Springtime in Paradise....

 The weather seems to be changing rather rapidly here in Paradise...although it is, of course, still a rainforest, with the requisite almost constant drip drip drip of early Spring...
We are now 'applying' as we have to do every year, for our little spot of  retail at the weekly Farmer's Market that  I attend, sometimes haphazardly (because of the weather)...
This year, have to decide if I want a permanent spot by paying seasonally, or if I want to drop-in...
Last year I had a permanent spot, but it proved to be a bit of a disaster...the powers that be decided to emphasize another section of the Market, naturally, the one I wasn't in, and it cost us much of our foot traffic...
It's a very difficult thing to find the spot that works for you in a large Market, but very frustrating to  be inadvertently sidelined, while paying the same amount as everyone else..this cost me last year, so trying to prevent a recurrence this time around by requesting a different location, although, technically, we are not allowed to do that.  *Sigh* not sure what will  happen, but stay tuned...
I have switched from  selling only hats and scarves to fewer of those, while still emphasizing baby hats, and added jewelry, which I'll sell alongside my crocheted items until Fall is upon us...
Surprisingly, at least to me,  still sell quite a few hats even in the  hot hot heat of summer..I assume, to tourists, who know that when they need them, they won't be here...
I also have applied, as usual,  for a  weekly Wednesday Market in a nearby town famous for its murals,  busloads of tourists there...
You  need to figure out where  (and when) your most successful  Market is - what works for you.
Social media (can you say "Etsy") has never worked for me...I leave a few things there, mostly to have a 'website' to refer to when applying at one-time fairs and holiday craft markets, etc. but really, I rarely sell anything there..I tried ArtFire (don't ask) and Zibbet, too, which I like for the wonderful people who run it, but never had a single sale from there, so just letting my 'shop' lapse, and I'll stick with a much-reduced 'studio' on Etsy for practicality's sake...
Many of the other Bloggers I follow seem to do quite well online, don't know their secret, but for me, it's strictly face-to-face that works...so, since I actually enjoy retail (I hear the screams out there!) guess I will continue until I am too decrepit to put up a canopy or haul boxes, etc, in and out of my truck....

The Seasonal Craft Fairs Wind Down...

My holiday craft fair season is winding down, and it hasn't been what I could have hoped...
The flu followed my back problems so missed one three day fair, which, according to fellow crafters, was awful..no one wanted to pay admission, so few came, even fewer bought..
I broke my own rule on this one, which is never to spend  more than $100 per day for market fees, and never  vend at a fair that charges admission...
So, glad I missed it..an expensive lesson to learn, but then, the ones worth  learning so often are...
My next one is this Saturday at a smaller community venue...looking forward to it, a new one for me...at the Mill Bay Community Hall..
Mill Bay is a tiny but lovely town on the East Coast of Vancouver island, near where I live, and its coastline is where I go and walk when the weather is  much nicer than it has been lately...a gorgeous place..
If you are local and reading this, stop by, it's a free one...
In the mean time, here are two of my latest hats...

Is it just me, or do I seem to  have a real tendency this season to go for the purple side of life? These are both  done with multiple yarns  and both are of the purple/lavender/pink/fuchsia family...the adult hat is a medium and the child's hat sized for a 2 or 3 year old...
And what are you all up to?

...Then April cried, and stepped aside...

New items for Spring and Summer..since hats aren't exactly in wild demand at this time of year, and scarves go begging for a new home, thought I'd share with you some of the pieces I'll be featuring in  my little 'shop' outdoors at my weekly Farmer's Market..jewelry is  my seasonal choice, since once people stop covering up for the harsher cold weather, they realize that-egad!-my neck, ears and arms are bare...horrors!
Thank goodness for that....

How About a Reverse Grinch This Season?

