demakat

I never know what to expect on Oregon Country Fair weekend. On the one hand, a lot of vendors, both art and food, are out in Veneta. So theoretically, that's fewer folks to split the sales pie. On the other hand, the customers may also be out there as well--or they may be all here at Market because the crowds (and the hippies) are all gone. It's a toss-up. I've had really good days and really terrible ones. The only way to find out which is to show up.

So this sunny sunflowery Saturday found me, slightly bleary and only a little late, setting up my booth on the Park Blocks. Lots of empty spaces, including the one right beside my. Lots of new vendors, too. You're guaranteed a space this weekend.

My first sale comes at 9 am, as I'm preparing to leave for Farmer's Market; second one is a quarter to 10 after I get back. She asks whether it's okay to sell before official opening--it isn't at Farmer's Market. I explain that they've had issues with people coming earlier and earlier to get first dibs on fresh produce, to the point that it was interfering with vendors' ability to get set up. So they have a hard start time, and you can get written up for selling early. Here on our side of the street, things are more relaxed. As long as you're ready to sell, you can be open whenever.

At least one of my customers says she comes down specifically to avoid the usual crowds. Several recognize my work from Tsunami Bookstore. One lady spots the animal banks, tells her companions that she bought them for her grandkids nearly 30 years ago. Then proceeds to buy a brontosaur and stegosaur for her great grandkids.

My friend Carleen comes in with a sad story--one of the plates from their anniversary set cracked. Can't figure out why, unless it's because the bottom is a little too thick. I happen to have one in exactly that size and pattern in the restock box, so replace it free of charge. (I stand behind my work.) And then the friend that came down to Market with her decides to buy her husband a cereal bowl, and maybe one for herself, and by the time she's finished, she has a set of four plus a salmon painted mug.

Had a nice talk on my glazing process with a young woman who goes on to tell me she's the studio tech for the community college in Coos Bay. I give her my card and call her attention to all the resources on this blog. (If you're reading this, Hi! I didn't get your name...)

A woman introduces herself as the daughter of Mildred Wasserman, a potter I knew from my Craft Center days. She was a retired nurse from Alabama who eventually set up a studio in her basement, even sold at Market for a year or two with Kathy Lee, who went on to share her booth with me when Mildred opted out. They're both passed away now; it was lovely to call them to mind. Daughter is there with her son, who says he remembers me too--he used to come in to the Center with grandma when he was six or seven, to play in the clay.

Talked with people from all over the country: Texas, North Carolina, Tennessee, New Jersey, two different folks from Virginia. Some of them are trusting to their carry-on bags to get their pottery home, others take a card with my website, and the assurance that I'd be happy to ship their pots to them.

I turn the second page of my sale book just before 3 pm, but don't make any sales on page 3. Doesn't matter, we're still over $900 for the day. And I didn't have to drive to Veneta.

First apple crisp of the season!

Looks like we're going to get a bunch of Gravensteins this year, Pippins likewise. Didn't have the time or oomph to build a pie crust, so I default to my Grandma's super-simple Apple Crisp recipe.

Apple Crisp

5-6 medium baking apples--Gravensteins, Granny Smith, etc.--cored and sliced.

1 cup flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1 large egg, unbeaten
1 T water
1/3 cup melted butter
Dusting of cinnamon

Lay apples evenly in a greased baking dish--9x13" is fine, I have this 12" diameter baker I made specifically for crisps.

Whisk together dry ingredients, then add egg and water. Mix with fork until crumbly. Mixture doesn't have to be evenly mixed: big lumps, powdery bits, all okay. Spread over top of the apples, drizzle with butter, dust with cinnamon. You'll note that the apples aren't sugared in this recipe. If you're dealing with early, very green apples, as I was, you might want to add 1/4 cup sugar to the apples before applying the topping.

Bake 30-40 minutes at 350° F.

Biked down to BiMart this afternoon to get some cat food for the outdoor kitties and check the Lucky Numbers. No joy on the last digit--3 today, my number ends in four. No luck on the rest of the listed numbers. But look at this Grand Prize poster.

That's right, winning member number gets Miclea 8K Smart Portable Air Conditioner.

My BiMart number?

1 4 1 5 1 3 4.

So close.

