Honest & Expert Opinion please.
Fellow Bubblers
I am looking to open up an Etsy store in the nearby future. I had the idea of selling ACEOs which stands for Art Card Edition Originals which are usually 2.5×3.5 inches in size, teeny tiny. They’d be of portraits like the one below, this isn’t a great photo and it really was roughly drawn by the way on an old piece of card so it’s just an example. I want to be able to mount them on coloured card like the matt print here kind of demonstrates and i have some other ideas in mind, i guess i’m feeling the urge to do something crafty with my work.
So…what do you think? Would you buy minature sized portraits like this? Your thoughts would be appreciated.
Steph :)
wu-wei
I’ve heard ACEOs are most popular in North America, and I’ve sold a handful on Ebay since trying it a few weeks back. (I’ve been meaning to set up on Etsy but haven’t yet got round to it.) That was with prints rather than original drawings though – which are you aiming for?
Probably one of those things that you just have to try and see how it goes, but I for one would buy some of your work as ACEOs. it’s a great alternative to prints for us Poor People!
Steph Granshaw replied
thanks wu-wei. Yes i think you’re right just have to give it a go and see. Thinking of selling other things but don’t have a clear way forward as yet, just ideas.
Sarah ORourke
Hi Steph,
One of the appeals of ACEO’s is accessibilty price wise, as wu-wei hinted at. Much the same as the appeal of cards on RB, many people purchase them & frame, making for very affordable art.
You can probably appeal to the same market with prints… A lot of artists will limit the number they print & sign them to add to the appeal.
Having one… or both… of those options alongside a small selection of originals i feel would be a good strategy as it allows you to cover a variety of customers & price ranges. A key to balancing several formats is to get your price structure right so that each option formats seems price appropriate to the others.
In terms of thinking outside the square & doing something creative & crafty prints of your work mounted or framed on card could make great covers for journals or notebooks.
Or small prints framed on timber boxes… wow, yes i can imagine that… you could give them a real vintage feel…
Ok i’m getting carried away dreaming up ideas for your work lol!!!
To answer your question honestly… i’d be more inclined to buy a print or notebook, the ACEO’s are cute but being so teeny tiny i really don’t know what i’d do with one!
Hope that helps!
Xxx
Steph Granshaw replied
thanks Sarah. I just started drawing on a small piece of card yesterday, as i fancied doodling and then thought hang on! this sort of thing sells on Etsy…anyway yes, i am thinking more and more that this would be a good place for me to attempt at selling my work, originals, prints amongst other bits n bobs. You’re a mind of ideas Love. LOL!! I still have to work it all out and of course start how i mean to carry on…thanks for the input. Always appreciated XX
Lynsye Medalia
I see a lot of artists doing ACEO’s. I’m guessing some of them must sell quite a few. As the others mentioned, this makes an affordable way for us starving artists to be able to purchase other people’s work. But, in my opinion, they are too small, as wall art, to warant a purchase. I do buy the cards here on RB, I think they are just the right size to frame in groups or in seperate frames and set them on shelves like photos. That’s, I think, the smallest size of art I would personally purchase.
On the other hand, I really like Sarah’s idea….the notebook covers or box covers. I would definitely buy smaller versions of your art if it was functional. I would really like to see some of your portraits miniaturized and turned into pendants….people do it on dominoes or Scrabble tiles or just rrandom pieces of wood.
Good luck with whatever you decide….and keep us posted!
Steph Granshaw replied
thank you Lynsye. I don’t put my art onto greeting cards here as it just doesn’t sit right with me, i too like Sarah’s idea of notebook or journal covers. The drawing here actually looks so precious when it’s in my hand, i think that if it was made a bit bigger by mounting it onto a nice patterned or coloured card it would be even better..i guess it wouldn’t be an ACEO any longer. I saw an artist the other day on Etsy who puts her art onto scrabble tiles..interesting. thanks for leaving your thoughts. :)))