Blog

July 29-31

Application Fee: $35
Booth Fee: $500

The show is held in the parking lot adjacent to Main Street in the center of town next to all the shopping and restaurants. Breckenridge was voted one of the most beautiful mountain towns in a very affluent area. This time of year is at the peak of the tourist season. This is the 15th year for this show and is very well received by the town and locals.  

Tina and Dick Cunningham are now running the show having taken over from Mark Belling.  

We have made a few changes to make the show easier to set up and tear down and are increasing the advertising budget.  We advertise in local papers, calendar of events through out the county, and also extensive radio ads in Summit County and Vail Valley.

Contact:  Dick Cunningham
Email:  MountainArtFestivals@gmail.com
Phone:  (970)406-1866

Best of Show ($10,000 Purchase Award)

Aletha Jones - Watercolor

(photo at right - Aletha & Holly Hensen, 2016 president of the WPSAF)

Edyth Bush Charitable Foundation Art of Philanthropy Award ($5000)

Katherine Mathisen - Sculpture
(photo at right below - 

Katherine Mathisen is with David Odahowski, President of the Edyth Bush Charitable Foundation, and Holly Henson)

Morse Museum Award for a Distinguished Work of Art ($2500)

Robert Hessler - Clay
(3rd photo - Robert Hessler, Morse Award Winner,  is with Holly Henson, President of WPSAF)

10 Awards of Excellence ($2000)

Richard Auger - Photography

Carolyn Cohen - Printmaking

Candiss Cole-Footitt, Rodger Footitt - Fiber

Matthew Cornell - Painting

Robert Farrell - Metal

Roin Kittleson - Glass

Jennifer Ivory - MM 3D

Michael Madzo - MM 2D

Dylan Stryzynski - Painting

Marina Terauds - Printmaking

20 Awards of Distinction ($1000)

James Barnes - Wood

James Carter - Painting

Robert Coby - Glass

Scott Coulter - Painting

Randy Eckard - Watercolor

Ummarid Eitharong - Painting

Susan Frerichs- Jewelry

Helen Gotlib - Drawings & Pastels

M. Kemper Watrcolor

Danielle Merzatta - Jewelry

Cathy Rose - Sculpture

Suzanne Scarborough - Mixed Media

Bounkhong Signavong, Wolfgang Grieger - Fiber

Grant Silverstein - Printmaking

Paul Stevens - Photography

Mark Sudduth - Glass

Jonathan White - Clay

Vonnie Whitowrth - Watercolor

Micahel Wommack - Drawings & Pastels

Youngjoo Yoo - Jewelry

30 Awards of Merit ($500)

Lisha Ashinoff - Painting

David Bryce - Sculpture

Edson Campos - Drawigs

Ed Coleman, Kate Coleman - Clay

Erin Curry - Drawings

David Figueroa - Sculpture

Jenny Henley - MM, 2D

Aaron Hequembourg - MM, 2D

Cali Hobgood - Phottography

Lori Jenkins - Watercolor

Michael & Mieko Kahn - Clay

Karen Klinefelter - Jewelry

William Kwamena-Poh - Watercolor

Mark Lewanski - Glass

Ethan Lillemor - Clay

Clare Malloy - Drawings

Trent Manning - MM, 2D

John Mascoll 0 Wood

William Ortman - Glass

Andrew Otis - Clay

Loretta Petraitis - Painting

Luke Proctor - Metal

Adriana Rangel - Fiber

Robert Ross - Painting

Aaron Sault - Jewelry

Ezra Siegel - MM, 2D

Joyce Stewart - Fiber

Tai Taeoalii - MM, 2D

Cat Tesla - MM, 2D

Zhou Yu - Painting

Even better news is that the top 33 winners are invited back! (Distinction, Excellence and top three)

I just want to thank Jeff Gracz for submitting several show reviews this month.  He wrote reviews for several west coast shows.  We are always looking for some west coast shows to help out artists on the west coast. 

You all know how important it is to have an idea of what to expect before applying to an art show.  Nobody likes to be blindsided once you get to a show and find out it is nothing like you hoped it would be.  That is why art show reviews are so important.  You can find art show reviews at www.Artshowreviews.com.

