r/ArtistAlleyConnect

I got caught out this year and I want to fix it for next year.

I spent the spring looking at whatever was open to apply for, applied to those, and did alright. Then around June I went to look at the bigger cons I actually wanted and most of them had closed applications months before. So my whole year ended up decided by which forms happened to be open when I looked, which is a dumb way to pick.

What I am trying to work out is how far out you all actually work. Do you sit down once and map the whole next year, or do you keep a running list and check things off as forms open? And how do you keep track of the deadlines, because that is the part I keep losing. I had them in my notes app, then in a spreadsheet, and I still missed two.

Also curious how many of you apply to more than you could actually do, assuming you get turned down from some of them. I have been applying to about what I can handle and then ending up with gaps when I do not get in.

I recently applied to an event that is $150 for a 6ft table - it does include a helper badge, but it's for a single day event in a city that is around 45,000 and is not near any major cities. Is this normal? To me it seems really expensive as there are other weekend long events within a 2 hour drive that a under $150 for the entire three days. It's been a while since I've done convetion artist alley but this seems absurd to me.

hi everyone!

ive been building my portfolio over the last couple of months in order to start artist alleys but it’s mostly love and deepspace (lads) content. with the recent cancellation of valko from love and deepspace im worried that the fandom will die out by the time i start vending next year if they don’t bring back valko. right now the fandom is still very active and willing to fight for the game so people are still buying fan made merch so it feels a bit silly that i’m thinking this right now but i don’t know how long it would last.

i dont really have the ‘passion’ to draw things for fandoms im not apart of and the other fandoms im in (other than lads) arent very popular so i‘ve kind of decided that if theres not really a reason for me to continue if lads isnt viable.

am i just overthinking it?

does anyone have experience with selling merch for fandoms that were “falling off” or even ‘dead‘ fandoms? or even people that sells lads merch, do u notice a difference?

do u think its worth it for me to continue trying to vend?

edit: could i maybe just focus more on original content?

Hellooo, back with more questions

So, I usually use Vograce for my orders for my etsy shop. And before anyone says anything, no I personally have not had any issues with them ever (I've ordered from them about 12 to 13 times). But I'm worried about dumb tarriff shit and don't want to spend so much on shipping.

I remember trying to look up US based manufacters, but it didn't fee like a good amount had a nice variety of options like how Vograce has. Also seeing some bad reviews about some also which already limits who to get from it seems. I'm not super interest in buying from so many different places at once and paying that many different shippings. Maybe at most three different manus. I'm mostly interested manufacterers in charms/keychains, stickers, prints and buttons!

Im struggling a little bit, i feel like i cant draw at all. I have build an style and certain aesthetic for my booth but i dont feel like i like it at all. Sometimes i try to think in merch ideas but end up only looking up for doing fanarts of popular things. I dont know what to draw for myself (im not that involved in any fandom, or constant aesthetic) despiste all, i like Drawing, i enjoy doing it for merch because it gives me a deadline, but i dont like my results, i cant visualize exactly what i want.

I know it may be like a personal emphasize but if someone dealed with something like this too, id like some tips, thanks for reading me :,>

I’m currently developing a dedicated artist/event supply bag designed around the stuff artists, crafters, and vendors actually need to carry to conventions and events.
Before I finalize the design, I’d love to hear from people who do artist alleys, craft fairs, conventions, etc.:
What’s the most annoying thing about carrying your supplies to/from events?
What do you wish your current bag had?
What items are always awkward to organize or access?
What do you end up carrying separately because your bag just doesn’t work for it?
I’m especially interested in the pain points—even the little annoyances you’ve gotten used to.
I’d really appreciate any feedback! 🙏 I want to make something that solves an actual problem rather than just making another generic tote/bag.

We’re a new cosplay+art con launching in Mississippi and I’m focusing our artist alley towards original artwork, no AI no slop no dropship. The problem I’m having is signaling artists to consider our concept. I’m in need of insight from artists 🧐

I wanted to try out a US based manufacturer for charms and asked my friend who recently used Acorn Press, but heard some worrying stuff and wanted to ask people here about their experiences.

