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I was going through my iPhoto and saw some pictures that I took of a craft show I did in October. I had signed up to do it in September and then luckily sewed a bunch at that time because October through December was no-fun-for-me. First Trimester sickies.
I had sort of given up on craft fairs because I don't make much money and since all of my stuff has to be handmade it's not like I come up with a design and then pay someone to screen print it en mass on t-shirts or something. But this was a real craft fair at an Art Gallery in a nicer part of the Bay Area, not just a local craft show at the local elementary school or something, so I decided to give it one last shot.
I didn't actually make very much money (I'm not sure anyone did due to low traffic), but it was one of the neatest things to participate in. The other crafters were so amazing, true artists. I felt like such a geek with my head bands, hair clips and nursing covers. You could definitely tell what stage of life I was in by all of my mom/little girl items.
Some of my favorites were:
Ohmay - the most beautiful and creative knit scarves/ascots/accessories. Just lovely.
I would love one of these bird stakes in my yard.
This guy's insect art is a-maz-ing and beautiful and I must have some butterflies.
Oh yeah, it's funny too. Beetles walking dogs and riding bicycles, silly things.
and my favorite were these recycled paper earrings. Oh how I had to exercise some self control!
I was next to a girl who does craft fairs as a full-time job. She said at the big ones she makes $3000-$4000. The entry fee is around $300+. Do you know how many hair clips I'd have to make JUST to make up my fee?? Not worth it in my book. Most of her stuff is screen-printed (her designs), so it's not hard for her to mass produce. She was really nice and helpful.
It was fun doing the craft show (and hey - now I've got a bunch of items made to sell and gifts to give away), but mostly because of the kid free day away and being surrounded by gifted people. I'm not sure I'll be a seller at another craft show, but I'd love to go and buy next time!
If you ever thought you'd be a scrap-booker, then you know the guilt of falling behind. Way behind! Like you've had another kid since you started your first kids baby book behind. Well, that was me. And it turns out. . . I hate scrap booking. It's just not for me. I'd rather see pictures and know the story then have fancy doo-dads and cutesy paper. Plus, I just don't have a talent for it.
SO, this is where blurb comes in. There are plenty of website where you can get pictures made into a book, but the great thing about blurb is that they offer software that slurps your blog into a book for you. After that you have to go through and choose your book size (this is set in stone once you choose, so choose wisely), add more pictures (like when you have a zillion pictures and you know you just can put them ALL on your blog), enlarge font, etc. 
The software's not perfect, it's totally SLOW and is crazy time consuming, but it's worth it in the end. I have been blogging since 2007 and thought I'd start there. So yes, I'm still behind printing my books, but it's ok. The pictures and stories are still there. All I have to do is add more pictures and viola. Family history.
My book has 200 pages in it and cost $63. It is the Standard Landscape (I wanted to be able to fit it in a bookshelf. The bigger ones are awesome, but I'm not sure where I'd store the books later). I think the Landscape version is good because it makes the book more coffee-table-like (less text book feeling) and I think you can fit more pictures on the pages. 
Maybe it seems expensive, but when you figure the book has 360 pictures in it and at IF I got them printed as 4 x 6 prints (and the majority of the prints are 5x7 and 8x10) for $.11 each that's approx. $40 plus having to buy albums to put all of the pictures in. And no story. And then writing dates on the back of 360 pictures. I hate doing that!
It was totally worth it and I hope to get some birthday money so I can print 2008. Oh yeah - if you have (grand)parents or family who want a copy, you can always make it available online for them to go to the website and buy.
And. . . I'm still here. Is anyone else??? Sorry. . . Merry Christmas? Happy Holidays? Happy New Year?
I HAVE in fact been sewing and need to post soon, but I've also been working on having my family blog printed into a book and that, my friends, has taken forever. But! I just got it in the mail and it was worth every minute of computer torture. I'll take pictures and show it to you because you should totally make one. 
Anyway, the above quilt is NOT mine. In fact, I took a picture of it over a year ago and have been meaning to post about it because I think it's really neat. It was made by a woman in her 80's who's husband passed away and happened to own hundreds of ties. That's right. All of those strips of fabric came from her husbands ties! You can really see the 70's in there! What a fun concept. Not that I have EVER made a quilt, but I certainly appreciate the art/craft of it.
What a fun treasure this quilt will be. Seeing all of the different fabrics and remembering grandpa wearing them. I would like to do something similar, but with cotton shirts of my grandma's maybe?? Or maybe my daughter's baby/toddler clothes if I can stand cutting them at all?
I love seeing all of my fabric in one place, and I love that the white balances out the chaos. 
