Success!

Sorry it took me so long to post this, but I've been working 9-10 hour days at the toystore the past few weeks and by the time I get home I don't have any energy left! It's great that the store is busy, though. And what makes it even better is that my boytoy Dennis is working there with me now while he's on the hunt for a more permanent possition elsewhere and we have lots of fun together.

Anywho, my first craft fair was a complete success in my eyes; Monica made a ton of deliciously-scented flax-filled eye pillows out of Japanese fabrics and flannel, and I brought my etsy wares along with some new earrings, owls, and scarves, and we ended up making about 100 dollars each! Not quite the sold-out fantasy I had in mind, but good enough for me since a little extra cash goes a long way this time of year. But even better than the money was the experience I got - I met tons of amazing artists and even got to trade for some of their wares. I love trading with people so much! I have to give a shout-out to my new crafty buddy and etsy seller JaneBox, whose booth was my absolute favorite at the craft fair and I'm so sad I didn't snap a picture of it, but go check out her etsy store! She was kind enough to trade me a couple of her a-freakin-dorable quail egg candles in a sweet little moss-filled nest for one of my owl pincushions! I love them sooo much!

Also, we were sharing the table with an amazing artist who had traveled across Europe and kept a journal of watercolor paintings. They were stunning, and my favorites were some still lifes she did of some figs when she was laid up in Greece with a sprained ankle. I almost bought them straight away, but I figured I'd wait till the end of the night. She sold 2 of the 3 almost immediately and I knew the last one was meant to be mine. It was freezing cold in the open and airy studio the fair was in, and I was making scarves to sell out of chunky yarn while we sat there. She didn't have a coat so I let her wear one and at the end of the night I asked if she would trade me for the fig painting and she said yes! She chose a citron yellow sarf and a camera case and I got the most lovely painting of hers. I'm going to have my roommate frame it and hang it in the kitchen!

I can't wait to do some of the summer craft fairs next year! Monica has a lot of connections and friends in the oakland art scene so hopefully she'll get more word about some fun little events we can get into.

I'm going to post a little how-to later on for a cute christmas garland and I'll show off all the cute decorations we put up. Happy holidays!