Waiting ... Patiently ...

[PrairiePrimitives]

2 weeks ago I juried for the big holiday show that I did in 2016. This is a 2.5 day show that should be 1.5 days at the most. 

I juried in 2017 and was rejected. Twice! Once because I hadn't sold enough (i.e., paid the school enough commission) to be among the top 75% of the sellers and the second time was because I didn't pass muster with the jury. I didn't jury in 2018, but decided what the heck and gave it another try this year. The lead juror remembered me and some of her minions remembered my booth from 2016 (in a good way!). 

Now I wait! I should know by late April if I've been accepted due to the jurying process. The application asked if I would consider filling in on shorter notice (in 2016, I was invited in mid-October so had 7 weeks to get stocked up for a 2.5 day show, starting almost from scratch!). I made sure the jury knew that I was very interested in seeing how I would do if I had the full 7 months to prep for the show like most of the vendors! 

[BlueTurtleCrafts]

Ooh!  Good Luck! I hope you get in :)

Mid-October for a 2.5 day show is rough!  I manage to get my butt in gear for my couple weekends of December shows in August (or so ;) and that's bad enough - there's always so much more to do than it seems. 

[PrairiePrimitives]

Thanks! It was rough! At the time I was invited in 2016, I was mid-way thru a month-long temp gig (which I'd been led to believe might last even longer), so I spent my free time at work doodling and designing stuff and making lists of what I wanted to make for the show. I'd go home and sew in the evenings and all weekend. The temp gig ended just before Halloween and I was able to sew like crazy for the next 5 weeks. Whew! 

[HomeSewnByKate]

I hate the suspense of being accepted. I'm waiting for a 4 day festival to let me know that happens in July. I did it for two years but was rejected last year. I've heard they like to rotate vendors and also play favorites. Very frustrating.

[PrairiePrimitives]

Good luck! Hope you get accepted!!! I've got about a month to go now!

To keep my mind occupied, I found 3 Spring shows to do. These usually aren't as good as Fall & Holiday shows, but the booth fees are VERY low ($35, $25, $20). They're all within 30 minutes of home. I've done two of them before and those are good for at least $300 to $400. At the other one, which is new to me, I will have a booth adjacent to a popular craft fair in an "old town" historic area; the fair gets lots of traffic and most of them should see my booth too, so I have high hopes for this one! 

[CoquetteBath]

good luck! I've never done a show that was juried...and I kinda wish I could find some. Because so many of the local shows are pretty much drek filled.

But I'm not sure if I'll even be in this area in fall. I really want to move and I can telecommute, so that's nice. If so, I'll have to find new shows (cause I'm likely not going to drive up for the ones I'm doing...save one of them, which is awesome).

[PrairiePrimitives]

Thanks! I'm still waiting, but I should know one way or the other within a week. 

How far are you willing to drive to do a show? I know it probably depends on the show, but let's assume the odds are above-average the show should be good? The "Silo-bration" in Waco comes to mind; I've tried to get vendor info about it for several years now ... but no luck. Would I go that far to do a show? Maybe! But I'd have to have stock out the wazoo!!

Closer to home (for you), there's this show ... http://vintagemarketdays.com/market/denton/ft.-worth/index.php ... This show pops up all over the Midwest and South so I'm not sure if they're all put on by one promoter or if it's a franchise sort of thing with different promoters for each event. Since you're not thrilled with the local craft fairs, why not try a different type of venue?

[BeachFleaMarket]

Working on inventory just in case doesn't seem like a bad thing. Good motivation. Unless it's items you will only make for that show. You'll be ahead for your other events.

[PrairiePrimitives]

I work on inventory year-round and make multiples of things, but I'd go into overdrive if I knew for sure that I was doing St. John's!

I've been tentatively accepted to another holiday show the weekend before Thanksgiving. I've told them that I'm waiting to hear about St. John's and I'm not sure that I can do both shows even if I work like crazy between now and then. I'll know for sure about the other show after their jurying in May.

And there's always Etsy, Amazon Handmade, and maybe even eBay! 

[SewTrulyMe]

I feel your pain about the wait time.  I had a 4 month wait for a juried show I participated in last year for the first time.  They made participants perfectly clear that participating in the prior show wasn't a guarantee for future invites. I'm considering a second juried show but they don't start accepting applications until September.  

Good luck to all for a sucessful 2019 crafting year.

[HomeSewnByKate]

Well I wasn't accepted to the 4 day music festival show. Sad to be rejected but also relieved I don't have to do all that work. In addition to making so much inventory your booth is open from 9am to midnight. So now I'm looking for some mellower shows to replace it.

[BlueTurtleCrafts]

Sorry to hear you didn't get in :(  but oof! what long days!!

My Christmas show goes 11-10 on saturday (and I have to be there around 9 to set up) and that's bad enough. Loooong day!

With 4 days of it I'd be dead, lol!

[AllisonGlickCeramics]

We do juried shows and the waiting is frustrating. Even though we have to pay more, I actually prefer the ones where you pay a non refundable jury/application fee and only pay if you are accepted. At least with these we can apply to multiple shows, and have a backup or even decline if are lucky enough to get into more shows then we think we can handle.

Some shows expect payment in full, which they will refund if they don’t accept you. With these you are stuck waiting and really don’t have any options if want to apply to a different show. 

Good luck everyone! We have several expected notifications coming around May 15. 

[PrairiePrimitives]

I have been wait listed for the big holiday show. There is no guarantee that they will find room for me, so I'm keeping my options open! I am currently talking with a couple of ladies who do a show about an hour north of Sacramento. I'm going to post about that separately since I'd like to get some input and feedback on it. Their show is 2 weeks before the one for which I am wait listed. If their show is as good as they say it is, there's no way I could restock enough in 2 weeks to do the big holiday show.