ArtFest on the River - 2012

Williamston Michigan has held a small art fair/festival for a number of years, however the last one was in 2007.  I think it started in 2001, and I started participating in 2002.  There were a lot of circumstances that caused a four year hiatus, including a tornado that took out the park where it was located.  I'm very pleased that it's back and was held this past Saturday.  Check out the website here: ArtFest on the River.  One thing we all were worried about was the weather.  July can be a crazy month of heat, humidity, and rain.  It's been extremely hot here since early June, with the temperatures approaching 110 degrees Fahrenheit, and even higher on the heat index.  Luckily it was a nice breeze and only about 89 in the afternoon.  

I was the only glass artist participating this year, although there were some fused beads and things.  I did quite well, selling about 18-20 pieces.  The attendance was pretty good, but a lot of "lookie-loos" and "be-backs".  Everybody loved the pieces, but not as many actually plunked down cold hard cash for them.  Or should I say "cold hard plastic"?  I signed up for a Square account and got their free card reader.  I have a nice iPhone and it really came in handy.  Very few people carry cash anymore, and even fewer have checkbooks.  I can't recall the last time I wrote a check but its at least 3 years ago!

I had one person pay with cash, three wrote checks, and the rest used credit/debit cards.  I have my money in my hands this morning - and my bank didn't even put a hold on it.  Square promised to deposit my money on Sunday night and it was there.  I still have a hold on the checks, so this was worth the small fees they charge.  One thing of note that I didn't realize on the first transaction was that the reader plugs into the headphone jack.  The little thingie wasn't pushed all the way into the hole and wouldn't read the card.  In the heat of the moment, I just typed in the card number and it worked great.  It ended up costing me about 39 cents more but had a happy customer.