How to: Make Craft Fair Table Risers

I've been promising you this post for a while now so I figured it was probably time I got on with it!

I made these table risers a few months ago when I designed the setup for my table. I knew I needed to provide some elevation for my table but I wanted to do that as cheaply as possible in a way that also looked good.

I'm not really a fan of draping a tablecloth over upturned boxes so I looked around for alternatives. Eventually I came up with these upright display pads but I still needed a way to raise them above the stuff in front of them. I also wanted to be able to use the table space behind/under the risers for my tools and supplies.

The idea was really simple, I bought some long planks of pine from Lowe's (about 4 inches wide) and had them cut them into 2 foot sections for me. I also picked up a 2 inch wide piece and chopped it into 4 inch lengths.

• To make each riser you take 2 planks 4 inches by 2 feet and 2 pieces 2 inches by 4 inches. You also need some nails, wood glue and a heavy duty hammer. 
• Glue the 2 large planks together along their longest sides and add a few nails to pin them together while the glue dries. 
• You will now have 2 sides of a box, one will be 4 inches high and the other will be a little higher thanks to the addition of the other plank. Make the higher side the front and the 4 inch side the top then attach the other 2 pieces of wood to provide supports at the back.

At this stage you can stain, paint or otherwise finish the risers however you choose. I used a dark walnut wood stain which picked out the grain in the pine nicely and enhanced the rustic look.

My risers are more than just mini shelves, though. They are also the means by which my upright display boards remain upright and there are a few more steps to follow if you want yours to do the same.

• You will need a drill, nuts, bolts and some kind of corner bracket hardware with screws and holes in both sides. Bear in mind that you will be screwing into the back of your display pads so make sure your screws are short enough not to go all the way through to the other side, while still being large enough to not fit all the way through the holes in the bracket. Your bolts must also be able to fit through the holes but not all the way.
• Screw the bracket into the middle of display pad so it aligns with the bottom. You don't need to be very precise as the padding will even out any errors, I did mine by eye.
• Stand the pad on the riser where you will want it to be when you're all done and use a pen to mark where the holes are on the bottom half of your bracket.
• Drill holes where you marked, using a drill bit slightly larger than your bolts.
• That's it, you can assemble it by standing the pad on the riser and aligning the holes. Put a bolt through each hole from the top and then screw it tight with a nut from underneath.

Please note that this setup is by no means professional quality and I have no qualifications and only limited experience in woodworking/construction. I am happy with the support this setup provides to my boards but I wouldn't call it sturdy. I think it would be OK in windy conditions but could easily be pushed over by hand. I wouldn't use it for any fragile items. If you have any questions feel free to post them below and I'll do my best to answer them.

Crucible table setup

I know its been a while since I did The Crucible craft show (December 10th and 11th) but I learnt a lot from my first fair and I made a few changes for The Crucible fair which I wanted to share with you. Not to mention The Crucible was definitely the fair I enjoyed the most and also the one I did best at so I like talking about it.

You can see the crazy machinery behind my table in this picture! The Crucible is a really cool venue which offers classes in things like blackmsithing and glass blowing.

There wasn't a good place to hang my banner behind the table this time so I fixed it to the front of my table. Being as the fair was so close to Christmas I also added fairy lights to the table, I ran them along the back, just in front of my risers and you can also see them shining through the tablecloth. I liked them so much I think I will keep them as part of my display throughout the year!

I also printed a credit card sign, to make it even easier for people to know that I accept cards, as well as a sign for my social media information.

I wasn't happy with the way my bracelets were displayed last time so I added another display board the perfect size for pinning bracelet across. I also tried out displaying bangles flat on the table instead of hanging from the twig.

I added a slatted soap tray to better display my stud earrings and I do think people found them easier to see like that. I did also make a catalogue in time for this show but I'm not sure there was any need for it at the fair. I'll post about how I made it (simply and cheaply) in the next few weeks.

Of course I'm now thinking about which fairs to try this year and how I can improve (and maybe expand) my display. Lots of ideas in my head, I'll share them when they're ready :)

Last chance to shop before Christmas!

No harm in buying gifts for yourself too!

Ok so today is the last day to place orders from my website or Etsy shop and be sure that they will arrive by Christmas.

