Interviewed by Sunshine Magazine

I'm thrilled to have been included in Stephanie Finnegan's article in Sunshine Magazine Issue: February 2020 about The Craft Fair circuit.

"........For an artist who is deciding whether or not to participate in a festival, a show, a gallery exhibit, or a competition, it can be intimidating. Often, an artisan feels alone when deciding whether or not it is now a good time to leave the studio and hit the road. If one has gotten comfortable doing local events, and close-to-home venues, here is a guide to allaying your anxieties. Sure, it is sometimes daunting to figure out whether you can afford to attend a bigger-name show. However, after hearing from your fellow artists, the better question to ask is: Can you afford not to go? “If you stay in your studio, no one will know you’re there! I work alone. Doing shows has not only increased my revenue, but it continues to grow due to the relationship you form with these people you would not have had the chance to meet sitting in your studio. I have only been doing shows for 2.5 years. The first one was scary, but you can get the hang of it pretty quickly — and my biggest surprise was that the other vendors are helpful and noncompetitive, so you learn a lot from them. I have formed relationships with other jewelers, which is invaluable,” Lori Kaplan, proprietor of Lori Kaplan Jewelry, observed. Kaplan adds, “also, even if you don’t make a sale, you never know what can happen. I had a show that wasn’t very profitable, but then I got chosen to be in a well-known juried site that sells handcrafted items. I sold so many pieces there, it made up for the ‘bad’ show and then some. I have also had sales after the show, which is always a gift. Even if someone never saw you at a show, you are on the exhibitor list. People keep those guides. From that same show that was not a good show for me, I had a sale six months later because a client was looking at the vendor list from that show and found me whilst looking for someone else. You just never know!...”