Craft Show search, What defines "craft"?

We have been on the road all spring, mostly doing Junior League Markets and the Southern Women's Shows.  These are more "market" than craft shows.   This summer we are in search of outdoor craft shows until our JL Market season starts up again in the fall.

For the first time in our lives as Anything Joe's we have heard the comment, "You just aren't crafty enough".  As you know, all of our gifts are hand painted to order, but we do not make every thing we paint on.  Sometimes we paint on plastic lap trays, sometimes a wooden jewelry box or a storage box.  To the promoters of many craft shows, these items are considered "buy/sell" and while our customers love them we cannot get into these  "juried" arts and crafts shows because of this.  You would think that our gifts would pass because to our artists a plastic tray or wooden plaque or box is our canvas.  The designs are hand painted and original artwork.  VERY FEW artists make their own canvases, and I don't know of a single photographer that makes photo paper.  But still it is their show....

So we have developed a new line of products, completely hand crafted.  We will be presenting these items at the Arts and Craft Shows this summer.  So as not to confuse the promoters of these events, we have a brand new web site:  www.AJADesignWorks.com  The items featured there are artist canvases that we are painting with acrylic paints on canvas board.  Each one done from scratch with brush painting and they will be personalized at the shows.  If you are interested in ordering these, you must call to order.  The process to do this is listed on that website.

If you have leads on shows that we could attend this summer, or ideas on marketing to craft show promoters, please let us know!