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Trash to Treasure Jewelry Displays

by Mary Anne Enriquez.
(Urban Woodswalker)

I am an environmental activist – an eco warrior, and an artist.

I wanted to share how I display my handmade recycled post consumer trash jewelry on a thrift store macrame purse and hung up as part of a gallery Trashion Fashion Show:

I show at this event every summer at the Indiana Welcome Center in Hammond, Indiana.

All the earrings and brooches are hung on rubber-stamped hang tags from Staples office supply.

The hang tags were safety-pinned to the purse. It’s a very easy way to transport and display many smaller items!

I do use rubber earring stoppers on the backs of the cards . . . but they often fall off in transport.

So I just make the tiniest pin prick hole, and the earrings stay held quite nicely.

I also use a child size denim dress to pin and display jewelry on:

Why I love these soft displays

I have seen a great variety of earring displays – wire window screens, picture frames, etc.

What I love about the bag and the cute kids’ clothing displays is that they’re soft, they fit into tightly packed tote bin spaces, and they conform to any shape when packing up.

I can attach all the jewelry at home prior to the show, and it’s immediately ready to hang on site.

With other systems, you spend a lot of time placing the jewelry on the display at the show . . . and that is precious time I need for doing other things before opening.

In the photo below you can see my booth – complete with entire trashion fashion ensemble, production and final on-the-model photo shots, plus other trashion eco jewelry I had created:

Making a visual invoice for purchases

Can you see how a not-for-profit environmental organization purchased all of the jewelry hung on the purse on opening day!

They asked for an official invoice to be sent to them.

I took the photo right at the show.

Then I superimposed price numbers (in simple Windows Paint program) to each piece of jewelry – as they were all different prices – and sent the image along with a numerically descriptive invoice.

In other words . . . I invoiced / grouped by price, not by style of jewelry design – and did it easily and quickly in a visual manner.

It’s not always possible to create photos before selling.

In this way I just photographed the grouping and that was enough for the client, for my records, and to keep in my design files also.

At the end of the 2 .5 months long show, all the hang cards were unpinned and the goods delivered simply.

The display purse will be tucked away ready for this year’s upcoming show.

Make it a priority to take photos

The one thing I really want to stress is that over the years I have sold so much without a single photographic record.

Rushing to get things done, and they often sell immediately – and I never documented the work!

Now, what I do is document throughout the creative process, and I sometimes just have to snap the only photo record of the item before wrapping it up for its new owner.

Always make sure your camera is charged and ready to snap. It’s absolutely one of the most important items a seller has – a good image taking camera!

Most important of all, every time:

Take photos of your booth and displays, no matter how small the display or booth is, no matter if it’s a farmer’s market, street fair, or a high end indoor craft show.

No matter how busy you are, no matter what . . . take photos of your setup and your items, before the show starts.

Maybe part of it is a lack of confidence?

I mean, thinking “Oh, I will find the time to photograph AFTER the show (because it won’t sell).”

But it does, and you need to for so many reasons.

First of all, it’s a confidence builder to see all your months of hard work in the photos.

Second, many shows require a booth photo in the application process.

Third, it’s a visual reminder of what sold and what did not (if you take before and end-of-show photos.)

And fourth, you can build a portfolio or look book – which can be readily shown to potential clients, shop owners, and friends and family (who wonder what you do in that room all the time)!

Mary Anne Enriquez
Urban Woodswalker on Etsy

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