As I grow as an artist and develop work one question which is never far from my mind is how to go about selling work.

Without a physical shop space, selling your pieces to the public can be difficult - lots of folk like to see work "in real life" before they buy, and there are packaging and shipping questions and costs to take into account.

Selling to trade fairs is another option. I recently visited Scotland's Trade Fair Spring, in Glasgow, for a bit of research and as i've never been to anything like that before.

The show is huge - 500 exhibitors and 5,000 trade buyers (its not open to the public) The show incorporates four specialist areas  - home and gift, fashion and accessories, craft and food and drink.

The range of arts, jewellery and crafts on display was amazing! It was great to see the friendly face of local Shetland knitwear designer Joan Fraser, who won the space at the exhibition as a prize, as well as other designers I am familiar with.

My absolute favourite by far was illustrator Linda Lovatt's stall. Linda uses copper, wire, beads and pieces of pottery which she often finds in her garden at home in the Scottish borders to make wonderful 'beastie assemblages', including brooches, pictures and ornamental 3D pieces.

You can find out more about Linda's work here - http://beastieassemblage.co.uk

Like most of the stalls, Linda's was very well presented, with professional promotional material ready to give to anyone interested.

The show was a fantastic experience and has given me so much to think about. How do you like to buy (or sell?) art? I'd love to hear your ideas.