Just wondering: How do I get some attention for the big beautiful balls I make for Christmas decorations? I have sent out press releases for my papier mache ornaments that I sell at a certain market near the water in Halifax and a certain gallery in the Hydrostone. I am local, I buy my supplies from local stores and I make eco-friendly ornaments that are amazing. They really are. So why a company that gets their stuff made in a foreign country gets three spaces in a recent edition of a certain weekly entertainment magazine and I get NOTHING I have no fucking clue. So I’m wondering who I have to fuck to get a picture and a bit of press in the paper so I can compete with all the fucking crappy, shitty, cheap stuff that’s out there. Perhaps you can start focusing on REAL local handmade work. I’m getting really fucking tired of seeing all the buy local signs and seeing next to nothing support by the local media. Yes, there are some great independent stores in Halifax but that doesn’t mean that their product is local. Give some local visual artists more space in print so people can find us. Thanks! —A Bitchy Talented Artist
This article appears in Nov 22-28, 2012.
Are your balls blue, perchance? Because that might explain your self-entitled, bitchy attitude.
If you fuck the suxster, he may buy one off ya…
Did the other company actually pay for the 3 spots?
Your lack of purchase power may be your undoing.
Blow…someone”s looking for yer services ~;)
those who aren’t looking for the cheapest alternatives are making their own. So lower your prices.
Welcome to the world of non-digital visual arts. They don’t call them starving for nothing.
Not sure what your prices are like but they sound sweet.. I’ll swing by and take a look 🙂 Sounds like my speed.
thanks zzz, if good, i’ll get 2. serious o.p., try kijiji, and include pics.i get a lot of stuff from there, and also unload a lot in a month. there is something for everyone. also call around to big companies like insurance firms, they have big trees and the lot. also malls.
also ABTA, do you have a website? You really do need a web presence to generate ANY amount of income in the arts world nowadays – freelancing especially. If you have no web presence, you’re screwed.
I’m a developer. I’ll introduce myself when we meet.
I hope the OB didn’t talk like that when she was pitching her balls. A good way to shoot yourself in the foot is putting out a very unprofessional complaint aka a bitch where people will see it and say “No way I would buy from an idiot like that”.
You’re gonna LOVE my balls!
Schweddy balls, anyone?
no one wants your crappy balls, get over it
What crayons said. Get some web presence. Do people still read magazines?
FYI: press releases are dead.
Love,
Your Friendly Neighbourhood PR Professional
OP needs to diversify to remain proactive in a rapidly changing free-market paradigm.:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tM9rnqdAx00…
If it wasn’t made in a chinese sweatshop & retailers can’t make a 99% profit off markups, they ain’t gonna bother with local vendors no matter how talented you may be. It’s called Capitalism. Take your gems to the flea market like the rest of the artists, soap makers, candles makers and butter churners. You want to get rich doing something you love? Too bad. Go back to the 9-5 grind you hate and continue to despise life like the rest of us if you want to make rent. Artists only become rich after they’re dead.
You forgot the jewelry, no_fool!
I stopped going to the Christmas craft shows around here because 99% of that shit is jewelry.
Start jurying your shows, fuckfaces. Then you’ll get my $8 admission, maybe.
Blessed are the soap makers.
[Plug] There’s a craft show the weekend of the 1st-2nd that has lots of other stuff besides jewellery and is also very much unlike most Christmas craft shows. [/plug]
why don’t you tell us the name of the show
For once I agree with no_fool. Get a real job.
I’m an artist. I admire applaud people who chase their dreams. Doesn’t mean I’m gonna blindly support everyone just because they’re a struggling local artist. Times are freakin hard right now, people aren’t gonna shell out big bucks for some damn Christmas ornaments. They’re lucky to afford a half decent present for their loved ones and still pay all their bills.
I sold out and got a desk job so I could have some money to invest in my craft, and a safety net in case it didn’t work out. Sounds like you don’t have what it takes to compete it your industry. Your art might be beautiful but advertising and marketing cost a lot of money and that’s where you’re losing. I wish you luck, it sounds like you need to revisit your business model.
Truth be told, if it can be made more cheaply and/or beautifully than bought, it’ll be made by the one who will be using it, or their friends and family. I suspect there’ll be a lot of sewn, knit, crocheted, hooked, molded, carved, thrown, painted, drawn, baked, boiled or steamed things found under (or on) the trees and in the stockings this year. I’m suggesting to everyone this year to put their spare time and talents to productive use both to earn and to save money.
You’re making ornaments? Great! If you’re doing this because you love the pastime and you’ve got a job to fall back on, that’s the ideal. Bear in mind, however, that it may not do for a year-round, 12-hour-a-day enterprise if you’re not making at least minimum wage plus the cost of materials and overhead. Think about your costs against what you’re charging for them. If you’re spending at least an hour on each one and you’re not asking $15 or more for it, you’re selling yourself and your craft short.
Op, there are no entitlements for locals, it is your responsibility to convince them that they want your product.
http://www.thecoast.ca/halifax/have-yourse…
No wonder. Who wants more Christmas shit. Ughhghg. It is nothing but a commercial windfall for the retailers. Nowhere is the real meaning of Christmas allowed anymore. Keep the lousy shiny balls and the rest of the crap. I GAVE AWAY all my decorations and the rest of it because it sickens me now how greedy the Christmas season has become. They all have their hands out, yes, sad to say even the churches for a big windfall. Nope I caught on and now keep it very small. Keep your celebration confined to one day for the tree, gifts and turkey dinner. then it’s life as usual. A lot of people feel a big let down and depression when Christmas is over because they are expecting something life changing. It isn’t. It is purely commercial retailism..