Venue Review: Serendipity Haven Part 2!

Sunday

Sunday was, amazingly even slower than Saturday. I think I counted about 6 people not in garb. But I still had a lot of fun, and even some steady business!

First, Roos (we think- in accurate peasant style, he didn’t know how to spell his name), who shared with me the horror of BooBah and general good conversation:




And then Tehwaz (in true artistic fashion, I don’t know how to spell his name), gave me the chance to paint his lovely family.




No flattery there, his wife is really lovely:



And their son’s got lethal levels of cute going on:


I even moved some more of my jewelry! Little stuff that wasn’t on Etsy yet, this time.

When I wasn't working, I went roaming the nice compact fair grounds. Serendipity is big enough for a body to stretch their legs, but not yet so big that the main stage can't be heard all over the fair, a thing I greatly appreciated.

Less good: one of the soap booths, the one with really fantastic fatty soap that was just about to start melting in the autumn sun, the one with the mild unsweet herbal scents and light florals I love...was having a half-off sale.
*sob*
I broke down and went off my soap diet. What could I do? I'm only human! I got four bars of superlush fatty soap for about 9 dollars. I defy anyone to tell me they could have resisted that lure.
Big thick bars of the stuff, too. I am currently in love with the gardenia soap bought, and I would be linking to it, but there is no website listed on any of their soaps! Aiiigh! Let that be a lesson, sellers--always brand your stuff with web info!

Bottom Line:

I consider a fair as profitable if I make as much as I would have at my day job, or if I earn back the cost of the fair twice over. I made about 3 times expenses, and about as much as I would at the office, for about 14 hours of…well, hanging out and having fun. So for me, this fair was absolutely a financial success.

I’m not the only one who did well-- the food booth nearly sold out, and I heard a few others happy with their take. The fair was harder on people selling high-ticket items; the sword vendor behind us has surely had better times. But every year won’t bring a hurricane, and the general openness of hearts and wallets this year bodes very well for the future. If you’re a small vendor, or even a large one, I highly recommend trying
Serendipity at the spring fair, or next fall, purely on a financial basis.

Overall

I don’t do fairs on a financial basis, though, as my previous ramblings have no doubt made clear. I do fairs to avoid the artistic trap of going mad from fumes and isolation. I want interaction, even if it’s just talking about pricing and what someone’s mother would like colorwise.

Small, laid back and with the best weather a person could want, Serendipity was less a fair than a two-day party. I met great people, had hour long conversations, and learned a little bit about Ren vending. Artwise, I couldn’t have had a more appreciative audience-- everybody loved their pictures, and was extremely verbal about it. There’s no song as sweet as compliments;). And doing portraits meant I had a bit of a captive audience, since everyone I painted had to stick around long enough for me to get some details. I love compulsory socialization!

The fact that I was running the Nap Booth didn’t hurt either:




as I'd made an effort to have a comfy place for portrait subjects to sit, and many other folks decided to share our cushions-er, company.

There are so many neat people I didn't get to mention, or hang out with nearly enough-- my fellow vendors, the incredibly mellow fair organizer, the people hosting the horseback rides...so much stuff I want to do. Next time! Oh, there will be a next time! See you there?