Here are a few west coast shows that we really could use a few more reviews for.  So, if you have done any of the shows listed here we would love you to review one or a few of them.

Bigfork Festival of the Arts - Montana

Proctor Arts Fest - Washington

Sequim Lavender Festival Street Fair - Washington

RAGS Wearable Art Show - Washington

Urban Craft Uprising - Seattle

Lake Chelan Fine Arts Festival - Washington

Bellevue Festival of the Arts - Washington

Woodland Hills Art & Craft Faire - California

America's Clay Fest III - California

We would also be happy for anyone to review any other show that you would like to.  If you want to review a show not on our site, that is fine.  Just submit it and I will get it added for you.  Then, you can add your review once I get it posted to the site.

To write a review or to submit a show just go to www.Artshowreviews.com

And once again, thanks so much Jeff Gracz for all of your help.  It was so appreciated.

August 13 & 14
Shelby Township, Michigan
presented by Shelby Towmship Art Fair Committee
Shelby Township Municipal Grounds
100 Artists
Deadline: April 1

Now with four exhibitor categories, this event is held outdoors on the Shelby Township Municipal Grounds with the majority of the booths on grass, many with shade trees. All booths measure approximately 15' x 15' with some double booths available. NO resale products, services, home improvement companies, or distributors permitted.

What to expect from us:
The friendly, helpful, organized staff, easy load-in & load-out, Friday night set-up, plenty of free daytime & overnight parking close to exhibit areas, overnight grounds security, and complimentary coffee and donuts each morning help to create a fun, friendly atmosphere. 

Advertising in local and regional publications, internet social media, television and radio announcements, e-mail blasts, flyers, banners and signs throughout the community, and more bring over 10,000 visitors to the event. 

Features for visitors:
free parking and shuttle bus, family friendly musical and other entertainment, kid's craft and activity area, great tasting food, and a sponsor tote bag giveaway.

New this year:
As a result of our 2015 survey, there are now four categories for applicants to choose from:

• ART MEDIA - Original, hand-made, one of a kind pieces (with the exception of prints), created and produced by the artist 
• EMERGING ARTISTS - Artists just starting to exhibit in any of the ART mediums that don't have enough work for a full booth. Each accepted artist may rent no more than one 6 foot table under the Emerging Artists Tent.
• CRAFT MEDIA - Items created by the crafter and produced in small quantities 
• MICHIGAN MADE MARKET - Items created in batches by Michigan based businesses 

We had that show that is near my house.  It has been a bad weekend all around for the artists, the organizer, the shoppers, EVERYONE.  Oh, and the weather was a major player too.  Where do I start. 

Let's start with the weather.  It was predicted it would begin raining on this past Wednesday through Friday, I think.  Then the rain did not come on Wednesday.  It started on Thursday night.  Much better, right?  Noooooo.  The rain came hard, winds, and before Friday was over there were reports of hail in our area the size of 1/2 dollar.  On our personal rain gauge it said it rained at a rate of 8" per hour for about 10-15 minutes.

Let me begin by saying that this show has been going on for 20 or more years.  It is held every Palm Sunday weekend on Saturday only and the first Saturday of November.  It is a fundraiser for one of the plantation homes in our town.  It is in fact a very big deal to them having funds to operate.  It has been successful and has 300+ booths, hot cooked food to purchase, tours of the plantation, and more.  They handle all food sales with volunteers from service organizations manning the food booths (Rotary, schools, etc.).  We started doing this show in 2013.

We decided that since it was not supposed to rain Friday morning that we'd go and get a head start on setting up, rather than do it all this morning.  So about 1/2 hour after arriving it began to drizzle.  We had put down a tarp on the ground in the booth, also our Astroturf.  We put up the sides, a tarp over the top, weights on all corners, etc.  All the things we are "supposed" to do.  We did not put any of our stock in the tent, thankfully.  It rained off and on all day Friday and into the night.

