Well worth the effort!!

[Jeff Myers]

Well, I had my first show a couple weeks ago. All those nights in the basement robotically turning out bottle stoppers(350!) and confetti lamps and flower vases(200!) and bandsawing out bottle holders(150!) paid off.
I didn't sell out but sold more than enough to make it worth while, and
with over 1000 business cards handed out, i've had quite a few calls since then for Christmas gift purchases,,,along with invitations to vendor at several upcoming Christmas shows.
Here's some pix of my booth.
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and a picture of one of the bottle holders since they're sorta hidden:eek:

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[Dennis Peacock]

Congrats Jeff on a successfull show!!!!! May you gain a lot of business from your recent experience. I really like the bottle holder. What's the trick to make that work? Inquiring minds wanna know. :D

[Jim Dunn]

Mark Singer will want to know if it works with "empty" bottles:) Real nice display and great looking bottle holder.

[Jeff Myers]

Thanks guys,
I'm on my way to a Robust lathe and would've placed my order but
the LOML sez she needs a leather sofa so i've got another show or
two before i can upgrade from my jet mini.
Dennis, The trick is a lot of trial and error,,,i've got several of those things
in the fire pile. Only works with full bottles and once you get the hole
positioned and angled correctly so bottle sits parallel to table, the balance
comes from how far in you slide the neck of the bottle. They're actually
very stable and you can knock them around,,,worse they do is roll forward
or backward and rest on the bottle,,,I didn't have any worries having them on display about a bottle breaking,,,they're that stable....Now i also
had some flat balance boards that will balance nicely on a solid surface table but they were precarious at the show with those folding tables,,,,i had to cheat and use tape to secure that type to the display shelf.

[Dave C. Brown]

Do I understand you turned all that on a jet mini? I am impressed. They look great from the pictures.

I am going to be getting into turning soon. I'm taking a weekend class at a Woodcraft store and will be getting a jet mini then.

One question: How much cost did you have in materials (wood and various types of hardware) to get ready for the show? I'm sure your time was the biggest investment. I'm just curious.

Where was the show?

Thanks.

--Dave

[Mark Cothren]

Congrats Jeff!!!

[George Conklin]

Glad you had a successful show. I like how you displayed your product. Very professional.:)

[Keith Burns]

Congrats on a successful show !!!:) :)

[Frank Kobilsek]

Jeff,
Excellent display. Your look is professional and makes great use of the space. I find that artists and crafts people almost always have talent in creation but seldom know marketing. I suspect you'll have both the sofa and the new lathe home by Christmas.
Frank

[Frank Fusco]

Looks great, hope you came home with substantial profits.
Could you post dimensions for the bottle balancer?
I just got successful with some fish designs and was feeling pretty saucy with myself. Then you show these neat things. Oh, well.

[Ernie Nyvall]

Way to go Jeff. I like you bottle stopper holdes. Did you make them?

[Jeff Myers]

Hey Frank,
I'll see if i can get some dimmensions, it doesn't have to be too accurate though. I know i've got some wider than others. PM me w/your mailing address and i'll mail ya a template.

Thanks Ernie, yes i made the bottle stopper display/holders, just 1x4 poplar with saw kerfs to slip the 1/8" acrylic strips in,,,they work pretty good. Word of warning though,,,i tried to add some CA glue to a couple that were loose and ruined the acrylic,,,the fumes etched my fingerprints and other smudges into the acrylic and won't polish off,,,use a different type glue if you need to do this.

[Jeff Myers]

Ernie, Here's a better view of the holder for those bottle stoppers, i've since added a second layer of acrylic under the first layer(don't have a close up picture but you can see in the orig. photos) so the stoppers with the real sharp point won't lean so much when they're on the outer ends of the display, the second hole they go through keeps them at correct angle.
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[Blake McCully]

Jeff,
Congrats on your success. Noting that you're from Raleigh, NC, was the show you did the Lazy Daze of Summer (or sumpin like at) in Cary? I have a niece-in-law who lives there and she's encouraged me to get into that one.

Sounds like it was a good show.

[Ernie Nyvall]

Ernie, Here's a better view of the holder for those bottle stoppers, i've since added a second layer of acrylic under the first layer(don't have a close up picture but you can see in the orig. photos) so the stoppers with the real sharp point won't lean so much when they're on the outer ends of the display, the second hole they go through keeps them at correct angle.
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Thanks Jeff. That's a good idea.

[Corey Hallagan]

Jeff, way to go! Nice looking booth and set up. Congrats on a good show!

corey