Fair Photos

Right, after far too long I have finally plugged my camera into my computer and downloaded all of the photos I've been taking since May of my various stall at the fairs, rallies and the one convention I've been to.

First up, the display from Diceni May 2015.

My first ever fair and it went very well, with six books selling and a fair amount of interest in my stuff.  I thoroughly enjoyed the day, ever if my feet hurt like billie-o that evening.  The only down side was that the jigsaw of Dragonic Discussion was a display piece rather than a actual saleable piece as it had come without a box.  Note to producers of merchandise, if you advertise as being able to do jigsaws, people expect them to come in a box.

Next was the Eastern German Shepherd Rescue Fund Raiser.

This one was, to not put too finer point on it, an unmitigated disaster.  I paid £15 for a pitch that spent most of the day being rained on.  I only managed to sell four things all day, not nearly enough to pay back the pitch fee.  In short it was not fun.

However, it was made up for by the UK Games Expo in Birmingham.

Despite being horribly long days on my feet and an totally exhausting/terrifying trip there (they obviously don't make train stations with people who are manoeuvring very large/extremely heavy luggage in mind) it was a lot of fun and I did take home a fair sales report.  Granted 90% of the money made was expenses but it was still a good top up for my business' account.

I also learn a few thing while I was there, including a better lay out for my stall.

The Friday wasn't the best sale day and when it crept towards an hour and half into the sale time on Saturday I was beginning to panic as I still hadn't made a sale.  More out of frustration than with any clear idea in mind, I reshuffled my stock and the sales started coming in.  Note to self, customers apparently prefer columns instead of rows.

The most recent was the Swanton Morley Tractor and Bygone Rally.

The first day was made a lot more relaxed by a bigger table, lent by a friend, and our good friend Pat who decided to come along and stay with me as my boyfriend couldn't be there.  However, the tables umbrella did not help when the rain decided to pour out of the sky so we had a very interesting time packing up.

This was dealt with on the second day when a load of our family and friends clubbed together to buy us a gazebo.

It was immediately used as it decided to pour it down for half an hour.  After that the sun came out so it provided us with some much needed shade.  However, the rain clouds didn't seem to leave people's hearts and they continued to have short arms and deep pockets all day.  Struggling to make a sale on a sunny day is tiring and a little depressing.  You expect to struggle to make the sales on a rainy day but on a sunny day it just gets to you.

Oh one last thing, my self modified top hat.

I had to modify it on account of three people telling me that I looked like an undertaker.  Going on the principle of the tale I had to do something.

For those of you who don't know the principle of the tale is this:

The first time someone says, "You have a tale,"  you laugh it off.  The second time someone says, "You have a tale," you begin to wonder.  The third time someone says, "You have a tale," you look over your shoulder to double check.