BDN Maine Food and Gift Fair - A Recap

The BDN Maine Holiday Food and Gift Fair was held in Portland, Maine, yesterday – Saturday, November 30th – and I was very excited to take part. I do love food, and was sandwiched between Dean's Sweets and the Super Stick Food Flipper booth for the day.

Here's a look at my very official looking booth – it's the first show I've ever done where they put up pipe and drape! And my very own sign! This made it feel much more legit than the fairs I typically do.

The foot traffic was a bit light, and I'm not exactly sure why. Most people I talked to thought the event was well-advertised in local papers and online, but for whatever reason – possibly location – there just weren't too many people making their way out the Portland Company Complex. It does take a little extra effort to get there and parking can be an issue in Portland.

But no matter. I can ALWAYS find the silver lining. I had a great day getting to know my neighbors and admiring their work. I also made some excellent trades...

I traded with Eliza of Morris & Essex for a gorgeous box of letterpress holiday cards.

I satisfied my sweet tooth by bartering with Kristen and Dean of Dean's Sweets

Lucy from Lucy's Granola proposed a very tasty trade.

This one wasn't a trade, but was totally worth it! Peanut butter chocolate chip from Stone Fox Farm Creamery. The creamiest ice cream I have ever tasted.

The biggest highlight of the day for me was when a couple of gentlemen purchased a pair of my rubber chicken earrings for none other than Sally Struthers! They are friends of hers and when they saw these earrings they instantly thought of her. Hope she loves them!

Shop Small with Gus & Ruby Letterpress - Portsmouth, NH

If you're shopping in downtown Portsmouth, New Hampshire, this holiday season, be sure to stop by my favorite store Gus & Ruby Letterpress at 29 Congress Street. They have amazing gifts for anyone on your list who has excellent taste, but best of all they are fully stocked with a fresh batch of Lofted Designs pet tags (see pic above)!

Also, they're running some great promotions this weekend for Black Friday and Small Business Saturday. Be sure to stop in for discounts, a goodie box giveaway, good holiday cheer, and coffee and treats for early shoppers. If you happen to be shopping for a pet-lover or a stocking stuffer for a furry friend, my pet tags are usually right by the register. :)

Happy shopping and many thanks for supporting small businesses!

Down East Magazine's Maine-Made Gift Guide

Exciting news from Lofted Designs headquarters!!! Our pet tags are being featured as part of Down East Magazine's 2013 Maine-Made Holiday Gift Guide!

(I created this sweet little badge to commemorate the occasion!)

Down East is known as the magazine of Maine, evoking and illuminating the spirit and culture of my great state and available at newsstands and stores nationwide.

The publication approached me in the early fall about the possibility of featuring Lofted Designs pet tags and I mailed off five ID tags to their editorial team for review.

Thanks to the USPS for helping me make the submission deadline!

Ultimately, they selected three of the pet tags ("squirrel chaser," "i ❤ maine," and "stinky breath") to feature on their Furry Friend gift page.

There's a lot going on in this collage of creativity, but Lofted Designs is #1 in the upper left corner!

Here's a snapshot with our tags highlighted to help you find them.

And a close-up!

If you can't quite read the tags in print, luckily they were kind enough to also feature them online with a link to my Etsy shop! Here's a link to all 133 of their Maine-made gift selections online.

Down East has been in print for nearly 60 years! I am so honored and thrilled to be part of this time-honored publication with a readership of more than 400,000 people. Be sure to pick up a copy, available on newsstands this week!