I spent a lovely day yesterday at a Fine Crafts show at Ft. Mason in San Francisco. It was a terrific show full of wonderful objects, clothing and jewelry. I must have been in a spending mood because I gave a definite boost to the economy. My favorite purchase was this wire sculpture. I discovered the title "Goddess" after I got home. I particularly liked that the body type had an eerie resemblance to me and the gesture was perfect. I was able to loop the filament wire around the ceiling recessed lighting canister which is on a spring. I just pulled it down a little, looped the plastic line around and pushed it back! So my inspirational goddess is soaring high in my office. A scene from the movie "Logan's Run" pops into my mind but I push it down and go for the positive influences. But this sculpture wasn't my exciting discovery!
At one of the booth's where I made a purchase, she used her iPad to process the transaction. There is now this wonderful application available for electronic devices such as the iPad and iPhone, Droid and similar devices. It is called Square which is a FREE SERVICE!!! As a merchant you only pay when you process a card and it is 2.75% if you swipe the card and 3 something% if you don't swipe a card. The card swiper is this small white square device that plugs into the iPad (et al) which they send you , FREE. There is no monthly fee or any other charges. There is no minimum activity required. This means that artists can now afford to accept credit cards at their open studios or other venues. The Square service includes sending a receipt by e-mail to the customer AND the vendor gets an email describing the transaction. If you have every looked into the possibility of being able to accept credit card payment be sure and check this out. I am signing up today. I want to be ready to handle all sales that may come my way.
