My last sale of the year was great!

[Jim Finn]

I make and sell cedar boxes with images of maple inlaid into the hinged lids.  I attend about twenty-five sales a year and this was my last one today.   I sold thirty-five of these boxes plus a few other items. (star and toys).  My best this year was thirty- nine and my average is about twelve so this was a great ending to a busy year.  My next scheduled sale is in mid June 2016

[DWSudekum]

Congratulations Jim on a successful sale.  Thanks for sharing this with us.

DW

[KarlB]

Way to go Jim!  That is awesome hearing your success.

Karl

[cowboysfanatic]

Yep congrats on the great shows up had sounds like u were busy busy.

[dunk]

Only problem with great sales like that is now you have to replace the inventory...  The good thing is you have time before the 1st show of 2016.  Congrats on a successful year.

[Toneman]

Congratulations Jim! My last show was Saturday and am ready for a little break! It has been a good year and am looking forward to next year. I have been surfing scroll saw sites to get new ideas for the shows. I am going to cease sawing some items that just do not move fast enough and take up space. Again, congrats!

Tony, aka,Toneman

[Danny]

Jim you have what the public likes it seems.  And you do Beautiful work.  Envy....  :+}

Tony....  I have also came to realize that the public in my only show have dislikes and likes.
              I have decided that the pieces I have tried to sell for the past 2 years that I still have
              will go as Gifts this year.  Discontinue them.  The main things that DO NOT SELL have
              been the Portraits.  Framed, glass etc.  Have DOZENS STILL.    Thanks to both for your posts.


                                                                             Danny  :+}

[Jim Finn]

Danny;
     Finding out what sells is a trial and error thing for me.  I started out making fireplace bellows thirty years ago, and found that there is almost no market for them here. I still have six of them.
      I then started making toys and they sold very well but I grew tired of making them.  I made some cedar trunks and sold them but I do not like hauling and storing them so now I only make them to order.  The trunks were too expensive but I did find myself with a lot of cedar scraps from making them.  I used the scraps to start making very small and simple boxes and they were well received.  I did decoupage on the lids at first. So I made more and learned to do inlay in the lids. They have been selling well for me for over six years now.  I have tried other items and found that either they do not sell  or that the time and wood put into them put the price too high.  I have made 20" tall oak vases that I thought would sell but they did not. Also tried making wooden flowers, sold only a very few.  Tried crosses but displaying them took up a lot of room in my booth and sales were weak with them. Same with intarsia.  I do not do fretwork at all but I have seen others try to sell them here without much luck. Same with turning pens.  What works for me are boxes, wall hung stars and rubber band guns.  I continue to try new things but make only a few to see how they will sell.  I keep records of all my sales so that at the end of the season I can kind of predict what I should make for the following year.  I have dropped many designs for boxes and other things after trying them. 

[BilltheDiver]

For those of us who do not actively sell, it is beneficial to know what are good items for you in case we do turn the corner and start producing for shows, etc.  Thanks for always being so generous as to pass on the education you have received from experience and hard knocks!

[Jim Finn]

Only problem with great sales like that is now you have to replace the inventory...  The good thing is you have time before the 1st show of 2016.  Congrats on a successful year.

Update.........Here it is, nearing the end of February and I have replaced almost all the items I sold all last year.  I still have about thirty boxes to apply finish to and have started doing some of that on warm days.  Today I finished making the second batch of wooden stars.  I now have thirty of them made. 15 are 18" across and 15 are 38" across.  Not scrolled but still fun to make  I found a sale that will be in April this year.  I will be ready by then.

[dunk]

My brain does not recall an image of your "stars"  Mind sharing an image with us?  Congrats on being caught up with your inventory needs from last year.  That is remarkable in a couple of months you have all of the sold items replaced.

[Jim Finn]

I make them in two sizes this one is 28" across  and I make one that looks the same that is 18" across.  I woods used are oak or ash for the light color  and walnut or cedar for the dark wood.

[Dakota Saw Dust]

Love the color combination and your joinery look impeccably. Thanks for the look see . Cheers Brian

[UH1PLT]

Very nice Jim.  I just showed it to my wife and she says "I want one!"  I will have to give it some thought and make her one for her birthday next month.  Bob