Critiques, please.

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BakingNana

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Here are a couple of pics of my layout. Soaps are divided by types..florals, woods and spice, etc. Seemed to work pretty well. Ticks me off that I missed the slight misalignment on the left side drape, tho! Things look like they're cramped on the table, but they weren't. The angle is bad. I decided I need a folding screen for the back of my booth to block out some of the "busy-ness" behind me. Ideas?

Critiques welcome!



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That looks like a booth I could spend a lot of time at.

If you want pickiness then personally I like when things are all match-y. The fabric seems formal but the containers seem informal. Maybe if the containers that the products are in were the same. I can totally appreciate the eclectic look also even though I'm too anal to pull it off myself. I love the fabric table covering and if you're talking about the left side not touching the floor then I don't think that's a big deal at all.

A folding screen is a great idea. I think you can get one cheap at ikea if there is one near you.

I feel so critical. :oops: You did ask. Your booth is way better than many I've seen. But when someone asks for criticism...well, that's my specialty. :D
 
No no....this is EXACTLY what I'm looking for, Prairie!! I see what you mean. Any ideas for containers? I think china (I collect Limoges) would be too fancy for my packaging and too delicate for the brocade of the drape. Glass of some type, maybe? By the way, the drapes are just that....drapes! Panels on sale at Bed, Bath, and Beyond. Love 'em cuz they don't wrinkle at all. Maybe I should check BB and B again to see if there is another style that would be better.
 
Wow! I'm impressed...it looks really good.

I agree with the mis-matching of the table cover and table items. I think I would be inclined to change the table cover.

Or what if you put a solid cover over just the top to break up the formal a bit? I'm not sure.

I really do like your setup. I love how you have the soaps seperated and with signs up. What a great idea!
 
I think I agree ... Your Set up is beautiful.. but fabric just too formal for the rest of it.. a solid would be better ..
 
Thanks!! What if I covered it with a large, hand-crocheted tablecloth? I have several. Would that contribute to a sort of shabby chic look?
 
BakingNana said:
Thanks!! What if I covered it with a large, hand-crocheted tablecloth? I have several. Would that contribute to a sort of shabby chic look?
That might work if you put a solid color underneath.
 
soapbuddy said:
BakingNana said:
Thanks!! What if I covered it with a large, hand-crocheted tablecloth? I have several. Would that contribute to a sort of shabby chic look?
That might work if you put a solid color underneath.

Yeah, like maybe a beige or really light tan piece of material. I like the window drape idea. The edges are finished and nice and neat looking.
One more critique and then I'm done... The bright yellow and green signs and box catch my eye and take it away from the soap. I think if everything else were toned down the product would stand out more. Those colors are eye catching to draw people, so I see the reason behind it. If the signage looked like your wrappers with the logo though that would help tie it all together too.
 
PrairieCraft said:
soapbuddy said:
BakingNana said:
Thanks!! What if I covered it with a large, hand-crocheted tablecloth? I have several. Would that contribute to a sort of shabby chic look?
That might work if you put a solid color underneath.

Yeah, like maybe a beige or really light tan piece of material. I like the window drape idea. The edges are finished and nice and neat looking.
One more critique and then I'm done... The bright yellow and green signs and box catch my eye and take it away from the soap. I think if everything else were toned down the product would stand out more. Those colors are eye catching to draw people, so I see the reason behind it. If the signage looked like your wrappers with the logo though that would help tie it all together too.

LOL! The bright yellow and green handouts and signs are because I was being cheap. I had those hideous neons hanging around for years! Thanks for pointing that out. I think it's time to get my graphic artist cousin to design a better logo. I'm using a cheapie now, and I find it hard to work with. Can't really decide what direction to go with it - elegant, shabby chic, or primitive. It really doesn't fit any category.

Thanks again, y'all!
 
I hope you don't mind me being critical - your stall is much nicer than mine, but a couple of things I noticed:

- the drapes are a nice heavy material, but they are too busy. It makes your table look full and cramped and they are a bit too chintzy to match with your soaps. I think a solid color would work better.

