Staging a Festival Booth - York SummerFest

Y'all probably saw all my talk about getting ready for my first ever festival last week. I had to prepare lots of new products, business materials, and just figure out how to put a booth together! I knew it was just going to be Reed and I setting up so I needed some guidance. I went to Pinterest and didn't find a single thing to help with staging a booth for a craft show or festival! So here it is Pinterest, your first staging post :) 

The first things to tackle are your business ends. 
I am no pro, but I did make sure I had these things: 

-Business cards (I took 300 but needed more so take LOTS!)

-Shop banner (I thought about making my own but then got this gorgeous 3ftx6ft banner from BuildASign.com and it was awesome! With 4 grommet corners it was easy to hang, beautiful colors, and great durability. Whatever you choose to do for your banner make sure it has your basic information listed, and is LEGIBLE!) 

-Receipt book (you can grab small ones from the Dollar Store)

-Inventory List (write down EVERYTHING you are taking and the price)

-Order forms (for those customers that didn't find the perfect thing right then)
-Bags/boxes for sold items

-Change! (I took $75 in change, mostly small bills. But because of the pricing of my items I never even touched the change and left the festival with all $75 un touched in my cash box).
-Cash box! (something to securely hold all of your money, we used a zipper pouch that could be tucked in my husbands belt). 

Like I said I'm no pro. But I did learn a good bit, but probably forgot a good bit too. But if you remember these things you will at least make it through the day :)

Now for the actual staging! 
This part was so fun to do, I LOVE staging everything, my home, party decorations, and finally my "shop"! Here is a quick step by step on how I chose what went where in my 10ft x 10ft tent.
1. I decided on a theme and chose the products that went a long with it. (I chose a whimsical living room theme.)
2. I did a pre run of the set up a couple of days before hand so I could see what I needed to prop pieces up with or hardware for hanging.
3. I used lots of furniture so that people could visualize where these items could go in their homes.
4. make sure to add LAYERS. Layers of texture, color, and products are more interesting to the eye and will draw people in and keep them longer!
5. Keep similar products together. I had all of my fall/winter items staged in the back center of my tent and all of the football themed goodies right off of that. This will create a flow for people to move around your tent.
6.  If you can add a 3D element to the front of your tent that will catch peoples attention as they walk past. I had countless people stop and look at the tree filled with signs and from there people ventured in to the tent.
7. Have a station with all your business needs. We dedicated one small corner at the front to hang my banner, display business cards, and even had cold water for patrons. This allowed people to grab my information with out having to totally stop.

I know there is so much more I could share but I'm gonna stop there. This first experience as a festival vendor was awesome! I hope to do it again soon and I will do a better write up with the more I learn.

Also, if you see anything you are interested in please visit my ETSY shop!

Weekly Review of the Boondocks

This week has been a roller coster! Let me tell ya being a stay at home wife is emotional and some times I get a little bit cray cray. This week was one of those cray cray times...

First I started off Monday with the totally rad party that Lori from A Bright And Beautiful Life helps me host each week. It is still going strong so PLEASSSEE go check it out, here :)
On Monday I also got a chance to talk with lots of my favorite people about my life. It is always so good to chat with friends about the future and our dreams for it.

Tuesday was a bit crazy, I mean it was good because I got to kick off the giveaway for February with Rachel from Like A Saturday! And man if I could enter I totally would, I need some girly fun pampering stuff :) But personally I was strugglin with my projects! I tried to dye my drop cloth to make some curtains annnnddd it took me about 3 hours. Yes 3 hours just to figure out how to freaking fill up our washer with hot water! I thought I broke the machine and then Reed walks in to tell me that our washer was never hooked up to hot water.... uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. But! I got the drapes done and hung with a cool tin cornice board!

