Handy Dandy Checklist Before Going Out to Buy New Art

There are many places to find wonderful original art to buy these days. Art Fairs are a great resource for finding many quality artists in one place. Another options is to visit Art Galleries in your area and you can, of course always buy directly from an artist online. Many artists offer their unique creations through their web sites and offer very reasonable shipping.

No matter what avenue you decide to pursue, there are a few things to make sure you remember in order to make your search for the perfect piece of art productive and successful.

1. Visit Art Fair/Gallery/Artist Web Site

This is a great opportunity to shop with your feet up! Look through the art fair or gallery web site  and then peruse the artists' web sites to get a feeling for what they have to offer. This gives you a chance to preview the art before you see it in person and it gives you a chance to weed out the art you are not interested in. If you are worried the perfect piece might be scooped up before you get there, buy it off the web site directly!

2. Take a Photo of Your Space

Grab your smart phone and snap a few shots of your spaces you are feeling like need a little artistic TLC. Make sure to include the surrounding areas, so you can remember scale while you are out shopping. 

3. Jot Down Measurements

Grab your tape measure and measure the space you are intending to fill. Check out my last blogpost for learning how to tape off a space for measurements HERE. It's the worst to get to an art fair, see the perfect piece, but not know if it will fit. You decide to come back the next day only to find it has sold!

4. Jot Down Your Colors and Theme

This may seem like a no brainer, but the idea is to take a moment to look around your space and try to see it with new eyes. You may see potential accent colors you have never thought of tying into a piece of art. You may notice colors from a wall in another room that would be nice to coordinate with. Maybe a motif will stand out to you that you didn't realize you were leaning towards lately. The most important thing to keep in mind is to choose what you love. You can't mess up when choosing things that you love.

5. Set Your Budget, But Don't Haggle

Everyone should set a spending limit. It doesn't matter if it is $50, $5000 or $50,000. There is something for everyone out there at every price point. Some people think haggling is alright with artists, but it really isn't. We get desperate and do it sometimes, but in truth, most of us hate it. It is insulting, stressful and makes us feel like the haggler thinks our heartfelt, handmade items are worth the same as a garage sale find. The bottom line is, we want you to stick to your limit, but we want you to choose something that is priced right for you. 

6. Give Yourself Plenty of Time

Choosing art for your home should be fun, not stressful. Make sure you know the hours of the fair, or gallery and give yourself plenty of time to shop around, and think about your options. When you are rushed, you may end up regretting your choice and that's not any fun at all! 

If you have made it to the end of this blog entry, I just want to say THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for caring about original art enough to consider spending your hard earned money on your next acquisition. You are well on your way to helping make the world a better place, in my opinion!

Art = Love = Making the World a Better Place