It has been a long time since my last post but that's because I've been so gosh darn busy! I enlisted some sewing help in the spring which has been wonderful. The way the skirts have been flying out the door, so to speak (tent? stall? booth?), it has still been a challenge to keep up with inventory.
Each year (this being #4) I seem to hone in on, and gain access to, my market more effectively. The Waitsfield Farmers Market is turning out to be a great addition to my vending event line-up. Every Saturday I meet people vising Vermont for weddings or vacation or cherishing the time at their country abode. I imagine planning a wedding in the supremely beautiful Mad River Valley as not only a romantic dream location for the happy couple but also as a real gift to all the guests. In any case, they are all having a great time on Saturday mornings before the ceremony checking out the farmers market.
Here are some pictures from last weekend's market in Waitsfield, featuring an adorable customer who ditched what she was wearing before and kept her new skirt on to hang around the market.
This was the third Saturday morning market I've done this summer that started out on the rainy side. A light rain does not keep away the regulars determined to get the fullest selection of glorious fresh veggies when the market opens at 9:00. They just don their raincoats and shopping bags/baskets and head out. Each time the rain has subsided within an hour or so. I've been happy to experience each time that plenty of people are not deterred and are ready to buy skirts, even in the light rain.
I can not say the same for the afternoon market I did in Hanover, NH last week in the middle of the 10 year heat wave we were having. Not only were the potential shoppers staying indoors or at their swimming holes, but the people who came out were just too hot to touch anything...carry anything...much less try on anything that is going to wrap around their waist more than once, if at all. You get the idea. I think the lemonade and gelato sellers did well though.
Because I can handle the heat much better than many people it was still worth it for me to be there. People's eyes were still functioning and my work received many admiring comments. It's all good exposure. I know it is best for me to think about something for a while before actually purchasing it, so I understand that repeat exposure can be an essential part of the buying process.
Summer, summer, summer! I hope you are all enjoying it to the fullest. Until next time...ta ta!
PS. This is Tunbridge Hill Farm stall across from me, always full of customers. They are consolidating their display the entire time as the veggies get snatched up by lucky people. I am amazed at all the early vegetables this year. Farmers have had potatoes for at least two weeks. These guys had plump full heads of garlic with long firm green stems and leaves that people were carrying around the market (you can see them on the low table on the left). I'll have to get a picture of that next time.
