The New Art Festival was an incredible amount of work but at the end of it (surprisingly) also a TON of fun.  It was my first outdoor fine art show and a great learning experience plus it’s been a long time since i laughed so much in one weekend while technically being at work.I had a large selection of goddess beads – which have seemingly become my signature bead –  they are definitely the beads i sell the most.  Three years ago (when i first picked up a torch) if anyone had told me that i would be making beads of little naked ladies and loving every moment of it i would have looked at them as if they were insane!Next in line would be the Pandora beads… I still can’t stand making lots  and lots of little beads like these but then when i have a group of (what i now refer to as) the Pandora Ladies excitedly searching through the beads for their favourite colour combination to add to their bacelets, it all seems completely worth it.  Plus,  i DO love exchanging them on my own bracelet every couple weeks.My booth location was right by the creek under huge, old trees which made for lovely surroundings.  My friend Dex drove us and took care of the loading and unloading, my sister was there to help me man the booth and the Teenager even cracked a smile or two despite being dragged out of bed before 7am both Saturday and Sunday to help out.My neighbour Sean helped me with the booth setup and design again – i thought he did a fantastic job!  He somehow manages to pull all kinds of random things from around my house, arrange them together and Voila!  As usual, i had a small corner where i keep a binder and a chest with components i use to make my beads.  There were still lots of blank expressions when i explained the process but at least things have progressed from the looks of complete disbelief i received a couple years ago when i would say that i make glass beads…I also finally had some business cards made and I’m quite happy with this new design.  Up to this point, i’d been using laser cards the Teenager designed for me for last November’s show – not the best level of professionalism… 

There was a great turnout for the duration of the show – even on Sunday when it was cold and raining.  Attendees were patient despite the crowds, seemed appreciative of the labour involved in the work on display and most importantly willing to pull out their wallets to show their support.

As it turns out my booth location was incorrect on the site map but most people were still able to find us.

I have to say, the other artists displayed truly fantastic, professional work.  I could have spent all my sales at the other booths at the show.   I did get myself a couple treats at the end of the show  that i’m completely thrilled with.

At the end of this though i realized i had completely underestimated just how much work participating in a professional fine art show would be.  Now that i look back on it – even though i made a profit,  i can acknowledge i was woefully underprepared.  I’ll be taking the lessons learned though and using them to prepare for my next show.  I’m still mulling things through in my head and will create another post shortly with details. 

More pics HERE.