My Novi Farmers' Market & International Street Fair Set UP

I signed up to participate at the Novi Farmers' Market this summer.  This is my first attempt at selling my jewelry outside of Etsy.  So far it has been a load of fun and adventure.  So far, I have learned a lot about setting up outdoors and I am still learning.

I ended up getting an EZ-UP tent from our local Sam's club for $200.  It is not one of the top brands, but for the money, it was recommended by a lot of crafters.   So far I have been happy with it.  Since this is going to be an outdoor event, adding weights to the tent is absolutely necessary.  Instead of buying ready made weights, my husband made the weights out of PVC pipes and filled them with Sand.  They are hung from a chain and attached to the leg with an S hook and kept in place with a clamp to stop it from moving around.  Although we found out later, we do not need the clamp.  I also decided to go with the side panels and today I was glad I did.  We had a down poor and the panels kept the tent, the jewelry, and us dry.

Setting up the tent is not too bad, but you definitely need two people.  Since I am short, we decided to add the side panels while the tent is setup at medium height and then raise it all the way to the normal height.

  Instead of going with 6 foot tables, I decided to use two folding 4 foot tables.  They are easier to carry and it went better with my U shape set up.

 
My husband made a display case with wood and plexiglass for me.  It is not heavy and helps keep things dry and out of the wind.  It is open on the back for access and setup.

He also made the three tier display which gives varying height requirement for the set up.  It also has room on the back for supplies, such as promotional cards, wrapping, receipts and other items needed to complete a sale.

The table skirts are very easy no sew solution.  They are duck taped  to the table top on the corners and in the middle and held in place by the weight of the display units.

For earrings, my husband made three grids.  We found the metal grids at Lowe's in the organization section, and he built the frame for it.  They are hung from a shower curtain rod with clamps.  They also act as stabilizers for the tent.

As for my sign I designed it and have it printed at Vista Print for about $15.00 (they had a special, Free small banner, there was a charge for uploading my own design).   They sell the corner tabs as well which makes the task of hanging the sign easier.

I made my own earring cards from card stock paper and ordered earring card adapters from J.S. Ritter.

As you can see my husband's carpentry skills came in very handy and useful.  I really appreciate his help.  In addition he comes with me to the market and is a great helper.

My setup is still a work in progress and I have yet to make a profit; however, the journey so far, has been price less.