Build a Better Booth

This past weekend I attended a craft show I had participated in last fall. It was in a yoga studio and space was limited, we each had a deep space, but it was only 6 feet wide. Last year on the fly I utilized the wall behind my 6 foot table to hang merchandise but that wasn't an ideal set up. This time around I wanted my actual display to allow me to hang items at eye level. With this idea in mind I began remaking my booth display.

My starting point was my 6 foot folding table. This would fill the width of the space perfectly. It would be pushed right up to the wall, allowing for maximum standing and walking room in front of it, and I would stand or sit in front rather than behind the table. The challenge was what to use for the vertical part of the display. It had to be lightweight for traveling and quick and easy to put together since the merchandise itself can take a lot of time to display. As I contemplated this concept in my shop it didn't take me long to spot the plastic shelving I use to store my supplies. In the shop I have them lined up low along a wall rather than snapped together as a tall shelf. This made it easy to relocate piles of fabric and grab a few of the shelves. They were exactly 3 feet wide so 2 of them would fit perfectly on the back half of the table to give me the height I wanted. Using 2 shelves sans legs perpendicular to the shelves would give me even more height and a wall-type place to hang things. But how to connect everything?

Cable ties are a wonderful invention! I use them a lot so grabbed my stash and began connecting the shelving pieces in their new configuration and it worked perfectly. I used my drill to make holes in the table and the bottom of the shelf legs. By connecting the legs to the table I was confident the pieces wouldn't slide off or fall over. This was going to work! But I needed to cover the shelves with fabric and tie it in with the covering I already have for the table.

A quick trip to the fabric store for fabric and yard sticks and I was ready to finish my display. I grabbed the yard sticks as a fun but functional way to permanently attach the fabric to the shelves and also anchor the fabric so that when I hung things on it the fabric would stay put. Screwing into the shelving didn't go smoothly, some of the yardsticks cracked and sometimes the fabric would get caught and start spinning. But I went slowly and those flaws aren't noticeable when the display is filled.

The display worked great at the show on Saturday. All my boxes were hidden below the table and it was strong and versatile. Transporting it was easy, I simply removed the legs, cut the cable ties holding the pieces upright, folded it down, and popped it in the car. Replacing the 3 cable ties at the show was simple enough. I even used the display outside on Sunday at a different show despite the sloping ground and gusty winds. I placed my heavy cinder blocks under the table to weigh it down and also attached the table to the canopy above with a bungee cord behind the display. The fabric blew nicely in the wind but I never worried that it would tip.

When I look at pictures of my display over time I like this look the best. It's great to be able to have items at eye level and it was fun to watch people linger at my booth, exploring all my offerings.