Artists Alley Information Thread

Selling at Cons is best during the...

Spring	11.5%	[ 117 ]
Summer	29.4%	[ 300 ]
Fall	7.2%	[ 73 ]
Winter	5.5%	[ 56 ]
Any time!	46.5%	[ 474 ]
Total Votes:			[ 1020 ]

[Seijaku_Ishida]

Krazehcakes

A great Midwest convention for me was Youmacon. now THAT is a con with friendly people.

Even if it's friendly, I'd check the previous page about Youmacon's last Artist Alley's and its terrible conditions. I'd side-eye any con that puts artists and dealers in a parking garage. Due to dripping water, some artists lost merch, and I heard there was one electrical fire.

[Krazehcakes]

Seijaku_Ishida

Krazehcakes

A great Midwest convention for me was Youmacon. now THAT is a con with friendly people.

Even if it's friendly, I'd check the previous page about Youmacon's last Artist Alley's and its terrible conditions. I'd side-eye any con that puts artists and dealers in a parking garage. Due to dripping water, some artists lost merch, and I heard there was one electrical fire.

Are you mixing up Akicon and Youmacon? xD
Youmacon's new location was in the Cobo and yes... its set up was pretty bad, but it was a rush job due to skyrocketing Gas prices from Hurricane Sandy. There was no leaking if i recall. And the hall was Huge. We're hoping since this first year was experimentally a flop in the Cobo they'd mix it up and make it better for next year.
location aside, I have a pretty high hope for next year and the people are really friendly. Really friendly. I would man a 14 hour bus ride to that con every year.

Btw has anyone tabled in Connecticon before? I really want to go because my friends live In Connecticut. But i was hoping to know a blanket approximate of sales/people willing to buy to ease my tablemate's anxiety so we can split a booth.

[animelove9670]

I know that the wirecubes and pvc pipes are awesome for having tall stands, but has anyone tried other things? i'm definitely not going to be a usual AA-er, (I've only done it once and I want to do it again this year before college gets hectic) so has anyone ever tried anything else? * A*

Oh, and for on-site commissions, how many do you usually accept in a day? I know those can be overwhelming in case you don't finish on time and all. q nq How do you reject commissions that you don't think you'd do well on without being awkward? Do you just say you can't do the commission since it's not one of your strengths or something?

[animelove9670]

sorry for the spam ; A;
but how much do you think a colored sketch would go for? It's on 8.5 x 11 inch cardstock.
How about a chibi sketch on an index card?

Thanks > A< I've read most of this thread. ; v; you guys are awesome<333

[[Kako]]

Fapel

I know that the wirecubes and pvc pipes are awesome for having tall stands, but has anyone tried other things? i'm definitely not going to be a usual AA-er, (I've only done it once and I want to do it again this year before college gets hectic) so has anyone ever tried anything else? * A*

Oh, and for on-site commissions, how many do you usually accept in a day? I know those can be overwhelming in case you don't finish on time and all. q nq How do you reject commissions that you don't think you'd do well on without being awkward? Do you just say you can't do the commission since it's not one of your strengths or something?

I've seen a couple of wood/cloth set-ups, and I'm sure there are plenty of other inventive solutions out there. But PVC/Wire Cubes are staples for a reason - they're cheap, easy to assemble, and easy to transport. Unfortunately I don't know of any temporary display solutions - I'd recommend either trying wirecubes because they'll be useful outside of the alley, I guess? Or perhaps finding someone with a more permanent display to share a table with. (Although I should note, with a nice table cloth and a couple of inclined surfaces you can often attract a lot of attention without a tall display)

I tend to take 2-3 commissions per day, but I also don't like to be working for the entire day. Time spent working on commissions is time that you're not paying direct attention to the people at your table, and that can be bad for sales. I've never had to turn down a commission, but I imagine I'd just say something like "I'm sorry, I'm not really sure I can draw that very well. Is there something else you'd like?"

On the sketch - you shouldn't price based on what you think it'll go for, you should price based on what you'd be comfortable getting for it. How long does it take you to do a coloured sketch? How much do you want to make per hour? Multiply those together then add a dollar or two to cover the cost of materials.

[xMissMacabre]

Speaking of set-ups, I would LOVE to be able to do this one day: http://barnumswinter.blogspot.com/2012/11/art-print-display-for-craft-show.html

[[Kako]]

Oooh, that looks very nice! There are a lot of neat displays one can build with a bit of carpentry skill. The downside is that they don't tend to be very portable. ):

What's even cooler is the flickr linked in that article, though - Show Me Your Booths. There's almost 5,000 photos of craft fair displays in there, so I bet it'd be a great resource for display ideas.

[xMissMacabre]

Yeah, that looks really heavy! D: wouldn't be convenient if you were going to a con that involved a plane ride over >.<

I'm looking through that flickr stream too razz on that note, I really appreciate it when the artist clearly took the time to make a creative and aesthetically pleasing display! Y'know, not just throwing together a bunch of wire cubes and whatnot, but putting up decorations, nice tablecloth, etc. Plus it'll draw me to their table!

[animelove9670]

[Kako]

Thanks-! Yeah, I figured I can do stuff with mini easels and corkboards or something. I'll post a picture of what I ended up doing later I guess. 8D
Oh, and speaking of table cloths, what's the best way to stick a poster/prints on the edge of the table facing congoers? Tape usually is too weak..so do people use like pins or something..?

