This is the only photo I took on the day I went to the Renegade Craft Fair:
That's my friend Renae. And our glasses of wine at 4:30, a.k.a, the elderly person's dinner hour. Though in Wicker Park you might as well be elderly at age 32.
This post is not to say that I wasn't blown away by what I saw at Renegade. Earlier this week I was thinking back to when I first attended (2004?) and the fair was held in the actual park of Wicker Park, and there were maybe like 30 vendors selling weird jewelry and band t-shirts. The artistry and displays and merchandising and serious TALENT that comes to Renegade nowadays is pretty amazing. It's also pretty overwhelming. It was really hard for me to concentrate on admiring the work when there were just so many people, it was hot, my allergies were bad, blah blah blah... oops, sorry, now I feel like a senior citizen again.
ANYWAY. That said, I discovered a ton of new favorites. I bought a pillow from Caitlin at Little Low that I'm in LOVE with and I think I may redesign my whole bedroom around it's color palette. Renae bought a darling necklace from Rachel at Poppy and Fern and I'm planning on ordering one of her custom embroideries for Norah's room. I was also super happy to pick up a print from Laura Berger, whose work I've admired for years. Every vendor we talked to was so friendly and approachable too.
Some other cards I picked up and sites I've bookmarked this week? Belrossa, their bags and clutches made from recycled vintage quilts were super cute; Brainstorm had really beautiful, detailed art prints; if I wouldn't have run out of cash I probably would have bought a little pouch from Custom Made UK; and Thimblepress also had some really eye-catching prints.
I do feel like such a crank complaining about how crowded the fair was; I should be sublimely happy that all these hard-working artisans are getting so much business. Friends that went, what did you think? Am I just being cranky? I'd love to hear about your experiences.
I completely understand. Josh and I got there before it opened on Saturday and it was awesome for about an hour. Then it got busy. By the afternoon, I was mostly just frustrated by the number of people. It's so hard to get in and out of booths to really look at anything. I still love it though. :)
Posted by: kimberly | 09/13/2012 at 07:56 PM
I am totally a cranky old person with all the people that bring their dogs, that I'm always afraid I will end up stepping on. I'm always surprised that dog fights don't erupt. Raining years are the absolute worst because everyone has umbrellas that threaten to poke my eyes out. We have worn rain coats with hoods and are fortunately able to duck under the umbrellas to get where we want to go. Meanwhile umbrellaed folks are dumping water on all the products in the booths. So annoying. Despite all of those complaints, this year I really didn't have any problems with the crowds. Maybe I'm getting used to it. In past years I have walked away from booths that I wanted to support because I couldn't take the rude customers pushing. But no matter how annoying the crowds can be, I will still always go. We have learned over the years that you have to go first thing on the first day, otherwise you see plenty of great but empty booths. All the good stuff gets snatched up right away.
With the size and success of this event I really feel like they should have more of them throughout the year. Maybe out in the burbs so I don't have to find parking in the city (another tell tale sign that I'm old).
Also, I'm glad you mentioned Poppy and Fern because that was a booth that I was fawning over as well. Basically I've been looking for a brooch exactly like the things they sell, but at the point that I finally saw their booth I had already spent all my money :( I picked up their business card and promised to buy something online.
Posted by: Robyn | 09/14/2012 at 07:33 AM
Thanks so much for the sweet mention! :) Have a great day!
Kristen (Thimblepress)
Posted by: Kristen | 09/17/2012 at 10:47 AM
Thank you so much for the kind words! I am so glad that you and Renae stopped by. :) It was my first time in Chicago and your fair city was so welcoming. Hope your week is off to a wonderful start!
Rachel
Poppy and Fern
Posted by: Rachel | 09/18/2012 at 11:15 AM