A Wedding, a New House, and a Farm

[Mini Horses]

You can probably contact the Market info thru the City website. In my area, there are a few of these...most require a license, some don't. There is an older, more robust one, about 30 miles out but they DO require you take a space for the season AND that you be there every wknd, open/close at specific times, etc. It does keep their market viable, I understand, but I may not always have product, want to work every date. Looking for a "co-farm" to share a spot and time. No success so far. Early season is most issue.....but, could do soaps, lotions, eggs, etc., until any kitchen crops are ready. It takes a lot of time & I'm not quite there yet. Thinking harder for this season tho. Also, since it's weekends, I'd be forced to give up on of my PT jobs & it has a lot of benefits to be considered as a loss.

Also, go to the town & visit their stores. Do they have any private owned shops, grocery, that might entertain selling your wares? I used to keep soaps in a few beauty shops & feed stores. There are still some of these around.

 

[sumi]

When I lived in South Africa I baked and sold bread (popular, but not really profitable). Cookies should do well for you maybe... Jams I made and sold too, those did well! As did homemade chilli sauces. Jellies (such as mint jelly, rosemary jelly etc) sold very well (my dad made those)... We did a small farmer's market where we sold plants from our little garden nursery. Any food bearing plants (peppers, tomatoes) and herbs did great, lavender always sold well, roses did well... Those are easy to grow-to-sell... Free range eggs from my hens, gosh, I never had nearly enough to meet demand. So many people wanted eggs and very few down there keep their own chickens, so I had a captive audience.

I'd suggest checking out the market to see what is on offer there and fill a gap or two. Markets are also fun places to hang out and meet locals, while making a few $$$

 

[SustainableAg]

FEM, we are planning to grow our own. We want to establish the property to provide most of what we need first, and then expand from there to provide for others. I don't know how strict the farmer's market will be up there, but I know that the one where we currently live has a lot of rules. It is more rural where we will be moving, so I'm hoping some of the rules will be relaxed.
Sumi, that sounds like a profitable venture! I would love to bake to provide some extra income, but I also don't want it to take away from all of the other things that will need to be taken care of. It will be a delicate balance. I would love to provide "naturally raised" (as opposed to being organically certified) veggies and the like, so I will have to see how much of a call there is for that sort of thing.

 

[SustainableAg]

I also learned some exciting news today. At our new house, there is a preexisting arrangement with a neighbor farmer that will continue to hay the property for us!!

 

[frustratedearthmother]

That's great!

 

[SustainableAg]

Happy New Year everyone! And also Happy Birthday to me! We had Mr. M's mom and step-dad over for a new year's eve celebration. Everyone had a great time. There was way more food than we knew what to do with (my mom always thinks she has to prepare for an army), so my in-laws happily went home with the leftovers.
A little background on some family, as I'm sure they will be mentioned frequently: We are currently living with my parents in my childhood home. I have 2 younger brothers. "A" is in college (moved away) and is visiting for the holidays. "E" is also in college, but lives at home with my parents. Mr. M's mom and step-dad live right down the street, so we see them frequently.
Wishing all of you many blessings of health, happiness, and homestead success in 2019!

 

[sumi]

Happy Birthday!

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Happy yesterday to you! Hope you had a wonderful day.

 

[SustainableAg]

Today hubby and I went shopping for furniture for our new home. Luck was on our side today! The store was having a 1 day, invitation only sale. They don't advertise that anywhere...we literally just decided to look at furniture and stumbled upon a great deal! We saved nearly $3,000 by deciding to furniture shop today.
Our bank has also finished the loan process, and wants to close in January instead of February. Waiting to hear back from the sellers.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

That's fantastic - congrats!