Ah, yeah, that definitely makes sense. I just think it'd be nice to see what the general price is I guess since I'd know what's "normal?" I haven't been to any cons in awhile so yeah. T-T I'm pretty fast with chibis (not so much with coloring though since I want to blenddd haha)

But thanks for making this thread and continue to answer questions even now. T-T This thread is so helpful haha. T-T<333

xMissMacabre

Ahhh I agree with you. ; v; I love looking at pretty and nicely designed tables. *__* Always really refreshing when a lot of people have the same setup. My friend who tables at a few conventions has this super pink table display each year. It always stands out so much and is adorable. ; v;

[[Kako]]

Fapel

[Kako]

Thanks-! Yeah, I figured I can do stuff with mini easels and corkboards or something. I'll post a picture of what I ended up doing later I guess. 8D
Oh, and speaking of table cloths, what's the best way to stick a poster/prints on the edge of the table facing congoers? Tape usually is too weak..so do people use like pins or something..?

I've seen pins and those little double sided sticky foam pads made for holding up posters beung used to hold up prints on the edge of a table. I've used tape just fine, but I also don't usually find it to be a terribly useful display area. It tends to just get blocked by people walking by.

Quote:

Ah, yeah, that definitely makes sense. I just think it'd be nice to see what the general price is I guess since I'd know what's "normal?" I haven't been to any cons in awhile so yeah. T-T I'm pretty fast with chibis (not so much with coloring though since I want to blenddd haha)

Prices are all over the place, often due to unconfident artists underpricing themselves. razz I'd say price by what you want to get for your time, and if you aren't getting commissions then drop it a bit - don't go below what you're comfortable working for, though!

Quote:

But thanks for making this thread and continue to answer questions even now. T-T This thread is so helpful haha. T-T<333

Not a problem! I was totally new to AAs back when I started this thread and a lot of kind and generous users helped me out, so I think its only fair that I help newbies out now that I have some experience. I run a blog along a similar line - artistsalleyinfo.tumblr.com

[animelove9670]

[Kako]

Oh, yeah, that is true haha. I was thinking about putting something simple on the edge of my table to pretty up my table more, but I guess I'll think about that more later when the con nears.

And thatttt is true as well lol. I've seen tons of people underpricing themselves. D8 But yeah, I guess I can just adjust prices during the con too. ; v;

Ahh--that's awesome8D I'll be following it now. Thanks so much<333

[animelove9670]

[Kako]

I was looking at your AA tumblr, and saw how you reccommended Vistaprint. Have you used it before? Because I've been too scared to use them (I've used overnightprints) since I've heard of them doing like..shady crap. Selling people's credit card info or doing small automatic charges monthly to your card and stuff like that. It was like 2 years ago, but yeah..

[Kaxen]

Fapel

[Kako]

I was looking at your AA tumblr, and saw how you reccommended Vistaprint. Have you used it before? Because I've been too scared to use them (I've used overnightprints) since I've heard of them doing like..shady crap. Selling people's credit card info or doing small automatic charges monthly to your card and stuff like that. It was like 2 years ago, but yeah..

I've noticed with Vistaprint, they're not actually that much cheaper if you don't use their templates since they charge you an "upload fee". Or at least I ended up picking Overnightprints instead and also because overnightprints does spot gloss and I don't think I can live in a world without spot gloss on my business cards. I don't like matte cards, but cards that are glossy all over don't look as cool either. I think I will spring for rounded corners at some point. I like those too, but I've never tried it. Overnightprints seems to have "perpetual sale" going on anyhow. It seems like I get e-mails that their business cards are 30-50% off almost all the time.


Recently, Moo was offering free business cards for Etsy users. I tried them, but I don't think they're worth the price the ask normally (it's like $20 for 50). It doesn't look significantly better and my order looked like they cut it with a dull knife... They did do a second print when I complained, though. Their customer service is pretty good.








I've been sewing more scoodies (Christmas time was very good to me) and trying to expand to different fandoms, but I dunno what else to do though. I've gotten suggestions to do Kyubei and I just finished sewing a Loki themed scoodie for a friend.

I feel like I should do more anime-themed ones since it's a bit odd to go to anime conventions with no anime-related merch. I'm kind of in a weird place. I still like anime-esque aesthetics and draw like that, but I haven't actually liked an anime or manga in quite some time!


Been thinking of going to Anime Conji since it's in San Diego. Though they still don't have their Artist Alley stuff up. x_x

[[Kako]]

Fapel

[Kako]

I was looking at your AA tumblr, and saw how you reccommended Vistaprint. Have you used it before? Because I've been too scared to use them (I've used overnightprints) since I've heard of them doing like..shady crap. Selling people's credit card info or doing small automatic charges monthly to your card and stuff like that. It was like 2 years ago, but yeah..

I've gotten my business cards from vistaprint for the last two or three years with no trouble involving false card charges. The company is.... eh, okay. I am less fond of them now then I was when I recommended them. The major good points are that they have an easy to use interface and you can order in very small quantities, which is helpful for people who are just getting started. I only ever really buy them when there's already a sale going on, but they have sales really dang often.

@Kaxen - Honestly, I know a *lot* of people who don't really bother with anime at their tables anymore. They mostly sell marvel/western animation/bbc related stuff, although a lot of them have their own anime-esque comics/properties to promote as well. If you can think of anime related stuff you actually want to make it certainly couldn't hurt, but I don't know that you need to push yourself to appeal to the anime crowd.

[Kaxen]

[Kako]

@Kaxen - Honestly, I know a *lot* of people who don't really bother with anime at their tables anymore. They mostly sell marvel/western animation/bbc related stuff, although a lot of them have their own anime-esque comics/properties to promote as well. If you can think of anime related stuff you actually want to make it certainly couldn't hurt, but I don't know that you need to push yourself to appeal to the anime crowd.

I suppose I'll keep peddling Assassin's Creed then. It's the fandom that makes me the most money.

I try to push my own comics, but no one even looks at them. >_> I need to learn how to write/draw better and market better.