- there is a lot of height on the right side of the table, because of the (really rather nice) shelf, but none on the left, maybe put some boxes under the cloth there to create some extra height?

- The things in front of the shelf look like they might fall off and a bit messy, also it is very difficult for you from behind the stall to keep an eye on them. How about putting the tall shelf at a diagonal angle. You can put all your things like the till and bags behind it and you are still able to see what's in front of it.

That's all I can think of. I hope you don't mind.
 
I would like to see a solid colored cloth as well, maybe the blue you use on some of your labels. Other than that, a backdrop so people can not tlook through your booth. It will hold there attention with you.
 
Thanks Tab and madpiano (love that name!). The stuff in front of the shelves really had plenty of room. The angle of the photo stinks.

On my way to shop for new drape and folding screen!

I used cardboard boxes to make different heights under the draping for the first fair, but everything was horizontal on that table (no shelving). Did 3 times the business with the vertical. People really seemed to stop in front of it. Being at eye level seemed to be the key. They also seemed not to want to touch the items that were on different levels at the first fair (cardboard boxes under drapes) but had no hesitation touching things flat on the table at this one. It's been really fun watching people and how they react to things. Maybe it would be a more "solid" feeling display at different heights on the left if I had hubby build a 3-step wooden shelf display of some kind.

We've also been lucky with all the fairs (8) we've booked in that there's plenty of room to have our own table in the booth for cashbox, knuckle buster, etc. Didn't have to take up display table room for business stuff.

Thanks again everyone!
 
What about a solid table cloth with a large logo/business name in a professional manner? You could get one printed up not too expensive and sew it onto the fabric. I agree that you need a folding screen to help divide your area. Overall, I think your setup looks very nice.
 
cmd439 said:
What about a solid table cloth with a large logo/business name in a professional manner? You could get one printed up not too expensive and sew it onto the fabric. I agree that you need a folding screen to help divide your area. Overall, I think your setup looks very nice.

Been so busy haven't had time to post pics of new layout. Three weeks (shows) ago we started using our new sign. We now use a hand crocheted ecru tablecloth over the draping; a 2 x 3-foot professionally made sign is attached to the front of the table, and we're using ivory antiqued wooden trays for on-table displays. Coordinating shelving anchors each end. We have 2 setups...one for long tables and one for an L for smaller spaces. We have 3 large tri-fold wooden screens (which REALLY helped last week to block out a very messy Watkins booth behind us). Our sales have quadrupled. Just got back from a show and I'm pooped; didn't have time to get pics taken. Will try to get them next week.

I can't believe how popular lotion bars are. I feel like changing our company name from "Soap and Bath and Body Products" to "Lotion Bars and Other Stuff!" I've been giving away soap with orders in hopes of getting people to actually try the soap. They'll spend a fortune on lotions, solid perfumes, lip balms, bath salts, sugar scrubs, lotion sticks, etc., and not get a single bar of soap. It'll be interesting to see if I make any converts. 90% of my soap sales are to people with skin conditions looking for a pure unfragranced and uncolored soap.

Anyhoo....thanks for all your help everyone!
 
Finally remembered to take a couple pics at this weekend's show. Small shelf on the left had goat's milk soaps; holiday soaps in front of it. Right side regular CP. Interesting....this was the first show for this church. The gal in charge stopped by to ask how we were doing and if we needed anything. Told her we were great and they'd done a terrific job. Wouldn't know it was their first show. She said a few were complaining that they hadn't sold anything. I mumbled something about people having different approaches to selling at fairs, or something like that. What I REALLY meant was...I could pick out those having problems. No effort put into their booths at all. I really don't understand why someone would pay to be at the fair, and then take no care at all in their presentation. This show was not cheap as far as churches go-$50 fee. We were busier than a one-armed paper hanger (no small credit to everyone on the forum, by-the-way. Thanks again!). Did 8x in 6 hours.



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