Welcome to Winterfaire 2022

[ysabetwordsmith]

The Winterfaire spreads out as far as the eye can see. Some booths show streamers of red and green, while others sport blue and silver. All of them offer treasure after shining treasure. Music fills the air with lyrics of Christmas, Hannukah, Kwanzaa, Solstice, and Yule. From the Wordsmith's Forge comes the bright chiming of words being hammered into literature. Delicious scents of hot chocolate, spiced cider, peppermint, baking cookies, and gingerbread tantalize the appetite. Smiling, laughing shoppers amble from booth to booth with lists in hand. Vendors grin back, calling out, "Come try, come buy...!"

I know a lot of artists, writers, musicians, crafters, and other talented folks who make some of their living from their creative endeavors. I don't always have the money to support them as much as I'd like, but what I can do is set up a virtual faire where vendors can offer their wares to an audience that likes crafts, literature, and small businesses. For those of you doing your holiday shopping, here's an opportunity to buy something made with love, something unusual or unique, in a way that helps make it possible for creative people to go on creating wonders. And there will be no traffic jams, stampedes, or gunfights at the Winterfaire!






Vendors: If you have goods or services suitable for holiday gifts, please put up a booth by replying with a description of what you sell, an estimate of your price range if possible, and some kind of contact information so shoppers can reach you. If you have a website (Etsy, Patreon, personal, whatever) showcasing your work in more detail, include the link(s). If you have holiday freebies, such as downloadable greeting card imagery, you're welcome to promote those too. For ease of identification, I recommend titling your reply starting with "BOOTH:" followed by the name of your business or type of goodies.

Shoppers: If you're looking for something specific and it's not posted yet, feel free to ask. Someone else may know where to find it! "SHOPPING FOR:" and the topic would be a good title.

Everyone: You may help promote the Winterfaire by linking to this post from your own blog or site. If you have a similar holiday-networking post, you may link to it in a comment on this post.

Participation Perk: I'm offering poetry for participation. The following linkback poems still have verses available:
"In the Shade of the Mighty Oak,"
"Let the Children Lead Us,"
"Autumn's Palette,"
"Pumpkin Spice Prosperity,"
"Delight in Another,"
"A Sense of Weather Changes,"
"Ouroboros Insects,"
"The Loving Embrace of Night,"
"Generations of Cooks Past,"
"Begin to Understand Ourselves,"
"Homefree and Clear, "
"One Bite at a Time,"
"Stars and Diamonds,"
"Mishpocha,"
"There's an Art to It,"
"The Glass Cat."

Linking to this page will reveal new verses in whichever one you request. Because, you see, all of these activities will unlock a verse each time someone does them:
* link to this Winterfaire page to boost the signal
* comment posting a Booth of your wares/services in the Winterfaire
* buy something from a vendor listed in the Winterfaire
* promote Winterfaire in another holiday market
* host a similar holiday market in your own blog or other venue
Dreamwidth will notify me of comments to the Winterfaire post; for everything else, you need to TELL ME in order to get credit for it.

Similar Markets:
Do you know of another indie holiday shopping post? Let me know and I'll link it here.


Happy holidays!

Comments

Re: Booth- Dante's Spirit

[dantesspirit]

Also, "In The Shade" sounds very similar to what is actually happening under my Fezzik.}:P

Native American Holly has seeded itself there, native Red Juniper, native Virginia Blue Bells, native Witchhazel, native Dwarf Crested Irises, native Virginia Creeper, even native Poison Ivy tenaciously grows despite our attempts to remove it, because it's too close to the house & I'm allergic. Every other year we get Echinacea, native Johnson's Beardedtongue...

Re: Booth- Dante's Spirit

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> Also, "In The Shade" sounds very similar to what is actually happening under my Fezzik.}:P

Yay! :D

>> Native American Holly has seeded itself there, native Red Juniper, native Virginia Blue Bells, native Witchhazel, native Dwarf Crested Irises, native Virginioa Creeper, <<

Oh, how lovely. I have a lot of native plants here including several oaks, maples, mulberries, elderberries, black raspberries. I planted the bluebells and some other wildflowers.

>>even native Poison Ivy tenaciously grows despite out attempts to remove it, because it's too close to the house & I'm allergic.<<

Yeah, I have the same problem. In small areas: try mulching with concrete blocks. In large areas, I resort to weed spray.

I realized the problem was my yard wanted a vine layer. Eventually Gaia tried planting wild grapes and I was happy to leave those growing. I keep wanting to make dolmades with the leaves but haven't found the time yet. There is still poison ivy to hunt down and kill, but at least now I also have pretty grapevines.

>> Every other year we get Echinacea, native Johnson's Beardedtongue... <<

Echinacea, yellow coneflower, cup plant, and sunchokes are among my well-established prairie plants. The cup plant was another that sprouted on its own. I've planted beardtongue a few times in my wildflower garden but it's iffy. I've tried for asters but the only ones that seem to thrive are the wild frost asters. This year my marigolds lasted well into autumn and were quite popular with late-foraging insects.