We went back over about 6:40 this morning to prepare for the 8:00 AM open time.  As we approached our booth I was just ahead of dh, who was pulling a wagon loaded with booth stuff.  I looked for our booth and was confused.  The area did not look like we had left it.  It was all .... messed up.  I realized our booth had collapsed in the night.  It was awful.  It was totally lost, totally unsalvageable.  Fortunately, we lost only a tent, no loss of life or limb.  We decided right then to notify the director what happened and why we were not staying, then the tear down process.  Everyone we know who now knows about it has been totally sympathetic and concerned for our welfare.  There were others who lost their tent and more.

The grounds of the venue, the plantation, were/are miserably soggy, ankle deep in water in some places.  It was a miserable place to be.  There were many spots that were empty, due to artists not wanting to risk their art, as is understandable.  There were some booths that were empty because they have low spots, which makes them have standing water when it rains this much, this close to a show.  It was awful.  I felt bad for fellow artists and crafters, as much as I did for myself.

 Some of the artists and crafters called on the host to delay the show a day.  Of course there are many reasons not to delay the show:

1)    Some/many of the artists must get on the road home or to other commitments

2)    the volunteers may have other commitments the next day

3)    security is contracted

4)    insurance purposes

5)    rented equipment

6)    and many more.

Actually if the powers that be had decided to wait to hold the show Sunday and my tent had remained intact I would have been okay with that.  However, the show went on as scheduled.

There ended up being a lot of finger pointing, anger, confusion about why the board continued with the show.  The grounds are shot with tire tracks and ruts.  I am sure that whatever group you look at you’ll find a good percentage of them mad.

The other thing is the staff and board putting on the show.  The director is new to her job.  The assistant director is new.  The word on the street is that the previous director left nothing for the new director to work with for this show.  Word on the street says she was in over her head and knew it.

There were posts on Facebook from confused and angry artists that were deleted.  I saw them before they were deleted then saw the angry response from the original poster over the deletion.  I think at that point it was a matter of damage control.  Damage was done on all sides I think.

Personally I did not respond on Facebook.  I decided to resist the temptation to reply, not that I am better than anyone.  However, many times we have all seen statements or questions on Facebook blow up over being misunderstood.  I am not at a point I want to burn bridges with this place.  Now, if someone directly asks me my opinion I’ll give it to them.  If I am asked advice and I have something worth sharing, I’ll share.  There are some people I know personally who have been to this show as artists that I have spoken with face to face or private texts that how I feel about things.

This particular venue had a poor last show due to weather but not to the extent of this show.  It has not rained prior (or very little) but did rain the day of the show.  It cost this venue plenty in gate fees thus less foot traffic, lack of food sales, grounds rutted up from vehicles, etc.  Attendance last fall was about 25% of what it normally is.  I would guess that today was about the same or worse.

My concern over back to back poor shows is a certain reputation getting out whether it’s valid or not.  One poor show can happen to any organizer or any venue on any given day.  When you have 2 in a row I believe word, gossip, starts to get out.  I may be wrong but I believe now after 2 poor shows that artists will pull out, never to return.  Then as they pull out new artists will begin to question why so many are not returning.  They will begin to ask questions, some of which will get accurate responses and some will get gossip.

One more thing that happened is this.  The venue puts out a program with a map of the grounds and it’s pretty accurate.  It also has a 2-page list of all the artists with his or her name and booth number.  The layout of the artist/booth list has worked for a very long time.  It was easy to figure out and if you advertised your booth number in social media or other publications, it was easy enough for someone to find your listing by your booth number.  Someone, not sure who, got really creative and changed the whole format of the artist/booth listing.  I had seen the original listing quite a few times.  This new one was harder to decipher because instead of having columns going down the page in numerical order of the booths, it went across the page.  Some booth numbers were skipped, not sure why unless they were not filled at the time of printing.

When I picked up my packed Friday morning I picked up on of the programs and was looking at the map.  The volunteer, a gracious mature lady, said something about it being different and how she was not sure why they did that.  I told her then and there it was confusing and that they had screwed it up.