You will still be able to place orders, so you can still buy a gift for yourself or someone you will be seeing after the holidays. After today I will be checking my shops and shipping out less frequently for a couple of weeks so please allow extra time for your items to arrive.





If you live in the Bay Area you do have one last chance to get hold of my jewelry before Christmas! I will be in the Haight on Saturday 17th December at the Designers and Artists Storefront popup shop.

Shop with Embergrass this December!

After the success of my first craft fair I have decided to participate in a couple more, just in time for Christmas! So I thought I should probably share with you where I will be and when in case you want to stop by and buy something from me :)


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December 10th and 11th

The Crucible Holiday Gifty in Oakland.
Saturday, December 10th - 12PM to 6PM
Sunday, December 11th - 12PM to 4PM 
facebook event


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December 17th

DNA Storefront: Holiday Popup Shop

The Storefront is open for all of the first 3 weekends in December but I will be there on

Saturday, December 17th - 12PM to 6PM

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SF Etsy Team at Baz Biz

I mentioned Bazaar Bizarre a few days ago and I said there were lots of members of the SF Etsy team vending there. Well there are and I've found a list of (hopefully) most of them so I am going to be able to share some of the awesome, locally made things you will be able to buy if you head down to Baz Biz this weekend.

I'll start with jewelry, since that's what this blog is mostly all about:

Lemonade Handmade

Bug Under Glass

Velvet Otterhound

Jenny Archie

Zelma Rose

Mediums to Masses

Mangosteen Jewelry

That's quite a lot of jewelry artists! And so varied, too! So I'll just add a few of my favourite items from other types of sellers from the team:

Nicole Steward

Geraldine Adams

Recycled Glassworks

Which are your favourite?

Bazaar Bizarre and the SF Etsy Team

Bazaar Bizarre is this weekend in San Francisco. If you haven't heard of it, it's a huge craft fair held in several cities across the US.

I'm not vending there, this is one of those fairs you work up to, not something I felt like doing in my first season of fairs!

So why am I talking about it?

Well first of all, I went to it last year and had a great time and would definitely recommend going if you are in the area.

But, more importantly, the Etsy Team I am a part of - the SF Etsy Team - is going to be there. We will have a team table at Baz Biz so we can tell people what Etsy is and what the team is all about.

I will be helping out at the table on the Saturday (December 3rd) in the morning, representing Etsy and the SF Etsy Street Team! So when you're heading down to check out the wonderful items on offer you should also stop by our table and say hi! :)

Many individual SF Etsy members will also be vending at Baz Biz. I'll share a few of my favourite when I find out exactly who will be there, hopefully in time for my Thursday Featured Artist post

After the Fair

First I need to apologise for leaving you hanging last week. After the stress and lack-of-sleep from the craft fair I picked up a nasty head cold which is only just starting to go now. Whilst I didn't exactly take the week off, I did carefully prioritise what needed to be done and cut back quite a bit and the blog was one of the things which suffered.

Me, at my table, looking remarkably awake!

Anyway... how was the fair, you ask?

Well I was very pleased with it. It certainly wasn't the busiest fair I've ever seen but, for my first fair, I was quite happy with that! I did manage to make a profit, which was more than I was hoping for, and I was very encouraged by the number of customers I had on the Sunday who said that their mothers had seen me on the Saturday and sent them down!

A view of my whole booth

My booth display held up to the challenge and there weren't even any major changes I could think of to make for next time.

We put the banner above the window behind so people could still see it even if there were other people at my table. However, I'm not sure that was the best plan because I think it was a little too far behind my booth and a bit disconnected.

2 of my large, upright display boards

I loved the way my display boards turned out and how well my little, coloured price circles worked.

I do think one or two of my boards may have been a little cluttered and the actual arrangement of the jewelry on the boards is something I plan to work on. I will also be designing new jewelry with display in the back of my mind, to make sure my lines include some dramatic pieces to break up the boards.

Slatted, cedar boards

I wasn't sure anyone was going to sign my guestbook but I was pleasantly surprised to get a few :)

I loved the flexibility of the slatted boards and used them to display my business cards, coupon cards and informational signs. I also displayed a few of my stud earrings on their cards after I decided that they might be getting a bit lost on the burlap pads.

A last minute idea was to sprinkle some of the blank price circles across the table to add some interest and it worked really well.

