The Velvet Alchemist

“I’m totally stoked, are you stoked?!”

Last Saturday I got the opportunity to set up the booth at Artes & Craft’s 10th Anniversary Sidewalk Sale. For those playing the home game, Artes & Craft is a metaphysical store in Hartford MI that carries darn near everything you could ever want. Their apothecary is massive, they’re constantly stocking new books and tarot decks, the owners travel to shop for crystals and stones, and they do consignment for many different artists from all over.

This weekend was their 10th anniversary, and I’ve been trying to be a part of the outdoor vendors for years, but you know how Facebook feeds are; you always find out about the cool events two days too late. Thankfully I managed to get in on this last one, and aside from the sudden rainstorm, the wind, and me bringing the new 12×12 canopy for the 10×10 frame…

BTW, when I got home I pulled out what I thought was the 12×12 canopy to double check, and it turns out THAT one was more like 15×15. O.o

I also forgot my tent weights. Derp!

But aside from that, it was a great day! Tons of customers, great sales, fun stories and lots of laughs, and I earned 3/4 of what I need for my cat’s upcoming dental work! Thanks, everyone!

The best part? One of the A&C employees bought some of my wares, and one of the A&C owners was so impressed with my work that she invited me to sell in their store!

Monday found me at A&C, signing the contract to sell my goodies in their shop. The shop cat, Dark Lord (an adorable grey&white lover boy) kept me company on the couch while I tagged and priced everything (the shop dog was snoozing on the other end of the couch, oblivious to my glee).

They are currently carrying 3 styles of Zodiac tarot bags, 13 portable altars, and two of my chenille-edged fleece blankets. These aren’t your basic no-sew tie blankets, absolutely not. These were serged, then trimmed with a skip cutter blade, then crocheted with soft, velvety chenille yarn. Just as cozy, but with an elevated, clean vibe.

I was working at JoAnn when the tie blankets started to become A Thing. My boss at that time, Ronda, and I griped that we could have come up with that and made a killing… alas. Before we knew it, our store went from Fabrics and Crafts to Fleece, a little bit of other fabric, and Crafts. This is a story for another time; perhaps it will get its own chapter when I write my JoAnn tell-all. :3

After that I was off to Field’s in Kalamazoo to look for fabrics for the umpteen other projects also going on, and then World Market on the way home for Japanese sodas featuring various anime characters because I’m an adult with adult money.

If you happen to find yourself in southwest lower Michigan on vacation this summer and your beach trip gets bogarted by the Canadian wildfire smoke or bad water conditions, and you’re looking for things to see and do, head to Hartford to go look around Artes & Craft!

-TVA

PS: “STOOOKED!”