Wednesday, hump day. Boy was it a hump to get over for me! I was a bit emotional and needed to just vent. Luckily I have y'all sweet friends to vent to and a God who teaches me great things daily. Learning to not get frustrated with His plan when it isn't what I was expecting and how to not let my pride run my life. Yep all that was going through my head on Wednesday. Talk about heavy!!
But when I have that much going on in my head it often means I get super productive, sooooo I did loads of crafting!

Thursday, busy busy, AGAIN! Whats the deal, I mean I thought when you where a stay at home anything that you got to stay at home. Apparently not. I ran out to the store to get all kinds of goodies for some orders and a baby shower this weekend! Love hosting parties, and love finishing orders. So good! Check out all the work I've been getting done from crafting a table runner to my new ETSY Jewelry endeavor!

Friday is post office and cleaning day! Not super fun but feels so good to get it done! I love visiting the post office, I've gotten to know the sweet people there by name and they always ask about each item I'm shipping.  They even help drum  up business every once in a while. Sweeeetttt people :) We will be heading to good ole Clemson when Reed gets off to spend a weekend visiting friends and celebrating the growth of their sweet family!

It's been a good week I think :)
How was yours??

 

Thankful. (Instagram recap)

Hey guys, it's officially been 2 weeks of logging what you are thankful for. I really love seeing how God is blessing each one of you.

I'm laying in bed right now unable to sleep.

Thinking about how blessed I am to have the man of my dreams snoring next to me. I am also able to read my bible and track my progress right on my phone! Right here in bed. We are such a blessed society. I can fit my bible, calendar, phone, computer, and watch all in my back pocket.

I've been reading in Matthew and thinking about the passage in chapter 6 about worry.

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? (Matthew 6:25 NIV)

I'm a constant worrier. I also want to know my next step and how it will work out. But recently God has been working on my heart and is allowing me to be thankful for the small things.

“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. (Matthew 6: 28 NIV)

God gives us no reason to worry. He created us and all that we see. Literally the world is in his hand.

" If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? (Matthew 6:30 NIV)

God holds me and you. He knows what our next step is and what the next year, month or day of our life looks like. He created us to be like Him!! After all that how can he not love us more than the flowers of the fields and the birds of the air?!

Just remember these things so that you can notice the small things that are blessing your life. Be thankful for all that God has done and continues to do for you.


I hope that more of you continue to join us but for right now check out what these lovely ladies posted this week!
@ssclaude, @mckennahersh, @ cwalpole, @ lucysatt, @aenglun, and @mika_murray
Thank y'all for sharing with us!!

This week I hope all of you can join us in thanking God and sharing with our little Kitchen Table family. I enjoy seeing the blessings in your life :)

Cow hide Camera Bag from Porteen Gear

Last week I shared with you some of my favorite etsy finds. 

Today, I thought it would be good to do a little review on one of the items that I recently purchased!!

Robyn at Porteen Gear makes stunning totes and camera bags. 

I order this one for my mom for her birthday back at the beginning of November.

Robyn has pre-made bags in her store but she also does custom designs where you can pick everything from the size to up to 4 different fabrics!  

My mom is very similar to me in the fact that we love to be different and we appreciate little funky things in life :) 

When I saw Robyns cow hide bags I just couldn't pass it up!

This particular bag is an acid washed cow hide. 

The hide is used for the front flap and the shoulder pad. 

Here is a close up of the cow hide. 

Its pretty awesome looking isn't it!

For the back of the bag Robyn uses a waxed canvas that looks extremely similar to leather. 

And for the inside I was able to choose the fabric color along with an accent fabric for the front pocket! 

The bag was designed to carry my moms Nikon D5000 with a 18-55mm lens and an extra 55-200 mm lens. They fit in perfectly and there is even enough room for a few other goodies. 

The bag is nicely padded so no need to worry about the camera or lens getting bumped around too much! There are also pockets on the front and back and interior that are great for little camera extras. 

Robyn has also included a beautiful little zipper bag that is great for extra SD cards! 

The only thing I would say about this entire thing that isn't totally positive is that it takes a few weeks to be made. I messed up by not ordering in time so it made it to my mom about 2 weeks after her birthday. 

