crochet pattern binder for markeTs
NOTE: This post includes affiliate links.
I saw this clever idea for markets from sundropsol on Instagram and knew I just had to try it out! Keep scrolling to read more about it or skip to instructions:
Although I’ve been selling online for the past 5 years, I just recently starting selling in person at markets for the past year or so. Based on my experience so far, I have found that there are a good number of folks who either know how to crochet or know someone who does. I knew there was an opportunity here to showcase my patterns! My patterns are available online so I was looking to advertise them in my booths without having to pull out my phone. When I saw this idea on Instagram, it was exactly what I wanted and I knew I had to try it my next market. Here’s how it came out (see image below).
I designed some pages in my Canva pro account, which requires a paid monthly fee. However, there is a free Canva membership available with limited options. As far as content, I have over 50 patterns so I only chose to highlight my best sellers. Canva has a feature in which you can create QR codes but there are also several free resources online for this. I also included a page for my e-mail subscriber coupon and ongoing online promotions. I also made sure to include the project level so folks have a general idea of what kind of pattern it is and included a page with general information on what the levels meant, sourced from https://www.craftyarncouncil.com/standards/project-levels.
To print at the highest quality, I sent a digital PDF of my pages to my local Staples to print, but this is completely optional. If you are interested in doing the same as I did with the prints, there are few ways you can do this (I believe pricing is the same for both, cost breakdown below):
Self Service: E-mail a PDF of my pages to staplesmobile@printme.com; you will receive a confirmation code and bar code. After you receive the code, you can go to any of the copy machines located in your local Staples copy center. Follow the prompts to scan bar code (or enter code) on the copy machine to release your print job.
NOTE: Code usually expires in 24 hours.
Professional Print: Upload your digital PDF to Staples.com and they will print for you and contact you when it is ready to pick up.
For an inexpensive option, you can also check with your local library to see if they have a color printer available to print your pages, however, quality and options may be limited. Then, of course, you can also print the pages for no additional charge at home, if preferred!
Next, I purchased a 1” 3-ring binder and page protectors to put it all together. Even though my shop colors are teal, I went with pink because I wanted a color that would stand out and I like pink (why pink is NOT my shop’s color theme, I have no idea!). I do recommend using your brand colors or a binder color that will get attention; I found these binders have the most color options, if that is important for you too. If you prefer a more heavy duty binders, these are also a good option but color options are limited. For page protectors, I used these; I recommend using heavy duty page protectors since there may be lots of folks flipping through the pages.
So what happened when I put it out for the first time? Although I did not sell at patterns as a direct result of this binder, I did get a good amount of curious folks flipping through the pages and taking business cards. This binder was another nice way to showcase my skills. my website, and draw interest so it is definitely a keeper for my future markets. Also, this is my “first edition” (I designed and put together in a week to be able to display at my next market) and I already have more ideas for it.
Come back soon to find out how this does at my future markets!
Crochet Pattern Binder Supplies
Supplies + Cost Breakdown (does not include local taxes paid):
Color Prints = 14 pages @ 50 cents per page = $10.50
Up & Up 1” 3 Ring Binder = $4.39
Total Cost: $19.17
Other things to note
I designed the pages using my Canva Pro account, which requires a monthly fee of $15.00 (A free version of Canva is available).
If you give this a try out, I’d love to see how it comes out, leave a comment or tag me @jarfulofknots on socials.