Since we got home we have done some things to remedy our plight.  Dh started pulling the tent sides out to hose them down.  I took our drapes and table covers (still in their bag) which got totally wet and started washing them.  We got our boxes of product out and on tables in the garage.  The cardboard boxes the coasters were in were softening due to the humidity event though they remained in the truck in the camper shell.  We unboxed all of them.

I decided to make lemonade out of lemons by having a Flash Sale.  I went to social media and announced it for this afternoon.  I did make a whopping $40, plus one friend arranged to purchase and pick up $24 worth of car coasters.  Back on Thursday, I think, another friend had ordered $24 worth of car coasters.  So, I’ve made just over ½ of my booth fee.  It is not a total loss but I was hoping for much better.

Fortunately for us this was our last outdoor show of the season.  I have an indoor show next month that is 3 days.  It is my first time there and I am looking forward to it.  It is supposed to be upscale shopping.

Now is the time for us to start looking for a new tent and insurance.  No, I did not have insurance so that is what makes this even harder.  I am going to back to the forum over the next few days and weeks to read up on insurance and tents.

More pics to come.

May 7
Atlanta, Georgia
Presented by Entercom
40 Artists
Deadline: March 30

Application fee: $30
Booth fee: $300

If you have pet themed art we think you'll love this outdoor event in the beautiful suburb of Suwannee in the Town Center, in Atlanta. This "Pet Party in the Park" caters to animal lovers, so we're looking for artists and crafters who have animal or pet themes. Pet owners are passionate and have high disposable income!

This year we are highlighting artisans who focus on animals. Do you have art that features animals or pets, or a product or craft item for a pet? If so we encourage you to apply for Woofstock!

Learn more about our party in the park: www.WoofstockATL.com

Apply right now: https://www.zapplication.org/event-info.php?ID=4844

Questions: Dave Demer, Dave.demer@Entercom.com, 404-238-9445

August 20 

Green, Ohio

small and large businesses.

Didn't get to that open jury and new to the business? I just found this information that should be of great help to artists new to the business: 

The Art Fest Boot Camp 2016 is set for 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday, April 23, at the Art Center Highland Park, 1957 Sheridan Road. The featured speaker for this free event is Amy Amdur, of Amdur Productions, who has produced more than 40 annual art festival across the country. Amdur will lead an overview session to help artists grow their art business. The session will provide artists with pointers about displaying and showing their work, speaking about their art and the art of selling. Artists are encouraged to bring a piece of art to the event.

To RSVP, contact Caitlin Pfleger at (847) 926-4300 or by email caitlin@amdurproductions.com

I have permission to reprint here an email I got earlier today from an art consultant, Dori Gilinski of the Dori Gilinski Gallery, with "Tips for Museum Goers for Properly Buying Art" ... 

Not only good for "museum goers", how about sharing it with all those folks who buy art and follow you? Remember, building that audience and marketing it is a part of your job. Here it is:

Tips for visiting a museum:

1)         Slow down. It is tempting to feel like you want to conquer it all and see every piece during your visit, but more can be gained from finding 2-3 paintings that you really connect with and spending time with them. I learnt to really look at a painting on a trip with Picasso expert Christopher Green to the Tate Modern in London – where he instructed his students to pick a painting they liked, and to just stand in front of it for 20 minutes taking it in. The experience of looking at art in this way contrasts hugely with the usual habit of museum goers who dart from canvas to canvas. The average visitor spends 15 to 30 seconds in front of a work of art according to museum researchers. Try to spend 15 to 30 minutes on a special piece to really make the most of your visit.

2)         Do your research. Before your visit, check out what special exhibitions may be on for a limited amount of time. Be sure to check out the museum’s website for any interesting lectures or events such as tours led by the curator which could enhance your experience of the visit.

3)         Limited use of your phone. Resist the urge to Instagram. As tempting as it might be to share with your followers your visit, try to experience it for yourself through your own eyes and not through the screen of your phone. One of the things that struck me most when I worked for a gallery during Art Basel Miami was how little people actually engaged with the works. The gallery was exhibiting a beautiful Picasso painting of the artist’s lover Dora Maar that merited the attention of visitors, but most people would just snap a photo as evidence that “I was here” and would move on. Be in the moment and take in the art for yourself.

