Stained Glass: fun to work with...and a profitable home craft

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SELL WHAT YOU MAKE!

You'll be surprised to learn how much money a stained glass article can bring. For example, a cluster of grapes that you've assembled for about 35c will easily bring $6.95 in a craft shop!

But why split the profit? If you live anywhere near civilization, put out a sign and sell right from your home. Make the house feel warm and inviting by keeping something "country" (maybe spiced applesauce or vegetable soup) brewing on the stove ... and offer your potential customers a cup of herb tea. Folks are always more inclined to make a purchase after they've relaxed for a few minutes and chatted with the "artist" (that's you! ).

And if you're off the beaten path? Try asking a grocer and other business people in town if you can hang a sign with a map to your place in their store windows. Offer the shopkeepers a couple of free stained glass items to go over the announcements (they'll love 'em ... and the suncatchers will make your sign just that much more effective), and you should have little trouble placing the notices.

AND DON'T SELL "CHEAP"!

By now you know that it takes fine taste and artistry to produce attractive stained glass work ... so don't sell your items "cheap"! There's definitely a lively demand for this craft and you're entitled to both a designer's and a manufacturer's profit (maybe even a retailer's one too!) when you create attractive stained glass items.

So go after those profits! And then plow all the first ones right back into more supplies and all the advertising (which, of course, stresses the handcrafted nature of your work) you can afford. It won't hurt, either, to give your stained glass works a name that's so ab solutely "catchy" - - . that city people (who love to make such "discoveries") will just have to drive out and browse around.

START SMALL, GROW BIG

Limit yourself, in the very beginning, to attractive suncatchers and other small items that you can turn out on a regular bread-and-butter basis while you sharpen your stained glass skills. Then, as you develop more expertise, you can experiment with windows, ornate lamps, and other bigger projects. And beware: Once you've mastered the latter, your customers will start asking for "made to order" and "custom" objects of all kinds (which, if I have to tell you, is where the really important money is in most artistic fields),

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