Paradise's Pitfalls and Possibilities

  Since my last posting, much has happened...
I have switched to a drop-in situation at  the Saturday Duncan Market, since the powers that be decided to ignore my requests for a shady spot and stick me in the most brutally hot area of the Market...a message that has definitely been received...so  they lose all that seasonal money from me...oh well....
I will still be in a  seasonal spot at the  Chemainus Market on Wednesdays...
I am currently exploring other Markets in my area, as they are plentiful and seemingly welcoming to new vendors....
One of the issues with many Markets is controlling the numbers of certain items in the crafting category..such as jewelry.  There are lots of people who wish to  sell it, but  no Market wants too much of anything...I understand this, yet,  because I sell primarily  seasonal creations like hats and scarves, I need to have an alternative to round out my sales for Spring to late Summer..and that, for me, has always been jewelry.
Unfortunately for me,  many Market Boards won't let me sell it, so I am limited to the ones that will...
Tonight I am going to an adjudication for a Market in the Greater Victoria area..
(For those of you  not Canadian, Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia, a Province in Canada, and it's located on Vancouver  Island where I live.)
I am confident of acceptance, but a bit worried about their attitude regarding jewelry..everyone wants me to sell my  hats, but few want the jewelry sales that I depend on...Ironically, the busiest times for sales are the Summer months, when we get lots of tourist traffic...the time when  hats don't sell as well for obvious reasons, and jewelry sales  blossom...people are wearing less so have  a place for jewelry to show, like bare arms, necks, ears when the hair is pulled back, etc....*sigh*  It can be very frustrating, but that is a part of the Craft/Farmer's Market reality, so I have to adapt....
Wish me luck tonight...I have often read that setbacks (like the Duncan Market) should be viewed as opportunities for expansion and change in a positive way, so that is how I'm trying to approach this  year's adventures in crafting..now if only gas were  a whole bunch less expensive....

It's the Great Outdoors For Me...

It's gonna be that time of the year again..when we go back outside for our Saturday Farmers/Crafters Market..and I can't wait!
I'm getting to the point, usually about this time of year, when I can't bear to be inside all day, trying to sell  and trying to take a decent breath..it must be the antsiness of Spring, but, personally, if I lived in a place where I could sell outside all year, I would be happiest there.
Just spent way too much money buying some really outrageous yarn from a store going out of business here..it's one of my main locations for yarn purchasing so all of us  who are involved in fibre arts are really feeling nervous about where we will go in the future, since we live on an Island (albeit a big Island, not exactly the UK, but still, big) and we have few choices within an hour's drive...and with the cost of fuel, our options are shrinking..
Tried buying online but the shipping charges are prohibitive too..we may end up doing that again, this time hopefully  in co-operative mode,  buying in quantity to save a bit of cash on supplies..I really hate raising my prices!
It is one of the costs of living in Paradise, I guess...
Happy Making, everyone, and wish me luck for the coming season...♥