Fill orders for gift shops with your wood products

This works, approach small gift shops where the tourists go and you will discover a new world of selling your wood products. Look for busy shopping areas by visiting  these area yourself.  Here’s an example : take a boat cruise around a lake, rent a bike, row a canoe, take a drive in the car.  Take note of the  restaurants  and small shops in the area. Visit the shops. See what they are selling and what they “need” to sell.  If your product is small then you are lucky enough to sell across the country.  Search Google maps and find  gift shops this way. Pick a tourist spot and Google the area for gift shops. If you pick a place where there are boats and light houses, you can create light house gifts for example. You can produce   boat ornaments or research which type of birds or animals are in the area. Make the animals or birds on magnets. Write with a Sharpie, the state or city or town on the magnet. People buy this stuff! Plymouth Plantations in Massachusetts is a great example. Make pilgrim gifts for gift shops. ~~~~~~ Keep in mind that once you land your “account” you will be shipping your product via post office or Fed Ex or UPS. You could also travel once in awhile and personally deliver your order to the shop and write it off if you are claiming your business on your taxes. I once had an account in the White Mountains. Once a month I would pack up my car and load up the shelves at the store and then spend the rest of the weekend at a hotel and enjoying my stay. I learned that sticking close to home was not the answer to selling my crafts. You have to go where the tourists go! Foot traffic and tourists are what its all about. 

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If you do not like to travel, you can always send your item (if they are small enough) through a shipping service such a UPS or the Postal Service. If you find a good place for your items to sell you must make that first contact in person. It’s always good to know the area and the clientele that frequent the shops in your new chosen area. Several of the shops I sold to took take care when my wood gifts would arrive at their store. They would put up the merchandise and I would get a printout of my sold inventory with a check every month. Of course my rent would be deducted, but I  had sufficient funds left over to enjoy. Once I got the report and my check this was the incentive I need to begin the cycle again of making, packing and shipping my wood gift items for sale.

~~~~Target Your Crafts to Sell to Tourists ~~~Free sources for scroll saw patterns

Here are a few fun tips to get your creative juices flowing; I found the best scroll saw pattern ever that I created and found it on a tissue Kleenex box!. Tissue boxes are amazing for pretty patterns on the outsides of the box. My image I found was a dolphin jumping in the ocean. I scanned the box flat on my scanner and saved the dolphin image to my computer. I have a fish outline shape and the painting outline guide to go with it. I now had a newly created scroll saw pattern for my nautical coat rack. If you don’t have a scanner you can purchase an fairly inexpensive one. They hookup just like a printer. A scanner as well as a printer are a must if you are going to make your own craft saw patterns. Then, just buy your ink online and your good to go! Remember, whenever you are sitting in a doctors or dentists office scour the magazines and silently tear out advertisements that have an appealing shape! I spotted a dog treat ad where the pet was getting a treat and the position of the animal was just right. The dog image made a perfect silhouette pattern for my new dog leash holder I made with pegs. Any type of children’s coloring books are another great source for patterns & craft ideas. Good luck with your search!