It's all about the show.

Why do you love a Quilt Show, fibre festival or similar? You know the ones I mean, the ones with loads of stands and a myriad of ideas. Do you go to meet famous and interesting artists, gain inspiration and knowledge, see what's trending so you can keep up with the "fashion" of the day, or something else entirely? Like buy buy buying goodies?

Whatever is on offer at a show, most of us, or at least many of us, enjoy a great crafting show. Well, why not? We're crafters, stitchers, makers, creators. What is there not to love? But what is the real reason(s) you attend?

The last show I went to was one I had an exhibitor's stand at and I loved every minute of it. It's not about the selling for me. It's about the community - meeting old and making new friends, meeting the customers in the flesh, watching people. (I love watching people don't you?). I'm sure Lizzy has been and still is (at the time of writing) enjoying the camaraderie of other exhibitors/vendors, basking in the "buzz" of a busy event and most of all, meeting up with followers, you who may or may not have met her before but feel you are one of her closet friends, which of course you are! There's always something about these events that brings us joy, and so they should.

Look at this lovely photo of Lizzy's stand this weekend at The Newmarket Quilt Show. How pretty everything is. How inviting everything looks. Don't you just want to dive in for a rummage and find the exact kit you've been wanting, get the bits of habby that are so useful, or buy a book or two? Of course you do, and so do I. But, there's something belonging to this stand that is not for sale. There's something for free, something money can't buy. What is it? It's Lizzy herself - her smile, her friendship, her welcome. That's what is priceless!

So after visiting some of the stands, you go and find the exhibition of work - the quilts...

Well, wow! What a display! Do they inspire you? Do they make you think "I can do that"? It's fantastic to see what others have done and think to yourself "I'm a quilter too", or "I've used those colours in..." or had a similar idea. It makes me feel like I'm part of something, albeit a very small part. I am always flabbergasted at the talent.

It may be that you feel a little inadequate or intimidated by the apparently perfect stitching? I understand that. The creators are so talented! But they weren't always as expert at their craft, they started their journey from the same place as you and grew just like you've grown. Don't ever think your work is inferior. It may be different, it may be more simple but it will always be beautiful and unique. If you find yourself thinking "I could never do that", look more closely, try and find one of the blocks or a small section of the work and then reconsider your reaction. Yes there will always be something that is outside your scope of experience or expertise but you don't actually know what you can do until you try.

So what's in it for the exhibitor at a show?

• Well it's all about the money, getting people to buy! False, it's partly about sales, we do have to eat and pay the bills.

• So, it's about the advertising/marketing! True maybe, it's certainly a great way to advertise but there are far easier ways to do this.

• Okay then, it's about sussing out the competition!! You could be right, but don't forget, the competition is mostly made up of long standing friends, new friends, colleagues, supporters, plain and simple crafters. And, you could always do this by looking at their website or social media content.

Do you give up?

Well there's a whole host of reasons why exhibitors/stand holders spend weeks (and £££) preparing for a show:

• Adrenaline, excitement, buzz and thrill of being part of it

• Getting out of the work room

• Being inspired

• Chatting with mates and buddies

• Making new contacts

• Sharing experiences

• Being reminded that there is a whole community of passionate people out there who just "get" what you do

• Meeting customers and followers in the flesh - there's nothing quite like it!

• And yep, it's here in the list but right at the bottom - making a living: sales, marketing, promotion, survival

I could go on but, to be honest, you'd get bored and stop reading!

So, let's go back to the reasons why you love a show.

It could be as simple as you just love supporting the people who make your crafting more possible. Those who give so much time, put in so much effort and take so much care to help you. I love to see and meet up with crafters who have inspired me and, confession time, I do get a little bit star struck :-o. Seriously though, it's a lovely thing to meet your heroes, your idols, your inspiration.

So next time you see a show advertised that makes you think you may like to see what all the hype is about, grab a friend and go. Perhaps even contact a friend you haven't seen in ages and arrange to meet up at the show. If you love arranging events, why not organise a little group to travel and visit the show? The possibilities are limited to only your imagination.

If you're not in the best of health, maybe someone would take you to a show near to your home. You don't have to stay all day and all the venues have somewhere you can sit and have a coffee, or tea!

Whatever your reason for loving (or not liking at all) a crafting event, do keep attending. Things are tough for small businesses, and indeed for us all. But you and the small business owner can get so much from events such as these. There's always a little "show special", a "freebie" or a "reduced" bucket and small items that you can buy to support local crafters. You don't have to spend a fortune, unless you want to of course - take a flask and a packed lunch to reduce the cost. The best reason to go is to enjoy yourself, get out of the house!

Crafting events will die out if not supported by the public and we will lose a great resource if that happens. Please don't let it! We may even meet there one day!

The next blog post will be after the clocks have changed and spring will have arrived. I'm not wishing my life away but I can't wait. Here's a bunch of Daffs to keep you going.

Until April,

Happy Stitching

Love, Kath x