Hello Huntsville

Yesterday saw my debut onto the local art scene. As a vendor at the Sidewalk Art Stroll I got to perfect my display, chat with customers, listen to great live music, and soak up the local weather--humid but not rainy!



My table display changed at the last minute when at 8pm on Wednesday I realized that my beloved cloth napkins--the perfect shade of stripe-y green--are packed somewhere and no amount of pulling my hair out was going to make them appear. So we hit up Michaels and emerged (just as they closed, eek) with 3 baskets, two rolls of ribbon, and two card stands. I think it pulled together quite nicely.



The trick to that extra height in the back? Good old crafting ingenuity and 4 boxes of pasta.



Not only did sales go well (always a plus) but I received many nice compliments and got to chat with some great people. One shopper told me about an awesome event in Florence, AL called the Alabama Renaissance Fair. She thought my dragonlings would do magnificently and after checking out the site, vendor or not--I wanna go! But, it's the same weekend as the National SWE Conference. It's tempting to blow off the conference (especially since the few people I knew who were going have changed their minds) and go to the fair instead. But at the same time, I was discussing with my boss the possibility of presenting at the 2008 conference. Plus, I always have a good time and learn a lot. And this being my first year as a professional, all sorts of new things are open to me. Ah! I'm so conflicted!

On a happier note, my little promo packs were a hit! A few people even commented on how impressed they were with them. I ran out only a bit before the end of the show, so 46 didn't turn out to be such a bad number after all. (Also, in a another bit of crafting ingenuity, that bowl they are in? That's part of our mini salad spinner.)



I'd also like to take a moment to say Hooray! for my ever-helpful and patient hubby. He picked up petty cash, ran errands, brought drinks and dinner, helped me set up, gave change, and generally was smiling and helpful for the entire event. I'm sure this wasn't the most terribly exciting event of his life, since I was up and talking to customers most of the time but he was wonderful! There is absolutely no way I could have done this without him. And lucky him it happens again in September! : )