T O P I C R E V I E W |
CabinCreek-Kentucky |
Posted - Nov 05 2007 : 5:51:27 PM oh my goodness! what an incredibly FUN time we had at SIMPLE GOODS .. a FABULOUS show ..with so many prim hand-dids and 'tiques .. that if i'd hit the lottery BIG TIME ... i still wouldn't have been able to buy everything i wanted! i met so many new friends and saw some olde friends too! had great chats .. and giggles .. and i swear .. i shopped from the opening of the show ... right up to closing! i honestly could have gone 15 minutes before the show ended and STILL have found so much that i wanted .. cuz' there was so much there! i'll post pics of my treasures ..
the 'mercantile gatherings' gang had so much fun .. and we 'meeted and greeted' and hugged and swapped giggles and stories all day long! (sometimes i think it is a good idea to either 'hang out' t'il the opening rush subsides to sit and relax with friends .. or come a little later .. for chatting time .. and HONESTLY .. you still would have found beau coup treasures .. i sure did!
and the treasures that i might have missed .. well, i was really was very happy for those who got to them first .. (as we say in the south: "bless their little hearts"!) and still .. there was more for me!
i jus' kinda' figger that i can't be the first person everywhere ... everytime! and 'waiting' for the artists who themselves have travelled far and wide and carrying enormous amounts of inventory and 'displays' to warm your primitive hearts ..
wowzer! all the time it takes to 'create/tag/box up/load up/drive to/logistics of where you are going to lay your sleepy head that night/setting up your display and displaying your treasures attractively .. and oh my .. are we all ever so very EXHAUSTED with all this to do! well, i'd sure rather jus' be the one who is travelling .. leisurely gathering with other friends who are also attending the show ... having a grand dinner the night before .. getting up bright and bushy-tailed the next morning to simply wait a little while and then the only thing i have to do is SHOP .. whew! we are the ones who get off easy!
in my years of livin' .. i've discovered it also helps immensely if we are 'prepared' for "waits and weather". in HOT weather .. i wear clothes that i can 'peel' down to the point where i'm jus' short of getting arrested! and in COLD weather .. i wear clothes that i can layer until i look like 'Nanook of the North'!! I ALWAYS bring a good book or magazine .. and stop for coffee when i know i'm going to have a 'wait in line'. i also make sure that i've got my 'smiley face' on and engage others in the line in some fun conversation! it surely makes the time pass quickly .. AND .. i make 'new friends'! and i jus' KNOW that everyone INSIDE is working like 'busy bees' putting the finishing touches on a great show for ME!
I have been the shopper, the vendor and the 'promotor' of such shows .. and everyone has a part to play .. i love that those of us in the primitive world have such an understanding of all that goes into making all this happen for us. my motto has always been: "walk a mile in their shoes" .. and my patience level and attitude is all in the right place!
i saw girls walking out with armloads of treasures from beginning to end! i LOVED the crowds .. made it so very festive .. and yes, it was 'tight' from time to time (especially at the very beginning of the show .. but i've yet to attend a GREAT show and not have that be the case). i always just go with a real positive attitude about 'crowds' .. a grande time to meet and greet .. laugh and share stories while waiting our turn. i'm gonna' write a much longer 'story' about my fun time on my 'blog' (with pictures) in the next day or two. But something that really struck me is the good natured patience of this fun crowd.
Especially, in a 'new' show .. it is always so hard to judge how big your crowd is going to be .. and what space you will (or will not need) .. and then .. there is the FINANCIAL output for 'space' that might not be needed. THAT can make a show 'belly-up' forever .. and what a sad thing this would be!
I've been to shows where they let the first 200 people in line in first .. the rest of us waited until 50 of the shoppers left .. then the next fifty got to go in.
I've been to shows where you actually were 'timed' for your shopping. 45 minutes .. and then you had to make room for the next group.
i've been to shows where you HAD to buy your tickets by a certain date (NON-REFUNDABLE .. EVEN IF YOU KICKED THE BUKCET BEFORE SHOW TIME!) so that the space/crowd ratio could be controlled.
GOSH .. i'll take an early morning RUSH and CROWD every time over those choices!
Max and Candy and crew did a PHENOMENAL job of 'momma-ing' this mos' wunnerful show (BEST i've ever been to!!) There was a delightful mix of primitive hand-dids AND primitive antiques .. and i bought BOTH!) The booths were the best i've ever seen at a show! The 'wares' was the best i've ever seen at a show!
ALL DAY LONG ... There was music and prizes and deeeeeeeeeelicious FOOD .. and a wonderful 'firepit' outside .. where i stepped several times because the fun just flowed from outside to inside and back outside again!
The prices i found to be extremely fair for the 'goodies' that were 'up for adoption'! The 'creativity' jus' blew me outta' the water!
Most of all, i was impressed with the outstandingly high HAPPY LEVEL of everyone involved with this show .. the friendliness .. and i give us all a big "HURRAH" for this ..
Max and Candy, family and friends .. artists .. and everyone who helped create the SIMPLE GOODS SHOW .. we THANK YOU .. for without such hard-working, enterprising, happy, helpful, cheerful, creative .. ohhhhhhh .. ALL THE GOOD WORDS!!! ... people who CARE about primitive .. who CARE about being the 'wind beneath the wings' of primitive crafters .. who care about those of us who love to have a place to come .. to gather .. to add to our collection of treasures that so enhance our lives ... this fun life event would not be available to us!
THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!
A KA-JILLION-ZILLON TIMES .. THANK YOU!
xo, Frannie .. Freedom Valley Farm
True Friends * Frannie
HEAR MY STORIES come, visit my:
"GATHERING ROOM" ..
http://freedomvalleyfarm.blogspot.com
e-mail me: Freedom_Valley_Farm@windstream.net
![](http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd212/FREEDOM-VALLEY-FARM/MJ.jpg) MaryJane & Family Green County, KENTUCKY October 2007 |
|
|