The Gift of Craft Fairs

As I have previously mentioned I really like craft fairs. They make my heart go pitter patter. I feel ridiculously happy when I attend a craft fair (especially if it is not too crowded with people). I have attended three this year and they were all so different. Every year there is one I attend without fail. It is held in a massive barn and it has many many vendors. I have been going for about eight or nine years and for the last five years I have bought something that I really loved. Many of the same vendors come each year and so each year I hold out for something that I remembered from years past that I wanted. I have a matching hat to my friend Emily, I have a big ceramic mug that is just the size I need for my tea, I have a basket made of pine needles made by a lady named Mary and I have a pottery leaf. They are all treasures. This year I bought something that is close to my favorite. I hesitate to say any of these are my favorite because they are all so different. However there is one vendor each year that I have fiercely admired but never spent the money on her wares. This year my friend and I decided to go big or go home and we bought matching necklaces from her. There is something about wearing this necklace for me. I often feel a bit trapped in my house. It is silly really because I am not trapped in my house, not at all. However there is always so much work to do with this size of family and often I do not get outside to do what I enjoy most. This necklace is a reminder to me. I am so thankful I purchased it. Each treasure from this craft fair is a very specific gift I have given to myself. They each mean something to me in a different way. I grew up seeing my parents struggle in different ways but one of those ways saw my mom not giving gifts to herself. I noticed it from the time I was young and for a long time didn't understand it. I feel like I did the same for a long time myself through the years. It had to do with self worth or lack there of. This craft fair has become a symbol to me of the progress I have made in regards to giving to myself things that I really admire and love. I am not waiting for someone else to guess and buy them for me or feeling sorry for myself that I love them but wont get them. I just get them. It's been a process and I am thankful. I tried to take some pictures worthy of these treasures. Here they are ~