4)         If possible, avoid weekends and holidays. You will be able to avoid lines and get the space for yourself without the crowds. My favourite time to go are weekday mornings – or get your culture fix after hours by checking out museum lates on evenings when museums stay open past regular closing time. (Well, this one won't work for us.)

5)         Read the labels. These are the notecards usually adjacent to the canvas itself. You will definitely find clues that will help you understand the paintings better. The title of the work could point out themes within the work and the date could help you place the piece within its historical context. Art is a way to study a culture, its history, and what it values - let it guide you in your understanding.

6)         Look for the humanity in the work. It is easy for your senses to become overwhelmed when you are looking at so many paintings at once – but try to think of the task of visiting a museum differently: try to connect with the human being behind the work. Try to connect with the man or woman of flesh and blood who put a paintbrush against the canvas and created the piece. Try to get into his or her skin. What was the artist up when he made the painting? What are his fears, his aspirations, his mindset? Do you find resonance with your own life? Use art as a launching pad for self-reflection. 

About Dori Gilinski

As a private art consultant, Dori Gilinski has held private exhibitions in London, New York, Panama City, and Bogota. This is her first show open to the public. Dori Gilinski Gallery

June 4
Jackson, Michigan
Presented by the Ella Sharp Museum
Noon-6pm
50 Artists
Deadline:  April 1

Jury fee: $25; Booth fee: $65

The Ella Sharp Museum presents the 12th Annual Art, Beer & Wine Festival.  The event will feature over 35 local wineries and beer tents, as well as 45 artists!

Festival goers can enjoy live music and artist booths nestled on the grounds of the Ella Sharp Museum and within the courtyard of the museum's historic Hillside Farm Lane.  Adult tasting tickets include entry to live entertainment and artist booths, gallery access, ten sampling tickets, and a commemorative glass.  Tickets are $25 pre-sale and $30 at the door.  Pre-sale tickets available in March 2016.  General admission tickets are $5 (no alcohol included).

Artists will have an opportunity to present and sell their work to nearly 3,000 festival goers from south central Michigan as well as enjoy the festivities throughout the day that surround them at the event.

Apply: http://bit.ly/1PSK0dG 

The question is if an application says jury fee not refundable and the application and pictures never make it through that process because the application was submitted by mistake through an electronic site 4 weeks after the show was closed.

After the realization of this mistake the show was contacted and to date the show had not contact the artist. So the first contact was done by the artist via e-mail With no response. Finally a response came but it was not regarding their application and it said that they had told them that had addressed their application with them and the jury fee and application would be held for the next show.

After the receipt of this e-mail the artist than called to talk with them and to let them know that they must have mistaken them for another artist. When speaking with the it was felt that this was no big deal and do not bother them because they had said that they would just keep the fee and app until the next show. The response from the artist was you can not keep that fee even though it was stated on the site because it never went through the jury process in fact the promoter did not even know that the application had been submitted.

So is the artist right that the jury fee be returned or does the promoter have the right to keep the fee because the site says jury fee is nonrefundable?

Here is my position a jury fee is for a process that artists have to go through to enter a show. If it dose not go through this process there should be no charge because nothing was done. I believe that the artist would have not had a issue with this if it had said application fee. They did complete and file an application for the show on the site.

Please let me know what you think and has anyone ever run into this issue, especially since fees are getting so high.

This is one of Howard Alan's largest shows, stretching along A1A from Marcinski Rd. (on the north) to the south entrance of Loggerhead Rd. (on the south) in Juno Beach, FL--close to Jupiter on Florida's east coast. I don't cite the distance in "blocks" because there aren't any: These are the only two access points for the show. Setup began at a leisurely 10 AM on Friday and stretched as long as you needed (You could come at 6 AM Saturday if you wanted, but most took the Friday setup option.)

Artist parking is provided at each end, but so many artists had trailers (each requiring its own space) that the lots filled up by 9 AM when I arrived on Saturday. There was a Publix shopping center with lots of parking just west of the north entrance, so I parked there instead with no repercussions (despite the 24/7 towing surveillance signs).

