26th Handcraft Fair - Art & Heart 2014

This was a fun craft fair. It was also very popular and as a result very crowed. Both days (Friday and Saturday) were super busy. I ventured to the fair on Friday with my three little ones, two walking and one in the stroller. We too the subway to Fukiage station, and stopped to eat lunch at the Fukiage Park which is just next to... you guessed it... Fukiage Hall where the event was held. We sat on a park bench next to a water fountain. Teddy played and looked at the water fountain more then he ate. After finishing we headed next door to look for a restroom.

Teddy, approaching the fascinating water fountain.

There are only 2 available restrooms that I found in the whole exhibit hall.
When added together, that makes a total of 6 toilets. So with an event that it geared more to the ladies and most being over 50, this meant a constant line for the bathrooms. But it was not to long of a wait (had I been in America, I would have just used the men's room, as there were very few men around (and most of them were working at the fair)).

So, on to the fair itself. It was a free event so you pass through the doors and they hand you a map and off you go. The first thing lots of people did, to my annoyance, was walk in the second set of doors and stop! Right in the doorway! There were 3 groups of ladies that stopped right inside the door and caused a blockage (even more so for a mother with 3 kids and a stroller), looking at their maps for where they wanted to go.

Lots of ladies in a confined space.

The fair was mostly vendors selling "ladies craft" type stuff... beads, fabric, sewing machines, thread, yarn, stamps, silk flowers, etc. There were a few vendors who sold old kimonos to be used in making other things. Something I was hoping to find was calligraphy paintbrushes, but there was no calligraphy at all. There's probably an entirely separate calligraphy fair.

It was very hard to look at anything. I had to concentrate on just getting through the crowds. People cut in front of you and cut you off when you have a stroller, or almost walk into it. A gap opens in front of you, only to get snatched by someone behind you who wants to go faster then you, who then stops to gawk at some vendor, so they are standing right in your way. The girls were having a very hard time. Being little they were shoved and stepped on. We were not able to stay long. I made it to the back of the fair and then to the front and was ready to take the poor children home. So we headed back to the subway and did just that.

Unhappy children, tired of being in the way.

Saturday, Paul decided we would all go back. He would take the children to the park and I could look around the fair on my own. This worked out great! We had lunch on the same park bench that the children and I ate on the day before, and then I headed to the fair.

I was able to move around much more freely without the added bulk of the stroller. I headed to the quilts that they had on display that I hadn't been able to view the day before. They had some amazing quilts. I was happy I had gone back if only to see the quilts. There was a no photography policy, so I didn't get to take any photos. One of the quilts looked like a hanging kimono, it was in earthy tones that got lighter as they went up the kimono. They were all stunning; They all must have taken a long time to create. 

Then I wandered around the fair looking at what I wanted for how ever long I wished. There were lots of booths where you could sit and make something, but my lack of Japanese language kept me from trying anything. I also didn't want to leave Paul with the children for hours and hours. There was a section for children age 7-12 to make things. One thing nice about being a white girl in Japan is I am taller then most people, especially the older generation(that doesn't wear heels), it was nice being 3-4 inches taller then everyone around me. 

This picture was taken from my waist...
Hah! No. But you can see how short the older ladies are.

When I was done looking around, I headed back to the park to find Paul and the kids. It was a really nice day and the kids had fun playing at the park with other children and not being in a hot, crowded hall for hours. Everyone won.

Except for Paul, but that's fine.