Well, I never did get around to writing the second instalment of my post about my trip to Sweden, did I?! It seems like a long time ago now, but suffice to say that I’m hoping to go back sometime, because it was so beautiful. And if you get the chance to go, GO. You will love it.

But that was summer…

And now it’s autumn which, along with rain, falling leaves and damp, dreary weather, brings with it, for makers at least, preparations for Christmas.

Because I am a s-l-o-w maker and each piece takes time to create, I have learned over the years that, like a full-time Christmas elf, it’s never too early to start working on stuff for Christmas. Basically, it’s the one time of year when I have a chance of selling a good number of my makes, which is a chance not to be missed in these times of tightened belts and the “cost of living crisis” here in the UK.

Fearing a lack of motivation, I decided to give myself a kick up the bum by signing up for a local craft fair – my first since Christmas 2019, before the Covid lockdowns! I didn’t really give it a huge amount of thought before I applied… I just thought it would be fun and it would make me work harder, because there’s nothing like the fear of turning up to an event with nothing to sell to get you over a patch of makers’ block!

My other motivation was that I’d visited a few local markets and fairs over the summer and chatted with fellow makers selling their wares and realised that I missed that face-to-face interaction with people. Sitting at home sewing is all very nice and cosy, but it can also be a bit of a lonely business at times, even with my partner and son working from home (and having to work around their mealtimes and tea breaks!)

I have very fond memories of doing The Paperdolls Christmas Market in 2019, my last and most successful ever event. My fellow stallholders were lovely (see photo above), the customers made appreciative noises and bought things, the event was huge and busy and it left me feeling proud of myself. Especially as it was in the big city of Birmingham (about 50 miles away) where I had to stay overnight and work the whole weekend on my own, which was a bit scary and intimidating beforehand, but transpired to be all the fun of the fair.

I’m not yet quite ready to jump into anything that daunting, so the fair I’m doing this year is small by comparison, organised and curated by a local group of fellow makers and is being held literally just down the road from where I live. I applied back in August, and somehow fought off keen competition to get selected.

I have managed to buy a table from someone I used to know who used to organise fairs, for just £10 (a totally lucky break!). I’ve dug out my stall box from under the bed and sorted it out and ordered bags and boxes and stickers. I’ve tested my card machine (which, incredibly, still works after being idle for four years – yay!) and of course, I’ve been busy making things to sell.But I’d forgotten a few things over my four years of stall-lessness.

For starters, I’d forgotten just how much WORK goes into preparing for an event. Planning the display, sourcing stuff like fairy lights and batteries and packaging and stands. Thinking about what, exactly, people might want to buy, at what price range (which is different for fairs than for online selling) and deciding how much of each thing to make.  And then, of course, there is the actual making itself – days and days of eye-straining, finger-pricking, sometimes headache-inducing, concentrated sewing – which whilst satisfyingly productive, can also be exhausting as well as all-consuming.

But the thing I had absolutely forgotten about, until it snuck up on me the other day, is the feeling of impending doom and panic as the days count down to the event. The feeling that that bargain six-foot-long craft fair table might as well be a thousand miles long, for all the chance I have of making enough to fill it in time! When I make to sell online, I aim to fill my mantelpiece. But there’s a big difference between that and a ginormous fair table!So of course, then the paralysis of fear starts to set in – and with it, a bit of unhealthy procrastination. Which is probably why I’m writing this blog post, when I should really be sewing. Quite frankly, at the moment I feel like I should be sewing literally EVERY MINUTE – or I won’t have enough!

That’s what keeps going through my mind – and even pops up in my dreams! – the fear that I won’t have enough! I will have an empty table! And when I’ve sold out, with hours to endure of the embarrassment of standing behind an empty table, I will also have lots of angry people online to deal with, who want to buy things but can’t because I’ve sold them all at the fair! IT WILL ALL BE A DISASTER!!!

So, that’s how my mind works. I think it is called “catastrophising”. It’s a nasty habit of mine.

I hereby apologise in advance if the above scenario is what actually transpires. I’m hoping not, but…

I’d better get back to sewing.

P.S. If you’re local to Nottingham and fancy coming along to the fair, its on 25th and 26th November (though I will only be there on Saturday 25th November) at Woodthorpe Grange Park. It’s being held in the greenhouses at the plant shop. The fair opens at 10am and runs until 4pm. There is parking. You can find all the details – and a map – on the Facebook event page, here – or by clicking the picture with the craft fair logo at the beginning of this post.