Spring is Coming Eventually

We have been quite lax in posting updates on our blog and on our online store news feed too. Finding time to get creative these days has become quite a challenge. I have been working on my other businesses as well as trying to find time to do more research on a couple of books I am hoping to publish this year. Sitting here at my booth at the Chiefland Farmers Flea Market this weekend I keep looking longingly at my beading supplies and think I can create one or two smaller things and still get my other work done. NOT!!

I did create two beaded Flash Drive chains yesterday for one of my book clients. Those darn things are so small these days they easily get lost in among bigger stuff in your purse, heck, in your pockets too. So, I created a couple for her to use with the flash drives I upload her backup files onto. We will see how that works out.

There are some really great craft vendor opportunities coming up in the next couple of months before it gets too darn hot here in Florida to even move much less set up a canvas tent and display all your work to sell, sit there waiting on customers for however long the event lasts and then breaking it all down again. Don’t get me wrong there are still lots of crafters who like this type of thing to sell their work, meet new people and hand out their business cards. Some even get into demonstrating their crafts. More power to ya! Until I get my “Shop on Wheels” I will not be participating in any more of these types of events.

Craft Vending Events in North Florida

The Wild Azalea Festival located in downtown White Springs, Florida is being held this year on March 21, 2020. The coordinator has sent me this year’s application that you can download – CLICK HERE – to download, print and fill out. Get your application into the coordinator along with your fee as soon as possible. Call before mailing if you cannot deliver in person to make sure she still has openings. The last time we participated with this festival it was located outside the Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center Memorial State Park Entrance at the Visitor Centers parking area. There will be charity run events, music and food as well as lots of different craft vendors too.

I got a call last week from the Catfish Festival Coordinator hoping we would like to return this year to Branford. It is located in a pocket park next to the Suwannee in downtown Branford and has music, games for the kids, and other things as well as a charity run and possibly a fishing tournament this year. The run and fishing stuff was canceled last year because the Suwannee was just too darn high. You need to message the coordinator within the next week https://www.facebook.com/suwanneerivercatfishfestival/ as they have a time limit on the applications and the festival is April, 11, 2020. They still have the application available for download online at https://www.suwanneerivercatfishfestival.com/register and you mail in your application along with your payment.

The Florida Folk Festival is a three-day event held every year inside the Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center Memorial State Park (Friday to Sunday) on Memorial Day weekend. The applications are opened in November the prior year and those who have participated in prior years get preferential status. There may still be time to participate if you go online, fill out the application, save it to your hard drive and then send it via email to the coordinator. If you are new and have to include a CD with pictures of your products and booth set up it would be better to print out the application and send it certified mail to the coordinator. https://www.floridastateparks.org/FloridaFolkFestival

If you DO NOT RECEIVE EMAIL CONFIRMATION that you have been chosen to participate then you will not have a spot to go to. Other than the fact there are is lots of music, food and other great vendors this event is a marathon and not a sprint. You are allowed to come in a day early and set up and, if you are lucky, get a camping site inside their campground for the weekend. They also ask for a percentage of gross sales as the fee for participating and not just a flat fee beforehand.

Until next time.