The 4′ table challenge

Oh my. It is well into the first week of June. May came and went! It was unseasonably chilly and wet here in the Monadnock Region but that didn’t keep us from working our veggie garden. Here’s proof!

This Saturday I will be exhibiting my work in Peterborough, NH at Broke Arts Fair. I love this event! The organizers work hard to allow as many artisans to participate in the Peterborough Town House as the space allows. Table fees are affordable (in keeping with the “Broke : The Affordable Art Fair” theme) but this means that the table allotment for nearly all of the participants is a tidy 4′ x 2′ table space. Based on my experience with this event, this boils down to a few important things:

1. Think carefully about what to bring.
2. Practice your set up.
3. Be a good neighbor!

Here is how I have gone about tackling these three points:

1. What to bring. Since the event organizers promote the fair as affordable, this means that artisans are permitted to bring only pieces priced at $50 or less. So I leave my overshot table runners at home. I bring an assortment of kitchen towels, a few table runners that are in need of new homes from the previous art show season cycle, bookmarks, and, a customer favorite, my handwoven fabric notecards. Haven’t seen my notecards? Here is a photo!

2. Tabletop set up run through. This is your dress rehearsal! It is arguably an important step to take at any art show for any artisan, but when space is at a premium it is really, really important. For one thing, when you share an 8′ table with a neighbor, you really have to be able to work efficiently. I used my 4′ work table as a guide. I plan to have a table covering over my spot, too, and will display my few table runners draped over the front of the table. Here is a photo of the basic display, which I saved on my smartphone so that I could access the layout during set up:

3. Be a good neighbor. Everyone at Broke is so nice that this is a really easy thing to do. We share shopping bags with each other as needed, assist with coming up with change, and mind table spaces during the occasional potty break. It is great! This fair always goes by much too fast!

I’ll be sharing photos of Broke on my Instagram page on Saturday so if you can’t make it to the show in person, you can take a peek.

The loom is loaded up with kitchen towels. The nine-patch bordered design is a favorite of mine to weave and it allows for some fun color-combinations. Here is a finished French blue kitchen towel (available at Broke and also in my Etsy shop):

“Morning coffee” kitchen towels are on the loom right now:

Off to wind a new warp. Stay tuned for “Rose Garden” themed kitchen towels. 🙂

Be well,

Kate