My First Ever Show!

I’ve been making candles for quite some time, and until now selling them to friends, family, coworkers, etc.  I decided to go to the next level and will be renting retail space in a antiques/craft mall set to open in town in the next few months.  I’m really looking forward to that, and I’m excited about the many changes our small town has seen recently.  We’re experiencing a revitalization of our previously rundown and abandoned downtown area.  New shops and restaurants are opening, more people are shopping in town rather than going to other areas, and the “square” itself  is more inviting and presents a much better image.  I think it’s only going to improve over the coming months.  Today marked the “Grand Opening” of Historic Downtown Princeton, which included an art walk, live music, food, a wine tasting, and more.  I set up a table at the art walk and had my first ever craft show!  It was pretty fun, and a real learning experience for me.  The tables were free, so the money I made was gravy, but I was really more interested in getting my name out there and meeting people.  I’d say it was successful in that regard.  I didn’t make a whole lot, but I did learn a lot!

Here are some pictures of my table!

The banner was a quick craft project, it’s sheets of styrofoam cut into triangles, covered with scrapbooking paper and letters I printed off the internet.  I had planned to clothespin them to fishing line tied across the front of the canopy.  That didn’t work out quite as I’d hoped because the styrofoam is thicker than the clothespins would open!  Ooops.   We made it work, but I’ll have to come up with something different for next time.  I actually think I’m going to do the same thing again, except I’ll use foam core instead of styrofoam.  A little pricier, but they’ll also last longer.

Table layout

The tablecloths were some cheap, plastic ones I got from the local party supply store.  They have the CUTEST stuff in there!  We used boxes under them to produce different levels to add a little interest to the table layout.  I had the baskets already, I have tons of them in my garage, so we filled them with crinkle paper to set the soaps out in.  Each one has a different scent, too, so it kept them kind of organized as well as being visually appealing.  The tables are two 4-foot folding tables set next to each other.  One is mine and the other I borrowed.

A closer look!

So, that’s my story!  What do you think of my table?  Any suggestions for improvements?  I know it’s rather short on product.  I had more stuff with me, I just didn’t lay all of it out.  Do you like how it looks?  Is the layout appealing?  Leave me a comment!

Thanks for stopping by.  And let’s all say a prayer tomorrow for those who lost their lives on 9/11, their loved ones and survivors, first responders and our troops around the world.