What to Crochet for Spring and Summer Vendor Markets
It’s that time again! The warm weather is here and we say goodbye to our hats, scarves, pocket shawls and ear warmers. But for many of us who do vendor markets as a form of income, we find ourselves asking “what do I make now?”
Not all of us will have the same answer, but I have done many vendor markets in the warmer months, and I have had some great success with several items that I would like to share with you.
I will start off with a disclaimer that I do not make amigurumi because it hurts my hands. However, I have heard from other designers that they sell extremely well. I will admit that I doubt I would make amigurumi even if it did not hurt my hands, because time is money. Amigurumi takes me forever to make and I cannot get people to pay me for the tremendous amount of time I put into them.
I also wanted to mention that I tend to not do holiday themed items at vendor markets. There is no guarantee that those items will sell, and then you will be putting them in a tote for storage until the holiday rolls around again in a year’s time. That is not what I would call a lucrative way to spend your time. However, if you have found success doing this, by all means, continue to do so. I have not personally had much success with selling holiday themed items, and I have found them to be more of a waste of time.
Now that I have told you what I DON’T sell, let me tell you what does sell for me. When I am planning out what items to make for a warm-weather vendor market, the first things I consider are:
Is the item functional?
Is the item fashionable/trending?
Can the item be made using relatively little or inexpensive supplies?
How long does it take me to make this item?
Are people willing to pay the price I need to put on this item in order to get back my time and cost of supplies?
Because time is money when you are considering what to take to your vendor markets, you must take these things into consideration. I tend to not make things that I know don’t answer these questions favorably.
For example, I make these cosmetic bags that I line with matching fabric and add a zipper with beads and bling. My customers LOVE them and I almost always sell out at all my vendor market events. However, they take me about 2 hours to make and people aren’t willing to spend more than $20 on them. I have to take into consideration that I can also make a boho market bag in about the same amount of time and I can charge $40-$50 for it.
I also make these Bobble Bag cosmetic bags. I have a free YouTube video tutorial for this bag here.
In my most recent markets, the best seller was by far my Petite Pocket. The Petite Pocket is a beaded wrist wallet I designed for when you are going somewhere and you want to be completely hands free. This is great if you are going to run some errands, going to a festival or a concert, or if you are on the beach and you just want something to hold your money and your room key.
This one gives me major beach vibes! The instructions for the version with the finger loop can be found in my blog post as well as the printable pdf.
People went crazy over them! They are fashionable and trendy because they look like a bracelet on the side that people see, and they are very functional. They take very little by way of supplies and they don’t take me long at all to make. I charge $15 for them, which seems to be the magic price. I highly recommend them for vendor markets! You can find the free pattern on my blog and on YouTube here and I also sell the Ad-free printable pdf on Etsy and Ravelry.
I also have several other styles of wrist wallets that I offer in my Ravelry and Etsy shops, and one that I have included in another one of my blog posts called the Bowtique Pocket. The Bowtique Pocket is unique in that it serves several functions. It can be a wrist wallet, but it can also serve as a coffee cozy that can be gifted to your coffee-loving friends and family with a gift card inside to their favorite coffee shop! You can find the free pattern in my blog post here and the Ad-free printable pdf on Etsy and Ravelry.
This particular photo was taken by one of my testers, Amber Gillis of Orange Olive Road crochet. She also tested the beaded version and has some beautiful photos of it on her Instagram account @orangeoliveroad.
I really like adding a piece of faux leather ribbon to the center of mine because I think it is so classy!
Another one of my best-sellers at Spring and Summer vendor events are my spa sets. I make simple crocheted washcloths, soap sacks and face scrubbies and people seem to really love them! With people trying to be more conscious of the carbon footprints they are leaving on this planet, these items are highly sought after as they are reusable and hand made. I have found that the items sell better separately (with the exception of the face scrubbies. I sell them as a set of 3) because people like to mix and match. They are extremely quick projects and use very little yarn. I sell them for $6 each with no problems. You can find the patterns to all on my YouTube channel for the washcloth, soap sack, and face scrubbies.
Another item I have had success in selling is my Boho Sanitizer Sling. Ever since the Pandemic started, people are becoming more and more aware of germs and hand washing. People love these because they are visibly appealing but also very functional. No one likes to have to dig in a purse for hand sanitizer, especially if your hands are already dirty, so people love that they clip onto the side of your bag or to your belt loop.
