End of Pumpkin Season (?)

It isn't Halloween yet, and it is time for our pumpkin season to end.  Our pumpkin making can't come to an abrupt close, but we will certainly be dwindling down.  Why am I in such a hurry you might ask?  It is time to prepare for the holiday season.  Our shelves are barren from simply making to many pumpkins!

Keene Pumpkin Fest was a big hit.  They even broke the record!  Sadly, we couldn't hear much of what was going on, the speakers were very fuzzy around us.  I didn't find out we got the record until we got home!

Man, that was a crazy day.  I'm not sure what was worse, getting in, or getting out!  I swear I'm still recuperating from all the stress that comes with taking on a vendor spot in an event that huge.  A month of preparation, hoping that we will be successful.  Putting all of our cards out on the table.  Spending hours and hours of work, paying for the propane, the supplies, and the labor.  Paying for the booth.  Paying for the labor to get everything out there, and to have enough hands on deck for the crowds of people going by.

Wow.

Breathe Dom.  It's over.  We did great.  PHEW.

For such a small business, with such huge overhead expenses, to put ourselves out there like that, eeek!

But its OK, its over & we did great!

I'm not sure if I am looking forward to next year or not?!?  Catch me after another hot & slow summer, I will be jumping for joy to be this busy and hectic again!

Guess what time it is now????  Christmas ornaments.  Snowmen.  I am now planning on doing two "Blow Your Own Ornament" dates.  The Saturday after Thanksgiving, and Saturday December 14th.  December 14th will also double as our TWO YEAR ANNIVERSARY PARTY/Holiday Sale.  TWO YEARS.  TWO YEARS.

OK Dom.  No more resting.

The Fall Season is Falling Behind Us

Two days until Keene Pumpkinfest.  Our official pumpkin season is almost over.  Wow.  Time to take a minute to sit down and contemplate how amazing these past two months were.

OK.  No more break time, get back up and prepare for Christmas season!

Seriously.

After a slow summer, and my everlasting jaw injury.  Life is looking pretty amazing.  Busy is great.

As I type right now I am multitasking like a maniac.  I am sitting in the studio, on the computer, waiting for my job title as "Stem Connector" to come into effect.  Notice: I am sitting in the studio and it is a comfortable temperature.  WOW.  Summer has surely gone.  I love summer and HATE the cold.  Benefit to being a glassblower: its always warm at work! (hot)

So behind me everyone is working.  Mini pumpkins galore.  Josh's job title for the day is "Pumpkin Machine".  He takes a big orange bubble, drops it in a mold, and cuts off 5, 6, 7 or even more pumpkins off that one "stock".

Haley's title is "Stemminator".  She has a green chunk of solid glass and constantly works to keep it hot and nicely shaped.

I simply connect the two together.

Voila!  Mini pumpkins!

The buzzer beeped.  We have customers!  Time for continued multitasking.

Later we will have New Hampshire Small Business Magazine in to take photos for an article on us!

Bye!

Positive & Hectic

The mood in the studio today can only be described with two words - Positive & Hectic.

Today the shop was BUSY.  Mark & Brigida were in making pumpkins, while Josh & I were also making pumpkins.  Everyone is preparing for their Art Tours!

Anne Marie is packing for the Wool Arts Tour this weekend.  I am trying to think of every little way to make this years Monadnock Art Tour go smoothly.  Signs in the building giving directions, signs on the doors on where to enter and where not, CLEANING CLEANING CLEANING.  Did I mention that the weekend after this one is PUMPKINFEST?  Lets talk about crazy.

Slight issues with the furnace have slightly hindered our progress on  ... everything.  Thanks to Jim's hard work and Charlie Correll's everlasting patience and advice we hope to have this issue fixed asap.  The furnace has been running steadily at 2075 for a long, long time.  Things have been peaceful and wonderful in furnace land.  Lately we have been coming in and finding it at odd temperatures.  This morning we arrived at the studio and the furnace was at 2035.  eek.

Time to get back to work... aka CLEANING!

I'm Back & It's October!

I can't believe it is already October.

Then I think of how many pumpkins we have made - I can't believe it is only October 1st.

This is our second fall season with the shop being open and WOW it is busy.  IT FEELS AMAZING.  Our busy season has begun, full steam ahead, next stop - December 25th.  Literally, just keep working.

I tried to begin my pumpkin making extravaganza in August.  Sadly my boxer puppy had other ideas and wanted to, well, box mom!  7 Weeks and Two Days Later, here I am!  My doctor finally gave me leave to "continue whatever I've been doing" and I don't have to go back to Tufts in Boston for three whole months.  What have I been doing?  Working my butt off!  Sure, I will continue on!  No eating apples, or other hard foods.  I have still not endeavored to eat chips, sadly nachos have not been checked off my list of thing that I want to eat soo badly.   Pizza? Oh yes.  Pizza & I have become well acquainted once more.  Minus the sad part in which I usually have to take a nap after exhausting myself while eating.

Back to pumpkins.  We have been KILLING IT.  This year we are making three sized pumpkins.  Large for $45, Medium for $35, and Small going for $5-$18.  Everybody loves the small pumpkins. SCORE FOR US.  We have been so lucky to have so many local places within our community offering to sell our pumpkins.  Like I said, it is only October 1st, and we are very pleased with the amazing support.

Thanks out to J.P. Stephens, Sunflowers, Benjamin Prescott Inn, Inn at Tartan Fox, TD Bank, Peoples Bank, Our Town Pizza, Terrapin Traders AND Hannah Grimes Center for being wonderful carriers of this years pumpkins.

Upcoming events:
Cheshire Craftsmen Fair this weekend in Keene
Monadnock Arts Tour & Wool Arts Tour next weekend October 12 & 13
Then we are in preparation for PUMPKINFEST!

Big thanks out to everyone who showed up at Gardner Ale House's Oktoberfest. AMAZING.  You are all amazing.  We feel the love <3.

Time to charge the furnace for tomorrows work ... guess what it is????

PUMPKINNNNNS


p.s. Here are some photos of my walk in the woods today with the woofs.  We love New Hampshire.