Heavy on the "C", light on the "A"...

[merimask]

Yeah, that Lockport Art and Craft Show that I did over the weekend...kind of a bust.  Having never done it before, I saw the "A" word and thought "hmm!".  But really, it was mostly the "C" word there.   Lots and lots of stuff painted with cow spots, doll clothes, silk flowers, and wooden signs ("Welcome to our 'ool'...notice that there isn't any 'P' in it?")  *shrug*  Oh well.  It was a lovely weekend and I did ok I guess.  Besides...look!

I won a prize!

The people were nice and everyone who stopped to talk (there were a LOT of talkers...everyone was curious about my stuff) was very impressed with my work.  I've never talked to so many people & yet made so few sales.  Seriously.  Anyone who's interested enough to talk to me about my art usually buys...almost 100% of the time.  This weekend, people would talk and talk and talk...and walk.  *shrug again*  Probably due to the economics of the area.  It's a lovely little town, but it's largely been supported by industrial jobs that have mostly dried up and left.  

Still...very very pretty town.  Lovely couple of days.  See?

From beneath my tent, I can see the red maples and the adorable public library.


Looking down Main Street...which is really all there is to Lockport.  The architecture here is old and lovely.  It was a bustling city, while the Erie Canal was still in use.  That's why it's called Lockport...seven locks here that raise the canal to the same level as lake Erie.


There's my tent.  The gallon jugs of water taped to the legs keep me from blowing away!


LOVE for the gridwalls.  Don't the Venetian masks look merry?


The rest of the display.  It's small, but I'm finally organized.

So, that was my weekend.  Greg was there on Saturday for set-up and help, but he was SO bored that I took pity on him and brought Mom on Sunday instead.  She had a great time, I think (she loves craft shows).  Then Greg showed up (with Kiba, who loves EVERYONE and is too big and wild to walk about safely at a crowded street fair), Mom went home with the Keebinator and Greg & I broke everything down.  Phew!  Doing these shows is really exhausting.

I was so tired that I went to bed early and slept until about ten in the morning...which equals about eleven hours of sleep.  Eleven!  I NEVER get that much sleep.  I feel like running a marathon today, or something.

Comments

[paynesgrey.livejournal.com]

Congratulations on your first place! You deserve it. ^^

[shvetufae.livejournal.com]

I agree! *hug*

I'm glad you had a nice time, even if you didn't get to sell much.

[merimask.livejournal.com]

Thank ya! It was a beYOOtiful weekend, to be sure. I've never seen a sky so blue.

[merimask.livejournal.com]

Thanks hon. :-) Money is great, but validation is priceless.

[ramblinsuze.livejournal.com]

Congrats on first place!!!

[merimask.livejournal.com]

Thank you! To be honest I felt kinda funny...when I walked into the judging room with my piece, it was obvious I was at the wrong kind of show. Everyone else had painted birdhouses and quilts and wreaths. :-/

[smillaraaq.livejournal.com]

Congrats! That display looks fab...and oooh, is that Anubis I see alongside Sekhmet and Bastet? Pretty pretty!

(And heaven help me, I keep getting clothing ideas looking at those masks. The Venetians seem to be calling out for lush ballgowns, and the celestial dragon, ooooh, I can just see that with kimono...)

[merimask.livejournal.com]

Thank you! Yes, that's Anubis. He and Bast make a cute Odd Couple.

Ohh...That'd be so neat if you could come up with a whole ensemble! I always thought Bast would look AWESOME on someone in a black and gold sari...the kind that's all metallic & slinky.

[kls-eloise.livejournal.com]

That's why the Old Deerfield Craft Show is the only one that I hit regularly anymore. They've got people there with beautiful art that is worth spending my money on. Most craft shows have 37 people with dried flower arrangements, 15 with little painted figures that they bought pre-cut at the craft store, a couple with fabric painted sweatshirts, and three or four with unimpressive sculpy jewelry. Although as much as I love the Deerfield show, I have to wonder how many of the New Yorkers who are there buying "authentic hand-made New England quilts" at the show at the historic Massachusetts village have actually noticed that the quilt-maker is from Georgia. Complete with drawl. I think it's hilarious.

Your setup looks good. Have you gotten the digital picture frame yet? Those racks are going to be SO much nicer at Pennsic, because they'll let the breeze through. Speaking of which, I found the livejournal for the authentic potter who was across from you last year (where I spent so much money). He's moving to a new spot out by the old bath house. I'll be interested to see who your new neighbor ends up being.

