Renegade Craft Fair!

Reunited and it felt so good! It seems like eons ago since Sue and I worked together at our beloved Finnegan's Toys and Gifts. But we immediately got back into our tag-team shopgirl groove a few weekends ago when we shared a booth at Renegade Craft Fair in San Francisco.

We both sold like crazy and had the best time doing it.

It didn't hurt that this was Sue's first West Coast show, and the California crafterati was clamoring for her beauteous creations.

We used to stand like this behind a counter for eight hours a day drinking coffee and shooting the breeze! Man, it was great.

Our cozy corner of Fort Mason.

These two days were truly the highlight of my year; it's hard when your dearest friends are scattered around the globe, but it makes it that much more magical when you get to see them again.

Hey! I disappeared there for a while, having a strange, wonderful, painful, eventful birthday weekend. I swam in the ocean, saw Carrie Fisher put on a Princess Leia wig, ate fig & prosciutto stuffed quails, laughed a lot, cried a lot, received many greetings from friends I desperately miss, got my hair did and my teefs cleaned, and now I'm back to face the music, whatever that may be. Mostly, crafty catch-up!

I'm going down to Los Altos tonight to pick up this sweet old school desk for my display at Renegade. I don't like being behind a table; I feel hidden and also like I'm reaching and fumbling awkwardly all the time. So I thought it would be nice to be a little more accessible to customers, while still having flat space for credit cards, wrapping, etc. I've been scouring Craigslist for a good, affordable desk, and amazingly, this gem was still available. Isn't it cute?!

As usual, I'm scrambly and panicky trying to get Pollyannacowgirl stuff made in time, but that's the way I've always rolled, so why would it be any different now that I'm the big 3-0?

I'm going to do this!

I found this little tutorial on Cheekystitch;I'm totally going to do it. If I have my facts straight, Peter went trunk-hunting for me today and found a good one for $15. We'll see what awaits me when I get home!

P.S. This project may require a trip to Paper Source, which is a reason to get started right away! God, I love that place.

Highlights from Maker Faire!

I had a great time at Maker Faire this year, although it was all spent behind my booth, hawking my wares at Bazaar Bizarre! I'd never done a show of this size so I was pretty nervous to begin with; but everything ran smoothly. I made a ton of sales, met all kinds of amazing people, and learned a lot about what I'll do differently next time, which will be in a few short months at Renegade SF. Now for some pictures! I got a super-cute necktie cuff from fellow CCA grad and Oakland lady CC Star, who I hope to chill with in the near future. Mine has wee blue whales on it, but I also love this stegosaurs combo.

I traded one of my birdcage necklaces for a gorgeous ceramic cup with an otter on it made by the delighful and talented Hue Yang. Trading is one of the best things about doing shows!

I got a new Chickenpants from Absolutely Small, who is now taking up residence in my work cubicle.

Katy Kristin and I were suprised to meet the supplier of our German plastic mushrooms; I also met the designer of a polka-dot fabric used in one of my purses.

I met a new amiga, Polly Danger from LA. Aside from sharing a name, we have a lot in common and I was so happy to finally meet her! I'll be using this awesome coupon holder to keep my receipts organized.

The whole Conway family was enamored with Archicraft's product line. My mom bought a crocheted cowl for herself, the below bandana for my brother, a plastic doily, and I purchased a handful of charms and rings made from cast-off plastic architecture models.

Here's little old me surrounded by my stuffs. You can play a fun game called "Find the Giant Cup of Beer" in this picture. What a weekend!

A few summery updates in the life of Pollyanna!

Firstly, I was accepted as a vendor at this summer's Renegade Craft Fair in San Francisco! I attended last year (on my birthday) and it was by far the biggest and awesomest show I've seen. I got to pick out my birthday present from Peter there, and I found the perfect thing: this copper bunny ring from Ach Ach Liebling.

I'll have a 10 x 10 space, which seems huge to me! This will involve building walls, racks, and all kinds of display doohickeys. I've never had such a large space to use; if anyone has advice on how to make good use of it, I'd love to hear it. Can you get retail wire racks on the cheap? How the heck do you make those walls to hang stuff on? I'm defintely looking to spread out and unclutter, as I think my past tables have been packed way too tightly with products.

Doing these larger fairs is really taking it to the next level for me, and it's exciting/scary. I don't have nearly enough inventory right now, so I have to get crafting so I can sell, sell, sell!

Secondly, I was asked back to participate in the Mentor Artists Playwright Project this year! This was by far the highlight of last year for me, and I'm so excited to do it again.

I declare this summer to be awesome!