I spent this moning dropping off a few hats to a Women's Centre, for them to sell in their retail store as a fundraiser, in Duncan, the neighboring town where I sell at the Farmer's Market on Saturdays..
This was, for all intents and purposes, my Christmas presents to be given this year..
I thought I'd share my own Christmas experience for 2010 with my readers, since all of the blogs I read are full of wonderful decorations in the home, ideas about Christmas crafts, recipes, stories about kids, grandkids and families, etc. etc...In other words, the usual..
But I'm different..a single, childless early retiree sneaking up on what is referred to as her senior years, but frankly, psychologically kicking and scratching all the way, like a wet cat in a wringer, and I have to say that it gets to be a bit daunting for those of us who have no families or even friends in their new home towns to share the holiday season with..
Do not think that I am complaining, or giving anyone a hard time for their traditional Christmas feasting and partying..I'm not..the choices I had to make to live here were conscious ones, and I don't regret moving here for a second, but remember the name of my blog...
All I'm trying to say is, for those of you who have insanely busy lives, crowded with people that you love or at least like (or are related to, and have to pretend a fondness you don't feel) that there are many of us out here in the world who don't, by choice or chance, have the same experience of the holidays..
If you could find it in your heart to cut these folks some slack (and I'm betting you all know at least one) it would be a lovely gesture to include them, that is, if they aren't like me and generally turn down such offers, but I'm a tough old nut at Christmas..I know that many people would love the chance to feel part of something..it would add little or no cost to your celebration, but would be a wonderful present to someone who might otherwise be sitting in front of the tube with a beer and a microwave burrito..think about it.
And to all of you who read this blog, whether it's a turkey, ham, tamales or whatever your own 'feast' and party entails (or not) I would like to wish you all the very best of the Season, and an even better New Year to come!

Taking a Moment to Consider..

As the craft fair season winds down, and I'm back outside for my Farmer's Market for 2 more Saturdays, I have noticed an odd thing..I keep selling camouflage patterned hats and scarves..
I try to consider that this is nothing new, and like animal prints, camo has been trendy for a few years..but never so much with women as now..
I've illustrated this posting with my 'tools', and two types of camo yarn, as well as some finished pieces, available from my Artfire shop or at my Farmer's Market on Saturdays, but I would like to spare at least a thought for what camo represents..in reality.
This season, as so many before it, my country and other countries are at war; now I really hate everything about war, but with just as much passion, I support the women and men who go and serve in our Forces..
This year, let's make it stylish to think about our troops, and hope against hope that we bring them all back, alive and well..
Now that would be a Christmas present worth having...

The Wages of Guilt..more Random Rants

I admit that I'm feeling more than a bit guilty about neglecting my blogging duties; normally, I have to control myself and not go on and on here, but lately, the frustration with life's little zingers has temporarily got me down..
This weekend there is a wind and rain warning, so no Farmer's Market for me..
I do love selling outside, but the weather can play havoc with your capnopy, your stuff, and your temper..not to mention the fact that almost no one comes out for the Market in bad weather. It's doubly frustrating because my hats are seasonal, to say the least, and I only have a four month window to make any sort of sales...and the weather takes away a good half of those...and summer? Well, some jewelry, but really, can't take the heat and it gets very, very hot here, believe it or not (and doesn't snow much, usually - there, all your illusions about icy Canada shattered once and for all!)
So I'm left with a 'free' weekend, and that means I need to straighten stuff out around here, maybe take some stuff to the flea market..yes, my name is Wendi, and I'm a stuffaholic..
Every few months, I get brutal and wander around my place, picking out the stuff I know I can, and should, live without, and take it to whatever swap meet or flea market is going on..luckily we have a few, though usually I'm a customer, not a seller..
I usually try to go to sell there alone, because it keeps me from wandering around, finding things to buy...what is that about, some bizarre need to acquire stuff? True, I use most of it either for my home or to improve my selling space at the market, but...it really does get out of hand, sometimes..sound familiar?
I'd like to at least wish for fair weather and wonderful finds for my readers, since I cannot hope for either...♥