Last weekend I vended at the
Fremont Solstice Fair, along with other independent Seattle crafters representing
I Heart Rummage. (You can find them on Facebook
here.) We were in the garage underneath the Red Door Alehouse again, a fair tradition. I got set up in record time Saturday morning:
For once, I wore sensible shoes, considering I would be standing on cement for 12 hours:
I was all set up by 9:15, and the fair didn't start until 10am, so I took advantage of my efficiency and went for a bit of a walkabout before the work started. Not much was going, but I did get to see some of the art cars!
Being in the garage can be good, when it's a rainy day, as it was Saturday, but it's still rather dark and dreary. The spot I was in had a few low-hanging pipes, and a few hours in I got the bright idea to decorate a bit more.
One customer made the observation that he felt like he was in a bordello. You know what? I'll take it!
It being rainy and in the mid 50's (in JUNE, for cryin' out loud!), there weren't nearly as many people dressed up as usual. Here's the one and only picture I got of the few costumes that passed by my table on Saturday:
I survived the day, having gotten up at 6am and not getting home till 9:30pm. I also owe the universe and the parking gods many sacrifices, as I did not get a ticket, even though I parked in a 2-hour residential zone all day long! We didn't have to open up till 11am Sunday morning, so I got a good night's sleep, and then my wonderful husband, who was shorted a proper Father's Day celebration because I was working, drove me in so I wouldn't have to worry about parking again on the second day. On our way into town, we passed a string of art cars also on their way in to the fair for the day!
I haven't done a mainstream in-person show in at least two years now, having been mainly focusing on Steampunk events. It was a good weekend, and I got to interact with a lot of wonderful folks. My body reminded me quite emphatically on Monday, however, that it's 12 years older than when I first started this kind of thing, and that it would be happier if I didn't do too many weekends like this a year.
~
