Patchwork Show Santa Ana Spring 2018

One of my favorite parts of our Patchwork Show Santa Ana last weekend was running into a family who has been coming to the show since the early days. It was so cool to see that the daughter who was a little kid when we started Patchwork Show is now going off to college! In the past 10 years she’s become a smart creative kind young woman and Patchwork Show has grown from a tiny show in a parking lot with 20 vendors to a thriving multi-street festival with hundreds of vendors.

This weekend at the show, I got emotional seeing the way the show has evolved. Brand new vendors getting their feet wet during their first show and veteran vendors who’ve been on the craft show circuit for years and have perfected their booth displays. Our staff working like pros to set-up and break down the show (even when unexpected issues like illegally parked cars in spaces where we needed to put vendors or aggressive situations arose). Working a show with my partner and aunt Delilah again for the first time years and marveling at her management and multi-tasking skills. Seeing how the local businesses got involved with pop-up DIY’s and restaurants. Delilah has cultivated a so much support and love from the community and it was evident everywhere.

At the end of the day, I was directing traffic to assist with load out and a man came up to me and thanked me. It’s so rare that a guest comes up to me out of the blue and I was fully prepared listen to a complaint (any event producer can tell you that this is usually the reason people seek them out at a show). Instead, this man who had been coming to the shows for several years thanked us for providing a fun thing for him and his family to do as well as a way for him to get to know and support local makers. Whhaaattt?!! At that moment when the sun was beating down on me and my feet were aching and I was feeling like what I do is just a drop in the bucket, this man took time out to tell me that he is grateful for what Delilah and I have done. Don’t get me wrong, I totally know that I’m NOT performing CPR in the back of an ambulance or discovering the cure for cancer or even inventing the next big time-saving app but knowing that Patchwork Show has been a place where that guy and his family as well as the girl going off to college and her family have discovered and supported local makers and created memories not only filled me with pride but made my smile just a little bit wider as I directed the last vendor off the street.

Catch us at our last two shows of the spring season in Long Beach and Oakland. Show dates and info are here.

-Nicole S.

P.S. – I ran into our staffer Nik V. at the show. She’s an outstanding photographer (plus happened to have her camera with her) and she was kind enough to send some of her photos from show which you can see below. I didn’t run into her until late in the day and I’d already taken tons of photos, so you can check mine out after Nik’s. 🙂

PHOTOS BY NIK V PHOTOGRAPHY:

ABOUT NIK VANDEVENTER:

Nik is a fun, creative free spirit who loves to make others happy with the things she creates, especially through photography. Her 10 years of experience have given her an interesting and unique eye when it comes to capturing life through the lens of a camera. A few things she’s obsessed with: cats, good coffee, craft beer, traveling, laughing, music, live shows, cooking but more importantly eating, her rad friends, anything true crime, The Food Network (mostly for Bobby Flay) oh and her husband Matt, he’s pretty cool too. You can find her work here: www.nikvphotography.com and on Instagram @nikvphotography.

PHOTOS BY NICOLE STEVENSON: