Handmade or Not? How To Tell The Difference
This article was originally published in my online store blog on 08-22-2014. It has been moved to my new website.
"Did you make all this stuff?" As someone who sells at art fairs, I often am asked that question. Of course, if you ask that question at an "art" show, the answer will always be "yes", because art shows don't allow mass produced jewelry. It might be a lie, however.
Me, with my fused glass jewelry at the local farmers market
Sometimes, unscrupulous people masquerade as artists while actually selling cheap imported goods. Some of those may actually be handmade in large quantities in factories in developing nations where labor is cheap. The quality of these items is usually not good, because they are working to meet production quotas.
A good art show is juried. That means artists have to apply and send in pictures of their work. A jury of people, hopefully people knowledgeable about art, decide which artists will be in the show. However, the juries only see a few images of the work to be sold. The juror might be a painter, for example. He knows about paintings, but not so much about jewelry. He might be fooled into letting resale, or "buy-sell" into the show.
So I am going to share with you three tips to become a discriminating buyer at art and craft shows. I have actually seen all three of these at one show!
1. LOTS OF ITEMS EXACTLY THE SAME
This is actually a bead aisle at a craft store, but you get the idea.
Are there dozens and dozens of items that are exactly alike, except maybe for color variations? Think about it. You're an artist and you like to create things. Are you going to want to sit down and make 100 of that bracelet? Not likely. That's a big red flag. Art shows like your work to look cohesive. It is likely you will see similarities in the work. Sometimes you can even look at a piece and you instantly recognize the artist because their style is so unique to them. However, if you see racks of items that are exactly the same, it's a safe bet it's mass produced.
My husband pretending to sleep in my booth
2. MORE THAN ONE VENDOR SELLING THE EXACT SAME ITEM
Did you see the same thing at two different booths? I have only seen that once, but it does happen. I used to live in China, and it was very common to see bracelets and necklaces made with magnets and small pearls. They are very cheap in China. One show (that I don't do anymore) had two booths that were selling nothing but magnetic jewelry. I suspect they didn't even realize that the little pearls were real! Now, someone who makes jewelry might decide to string a few magnetic necklaces or bracelets, but they're not going to string hundreds of them!
The local farmers market is a good place to find handmade.
Now, here is the most important way to tell just about everything you would want to know about a piece of jewelry:
3. ASK THE ARTIST
A glass artist with some of her work.
Rather than asking the artist, did you make this?, be more specific. What kind of stone is this? Is this plated? What kind of wire is this? Ask specific questions about the materials and the processes used to make the item. Of course, the artist is not going to want to reveal his or her trade secrets, but they will share quite a bit of information. For example, an artist will tell you that she etched that design into that cuff bracelet, but may not want to tell you exactly how to do the etching process. Likewise, they may tell you they used a "cat liter" patina, but not give you the ingredients for the patina. Most artists like to share some about their processes. They want you to understand how much work goes into making that piece. Then you can understand why it's so expensive than the cheap mass produced bracelet you just bought at Walmart! Is it silver? That could be silver plate, sterling silver, fine silver, rhodium plated gold, rhodium plated base metal, and on and on. An artist will be able to tell you.
Some of you may know what a "dzi" bead is. Once I saw an "artist" selling what appeared to be mass produced, imported jewelry. One of the pieces had a wooden bead that was made to look like a "dzi" bead. I asked the guy, "what kind of bead is that?" His response, "it's wood". That pretty much confirmed for me that he didn't know any more about that jewelry than I did.
Part of my messy workshop - I'll tell you all about it!
Next time you go to an art fair, I hope you will take the time to ask at least one artist about their work. You will probably learn something new.
