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Getting into shows is a great honor and accomplishment, but shipping the paintings is work (and sometimes aggravating as you will see). At the time of this writing I am preparing to ship watercolors to four states: Michigan, California, Florida, and New York.

Framing.

If a painting has not already been framed, I need to take care of that ASAP! I generally order my wood frame and acrylic glazing from American Frame, cut my own mat and backing board, and assemble everything myself.

If the piece is already framed, I make sure everything is in good shape (not marked or scratched, no debris beneath the acrylic, etc.). More on this later.

Paperwork.

Some exhibitions require a lot of paperwork - artist statement, loan agreement, artist's label, to name a few - to be completed prior to shipping; others just tell you when and where the painting should arrive. Once I figured out how to pay one of the handling fees online, this part was taken care of pretty easily, albeit quite time-consuming.

Packing.
I checked the storage room to be sure I had enough boxes that were the correct size for shipping the accepted works. I was relieved to find that I had what I needed on hand (or so I thought!).

I use AirFloat Lined StrongBoxes. They are costly, but are very sturdy and can be reused several times. (A little duct tape can extend their usefulness: as soon as there is any sign of wear, I tape the corners just to be safe. So far I've never had a problem.)

Inside the box, I always include a printed image of my painting with the title, dimensions of artwork, and my contact information. A return shipping label is also necessary, along with any of the aforementioned paperwork and handling fees as required.

Don't wait 'til the last minute.

So I dragged out the boxes a week before the artworks needed to be shipped, found the paintings and measured again to be sure the boxes I had would work. Two were too small, allowing only for an inch of padding on two sides. Apparently I had checked the width, but not the other dimensions. (Sigh.) I quickly ordered two new and larger StrongBoxes from AirFloat. They shipped immediately, so I'd have them in plenty of time. Problem solved.

Remember what I said about framing? It turned out that all of the framed paintings needed a bit of work to be show-worthy. One had dust particles under the acrylic that needed to be removed. One frame needed to be replaced. All four needed paper backing to serve as dust covers as well as to give the pieces a professional look. (See video above for my process...I squeezed a lot into three and a half minutes!)

Shipping.
I have an account with FedEx, which makes things a little easier, though not necessarily cheaper. Often my husband takes care of this for me. I always follow up with the tracking number to be sure my painting arrives safely and on time. By the time you read this, three of the four paintings will be on their way to their prospective shows, and the fourth is boxed up and ready to head out next week.

Now I can get back to the fun part - painting!

Peace begins with a smile. ~Mother Teresa

 

Paint. Love. Repeat.