At the market...

The market finished up yesterday, and all in all, it went pretty well. The blow by blow account goes a bit like this - I started setting up on Thursday, around 1:30 pm, and everything was going wrong. I had no electricity, my fairy lights wouldn't work, the tables provided by the organizers were not great, etc. I left at around 7pm that evening, on the verge of a nervous breakdown with a half decorated booth.
We came back around 9am the next morning and finished setting up. I was fairly happy with the way everything turned out - the photos that I took aren't really great, but I got loads of nice comments. The show opened at noon on Friday, and when I hadn't sold anything after a few hours, I was a bit worried. But, it suddenly got very busy and I ended up having a pretty good day.

Saturday and Sunday were also good. I had a great time chatting with all the customers, and the other vendors I met were lovely too. Most had been at this market for a few years, and were more than happy to help and watch out for a rookie like me! While the feed back from customers was great, I have to say that getting nice comments from other craftspeople was especially wonderful. A special thanks for this goes out to Alex and Trudy (yes, another Trudi) who were kind supporters and patrons all weekend.And, I must also thank my husband Martin, who has been so patient and helpful through this whole process. I'm having this week off from my studio to regenerate, and we're going to have the weekend in a little cottage by the sea. But right now, my week off starts with the latest episode of Dexter - it's getting really good!

Christmas Craft Market Eve

Well, it's finally here, Christmas Craft Market Eve. I'm heading off in an hour or so to set up my booth, and then the market starts tomorrow. My car is sitting in the drive, packed to the gills with stuff, and I'm just finishing off a couple of things before I pick up my husband at work and we go and unload and put together my little Japanese winter wonderland. If by some strange coincidence anyone reading this happens to be in Halifax this weekend, come on by booth number 162 at Dalplex Christmas Craft Market and say "hello." I'll be there, all day, every day.

Best go and finish up. Thanks to everyone for your encouraging words over the last couple of months. Pictured above is a butterfly collage I made recently, and like it says, I must FLY.

Cherry Blossoms

Preparing for this show reminds me of being back at school - it seemed as though I couldn't really get down to work and get inspired until the pressure was really on. I was the type of student who was frantically writing essays the night before they were due, or "cramming" for exams. This last weekend, which was a 4 day weekend (!), has now come to an end, and I feel as though I accomplished so much. I got quite a few books finished, and also did some fun things. One fun thing was this cherry blossom tree. I love making these things - they're so simple, yet (I think) so lovely. I got the idea from Martha Stewart Weddings. Here's a close-up -
The materials are all really simple, and mostly came from my local dollar store, and from my backyard. I'm still planning to make these a bit more wintry, with some glitter and fake snow. I wish that I could make fake cherry blossom bushes all day, but right now, it's back to work on some books.

Related Feeds

Speaking of lovely blogs, I am probably the last one to discover this, but if you are subscribed to a particular blog on Bloglines, and click on the tab that says "Related Feeds", names of many other blogs that you may be interested in will come up. So, I'm subscribed to about a gajillion blogs now. Ok, I really have to get to work...

Long Weekend

I am having an extra long weekend - today is my work "flex day" and tomorrow is Rememberance day here in Canada, so we get Monday off in lieu. It's a good thing, because I really need it. I've still got so much to do for my show, and time is running out. After I finish this post, I plan to lock myself in the studio for the weekend, and emerge feeling well prepared and ready, well - I guess I could settle for a little less frantic.

I'm hoping to do some fun things too though. Perhaps see a movie, get some dinner, get outside while the weather is still kind of bearable. I've been wondering if I should take a blog break, both reading and posting, to get everything done, but I've decided that it's times like these that I really need to blog. Reading all your lovely comments keeps me going, and reading all your wonderful blogs keeps me inspired. So, thanks for your comments and for sharing all your beautiful work. Now, time for some work of my own...

Anticipation

As my show gets closer and closer, I get more nervous, but also more excited. I saw an ad for it in the paper yesterday, and it really hit home - in a couple of weeks time, I will be at the biggest show I have ever done with about 10,000 attendees. I have no idea what to expect. I do know though, that I want to make my little booth really speak to people. I want it to be like my having my own little shop for three days. I want it to be furnished. That's where this big green rack comes in. I went and took an order over to Henhouse today. While the owner was serving a customer, I had a look around. That shop is a very dangerous place for me, I love everything in there, and always want to buy something. Anyhow, this rack caught my eye, I've been looking for something to get my books up off the table, and make them really stand out. I am not sure if I will hang the books from the pegs on strings, or rig up some sort of ledge system. It was originally a herb drying rack from Eastern Europe, but I think that it has a slightly Japanese feel, in keeping with the rest of my "props." It's becoming a Japanese winter wonderland/rustic furniture kind of theme. I just hope that I can pull it off!

Scenes from the Studio

Another Saturday spent making books. Crocs are the best footware for this, especially since I haven't cleaned the floor in my studio for ages and there are all sorts of things that can get stuck on your feet in there. Got my tunes next to me too - the soundtrack for the day was Keren Ann, Sufjan Stevens and Bill Bryson co-hosting DNTO on CBC.
Making the covers for a photo album. This is the sticky bit of the operation.
Got distracted and put together my sign for the craft show. Have to get something better than duct tape to secure my branch on there, or that little bird's in big trouble! Every so often, I look up at my lanterns for a happy feeling.
And then it's back to working away (notice giant mess behind me!) into the night...

Adorn

I picked up a new - well, new to me anyhow - magazine called "Adorn" last night. The tag line on the cover is "the crafty girl's guide to embellishing life." The magazine features articles on paper craft, jewellery, sewing, knitting and felting, and seems to have a connection to the blogging community. It's also full of lovely images, like the one on the right. I should love this magazine, but for some reason, I don't. Maybe because it's tiny in size, but still cost $6 CDN, maybe it's because it's so chock full of ads that I feel that all the projects in the magazine are selling a particular product, maybe because I feel that the projects are a bit too simple? I don't know, I can't really put my finger on it. I'm not saying that I hate the magazine, I just don't like it as much as I thought I would. I'll have another flick through - it's got a bit on pom poms and I've always wanted to try my hand at those - but I don't think it will become a regular addition to the piles of magazines teetering precariously in all the corners of my house. I'll stick with the old faves, like Martha, and the new faves, like marie claire idees.