Slow, quiet day at Market. No fireworks. No marches. No bullhorn evangelists. (Though I understand last weekend had much of all. Pride March. Abusive preacher. Market was proactive in blocking all the corners with sign, bins, trash, forcing him to move half a block further north, but he had an enormous loud-hailer. Apparently, he offended the wrong folks, because a fight broke out. Police ended up arresting four people, two vendors from the unregulated Free Speech Corner Market (not part of Saturday Market), one civilian... and the "reverend" himself. Being in Roseburg, I missed all the excitement. Though I guess Eli the glass blower got the arrest on video and posted it to the Market members Facebook page.)

Nothing nearly so exciting to recount this week. Have some bear pictures instead.

Got a nice photo from a customer in Texas. His pottery all arrived in good order, and has pride of place in his china cabinet. 

A platypus hat?

Perry the Platypus hat?

The more they feel the same?

Roseburg was... familiar. They'd rearranged the layout a bit, to take booths out of the completely unshaded (and frequently blisteringly hot) center of the park, which meant my booth moved about 50 feet east. Still along the south edge, backing on Harvard Avenue, by choice. Can get extra heat in the afternoon, but I've got a silvered mylar blanket on the outside of my back wall that cuts the sun a bit, and we can open up the back of the booth, to take advantage of any breeze, and the extra two feet of box storage space. We put ten pounds of ice in our contractor's cooler and kept adding water all weekend, to keep hydrated.

Friday started a little slow, but steady. Saturday was all the familiar faces, people who'd been buying my pots for years dropping in for their yearly fix. I don't get names--or don't remember them--now that everyone's gone over to tap cards. I can't surreptitiously read names off the credit card or check. So I remember circumstances--the family of red-headed dad and mom, with four kids, who all get to consult on this year's choice. The young woman who first came into my booth as a girl, declaring I love this store! has finished community college and police academy and is in process of being hired by Gresham PD. She's also bought a house, but is waiting to furnish it until she's done with the drywall--she's tired of all the dusting. The couple who had a custom carpentry booth--beautiful tables--last year, who admired my stuff all weekend, before finally buying a mug each at the end. They didn't have a booth this year, so came just to find me. In fact, a bunch of folks said they came only for me, which made me feel a little weird? Like I'm somehow stealing other vendor's opportunities because they don't hang around and browse?

I dunno, maybe it's a midwestern thing.

Not a lot of potters there, and about half of them were "this-is-my-first-art-show" quality. The ones with more polished and professional work, I think were all down from Eugene. Though I did pick up a tip from new potter Sahalie about how to make mustache-mugs that don't crack or split around the rim: Throw them as closed forms, like I do with banks or butter dishes, then cut away some of the top. (Not that I ever plan to make mustache mugs.)

Sunday was the hottest day of the weekend, and correspondingly slow again. Sold to a lot of other vendors, including a woman who'd bought the new pheasant-pattern mug for her dad in thanks for his help at her booth. She'd got it at the end of the day Saturday, came back Sunday to get the turkey mug for herself. Her domestic tom had run off with a flock of wild hens; not sure I'd want that kind of reminder on my breakfast table, but it is a pretty mug.

Sale runs from 10 am to 8 pm Friday and Saturday, which makes for some long days, especially since I usually come in a couple of hours early. Friday I have to put out pots and organize the booth--the canopy and shelves got done Thursday evening. Saturday I like to walk over to the Farmer's Market, although this year I discovered they'd relocated to downtown, so I had to give up a lovely parking space to drive over and buy my cherries, berries and peaches. Always worth it, though. Roseburg is a couple of weeks earlier in the growing season than we are, and fruit is a couple of bucks per pint cheaper as well. Sunday was another early day, bringing in the empty boxes to stage for load-out. So it definitely got a little drowsy around the slow, hot middle of the afternoon. Really miss the Umpqua Dairy Ice Cream stand at times like that--perfect cold/sugar bump for the 3 pm snoozies.

Ashley, the director, swung by late Sunday afternoon to see how Denise was holding up, and incidentally buying herself a stew mug. Tried to sell her on a pair, but she says I have to come next year, so she can add to her collection. Show closed at 4 pm, and they coned off the street at 4:30. I concentrated on packing pots and stands, and by the time I was ready to dismantle shelves, most of the neighbors were gone and I was able to park right behind my booth to load out. Finished right at 6 pm and treated ourselves to Chinese buffet before heading for home.

Sales felt slow, but when I checked my records, we were only down about $150; last year, we were a little over $3000, this year a bit under.