Notice 2012
& Submission Requirements

Please read all information carefully, even if you have exhibited in past years, as a number of items have changed.

The Cabbagetown Art & Craft Sale is a not-for-profit corporation. Your fee pays for flyers delivered to 20,000 homes and for other advertising and administrative costs. $10 OF YOUR FEE WILL COVER OFF-ROAD PARKING in Sprucecourt School next to the park. Public entry to the park is free.

Amenities: There is an ATM machine, convenient washrooms, food and drinks, and non-amplified background music. There are a number of B&Bs close by as well as reasonable hotel lodging. The area is well-served by the TTC (Carlton streetcar, Wellesley and Parliament buses, and Castle Frank stop on the subway). Retail stores are three blocks away on Parliament Street. There is plenty of shade from large trees, and the crowd flows along paved walkways so that all areas are equally served. There are no bad spaces.

Hours: Hours are 1.00 to 6.00 p.m. on Friday; 10.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m. on Saturday AND Sunday; however, if you wish to get away earlier on Sunday, you may leave anytime after 4.30 p.m. You may, at your own risk, set up anytime on Friday after 8.00 a.m. until 1.00 p.m. You may leave your stands up overnight Friday and Saturday but anything you leave is at your own risk.

Deadlines: March 30 is the first deadline. Second deadline is May 25. After this time only recommended vendors, or crafts which are under-represented will be accepted until we reach our maximum of 180 vendors. It is to your advantage to get in early. Rejected work is returned immediately; accepted work takes a little longer to process, at least two weeks after the deadline. Check your bank to see if your cheque has been cashed; if so, you are accepted.

Payment: Your personal cheque for $300 should be currently dated; post-dated cheques are not accepted. If your cheque is NSF (in other words, it bounces) you will not be accepted.

Jurying: Jurors are from Cabbagetown and are accomplished artists and craftspeople in their own right. Juries change annually. Acceptance is based on the quality of the craft, but good presentation helps enormously. Some media, such as jewellery, are filled quickly, usually in the first jurying March 30. The most common reason for rejection is that a media is full (approximately 65% of applicants are accepted). We always have room for original items.

Resumé: Your resumé should include a brief personal history, education, a listing of other shows attended and a description of your involvement with your craft. Please be specific about your manufacturing techniques, i.e., do you hire people to make your items? What is your volume roughly? Do you look upon craft shows as a living or a hobby? What parts of the finished product are your personal work (i.e. design only? Decoration only? Everything?).

Photographs: Your four or more photos (slides are not acceptable) must be of current work in your booth. Please put your name as well as the size of your piece if it is not obvious. A picture of your booth helps greatly. Booths and contents will be checked.

SASE: A Self-Addressed-Stamped-Envelope (SASE) must accompany your submission (see Submission Requirements). When juried, all submissions are placed in the SASE. If rejected, your complete submission is returned immediately. If accepted, your submission is mailed back to you with your acceptance letter (which will work as a tax receipt) some weeks later. If you do not want your submission returned you must still send an SASE but it only needs to be a business envelope; only your acceptance (or rejection & cheque) will be returned. FAILURE TO SEND AN SASE MEANS NO RETURN OF ANYTHING.

Space: You must be completely self-sufficient and free-standing. You are responsible for your own chairs, platforms, stands, backdrops and whatever else you need. There is no snow fencing or walls to attach things to. Spaces are arranged along the walkways leading through the park to Riverdale Farm. Space is 11’ along the walkway, but you can extend back up to 20’. You can stop and unload all around but you cannot drive into the park. You may have to transport your goods from 10 to 30 metres. You cannot park around the park during the day; you must park in the adjacent school lot. (To print out a larger version of the map, with an insert of the immediate neighbourhood, click here - you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader, available free at www.adobe.com.)

Craft: No manufactured or printed items, please. Work must be created by the artist, and the artist must be present at the sale at least part of the time. Originality and quality of craftsmanship rate high. Demonstrations are encouraged. Electricity is available at a few sites for a $10 fee. Please note: we will not accept totally different and unrelated items in one booth.

Security: There is security in the park overnight Friday and Saturday but the park is a public place and security cannot be everywhere. It is your responsibility to have insurance coverage.

Food: Food such as preserves, sweets, oils, etc. are welcome, especially anything reminiscent of fall fairs. Hot food vendors are welcome, but special conditions will apply and we will be in touch. Charitable groups sell hot dogs, shishkebob, and drinks in the park. They will give special service to vendors.

Awards: Six or more awards are given out each year with cash ranging from $100. These awards change as new donors are found. An award may include free admission the following year. Click here to meet the 2011 award winners.

Good presentation shows the pride you take in your work.

Our submission requirements are not meant to cramp your creative freedom, and some portfolios are a joy to behold. If you have a portfolio or case (and there are many) which is secure, easily viewed, attractive, and expresses your particular taste, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO SEND IT. Otherwise, please comply with these regulations. If you do not comply, your submission may be returned immediately.

• Your application and all contents of your envelope must be contained in a 9" x 12" pocket folder available at any stationery store store for $1. A pocket folder has pockets; a file folder does NOT have pockets. (Everything falls out of a file folder immediately upon opening.)

• Your application must be submitted in a 10 x 13” envelope; your return self-addressed-stamped envelope (SASE) must also be 10 x 13”. These large envelopes are available in any stationery store or post office. IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO HAVE YOUR SUBMISSION RETURNED, you may send a stamped business-size S.A.S.E. No S.A.S.E., no return. E-mails are sent to those accepted but an acceptance letter is your tax receipt.

• Please do not use bubble pack or padded envelopes - they are difficult to handle.

• Contents should be inserted flat in the pockets, not folded.

• Attach cheque to the application form with a paperclip. DO NOT STAPLE THE CHEQUE.

• Application and cheque should be contained in the left side pocket. Resumé, pictures, and self-addressed-stamped-envelope (S.A.S.E.) should be contained in the right side pocket.

• It is preferable to contain your FIVE - 4 x 6” photos (please, no slides, no CDs, no DVDs) in a clear plastic page that shows them all at once i.e. a page from a photo album that is joined; or else in a separate envelope. Put your name and other relevant information such as the size and/or medium written on the back (you would be surprised how often the jury cannot figure out what they are looking at). You may submit larger photos or more than five if you wish.

• Do not send packages by courier as no one is available to sign for delivery. Normal mail is perfectly acceptable, but if you need the reassurance of expedited delivery, use Xpresspost. The cardboard package is adequate as an outer envelope.

To enter fill out the entry form and print it out using your browser's print command and submit with all required documentation, materials, and entry fee to: