24 Hours of Dulcimer Music or My Weekend at the Craft Fair

I spent the past weekend at the the Carolina Craftsmen Spring Classic, 10 am to 8 pm on Friday, 10-6 on Saturday, and 11-5 on Sunday. A total of 24 hours. With dulcimer music playing in the background.

Don't get me wrong, I really like dulcimer music. But by Sunday night I was ready for a change...and I got it. The Gilmore Enterprises people, the nice folks that run the show, clearly demonstrated their experience and sense of humor. As soon as the doors closed to the public, the music changed to the William Tell Overture. That's the one from The Lone Ranger. It got us in the right mood to get our booths taken down and packed up quick.

Before the Big Packing Up, I took some photos of the booths of fellow crafters. I'm always amazed at the clever ways people display their creations. Here's a display from Troy and Kathi who make beautiful yard signs. They customize the sign for you at the show, with your name or house number. Don't you love their set up?

Another amazing artist I met is Joe Foley. He is a welder who gave up industrial work for making flowers. He tells customers that his flowers are easy to transplant and very cold hardy. His business is called Steel Blooming and the flowers are gorgeous. Here's a link to a television interview with Joe--WCHS interview.

Joe's display is quite basic, not even his own side walls, but clearly it's not necessary. Joe's flowers speak for themselves and I was blessed to be just across the aisle from him. I got to admire his work for three solid days. Aren't you jealous?

Stay tuned! More artists tomorrow!

Bede Sisters's Booth at the Craft Fair

Here's our booth at the Carolina Craftsmen Spring Classic:


Traffic was a bit slow today, but we talked to some very nice people, both customers and fellow vendors. We're hoping for a big day tomorrow; I'll keep you posted.

Carolina Craftsmen Spring Classic--This Weekend!

Just thought I'd stop in for a minute to let you know, I'm at the Carolina Craftsmen Spring Classic in Columbia, SC, this weekend. It's a HUGE craft show, held every year at the state fairgrounds in Columbia, in the shadow of Williams-Brice Stadium. This is the first time I've been a part of this show and I'm really excited. I'll post pictures and show stories when I get back.

Have a great weekend!

March

The month of March is bittersweet for me. I absolutely love spring. I like to walk around my yard every day to see what's peeking out of the soil. I like to see the fresh green leaves on the trees and hear the birds singing through open windows. The tulips and daffodils are the first to pop up, and I check them almost every day to see how they are doing. My daffodils are transplants from my parents' house.

However, daffodils hold another memory for me. My parents planted daffodils at my childhood home years ago and they took over the side fence area and bloom in masses this time of year. Just before my mother died, my father cut a bouquet of daffodils for her, since she was too weak to go out and see them. She died just as they were at their peak.

Only four years later, my father again cut a bouquet of daffodils to take to my aunt's cabin. They, along with another friend, were spending the day in the country, welcoming spring. Shortly after that day, my father too, passed away.

As I watch the daffodils start to bloom in my own flower bed, I hope that they will take over the side of my yard. They seem to have a history of that.

We survived the storm and the racoon came back

We survived the storm just fine. The worst of the thunderstorms went around us; even the daffodils are fine. The grass is getting very green and a few things are in bloom: the daffodils, of course and the spirea; the chives are coming up and the daylily leaves are starting to peek above the mulch. Ahhhh....spring.

Also, the raccoon made another appearance Sunday night. We were all still up (so it was before 9 pm) and Frodo the Wonder Yorkie started barking. We looked out the front window and sure enough, he was back.

So we released Frodo. He dashed out, feet barely touching the ground and chased the aggravating little thief back into the woods. A minute or so later, Frodo came racing back up the porch steps, looking rather more relieved than triumphant. I must remember, he's a "Wonder" but he's still a "Yorkie".

Did I mention, it will officially be spring in three weeks?

Batten down the hatches!

Batten down the hatches, there's a storm on the horizon! At least, if I had hatches, I'd batten them down. We're looking at a big line of thunderstorms headed our way. The toys are in from outside, the windows are closed (most of them, anyway) and the children have had their baths. I even took a picture of my daffodils, in case the storm crushes them.

So, I think we're ready. I'll check in with you tomorrow.

(We didn't bring the chickens in. You think they'll be okay?)

Stop Theif!

It was 2:30 am the other night. I heard a noise on the front porch, like metal banging around. Assuming the chickens were still in their coop, the dog was in the carrier and the indoor cat was still indoors, I thought maybe the outside cat was chasing a mouse. But really, she's usually a much more stealthy hunter than that. So, I did what any self-respecting country woman does. I woke my husband.

He grunted once or twice, grabbed a t-shirt and moccasins and stumbled to the window. He looked out, then turned on the light. And grunted again. Deciding that most burglars, even the dumb ones, don't make that much noise, he opened the door and went onto the porch. He saw movement and looked into the yard.

Him: "It's a raccoon. It's got the cat's food bowl."

Me: "What?!"

Him: "Jinx's bowl. He's trying to steal it."

Me: "Hey! Bring that back, ya' stupid raccoon!"

By this time, hubby was out in the yard, with a flashlight, chasing the raccoon. It dropped the bowl and disappeared into the woods. Hubby retrieved the bowl and brought it back up, laughing. Mostly at me, I think.

"Great," I was thinking, "something else I have to remember to do every night, bring in the bowl from the porch." Then, another thought hit me. "Um, where's the water bowl?"

We looked around for a few minutes. It was nowhere to be seen. So now, I'm thinking, "Our son would love to have a coon-skin cap."

Stupid raccoon.