You might not know this but the City Market Farmers Market has seven different categories of vendors renting space on the weekends. Farmer 100%, Farmer w/ Local Grown Supplement, Artist/ Crafter, Retail Food, Alcoholic Beverage, Concession and Vintage Sale. We usually get quite a few new applications in the spring and this year has been no exception. 

We have approved a few new Sunday vendors in the Artist Crafter category that we are excited to have join the Market. I love it when we meet an artist who make something that is unique.

Nate Evans sent us photos of his work and a link to a Welcome to KC video he made about Kansas City. I must admit I enjoyed the video so much I watched it twice.  www.nateevansproductions.com . As with all new vendors in the Artist/Crafter category we are required to visit their workshops to verify that all items sold are made by them. Most crafters work out of their kitchens, dining rooms, basements or garages, Nate had a full fledge artist studio which he designed with his dad. It was super nice. Nate is a photographer who specializes in Kansas City Photos. Nate mounts the photos on foam or wood once printed on canvas.  He is super talented and his photography is not like anything else vendors are selling at the Market. Nate will be at the market on Sunday, check the vendor map on our website to find his location.

Papa Joe’s Project Shop is another new vendor selling at the Sunday Farmers Market. Joe has a workshop in his backyard where he creates beautiful wooden plaques and signs. www.papajoesprojectshop.com Most of the plaques are military and Kansas schools and he is licensed to use certain logos. Joe also makes wooden signs that would have a place in any home. My favorite sign is “A lack of planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part...” Trust me this would be perfect in my office.  Joe creates designs on his computer and uses a 3D CNC machine to cut out the final design. The precision is excellent but each piece still needs to be hand sanded which takes a great deal of patience and time.  After sanding comes staining which sometimes is a trial and error until he gets it perfect. In the future Joe plans to include wooden games in his booth, as of now he does take orders for large outdoor corn toss games.

We are seeing more and more artist/crafters using technology in their creations. Kristapher Halsey is a graphic designer who uses his original designs to enhance a variety of items you use every day or those that would make a great gift. Although, this is not typically, what you see at the market each item is made by Kristapher. In our arts a craft category pre-manufactured products are permitted but must be extensively embroidered, dyed, printed, painted, or reworked by the vendor. Rivalry Graphic is a home based business in Kansas City, MO and Kristapher is a graphic designer. For a little more information visit Kristapher’s web site at www.rivalrygraphics.com