They are also extremely quick makes and take very little by way of supplies. I include a bottle of hand sanitizer with mine that I get from Wal-Mart for about $1 and I sell mine for anywhere from $12-$15. I have made mine out of cotton or nylon cord, as both are highly durable and washable. The Ad-free printable pdf includes 2 versions, one with a clip and one without. You can find it in both Etsy and Ravelry. I also include the YouTube video tutorial for the clip-on version and you can find it here, as well as the written pattern for the clip-on version on my blog here.
My next item can double as both a chapstick cozy or an essential oil roller cozy. The main difference will be the size. I make them both pretty much the same, only I use a larger hook and thicker yarn for the essential oil rollers. They are really cute and people love that they don’t have to dig around in their purse for their lip balm. They use very little yarn and are very quick to make. I sell mine for around $5-$8. You can find the Ad-free printable pdf in my Etsy and Ravelry shops.
Before I begin talking about my next item(s), I wanted to leave a disclaimer. These items sell very well to the right customers. I have found my customers here where I live, but they may not be the same where you live. My customers are willing to spend a little more on these items because they are unique, trendy and well-made (hey, I can brag occasionally lol). If you live in an area where boho fashion is prominent, you will most likely do well with these items. If the majority of your customers are little old ladies who want doilies, these aren’t going to probably sell well for you. Just throwing that out there!
I have designed several bags that have sold very well for me. They serve to catch people’s attention when they are passing by my booth. Almost everyone stops to look at them (seriously!). They contain leather accents, wooden beads, and fringe. People go CRAZY over them! I may only sell a few per vendor event, but they are not a low-priced item for me so I feel like that still is a good thing. Not to mention, they cause people to come into my booth and look at the rest of my stuff, which we all know results in more sales! I consider that a WIN! Since I have designed so many bags, I will leave you with my two top best-sellers.
This is my Mesh Market Bag, made using the rectangular bottom instructions found in the pdf. This particular one is made using Lion Brand’s Comfy Cotton Blend in the colors Whipped Cream and Cotton Candy.
My best selling market bag doubles as a nice summer bag. It can be made using a stretchy t-shirt yarn I like to use called Bernat Home Maker Dec or it can be made using double strands held together of a cotton blend yarn, like Lion Brand’s Comfy Cotton Blend. It is made so that the bag does not need to be lined, and it works up relatively quickly. My customers especially love the embellishment I put on the front. The YouTube tutorial contains the bucket-bottom version, and the written pdf contains instructions for both a bucket-bottom and a rectangular bottom bag. The Mesh Market Bag can be found on my YouTube channel here and the Ad-free printable pdf can be found in both Etsy and Ravelry.
My other bag that stops people in their tracks is my Desert Willow Bag. I make these out of super bulky weight yarn, so it works up incredibly fast. The most time-consuming parts are adding a liner and the embellishments. The amount of sales this bag has generated for me just by causing a customer to come into my booth has been SO WORTH IT. I have sold out of every one of them I have made, even if they took a bit longer for the right customer to come along that was willing to pay the price I put on it, but it is THE ITEM that causes people to put on their brakes and stop in my booth. I always display this bag right in the front and I watch the crowds come in! I currently do not have this pattern for free anywhere, so I consider it one of my “premium patterns”, but if you use the code DAYSBLOG when checking out, you can get it for 40% off in my Etsy and Ravelry shops!
I don’t want this to get to be too lengthy, but I also wanted to just mention that my items for the home sell really well. Since quarantine hit, a lot of people have taken the time they had stuck at home to remodel and redecorate. I have found that a strong theme in decor is the boho trend (which I also personally love), and I have tried to incorporate a lot of the trends in my home decor line. People especially love my mini hammocks, grocery bag savers, trivets and coasters, napkin rings, towel rings, and my wall hangings. They are all trendy but very functional. If you are interested in any of those items, you can find most either on YouTube or in my Etsy and Ravelry shops.
From top left to bottom right: the Boho Napkin Ring, Dahlia Lampshade, Mini Macrochet Pocket Wall Hanging, Boho Bag Saver, Macrochet Pocket Wall Hanging, Happy Hammock, Boho Towel Ring, and the Trendy Trivet Set.
What are some other Spring and Summer marketing tips you would add to this list? What sells well for you? I would love to know! Please leave your comments below. Don’t forget to subscribe to receive updates of my latest blog posts and designs!
Happy hooking,
Dana