Preparing for a Book & Bake Sale

Two weeks ago I organised a Book & Bake Sale. 

Why? It was two-fold – the intersection between having too many books and not enough shelves, and the desire to do contribute to a Blanket Drive organised by a friend of mine, Modupe for internally displaced people in Yola, north of Nigeria. Modupe wanted to collect 3000 blankets. I got courage and energy from the fact that this was for a good cause.

Often, we want to do something to help the dire plight of those in need but lack the avenues to do so.

Thanks to what we did, she was able to purchase over 500 blankets from the bake sale and related donations. How awesome is that?

A few things were key

• Finding a partner in crime – this time it was @notiacs
• Finding a venue – and we got offered the gardens of The Social Place, Lagos. Beautiful, beautiful place. Delightful partnership
• Sending out invites – I  created a simple one in evite and got help from friends who talked about it,  retweeted, reposted on Instagram, and wrote blog posts. It was awesome.
• Deciding on what to sell & how to price – the books bit was easy. I essentially went through every shelf in my house and packed up the books. The children and friends made rainbow loom bracelets, and I whipped up some fabric art with embroidery rings. The bake bit? Harder. I decided I wanted a variety of recipes that were easy to make, transport and serve, particularly those that could be made ahead.
• Getting the other essentials – bags for the sold items, tablecloths for a touch of pretty, serviettes, straws, disposable plates and cups, bin bags, wipes, Kitchen tissue – aka Bounty, etc. I wrote lists. Shopping lists to people lists to bake lists and ….

Tip: I essentially walked through sales of a particular item in my head so I wouldn’t forget anything

• Arrange with someone to take photographs of the events – I didn’t bring my camera – I remembered and then I forgot. Thank God for @feed_of_fid who volunteered to take photos. Eternally grateful.

Tip: Enlist the services of a friendly photographer

• Scope the venue and plan – I had been to the venue before so had a good understanding of its layout. What we did with the tememndous support of The Social Place Lagos team was to set up tables along the length of a concrete platform outside, leaving a walkway which led to the bar
• Set up – I had excellent hands to help. @Bastionofproclivity not only donated books but helped lay them out. On one side, we had the books categorised and priced, opposite we had the table with bakes and the craft table next to it. We ensured the main walkway was kept clear – everything that we didn’t require was put away or set (pushed…hidden from view 🙂 under the table.

Next Time I will: Prepare in case of an emergency – know the nearest hospital/ make sure a First Aider is on hand.

I was so thankful we didn’t even have a whiff of an emergency. This occurred to me when we were done and I’ve noted it for next time – at least have a box with band-aids and painkillers.

It was a lovely day altogether. The sales lasted about 4 hours.

It took me close to a week to recover:) but seeing the blankets and hearing they’d been sent was a might big consolation.

Want to see the recipes I used for the awesome bakes? Coming soon

 [wpurp-searchable-recipe]Preparing for a Book & Bake Sale – – – [/wpurp-searchable-recipe]