Live Event!

What a time to try our first outdoor live event! The Rummage at the Ranch is on a farm less than half an hour south of us, so the location seemed perfect to get our feet wet with a craft fair. Daughter dressed up as Mary Poppins and put together a lovely selection of jewelry built around our book themes and genres.

The event was on a Friday and Saturday in Mid-June, usually a decent weather time. Little did we know the experience would be a mixed blessing.

We had a 10×10 space under a “festival tent” awning the owner provided. The cost was far less than we have paid at homeschool conventions, but rain had been soaking the area for a couple of weeks before and most vendors had water or squishy ground in or near their booths, especially when a surprise storm hit the area overnight into the second day.

Overall God really gave us a great experience in spite of the heat. We made twice what the rental cost, and many more experienced vendors have said that was good. We ran out of several books, which was also good. Our new business cards with QR codes for the website were well-received. Even among craft fair attendees there are ebook lovers.

Thankfully we had a tarp to lay down and mostly our fixtures and tables were sturdy. One shelf broke and we had some books knocked down in the breezes. But thank the Lord for those breezes. The heat index was over 100 both days. We had a great spot with shade most of the time, openings on two sides for whatever air was moving, and overcast skies on Friday at least. We were able to get battery-powered fans and plenty of water and fruit to help keep cool.

We had the best possible outcome with quite a few challenges — the heat, other vendors impatient to pack up or unhappy with their sales. We believe God brought us there and gave us a blessed time. We are looking forward to more events over the summer.