However, Robyn totally warned me of this and even added a note in when she shipped it so my mom would know it was from us kids as a late birthday present :) 

My mom was extremely excited to have her new bag!! 

And i think the biggest plus is that its cool enough that when my dad needs to hold it for my mom he wont look too funny :) 

Robyn is super sweet and extremely easy to work with. I would highly recommend her shop and camera bags for any gift for the photographer in your life!! 

Don't forget to check out her shop, and if you order something be sure to tell her I sent you! 

Robyn at Porteen Gear on Etsy 

10 Week Review!!!

I might know what I'm doing!!

Finally, I feel like I have figured out where I am going with my artwork. 

I'm going to keep my writing short because I am adding my full artist statement to this post. 

I hope that this makes some sense, if not PLEASE ask me questions and leave comments below!

Really, the more I hear from you the more I can grow :) 

Artist Statement for the Stable Table:

Gracie Lathrop

Wednesday Oct, 31^st 2012 11:00 AM

Acorn Gallery

The Stable Table

For this body of work I’m using different types of furniture to draw attention to function, and integrity. I’ve been very meticulous with choosing materials and designs that each contribute to these ideas. In a few of my pieces I am taking away the integrity that the original has by duplicating it out of a material that has a shorter, less durable life span.  I am also looking at pieces that are newer and lacking in integrity and calling attention to that, specifically by making it useless right off the bat.  By playing up this integrity and lack there of, I wish to bring back the attention to detail and craftsmanship that has been seemingly lost in much of our manufactured goods today.

This pedestal table is an ideal piece of furniture for this subject. Pedestal tables have a long history dating back to the Colonial period and remaining popular today. The function of this table over the centuries has varied but is commonly used as a dining table, desk, bedside table, and more depending on the size and shape. The diversity of uses has allowed this design to grow in popularity among nearly all classes. Because of the diverse function and seemingly constant popularity this style table has a strong sense of reliability. It has become a design that is trusted and honorable. 

         However, with this piece I have taken that honor and truthfulness away from this iconic table. It still mimics the design and structure of a pedestal table but is missing the function, rendering it useless. The use of latex has allowed me to strip the table of its history and reliability. Latex is a material that can be cast in nearly any form imaginable. Once it has dried and taken on the form of the object it can then be pulled off and viewed on its own but still referencing its past. While latex is a great tool to use for reference, it degrades rather quickly. The material is something that is not consistent and is hardly reliable.

Drawing again on integrity, stability, and function I have chosen the color turquoise.  Pulling inspiration from Urs Fischers Untitled piano piece I was wanting to use a color that was neutral enough to allow the viewer to see the form while also adding to the play on the tables function. Turquoise is a high trending color amongst interior and fashion designers making it very prevalent in many of the new manufactured goods such as clothing and house wares. But despite the surface popularity turquoise has a deeper meaning in which it references stability and balance.

The many elements of this piece create a push and pull between integrity and hypocrisy of furniture. Playing with the classic designs and pieces that are universally recognizable juxtaposed with materials that do not stay true to the pieces intended function.  Similar to Bruce Naumans Untitled stairway I am interested in “subverting the function”. By undermining the materials and sabotaging the function this once reliable table has been instantly rendered useless making the viewer more aware of the functions and integrity of the mundane objects that surround us daily. 

My artist statement and table went under review Wednesday and it went swimmingly! 

Thankfully I recieved lots of positive feedback ranging from things that are successful and places I can improve. While I am SUPER excited about this table I know it isn't my final product. 

I plan on using this same idea and process later on once the weather warms up again. 

I will change a few details concerning the paint application and a few other things that will give the table a more finished, show worthy aesthetic. 

I hope that some of this art mumbo jumbo makes sense! 

And like I said earlier, PLEASE leave me responses, comments, criticism WHATEVER :)

PS. I haven't forgotten about missing Tuesdays post, you will see one later this weekend to make up for it :)