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Today Is The Gasparilla Craft Show, Outdoors In Tampa


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and i cannot hear myself think because of the pounding rain smashing onto my roof.  the forecast was for a 40% chance of rain.  if this is 40%, there cannot be any rain left for anywhere else.

 

oh, those poor exhibitors.  some come from a thousand or more miles away.

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I'm 90ish miles south of tampa, yesterday I had a beautiful day on the water at an art market, watching the ospreys and bald eagles fight in the skies above us and the pelicans circle around as they decided where to land in the harbor. The rain for us held away til we started breaking down at 4 pm. So glad we had a better day than forecasted...sorry for the tampa shows that got hit. Some of our usual artists and crafters didn't show up for fear of the forecasted rain...mostly watercolorists, photographers and soap makers. But the sun crepted out of the overcast skies around 10 am and it was a lovely show.

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got to the show sunday afternoon.  lots of people, lots of sunshine, lots of very  very  very bad  mud.  the tents were set up on a large flat park with grass surrounded by paving.  the people who were lucky enough to get spots on the paving had no problem today.  everyone else had water and mushy mud with no relief in sight.  some potters who use rugs inside their tents were going to toss them after the show.  i have never seen such a mess that was not addressed by the folks in charge of the venue.  even the small fairs i attend have straw to cover the mud if it happens.   

 

everyone i talked to said yesterday was a disaster, it rained all day and most of the night.   but with so much mess today, customers were looking down rows and deciding not to go that way.  dropped my wallet at a potters desk when i bought a pot and someone picked it up for me. soppy wet and no longer red.

 

apparently the parking venue next door which has always charged $10 for the day decided to make it up in one day.  at the bottom of the ramp there were cards with a price of $20 on them.  many of us turned around and found parking nearby. first day of warmth and sunshine, lots of sunburn tomorrow.  

 

as always it was a glorious time seeing so many excellent pots, sculpture, wall pieces, fabulous glazes, incredibly large things and tiny, delicate pots and folks i know from many parts of the country.

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What some of us use and especially in weather situations is a polypropylene rug. The one I speak is a bit special.These are not found easily as the ones I'm talking about are sold in 1 meter sections or 2 meter or 3 meter and are sold folded. I roll mine after the first use as it makes them last longer. I have many three section ones in light green motives which is about 9 feet by 9 feet. They are sewn together in the 3 meter sections. You find them at asian markets or sometimes spanish markets. Look for them in large citys with the specility markets. I have seen them in San Francisco/Okland  Ca. and all mine come from Lee Lees Market in Chandler Arizona.I did buy one in a Mexican Market in Santa Rosa,Ca as well.They are thin- super light and do not hold water or dirt and you hose them off when you get home. Since they do not hold water they dry next to instantly. I put shoe goo on the seams when they are new as the seam threads wear down 1st and they come apart. The shoe goo makes them last for many years. I use two at 3 shows a year no matter the weather as it covers the street. I like to cover the street with them as it makes it look better. I have an emergency 2 meter one in van always for rain its not a great color as its blue and white.

I have rarely seen them online but they do turn up. The 3 meter section ones are around 30$.

They come in many color/patern choices but you want one that is not to busy.

Find a market where english is not spoken and these rugs are not far away.

Heres my emergency one at a show a few years ago-I no longer do this show but it shows the rug well.

Mark

post-8914-0-21921500-1425280328_thumb.jpg

post-8914-0-21921500-1425280328_thumb.jpg

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