Craft Fair Fun and a New Quilter’s Joy

This year I’ve decided to book myself into a few craft fairs, not only to hopefully sell some of the pouches, purses and cushions I can’t seem to stop making, but also to spread the word about my growing collection of pre-cut quilt and cushion kits.

Last Sunday we were at the Vintage & Craft Fair held at The Rainbow Plant Centre near Stokesley, North Yorkshire. This independent family-run nursery started as an empty field, and 30 years later is now a thriving business selling high-quality plants and offering invaluable help and advice to its regular customers.

Setting up in the warmth of the greenhouse, we managed to get both Ikea shelf units and our Justin-made quilt ladder up, as well as my banner… looks pretty good eh?! There’s a lovely tearoom on-site too, so we weren’t short of tea.. and I won’t mention the pie stall…. Needless to say…

A few customers braved the chilly wind and came to explore our wares, but sadly not as many as I had hoped. However, I’ve stopped thinking of these fairs as ‘must sell as much as possible’ days, but rather as a way to advertise my products and website. While I love making my handmade gifts and T-T-Teessider cushions, the true ethos behind Sewmotion is to help and encourage folk to learn how to quilt, to develop their skills and to find as much enjoyment as I do from this wonderful craft. And my way of doing this is to offer free online tutorials, pre-cut quilt kits and quilting patterns to new quilters as well as the more experienced.

Much to my joy, this plan came to fruition with my last customer of the day. Having popped in for some plant food (I think) she spotted my All Squared Up quilt kit and stopped in her tracks. Apparently her husband had bought her a sewing machine recently after she mentioned wanting to learn to quilt, but he was getting frustrated that even though he could hear the machine going in her sewing room, and YouTube videos in the background, nothing was being produced! Overjoyed that my kits contain all the co-ordinating pre-cut fabric, thread and instructions to make the top, she went home very happy that she had a project she could finally get stuck in to and hopefully finish!

This really did make my day, when I say to people that I plan to get everyone addicted to quilting one customer at a time, I’m not joking!!

Our next craft fair is at Stokesley Town Hall on Saturday, 7th May - if you're local why not pop along and explore what our community has to offer.

Meanwhile, back at Sewmotion HQ, what really scares me at the moment is time, or lack of it. Having ordered quite a bit of fabric at a trade show a few months ago, I’m now starting to take deliveries, and my ‘stash’, if you can still call it that, is starting to look more like a shop!

I have so many kit and pre-cut ideas running around my head, from foundation-pieced hexies to a possible quilt along or block-of-the-month project... I’m finding it hard to concentrate on just one thing! My current project is a second All Squared Up kit using my gorgeous strip set in Sevenberry’s Japanese prints - watch this space…

If you're looking for more quilty fun and inspiration, why not pop over to Let's Bee Social over at Sew Fresh Quilts, Needle & Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation, and say hello.