A year in the life of a furniture maker.


Timberwerks

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I'll be adding it to my blogroll tonight, Dale. It sounds like an interesting take.

Hi Vic

Thanks, hopefully you and others will find it interesting as well. You'll see what I do to sell my work and attract new clients. You will also get an idea off the income I have made for the year. I'll show prices and talk about how I came to determine that price. Once the shows start their season and I start exhibiting I'll see if other exhibitors and visitors will share their thoughts on selling and buying from individual makers vs manufactures. A bit of a documentary really.

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Very interesting. I would love to know how you make your bow ties!!?? You have some very nice pieces.

Jeff

Thanks Jeff

Sure, I can show you. I went from the common bow tie to a less seen butterfly shape a couple of years ago. There is a sketch that I have for a framed wall piece that I would like to make and try out on Etsy before the show season begins, those butterflies are part of the piece. I'd like to start that right after the holidays. I'll keep you posted here so you can see photos of the process on my blog. Then we will see how well received the piece is on Etsy. I have a feeling it will be a great seller at shows but Etsy may be a gamble. It's only .20 to list on Etsy and $7.00 to showcase so it's a low cost trial.

Happy Holidays!

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Hi Vic

Thanks, hopefully you and others will find it interesting as well. You'll see what I do to sell my work and attract new clients. You will also get an idea off the income I have made for the year. I'll show prices and talk about how I came to determine that price. Once the shows start their season and I start exhibiting I'll see if other exhibitors and visitors will share their thoughts on selling and buying from individual makers vs manufactures. A bit of a documentary really.

That'll be great, Dale. I think that's really the missing piece of the puzzle. The one thing that most people are hesitant to discuss is the one crucial thing to a decision of "should I go all in". From what I've heard, I'll most likely continue the strategy I'm employing now with the ultimate goal of fully stepping out in eight years. That way, I don't have to make near what I do now to sustain our standard of living. I can't wait for the posts!!

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I think you'll enjoy following Vic. There will be some posts discussing furniture builds as well. Along with furniture I will also work on smaller items for such places as Etsy and to have with me at shows, sometimes small items will be your bread & butter so don't forget to include them in your plans. One of the interesting people you will see in my posts will be Al Buss, he's been doing shows both retail and wholesale for over 30 yr's. I'll take pictures of him, work and studio and get his insight of what makers and artists need to know. I first met him 10 yr's ago, our shops were in the same building, we exhibit at some of the same shows. Another interesting person I hope to meet with is Lisa Brobst, she is a fantastic artist and furniture maker. She sells through shows, galleries and Etsy. Lisa also shared the building with Al and I.

Another person of interest I'll talk with is Mark Cherry, a cabinet maker who's main focus is kitchens etc but is getting his feet wet with furniture and also doing shows. I've suggested this idea to a few magazines in the past but never got a nod so I figure I'll just do it via my blog.

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I think you'll enjoy following Vic. There will be some posts discussing furniture builds as well. Along with furniture I will also work on smaller items for such places as Etsy and to have with me at shows, sometimes small items will be your bread & butter so don't forget to include them in your plans. One of the interesting people you will see in my posts will be Al Buss, he's been doing shows both retail and wholesale for over 30 yr's. I'll take pictures of him, work and studio and get his insight of what makers and artists need to know. I first met him 10 yr's ago, our shops were in the same building, we exhibit at some of the same shows. Another interesting person I hope to meet with is Lisa Brobst, she is a fantastic artist and furniture maker. She sells through shows, galleries and Etsy. Lisa also shared the building with Al and I.

Another person of interest I'll talk with is Mark Cherry, a cabinet maker who's main focus is kitchens etc but is getting his feet wet with furniture and also doing shows. I've suggested this idea to a few magazines in the past but never got a nod so I figure I'll just do it via my blog.

Excellent, Dale! Like I said, I really think it sounds like you're nailing it!

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Please let me know when this starts ...

Hi Chester

I'll pretty much get the ball rolling the first or second week of January. The show season won't hit until Spring so focus for the next few months will be on ways to get going with selling more work, new connections, galleries and commissions etc. Designing and selling some items on Etsy will also be a focus. It really is going to be a very busy year and there will be a lot to write about.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi Everyone

In another week or two the first post for A Year In The Life Of will be made. I hope you are all looking forward to this new year as I am. In order to keep things informative and interesting feel free to reply here or on the blog page with your topic suggestions. Would you like to see what I'm working on in the studio, and the studio itself? Would you like to learn what has worked for me to develop a list of clients and sell work? Nothing is of topic so feel free to be open with me and I'll be open with you. http://djofurnituremaker.wordpress.com/ & http://timberwerksstudio.blogspot.com/

Happy New Year!

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Bookmarked!

Thanks isaw

I just got word that I will be collaborating with a well known and very talented interior designer in my area. We will both design and I will build a one of a kind piece that will be featured in the 2011 http://www.breastcancershowhouse.org/wbcs/index.html It's a great opportunity and I will document the experience and build on my blogs. It's exciting because this is for a great cause and these featured homes receive a lot of visitors and media attention.

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Thanks isaw

I just got word that I will be collaborating with a well known and very talented interior designer in my area. We will both design and I will build a one of a kind piece that will be featured in the 2011 http://www.breastcancershowhouse.org/wbcs/index.html It's a great opportunity and I will document the experience and build on my blogs. It's exciting because this is for a great cause and these featured homes receive a lot of visitors and media attention.

Good luck you deserve it. I'll be following your year you can count on it.

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Happy New Year Everyone!

I have decided to talk a bit about Japanese tools and joinery this year as well, I'm a big fan of both.

post-250-0-30883700-1293902122_thumb.jpg

I just received word that there may be an artist co-op starting up in a great area near me. I'm not sure of the details yet but I have been asked to join and attend a meeting that the buildings owner will be having in a couple of weeks. I'll keep you posted.

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