Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Craft Show, Wind & Rain

I had my first 2 day craft show this past weekend. I was worried about getting the tent filled up enough & looking put together. Luckily, I was able to get some ideas for props during my vacation the week before.

We were Up North until the Thursday before the show. That Wednesday, there was a pretty big craft show just down the road a ways from the resort. I knew I wanted a coat rack type of display, but I wanted something for the wall area. There was a woman who had some lattice work suspended from the tent bars and she had clipped her items to it. I also some about 3 booths with some shutters (minus some or most of the slats) set up with planks like shelves. I was not able to find shutters in the one day I had back home to shop around for props. But I did find a trellis that I used for "walls".

I wish I had some pictures of my tent...they are stuck in my camera until I can find the right cord to download them into the computer. I brought along my little point & shoot, but it did not have a flash drive...internal memory only. Oh well, I'll post them later.

The show went well, albeit windy. My tent kept scooting over with the larger gusts. ***much thanks go out to my neighbor, Urban Vintage Girl, for helping me re scoot it back into place***

The second day I had some weights...but that was no help with the downpour. Just minutes before take down, there was a giant gust of wind followed by a sheet of rain...big, hard, heavy, and very very very full, rain. Everything got drenched in just one brief moment. Literally...it was only about 3 minutes before everything was soaked. Luckily there were some women hiding under my tent that helped yank all the bags off the wall & toss them onto the table. Thank you ladies!

Back home, I laid everything out on my tables & racks to dry. I only had 2 bags that got soiled. The ink from the price tags ran...but it is only a tiny spot & the color matches the bag...so I may still sell it at a discount. My son couldn't even find the marks until I pointed them out. I'll show you some pics for some opinions later this week or weekend.

Now...onto the days post-show.

I spent Monday night and part of Tuesday in the hospital. All the big bad was ruled out and the cause is still unknown. And I am feeling better, but will be taking it easy for a little while. So I will not be around so much for the next couple weeks. Neither will I be sewing a whole lot. I have a couple swaps I am participating in that I will be doing and a few small projects to work on. But I will not be pushing myself to get lots sewn like I had originally planned.

So have a great rest of the summer - I'll still pop in a post here & there - see you more regularly in the fall.

oh...and I did sell more than I have before - woo hoo!!! Still considered not much by many crafters I am sure, but as a newbie to in person selling - I was pleased.

4 comments:

Splendid Little Stars said...

Congratulations on your sales! Outdoor shows can be brutal. I know. I did a couple shows where the temp was over 100 degrees. And then there's the wind and rain. Seems you survived with help from fellow vendors and from customers.
I hope your health continues to improve. You are in my thoughts and prayers.

storybeader said...

wow - rain and wind! Two things not good for people in open tents. Sorry things got a bit soiled... Had no idea you were ill - I hope a few tests will relieve your mind. Congrats on the sales! {:-D

Memories for Life said...

Glad the sales were good despite the rain and wind! I've never done an outdoor show...to scary!
And glad to hear you're feeling better and going to be taking it easy...we all need that from time to time :)
Can't wait to see pics of your booth!

Live, Love, Laugh, Write! said...

Glad you were able to get some sales - and we'll be here when your feeling better!