[merimask.livejournal.com]

Hey! Get the information for me & maybe I'll come do that show sometime. :-) I could make money AND we could have one of our working/visiting weekends.

First Prize

[bonnietognetti.livejournal.com]

Creative, superbly executed, dynamic, beautiful work!!! But of course, you ... a creative, superbly executed, dynamic, beautiful person created it all. Sorry the sales part was a bust but on the bright side at least you got first prize. It would have been a total bust if first prize had gone to the cow.

Re: First Prize

[merimask.livejournal.com]

Hee! Thanks! :-) The cool thing is I made some connections, so there's almost always something good about every show, even if it seems like a waste of time. A lady who juries at the Keenan Center (very prestigious gallery in Clarence) practically begged me to bring my work in. They only accept 100 artisans a year & it's by live audition...so it's sort of a big deal to be told you're a shoe-in.

Holy crap, if I EVER do anything with cow spots all over it, please just shoot me.

Unless it's a cow mask, of course...

Re: First Prize

[bonnietognetti.livejournal.com]

Holy Cow! You know, I can visualize your display at your next show ... fantasy inspired dragons, nature themed butterflies, Venetian mask motifs, artistic takes on Asian and Egyptian cats ... and Bossie, the black and white cow.

Well, since you use LEATHER maybe you owe cows "one."

To inspire you, I have sent along the following website (which you may need to copy and paste). Take the time to see it. It's MOOOOving.
http://www.geocities.com/abecedarius/Cows.html

[indigos-angel.livejournal.com]

!!!YAY!!!!!!

That's a cool ribbon darling!!! Congratulations!!!!! XDDDD

~*~*~*~*~*~

Gads, Kiba... I'd really like to meet him some day. We're soul mates, I've decided this. *nods*

[merimask.livejournal.com]

Danke! :-) The ribbon IS sparkly, and I was very proud of it.

"Gads, Kiba... I'd really like to meet him some day. We're soul mates, I've decided this. *nods*"
lol...Oh man I don't know if I can handle TWO of you at the same time! Will you sit quietly for treats, at least? ;-)

[pzb.livejournal.com]

This weekend, people would talk and talk and talk...and walk.

That's exactly what happened to me at AKon a couple weeks ago. LOTS of people talking and liking my work, but just no one buying (well, they bought Thursday night and Friday and about two hours on Saturday.....then stopped.)

But at least it sounds like you had fun. And first prize makes up for a little bit of it. :D

[merimask.livejournal.com]

Yeah it was WEIRD and I swear that never happens. If I talk to someone for more than a few short explanatory sentences, it's almost for certain that they'll buy. I hope it's not a precursor of what'll happen at my BIG show this summer... *nervous* If the screwy gas prices have everyone spooked & not spending on non-essentials, I'll have to start working at K-Mart or something dreadful like that. *pout*

It WAS a nice weekend anyway though, and winning first prize was great. It came with a check too, which is even better. :-)

[rumdiculous.livejournal.com]

Aw, blue ribbon material. ;)

Want to know something funny? That town is still bigger than my home town.

I picture Kiba flying through a croud sending people flying every which away. XD

[merimask.livejournal.com]

Y'know, it was a toss-up whether to submit the Frost dragon or the Fire dragon for judging. If I'd won with the red mask instead, the ribbon sure would have shown up better. ;-)

Lockport's such a pretty little place, IMO. A lot of people here look down on it for being "small town" but I think it's charming. I LIKE small towns & I bet yours is adorable too. You sure do have lovely countryside all around it.

Kiba would mow down all in his path with doggy exuberance & love. It wouldn't be so bad excet he uses his paws a LOT & just will NOT stop jumping up. I tried training him, but all I did was teach him not to jump on ME.

[smillaraaq.livejournal.com]

Ha, such typical canine rules-lawyering! "OK, so MOM doesn't like the jumping...but I bet THIS NEW PERSON doesn't know the rules! Let's find out..."

[merimask.livejournal.com]

lol...I guess huskies are like teenagers in that respect. :-)

[rumdiculous.livejournal.com]

You get your typical teenagers here whining about how small a town this is and how they can't wait to get out of here. But I think most of the people enjoy living here. It's very quiet, which is what I like.

Hee hee, so he's a jumper and a pawer? Iris just nudges people with her head and Chloe has the unfortunate knack of scratching people to get their attention.