This Weekend was a Nightmare!!

Hi-ya everyone!
Well... This weekend was the Powell Festival. Wow. .. and not in a good way. First of all, the set-up time was ridiculous! They wanted us to be there to set up at least 5 HOURS before we were to open or else you had to park a mile away and carry your stuff from your car. Then no one was there to tell you where your assigned spot was. After 30 min of walking around the muddy grounds with my stuff, Someone told me that it was with an older gentleman on a green Gator. By the time I got to him he was on a rampage because vendors drove there cars to there tents after 11:oo AM anyway. Did I mention it was 100 degrees outside?
When I arrived to my assigned location I found that we were at least 4 car lengths away from any foot traffic. So to get to any of the art vendors you had to trek through a good inch of mud and wet grass. And as all artist and crafters know, location is very important. Yet the Target, City of Powell and Nationwide booths handing out who-knows-what ,were covered with people because they were placed along the paved walkway! We were set up for failure when we signed up for this thing!

Luckily, for our convenience Powell offered to rent us tents but did not mention that were not waterproof. So when the thunderstorms hit the tents were not only dripping but were collecting water in each corner. Unfortunately, when I attempted to dump the water from my tent, the water ended up spilling all over the front of my shirt and pants. Albeit, good for a laugh... PRobably not the most professional look :) At least not in this business.

I came back the next day with higher hopes and a positive attitude. Things went alright in the beginnng of the day but it really hurt us that were were placed in an area that no one could get too or would want to with a stroller, cane, or wheelchair. Sales were bad all around. Then the big storm hit. Luckily we packed up when we saw the dark clouds coming. Our tent was not in the ground very well and it was not weighted so we nearly lost it a few times.

I really am not the kind of person to complain about much, but if there are any fellow crafters and fine artist thinking of applying for the Powell Festival next year, reconsider it. A lot of vendors lost out on making some money this weekend and I would hate for a fellow vendor to go through what I went through.

I did,however, meet some really nice people and saw some really cute stuff.

Here are some pictures of the new items that will be available at the North Market next Sunday.