My friend says they ordered from acorn press months ago, but is still waiting for their order and getting ghosted. The delivery ETA was also months ago, so they don’t know what happened. Acorn seems to have a discord but people are getting ghosted there too even if the owner is active and posting.

Do other people have similar experiences and did you still get your order?

They don’t seem like a scam since some people are getting charms, but there is also a good amount of people being snubbed from the sounds of it.

Apparently Acorn has also been talking about expanding their services to prints, but why expand services when they can’t handle their current work load?

Is the print quality or price worth working with them? I was hoping that local would mean faster, but at this point my friend would’ve gotten their order faster from an intl manu. Is this common for acorn?

I did join the discord and saw some people even complaining that paying the rush fee doesn’t guarantee delivery by the date you want things…I just hope my friend gets their order eventually, they were pretty sad about the situation.

Good evening/morning, lovelies

I was wondering where you have your foil prints made. I've tried all of my local printers (Raleigh, NC) and no one seems to do it around here. Everyone says they'll need to outsource it. If they have to do that, I figure I might as well go direct and send it out myself.

I would really appreciate any recommendations that you might have.

For those vending this weekend and in the future, I hope you sell out of everything and your bank account stays flush.

xo

The current PPWR regulations make shipping to and within the EU financially almost impossible for micro-businesses with annual fees and having to hire a representative in each EU country you want to ship to.

Please find here compiled all the options we currently have to demand a single EU register or exemption / a more just system for small businesses and micro sellers:

\- The EU commission is collecting feedback on the new packaging register rules until September 10th, 2026. Make your voice heard:

[EU Commission PPWR feedback](https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/have-your-say/initiatives/15352-Packaging-and-packaging-waste-rules-on-national-registers-of-producers\_en)

(You can also select to leave feedback as a non-EU citizen!)

\- As EU citizen, you u can directly e-mail Parliament members. Find your local MEPs and their contact information on the official European Parliament directory:

[EU Parliament directory](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/search/advanced)

Select your country in the "Country" filter

Look for MEPs sitting in these committees:

\- ENVI (Environment, Public Health & Food Safety)

\- IMCO (Internal Market & Consumer Protection) - very important for cross-border trade!

\- ITRE (Industry & Micro-enterprises)

It's doesn't need to be a fancy or elaborate e-mail, state your case, keep it simple.

\- the European Crafts Alliance is now collecting data on how the PPWR impacts independent makers & micro-businesses, you might want to fill out the survey:

[EAC impact survey](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd4UEfB0FpPbw1zetViYlj6b1PbShUNl6OC5e9NV1Ki8Rwnzg/viewform)

\- Last but not least, you can sign growing petition which also contains some useful links and updates on the situation: [Petition ](https://www.change.org/p/stop-destroying-eu-micro-businesses-immediate-moratorium-on-cross-border-epr-fees?source\_location=promote\_thank\_you\_page)

(An official PETI (EU Petitions Committee) has been submitted as well by the same person on August 5th, but the process of assigning a petition number will take its time, so in the meantime, this is what we can use).

Please feel free to add any further options we might have and spread the word! (Not only about how to fight this but to inform artists that this madness exists, many are still not aware)

After the new PPWR lots of moots are closing down their shipping to EU. Me too. I signed the petition, shared infos, but i feel powerless.

What are you up to? What‘s your choice on the matter?

I'm wondering if anyone has any insight on being a vendor in artist alley at LA Comic Con. My small business was accepted to be a vendor. Past the excitement, my partner and I are anxious about how much we might need to create. We've never vended at a show this large.

None of our products are involved with IP, it's all original. We design small game boxes that are similar to an escape room style puzzle. It's definitely our crowd, but I know people are mostly excited for IP/collectables at conventions like this.

If anyone has any advice or stories from their past experiences, it would be much appreciated.

Thanks!