Dried grasses in jars

My dried grasses were a great finishing touch, especially tying in with the name so well. My only problem with them is trying to keep our cat away from them so he doesn't rip them to shreds (and trail the seeds all over the house!).

The view from behind my table

Here you can see a little peak behind the scenes at the mess behind my table! My careful design for the risers worked really nicely. As you can see I was able to keep my tools, spare jewelry and packaging materials on the table but hidden away from view.

I have the post I promised you, about how to make the display boards and risers, planned for later on this week so keep and eye out for that if you are interested.

All in all it was a good experience and I feel much more prepared for future shows, now. I had help on both days from friends - many thanks to Abby Stopper and Ali Constantine who helped me all day and also to my husband who helped us setup and stayed for moral support on the Saturday. If you have any questions or comments for me, feel free to post them below.

My first craft fair!

So I've been talking about my craft fair display and now I can officially share that I have been accepted for my first ever fair!

It's organised by the Junior Leage of Napa-Sonoma and is their Winter Market, part of their Holiday Home Tour.

The fair is this weekend (Saturday and Sunday 5th and 6th November)
from 10am till 4pm
in Santa Rosa
at the Friedman Event Center


If you live in the area I'd love to see you there and it's completely free so come on down and say hi! If you mention that you read about it on my blog I'll give you a discount too!

Sneak Peek at my Craft Fair Display

I did promise you a look at my craft fair setup this week so here it is:

Craft Fair Booth Display

I don't have a long table at home so I've set it up on the base of our sofa-bed. The basic displays and table setup are finished but, as you can see, I haven't finished making all the colour variations of my items or working out where to display each piece yet. I also haven't finished the little touches - information signs, prices, decorations etc. You may also notice I haven't actually got a tablecloth yet either; in the picture I am using a sheet (too white and too small for an 8' table) and a stretch of brown kraft paper.


Enough of what I haven't done, though...

Burlap-covered display boards

I needed the display to be a fine balance of rustic and professional. I wanted it to be rustic to fit in with the style of my jewelry but I wanted to avoid also making it look cheap.

The display boards are very simple but I coated them with cream burlap, for a rustic touch, instead of the usual velvet. The light colour shows off the copper well, especially after it has tarnished a little. They also sell a darker version of the burlap which I may decide to use if I make a lot of silver jewelry later on.

I will be posting a tutorial on how to make display boards like these shortly, so look out for it if you are also designing a craft fair booth or thinking of updating one.

Distressed Easel from Morgann Hill Designs

I made most of my display myself but there were a few little touches which I bought. The 2 distressed easels supporting the 2 smaller display boards I bought from Morgann Hill Designs. They were expensive (they are designed for weddings) but they were definitely worth it. They are absolutely beautiful and I think they are one of those small details that make a big difference.

Distressed Napkin Ring from Turquoise Rollerset

I also bought these adorable distressed napkin rings from Turquoise Rollerset who specialises in distressed turquoise items. I have to say, if turquoise had fitted with my display I might have bought loads of things from there.

I stuffed the napkin rings with wadding (batting to US readers) and then covered the top with the burlap to turn them into cute little rustic ring holders.

Grape Wood Bangle Display

I probably shouldn't have paid for this one but I live in the city. It's a piece of grape vine wood which I painted white and distressed myself to use as a display for bangles. It's supported in a jam jar but I still need to work on a good filler for the jar.







Behind the bangle hanger you can also see my handmade table risers. I bought some pine planks and used them to make narrow shelves to raise up my display boards a little. I felt that some contrast was needed from all the white so I stained them a dark walnut colour and I think they still look quite rustic. They are actually not just shelves, I'm also using them to support my display stands so there is no chance of them falling over. I will write a post explaining how I did that and how to make the shelves in the next week or so.

Cedar Shelf covers from Lowe's

These cedar slats are designed to turn those wire shelves into smooth shelves suitable for storing a wider range of items. I painted and distressed these too and will use them for miscellaneous items which I will need to have on the table, such as business cards. Hopefully they will also make my table smell nice!





Anyway, sneak peek over. Since I don't have a table I probably won't lay out my full display again until I actually do a craft fair so you will have to wait until then to see the finished result of my hard work. In the meantime I'd better get back to making more colour variations for my jewelry.

Large Swirls Earrings in different colours