Rockin’ Renegade 2010

The weekend is over and all of our preparations culminated in the excitement of the last two days! Saturday met us with a chilly and wet beginning. We packed up the car in our pajamas trying to beat the rain. Once we had things lock, stock, and barrel, we slowed down for a simple breakfast and game plan breakdown. It would be wet, we’d be setting up in the cold rain, and we’d have Peanut, our super sweet BT Frenchie mix along for the first half of the day.

Despite the hazy and chilly start to our day – Saturday turned out to be a wonderful day! Once the raindrops stopped we pulled down our tent walls to let some air flow through. We had done minor merchandising for fear of dampening – but once the sun was out we pulled out all the stops! Racks came out into the street, our lil’ vintage bench hit the curb, and an alluring accessories table was placed to peak out of the tent ‘just so.’ Peanut was also quite the attraction – luring visitors into our booth with his sleepy gaze and inviting grin. Continue reading

Up Up & Away!

I am immersing myself into a day long Renegade Retreat – and will be shutting down my computer to ward off distractions. I promise to upload some photos from the fair tomorrow night – but until then – please plan on swinging by this weekend for the one and only Chicago outdoor installment of the Renegade Craft Fair!

If you do plan on visiting us – print out this 20% off coupon for yourself and a friend – and pay us a visit in booth #254 on the Northeast side of the event.

Renegade Prep #4: Down to the Wire

Just 3 full days until the Renegade blast off! We’re almost done with preparations and are just putting the finishing touches on merchandising and signage when BHAM! A new product idea hits me! Inspiration always flourishes under pressure – does it not?

So now I’m debating whether I should give this new design a couple of go’s and make a handful for the fair? Or should I just focus on making extra designs that are tried, tested, and true?

The solution – do both or die trying! David’s screenprinting one final round of clothing tags as I type and print out a few more signs. I’m hoping that tomorrow, post ACS productivity, I’ll find some time to finalize some products that are in process and then maybe I’ll have a spare hour or two to pump these new T Aprons out.

I’ll report back at the end of tomorrow to see what came of the day. ; )

I LOVE YOU MOO!

Years ago, okay, maybe just a few months back, the crafty control freak in me insisted on handmaking my own business cards. Though these mini branding agents turned out well enough to get special requests for customs – I found myself constantly struggling to find recycled card stock, ink for my obscure printer, and the patience to cut hundreds upon hundreds of cards by hand.

And then I discovered Moo. Continue reading

Renegade Prep #3: Picture Frame Signage

One of the best parts about doing Renegade and other outdoor fests is dreaming up displays. Last year I had lots of color and the original blue and green backdrop at the back of the tent. This year I’m keeping to the same themes but changing the color palette. The backdrop will now be the new gray and white combo that I use in my photos and that will reflect in other decor as well – including my signs.

Last year I hadn’t thought the signage through as much as I would have liked – but in my own defense I only had about two weeks to prepare. This time around everything is different. I have not been sewing in the month of August purposefully so as to focus on the ‘look’ of my booth. Continue reading

Renegade Prep #2: Clothing Tags

Screen printing is not my forte – so when making clothing tags I always aim for minimalism – which beyond craft fairs means nada, nothing – zero tags. This must be an artist’s worst nightmare – it’s like not signing your painting, not copyrighting your album, not acknowledging the maker. And for a show as large as Renegade, this was not something I could just let slip by. So about a month ago the great new hang tag experiment began. Continue reading