The stretch of A1A has tall hedges on both sides. This was a warm, mid-80s weekend with high humidity and a predominantly south-to-north breeze, and the hedges funnelled the breezes along the road--making it nice for walking show-goers, but not necessarily for artists sitting in their booths. It was hot in there!

This is another show I'd categorize as surprisingly "meh" for me, though many others seemed to do well...a category I'm using for more and more events this season. Whether due to the heat, or the time zone change on Sunday (which always seems to make patrons a little sluggish, as though their wallets are on a time lock), this show never really got rolling for me. I had five sales on Saturday, all decently sized. But Sunday was a different story, with only one(!), as folks strolled by groggily and buying energy seemed to dissipate.

Your results may have varied:  My fine art bird work seems to fly better in SW Florida than on the east coast--particularly south of Stuart/Hobe Sound. Not sure why that is, but the hot spots for me in Miami/Lauderdale/Palm Beach are few and far between. Although I was profitable on the weekend, it wasn't the big payday I'd hoped for after not having been at this show since 2013.

On the other hand, maybe it's not a case of avian aversion: Most folks around me weren't that excited about their sales. But I talked with other artists down the long, long row who eventually made out OK--some because of that one big buyer that we artists increasingly seem to target. Several jewelers I spoke with wound up happy; large paintings started moving past my booth in late afternoon on Sunday, but I didn't see that much functional art or photography moving out.

Gotta give big kudos to the HAE on-site team. The show logistics were well-communicated; coordination with the local police was solid, and staff handed out coupons for local-restaurant discounts along with their pleas for patience. Timetables were distributed, and to artists' credit, were followed: Many artists were invited to park their vans behind their booths, space permitting, with the promise of an earlier exit. Everyone had to break down to the ground, get a pass from staff, get their vehicle, and surrender the pass upon entry to A1A. If you wanted to dolly out--well, it was a long one!--but many show vets chose to do just that. Big vans came in last. And despite the dearth of access points and the breakdown plan's complexity, everything went smoothly, if a bit longer into the night than we normally see.

Finally, a personal note of thanks to Chick (I don't know his last name), who lent me a spare corner/rooftop connector part for my Trimline so I could get set up after I discovered at setup that mine had come loose from the pole atop my Ford Transit somewhere along the trip to Juno. It wasn't a perfect fit, but nothing that duct tape and a couple of snug bungee cords couldn't make good as new.  I'm really appreciative. Artists are the best!

(Picture: The scene at the north gate just before sunset on Sunday night. Artists lined up patiently while a single lane was expertly kept clear by HAE staff.) 

