A few weeks ago I attended a local rubber stamp and scrapbooking show. I'm not a scrapbooker, but I have a friend who enjoys it. I always learn something new, as you may remember from last year's post 8 Reasons for Beaders to Attend a Scrapbooking Show.
Make-and-Takes
The one area where scrapbooking shows have bead show beat is the make-and-takes. Nearly every booth offers some kind of small project that's free or low cost (usually $1-3). I realize that there's a substantial cost difference between offering a paper card project and something like a pair of earrings or beaded key chain, but I'd still love to see more activities. It really adds so much fun to the show experience. (Bead show organizers and vendors, if you're reading this, I'm happy to be the person doing the demo and helping people with projects!)
All three of the make-and-take projects I did were very popular with attendees and often had people waiting for a seat at the demo table:
Paper Shoes
This project was literally a show-stopper. People rounded the corner
and then came to an abrupt stop. "Shoes! How cute! I need to make
those!" There were four different options, but of course I chose the
one with the sparkly center button. This was the only 3D paper make-and-take project I saw. These are not life-size, by the way, but something that fits in the palm of your hand. |
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Bookmark A bookmark is a fairly traditional make-and-take, but this used a cool new product from the U.K. that added a texture similar to crushed flowers (except synthetic) to a plain stamped design. This was a free make-and-take, which added to the appeal. Who doesn't like free? |
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Pendant Unlike previous years, this was the only jewelry project I saw. I've made these pendants before using other products, so the process was familiar: gluing sheets of paper to glass and adding a pendant bail. My friend bought a kit for her 8-year-old daughter's birthday party and I think the kids are going to be thrilled. It's very easy and immediately gratifying! |
What Makes a Successful Make-and-Take?
From my perspective as a customer, here's what these three popular make-and-takes had in common:
- Easily completed in 5-15 minutes
- Minimal skill needed
- Low cost or free
- Unusual materials or projects
- Limited choices of colors or materials (some choice is nice, but too many choices slows everyone down)
- Skilled demonstrator who not only knows how to make the project, but has ideas on other uses, can help troubleshoot problems, and keeps the flow of traffic moving (having the person run the cash register and demo at the same time isn't a good idea!)
Have you ever done a make-and-take either as an instructor or a student? What do you think made it successful (or not)?