Unfortunately, the likelihood of severe weather today has resulted in the Sunflower Fair being canceled.
I've been watching the forecast all week and hoping it would change. Mother Nature had other plans. This event, like most outdoor festivals, is held rain or shine (we had to deal with rain last year), but with the threat of thunderstorms, high winds, and flooding, the coordinators decided to prioritize everyone's safety.
On the one hand, I'm a little relieved that they made this call so I didn't have to. If the festival hadn't been canceled but I decided not to risk my products and equipment, then I would have sacrificed my booth fee. Since the event itself was canceled, that fee (should) either be reimbursed or roll over into next year's festival instead of being a loss.
I'm also in desperate need of a break. I'm extremely burned out from the last few events and even fell asleep last night in my chair while I was in the middle of putting together a batch of wax-sealed envelopes. I'm still understocked on books from the Blueberry and Popcorn festivals. I've been working all week on replenishing my handmade products, including resin book page holders, necklaces, pins, magnets, and bookmarks.
On the other hand, the Sunflower Fair is one of my Big Four events that make up my peak season. Losing this one is a pretty devastating blow from a financial standpoint. It completely negates the gains I made from the other three events performing so well this year.
Since I won't have my booth at the festival, I'll instead be joining Writing with Chaos on Twitch at 3pm to chat about the Chronicles of Avilésor, play some trivia games about the series, and send out prizes, plus offer discounts and freebies with any website orders that occur during the stream.
I'm also running a weekend flash sale with 10% off my website using the promo code SUNFLOWER, valid through Monday 9/21. If I can't see you in person, I hope to see you on the stream!
UPCOMING EVENTS:
BIZARRE BAZAAR
Saturday, September 26, 2026
1:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Porter County Expo Center
Valparaiso, IN
WOLF HOLLOW WITCHES MARKET
Saturday, October 3, 2026
3:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Boone County Fairgrounds
Belvidere, IL