'Tis the season for fall crafts fairs

Starting the first weekend in November and continuing through Christmas eve, my Realms products will be appearing in the following crafts fairs:

St. James Holiday Bazaar

Saturday,  November 7, 9:00am-3:00pm

910 14th Street (across from Lowell Elementary)

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Bellingham Covenant Church Holiday Bazaar

Saturday, November 14, 9:00am-4:00pm

1530 E. Bakerview Rd.

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Allied Arts Holiday Festival of the Arts 2009

Friday, November 20th through Thursday, December 24th

Open 10am-6pm Wednesday-Sunday (Dec. 24 closing at 3:00pm)

3548 Meridian (formerly Cascade Furniture, across from the Bellingham Country Club)

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I want to thank you for your wonderful ideas. They definitely got the creative juices flowing. Many of the suggestions were mythical realms from novels, which for copyright infringement reasons, I did not want to completely plagiarize. However, one suggestion, Winterfel, one of the kingdoms in the amazing George R.R. Martin fantasy series, A Song of Ice and Fire, really struck a chord. Combining that with various words for ice crystals, the name Crystafel evolved.

Gifties are forthcoming for Cari (which means you have to visit Bellingham!), Kay and Linda Sue, whose suggestion of Snowman Poop still has me cracking up.

For all my creative friends and supporters, something fun… Come up with a name for my newest Realms scent and win a gift basket. The scent is a subtle white musk that reminds me of winter, ice crystals and making snow angels in piles of powder. If you have ever visited a magical winter place…or imagined such a place…please post a comment with your best one-word name. Please have your entries in by September 28th. Don’t forget to post a way for me to get in touch with you in case your entry wins!

Allied Arts of Whatcom County

So stoked! I’ve been accepted to Allied Arts’ Holiday Festival, the grandmama of Bellingham’s Christmas fairs. I’m going to have to get busy stocking up. The festival runs for over a month: from November 20th – December 24th. Hot damn.

I went to the Department of Revenue yesterday, nervous as a kid on her first day of school. Government anything makes me gulp, but the thought of paying taxes on a business that hasn’t made any money yet is, well, daunting. But, it’s now official: I got my business license for Realms Bath & Body Line. I keep hearing in my head a lyric from an old Talking Heads song: “How did I get here?” I’m wondering if I’m doing the right thing.

Coupeville festival traffic

What a time! The Coupeville Arts & Crafts Festival was great. I was honored to be among such amazing artists. We couldn’t have ordered up better weather.  The place was packed and the booth location was perfect. Behind us was a picturesque antique store, then the water.

Realms booth

We left three sides of the tent open and put up the new Realms sign that Kev’s cousin Tim had made up for me in back.

I sold out of my new shaving soap!

And, for the first time, I have the feeling that I may just be onto something — something worth pursuing.

2009 Coupeville Arts & Crafts Festival

Friends and supporters…

Realms products will be making their final appearance of the summer season coming up next weekend at the Coupeville Arts & Crafts festival. This is one of Washington state’s oldest juried  arts and crafts fairs, and I am honored to be appearing for my fisrt time. Realms shaving soap will be making its debut too

I hope to see you there.

Realms Shaving Soap

This humble craftsperson is proud to announce the launch of Realms Shaving Soap. It’s old fashioned shaving soap in a mug. The package comes with wood-handled bristle brushes from Germany. I think the printing on the ceramic mugs came out beautifully.  I scented the soap with my Jaffna scent, which is a light sandalwood. And, I overcame the problem I was having with adding clay to the recipe (a necessary ingredient which makes the razor glide smoother). It was clumping, but I came up with a two step process of mixing that alleviates the clumps. I’m very happy with the result.

This sweet little pewter castle charm is going to be a new addition to Realms packaging — around the necks of full size lotions, shower gels, room sprays.

Ski to Sea Festival

It was a gloriously sunny day. In fact, it was the first Memorial Day weekend since 1966 that had three consecutive sunny days. I had high hopes, but learned that age old valuable lesson about retail: location, location, location. My booth was down on 10th Street instead of up on the main drag. It was also sandwiched in by pony rides on one end and a jumping cage on the other end. No one knew there were booths inbetween. So, as my fellow 10th St. merchants and I wistfully watched the  the wall-to-wall foot traffic on the street above, the day passed quietly for us. My friends who knew I was going to be there came up to me the next week and said, “Where were you? We looked all over!”

Putting the booth together for the festival

So, needless to say, next year, I hope to be up on 11th Street.

Not all is lost for the summer though, I still have one festival coming up: the Coupeville Arts & Crafts Festival on August 1st and 2nd. Fingers crossed the location is going to be much better.