A League of Our Own...

Our largest show of the year, The League of NH Craftsmen's Fair, is over. We had a slow start on Saturday but we weren't worried, last year started the same way. Sunday was a good day for sales and I was able to catch up with friends and family who came to the show. I even got to wander through the tents and see what other craftsmen were offering this year. It was an awesome day overall. Jeff and I felt rejuvenated after the weeks of prep and the long drive north.

We woke up Monday refreshed and ready to sell pots. The weather was once again perfect. The opening horn blew at 10:00 am and the people trickled in. Yes, you read that right... it was a trickle. Sales were dismal. Each morning we get a newsletter called "tent poles". Included in the newsletter are stats from the day before comparing them to the prior year. Attendance was down by about 400 on Monday alone.

Tuesday was the same. 

Actually, it was worse.

It's water under the bridge now. We have to let it go and move on. We have until October to decide wether or not we will come back next year. If we do return, there will be some changes made in regards to what we will bring for inventory. 

I hope that things turn around for the craftsmen that are there for the full nine days.

Here's a snap shot of our four days at the fair...

We kept a chair just outside the tent for breaks. This fairgoer commandeered my chair for over an hour one afternoon! She was totally oblivious to the fact that the directors chairs belonged to the craftspeople. My very kind booth neighbor had an extra chair for me to use.

The marionette guy was back this year. He puts on a great show set to Tom Waits music. His marionettes and stage are amazing.

From the deck at Spruce Lodge, there is a great over view of the entire fair. I took this photo facing the upper lodge. To the left are more tents. It takes a good two days to really take in this fair.

The League has a new director and operations manager this year. There were many changes and most of them very welcome. Tension from past years was gone. One welcome change is that booth holders with trailers now have a designated lot. It was closer to our tent and made going back and forth to the car and trailer much easier. Sometimes it's the little things that keep the people happy.

Inside tent five.

You know it's slow when there is no line to ladies room in Spruce Lodge!

The fair is behind us and now it's time for family. Wolfeboro, NH for two days, then on to New Haven CT. I can't wait to see my girl again!

Pigs Can Save Your Life...

... or at least the day.
Jeff and I had time at Lazy Daze to think of all kinds of things that our spectacular pigs can do for you. Cook dinner, clean the house, CPR, mouth to mouth resuscitation, and all the while saving you money. Yeah, we were getting a little punchy by the end of the day. When all was said and done, the pigs saved the show.

There was a good crowd at Lazy Daze. They just weren't spending much money. The people who were selling in the $10 to $15 range, where doing okay. We didn't sell a single mug or wine cooler, both of which are typically popular.

Jeff tweaked our outdoor show booth to include a display for vessel sinks. He did get a few good leads on special orders. At the end of the day, thanks to the pigs, we covered our expenses and made a little money. We are seriously considering going back next year, with a booth of pigs.
Piggy banks, piggy jars, piggy salt and pepper shakers. We will just go hog wild.

League of NH Craftsmen's Fair 2014 - Day One

Jeff and I had a great trip north. We actually left on time on Wednesday, drove a little over 8 hours that first day and arrived at Mt. Sunapee Resort in Newbury, NH a little after 2:30 pm on Thursday. The booth walls, pedestals, and lights, were up in about four hours. I think it was a record for us! Friday was spent securing shelves and unpacking pots.

We are really pleased with the booth this year. The freshly painted walls and additional lighting make a big difference. The fair limits wattage per booth. We are slowly switching to LED lights which gives us more lights at lower wattage. They are expensive up front, but worth it in the long run.
The fair attendance seemed up from the first day last year. I will know for sure tomorrow when they give us the daily stats. I am quite certain our sales were up. Lots of people spend two days at the show (there are 350 craftspeople) and in the past, Sunday has been better for us than Saturday.
and did I mention the weather? In the 70's and super comfortable... tonight I had to put on a hoodie.

blogger brain freeze

I have had nothing to blog about these days. I guess I haven't wanted to bore you with the mundane. The CCM Pottery Festival in Charlotte was good... easy set up, short day (10am-4pm), and fabulous customers who love to buy pottery. When you figure in the time and dollars we put into this show we make more money per hour than any other show we do. This show also attracts a smart crowd that understands art and handmade. We sold lots of sponge holders and coasters (as usual) and things in the $50 to $95 range were selling as well.

