My First Craft Fair

My first craft fair was almost a nightmare – literally! Let’s relive it…
In 2017, I worked part-time as an office manager at a church, and I had been there for about three years. “Office Manager” meant I was the receptionist, bookkeeper, executive assistant- you name it, I did it or at least I tried my best. I was the only paid employee, other than the pastor and I thought the title “Office Manager” was a bit pretentious, but that’s what they hired me for. I made many friends through that job, and I loved it. One of the friends I made through my work in the parish was a crafter and a very accomplished, experienced crafter at that. She was the organizer of a new, small craft fair, which would be held in the parish hall, and she encouraged me to pay the small fee and set up a booth. I enthusiastically agreed and got busy putting together a few wreaths and a couple of decorated lanterns. I need to backtrack a little. I lied. This wasn’t my very first craft fair. Several years (like maybe 20 years) prior to this, I made and sold soap, linen sprays, and bath bombs. I named my company “Sweet Dreams” because I was going through a terrible time trying to sleep at night and I was experimenting with essential oils and how they could help me sleep. The items I produced were not at all sophisticated or unique. Kind of humdrum, really. I did not do well, and I just did not put my heart and soul into it. My husband, Frank, was supportive of my little side hustle at the time but when I look back, he probably should have given me a little tough love and told me I was not producing anything exciting or creative or different than a million other soap makers out there. I did a couple of craft fairs and just quit abruptly because, like I said, my heart wasn’t really into it. I just wanted to see dollar signs and when that didn’t work out, I lost interest.

Trouble Ahead

So, back to my first “real” craft fair – the one that really launched my brand and passion. I was nervous, excited – all the things. I loved working with silk flowers, and I was studying and exploring all I could do with them. I loved all crafts, and I was kind of all over the place, not able to pick just one. I had convinced myself that I could do it and started planning how my booth would look. My friend was encouraging, and I called her my “enabler”. Mind you, it had been many years since I had even attended a fair and did not realize how stylish and clever vendors had become with their displays. I found out that most of the serious vendors set up their booths like they were small and intimate boutiques. What I had was a plain table with a white tablecloth. I was able to use the church’s wedding reception lattice backdrop to hang my wreaths, and I was all set! I kept the name “Sweet Dreams” because it held meaning for me.
While I was doing all this planning, something terrible was about to happen. About three weeks before the event, I ended up in the hospital with a blood clot in my heart. I had felt bad for a long time, but by the time I went to the doctor, I was weak, I had trouble breathing, and everything felt “other worldly” somehow. Well, I ended up being transferred by ambulance to a heart hospital in Wichita, staying in the hospital for five nights. I came out with a boatload of medicine and dangerously low blood pressure. But at least the clot dissipated without surgery or anything. I was tired ALL THE TIME, overwhelmingly tired ALL THE TIME. I went back to work right away and continued planning for the craft fair. Because I’m stubborn like that. I did not plan on getting sick and I didn’t want to be sick. I wanted to make and sell wreaths!

Onward and Upward!

The day of the fair, my husband went with me, thank goodness. I fell asleep in his pickup truck on the way there and was not with it enough to even care how my booth looked! Frank set up my booth, got me organized and propped me up in a chair with a blanket. I interacted with potential customers the best I could. It snowed (in April) and there wasn’t a huge crowd in attendance. During a lull in the small crowd at lunchtime, I fell asleep sitting straight up in the chair! Regardless of, or despite all these challenges, I was hooked! I did sell quite a few items, thanks to my husband! But even that made me nervous. I felt like an imposter – something I still struggle with today. Would the integrity of that wreath hold up, at least until it made it home? What if my customer looked at the back of the wreath and she could see how messy it was? Would she take the item home and decide she hated it after all? Did everyone know I was an imposter? Thankfully, I somewhat realized my health limitations and I did not schedule another craft fair until July. I thought that would give me plenty of time to heal, right? Well, it took quite a bit longer than that for my heart to heal, but it did heal eventually. Thank goodness for dedicated husbands and precious granddaughters! Frank and Charlee were Godsends. I also worked hard to improve my creative techniques and designs. I increased my inventory and got ready to move onward and upward! 

Why I Do What I Do

I would like to say my little business was an instant success after such a dubious beginning, but I would be lying. It took quite a while for me to figure out who my intended customers are. It can still be confusing. I still feel like an imposter sometimes, and I always pray that my work is worthy of the customers’ trust in me. It’s hard work, but very rewarding. Why do I do it? It’s hard to explain, but I’ll try. I love being creative. I love the shiny, glitzy, beautiful products I get to work with. I love meeting lots of interesting people. But most importantly, I love the look on a customer’s face when they love the wreath or arrangement as much as I do. It’s a wonderful feeling!