7 More Dollar Store Purchases

It’s pretty crazy, but I just keep coming up with things you can (and I have) purchased at the local Dollar Tree for my smash cake photography business. Here are several more supplies to add to your cart next time you wander through your local dollar store.

For your set design we have standard set filler ideas, and then a couple props you can only purchase specific times of the year. Let’s add an easy prop to pull in an extra $50-$100 each shoot, and lastly, boring old humdrum items that make your day easier. And in case you missed it, you can check out the original article: 7 DOLLAR STORE PURCHASES FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS

1) Gift bags & tissue paper

Truthfully a no-brainer, gift bags and tissue paper are a cheap, fast and reusable item you should just have in your prop closet. Perfect for a little drop of last minute color right where you need it, I would recommend buying these in multiple colors. I started out with craft (light brown) and white gift bags both in multiple sizes, and have since added blue, red and pink. Buy matte bags initially so they don’t outshine your baby and then you can add in crazy colors as you need them. For tissue paper that you can get at your local dollar store, we suggest you pick up the rainbow color pack offered plus white. Our dollar store also offers a tissue paper with glitter built in, but in our experience the glitter doesn’t really show in the camera. Also, both bags and tissue paper fold down flat and are reusable, perfect for your overflowing prop closet.

2) Ribbons

Ribbons have saved our bacon, I mean cake, on more than one occasion. If the cake your client brings in is damaged, you can hide the smear with some ribbon. If the cake design is too bland (or it’s simply unadorned) you can always wrap a single line of ribbon around the base of the cake. Ribbons can be great for little girls pigtails or use them to decorate your gift bags and flower arrangements. Watch out for the length though - sometimes ribbon is sold with as little as 6’ on the roll.

3) Fake fall leaves

Fake autumn leaves are 50 for $1 at our local Dollar Tree in the fall, or I can drive two blocks further and get 50 leaves from Hobby Lobby for $5.99. Plus our local dollar store offers 3 different types of leaves, even ones with glitter. We’ve found that the leaves are washable and reusable as well. So pitch them in the trash or wash them, it’s not like they’re expensive. Fall leaves make a great addition to seamless paper flooring - (read more here), breaking up the color so it looks a little less stark.

4) Christmas trees

The Christmas trees at the dollar store were a score. I was blown away by how well the evergreen Christmas trees I purchased at the dollar store looked. I purchased 4 of them last year, this year I’m going back for more. This year when I purchase more trees I’m going to experiment with frosting some of them and see if I can achieve two different looks with my dollar score '“win”.

Note: We don’t typically shoot Christmas theme sets for cake smash shoots, because families are less likely to display them year-round, and thus less likely to make larger purchases. If a family asks specifically for a Christmas themed shoot, we’re very upfront about our reasoning, and clients are usually very pleased with the “winter” theme suggestion after they consider having Christmas pictures on their walls all year. If they still want Christmas themed smash cake pictures, of course we’ll photograph them, as long as they ( the clients) are making an educated decision.

5) Baby sunglasses

“So if a $1 at the store makes you $50 in the sales room...”

I know I keep coming back to money - but photography is a business. Preferably a profitable one. And sunglasses are just one more prop that offers an additional image that mom and dad just “have” to have. So if a dollar at the store makes you $50 in the sales room, why wouldn’t you add this to your arsenal? And they don’t have to be baby sunglasses either, sunglasses that are too large are just as cute. Babies peeking over the top of shades plays well and pays well. If you’re selling 9-ups (3 images x 3 images collages) those little personality pictures can really add to your bottom line.

6) Diapers

Once again, be the hero. Stock a couple of diapers in different sizes. Clients forget their diaper bag in the rush to bring their outfits, or remembering to grab a prop at the last minute. Or the diaper bag is empty. Even if you’re just saving them from having to run to the car - you’re still the hero. You have what they need, when they need it, you look prepared and professional. For a buck.

7) Cake cutters

Easy peasy. No knives near baby at this studio! Grab a couple of cake spatulas for your arsenal so you can keep baby safe, and mom feeling secure.

So after you’ve looked over this list - and read the prior one: 7 DOLLAR STORE PURCHASES FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS, what have I missed? Be sure to chime in below, see what other pieces of creativity we can spark.

Thanks for reading,
Clare