The sponge holders are about gone and the good thing is, I can throw those forms without putting too much stress on my shoulder. They are a good exercise in getting back to work!

I think I have the warping issue pretty much solved. They need to be thrown fairly hefty. A few still warp slightly, but not enough to be called a second or get the hammer.

I am having some issues with peeling slip on these flared rim bowls. The slip peeled off the rim on a few of these. I have two thoughts on the issue. The first is that I should keep the slip off of the edge of the rim and second, I am at the bottom of my slip bucket and I think it's beyond it's shelf life. I have heard other potters say that slip doesn't keep. The last batch I made was large so it's been around a few months. I also had a couple of vases with some slip that popped off the sides. It's time to mix a new batch and I think I will make half as much. If anyone else has had this experience, I would be happy to hear your thoughts.

CCM Spring Pottery Festival

We are packing up the trailer today and heading to Charlotte tomorrow for the Spring Pottery Festival. The fall show was very successful for us and we are going into this show thinking positively. I was excited that my oval baker was used in some of the advertising.

Jeff is slowly recovering from jet lag, and he hopefully will be completely back on track by 6 am tomorrow. The weather report says scattered thundershowers in the afternoon, they better mean LATE afternoon, like after 5 pm! Or maybe they are just wrong, it wouldn't be the first time.

recovering...

Jeff and I have survived another outdoor show. I wanted to post some photos sooner, but I woke up with a stomach bug on Monday and spent the day napping on the sofa. Tuesday, I took things slow.

We had great weather for Festival in the Park, bright sunny days and not too warm. 

 Our booth location was shady and we backed up to the trees, which meant we could store boxes and stock behind us without anyone seeing the clutter. Our booth walls are set up so we have space to exit from the rear and reach shelving that we have for extra stock. The booth to our left was a no show, so it was nice to have the extra space when setting up and breaking down.

When we were in NH in August, our host Lou, gave us four empty oxygen cylinders (he is a respiratory therapist). Jeff filled them with sand and screwed an eye bolt into the top. A great alternative to the cement blocks we were using. They blend in with the tent and tuck in out of the way.

Freedom Park in Charlotte is beautiful. The booths are set up along a walkway that goes around the small lake.

 The crowds were thick everyday. Sometimes it was hard to even walk around. Jeff forewarned me that the last time he did this show people were not buying on Friday night. He was right... we had one sale.

 Sales were slow on Saturday and I was starting to get really irritated with the festival goers questions. I lost count of how many people asked, "Did you make this stuff?", or the best one... "What do you call this?". If we got a dollar for every "nice work" or ""nice booth" comment we would have needed suitcase to take our money home in.

 As you can see in the photo above, our neighbor was a "make a candle" guy, and next to him was face painting. Unfortunately, on our side of the lake they mixed these types of vendors in with the craftsmen. The candle guy's booth was busy all weekend with kids waiting in line to make a candle in a jar or wine glass. We also had the kettle corn guy a few booths down. Sometimes the line snaked all the way down to us. Jeff has a friend in NH who is a glass artist and a few years ago he bought a kettle corn set up and started doing fairs. He said when he opens up for the day everyone says "Yay, the kettle corn guy is here!". In all his years selling his glass art, no one ever said "Yay, the glass guy is here!".
The food vendors make way more money than the artists.

Thankfully, Sunday redeemed itself. Many of the people who visited on Saturday, returned and bought something. We actually came home with money in our pocket. The next show we do will be an easier, one day show and we will be using a simple booth set up with covered tables and my abstracta unit. I sometimes question whether a fancy booth makes a difference in sales or not. I would like to know other artists thoughts on this.

A well deserved treat after a tiring weekend... good sake, Asian dumplings and spring rolls

... and now it's time to get back to work.