Extruder Adapter Set-up and a Clay Marking Tool

We purchased the Driver Adapter from Cynthia Tinapple some time ago.  It is a tool that connects a polymer clay extruder to your power drill making it much easier for extruding your clay.  We still hadn't used it yet until we finally reorganized the studio.  We have been using the extruder tool more these days so I wanted it in a spot where it would be handy.

This is how the set-up now looks on our clay desk work area.

The vice is a screw down type and we didn't want to drill holes in our table so we attached it to a wood cutting board.  The cutting board is then clamped down onto the desk so it can be moved to another location if needed.

The drill we are using is cordless so can be a little heavy when the battery is attached.  I happened to have a box that was the perfect height to sit the drill on so we don't have to hold it while extruding the clay.  To use the adapter, we fill the extruder with clay and attach both ends.  We then insert the adapter end into the drill and then place the extruder into the vice so it is lined up and even.  There is a piece of parchment paper in front for the extruded clay to fall onto.

This set-up works really well and makes extruding the clay so much easier.  The clay we are extruding in the above photo is for our toglet buttons so they are consistent in thickness.  We are using a washer we found in just the right size to use as our die.  To make them all the same length I came up with my own marking tool.  I cut a strip of plastic canvas and cut out sections to create notches for marking.  On the opposite side, I cut out notches at a different length.  This tool works great when making beads as well.

Show Displays and Set-up Tips

Christmas season is coming and I know many of you, like us, are preparing for the shows and markets.  We do not do very many shows thru the year but the ones we do, we take extra care and planning for just the right set-up.  Each show we end up investing in a few more necessary props to give just the right look.  I thought I would share with you a few tips to give your booth a little something extra that will reward you with extra sales.

The first thing we do is work out a lay-out of our set-up.  We just use the word program on our PC computer, drawing shapes in the measurements of the tables, grids and other display props we use.  We can then move them around to fit in the space size we will have in each show we are in.  This is the drawing we did up for the Art Walk last weekend with photos of our space to compare.

Notice the mannequins and battery powered lighting

Colorful scarf jewelry

Notice our store bought and handmade papier mache mannequins on the grid as well as the large life-size mannequins in the front and back of the booth.  We have tried various ways to sell our necklaces but this is the best way we have found.  You must give each necklace it's own space.  Do not cram them close together.  Also note, the bracelet cones, we sold more bracelets than ever before using this display prop.

You never know the availability of electricity so we always carry battery powered lights, as in this past show.  We consider this tip to be so important as any jewelry does not sell without proper lighting.

We usually put up more signage than we were allowed to this time.  We create our own on our computer with large photos of our work and have them printed out at Staples, who we have found to be very professional as well as economical.  You can have them mounted on foam core or do it yourself for less.  These large posters pay for themselves as they not only attract customers but good photography will sell your work better than a 10 minute spiel.

Notice how we put the most colorful feature of our booth (the Scarf Jewelry) at the front and center.  It attracted people into our booth as they walked by.

Lastly, Square Register helped so much with sales because it was quick and efficient.  It is also a unique gimmick that customers found fascinating.  Believe it or not, we made two additional sales just so the customer could see us swipe their card again!

The credit card swiper that works on your phone or tablet is free and there are no contracts or monthly fees.  You only pay a low fee per transaction.

The cool thing with Square Register is that you can set up a "library" of your items and even load photographs with prices on your computer so you do not have to enter everything manually when you are selling.  We also not only used it for credit card charges but for cash transactions and keeping track of our inventory so we know exactly what we sold at the end of the day.  We could also text or e-mail a receipt to the customer if they wished.

In fact, we found this to be such a great asset that for our next show, we are purchasing another square register for our tablet and get an additional person to help with the "cash register" for quicker sales.

I hope these tips were helpful and just want you to know that we weren't paid in anyway for promotion of any of the companies or products I mentioned but just sharing with you as happy customers.