In August, John and I were driving home, and I asked him if we could stop by Home Depot, because I had an idea I wanted to put into motion. I told him we needed to go that day because if we didn’t, I was afraid I would set it aside and not move forward. So off to Home Depot we went.
I had been thinking a lot about how I could move my art. I had over fifty pictures that I wanted to sell. I struggle a lot with clutter, and having fifty pictures just sitting around gives me a bit of anxiety.
I sometimes wonder if other artists struggle with the same issues as I do with clutter. I follow many artists online, and I notice that they all have a room full of art, which looks beautiful to me. For some reason, I can’t do it. At least not now. I have all my art categorized and tucked away in my closet. I have yet to hang my own art on my walls.
The idea of selling art from my front porch kept swirling around in my head, and in the end, the painted porch was created—a self-serve art gallery. Browse, purchase, and pay without my presence. I had never seen anything like this done before. Yes, I have been to many self-serve farm stands, but I’ve never seen an art display.
John and I put together a display made from chicken wire and boards. We hung it against a wall on my front porch. I bought close pins from the Dollar Tree and purchased some signs from the “Signs on the Cheap” website. I also reached out to an extraordinary artist and had her create a poster for the front door that provided shoppers with guidelines and instructions on how to make a payment.
Since I had never done this before, my goal was not to dump a lot of money into the adventure. I used whatever I had around the house to make it all happen, and in the end, it came together nicely and is something I would do again.
I felt so blessed by the people who stopped by the neighborhood, families, and friends. Some just browsed, while others made a purchase. My goal was to move/sell everything. I know, big goal. In total, I had around fifteen people stop by over the course of four days. I sold ten pieces (in person and online). I will take it.
What I have learned from this experience:
- Don’t put pictures up so high that it’s hard for people to get them down.
- Put the prices on the front.
- Most of all, don’t ever be afraid to try something out of your comfort zone.
When asked how it went, I would say it went well, and I would do it again!
With love,
Julie
