Sorry it was a bad day. If it was nice out something else was happening!! A rodeo, all day tractor pull, graduation of some kind, twice a year swap-meet, biggest sale of the year at local store like Kohl's or Penny's, major weddings, parade, Boy or Girl Scouts all day thing at park,sat. is day lot of kids play ball at city parks & they sometimes have a picnic at noon, look through newspaper to see if any events listed, call your local Chamber of Commerce to see if they know of any major events last weekend. Of course if it was raining that could be cause or 1st really great spring day gets everyone to garden centers to buy plants, fertilize,clean out & pretty up things. 1 other thing, is sale place hard to get into, is there plenty of parking, was there clear signs pointing the way in to sale. I noticed what time you posted & it was 9:15 & any I've been in, you had to be set up & ready for business by 8 or 9 at latest. I figured this was 1st time these folks tried it. Oh, major convention in town that involved towns people? You had good assortment of product & the display in the container was perfect so if it was right day you would have done fine. Next time before you put any money out for a space, check & see if there is anything going on in community that weekend, newspapers "Coming events", library sometimes has bulletin board, college bulletin board, sometimes large church advertises on their sign in front of church "May 4 pancake breakfast 9am-1pm- community welcome!"(that could affect your sale if it was nearby) How did planners handle the lack of sales??? They should have given you back 1/2 of your table fee if they were nice folks. If it was free they should have brought in coffee & donuts at 2 pm & apologized unless it was just loaning out the room, then it would be fault of your group. Did planners have anything to say??? We had bad day at Park once & lady told us we could each set up a 2nd table to spread out our very crowded items & that helped us do little better than break even. Might see if your school has a Spring Fair & if you could be in it, some churches out here let others besides their members buy a table & usually these people are experienced & cheaper to get table than at large fair, but get there at least 30 min to 45 min early as you must be set up & ready to go when door opens or you lose sales, some folks take 1 swing through & buy & leave. Don't let all that good stuff just gather dust(hope it is well covered so won't require dusting).1 more thing- are all plates same price? Put a price card up that is cute with prices, can use flower stickers on it & use red lettering or black, something that shows up & cover it neatly with clear Contact plastic so you can reuse it(plastic wrap pulled tightly & taped to itself on back would work) Good Luck! Next time will be better!! Jan

Hey Guys! I went on Friday! The weather wasn't bad - a bit of a light shower early morning but wandering through the nearby Japanese Garden in a cool misty fog in the cloudy afternoon was definately worth it! I got to smell a wisteria in bloom too (smells like jasmine in case anyone is wondering). The water plant area was also beautiful and I cannot wait to see all of the roses they have in bloom when I go back. I also bought a bunch of stuff! They were selling clematis's for $5 a pot (4cm). Some of the one's I purchased were 'Multi Blue', 'Duchess of Edinborough', 'Petit Faucon', 'Blue Moon', 'Niobe' etc... I bought about seven of them in total. I also bought two bareroot 'Blue Angel' hosta's. 'Wedding Band' daylily from the daylily nursery (They gave me a gift CD of daylilies too), two variegated Solomon's Seal plants (bareroot), A Lewisia (finally...)! Two Euphorbia's (Chameleon & another one supposedly more hardy here in Montreal), An old own root rose 'John Davis' - enormous size! And someone was really kind to give me a Peony seedling from the Peony society. Things I wish I purchased but held back from in hopes of finding it elsewhere this summer: $15.00 for a small 4cm, pot of bloodroot, $25 dollars for a small 4cm pot of Martagon Lilies, $30 dollars for a pot of 'Himalayan Blue Poppies,' some Helleborus Niger selling for either $12 or $18 dollars, & countless fern plugs and lilac plugs selling for $5.oo dollars each for a 1" pot. Oh and then there was the Cimicifuga 'Pink Spike' for $22.00 and the Fern Leaf Peony ($35), - I really regret passing those two up right now.... Overall, I had a nice time, but I was expecting to visit a hundred nurseries/tents and it didn't appear as big as I thought it was going to be... Moreover, my wishlist (plants I had been looking for and hoped to find there) had not decreased at all from my visit. Oh well... I guess it's more about the search than the find! So what did all you guys get! 8^)

Just got back from the small show up in the hills. Did over $200 and had a great time! Still not much Christmas sold - maybe four snowmen... I sold about ten potato bags, two aprons, 12 weiner washers( you can see them in my webshot album under the pics to post) and I sold 7 (all I made... Redneck midriff tank tops... Never thought they would sell there, but they were a hit!!! I've included a link as to what they look like - I added lace around the neckline and they flew off the table. lol Here is a link that might be useful: redneck tank top

Chris, I haven't done a craft show in several years but always loved it. You are so right about meeting your customers and talking with them. I had a gift shop some time ago and I felt like a booth at a show was my "gift shop" too. I don't want to be pestered when shopping but I like for someone to at least acknowledge that I am there. If not then I can only assume they do not care if I buy or not. As a customer I also try to say something nice about their craft - even if it is the crappiest stuff I have seen you can still find something nice to say. I have a friend who did shows for about 10 years and he painted lighthouses on birdhouses. The painting wasn't the best in the world but he made $10,000 a show easily. At first I didn't really believe it but I was at a show and helped him one year and it is so true. He always greeted the customer and was always handy in case they had a question. He also treated his booth like a store with the proper bags (not the ones you save from groceries) but a bag that was strong enough to hold the merchandise. He either had a flyer to go in the bag or the bags had a tag with his information on it for future sales. He only did a few shows a year - all juried- and his sales exceeded six figures a year. But to do this you have to love what you do and love your customers. I love a really nice displayed booth but sometimes I can't see the craft because of all the extra display stuff. What I hate about a booth is one that is hard to get in and out of - I end up passing that booth. If it is not welcoming and easily accessible, I am off to another booth. Chris, I apologize but I can't remember what you do. Please share a few photos with us if you don't mind. With the attitude you have I know you will do well at your show.