Tuesday, July 28, 2015

Fifth day of sales

Sorry for the silence of the last couple days -- I've been busy! I'm currently safe and sound back home, so let me catch you up on the last day of sales at the event.

We sold 17 pieces on Sunday -- a very respectable amount for the last day. I find it ironic it was the same amount as Saturday, but there you go.

This function draws people from all over the world, and I like how they encourage people to show where they're from.


Case in point.


Europe was heavily represented, as was Asia.


I met a fair smattering of folks from Australia and New Zealand.


All states were represented. Lots of east coasters.


A decent showing from the Inland Empire.


I'm fairly confident these pins did not represent actual residents of these remote areas, LOL.



On Sunday morning, one of the massive drawbridges spanning the river opened to allow a sailboat to go underneath. I never fail to be enthralled by this sight and glad I was able to watch. I find it to be an engineering marvel.



But it did make me wonder -- how much did it cost the sail boat owner to arrange to have the bridge raised? Is there a fee for disrupting traffic?



My booth assistant Mike and I both loved this woman's bag -- lines from famous books.


Interesting advertising -- people dressed as beer bottles.


I'm so used to seeing everyone sporting massive tattoos that it took me a few minutes to realize this woman's arms are NOT tattooed -- she's wearing a blouse with filmy printed sleeves.


I'm not normally a fan of small dogs, but there's was something adorable and endearing about this critter. He "smiled" everywhere he went. I must say, Portlanders love their dogs.



T-shirts du jour. I saw a man sporting this startling statement. I didn't ask what it meant. Sometimes I just don't want to know


Okay, Trekkies -- who said this?




Beats wearing the real thing.


Another irreverent T-shirt. The wearer said they're very common in Belize, where she got it.


Some amazing dredlocks.


I thought this little girl's hairstyle was lovely.


The last band of the day was this Reggae-folk band who simply called themselves "World's Finest," and let me tell you there were absolutely awesome. After so many days of hideous grunge rock, these musicians had everyone -- and I mean everyone -- dancing. People were bopping in the aisles. Tired vendors were tapping their feet.


The energy they created was something to see -- people were whirling and jumping and swinging and dancing.



But about 2/3 of the way through the set, we looked up and saw this.


Mike called up the weather on his smart phone and it showed we were target-zero for a big cell.


The timing was amazing. The band finished playing, gave their "thank you" speech, and then the rain poured down.


Within seconds everyone had fled underneath the bigtop tents.


It poured poured POURED. We pulled the shelving units under the tent but couldn't pack down because the boxes were in the car and the car was parked elsewhere.


So we stood and watched people making dashes for it.



Had a few gusts of wind too.


The water quickly backed up into our neighbor's booth four inches deep.


It backed into ours as well, but not as bad.


Without trying to sound a downer, somehow it seemed a fitting end to the weekend.


The event staff let vendors pull their vehicles in early, which was very nice of them.


Mike and I packed the largest box with tankards, and then I sent him on his way with grateful thanks for his help over the weekend. Unfortunately after he left, I realized there was no way I could fit everything into the vehicle with that large box taking up so much space (remember, I had shipped two large boxes of stock in advance; now I had to fit everything into the rental car for the trip home).


So, wearily, I emptied the car, repacked the stock into smaller boxes, and tried it again. This time everything fit, but I was wiped by the time the car was packed.


It certainly wasn't my most triumphant trip to Portland, but on the upside I met many lovely people, found a new friend in my booth assistant Mike, and got to stay with my dear friend Wendy, so it wasn't all rain and poor sales.

Nonetheless, I'm glad to be home.

12 comments:

  1. Your photo-essays take us right along with you. Doing sales like these are a ton of work... we do plant shows for our rare perennial plant nursery a few times a year. I think I forget how tiring they are in between events... because I keep signing up to do them again. Either that or going broke makes the work less unbearable...

    ReplyDelete
  2. Have you ever looked into the Coopers Lake Renaissance fair in western PA? It is a giant one, lasting three weeks! I can only imagine you would make a killing there!

    ReplyDelete
  3. What a shame that the sales for those amazing tankards was down. Perhaps the Portland market is saturated and you need to try a different craft fair. The Bellevue arts and crafts fair in Bellevue WA is driving distance and I think you would kill it there.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Richland, WA; We also just had our Art in the Park weekend which coincides with boat race weekend - hydroplane races. Art in the Park is usually a big draw and you wouldn't have as long a drive! Would love to have you stay wit us! :)

      Delete
  4. I wish it were possible to purchase a few of your mugs, fantastic Christmas presents they would make. And yes, Christmas is always on my mind throughout the year. I love those smiling faces, young and old, and I love being the reason behind a few of them. Does that sound a bit like selfish gratification, I sincerely hope not. I do love the color and movement of your mugs, and I think some members of my family would feel the same.

    ReplyDelete
  5. My son, Caleb and my grandson(Caleb's son)Ezekiel can to the fest, but did not pay to get in. He saw your both thru the fence and sent me a picture of it. That's the closest I could get to see it. LOL.......
    The rain cell looked big.
    Love from NC

    ReplyDelete
  6. I always love it when you take us along on one of your trips! You notice the kind of things I do and it feels like I was there. (without having to either get wet or help load the car!) ;)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Are your products available for sale on line or through this blog???

    ReplyDelete
  8. Who said, "Are you out of your Vulcan mind?" I believe that was the ship's doctor, Dr. McCoy, affectionately called "Bones" by Captain Kirk. --Fred in AZ

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are correct Fred. I was going to answer, but you already got it. It was Dr. McCoy.
      Paintedmoose

      Delete
  9. The beer bottle costumes are an homage to an old Rainier Beer commercial, where cowboys are guiding a "herd" of giant Rainier Beers to some distant land.

    They had some of the best commercials.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Portland may be at the top of God's hit list. The citizens of that town are big supporters of abortion and Planned Parenthood.

    ReplyDelete