I have a little expertice in these matters. First you almost have to
draw a line between craft show and flea market and ther is also a big
difference between craft shows.
In a flea market quality doesn't always sell. I have seen some
absolute junk being sold like hot cakes. I mean it didn't make any
differance to the guy making the stuff if there was a 2 inch knot hole
in the next chunk of wood or not, that was the next piece to be cut
and folks bought the stuff. To grade the lumber #3 would have been a
compliment.The other problem with flea markets is if you do come up
with something thart sells next week everyone will be selling the same
thing only cheaper. Some of the sellers will also have acess to scraps
from some manufacturing plant so the have no marterial costs. Tough
racket but you can make money and have fun .

Craft show type 1. Good quality moderate prices. the competation may
be stiff but folks will pay for quality work but a fair prices. This
is the type of market I did business in for about 5 years. I made
childrens furniture, tables, chairs, desks, shelves, toy boxes,and
beds. All of which are a lot of work. I used pine and poplar as my
woods of choice. At that time rough poplar was cheeper than pine. The
key here is to be able to make the items fast and well. Good tools and
lots of jigs.

Craft show type 2 These are usually juryed shows, very snobbish . Yes
you get high dollar for your stuff but it hat to be almost an "object
de art" to qualify to show. You can make the same stuff but use
better woods like oak and walnut with a better finish.

Pricing
Charge what the traffic will bare. Go to these places and see what
other folks are charging. A good starting point though is 1/3
material, 1/3 labor, 1/3 profit. then adjust from there.

Bottom line: Did I enjoy it? Yes
Would I do it again? No
Did I make money? Yes
If you like long hours, hard work and get to meet a lot of interesting
people along the way, go for it.
You can make money but you'll never get rich.

Lot of luck
JL
On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 14:35:07 GMT, "js"
wrote:

Does anyone here sell things at craft shows, flea markets, etc as a source
of income, or as a source of funds for continuing on with your addiction? If
so, what kind of things do you make, what sells well, and is it worth it?
Are people attending these things willing to pay a fair price for an item?