I am super excited today to bring you a guest post from Sara Duggan of Crochet Business! Sara's site is a tremendous resource for anyone who wants to make money with their crochet. Whether you're a blogger, an etsy seller, even if you just make a few things for the annual community craft fair, you'll want to follow her on Facebook and check out her site. In this post, she's put together a fantastic inventory list and guide for anyone who wants to sell their crochet at Christmas Craft Fairs and Holiday Craft Shows!
The holidays will be here before you know it. JULY is the perfect time to start making inventory for your Christmas craft fair.
What should you make?
You should make a variety of items in a number of different styles and colors. People are happy to shop but at holiday fairs you want to keep the prices under $25.
You also want items to be small and pretty main stream. This is not the time to explore your freeform Olek inspired winter accessory line.
Stick with the basic gifting groups like babies, children, friends, family, and holiday decorations.
Before You Get to Hookin’
Selling at craft shows can be a little tricky but with some planning (like right now) you may have a profitable show.
Download this vendor interview worksheet and interview some people who sold at the last holiday fair.
- What sold best?
- What was the average price range?
- What is the mean demographic?
- How many attendees?
Once you have that information your next step is to find some people who actually attended the holiday craft fair. Download the Interview Attendee Worksheet here.
Trust me; you need this information to know what to spend your time making. It is also helpful to know which shows cater to an audience ready to buy.
- How many times have you attended?
- Did you make a purchase?
- What type of items did you buy?
- What was the average total purchase?
With this information you can now plan your inventory. Remember to over compensate. This means you are going to be working those little fingers to the bone. Bring 3 times as much as you think you will need making sure to have items from the following categories:
Baby – booties, layettes, blankets, hats
- Leaping Stripes Blocks Blanket
- Crochet Mobiles
- Photo Props for Baby
- Awesomely Unique Baby Bibs
- Toot Sweet Newborn Bonner
Children – toys, hats
- Zebra Toys, Hats, Blankets & More
- Video Gamers Amigurumi Delight
- Harry Potter Inspired Crochet
- Girly Girl Hair Accessories
- Lego of My BackPack
Adults – hats, scarves, gadgets
- Dr. Who Fans
- Cozy up to a Pair of Socks
- Electronic Sweaters
- Kitty Kat Krochet SKoodie
- Toasty Toes Slippers
Gifts for Others – spa days, food essentials, cozies,
- Calorie Free Cupcakes
- Gardens Do it Green
- Pamper Mama with this Set of Scrubbies
- Down to my last Skein of Yarn Patterns
- Faux Twinkie Foodie Patterns
Holiday – decorations
- Pendant Holiday Swag
- Chilly Snowmen
- Christmas Ornies
- It Wouldn't be Christmas without the Tree
- Mason Jar Sweater
One More Thing Before You Go
You still need to plan your booth, take photographs, make hang tags, print business cards and QR codes, prep packaging and triple check that everything is ready to go on show day.
Need more holiday craft show preparation tips? Visit Crochet Business – 31 Days of Craft Show Preparation series.
Sara Duggan loves crochet and writing. She joined the crochet blogging community in 2007 as Momwithahook. In 2008 she toyed with designing patterns and shares her creations on Squidoo – Momwithahook Patterns. Thinking of monetizing your crochet blog? Register for Hooking for Cash 101, an eCourse that will transform your blog in 31 Days.
A big thank you to Sara for being the first guest poster this week, and for putting together such an awesome resource for anyone interested in selling at a holiday craft fair or Christmas bazaar! Be sure to visit Sara’s site Crochet Business, and check out all the other goodies - if you're thinking about crocheting for income, it's a must read!
Be sure to check out and like the moogly Facebook page to get the latest updates, links, and sneak peeks. Moogly is also on Pinterest, Twitter, Tumblr, Sulia, and Google+ – come join the fun! You can contact me via the Facebook page or at TamaraKelly@mooglyblog.com.
Janice Whitby says
Thank you, thank you, thank you,......
sara says
You are most welcome. I thank Tamara for the opportunity to share with you. I hope these ideas will make your next craft fair a prosperous one. 🙂
Jessie At Home says
This is a great resource post, I am pinning it! And such a smart idea to start thinking now about the holiday crafts so you have plenty of time.
sara says
Oh thanks Jessie. I learned quite a bit about craft show preparation with the series I did earlier this year. Now is definitely time to plan and check out which shows you will participate in as some have already stopped taking applications.
It would be nice if those who do craft shows would tally what sold so we can all share ideas. BUT then again what sells in one location may not sell in another.
dorothymaybell says
why don't you have free knitting patterns like this i am teaching grandchildren to knit and nobody has a range of patterns for them to try. thanking you in antishapation.
Tamara Kelly says
Hi Dorothy! I'm primarily a crochet designer, who dabbles just a bit in knitting. It's just the way my brain works - crochet is so much easier for me to conceptualize! But there are lots of knitting patterns available out there - I recommend Ravelry.com - the site is free and there are tens of thousands of knitting patterns available, many also free!