Re: Booth- Dante's Spirit

[dantesspirit]

I'm ok with the Poison Ivy at the edges of the property (It's 1.74 acres platted), it mixes nicely with the Creeper and Wild Grape. I do have an on going battle with invasive Bittersweet and Porcelain Berry has shown up (boo!).

We planted the Bluebells, Beardedtongue and Crested Iris. They're slowly spreading more every year.

We have native Black Eyed Susans in the brushy area that are biennial. The first year after we cleared out the bittersweet, a lot of deadfall that got moved into wildlife hiding piles and removed a good number of invasive Ailanthus, it was covered with yellow blooms. It was amazing.

Found some native Spotted Wintergreen a few years back, after we really focused on trying to care for the land, and now, every year, I find another, larger patch.

We've planted native Redbud, Red Maples, Ninebark, Persimmons, Hazelnuts, a Deodar Cedar and a Pecan so far. Lost our two mature White Pines 6 months apart, - they were left in place as it's at the back of the property, we just cleaned up a bit and created more deadfall piles for wildlife, and recently found 2 offspring, so that was exciting. Heh.

We have literal groves of Red and White Oaks and Black Walnuts now. And unfortunately non native red Mulberry. And still so much Ailanthus that we'll be working to remove over the winter. And invasive Privet is trying to make inroads along with invasive Burning Bush. Ugh.

But it's fun, and finding yet another new native that establishes itself here as a result, makes it worth it. So do the visitors in the form of deer, turkey, an occasional fox and bear, numerous rabbits, the opossums, a raccoon or two, and Woodrow the Groundhog who lives under the shed.}:P

Re: Booth- Dante's Spirit

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> I'm ok with the Poison Ivy at the edges of the property (It's 1.74 acres platted),<<

Mine is about 2 acres.

>> I do have an on going battle with invasive Bittersweet and Porcelain Berry has shown up (boo!).<<

Alas!

>> We have native Black Eyed Susans in the brushy area that are biennial.<<

I have those too, mostly in the wildflower garden. The prairie garden is primarily giant plants. The goldenrod and bluestem are about 5-6 feet, the cup plant 8-10', and the sunchokes 10-12' in late summer. Yellow coneflowers range about 3-5' and appear in several places there, but shorter plants aren't competing well except a few patches of wild strawberries at the edges.

>> The first year after we cleared out the bittersweet, a lot of deadfall that got moved into wildlife hiding piles and removed a good number of invasive Ailanthus, it was covered with yellow blooms. It was amazing.<<

Yay!

>>Found some native Spotted Wintergreen a few years back, after we really focused on trying to care for the land, and now, every year, I find another, larger patch.<<

Now that's impressive.

>>We've planted native Redbud, Red Maples, Ninebark, Persimmons, Hazelnuts, a Deodar Cedar and a Pecan so far. <<

I've planted redbud, persimmon, hazelnut, and a bunch of other stuff. I don't think the ninebark survived but the nannyberry did.

>> Lost our two mature White Pines 6 months apart, <<

Alas!

>> they were left in place as it's at the back of the property, we just cleaned up a bit and created more deadfall piles for wildlife, <<

Yeah, I do that if they're not in the way.

>>and recently found 2 offspring, so that was exciting. Heh.<<

Awesome.

>>We have literal groves of Red and White Oaks and Black Walnuts now. <<

I have tons of black walnuts but only one mature oak. The others are saplings or seedlings.

>>And unfortunately non native red Mulberry.<<

I have mulberry, not sure what kind, but it is all over Illinois and fits nicely in the ecosystem, so I'm fine with it.

>> And still so much Ailanthus that we'll be working to remove over the winter. And invasive Privet is trying to make inroads along with invasive Burning Bush. Ugh.<<

Here it's honeysuckle. :/

>>But it's fun, and finding yet another new native that establishes itself here as a result, makes it worth it.<<

A lot of the natives I plant have flourished, and a few have appeared that I didn't plant, which is exciting. Over time I've become more inclined to plant natives than foreign plants, except for a few herbs, flowers, and vegetables in pots or beds.

>> So do the visitors in the form of deer, turkey, an occasional fox and bear, numerous rabbits, the opossums, a raccoon or two, and Woodrow the Groundhog who lives under the shed.}:P

We've had deer, pheasants, foxes, raccoons, possums, skunks, rabbits, both fox and gray squirrels, bats, a weasel, snakes, toads, and birds including resident great-horned owls and fly-by red-tailed hawks, turkey vultures, and twice a bald eagle. :D I am all asquee that in the last couple of years, tree frogs -- two species, one green and one gray -- have established themselves enough to be seen regularly instead of once every two years.