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CJ57
01-03-2014, 12:34 PM
Thrilled to have 21 pieces in a new gallery. The opening was last night packed to the gunnels with bigwigs with long pockets and short arms but hopefully they'll come back !


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caroleallen
01-03-2014, 01:06 PM
Good luck with it Caroline.

CJ57
01-03-2014, 01:37 PM
Thanks Carole. Surprisingly for an opening only 1 painting sold but it was crammed with people who were maybe high profile but unlikely to dig deep. We'll see what happens once word gets round.

Dennis
01-03-2014, 01:58 PM
It's the worst time of year as people have spent their Christmas money and are holding back a bit. Wish you every success. Dennis.

CJ57
01-03-2014, 04:26 PM
It's the worst time of year as people have spent their Christmas money and are holding back a bit. Wish you every success. Dennis.
Thanks Dennis. It does seem a funny time to open but the tourist season starts for Falkland Palace next month so the coaches of rich tourists especially Chinese will be arriving soon and dropping off outside the gallery door. Maybe I should go and greet them!

Dennis
01-03-2014, 08:21 PM
Rich tourists especially Chinese will be arriving soon and dropping off outside the gallery door. Maybe I should go and greet them!

Yes, but I think the rich ones will be from Hong Kong, so brush up your Cantonese. If you try Mandarin, they'll just think you're speaking Gaelic. Dennis.

CJ57
01-03-2014, 08:39 PM
Yes, but I think the rich ones will be from Hong Kong, so brush up your Cantonese. If you try Mandarin, they'll just think you're speaking Gaelic. Dennis.

They are Chinese Dennis my husband worked at Hollyrood Palace until recently and now works in a student residence, the Chinese students seem to think nothing of paying £2000 for the flight home for Xmas and a can't understand why we haven't been. Another has just flown out to Dubai to meet up with his parents. We maybe all need to learn Chinese and tap the market:)
Not many Gaelic speakers in Fife I wouldn't think maybe come independence! Although my OH has just told me there are a couple of the Chinese students that know how to say kiss my a.. in Gaelic which is more than I do :)

surfergirl
02-03-2014, 10:55 AM
Good luck with it, Caroline!

I've never displayed in a gallery. Have you done your own advertising to get folks there or is this something the gallery does?

May those Chinese students remember they have family back home that they NEED to buy jewellery for ;)

caroleallen
02-03-2014, 11:30 AM
I really hope it works out for you Caroline.

Sadly my experience with galleries is that for the most part they're not worth doing any more. People I know who've had long established very successful galleries are closing because people know that they will get more choice online. The best gallery I was in was so busy that I couldn't keep up with supplying them a few years ago. Stuff was sold before I even got home. I pulled out a couple of years ago because my stuff wasn't selling any more. I can't rely on galleries any more. Fingers crossed that your gallery proves me wrong.

ShinyLauren
02-03-2014, 11:59 AM
Hope it all goes well - sounds very exciting!

CJ57
02-03-2014, 12:53 PM
Thanks everyone :)
They pay for the advertising Indi. Although back when I started there were a couple of galleries that made us split the cost I haven't had that for a long time. Probably covered by the sometimes exorbitant commission rate, a gallery near Penrith marked up by 100%
I've stayed away from galleries for a long while having had a few bad experiences in the past . I take issue with cheap imported jewellery bought at the trade show in Harrogate being put in with my work and then they wonder why it doesn't sell. This one contacted me and it gave a lift to my very flagging spirits. I don't make that often so even if they just sold a couple of pieces it would move older stock out to a wider audience and I hope to be able to still do the Open Studio in May which has been good for me. I talked them into taking 30% on craft to begin with so I can live with that and she bought a piece from me to wear on the night so at least one has gone although it was from the OS stock and not hers!

They do seem to know people and looking at his brothers collections list on his website was interesting, way out of my league but I'm not sure they will be the people that spend the money. They intend to keep it high end and not fall into the trap that all the other shops in the village do of stocking horrible Scottish tourist tat. Not sure how much tourists spend on good stuff, I know from my OH that there is a certain nationality that prefers to pocket treasures rather than buy them :/
There were women at the opening though that said this is what we need in the area so we'll see if they put their money where their mouth is I suppose.
Will just have to wait and see but it's their responsibility now to sell the bloomin stuff and there were some positive comments from other artists about my work so that was nice. Sometimes you need a bit of encouragement from your peers to know that it's not a worthless exercise:)

Tabby66
02-03-2014, 09:57 PM
Good luck Caroline, your work looks fabulous!! I hope this will be a great success for you, I know you've worked so hard to get to this point......and now for OS!! Great going Caroline xx

CJ57
02-03-2014, 11:20 PM
Good luck Caroline, your work looks fabulous!! I hope this will be a great success for you, I know you've worked so hard to get to this point......and now for OS!! Great going Caroline xx

Thanks Jill xx the OS website has been updated and this is my page, may as well do it all at once :) the pictures are better too!

http://www.openstudiosfife.co.uk/index.php/auchtermuchty/caroline-john-11.html

Tabby66
03-03-2014, 09:52 PM
Thanks Jill xx the OS website has been updated and this is my page, may as well do it all at once :) the pictures are better too!

http://www.openstudiosfife.co.uk/index.php/auchtermuchty/caroline-john-11.html

I saw this at the weekend (maybe through a Facebook link??.....anyway...), I took a look and thought it looked fab, I like your choice of pictures, I thought they demonstrated some intrigue and diversity.......good luck!! :cheers:

CJ57
03-03-2014, 10:43 PM
I saw this at the weekend (maybe through a Facebook link??.....anyway...), I took a look and thought it looked fab, I like your choice of pictures, I thought they demonstrated some intrigue and diversity.......good luck!! :cheers:

I sold half of them last year, I haven't made the new stuff and we have to provide the pics in Dec :/

Patstone
04-03-2014, 05:43 AM
I live close to the University of Exeter which has quite a strong contingent of Chinese students. We befriended one girl who made a fuss of our dogs, (we were thinking, I wonder which one she wants to eat) anyway, she is on a gap year in Sweden and flew to wherever is Santa's Grotto, Greenland I suppose, for Xmas and sent us a card from there. When it comes to travelling it seems money is no object, but they do have a strange way of looking at life. Chinese girl's father has a serious liver complaint which she said is through too much drinking as he entertains a lot with his job, he was taken into hospital in a bit of a rush, and me thinking that she would want to go home, told her she could store her computer etc here as it may not be safe in her room for a month or so. She said if he dies, there is nothing she can do about it, so why go. She is the only child, and her mother is an accountant, not sure what her father does for a living but he works for the same company so presumably he is in accounts too.


They are Chinese Dennis my husband worked at Hollyrood Palace until recently and now works in a student residence, the Chinese students seem to think nothing of paying £2000 for the flight home for Xmas and a can't understand why we haven't been. Another has just flown out to Dubai to meet up with his parents. We maybe all need to learn Chinese and tap the market:)
Not many Gaelic speakers in Fife I wouldn't think maybe come independence! Although my OH has just told me there are a couple of the Chinese students that know how to say kiss my a.. in Gaelic which is more than I do :)