Drerupe, renowned cloisonné and repossé artist. Dale attended the University of South Florida where she studied fine arts and geology. She worked as a technical, advertising artist for several years, ‘before the age of computers’.

Under her studio name of Cougar’s Creations, Dale displays her works at juried art shows, where she has taken many awards. As a featured artist, Dale has been interviewed on live television and has works for sale in museums and galleries.  Dale “Cougar” Armstrong is a regular contributor to Step-by-Step Wire Jewelry magazine and has been published in The Wire Artist Jeweler, Bead Unique and Art Jewelry magazines. She is a frequent instructor at Lapidary Journals’ BeadFest events, and has made a series of instructional DVDs, produced by Jewelry Television. As an instructor, she conducts workshops in her personal studio and by request, travels to teach classes at beadshops and other events nationwide. She has recently been one of many wire jewelry experts showcased by Wire-Sculpture.com through their tips, articles and other wire jewelry publications.

Dale’s newest success is her recently published book entitled: Wirework: An Illustrated Guide to the Art of Wire Wrapping.