Been busy doing shows, trying to catch up on my blogs.
Here goes, Key West end of Feb.
Who wouldn't want to do a show in Key West?
Heck, if you break even, you can call it a working vacation with no stress and lots of shots of tequila.
Most artists who do this show average between $1500-$2000 in sales. It is an expensive show to do because of its location and all the tourists are there.
I have done it for more than 20 years. I know plenty of others that have too. Some people do a lot better than average. They are the real lucky ones. All I know is that most artists go around with a big smile and a robust suntan.
Here is the meat of the show.
It is run by the local artists there and can be found on Zapp. It is a reasonable fee, and the show is extremely well run.
The only negative of the show is that it is an early 5:30 am setup for most, ones in the Truman annex have to wait til 7 am to setup.
It is a small show with about 100 booths because it is in a small area; at the intersection of Caroline and Whitehead streets. Hemingway's house is just a few blocks away, as is the Green Parrot Bar, and Kelly's bar and restaurant is right in the middle of the show. So you can swig rum and tequila to your little heart's delight.
Booths on the west side of Whitehead are back against a brick wall so storage behind is tricky. The other side has room for storage. There are limited corner booths.
On Caroline the booths are within the Truman annex, all booths are on one side with ample rear storage. Most newbies get put in the Truman.
Be prepared to ship your work. Most buyers are from out of town. KW is a magnet that draws people from all over the world looking for their own "little lost shakers of salt."
I shipped to five different destinations. Most buyers are well off and won't try to get you down on the price. Most people go around looking very buzzed, very happy. You can end up having very wild, funny conversations, people love vibing with the artists. Down deep they envy us, thinking that we have already found paradise. If they only knew what we go through.
Ok enough of the meat.
Here are some insights to make your trip, and show, mo better.
Getting there.
When you come off either the turnpike or I-95 you funnel down to a narrow highway in Homestead. This is just before you leave the mainland and take your first bridge on highway Route 1.
You can go straight ahead on Route1, on a single lane road with head on traffic, and maybe average about 40 mph.
Better that you take the other way. Card Sound Road. This gets you out to the northern most part of the keys. You go over a $1.00 toll bridge, at Card Sound,and you are surrounded by beautiful scenery and little traffic. It is a very mellow way to enter the keys.
Plus, you get to stop at the legendary Alabama Jacks Bar, located in downtown Card Sound.
There is no downtown--but there is Alabama Jacks.
Hit it for lunch on your way down.
They got fresh fish sandwiches, piquant shrimp and crackling oysters. The place is always lively with longtime loyal customers. If they only had the choice of one place to eat or drink--it would be Alabana Jacks. It is a roofed, but open air setting. You can see tarpon roiling in the water. Egrets fishing and occasionally a manatee may meander by. They got it all. Oh, did I mention, they have lots of tequilas.
After surviving AJs,, head south on the road and you will reconnect on Route 1.
Gas will inch up in price for every mile south, so take ample advantage of prices.
If you have time stop in Islamorada. Hit Worldwide Sportsman. Up stairs they have a whole collection of Jack London original editions along with his fishing gear plus photos of him with world record fish catches. On the way back home hit the Lorilie Bar in Isla for an equistite experience like no other. The Seminole Indians name for a mermaid was "Lorilie", which is why they have this giant mermaid sign on the front of the bar.
Back to heading south to the show.
It is a slow journey so just chill out and enjoy the sights. Hit Robbie's Tarpon Bar in Isla and, yes, feed the tarpon while chilling on a draft.
In Marathon there are multiple seafood restaurants off the highway. Investigate, get rewarded with sweet seafood delights.l
Housing in Key West is not cheap and the food is costly too.
This year I shared a rented two bedroom house with two couples. I slept on a foldout couch. My share cost me $145.00 a nite.
Rentals are the only downside to the show.
If you come in a RV or can sleep in your van, the show has made arrangements where artists can camp right on the waterfront beside an old Coast Guard cutter, for free. That is the best deal about this show.
This year we had crowds buying early in the morn which is the norm. We had very seasonable weather--we actually had to wear sweaters and vests which is highly unusual for this show. We could take solace in the fact that we were in the warmest spot in the country. It was miserably freezing anywhere else.
""Bartender, another shot of tequila, please."
I did my usual on Saturday, about a grand and then went off to find a new restaurant to eat.
I found a great one on Duval, one block from where I was staying. It was called "Martins."
They served killer tapas items well under $15, they had a phenom martini bar and the whole place had a great vibe. I had a veal schnitzel tapas. It was killer dish. It was my meal with a beet salad and a nice glass of red. Go there, you will love it.
In the morn you can walk down Caroline Street a few blocks and eat breakfast at Pepes. This is the oldest restaurant in Key West, it is also one of the best for a moderately priced meal. They have a killer corn beef hash and they always have a freshly baked bread for the day. You eat in a garden setting beneath flowering vines growing over old wooden beams. It is the complete Key West experience.
Sunday was good for most of us. I will always come back to Key West.

Last week we had in excess of 8+ inches of rain, storms and flooding here in southern Louisiana. Carol and I could not attend a show we were scheduled to do at orange Beach, AL because the only road going and coming to our house was flooded at the bridge over the creek.

We walked down to the bridge yesterday (about a half mile from our house) and wondered if we will be able to get out in time for the show we have planned next weekend in Fairhope. The Amite River, Bayou Manchac and Muddy Creek are all expected to crest sometime tomorrow... and that means the water will most certainly be at its highest point at the bridge. With more rain expected this Thursday thru Saturday the water levels will have a tough time receding. 

At least the house, barn and sheds are high and dry...