Our Hopeful Home: My Very First Craft Show Reveal!

I'm still reeling from this past weekend when I was a vendor in my first juried arts and crafts festival (Festival of the Vine) in Geneva, Il. Right now I just want to share a few pictures with you, but I promise I'll be going into my experience in more detail in posts to come.

Here's the tent, decorated in the front with my lovely french script fabric bunting made by my friend Kathleen Lane Balke (a.k.a. Local Love on Facebook}.

Yes, I see the gaping empty space across the back of the tent. This was early morning before the show started, but we did at least try to keep that area clear of junk throughout the day. Unfortunately, it was inevitable because I was pretty claustrophobic in the tent as it was. The thought of something across the back (like a table), or a closed back (with the tarp down), just really didn't work for me. I got many compliments on how pretty my displays were so overall I'm ok with it.

This was a Goodwill find I sprayed with chalkboard paint to create my store name sign.

This scrolly, vine-y display easel was originally bought to display jewelry. (Thanks Mr. CBD for spotting it at the thrift store!) But after a few coats of white spray paint and some chalkboard paint it was transformed into a vintage wedding prop. My favorite customers were the cute young couple that bought it. They told me it would have "a special place" at their wedding. I just loved that!

My favorite prop/display piece was the vintage lamp I used to hang jewelry from. It, too, was saved by white spray paint. Unfortunately, it was pretty windy that first morning (and the whole second day, too) and the side of the tent blew in and knocked the lamp onto the ground. The base broke and I was crushed {figuratively}. Jury's still out on whether or not gluing it back together is going to work. Needless to say we had to take that side off the tent to keep it from knocking over anything else.

The hat box is vintage, from a Chicago haberdashery. It sold.

My charm bracelets had a lot of admirers and purchasers!

My hand-stamped drop cloth ribbon, or "Royal Ribbon" as I called it, got off to a slow start but I did sell a few of them on the second day. Some people had really good ideas as to what to use it for. I'll be sharing that info later.

I call her Dolly. Don't you just love her? Everyone who walked past her just h-a-d to touch her tutu! We thought that was pretty funny.

I'll be sharing her story later, too.

I picked up this display piece at Michigan's Longest Garage Sale, in a barn. I believe it was some sort of grain sifter. I added tea cup hooks and used chalkboard paint to paint the top. It's sitting on a huge metal display stand that Mr. CBD picked up for me at a great discount. Love it! The display was a real show stopper for many passers-by.

One view from my booth.

And another view. It's the local county courthouse in the background. The festival took place in historic downtown Geneva, IL. It's a quaint, lovely town on the Fox River. It really is an ideal place for a festival of this sort. There was also lots of food and wine tasting involved. Unfortunately, I didn't really see anything but my booth for the whole two days.

There are so many things I want to share with you about my experience, and I promise you that those posts are coming. I'll just be spacing them out so as not to cause your eyes to glaze over.

I will say this, though. It was a ton of work, but also a ton of fun and a great learning experience. I made invaluable contacts in that I had three people approach me with business propositions. Two were store owners who wanted me to sell in their shops, and another was a talented acquaintance who has a regular monthly spot at a local flea market. She proposed sharing her large space with me. It's a well-known and respected flea market and it was a nice surprise to be invited to sell there.

So..........I have a lot to think about. And a lot of sleep to catch up on. I'm back into the home schooling groove with our son, and our two girls are starting their teen years so we really have our hands full. And without my very helpful, supportive and loving husband I don't know how I would have done it. Thank you, sweetie!

My thanks also go out to all my blogging friends who gave me priceless support and advice throughout my preparation process. You all know who you are!

Be sure to stay tuned for more thoughts on the whole world of craft shows as well as some tips for those of you who are just starting out. I'm certainly no expert, but maybe I can help.

xoxo