The Great Unveiling...

I've been waiting oh so patiently to share with everyone the booth that we've put together at the Union Square Emporium in downtown Hickory.  We've been working on it since labor day, and I think it's been worth the wait.

To provide a bit of background: the Union Square Emporium (USE) is an attempt to bring local artists and vendors in touch with customers.  It's set up much the same way as the Woolworth Walk in Asheville.  Each vendor rents a booth that he or she decorates according to his or her choosing and fills with product.  There is one main cash register at the front that checks out all vendors.  The idea is that small businesses like ours have the chance to gain a storefront without all the hassle of manning the store.  As Wayne and I both work full time, it was an ideal way for us to have product available to customers all year long.  To make the deal more appealing, the Healthy Home Market, a lovely health food store, picked up spots at the back of the building and is opening an express version of their store!  It'll be so nice to have healthy food options readily available downtown.

Now, on to the fun part.   Here's the booth as we chose it.  I adored the mod design and felt it was quite a shame to paint over it, but it really didn't fit with our look.

Wayne cut a board and attached it into the corner to try to draw it out a bit.

We had a lovely artist, Scott Keilar come in and do the walls for us.  He used drywall mud to produce a bit of texture and give the walls some interest.

Here are the walls after a couple coats of paint:

Here's the reason for the board in the corner.  I love our logo and we wanted it to be the focal point of the booth.

Next up was adding lettering.  I wanted the lettering to match exactly so, after much debate, I ordered custom lettering from dalidecals and was ecstatic with the result.  For anyone who is thinking about doing this, be prepared to be very, very patient while applying.

Finally, we added shelves...

....worked on the table....

....and added the soap and lip balm.

Here's a closeup of the half bar wall.  I love the cookie jars as display pieces.

Here's the finished booth.  Doesn't it just look fantastic?

We can't wait for the October 1st opening.  USE is planning a full day including product sampling, giveaways, and other surprises.  It should be quite the event!  If you're in the Hickory area, please come out and visit.

And, once again, many thanks to the Kuklas for all their help.  I'm convinced they missed their calling.