Tips and Tricks for applying

Here’s a few things to keep in mind when applying for our shows. Some of this is the stuff the jury is thinking about when we look at your applications. Keep it mind as you work on crafts (because of course, none of us leave applications to the last minute…..).

Clear photos

We can’t stress this enough. Etsy has a great guide to taking photos. We’re not asking you to have the world’s best camera. We’re just asking you to give us a clear shot of what it is you make. You want your photos to represent you when a room full of strangers is trying to figure out what’s what. Make sure they’re clear, in focus, and not surrounded by clutter (a messy desk, your pet, your kid – unless they’re demonstrating how to use the item, they shouldn’t be in the photo)

 Clear & simple descriptions.

What do you make? How do you make it? Keep this as simple as possible. If we’re not familiar with you and your work, this is all we have to go by.

You could make the best thing ever and we’d miss it if the description and photo doesn’t show that to us.

Keep it fresh.

Have you been applying to the show with the same work for the past three or four or more shows? We want to keep the work fresh for the customers – this will keep them coming back for more. So if we’re seeing lots of new stuff, from new people, jury scores may be weighted in their favour.

A few more things to keep in mind…

 We are no longer accepting cheques.

As the show grows, we’ve had to make a few changes. Logistically, accepting cheques is no longer feasible. We can’t accept everyone who applies (there just isn’t enough space), which leaves us holding your personal cheque. So in an effort to go paperless and to ensure that your payment is secure, we’ve decided to use PayPal.

We’ll use PayPal for your application fee and for your payment once you’ve been accepted.

If you have difficulties with PayPal, please email us at halifaxcrafters at gmail dot com.

Categories

Please choose only one category. The categories are important during the jurying process and only one of the categories you choose will be taken into consideration. If you choose more than one, we’ll have to decide which of those categories best describes the work submitted. Because of this, we strongly recommend you choose the one category that describes what you do – because no one knows your work better than you do.

Tables.

There aren’t enough 8′ tables for everyone. This sucks. We really wish there were, but we’re limited to what’s available at the Olympic Centre. We’ll do our best to accomodate everyone who asks for an 8′ table.

However, if you do have your own table and the means to transport it to the show, feel free to bring it along.

You also have the option of using a smaller table plus a display rack or no table at all (depending on your display).  In these cases, you still need to pay the full fee for the 5′ or 8′ space (we’re selling you a space, not a table).

Special requests

Electricity is something that’s in short supply – there’s no way everyone can get access to the outlets. If you request electricity, our floor planners will do everything they can to make sure you get it – but we can’t promise you will. In some cases, they can only get you near-ish to an outlet. Plan for this and bring an extension cord (we don’t provide these). If the request is to be in a certain area or near a friend, we’ll take it into consideration, but we can’t make promises.