Long overdue update.

WOW ! It's been awhile since I shared any adventures on my blog.
Life just sort of takes over !

I could try & catch up with stories from the past 3 years... but, let's just live in the present moment.

Right now I'm experiencing something that I haven't had in, well I can't really remember having THIS much time between shows ever!!!
It is both a blessing and a curse. I really enjoy having that green stuff flowing into my bank account.

This space has given me time to reflect & plan what I might want to evolve into.( More on that in future posts )

In a few weeks (April14th) I'll be heading to Sunny Georgia to participate in a first year show(usually not a wise choice, wait till at least the second year to see what the potential will be)
This show is being put on by two great people & promoters,in their case people promoters would be a good title.
Francis Schube & Cindi Flynn, They run  the Norcross GA  & Dunwoody GA show, both fun profitable easy to do shows. Very artist friendly.
This new show they are doing id in Aceworth GA, about 30 miles North of Atlanta. Thanks goodness for not having to drive through Atlanta!!
My husband Art is planning on joining me so that makes the deal even sweeter.
I'm working on a few special pieces for this first time event. Maybe a special size & priced turbans.

This show is followed closely by another favorite show... Cherokee Triangle in Louisville, KY Just across the state line but seemingly worlds away. Louisville is a gem of a place to me. Great architecture, food & people. Especially people that enjoy art.

 Well that is a brief  update.. I promise, more to follow son!

Cold to my bones!

                                    

I'm ALMOST thawed out from this past weekend.

Standing around outside in 40 degree weather waiting for promised art fair shoppers to materialize is not my idea of a good time or good business practice.



Yes, welcome to my world!

Just last weekend I had conversation with a fellow artist about participating in smaller art shows. Usually the booth fees are less (under $200.00 rather than above $400.00) Buyers are buyers, give me a few good buyers rather than herds of browsers any day. Spending more to make more isn't necessarily the case anymore.



This being said... I applied to a small show in Bloomington IL. A show I thought could be a fill in between bigger shows on my calender. Only a short drive & not many expenses ( ended up with a free place to stay).



Since it rained for the duration of my 3 hour drive I wasn't too surprised that even though the rain had stopped I was setting up in the mud.

I noticed there weren't too many other booths being set up. Come to find out this was a VERY small show, only 25 artists.



Show hours 9-4 both days, OK somewhat civilized, although the 9AM on Sunday was a mystery, especially since the show was on the campus of a church based university.



Long story short... We had at the most 100 shoppers on Sat. & by Sunday five fewer artists & probably 10 shoppers!



The promoter, who shall remain nameless, promised never to do this venue again. She does put on several successful shows in the Chicago area. This was homecoming weekend at this University & I guess it seemed like a good idea.

She closed the show at 1:30 on Sunday after buying work from several of us freezing artists & brought in pizza for all.



All in all I didn't do too badly(did I really say that? My how my standards have fallen!!) considering the # of shoppers.

I'd have to say most artists sold nothing.



Deciding to try & absorb some warmth through the phone I called my friend Sally doing the St. Armand's show in Sarasota FL.

She said it was so HOT that no one was out except the artists.

Didn't really feel the warmth , just added a third pair of socks to my feet!!



OH well!

Next... Destin Fl

The South Rises again

Atlanta '09



Atlanta ( Norcross to be exact!) on a beautiful fall day. Fun art, shoppers , restaurants , a picturesque town, a very helpful herd of volunteers & a train! Yes a VERY loud train, 50 yards from the show, passing by multiple times a day . So other than having to plug my ears every hour to avoid permanent damage , it was a great weekend!



This more than made up for my last show in Atlanta about 5 years ago.



That trip involved, in the correct order: a blown trailer tire while driving 70 miles per hour in the mountains in the drizzling rain in a falling rock zone. Broken axle,on the trailer which is why the tire blew. Driving 2 miles an hour on the shoulder (don't forget the falling rock zone!) for 5 miles to an exit. Of course if that weren't bad enough Mother Nature was calling & my bladder was desperate to heed the call. Once there the trailer had to be unhitched so I could drive to the next exit to rent a Haul trailer, then drive back, unload & reload all my stuff. Make sure the broken trailer was safe , drive 5 hours to Atlanta, set up & find my hotel.

Needless to say I headed straight to the bar after that. Story doesn't end there (of course not), Had a crummy show, too hot, too many people hydrating themselves with Mike's hard lemonade instead of water. As I drove across the main street of the show after my speedy pack up (OK I did start a bit early), My Haul (which is only supposed to be unhitched by their personnel, (oops!) came unhitched & slammed into the back of my truck!! Needless to say I was very glad to have that trip behind me!



Thank the Art Fair Gods, this trip was much easier on the nerves!

My neighbors this past weekend were both women whose work I really enjoyed.

Bailey Jack is a painter. Her style is folk art scenes mostly involving dogs & cats framed with old salvaged flooring wood. Baileyjack.net

My neighbor to the left, Emily Allison, was also a folk artist using tin cans & wood as her medium. http://www.emilyallisonstudios.com/ ( her web site doesn't do her work justice!)



One big surprise was running into my friend Tricia. Triciarobinson.com . We were neighbors at the Fairhope AL show last year. Unfortunately she wasn't close enough for us to chat a much this time.

Hoping that we both do Fairhope again. I really enjoy her company.



So all in all Atlanta has risen again... in MY mind!!

Next up... Bloomington IL

Why start now??

Good question!
I've thought about writing a blog for about 3 years.
Yesterday I saw Julie/Julia the movie, It made blogging seem possible.

Although I like to cook, (have no desire to cook my way through any cookbook),
I do travel quite a bit... not necessarily to exciting places, but, I do meet many people on my journeys.
My hope is to share some of my art fair experiences... people & places
And while I'm not sure I see my thoughts becoming a movie, it might just be fun to have a record of my life in the art fair world.

A bit of backround.
I think I remember the first time I consciously realized that making things thrilled me was in the 4Th or 5Th grade. My teacher, a nun whose name I wish I could remember, made me stay after school to clean the art supply closet.
Now weather this was a punishment or not I can't recall. As I sat on a mound of paper in a 6x8 ft. room staring at mounds of crayolas, bottles of glue, paint & more colors of construction paper than I had ever seen before, something in side me stirred! Sounds rather dramatic!
I don't remember actually moving or cleaning anything in that room. Just the site of all those colors made me pause & ponder....

Jump years ahead past many twists & turns in my life, some classes in ceramics, yes just the little ole lady painting thing & a stint at the local university taking clay hand building classes.
I took a few detours along my way, nursing, restaurant management & various small home businesses, and oh yes, having children! I finally came back around to art, specifically clay!

My work & business evolved into what it is today...Toniware.
SO to answer the question Why now... why not???