You may have noticed the blue 'Handm@de' logo about halfway down the page on the left, under the list of past blog entries. If you click on it, it will take you to a blog about an event that I am very excited to be taking part in at the beginning of July - the Winchester Handm@de craft fair in the Guildhall on Sunday 5th July.
I've been selling my work at craft shows of various shapes and sizes for about 7 years now, but this one feels very different as it's organised by crafters rather than by a university or a town council, and absolutely all of the stalls there will have beautifully handcrafted wares made by the people standing behind the tables. In other words, absolutely no mass-produced goods, every piece that you will see will have been lovingly individually crafted with no two pieces the same, and you will get to meet the designers who have made it all. If you visit the Handm@de Winchester blog you will see a list of the exhibitors on the righthand side, and you can visit their websites to get an idea of what will be on offer. Some of my favourites are shown in the photos here. And if you get there quickly enough and are one of the first 200 people through the door you will get one of the goodie bags filled to the brim with information and items from exhibitors as well as those unable to attend. Oh, and the fair will be supporting Naomi House children's hospice with a raffle that will include a necklace from me, so what more could you ask for? A great location, beautifully crafted goodies and the opportunity to feel good about helping a local charity!
Several of the exhibitors will also be at the Oxford and Cambridge handm@de fairs. The Handm@de fairs began when a group of UK etsy sellers were fed up with working at craft shows were half the stalls didn't have handmade items for sale, and decided to do something about it and organise their own. The first handm@de fair was in Oxford last year, and you can read more about how succesful that was and more about the ideas behind the Handm@de fairs here on the website.
Another reason that I am really looking forward to the Winchester show is that it is on the last day of the 35th annual Winchester Hat Fair - and no, that's got nothing to do with hats! It started as a group of street entertainers getting together to put on performances around the city centre, and after each performance they passed a hat round to collect money from the crowd. It is now billed as "a celebration of Street Arts and Community", with acts coming from the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand as well as Europe. It always runs over the first weekend in July, and I'm really looking forward to taking B to it on the Friday.
So, have I given you enough reasons to visit Winchester on Sunday 5th July? You don't even need to worry about parking as the park'n'ride system is great too!!
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